AU 2008 UnConference

I will be hosting a session for one of the UnConference topics at AU this year. The title is:
UN306-3 Beyond Implementation Tools and Techniques That No CAD Manager Can Live Without

An UnConference is a different way to present a topic to those attending. Everyone sits facing each other and instead of a straightforward lecture, it starts out with a brief introduction by myself and is then turned over to you, the attendees. Its up to everyone to add to the topic, ask questions and answer questions. I hope to see a good turn out with familiar faces and some new ones too!

What are you doing at AU 2008?

I don’t know what I was thinking when I started signing up for stuff at AU this year...

I have the following on my plate in addition to attending classes.

• 1 class to teach
• 5 labs where I am acting as a Lab Assistant
• 1 Conducting an AU UnConference session
• 1 ATC 20 Tips in 20 Mins on 3ds MAX Design
  

At this rate I'll be happy to at least get my AUGI Beer Mug at the annual Beer Bust.

AU 2008 - CAD Management Class

I will be delivering a class at AU this year titled: Implementation Tools and Techniques That No CAD Manager Can Live Without (class code CM211-2). Here is a link to the AU Online page for the class that you will want to check out if you are attending. Extra content will be posted to it that cannot fit in the handout for the class. Also, its a great place for you to ask questions on the class if you have them. I'm currently putting the finishing touches on the handout and realized that everything I want to cover in it will not fit within the 14 page limit.

20k and Counting

Well, I find it remarkable that enough people have been reading this blog to make it over 20,000 hits. I wanted to take a quick moment to thank everyone that takes the time out of their busy schedule to read my blog. The face lift I just gave my blog made life so much easier to control what goes on the side bar as well as posts I make. U.S. CAD had previously wrapped my blog to have it match other company blogs, but I found it too limited. When they get the chance to re-wrap using Bloggers new tools then it will likely get updated then. I've added RSS feed icons to the side bar on the left and bottom of the page, added enhanced functionality to the archived post list along with a couple other things.

With SCCS behind me, I'm deep into preparing for my class I'm teaching at Autodesk University 2008. I would like to thank in advance the 200 individuals who have already signed up for the class "Implementation Tools and Techniques That No CAD Manager Can Live Without" and filled it to the brim. I look forward to presenting to you.

Start using AutoCAD Architecture now!

Well, I thought it went well. I was a lab assistant in Beth Powell's class Start using AutoCAD Architecture now! Lots of good questions were asked by the those that attended the class and it was a pleasure to help answer some of them. Thanks for asking me to be there Beth!

Newport

Holy crap - Autodesk is screwing with my brain BIG time now. I sat through the general session this morning at Autodesk University. It focused on where they see design technology heading and potential uses for it. One thing they showed cased was prototyping a new hybrid sports car. Everything was done completely digital - from design to engineering to production - all without the cost of building a single physical prototype. The next one showcased design firm that is designing the next telescope that is to be the world's largest at 30 meters! They are building the entire design in Autodesk Inventor which will allow them to coordinate how many materials they will need for building the project to showing the astronomers how their equipment will interface with the structure holding the mirror and lens.

However, the creme de la creme happened last. They highlighted how an Architect might utilize Autodesk applications in designing a new library for a civic center in a metropolitan setting. They started using Maya to design a funky looking sculpture which invoked a sense of fabric flowing in the breeze. They took that and other designs into Revit and built a model of the building. Then they shared the building model with the structural engineer that designed the structure of the building and analyzed the structural members of it using Robot Millennium to check for the capacity of the members being used to support based on the stresses generated. They also shared the model with the MEP consultants for them to design the support systems for the building. hey also coordinated with the Civil engineering team to see their design in the context in which it would be built. Then they proceeded to dump all this data into Navisworks to run collision detection to ensure that the Architecture, Structural and MEP data did not hit any road blocks and helped coordinate a list of everything that needed to be addressed. They also used Navisworks to help the construction team see the different phases of the project and how the building would come together.

To put the icing on the cake, they followed it with a design visualization of the building in context using a new program called Newport. This is the first I've heard of it and I will have to add that they closed the general session saying that some technology is not ready for public release - meaning Newport is either in Alpha or Beta testing right now - hmmm.... Anyways, they were able to coordinate the Revit model much better in a 3D Realistic rendering than can currently be done - and much smoother. Autodesk said they have really been stressing having all their products work seamlessly together.

For the cherry on top, they put all this data into something that looked like Google Earth and did a realtime fly by simulation from outer space down to the project site with the building and all its related data in place. They showed different pieces of the data live on the set - something which is much better demonstrated live as opposed to writing it out. I recorded the demo and will post live to youtube later tonight somehow and link to my blog. You're gonna love this!

*edit* Here is the link to the video I took and posted to you tube.
Click me!