Drawing export?

[Anonymous]

Why is it not possible to export a drawing locally so it can be worked on without connecting to the cloud, we can export a model we are working on but not a drawing?

[kris_berg]

Hi @Anonymous,

Thank you for posting.  It is on our list.  The reason it has not been implemented yet is that a drawing requires the model to be exported at the same time and put into an archive (.f3z).  The model is required in order for us to create and update views, generate parts list,  as well as creation of associative annotations.  Once we have local .f3z export it should be possible for you to export a drawing locally.  I looked at the Idea Station for similar requests.  The closest request I could find was :  http://forums.autodesk.com/t5/ideastation-request-a-feature-or/saving-a-project-with-multiple-files-referenced/idc-p/6254359#M14644.  Feel free to create a new request so that we can identify the priority of this enhancement.  

[Anonymous]

Hi Kris, thanks for taking the time to reply.

I have to say this is very disappointing and has cost Autodesk a couple of Fusion 360 recommendations.

I was going to recommend the program to the company I am contracting for at the moment in the UK, and for a dam building contract in a remote part of Africa as a very close friend has picked up the conveyor contract.

This lack drawing functionality is a deal breaker because as hard as it may be to believe there are many circumstances where the internet is not available.

As for putting ideas into the idea station, I am done with that and actually think that system is holding the development of the software back.

Being able to manipulate an object from its COG/COM, broken views and exporting drawings locally so they can be worked on while users are in the field, are not things that should be classified as ideas, they should be classified as critical functionality to be implemented ASAP.

I have great respect for what Autodesk is doing with Fusion 360 and for the team but I do feel that somebody needs to take the bull by the horns and prioritise critical issues.

There also needs to be some understanding from the hierarchy sitting in comfortable offices with unlimited internet access about how the real world operates.

If I am working on a fish farm project on the Zambezi I am hardly likely to jump in my car and drive a couple of hundred miles so my CAD program can dial home so I can access my drawing!!!!

[kris_berg · Accepted solution]

Hi @Anonymous,

You should be able to work on your drawings locally now.  If you open a drawing, while you have connectivity, it will download all of the required files into your cache.  By default, those files should remain in your cache for 60 days (this is configurable via preferences).  By having those files in your cache, when you go offline those files will be available to you.  When offline you can still open, save, edit, etc.  We are actively working to improve the offline experience.  Some of those enhancements are discussed here in Prabakar's post http://forums.autodesk.com/t5/design-validate-document/this-is-what-we-re-doing-about-these-outages/m-p/6737325#M86222. 

Thanks again for posting and let me know if you have further questions. I want to help you resolve this issue.

[HughesTooling]

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@kris_berg wrote:

Hi @Anonymous,

You should be able to work on your drawings locally now.  If you open a drawing, while you have connectivity, it will download all of the required files into your cache.  By default, those files should remain in your cache for 60 days (this is configurable via preferences).  By having those files in your cache, when you go offline those files will be available to you.  When offline you can still open, save, edit, etc.  We are actively working to improve the offline experience.  Some of those enhancements are discussed here in Prabakar's post http://forums.autodesk.com/t5/design-validate-document/this-is-what-we-re-doing-about-these-outages/m-p/6737325#M86222. 

Thanks again for posting and let me know if you have further questions. I want to help you resolve this issue.

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@kris_berg I just tested out creating a new design, saving then creating a drawing while offline and it works quite well. A couple of drawbacks though. One, you only have access to projects when you save, no option to save into an existing folder within a project. Two you can't select a template for the drawing.

This is what I get if I select Browse for the template and pick a project with a template I want to use.

Thanks Mark

[kris_berg]

Thanks @HughesTooling for pointing these issues out.  I will share them with the team and try to get them resolved as part of our project to improve the offline experience.

[Anonymous]

Hi Kris, that’s some customer service, while other CAD vendors don’t even bother to answer users questions most of the time, our Fusion 360 people get things sorted out!

This will enable me to recommend the software to the UK company on Tuesday and I am sure they will go for it as they are still using AutoCAD 2d.

Unfortunately I will not be able to recommend the software to my African colleagues as they will have to travel a good distance for internet connection, all drawings and adjustments will have to be generated on site.

While that is disappointing your actions have helped those of us who work offline even when there is internet connectivity (safety and resources reasons), so thanks for that it will be a great help.

I would like to highlight the need for full time offline use; while many people think internet connectivity is going to get stronger I believe the opposite is true.

Imagine us trying to build ourselves out of the next ice age, using the internet after a serious nuclear event, connection problems when solar activity has increased to a point of disrupting the planets electronic devices or when the cloud is down because of hackers and such?

Onshape would be rendered useless, as would Fusion 360 after two weeks, then there are the normal problems associated with travelling to remote parts of the world where there is no internet connection available.

It is my hope the Autodesk hierarchy will see sense and offer Fusion 360 as a totally offline application as well as an internet dependant application.

I have run the development centre for what is probably one of the largest marketing companies in the world so am no stranger to strange marketing decisions and this internet dependency is one of them.

I see absolutely no reason why a company would want their customers to dial home every two weeks; in fact I think it is working against any company that implements such a system.

Autodesk should have two goals, to get the cash out of our pockets and to keep getting the cash out of our pockets, why should they care if we connect to the cloud every two weeks?

Please don’t think I am against the cloud or have security issues as I think the cloud is a fantastic idea and trust Autodesk implicitly.

Thanks for all your help this year and all the best to you for the coming year, may we have even more CAD fun in 2017 than we did in 2016.