I really don't understand why Autodesk doesn't just use AutoCAD or something like it as the 2D sketching portion of it's Inventor product. I used AutoCAD years ago before moving to SolidWorks for the past 7 years and have very recently started a new job that uses Inventor. I was hopeful that some of my old AutoCAD knowledge would be useful during the transition but it is basically like Autodesk reinvented the wheel and made it square. Even if they couldn't build Inventor off of AutoCAD why not at least make 2d sketching look and function the same way. I know I will be told this is not a place to rant & "Inventor is not AuotCAD" but my question is why couldn't it be? Thousands of people already know how to use AutoCAD so it would seem like Autodesk could really use that as an advantage when trying to convince businesses to select Inventor over their competition. And I am not ranting just posing a question.
@Anonymous wrote:
... just posing a question.
Hi @Anonymous,
Welcome to the forum.
You're posting to a 10 year old thread.
I am extremely proficient with AutoCAD and Inventor, but I simply use Inventor and AutoCAD differently. They are different programs created and maintained differently, they just happen to be owned by the same company.
Often when we switch between applications its our own bias that holds us back. That was the case when I went from AutoCAD to Solidworks, and then later to Inventor. And these days I still suffer the same thing when going from Inventor to Fusion, etc. We just have to recognize this, adapt and overcome it.
Anyway, it's far too late for Inventor to "just use AutoCAD or something like it as the 2D sketching portion". Inventor while possibly new to you, is a rather mature application at this point, with many many users that know it inside and out, so making changes to the foundation of it is not practical.
Plus many of us like Inventor's sketcher.
I hope this helps.
Best of luck to you in all of your Inventor pursuits,
Curtis
http://inventortrenches.blogspot.com
@Anonymous
First it would help if you didn't reply to a 10 year old posting and that most of the users who did participated in this old posting have archived accounts.
Secondly.. You have your opinion and that's fine to share and voice. Yes we may see your posting as ranting but right now that's what it comes across as.
In the end I'm not going to tell you that Inventor is not AutoCAD and AutoCAD is not Inventor (ok i just did ) but I have to ask why do you think it needs to be this way or the need for AutoCAD 2D inside of Inventor? Share what sketching workflow you are struggling with that if AutoCAD was inside of Inventor it would make your life easier.. Meaning don't sound like you are complaining, share the struggles and that will help us understand what you are making these statments.
For my opinion.. I've used AutoCAD since release 9 and Inventor since 2008. Yes maybe there was a couple of times some AutoCAD functions may have helped me when I started out but for the 10/11 years I've been using Inventor I never really wished AutoCAD 2D was inside of Inventor (but that's my opinion )
Mark Lancaster
& Autodesk Services MarketPlace Provider
Autodesk Inventor Certified Professional & not an Autodesk Employee
Likes is much appreciated if the information I have shared is helpful to you and/or others
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@Anonymous wrote:
Please tell me I missed it.
Hi milton.hogan,
Since you said please, I want to tell you that...but then Mark.Lancaster would say my "pants are on fire". So no there is not format painter, at least not in the sense that you're asking.
There is likely a way to do whatever you're after though.
Start a brand new thread and ask your question, and be specific about what you're doing:
I hope this helps.
Best of luck to you in all of your Inventor pursuits,
Curtis
http://inventortrenches.blogspot.com
Hi Milton,
AutoCAD is a wonderful CAD program. We just celebrate its 35th birthday. There is nothing wrong liking AutoCAD. Do you have access to AutoCAD? You can still keep drafting in AutoCAD and then link the dwg file to Inventor via DWG Underlay workflow.
Inventor and its competitors are 3D feature-based parametric solid modelers specializing in aiding design for manufactured objects. The geometry created in Inventor cannot just look nice or look right. It has to be precise and logical. The geometry has to be within tight tolerance (10E-5mm) in order to serve as an ideal virtual build for manufacturing purpose. Sketch constraints and parametric dimensions help establish logical relationship between geometry. It may feel cumbersome at first. But, the ability to update geometry by changing parameter will save you a lot of redraw time.
Since you mentioned you used Solidworks before, Inventor should be fairly similar in terms of sketching. Could you give us specific examples that you have trouble with? Inventor is not perfect. Nor is any CAD on the market perfect. We always look for room to improvement.
Many thanks!
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