Separate WPF application for manipulation with DWG
Accepted solution
So, you want to build a desktop app, that read DWG file, and show the geometries in the app's UI, and even be able to do some basic graphical editing. In this sense, being WPF, or Win Form (or whatever UI technology) does not matter. What is matters is, with AutoCAD API, you cannot build AutoCAD itself (even very basic/simple one).
You can only use the APIs WITH AutoCAD. So, if you can have a stand-alone app, that control AutoCAD (automate AutoCAD) with AutoCAD COM API. There are some third party desktop app that work with DWG file in the same way as AutoCAD (InteliCAD, and its variations). Do you know how much effort was needed to do that? Just the same as someone re-invent AutoCAD.
Even you try to render data in DWG file in as most simple way in your UI as you can, it would probably take a development team working great number of days, of not years.
Realistically, whatever you want to do with DWG file, using AutoCAD probably is your only option (other than re-invent AutoCAD) and you can take advantage of its rich API support to let AUtoCAD do thing in more effecient way as you wish. The task you described can be easily done with an stand-alone app that automate AutoCAD (that is, the work is done in AutoCAD, your app only control AutoCAD), but it in general is done better only with AutoCAD, because if you need AutoCAD to run to do these things, why do you need and stand-alone app, a extra app for user to deal with?
