It is Alive in the Lab

Project Bluestreak Update Now Available

Project Bluesteak has global reach.

Senior Product Manager, Mark Evans, and Software Architect, Steve Voorhees, report that we released an update to the Project Blustreak technology preview. You can get more information about Project Bluestreak at:

Project Bluestreak home page on Autodesk Labs

The new release includes the following new features and enhancements:

• Messages: Users can now send messages to members of their network within Project Bluestreak. Your network includes those users who have accepted your invitation to be contacts or who are co-members of a Bluestreak group. We’ve included a notification setting that controls whether you will receive an email notification when you have a new message in Project Bluestreak.

• Open a File from the Activity Stream: Any time a file to which you have access is uploaded or modified, an entry is created in the activity stream on your home page or group page. Now, each such entry includes a link to open (download) the file so that you don’t have to navigate to another page to do so. If you have notifications set to tell you about file changes, you don’t even have to switch to the Bluestreak web site; you can open the designated file from the notification email.

• Password Change: From the settings page in Project Bluestreak, you can now change your login password.

• Corrections: And, in response to your feedback, we have fixed many defects and polished many elements of the user experience.

Thank you for continuing to be part of the Project Bluestreak community! Keep telling us how we are doing at labs.bluestreak@autodesk.com.

Evolving our BIM social network is alive in the lab.

Facebook Lists Aid in the Personal-Professional Quandry

Originally I was going to use Facebook solely to communicate with my friends and family. Then contacts from my Autodesk blogging started to surface. So my Facebook use became a mix of business and pleasure. I was unsure of where the lines were: Personal Life and Professional Life: Never the Twain Shall Meet?. Ben Cochran had a similar thought when he was guest blogging for me during my sabbatical: Facebook at Work?.

Last week I attended a meeting with Peter Yewell who is a Director for National Accounts at Facebook. Peter covered the new security and privacy features of Facebook. He was keen to note that the Facebook site is not what Facebook considers their product. Instead it's an environment where people feel comfortable sharing information and building a network of relationships. My meeting with Peter got me to look at my Facebook usage more closely. I discovered that I can use the long-standing Facebook Lists feature to segment my social network into Personal and Professional contacts. This way my relatives like my brother Warren in New Orleans don't have to hear about an update to the Inventor Publisher Technology Preview, and journalists like Roopinder Tara don't have to hear about our daughter Stephanie in Chicago learning to scrape ice off of her windshield.

Maybe I am late to the party since lists have been around a while, but I see using Facebook lists is a WIN-WIN. The gist of Peter's talk is that Facebook users can select with whom they want to share information on a piece by piece basis.

Aligning information sharing based on personal and professional bases is alive in the lab.

Labs Graduations and Expiration Dates

Feedback: Time is running out!

Over the last two weeks, I have been retiring items from the Autodesk Labs site. I want to shorten the menu pull down to make room for new technology previews next year. Rather than totally remove the old technology previews from the site, I have simply moved them to the graduates page. The exception to this rule is when a technology preview expires. When it expires, it's gone. As it stands now, we do have some that will expire soon.

• The RDB Link Tool for Revit expires on January 1, 2010.
  Feedback: labs.revit.rdb@autodesk.com

• The Solar Radiation Technology Preview expires on January 13, 2010.
  Feedback: labs.revit.ecotect@autodesk.com

• The Bridge Modeler for AutoCAD Civil 3D expires on March 15, 2010.
  Feedback: labs.civil3d.bridge@autodesk.com

• The Inventor Publisher Technology Preview expires on April 1, 2010.
  Feedback: labs.iv.publisher@autodesk.com

• The Inventor Fusion Technology Preview expires on June 1, 2010.
  Feedback: labs.iv.fusion@autodesk.com

• The Piping Design Technology Preview expires on June 30, 2010.
  Feedback: labs.algor.piping@autodesk.com

So be sure to test these out and provide your feedback before they do.

Reminding everyone that time is of the essence is alive in the lab.

Shrinkwrap Add-in for Inventor Graduated from Autodesk Labs

This is our fourth and final graduation for the month. It's the end of our year end close out sale. Everything must go. Our prices are insane. We're making room for next year's technology previews. As such the technology preview for the Shrinkwrap Add-in for Inventor has also run its course.

Thanks to everyone who downloaded and provided feedback on this technology. For Inventor 2008 or 2009 users, the installer can still be downloaded from the Autodesk Labs Graduates page.

Video: Patrick Aragon Speaks About Project Dragonfly at AU

Product Manager, Patrick Aragon, was interviewed at Autodesk University talking about Project Dragonfly. You can see the video of this interview on one of these sites:

• AEC Café:Architecture, Engineering, and Construction
• MCAD Café: Mechanical CAD community
• GIS Café: Geospatial community

The AEC Café site also features the text of a short question and answer interview with Carl Bass at AU that includes a brief mention of Project Dragonfly:

• Carl Bass interview

So check one of these out. You can also get more information about Project Dragonfly in our press release:

• Autodesk Launches Expanded Marketing Channel for Building Product Manufacturers

Giving you more than just an Autodesk Labs web page to read is alive in the lab.

Navigation Tool for AutoCAD Retired from Autodesk Labs

The technology preview for the Navigation Tool for AutoCAD has run its course.

Thanks to everyone who provided feedback on this technology. For AutoCAD 2008 or 2009 users (or the associated vertical solutions), the installer can still be downloaded from the Autodesk Labs Graduates page.

JT Translator Add-in Graduated from Autodesk Labs

It's our end of the year closeout sale. We're making room for next year's technology previews. The technology preview for the JT Translator Add-in for Inventor has also run its course.

Thanks to everyone who downloaded and provided feedback on this technology.

Interoperability is an Inventor 2010 feature. For Inventor 2009 users, the installer can still be downloaded from the Autodesk Labs Graduates page.

DWG Export for Maya Graduated from Autodesk Labs

The technology preview for the DWG Export for Maya has run its course.

Thanks to everyone who downloaded and provided feedback on this technology. CAD Data Transfer is a feature of Maya 2010. For Maya 2008 or 2009 users, the installer can still be downloaded from the Autodesk Labs Graduates page.

Autodesk Design Review Usage and Features Prioritization Survey

Autodesk Labs is all about feedback. Way back when I was the Software Development Manager for Volo View, Jason Pratt was our Marketing Manager. When Jason and I would argue over what features to implement next, Jason would chide me with "Why don't I just post my request in the Autodesk newsgroups - then you actually might do it?" You see I have been a fan of direct user input for a long time. But I digress..

The Design Review team would like to get your insight on Autodesk Design Review. Please take a few minutes to complete their survey. The survey should take about 8-10 minutes. Your answers will be combined with those provided by others to make important business decisions.

Autodesk Design Review Usage and Features Prioritization Survey

Spreading the word about gathering direct customer feedback is alive in the lab.

CATIA Import Translator for Inventor Graduated from Labs

The technology preview for the CATIA V5 Import Translator for Inventor has run its course.

Thanks to everyone who downloaded and provided feedback on this technology.

Interoperability with other CAD systems is a feature of Inventor 2010. For Inventor 2009 SP1 users, the installer can still be downloaded from the Autodesk Labs Graduates page.

Retiring the old to make room for the new is alive in the lab.