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
  • Just to share other things autocad cannot do:

    - reference something, then switch off the snap or select tick.

    - add and minus from displaysets

    - select by layer (I think autocad can't)

    - add vertex to dimension is nice discovery.

    - grouping is handier than blocks.

    And to be fair, things I really wish in microstation that autocad has:

    - tables.  I hate microstation tags. Autocad tables are awesome

    - blocks are v cool in autocad too.

    - I don't love editing microstation dimensions and text, although I'm not sure autocad is any better

  • Unknown said:
    Tables.  I hate microstation tags. Autocad tables are awesome

    What's the link between AutoCAD tables and MicroStation tags?

     
    Regards, Jon Summers
    LA Solutions

  • Hi Jon,

    I know there other tools like FlexiTable to get data out of MIcrostation :).  but for out of the box features, this is what I needed to do some times:

    - i have a survey with RL text on there, but the survey is flat.  I need a 3d model from the info.  

    - so i open the survery in Autocad.  i use their tables feature to export just the text into a tabulated Excel.  The text represent Z value.  X and Y comes from their position in local CAD file.

    - import into GC and GC will read the excel and output points along XYZ

    - reimport points into Micrstation and make a mesh from points.

    so.. if i was to use Microstation.. i would somehow need to play with tags etc.. to be honest its been a number of years i tried exporting this kind of data from Microstation, and back in v8, it was laborious and limiting.  I dont think its been updated in v8i, so i havent used it.  Nevertheless Autocad tables and the way you can get data out of it is far more superior.

    Ken

  • What is RL and GC?

    If you like Bentley Applications you can do this 2D to 3D  easily with InRoads. Sure Tags have to drop to Text, first.

    We have a little VBA-Tag-Tool that synchronises Tag-values interpreted as Z- and changes attached Cells to that Z-Value, vice versa.

    If you like to know more open a new thread in the Bentley Road and Design Forum

    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:
    I have a survey with RL text

    A VBA macro could export text elements with the coordinates of each.  Assuming that RL text, what ever that is, represents height data, you could shuffle those data in Excel and then reimport as 3D coordinates.

    The VBA macro could probably do all the above in one operation.

    Unknown said:
    I would somehow need to play with tags

    It remains unclear why you think tags should be involved.

     
    Regards, Jon Summers
    LA Solutions

Reply
  • Unknown said:
    I have a survey with RL text

    A VBA macro could export text elements with the coordinates of each.  Assuming that RL text, what ever that is, represents height data, you could shuffle those data in Excel and then reimport as 3D coordinates.

    The VBA macro could probably do all the above in one operation.

    Unknown said:
    I would somehow need to play with tags

    It remains unclear why you think tags should be involved.

     
    Regards, Jon Summers
    LA Solutions

Children
  • HI Jon,

    to be honest i dont play with VBA much.  but even if i did, i need speed and ease of use, mainly because if i set a workflow, and i would like others in my team to learn it. and advocating VBA for most people isnt a great idea. Further i think GUI is very important, so having to use VBA is a bit of a optional tool, rather than a core tool in my opinion.   In autocad, exporting this data is really easy and highly flexible.  So if i had to choose, id still choose the Autocad method.  the method im using in autocad only scraps the surface of how it exports data.  

    as for tags, i think you got me.  maybe it doesnt involve it.  last time i tried export areas dynamically linked to excel i used tags.  so i assumed this would be the case.  hence when i said, somehow need to play with tags.. because id have to figure it out if it was the case or not.  My apologies.  

  • Since nothing is off topic here, and someone else brought up VBA, here's one I consider a "biggy".

    Search for AutoCAD VBA's vs MicroStation VBA's. Ever notice how the former seems microscopic when compared to the latter? I believe one reason is that when AutoCAD introduced VBA, the left out one little feature - macro record!

    So you cannot record a VBA macro in AutoCAD and with just a little tweak, have a universal tool. What kind of crap is that?

    I know that AutoCAD has Lisp and visual lisp, but the true gurus in those languages are almost 100% in the AutoCAD user industries.

    Often, a VBA question can be answered on any forum that is for a product that supports VBA. Try that with lisp or visual lisp. And the skillset for VBA and VB is pretty universal. How many of you out there who regularly program MicroStation with VBA never tried programming Excel? Or Word? I'll bet the percentage who only program in VBA on one application is actually pretty small.


    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:

    Since nothing is off topic here, and someone else brought up VBA, here's one I consider a "biggy".

    Search for AutoCAD VBA's vs MicroStation VBA's. Ever notice how the former seems microscopic when compared to the latter? I believe one reason is that when AutoCAD introduced VBA, the left out one little feature - macro record!

    So you cannot record a VBA macro in AutoCAD and with just a little tweak, have a universal tool. What kind of crap is that?

    I know that AutoCAD has Lisp and visual lisp, but the true gurus in those languages are almost 100% in the AutoCAD user industries.

    Often, a VBA question can be answered on any forum that is for a product that supports VBA. Try that with lisp or visual lisp. And the skillset for VBA and VB is pretty universal. How many of you out there who regularly program MicroStation with VBA never tried programming Excel? Or Word? I'll bet the percentage who only program in VBA on one application is actually pretty small.

    Since you brought up VBA, I'll expand on it even further....

    Yes, the lack of a macro recorder is a "biggy", but as someone whose done extensive programming in both there are some other problems in AutoCAD VBA.

    1. If you want a user to be able to enter text into a text field or combo box on a userform the form has to be modal.

    2. The AutoCAD VBA help system is very sparse. Take a look at the MicroStation VBA help and there is no comparison.

    3. Many AutoCAD VBA methods return a Variant object. Combine that with the lack of VBA help and you're at the mercy of Google often times to figure out what is actually being returned.

    Rod Wing
    Senior Systems Analyst