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Part I: Introducing AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT Basics
Through a high level of technical innovation and expertise, Autodesk has created a program with
advanced features and capabilities, including 3D surface and solid modeling and visualization, access
to external databases, intelligent dimensioning, importing and exporting of other file formats,
Internet support, and much more.
The major disciplines that use AutoCAD are:
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Architectural, Engineering, and Construction (AEC)
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Mechanical
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Geographic Information Systems (GIS)
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Surveying and Civil Engineering
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Facilities Management
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Electrical/electronic
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Multimedia
However, AutoCAD has many other lesser-known uses, such as pattern making in the garment
industry, sign making, and so on. In this book, I provide examples from several fields. The world
of AutoCAD is very broad, and you can learn from seeing the many approaches that AutoCAD
makes possible.
Comparing AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT
AutoCAD LT’s advantages are its lower cost and its compatibility with AutoCAD. The programming
code that is used to create AutoCAD LT is a subset of the code used in AutoCAD. Here are the major
differences between AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT:
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AutoCAD includes features that enable CAD managers to hold drawings to certain standards,
such as for layer names and text styles. AutoCAD LT doesn’t contain these features.
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AutoCAD LT is not as customizable as AutoCAD, which is both programmable and fully
customizable. It also doesn’t include the Action Recorder.
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AutoCAD LT includes minimal options for 3D; AutoCAD includes a full-featured 3D capability.
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AutoCAD LT has fewer presentation features than AutoCAD, which includes visual styles
and 3D rendering.
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AutoCAD LT is deployable on a network but does not have AutoCAD’s network license man-
agement feature that includes reporting and flexible licensing.
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AutoCAD LT does not offer the database connectivity feature, but you can use tables to con-
nect to data in a Microsoft Office Excel file; AutoCAD offers the flexibility to connect to other
types of databases, create labels from the data, and so on.
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AutoCAD LT does not come with Express Tools, a set of additional routines that ship with
AutoCAD.
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AutoCAD LT does not include parametric constraints, which allow you to constrain the rela-
tionships among objects, but you can use the parametric constraints that are in a drawing
that was created with AutoCAD.
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