For Dummies AutoCAD 2011 978-0-470-59539-8 User Manual

In This Chapter

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Getting the AutoCAD advantage

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Using AutoCAD and DWG files

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Meeting the AutoCAD product family

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Using AutoCAD LT instead of AutoCAD

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Finding out what’s new in 2011

M

aybe you’re one of the few remaining holdouts who continue to prac-
tice the ancient art of manual drafting with pencil and vellum. If so, 

I must tell you, you’re a dwindling breed. Or maybe you’re completely new 
to drafting and yearn for the wealth and fame (would I lead you on?) of the 
drafter’s life. Maybe you’re an engineer or architect who needs to catch up 
with the young CAD hotshots in your office. Maybe you tried to use AutoCAD 
a long time ago, but gave up in frustration or just got rusty. Or maybe you 
currently use an older release, such as AutoCAD 2006 or even (if you’re into 
antiques) AutoCAD 2000.

Whatever your current situation or motivation, I hope that you enjoy the 
process of becoming proficient with AutoCAD. Drawing with AutoCAD is chal-
lenging at first, but it’s a challenge worth meeting. AutoCAD rewards those 
who think creatively about their work and look for ways to do it better. You 
can always find out more, discover a new trick, or improve the efficiency and 
quality of your drawing production.

AutoCAD first hit the bricks in the early 1980s, around the same time as the 
first IBM PCs. It was offered for a bewildering variety of operating systems, 
including CP/M (ask your granddad about that one!), various flavors of UNIX, 
and even Apple’s Macintosh. By far the most popular of those early versions 
was for MS-DOS (your dad can tell you about that one). Eventually, Autodesk 
settled on Microsoft Windows as the sole operating system for AutoCAD. 

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