Just mere hours ago, Autodesk, the makers of legendary graphics software that has been responsible for making possible projects like Hollywood blockbusters Avatar and The Lord of the Rings to the design of your house – seriously – possible, have finally announced the upcoming release of their world-class and industry-leading CAD software, AutoCAD, for the Mac platform.
Now, AutoCAD was previously on the Apple platform – 15 years ago, until it was decided to cut the product and focus entirely on the Windows market. But since Apple’s marketshare has begun to rise, and Mac sales begin to surge once again, one of the leading design suites finally returns to the realm of designers; since its birth, Macs have been renowned for their design-orientated architecture, making it the ideal environment for creative types to work in.
But as Mac OS X gains popularity in the business field, and as AutoCAD supports the artistic-orientated and technical finesse tools designed to develop awe-inspiring concepts, from a wide range of disciplines that span Civil Engineering to Architecture, the move by Autodesk to get a Mac version of one of their flagship products is greatly justified.
I, for one, am really excited about this. It finally puts the Mac back into the serious sector of the workplace, and allows countless engineers and architects to harness the power of the Mac – from the portable powerhouse of the MacBook and MacBook Pro, to the Titan of computing, that brute of a computer known as the Mac Pro (8 cores and still counting!) the future of innovative design is certainly looking bright.
AutoCAD for Mac even harnesses native Mac OS X features like the Preview tool to quickly browse designs without even launching the actual program.
“The release of AutoCAD for Mac marks the return of professional design and engineering software to the Mac platform and an important convergence of power and design,” – Amar Hanspal, senior vice president of Autodesk Platform Solutions and Emerging Business
What’s more: a free iOS app for Apple’s iPhone, iPod touch and iPad, that will accompany the Mac version, called AutoCAD WS, will let users view, edit and share AutoCAD files. Phill Schiller, Apple’s Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing, said in a statement:
“The AutoCAD WS app is a bold new idea, a mobile version of industry-leading design software for iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch…”
Watch the awesome video below from Autodesk introducing the new product.
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