IMAGINiT Technologies Industry News

Autodesk Connects Desktop to Mobile and Cloud with Design and Creation Suites 2013

Autodesk launched the company’s 2013 portfolio of design, engineering and entertainment software, including the latest design and creation suites. The suites provide expanded toolsets and new automated suites workflows for building, entertainment, engineering, construction, infrastructure, product, plant and factory design. The 2013 design suites connect the desktop to Autodesk 360, a cloud computing platform that enables customers to dramatically improve the way they work by providing the ability to store, edit and share their designs and access virtually infinite computing power anytime, anywhere.

“Last year, we introduced Autodesk design and creation suites and cloud services, and have seen a tremendous response from our customers. The 2013 suites are a major step forward to a cohesive and interconnected product family,” said Andrew Anagnost, Autodesk senior vice president of Industry Strategy and Marketing. “The tools in the suites now work more seamlessly with each other and with the cloud, offering tremendous value by opening new ways for our customers to solve their most complex design and engineering challenges.”

The new Autodesk 2013 design and creation suites feature in-product, customizable one-click workflows and improved interoperability, making it much easier to connect design and visualization tasks. This gives users the ability to better communicate their design intent visually. In addition, the 2013 suites offer a consistent user experience across the software in the suite and in Autodesk 360 -- making it easier to learn new tools and services, and adopt them in the design workflow.

Autodesk 360 (formerly known as Autodesk Cloud) now provides even more cloud benefits to Autodesk Subscription customers, including additional cloud storage and the ability to access cloud services for rendering, simulation, design optimization and energy analysis. Subscription customers now have up to 25 MB of storage and between 100 and 500 Autodesk Cloud Units per user, based on the suite edition they purchased. Combining the power and capability of Autodesk 360 with the enhanced workflows of Autodesk design suites give customers a competitive edge to respond to changing business requirements.

Autodesk 2013 Design and Creation Suites

Autodesk design and creation suites offer an economical way for users to access their primary design and creation software, including AutoCAD, Autodesk Revit, Autodesk Inventor, AutoCAD Civil 3D, Autodesk 3ds Max and Autodesk Maya software, plus an expanded toolset of complementary software and cloud services.

The 2013 family of Autodesk design suites includes:

• AutoCAD Design Suite
• Autodesk Building Design Suite
• Autodesk Entertainment Creation Suites
• Autodesk Factory Design Suite
• Autodesk Infrastructure Design Suite
• Autodesk Plant Design Suite
• Autodesk Product Design Suite

 

Pfeiffer Publishes Autodesk Maya and Autodesk 3ds Max Productivity Reports

Autodesk has announced the publication of four research reports from Pfeiffer Consulting quantifying the specific performance, productivity and efficiency gains of Autodesk Maya 2011 and Autodesk 3ds Max 2011 software, as compared to specific earlier versions. Benchmark tests indicate that, in common 3D workflow situations, the new features and enhancements in the 2011 releases can help yield a return on investment (ROI) of nearly US$20,000 per year, per workstation for Maya and as much as $16,000 per year, per workstation for 3ds Max.

The four research reports consist of two comprehensive ROI studies and two user-workflow productivity studies:

• Autodesk 3ds Max 2011: Market Perspectives, Productivity and Return on Investment
• Autodesk Maya 2011: Market Perspectives, Productivity and Return on Investment
• Autodesk 3ds Max 2011: Productivity Benchmarks
• Autodesk Maya 2011: Productivity Benchmarks

Autodesk Announces New Design Software Solutions for Education Market

Autodesk has unveiled eight industry-oriented software suites to help students learn core design and engineering skills. The suites contain the full range of Autodesk 2D and 3D design software tools used by professionals worldwide. The bundled packages encourage a multidisciplinary educational approach, helping faculty teach key concepts that help prepare students for rewarding careers in architecture, engineering and the digital arts.

The suites consist of the 2011 versions of 21 industry-leading Autodesk products, including AutoCAD; AutoCAD Civil 3D; Autodesk 3ds Max Design; Autodesk Alias Design; Autodesk Inventor; Autodesk Maya; and Autodesk Revit Architecture. The improved features and functionality of these products help aspiring design professionals explore design ideas and learn about key concepts and industry trends such as Building Information Modeling (BIM), Sustainable Design, Digital Entertainment Creation and Digital Prototyping, helping to improve their competitive advantage in the workplace.

Autodesk Introduces Interactive Curriculum for Game Development

Autodesk has introduced its “Vehicle for Games” curriculum for post-secondary students. The 16-week curriculum provides hands-on training for the entire game development pipeline, from concept art to creating an engine-ready asset. This free* web-based curriculum is designed to be used with Autodesk Maya modeling, animation, rendering and visual effects software, and Autodesk Mudbox digital sculpting and texture painting software. A six-month student trial version of Maya* and a 30-day student trial version of Mudbox* can be downloaded for use with the curriculum.