20+ Years of Design, Technology & More
20+ Years of Design, Technology & More
Most CAD managers underestimate the significance of Autodesk crash data found in Customer Error Reports (CERs). Regularly analyzing these files reveals underlying issues affecting user environments, often overlooked by support tickets. Cer data can identify patterns leading to crashes and help implement fixes, thereby reducing user frustration and improving productivity.
AutoCAD 2027, released on March 25, 2026, emphasizes AI-assisted workflows, featuring the Autodesk Assistant for enhanced user interaction with DWG files. Key updates include multi-user DWG editing, a Geometry Cleanup tool, improved layout tab switching, and significant upgrades in Civil 3D, especially in drainage tools, enhancing collaboration and efficiency.
If you’ve been managing or using Autodesk products for a few years, you’ve probably cracked open a CER file at some point. Customer Error Reporting is Autodesk’s built-in crash reporting system, and it’s been around for a long time. When…
Mike Riddle wrote a CAD program in his spare time and became one of the most important — and most contested — figures in AutoCAD’s origin story. Here is the complete account, including the parts he would tell differently than Autodesk would.
The Accidental Empire
How a band of UNIVAC hackers, a borrowed plotter, and five long-shot bets became one of the most influential software companies ever built. The oral history Autodesk never officially told. Here are the Oral History of many early Autodesk founders and those in its early history.
The offer period for unique Autodesk memorabilia, including early CAD manuals and hardware, runs from March 23 to April 5. Interested buyers must email their preferred items, offers, and intentions for use. Authentic stories carry weight in selection, as tangible items are primarily memorabilia from Autodesk's early days.
Autodesk's journey from a scrappy startup to a global powerhouse reshaped industries with its pioneering design software. Now I’m
Offering some of my Autodesk and AutoCAD artifacts.
Civil 3D projects rely on data shortcuts for efficient collaboration across multiple drawings without losing object intelligence. Unlike Xrefs, which display geometry only, data shortcuts maintain live links to original objects, enabling seamless design updates. This system minimizes rework, supports team alignment, and is crucial for dynamic civil engineering tasks.
From CAD to cloud and AI, Autodesk's journey is a testament to evolving with technology while maintaining its core mission: empowering creativity and design.
Autodesk's Scheduled Updates feature simplifies managing product updates by allowing centralized control over installation timing and user targeting. This reduces operational chaos, enhances predictability, and minimizes support issues associated with version mismatches. By automating updates, it also decreases user distraction, making software maintenance smoother for organizations.