Throwback Thursday: Autodesk DWG TrueView: fun with words

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August 05, 2006

Autodesk DWG TrueView: fun with words

On June 13, 2006, I posted an article to my old blog, Beyond the Paper, that an updated Autodesk DWG TrueView was available. Since the update was available in multiple languages, I included the phrase "An updated Autodesk DWG TrueView is now available." in several languages. I obtained the translations using the Alta Vista Babel Fish translation engine.

There is a popular Monty Python's Flying Circus skit where a man attempts to buy cigarettes and matches from a tobacco shop. The customer does not speak English. He uses a Hungarian to English translation dictionary. The dictionary is totally wrong, so the customer makes statements such as "My hovercraft is full of eels." instead of "I need some matches."

Perhaps my hovercraft is indeed full of eels? I took the translations that appeared in the original June 13 article and had Babel Fish translate them back to English. Here is what I found:

• Original English
  An updated Autodesk DWG TrueView is now available.

• English to French back to English
  Updated Autodesk DWG TrueView is now available. (good)

• English to Italian back to English
  An [sic] modernized Autodesk DWG TrueView hour is available. ("now" complicated matters)

• English to German back to English
  An updated Autodesk DWG TrueView is now present. ("available" complicated matters)

• English to Spanish back to English
  An updated Autodesk DWG TrueView is available now. (good)

• English to Japanese back to English
  Now it can utilize renewal end Autodesk DWG TrueView. ("updated" complicated matters)

• English to Korean back to English
  The Autodesk DWG TrueView which opens a court is effective now. (not sure what happened)

• English to Chinese (Simplified or Traditional) back to English
  Renews Autodesk DWG TrueView now is may the use. (not sure what happened)

Download Autodesk DWG TrueView (~100MB). I am not sure how else to say it. :-)

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Because the size and complexity of the projects that our customers tackle have grown, our emphasis is not so much on DWG TrueView but on having a single source of truth stored in the cloud instead of multiple copies of data being uploaded and downloaded by multiple stakeholders. In addition, DWG TrueView is Windows-only. Today, our customers need to access project data on a variety of devices that includes PC, Macs, smartphones, tablets, and goggles, so our focus is on the Forge Viewer, a.k.a. the "large model viewer (LMV)" because it handles 3D and 2D models that are larger than what is supported by DWG TrueView and its Design Review (DWF) ancestors.

Autodesk has always been an automation company. Today, more than ever, that means helping our customers automate their design and make processes. We help them embrace the future of making, where they can do more (e.g., quantity, functionality, performance, quality), with less (e.g., energy, raw materials, timeframes, waste of human potential), and realize the opportunity for better (e.g., innovation, user experience, efficiency, sustainability, return on investment). Avoiding out-of-date copies of data that can be shared across a variety of devices provides an opportunity for better.

Viewing strategy is alive in the lab.