Posted by Kevin Matthews on December 17, 1999 at 10:37:17:In Reply to: Windows version disappoints posted by David Hogan on December 16, 1999 at 18:00:38:
Dear David,
Sounds like you might have some installation problems, and you've missed a few features, so Tech Support will be following up with you directly. But since you've posted your questions, I'll respond to them here briefly too.
> It doesn't conform to any Windows standards
Let's see... DWPro-Win has a Windows Help system, Windows keyboard shortcuts, Windows scrolling lists, Windows file extensions. I almost wonder if you are serious. But:
What DesignWorkshop Pro for Windows _doesn't_ have is a traditional CAD-style user interface. Where traditional CAD software (on any platform) operates in a click-click-click mode, with many specialized commands, and rigid, linear command sequences, DesignWorkshop Professional for Windows operates in a gestural click-and-drag mode, with a small number of very flexible, powerful commands, and an absolute minimum of rigid sequencing.
So, people coming to DesignWorkshop from a strong traditional CAD background are sometimes disoriented by the non-linear, design-oriented style of our software. There's a different attitude to working in DesignWorkshop. It supports a creative approach to CAD that has people writing to us almost daily saying that they've finally found the 3D software that lets them be creative, or lets them focus on architecture, or that let them learn in an hour. But this design-oriented CAD attitude is different, and surely it is not for everyone.
> doesn't use Windows bitmap formats, and can't import AutoCAD DXF files.
David, here I think you are mistaken. We simply need to follow up with you directly from our Tech Support staff, to make sure you're clear on how to access these features, and to address any wierd rare problem that _might_ be involved.
We have not found any AutoCAD R14 or earlier DXF or DWG file that does not import into the latest version of DW Pro-Win. There could of course be one out there -- which we'd love to see so we can make our translator even better -- but we've tested extensively with both Autodesk standard files and user examples.
By the way -- and I apologize to our many Mac users for this -- the translators in DW Pro for Windows are significantly better than those in DW Pro Mac. In our experience the Windows users have a much greater daily need to integrate with AutoCAD and other traditional software, so we put a lot of effort there specifically. And other the other hand, there are custom translators for Mac users, like the PowerCADD direct exchange module, which have no meaning for Windows users.
> Is the Windows side going to be developed at all, or is it just an afterthought?
Artifice is full committed to supporting both Windows and Macintosh platforms for the foreseeable future. The new internal architecture of DesignWorkshop Next Generation will allow us to support Windows, Mac, and if the market requests, Linux and other Unixes, elegantly and efficiently.
Thanks for giving me a chance to address these questions openly. If they come up for one person, they probably come up for several.
My last point would be that a Windows system is a more brittle and nuts-and-boltsy system, from a technical and installation perspective, than a Macintosh system. Not as a matter of OS prejudice, but as a straightforward point of dispassionate technical analysis, there is more that can go wrong on a Windows system, especially in terms of installation and driver and registry conflicts.
So follow up with tech support is the bottom line here. We should be able to clear up your questions quickly, and have your DesignWorkshop system running smoothly very soon.
Best wishes,
Kevin Matthews
Artifice, Inc.