It is Alive in the Lab

Dragonflies are delicious

According to the "About" information on their own site, Delicious is a social bookmarking service that allows you to tag, save, manage, and share web pages from a centralized source. Instead of having different bookmarks on every computer, Delicious makes... Read more →

Updated Google Earth Extension Now Available for AutoCAD 2010 Family

The Google Earth Extension for AutoCAD is quite popular. It allows you to import a Google Earth image into AutoCAD, publish your 3D model to Google Earth, drape a Google Earth image onto a 3D mesh in AutoCAD, and attach... Read more →

Project Dragonfly - popular in many languages

Project Dragonfly is our software as a service approach to do-it-yourself floor planning. Software engineer, Shelly Mujtaba, sent me a list of some sites that mentioned the project. I used the Babelfish service to provide some links to translations: www.downloadblog.it... Read more →

HOK wins IIDA Award for Autodesk San Francisco Office Design

Software Architect, John Hutchinson, noted that HOK won an award for the design of our San Francisco office. Click to enlarge. We are thrilled. This place makes people want to come to work. Read more →

new blog: Designing the User Experience at Autodesk

Senior Product Designer, Steve Arnold, is one of the Product Designers contributing to a new blog: Designing the User Experience at Autodesk Please join me in welcoming Steve to the Autodesk blogosphere. Read more →

Advanced Simulation Technology Preview graduated into Inventor 2010

They grow up so fast. The Advanced Simulation Technology Preview has graduated from Autodesk Labs. Based on your feedback, most of the functionality is now part of the Inventor 2010 product line. Thanks to all those who took the time... Read more →

Thanks for the feedback...

We're cleaning house. We're making room for new technologies arriving in the coming months. Since the executable for iMap for Inventor expires on April 1, the technology preview has been removed from the Autodesk Labs site. Since the executable for... Read more →

Using AutoCAD 2010 in the Lab

AutoCAD 2010 was made available on Tuesday. I'll resist the temptation to make some type of pun based on 2010: Odyssey Two by Arthur C. Clarke. Instead I'll harken back to August 24, 2004 with Shaan Hurley's original Between the... Read more →

Thanks for the Autodesk Inventor LT Technology Preview Feedback

Our technology preview of the Autodesk Inventor LT Technology Preview has run its course. I have placed an entry on the graduates page. Autodesk Labs Graduates Your feedback was both helpful and voluminous. Thanks to all those who provided feedback... Read more →

YouTube: Project Dragonfly Interviews

YouTube has some great interviews with Project Dragonfly team members: Project Dragonfly Interview Videos Get some insight on what went into the creation of our software as a service approach to designing your own floor plans. Read more →

Internet Explorer 8 Released Today

http://www.microsoft.com/windows/internet-explorer/default.aspx I have made the switch. This blog posting was done with IE 8. Staying abreast of the latest in browser technology is alive in the lab. Read more →

Autodesk Labs - what we're about

As this is the beginning of a new fiscal year at Autodesk, the Labs team has refined its charter. Mission: Our mission is to discover, explore, and validate new approaches to design technology. Vision: Our vision is to nurture and... Read more →

Autodesk Labs is going Green

Frederic Loranger is one of our software developers at Autodesk Labs. He has worked on projects like 3D/2D ShareNow for AutoCAD, Inventor, Revit, Design Review; Project Freewheel, consolidated login; Project Draw; and Project Showroom. Frederic has also conducted usability studies... Read more →

Labs Technologies in OpenSocial

Software Developer, David Falck, is one of the creators of Project Draw. He has also worked on Project Freewheel. David submitted this article about the OpenSocial API . Open Social is a burgeoning community-based, common API for social applications. One... Read more →

Project Dragonfly Gallery

Senior Software Engineer/Technical Lead, Shelly Mujtaba, noted that users have created some impressive looking floor plans as reflected in the Project Dragonfly Gallery. Project Dragonfly is working as a software as a service approach to an easy, intuitive floor planning... Read more →

Engadget: Cajun Crawler swaps Segway wheels for Theo Jansen's creepy leg mechanism

Crawfish are a staple of a Cajun diet. As a Cajun (Broussard and Boudreaux surnames on my mother's side) who graduated from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, I was proud to see: Engagdet: Cajun Crawler swaps Segway wheels for... Read more →

Snooty Sims: News for March 15 features Project Dragonfly

We are happy that the gaming industry also sees the value. Read more →

Project Dragonfly: Let's be social

Project Dragonfly is our software as a service approach to do it yourself floor planning. The Project Dragonfly team is all over the social networking thing. Today I added new links to the site. Feedback EMAIL: [email protected] FORUM: Project Dragonfly... Read more →

Project Dragonfly Feedback: Email and blog articles are just dandy

Usage of Project Dragonfly was quite high in its first week. Thanks for giving it a try. Please keep the feedback coming in at [email protected]. Some of what we've heard so far: My wife drew our living room with Project... Read more →

Ajaxian: Project Dragonfly: Floor planning from Autodesk

Project Dragonfly has been popular with users. Now it's catching on with programmers too: http://ajaxian.com/archives/project-dragonfly-floor-planning-from-autodesk Ajaxian is a blog dedicated to Asynchronous JavaScript and XML - a technique used in web application development. Read more →

StressFree: Autodesk Dragonfly emerges from its larvae

The Project Dragonfly articles are spreading like mosquitoes at a Bill Gates TED presentation. OK maybe that's a bad analogy. Project Dragonfly really is a software as service approach to floor planning for do-it-yourselfers. Here you go: http://www.stress-free.co.nz/autodesk_dragonfly_emerges_from_its_larvae We're so... Read more →

One if by web, two if by airwave...

In 1912 there were no laws regulating ham radio in the United States, On the tragic night of the sinking of the Titanic, there was confusion. Some radio operators reported the vessel was in trouble. Others reported that the vessel... Read more →

New York Times: From Bits: Design Your Dream House, Lamps and All

Here's my last one for today: http://gadgetwise.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/03/12/from-bits-design-your-dream-house-lamps-and-all/ My oh my - the word about Project Dragonfly is really spreading. Read more →

hack of all trades: Autodesk Launches Project Dragonfly, Web-based 2D/3D Home Floor Planning

While I am on the subject of sharing posts from other blogs: http://blog.pekpongpaet.com/2009/03/09/autodesk-launches-project-dragonfly-web-based-2d3d-home-floor-planning/ We are happy to see word about Project Dragonfly spreading. Read more →

Advanced Physics: Measure Hunt Extension

We were happy to see Project Draw used in education: http://sites.google.com/a/penncharter.com/advanced-physics/Home/outline/unit-2-the-physics-toolbox/measure-hunt-extension Cheers to Advanced Physics Instructor, Ms. Lorre L. Gifford, for using Project Draw in this way. Read more →

Important announcement for Autodesk Inventor LT users

As the May 1st, 2009 expiration of Inventor LT 2009 licenses approaches, we would like to give you advanced notice of our upcoming plans for Inventor LT. What's Next for Inventor LT? Autodesk is committed to making it affordable and... Read more →

Project Draw 0.7.9 Now Available

Project Draw is our technology preview for creating designs using just a browser. It follows a software as a service model in that you don't need to install anything. You want to take advantage of the service - you use... Read more →

The TeknoChronicles of Z

Senior Product Marketing Manager, Chris Hession, used to be my Project Freewheel product marketing guy. Now he works on AutoCAD. He sent me a note today about a new web video series that will be brought to you the AutoCAD... Read more →

More Project Freewheel in the wild

Bird in the wild: Birds in the trees are often hard to see, but if you look hard enough, you can find them. We love it when we get email about how customers are using Project Freewheel. Like last month,... Read more →

Applying a Pressure that changes from the Surface to the Bottom

A Mr. Richard Feder from Fort Lee, New Jersey wrote in: I am designing a tank that will be filled with water. I was wondering how to apply a pressure that changes from the surface to the bottom. Software Quality... Read more →

Project Dragonfly now available on Autodesk Labs

A few of the folks who brought you Project Draw and Autodesk Seek, teamed with some fairly new members of the Autodesk family, have cooked up something new for the home project "do-it-yourselfer" - Project Dragonfly. I grew up in... Read more →

Scottsdale Arabian Library Wins Smart Environment Award

When my son was in 6th grade, he played in a recreational basketball league. Our outdoor practices were on a court near the Scottsdale Arabian Library. Having just relocated to Arizona, I thought the name was unusual. Billed as the... Read more →

In the Scan: Laser Scanning Industry News

I received an email from Dr. Gene Roe today. Gene has been in the surveying and mapping field for a long time. He is a registered Professional Engineer and Professional Land Surveyor. Gene's connection with software goes way back to... Read more →

Project Freewheel 1.0.9 Now Available

We updated the Project Freewheel servers with a new release. For the 2010 product line. DWFx is the default file type. Though Project Freewheel has supported DWFx for a long time, it only supported 2D DWFx files. With this update,... Read more →

Maintenance Window: March 13 12:00 pm to March 15 7:00 pm

An Autodesk IT Enterprise Applications maintenance window is coming up. Autodesk Consolidated Login will be affected. The downtime window that will start at 12:00pm PST on Friday, March 13th and is expected to end at 7:00pm PST on Sunday, March... Read more →

The importance of visualization: AutoCAD follow up

My post of The importance of visualization elicited the following response: Hi Scott Sheppard, [email protected] has left you a comment: The correct answer is 4 feet. It's a trick question. Has nothing to do with Pythagorean theorem. You have a... Read more →

Cool Home Video is part of the deal...

Real estate sales are more than just putting up a sign in front of the house. Our realtor created a virtual tour of our house: 7231 E Whistling Wind Way Virtual Tour The time honored Multiple Listing Service (MLS) is... Read more →

Architecture for Humanity Design Contest

Architecture for Humanity is one of Autodesk Labs' favorite organizations. We have worked closely with them as part of their Open Architecture Network. Architecture for Humanity is sponsoring a 2009 Open Architecture Challenge focusing on the classroom Today's Lesson: Better... Read more →

TiddlyWiki Drawing Plugin based on Project Draw

A Project Draw diagram embedded in a Wiki. TiddlyWiki is a wiki-modeled software as a service application that people can use as a personal notebook. Project Draw is our technology preview of a software as a service application that people... Read more →

Our trip to the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum

The Arizona sky is often blue and cloud-free. The Saguaro cactus can only be found in the Sonora Desert. On Sunday, February 8, some lifelong friends, my wife, and I took a trip to the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum. The museum... Read more →

House Goes on the Market Tomorrow

As part of my quest to become a One Market Street employee instead of a remote employee, our house goes on the market tomorrow. I created a Facebook album with some pictures: Pictures of Scottsdale House on Facebook A while... Read more →