AutoCAD 2009 – First Impressions Part 1

I started using AutoCAD back when they were on version 9. For those who don’t know the history, that was when the interface was the command line and screen menus on the right. There have been lots of improvements and new features added over the years and for the most part they were a step in the right direction… wasn’t that a great set up for what’s coming? AutoCAD 2009 really took a step backward. Now I didn’t just install it today, I’ve been working with it for about a month. I’ll get more into the changes and new features with later posts, but I hit the most notable first. If you haven’t seen a screenshot yet or installed it, they went the Microsoft ribbon route.

I don’t like it. No sir, I do not. I figured that I’d like it more as I used it and it might even grow on me. Boy was I wrong! The more I use it, the more I think it was a colossal was of effort on Autodesk’s part that could have been put toward developing some useful features. Instead of having tools that I need organized in a quickly accessible format, I find myself keying in most stuff. I’ve forced myself to attempt to use the ribbon, tabs and panels for most stuff, but they’re just too slow and clunky.

I love learning new ways to improve efficiency, but adopting the interface change is not one that I will recommend to my company. I’ve given it a fair shot. If I can’t get back to at least the same production speed in a month’s time, it’s a poorly designed interface. I’ve used every version of AutoCAD since version 9 and although some changes have required time to adjust to, the benefits for changing have always been apparent. So far I have seen absolutely no reason for the change, other than jumping on the Microsoft bandwagon. At least Microsoft did a good job of it.