Why my CADD is better than AuoCAD

This started in a thread in the annotation forum and someone suggested this topic, so as one who likes trowing rocks at bee hives, I took up the baton and am going to kick this off.

  • Can you reference the paperspace into another paperspace or a model?
  • Can you reference a file to itself?
  • Can you create multiple models in a single file?
  • Can you display linetypes on 3D polylines?
  • Can you create linetypes that represent real world objects and do not scale with Annotation scale?

Later, after others have added to this list, I will post AutoCAD features that I like that MicroStation does not offer...

Who's next?

Parents
  • Bingo! I just thought about this issue. This week, I was swamped with production work. But our AutoCAD license server kept turning itself off, and then, one of the guys from one of our other offices was platooned to our office for an AutoCAD project. So on three different days, he was on three different PC's. So on day 1, I had to run my special programs to configure Civil 3D to see our customizations. Had he been working in MicroStation, he would have simply launched from the standard icon.

    Day 2 he gets moved to a new PC. Repeat process. Day 3 new PC - but deadlines were at this point at critical mass - so he was forced to work with OTB software.


    Charles (Chuck) Rheault
    CADD Manager

    MDOT State Highway Administration

    • MicroStation user since IGDS, InRoads user since TDP.
    • AutoCAD, Land Desktop and Civil 3D, off and on since 1996
  • Unknown said:
    I have yet to find a way to move text from dimensions without in turn moving the entire dimension.

    As Lorys said, training, training, training....


    USE "modify element" you can change what you want, for dimensions!

    The red ones are related to dimensions, too

    Unknown said:
    ESC key in Microstation only gets you out of the

    Nobody needs this KEY if using Microstation as it is developed, training, training, and forget AutoCAD input mechanisms

    If you really have such basic questions, don't hesitate to open an new thread, you will find help.

    Regards

    Frank

    since 1985: GIS, CAD, Engineering (Civil)  Senior Consultant : [Autodesk Civil 3D , Esri ArcGIS, VertiGIS: in previous days : Bentley MS V4 - V8i, GeoGraphics, Bentley Map V8i, InRoads,  HHK Geograf, IBr DAVID] :  Dev: [C, C++, .NET, Java, SQL, FORTRAN, UML]
    [direct quote by: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helmut_Schmidt]: "Wer Kritik übel nimmt, hat etwas zu verbergen"
    Wer Grammatik- und/oder Rechtschreibfehler findet, der darf sie behalten :-)

  • I think there are so much more EXTRAS within Microstation compared to AutoCAD for almost the same money, Or what do you think.....

    Regards

    Frank

    since 1985: GIS, CAD, Engineering (Civil)  Senior Consultant : [Autodesk Civil 3D , Esri ArcGIS, VertiGIS: in previous days : Bentley MS V4 - V8i, GeoGraphics, Bentley Map V8i, InRoads,  HHK Geograf, IBr DAVID] :  Dev: [C, C++, .NET, Java, SQL, FORTRAN, UML]
    [direct quote by: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helmut_Schmidt]: "Wer Kritik übel nimmt, hat etwas zu verbergen"
    Wer Grammatik- und/oder Rechtschreibfehler findet, der darf sie behalten :-)

  • Unknown said:
    training, training, and forget AutoCAD input mechanisms

    If you really have such basic questions, don't hesitate to open an new thread, you will find help.

    Huh, if only. When the training, training is self-training, hard to believe but one really does have such basic questions and you've no idea how hungry one is for a few (intelligible) words from the wise, rather than cryptic
    Unknown said:
    Nobody needs this KEY if using Microstation as it is developed
    I'm left none the wiser.

    Unknown said:
    if you don't want the elements selected you only need to click on the open space of the view with the mouse

    And that - nothing like it for me. What am I missing?

  • I believe we are trying to compare different softwares for the same solutions. There are all a bunch of small and great details for me that makes me choose Ms everytime... But that's just me.

    Quite true for the hungry ones, I'm of them.

    José

  • Unknown said:
    I'm of them

    Greetings - sometimes I think I'm the only solo user of MS, let alone AECOsim!

Reply Children
  • The old Element selector would deselect if you clicked in space. To get the same behavior from Power Selector, set your mode, on the second row in the tool settings dialog box to New (Esc - H). All of the top row icons will work like that.

    If you leave the Power Selector set to using Individual + New and use of the Ctrl key to add or remove to the selection set, it is very similar to a selection process in many graphics programs


    Charles (Chuck) Rheault
    CADD Manager

    MDOT State Highway Administration

    • MicroStation user since IGDS, InRoads user since TDP.
    • AutoCAD, Land Desktop and Civil 3D, off and on since 1996
  • WOW! after 1.5yrs! is all that documented? Radical - thanks!

  • I know how to deselect.  What I am saying is that while ESC key works one way in about 98% of all other Microsoft Window OS Software, Bently has set up Microstation so that it does NOT work in that manner.  That is not meeting customer satisfaction nor expectation.  Perhaps each time I hit only the "T" key, it should type a "P" instead? Hmm.  But wait, in Microstation, if you hit your right mouse button + CTRL + T then left click twice in open drawing space, it will type a "T" - well sheesh...why don't we do that then?  It is simple, all you need is training to learn it - duh.

  • I learned MicroStation long before I really used AutoCAD. But now, I use both regularly, often Alt+Tab'ing between the two as I put out one fire while working on another task.

    When I return from an AutoCAD session, I sometimes find myself trying to key in commands - which I do sometimes do in MicroStation, but then I get to the end on my key-in and press the space bar and get frustrated when nothing happens.

    Alternatively, I get into AutoCAD after a long run of MicroStation and I keep wanting my commands to remain active and get frustrated when  I have to press the extra enter or space bar just to get a command to repeat.

    This also reminds me of my transition from years of Word Perfect to Microsoft Word and how I still miss the Reveal Codes feature. Or the first time I tried to use PowerPoint after using the DOS based Harvard Graphics. I still crack a smile when I think about how my assistant at the time, Greg, was as fumbled fingered as I was. We jokingly referred to it as the "Chuck & Greg" show. But in no time at all, we had developed a workflow and made a pretty reasonable presentation. But then they applied a template to it after we submitted it and the template screwed up a bunch of slides anyway!

    For many of us long time MicroStation users, changing some of these behaviors would be maddening.

    But don't try to tell me that AutoCAD's Grips tools are just like most other software selection handles.

    Bottom line, every program has its idiosyncrasies and if you need to work in a program, the more you learn, the more productive and valuable you will be.

    I knew this thread would be fun!  


    Charles (Chuck) Rheault
    CADD Manager

    MDOT State Highway Administration

    • MicroStation user since IGDS, InRoads user since TDP.
    • AutoCAD, Land Desktop and Civil 3D, off and on since 1996
  • Great - BeCommunities beginning to get almost like CadTutor! Like, people writing as if they want to be understood.