Installation & Licensing

[#1]

I have been using the AutoCAD 2008 student version for several months. Print-outs from this product are forced to include the banner "Produced by an AutoDesk Educational Product". Ok, suitable for the student version, no complaints. However, I recently I purchased AutoCAD LT 2010. I need to be able to open my old 2008 files in 2010. However, when I do this, or even when I try and copy and paste some of the old work into a new 2010 file, I still am forced to have the old 'student' banner! on prints. Help! The whole reason I bought AutoCAD 2010 is because I am moving now from student to professional. I can't be stuck with this educational banner on prints -- but I DO need to access, and continue to work, on some old files.

[#2]

Hi,

If you read the agreement you will see that file based on educational
version are only for educational.
If you can do what you say, why purchase commercial version ? Just buy one
commercial and the other are educational.
Although you can contact Autodesk and they can accept with two utilities to
remove the banner after sign a form and only for one shot.

Best regards
Franck Hervet

"dunny1" a écrit dans le message de groupe de discussion :
6374948@discussion.autodesk.com...
> I have been using the AutoCAD 2008 student version for several months.
> Print-outs from this product are forced to include the banner "Produced by
> an AutoDesk Educational Product". Ok, suitable for the student version, no
> complaints. However, I recently I purchased AutoCAD LT 2010. I need to be
> able to open my old 2008 files in 2010. However, when I do this, or even
> when I try and copy and paste some of the old work into a new 2010 file, I
> still am forced to have the old 'student' banner! on prints. Help! The
> whole reason I bought AutoCAD 2010 is because I am moving now from student
> to professional. I can't be stuck with this educational banner on
> prints -- but I DO need to access, and continue to work, on some old
> files.

[#3 · Accepted solution]

Dunny1,

I always try to hammer home to my students that you cannot, under any circumstances, share your edu version files with those who are using a commercial version- and that includes future users. Autodesk has made software available for student learning for free for a few years now and that's admirable. Part of the agreement is that the data created by that can't be used for commercial purposes. That would include legacy data that you created with the edu version, be it an hour ago, or two years ago. Otherwise, what's to stop people from using the edu version in the morning and then importing that into a commercial version later that same day with the reasoning of "Well, I was a student this morning, but this afternoon I intend to make money from the software". That would be a violation of the agreement.

That's the bad news (which, as I see it isn't really bad news). The good news is that it'll take you a LOT less time to draw something over again than it took you the first time to do it!

[#4]

Hi,
I work for a company that has used AutoCad for designing Fire Sprinkler Systems for over 20 years. We have a multi-user licence and share drawing files via a network. It is a routine practice for us to coordinate our work with several other trades while developing our design drawings.
Until recently,this practice has worked very well for all involved in the process.

About 6 to 8 months ago we recieved a coordination drawing from a company which appearently has been using a student version of the software. Not having encountered this problem in the past, we were unaware of the ultimate consequences of working with the first and several additional files of this type. The "educational" water mark or stamp has attached itself to many of our drawings and has actually crossed over to "infect" other contract drawing sets pruduced by our design group.

In my oppinion, Autodesk is using us, their licensed paying customers, to be in effect, policemen or some kind of tool to filter out the unauthorized use of their product.

Does Autodesk have a solution for such a scenario? I noticed one comment which suggested that contacting Autodesk may be the best solution, that they could provide a one time fix. After that one time fix, then what? Is it every man for himself ?
They should provide a utility to licensed users to protect them from this threat. A warning that the opening of a drawing produced with an educational product will cause the drawing to be plotted with an identifying stamp is insufficient.

[#5]

In addition of the warning, you can use a tools that Autodesk can gives you to detect file that have the problem.
This is not a one shot.
His name is EMRFIND. It's a command line utility.

Franck Hervet

[#6]

AutoDesk understands the importance of getting the software into the hands of students.  Using the "Educational Edition" plot stamp is an excellent and a simple method of implementing the student edition software.  Having worked for decades in education and the software businesses, this is a very cost effective method of implementing this.

The only way society works is when we all abide by the laws.  If the only reason we did what was right was to have the police looking over our shoulders results in a police state.  To cry about AutoDesk making the paying customers of the software to police their software is a poor excuse for professionals "getting caught with their hand in the cookie jar."  Yes, I realize that one company got burnt because some other business partner used an Education Edition of AutoCAD and it has now "infected" all the drawings. 

If you get caught holding counterfeit money, the government does not replace the money for you.  As complex as fire systems are and since they have life-and-death impact in buildings, you would think you could educate your employees and partners about the importance of using legal software.  If you can train the installer to install the fires systems correctly, you can also train your employees and partners to use legal software.

If AutoDesk did not have the policies that they currently have concerning the Education Editions, you would be paying twice as much or more for the legal copies of the software.  How long do you think you would stay in business if every Tom, **** and Harry were stealing sprinkler components from your warehouse?  Putting a padlock on a warehouse is easy, butting a padlock on software is another issue.  AutoDesk put a padlock on their software.   If you don't like it, use the competitor's CAD software instead.

[#7]

Does anyone know if the AutoCad student versions are upgradeable to the full non-student version?  I have a sales rep telling me that my license is not upgradeable but I think he is lieing to me.

[#8]

The student edition is free for classroom use only. If you need AutoCAD for work you need to buy a regular license. The education edition prints "Education Edition" around the perimeter and there is no way to remove this. So your guy is correct in saying that there is no way to upgrade them. Dr. Warner Smidt, professor of building construction, UW-Platteville Sent from my iPad