Issue #2: 10 May, 1995.
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Intergraph Becomes Object-Oriented
At the semiannual Intergraph user group love-in (aka IGUG), Intergraph publicly unveiled Jupiter, its object-oriented extensions to their CAD system. As described in the April '95 issue of the CAD++ Newsletter, Jupiter is an industry-developed extension to Microsoft's OLE spec that lets one NT-based CAD program view, rotate, and shade objects from another CAD program.
Intergraph plans to release new software based on the Jupiter technology beginning later this year. We think this new aggressiveness from Intergraph is great but does it make sense?
Here are some objections (pardon the pun) we have: OLE v2 is a great way to slow your computer system. OLE only works under Windows (and this spec works only on NT) and not on Mac, Unix, OS/2, DOS. And OLE has a fundamental flaw: it requires that the other application be launched in full. Can you imagine having a MicroStation NT-based Intergraph app, AutoCAD for Windows NT, and Windows NT -- running all at the same time while passing multi-megabyte drawings back and forth via the OLE conduit? The mind boggles.
We'll be watching with interest how well the new Intergraph software operates.
Who's Emerging as the New CAD Leader?
Computervision has already begun shipping vertical apps based on their object-oriented CAD toolkit, Polerus. As noted above, Intergraph is releasing in six months software based on their new object-oriented Jupiter technology. Bentley is now in beta-test for their new object-oriented ObjectiveMDL API for MicroStation v6 due next summer. Meanwhile, Autodesk has stumbled with Release 13's object orientation.
Are you getting the sense of deja vu yet that I'm getting? Back in 1982, Autodesk released AutoCAD v1.0 and began the slow and steady job of unseating Computervision and Intergraph from their thrones as kings of the CAD world. Now, in 1995, the old "elephantCAD" companies are taking over from Autodesk, as Polerus and Jupiter pull ahead of Autodesk's ARx in the race to convert to object-oriented CAD. Who'd have thunk it?
Did LT R2 Deserve to be Released?
There have been several reviews of AutoCAD LT Release 2 printed in the media but many were based on Autodesk's glowing press release. Now that we have a real shipping version of LT R2 running, let's take a quick run-down of what's worth it and what isn't...
Fundamentally, LT R2 is a disappointment to seasoned AutoCAD users and should have been named "Release 1.5". Like LT R1, R2 is based on AutoCAD Release 12c4 for Windows. It lacks R13 compatibility and an API, both promised by Autodesk CEO Carol Bartz at last year's press event at A/E/C Systems.
Autodesk's Marketing department doesn't see the lack of R13 compatibility as a problem: "Just use R13's SaveAsR12 command," they respond. They make the false assumption that LT users will have access to Release 13 to make the translation, which works poorly at best. And here's a good one to try: create an associative hatch in R13, export to LT R2 and the associative hatching is lost -- even though LT R2 supports now supports associative hatching -- because the SaveAsR12 command strips out the associativity.
Other notes:
- LT R2 ships on a CD-ROM and a diskette (for "personalization"). That's trendy but the entire LT R2 package takes up only 12MB (three ZIPed diskettes worth) on the 680MB compact disc. Real estate for sale!
- More on-line tutorials than you can shake a stick at ... the standard Windows help file ... the Tutorial, unchanged from R1 ... the Orientation that helps you make the switch from paper to CAD ... Cue Cards (hidden away in the Help file) ... Tool Tips ... and What's New, brief descriptions of new features. Each has a different user interface; some of them plant themselves in the middle of the screen and can't be moved off to the side.
- "Direct distance entry" and "tracking" are two features taken name-intact from Generic CADD and not found Release 13. These may (or may not) have been added in response to Bentley's new PowerDraft, which has similar features.
- SlideLib.Exe and DxfIx.Exe are still DOS-based. I thought this was supposed to be a Windows-based program.
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