I have installed AutoCAD Electrical 2023. Now I have a new desktop, although I didn't plan it.
Did I not take something into account when installing the program?
To be completely frank and honest, I am disappointed with every year's version. I'm still using 2021 because what's the point of migration when there's nothing new? And in point of fact, if it were possible, I'd still be on 2017. In my experience, this software seems to get less stable as time goes on and this strongly incentivizes me to not upgrade.
Only a few years ago I was kind of on the fence, but more and more it's getting to the point where, if my employer asked me whether we should spend more money on a different software, I'd be inclined to say yes. Of course, the problem there is that no one wants to spend more if they can get by with what they have.
And so the salient question becomes, how long can they continue to 'just get by' with this software? Eventually those of us who are really cognizant with its ins and outs are going to retire, or change careers, or end up with an employer using other software. Younger folks don't really seem to grasp how ACAD and ACADE work, and many of them seem to expect the software to do more work for them than ACADE does. This is especially true for those who have experience with competing software. Things that were intuitive in other programs are difficult in ACADE, or not even possible. All users have to manage all their own catalog data because there are no convenient links or portals that keep product information up to date. To this day, the default ACADE catalog holds scores of obsolete components and product lines, while not including newer ones that are gaining in popularity every day.
When I first started using Vanilla ACAD back at the turn of the century, it seemed like there were patches and hotfixes multiple times per year. And that's when they weren't releasing 'new' versions on a yearly basis. Maybe I'm old (actually yes for sure I'm old) but I miss the old days when this software felt like it was actually being ... developed. ACADE doesn't even really feel like it's being maintained.
These days, it's just a means to an end, the one chosen by my employer and/or their bean counters, and not necessarily the best thing available.
Jim Seefeldt
Electrical Engineering Technician
That's how it used to be - we only got new releases every few years and with each one there were significant changes to the software. There were also relatively frequent patches to support this. Back then, you also got 'real' software licenses, instead of subscriptions. Meaning, if you didn't like the direction the software was going, or if they introduced a buggy release, you could just keep your happy butt on the older version for as long as needed, or forever.
Now, with subscription-based software, we are all unwilling business partners with Autodesk. Should anything happen to their servers, their clouds, etc that prevents us from signing in, we can't work. Our ability to use this software is completely dependent on the health of Autodesk and its technology.
It's not a choice I would willingly make, but then, it wasn't one that was offered to me. From where I sit, this was all done in the pursuit of profit, rather than the goal of making a superior product, because ACADE has become demonstrably worse as a software package since that change. It's quite clear that whatever extra money they get from subscription licensing doesn't go towards improving ACADE.
It must be noted, of course, that Autodesk isn't the only company who does licensing like this. However, that doesn't excuse sacrificing the quality and integrity of your product. Most others don't, and the fact that we see it happening here says quite a lot about the state of Autodesk as a company and the 'relationship' they have with their customers.
Jim Seefeldt
Electrical Engineering Technician
