AutoCAD 2011 Cosmetic changes

The grid has been reworked. Instead of dots, it looks like graph paper. It’s on by default in acad.dwt, which is meant to show it off, but is kind of annoying if you don’t use the grid that much. Of course, you can open acad.dwt,  turn off the grid by clicking the Grid button on the status bar, and save. This won’t affect existing templates, because the grid setting is saved in the drawing.

AutoCAD 2011 grid

The default color of the background has changed yet again. Third time in three years. This is a touchy subject with many users! This time it’s dark gray. I stick to white because it makes for better images.
The UCS icon looks a little different. No arrows. Maybe they think it looks more modern.

AutoCAD 2011 UCS icon

The Help system is Web-based. You’ll be opening HTML files. As long as you’re connected to the Internet, they’ll be from Autodesk’s Web site. The new system takes a little getting used to.
There are 5 new predefined visual styles: shades of gray, sketchy, x-ray, shaded  with edges, shaded. These just mean that you can usually find a look you like without creating a custom visual style. The x-ray visual style is especially nice for working in 3D; it gives you a sense of the solidarity of objects (unlike wireframe), yet you can see the back sides and edges of objects.

eDrawings for SketchUp

eDrawings for Google SketchUp provides an innovative way to share your designs. You can publish your SketchUp models to eDrawings files that can be packed into a self-executable (.exe). The self-executable file contains the viewer as well as the design data.This ensures that the recipients of such a files do not need to purchase or install any viewer to see the model.
Review enabled eDrawings files allow an unlimited number of recipients to easily query product designs and provide feedback. With eDrawings, the end recipients don’t need to buy any additional software for design review, markup, measurement and dynamic cross sectioning.
eDrawings also provides you with greater control over your design information by disabling measurement and STL export as well as password protection.
Save eDrawings files as self extracting executables and zip files that contain the viewer as well as design data. With eDrawings executables, the end recipient does not need to download or install any additional software. Exporting to various image formats and STL is also available. eDrawings files can also be saved as HTML files for sharing on your websites and intranets.

Google SketchUp 5, SketchUp 6 & SketchUp 7 support (for both Free & Professional versions) View, publish and share exact read-only representations of SketchUp models for design review and collaboration.   Ultra Compact Files Export your models to eDrawings to generate ultra compact (upto 95% compression) representations for sharing over email.   Add Markup Comments for Design Review and Collaboration Add markup elements, such as geometric elements, clouds, text and dimensions to your comments using the markup tool.   Measurement Measure geometry. Use in-built filters for easy selection of vertices, edges, faces and holes. This option can be disabled while publishing to eDrawings.   Dynamic Cross-Section View cross sections of models by creating a variety of cross section planes.   Password Protection & Data Security Password protect your eDrawings. Disable measurement and STL export of eDrawings files to protect sensitive data.   Save as EXE/ZIP with Built-in Viewer eDrawings offers a complete, self-contained communication tool since no other viewing software is needed. eDrawings files can be saved as self extracting executables and zip files that contain the viewer as well as design data for sharing & collaboration.   Save as STL, HTML, BMP/JPEG/TIFF format eDrawings can be exported by the eDrawings Viewer as HTML/STL/BMP/JPG/TIFF files.   Move, Show and Hide Components Move, Show & Hide components to understand assembly structure more quickly   Insert Stamps Insert your company logos and images as stamps in the eDrawings file.   eDrawings publishers are also available for Pro/ENGINEER, CATIA V5, Unigraphics/NX, Autodesk Inventor, Solid Edge, CoCreate, KOMPAS & for STEP/IGES/STL formats. Free download