Autocad

[fiveoh]

Does anyone have any experience with autocad?  How hard is it to learn?  I just need to do some 2d sketches, that are currently being drafted on paper. 

I have no drafting/autocad experience but do work with GIS quite a bit.

[Daley]

I have limited AutoCAD experience as I've worked with a few architects over the years, and the learning curve can be steep if you don't entirely grok what's going on.

However, the biggest thing that has caught my attention is what sounds like limited casual use. Unless someone else is footing the bill on the license, it's going to be a massive cost sink. A better option might be an alternative CAD application, say DraftSight, which is free and cross-platform. Given the low price barrier, it's easy to try out and see if you can use it for what you're needing without resorting to piracy or dropping a massive chunk of change.

[prodarwin]

+1 for Draftsight.

I'm stunned that you are in a situation where there are still 2d sketches being done on paper!

[sheepstache]

I have a little bit of experience with Vectorworks?  But I think that's too complicated for your needs.
What about Blendr?  I know someone who swears by it.

[Jack]

Blender is more of an artistic 3d-modeling program than CAD, I think.

It might be a little overkill for 2d, but SketchUp isn't bad.

There's also FreeCAD, LibreCAD, and QCAD, although I can't make a specific recommendation since I haven't used them.

[fiveoh]

I was asked by someone I know to do this work for them and told they had the software.  I'm not 100% sure its autocad, I asked what the software was and he wasn't sure, so I mentioned autocad and got the "yeah I think that's it".  Guess I should have found out before I posted this lol.  Either way I'm not paying for it.  I don't want to accept the work and have it be some crazy learning curve.

[galliver]

GIS = geographic information systems?

I used AutoCAD in my first drafting class in college ~8 years ago, before switching to 3D modeling software like ProEngineer (now Creo, I think), AutoDesk Inventor, and Google Sketchup. I didn't find the basics difficult, as it was pretty intuitive, and I would *guess* that it has tutorials like Inventor did to help you learn all the tools. There's also a pretty great online community. Could you ask to see and spend an hour playing with the software before you commit? Also depends on the features you'd need and your ability to teach yourself...

[Spork]

For you DraftSight people:  How does it compare to LibreCAD (both in learning curve and function)?  I've dabbled in LibreCAD, but haven't used it enough to make it a useful tool for me.

My goal is to be able to do scale drawings/design for woodworking, not to build a skyscraper... so I probably don't need a whole lot of function.  (And I need a Linux capability.)

[Lorin]

Since the topics here - do any of you know of an inexpensive CAD program that will read/write AutoCad dwgs? I started a project in my free time at work and would like to continue it at home but do not want to cough up the $$ for an Autocad license for myself.

To the OP: I've been using Autocad for years so maybe I'm not the best person to respond but I think it's not that hard to figure out how to do simple 2d drawings. There are plenty of YouTube tutorials out there.

[Mrs WW]

Architect of 15 years here - having worked with and taught MANY drafting/modeling software applications over the years I would recommend SketchUp as the easiest to learn. Its also compatible with the dwg format (AutoCAD) and just so much fun!

Good luck with your drawings!

[Daley]

Since the topics here - do any of you know of an inexpensive CAD program that will read/write AutoCad dwgs?

DraftSight, which is free and cross-platform.

[Milspecstache]

For my last degree every class had a different required computer program.  However, all of them had tutorials so I would suggest you run through the tutorial as it should be sufficient to get you drawing 2D easily.  I never had much of a problem until I started doing 3D...

[Trying225]

Lynda.com has tutorials on all kinds of software like Autocad.

[theSchmett]

would help to know the project specs. AutoCAD isn't too tough. I knew sketchup and arcMAP and got some simple work done in cad easily.

[Yonco]

Autocad is very easy to use, We learned in high school machine tech and also again in my apprenticeship program. Even though there were several courses on 2d, the basics were learned within the first 4 hours of the class. Using the original program Autocad and not a copycat has its benefits of being able to save in .dwg and .dxf format. Other programs save in the incorrect formats and when you go to send a drawing to a machine shop, it is unable to open because its an offbrand software/incompatible software that leaves many splines etc.   At this time, I just blame it on the ignorance of the customer and redraw it from an included PDF. In addition to Autocad, we also use Kubotek Keycreator.   Mainly for 3d modeling, but it is very simple to use 2D. Older versions can be found on torrent sites. It is very easy to use and also has the ability to post machning paths from within the same program. -Jon

[skunkfunk]

Don't be scared off by the learning curve. If you're only doing one sketch, it's easy enough just using the obvious buttons. If you're doing a lot of stuff, learn to use the command line.

[Lorin]

Since the topics here - do any of you know of an inexpensive CAD program that will read/write AutoCad dwgs?

DraftSight, which is free and cross-platform.

Thank you so much for the recommendation! I've been using it this week and am very happy with the product!