AutoCAD 2002 includes tools that allow drawings and special plots to be posted to the
internet. These tools make it easy for multiple design companies to collaborate on
one set of project files through an internet server rather than relying on dividing
project files and sending them by email.
There are
three types of files that you can use to transfer AutoCAD data to the
internet for other users to see: native DWG files, compressed DWF files,
and raster images.
| AutoCAD DWG Files |
AutoCAD DWG files may easily be saved to a web server for access
by other companies. The AutoCAD OPEN and SAVEAS functions
allow drawings to be saved to internet sites and project hosting
servers, simply by selecting the appropriate web server from the
open/save as dialog box.
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| Pros |
Cons |
| Clients who
receive the drawings can look at the data using AutoCAD, ADT,
Map and LDD, and use AutoCAD functions for data analysis. |
Data in DWG files
may be edited and plotted. No data protection mechanism
exists. |
| Drawings may be
plotted to scale, and plotting properties may be modified
using AutoCAD commands. |
External
References and support files will have to be saved to the web
server and managed by mulitple clients. However, the
eTransmit command assists with this task. |
| i-drop
functionality allows drawings to be inserted into AutoCAD
applications from web servers. |
Only clients with
AutoCAD products may read DWG files. |
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| Drawing Web Format (DWF) Files |
DWF Files are vector files that are compressed versions of DWG
files, designed to make transfer and viewing of AutoCAD data through
the internet much easier. Clients who do not have AutoCAD may
use their web browsers to look at AutoCAD drawings, zoom and pan
around them, turn layers on and off, or even print them to
scale. See the web page Viewing DWF Files for more information
on all the features available in the DWF format.
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Two
software programs are available to view DWF files. Volo View Express
is a free DWF and DWG viewer that can view AutoCAD 2002 drawings in 3D, draft
markups on top of the drawing, and plot the drawing to scale. Volo
View Express (VVE) is available from Autodesk's web site free of
charge. Click on the VVE logo on the right to download it. VVE may also be installed at the time of AutoCAD 2002
installation. Double-click on a DWF file to view it through VVE, or
select a DWF file to view with a web browser to use VVE functionality.
VVE must be installed to look at DWF files created in AutoCAD 2002.
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DWF files
created in AutoCAD 2000 or 2000i may be viewed through your web browser. To view a DWF file using your web browser,
you need to download and install a driver from Autodesk called Whip! Release 4.0.
The Whip! driver is automatically installed if you have AutoCAD 2000 or
2000i installed on your machine. Click on
the Whip! logo to download the free software. Once you have installed the Whip!
driver, you can go to a page with a DWF file on the internet to look at the drawing.
See the page titled "Viewing DWF Files" to see a sample of how a DWF file
appears on the internet.
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 |
|
|
| Pros |
Cons |
| Any client with a
web browser or Volo View Express (available free of charge)
can read DWF files. |
No AutoCAD
functionality. Inquiry commands such as DISTANCE or AREA
are not available. |
| DWF files may not
be edited. Data sent away from the office is protected
from modification by clients. |
DWF files may not
be externally referenced or combined in any way. |
| With VVE, DWF files
may be plotted to scale, and lineweights may be used for plotting. |
|
| Layers, views, and
hyperlinks may be manipulated in a DWF file. |
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| Raster Images |
Raster images are
digital photos of AutoCAD Drawings. To create raster images,
run the PLOT command, and select a PC3 file that plots an image to a
file. Images may be created from model space or any of the
layout tabs in a drawing.
|
| Pros |
Cons |
| Easy to read from
web pages. JPG and WMF files may be inserted into other
applications (word processors, spreadsheets). |
The raster image
is made of pixels, so object information is lost. Layer
settings may not be adjusted. Inquiry functions not
available outside of AutoCAD. |
| May be inserted
into AutoCAD drawings. AutoCAD vector objects may be
drawn over images to create hybrid documents. |
Images can be
edited using CAD Overlay or other image editing
software. Data is not protected. |
|
Images cannot be
plotted to an exact scale. Using AutoCAD, images can be
correlated to an approximate scale. |
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