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Software Review: 'Test Driving' Preview Software
01/8/2009
by Leslie Gordon,
Sr Editor, Machine Design Autodesk Labs lets users give the
developer’s 'preview software a whirl, online, before its official
distribution. Designers in industries such as engineering, architecture,
manufacturing, automotive, and entertainment will find plenty of nifty
programs to try.
Project Draw is the first to catch my eye. Click the
link with that name to access a vector-based drawing
program that lets you create simple floor plans, circuit
diagrams, and the like, without having to download
anything. A few YouTube videos introduce the program and
include such topics as how to work with pictures and how
to design a deck. Another video shows how to share
drawings via e-mail directly from the program. The
videos made the tasks seem easy. Open Project Draw by
clicking on the Try It link.
A finished drawing in Project Draw is being sent via e-mail The page layout is straightforward. Toolbars for common tasks
align along the top of the canvas. On the left side is a Shape palette.
A Properties dialog box at the bottom left dynamically changes
attributes, such as page grid and shape width, depending on whether
users are focusing on the canvas or on different shapes. To add a basic
shape such as a rectangle or a circle to the canvas, choose Basic
Shapes, click on the shape, and drag it to the canvas. Click the
drop-down arrow on the selection box to see other predefined shape
palettes such as Flowchart, Callouts/Arrows, and Floor Layout. Changing
an attribute of a shape just takes typing the new number in the dialog
box and then pressing the Update button.
To add lines to a drawing, click on the line, polyline, or
curved-connectors icon on the toolbar, then move the mouse over the
drawing board. Click to establish one end point and drag to the intended
length. Directly above the canvas is a display of instructions as you
work. This is handy for getting confused users back on track. To
precisely move a line or shape, click on it and then tap the appropriate
arrow key on the keyboard. Return to Select Mode to clear a previous
command.
The saving of a drawing on the server necessitates creating a log-in
name and password. Dialog boxes walk you painlessly through this
process. Once a drawing is saved, a click on an icon opens links to your
saved files. To send a file to a colleague, open the file and click on
another icon above the file’s link. As a test, I sent a drawing to my
personal e-mail address and received a message with the link to the file
residing on the Project Draw server.
Project Draw can work closely with Project Freewheel, another
application on Autodesk Labs. Project Freewheel lets users see and
collaborate with design data without installing additional software.
Users can import DWF files from their local machines or the Web and
manipulate them directly with Project Freewheel in Draw. Users can pan,
zoom, and rotate models, just as they would in Project Freewheel. Click
on the create new shape button and the Freewheel box disappears.
Selecting the DWF drawing lets users change its background color and
transparency. Double clicking on the drawing opens it again in
Freewheel.
Users can pan, zoom, and rotate models stored in Project Freewheel directly in Project Draw
Freewheel is also a web service that lets users embed
an interactive viewer of their own design data in HTML
pages. This is just a matter of clicking the file icon
in Autodesk Labs, typing in a URL to a public file or
uploading a file from your local computer, and then
pasting some code into your HTML.
Of the two apps, I especially like Project Draw. It is easy to use
and intuitive. Because the relatively powerful vector-based program is
available free for use on the Web, it seems to bolster the theory that
all software might eventually end up as an online service.
Article edited by
Leslie Gordon,
Sr Editor, Machine Design
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Article reprinted by permission of Penton Media,
publisher of Machine Design |
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