After updating to V51.09 you may notice that your HydraCAD V51 shortcut opens AutoCAD 2010 or 2011 (if you have them). That is because our updates do not create or alter the shortcuts, only our installations do. To change it: 1. Right click on the HydraCAD V51 shortcut and pick Properties. Pick the Shortcut tab…

This happens once in a while: You try to install an autodesk product and it says you must rmeove all software first. Add/Remove Programs doesn't seme to do it. What's next? Autodesk has produced a white paper on the subject here: Removing Autodesk Products If that does not work, and it appears that there might…

Occasionally, you may start a command, but nothing seems to happen. Often it is  because you cannot see a dialog box that is opening, and it is off screen waiting for your input. This can happen from reducing resolution or going from two screens to one, or from bringing a laptop and hooking it up to different…

Thanks to a long time customer, I now know about the AutoCAD command for tuning up your 3D performance. It is 3DCONFIG. This brings up the 'Advanced Degradation and Performance Tuning' tool (sounds futuristic, eh?). From here you can tweak this or that to speed up 3D, but some of the highlights are as follows:…

This is an annual question – it comes up every time AutoCAD releases a new version. The fact that so many people ask us what their serial number is speaks to serious flaws in Autodesk's system for notifying users, but I can't do anything about that. What I can do is tell you a number…

Are your drawing getting really, really big and slowing down the raising up of your drawing and the AutoCalc and AutoList processes? Are you carrying around huge background drawings? XREFing in the background drawings doesn't help. But there is something that does: Plot the background drawings to a DWF and then XREF the DWF in.…

Considering that Manage costs so much more than Simluate. why get it? This comparison matrix helps you figure it out. While you can buy Simulate and upgrade to Manage,you won't get full trade-in value. And what abot Freedom? Navis Product Matrix On another note, if you press Ctrl+Z to undo something, you can also type…

If you need to Repair or Reinstall AutoCAD, or if HydraCAD is not loading properly, then you will need to reconfigure AutoCAD to look at the HydraCAD settings. Fortunately, this is quite easy: Windows 7: 1. Close AutoCAD/HydraCAD2. Pick the Windows Start button3. Pick All Programs4. Pick Hydratec Version 50 Software5. Pick Configure AutoCAD for…

Another one from our friend Larry Howell at L&K Fire Protection (Marion, Illinois) If you get a background drawing that has AEC objects in it, you might find that drawing takes forever to run through the AutoCAD FLATTEN command, or never completely flattens. Larry has discovered a command that will handle it for you: Open…

This is a blog posting of the information sent in a recent newsletter, archived here for easy access. There are still many questions about Revit and BIM and what is required for what and by whom. What follows is a simple list of facts that may help explain it to you. If a project up…