1st Post here - Need help with LT 2.0 - Any 'Oldsters' out there?

[sixsix]

1st time, long time...

I have some general type Q's about this old version - memory of it just isn't there:

First off, the file open dialog box doesn't show the full filenames - just a few recognizable characters, no spaces, a ~ ( tilde char. ) and a random #.

Is this because of it being a Win 3.1 ver. ( it came on 3.5" floppies )?  Don't recall when the 8 char. filename limit ended.

I have not tried changing the "acltdrv.ini" "GDI Driver" settings yet.

Am I stuck with it...?

Thanks in advance,

Mike

[Irish2]

Wow. It will be interesting to see if there is anyone alive who can help you out! LT2.0 - Windows 3.1...., glad all of those days are long gone myself! Good luck.

[Charles_Shade]

I think you answered my query to your other question.

You are stuck with the short file names.

Uncle Bill dropped that OS when he moved out of the garage and into the two room apartment.

BTW - You will need to edit the MNU (could be wrong on that one) and PGP files to add/change keyboard shortcut behaviour.

Dig down in the Archives of the AutoCAD Forum about your query:

http://forums.autodesk.com/t5/AutoCAD/ct-p/8

[sixsix]

Irish, that's funny - "...anyone alive" - LOL

It's just what the Co. needs - a small footprint CAD program that's cheap.  I pulled this one out of a Time Capsule called "My basement full o' Boxes".  No, we are not using Win 3.1, but rather XP SP3.  $50 seems reasonable - I paid over $500 for it.

And what was wrong with "those days" - it was a much simpler, easy time.  Don't get me wrong, I love and embrace High Technology, yet do not have service for the Cell phone I own ( a year old, but in a box somewhere down there )

Mike

Just watch as I 'Embrace' and quote your response...

Your, Irish2 , Post:

"Wow. It will be interesting to see if there is anyone alive who can help you out! LT2.0 - Windows 3.1...., glad all of those days are long gone myself! Good luck."

[pendean]

There are free CAD programs that are DWG-aware that run circle around LT2.0: we all paid small fortunes for many things back in the day, including software, but that is the worst reason on the planet to keep using most old clunkers.

Unless you have an aversion to making money by spending less time doing a task, I urge you to give up this course of action as soon as you can. Your "savings" as an illusion not based on actual use.

[sixsix]

Dean,

Are there any free ones that I can sit down with and IMMEDIATELY start drawing like a Pro?

Only reason I ask is - I already know Acad, since before LT, and this too, is free.  It also helps, since I will be showing our foreman and sales guy how to open a file and get info, etc, etc from it.  At least if they do sometime want to draw something - I can help - with confidence.

There were just 4 "niggling" things I couldn't remember if we had them back then or if we programmed around them somehow:                and...If not - oh well - it was still worth it to spend a few minutes, join a nice forum and talk with brethren...

- Escape key / ctrl-c / cancel

- Long filenames

- Mouse scrolling

- Osnap / running "Markers"

And Dean, I really liked your 2nd paragraph - Very well put and 100% correct.  Just how much is MY time worth.

Sincerely, Mike

[pendean · Accepted solution]

There are two you should be able to hit and use right away: I'm nice to our hosts so I won't give you names or links, but one is from a French Company you would associate with Aircraft and Aviation, very AutoCAD R14 like 🙂

[sixsix]

LOL - I have looked at Dassault's CATIA in the past.  I honestly didn't notice it being like Acad.

Goodness - it has to be pricey...  I haven't searched all day for it - who knows, maybe I'll stumble onto a downloadable free small footprint version of it.

Ah yes, being nice to the hosts...

Mike

[mmelechinsky]

The free 2D program is called DraftSight.  It is an AutoCAD clone.  For the most part you would be hard pressed to tell the difference and it can read/write DWG files to version 2010.  And it is free.  Did I mention it is free?

[mmelechinsky]

I have all six 3.5" floppy disks for AutoCAD LT Release 2 for Windows 3.1 sitting in a drawer right next to me.  Now if only I had an old clunker of a computer I could run it on.  I may have to take a trip to the dump and pick one out of the recycle bin.  LoL

[pendean]

Now I said free: last time I looked CATIA was not free. Did you overshoot the mark? See the replies above for the correct software.

Try a Google search, finding free CAD software is not rocket science. Try before you commit.

[sixsix]

Thank You Dean,

I will download this "very highly regarded" DraftSight program and see how the learning curve is.  Seems to have quite a bit of support and a large following.

Yes, I did a fair amount of Googling, but just checking out all these offerings is taking forever.  Meanwhile, the guys are happy with Acad LT 2.0 - be it ever so humble...

Seems MY biggest stumbling block is using my own Acad 2000 to generate and having to 'think' of how the simple 2D mechanical parts and BOM drawings will look to them after I save it as a Acad R12 / LT 2.0 DXF and they open it in the office with Acad LT 2.0.  Took afew trial and errors, but No Problems since.

Charles Shade also gave me 2 names that might help in the future and should have some info in the archives.

Thanks again,

Mike

[pendean]

>>>.. the guys are happy with Acad LT 2.0...<<<

The Church Secretary is happy cutting and pasting (scissors and paper-glue) the church bulletin every week;

An old-time Engineer friend still likes to draw with pencil and paper and pin-mounted drawings;

My neighbor still likes to use an air/noise-polluting 20-year old lawn mower to mow his yard TWICE a week (he never waters, so I'm not sure what is getting mowed).

At some point, being 'happy" also means a fear of upgrading skills to do a better job faster and more efficiently serving and servicing customers: nothing wrong with it by any means if you like being stuck in a rut (no cashflow goes hand-in-hand with no increase in productivity IMHO), but it allows the rest of us a greater opportunity to capture customers not normally available to us.

Happy Cadding!

[sixsix]

Dean,

As usual, you make SOME very keen observations...  actually I feel like I should be 'laying on the

analyst's couch' when I open your posts.  LOL

This LT 2.0 is, I feel, just a stepping stone for them.  It was free and it got the job done for, now get

this, 3 very simple 2D drawings/bom.  I know the program very well and it was the only thing I had

'loadable media' for on very short notice.

We're only talking a couple of hours to load it, make the dwgs, transfer the files and give a quick

lesson on distances and dims.  It took me much longer trying to get answers here ( no offense

intended ).  Those "problems" I had were never a hangup.

Of course, now that they have had a taste...   I could go on for much longer about what they want

to do NOW and the difficulties - using "Old Free Software" - I discussed with them, but the bottom

line is and we all agree, they should upgrade.

 A side note and "The Clincher":  ( kinda' funny and sad at the same time ) These were conversations I heard between our sales guy and 1st, a prospective customer, then a forging vendor: "Yes, yes, we got the file, but, no we cannot open either the D-W-G or the D-X-F thingie".  "Would you please resend them, er, save them in A-U-T-O-C-A-D version 11, 12 or 2.0 L-T format, sorry and resend them"?   "Good, good, good and be sure to include any linetype files, ya know the DOT LIN......."  And so it went - on and on.

And so it has, in a very short time, gone from faxes and taking photos of A, B, C and D size paper

drawings and emailing them - to putting it succinctly - "Electronic Engineering".

There have been a few suggestions made in my 3 posts as to later software.  I am not sure what

my co's. 'price point' is, but I think there are a few obvious choices:

- Acad - New
- DraftSight or comparable - full license
- 2nd hand Acad 2000 or later
- Latest or a few years old, Acad LT

Do you have any to add or can you say?

Thanks for 'Listening' and pray for me: I'm going up on the roof to adjust the rabbit ears antennae... I use my Drafting Table and CO2 fire extinguisher to stand on for a boost.  HMMM... there's my old cellphone in the gutter - musta' dropped it last time.  Kinda' missed having one, what with the pinball game n' all.  - gosh, what's it been - 2 years honey?  ... nahhhhh... 3, I'm thinking.

Mike

[mmelechinsky]

ACAD?  A full seat of 2013 will set you back almost four grand.  Even LT has surpassed the one thousand dollar price point (list price: $1200).  Can you afford either?

DraftSight (the 2D) version is free.

You could look at other AutoCAD clones like progeCAD, IntelliCAD, Bricscad, or alike.  You'll spend in the neighborhood of $500 give or take.

Forget trying to pick up, on the cheap, old copies of either LT or full AutoCAD.  First...they may be duplicate copies (i.e. - illegal).  Second...depending on the version, even if it were legit you may not be able to get an activation code from AutoDesk.  One last factor is there is no support for versions prior to 2010.  Support for 2009 was just dropped back in March or April when 2013 was released.

[Charles_Shade]

I beg to differ on the Support issue.

I believe that there is plenty of support.

[mmelechinsky]

Well I guess that just depends on what your definition of support is.

[gsharp1953]

Wow, impressed that your STILL running LT2, and yes its a filename 8.3 limitation and yes Draftsight you will be completely at home with. No ribbon 🙂