Getting slower with age

I have used Autocad as a design tool for 17 years in numerous disciplines.
Last couple of years I seem to be getting slower at drawing. It could be
that today's engineers put more design responsibilities onto the
designer/drafter.
I'm just 44 and will need to be employable till I die most likely.
I am a heavy icon user instead to 2 finger commands??????
Perfectionist, thinker and very critical of my work ??????
I also use Microstation, PDS and trying to learn Solidworks to stay
employable.
I have to increase my speed to keep up with the newbies that learned CAD a
different way than we did 17 years ago. I keep abreast as much as possible
on the new stuff, but still seem to hang onto the way I have always done it.
Please don't misunderstand this plea for help I am still pretty damn good
and make into the high 30's an hour With layoffs and all I have to keep
proving myself wherever I go........
Anyone have any constructive assistance????
~Texascadman~

 

No advice, but
You have "experience" and "understanding" which come with age.
The newbies cannot hold a candle to that.

 

I agree with Phil - speed is all very well but if you have 'maturity' and
years of real engineering experience you are capable of getting on better
with a variety of people- very important- and the work you do will have
fewer mistakes in it .Smart employers will value the stability an 'older'
employee can bring to their business and the fact they turn up every day and
do know the old stuff. Youngsters get a bit cocky about their
ability -imagined or otherwise- maybe you need to assert yourself a bit if
you have been on the receiving end of some ageist comment that may have you
feeling a bit down.
cheers

 

You need to work smarter....

On 3 D work a user of solid works should get a lot more done than an Autocad
user, so it's time to re skill in that respect...

If you can put your experience to good use, it may take you a little longer
to make a model; but if you can cut down the amount of reworking that is
needed you can still get to the finish first.

Good luck
--
Jonathan

Barnes's theorem; for every foolproof device
there is a fool greater than the proof.

To reply remove AT

 

JNJ

"Slower" is a relative term, as these other posters have pointed out.

I would suggest increasing your key knowledge by going to www.cadtutor.net
and checking out all the tutorials. It's a great site for the beginner to
advanced user.

Also look for CAD refresher courses in your area to bone up on your skills.

Cheers!

 

I'll be 69 next month and I'm not quitting. Love what I'm doing. It's almost
like a hobby now. But it's fun.
Rudy

 

Dear JNJ Eaton, Sr.:

....

You've got some really good advice, already.

I do all my AutoCAD in solids, using its primitives. I use a few of the
keystroke+space ('d'elete, 'z'oom) and location specifications ('cen'ter,
'mid'dle), and I only use the icons for dimensions. Mr. Gates was not
doing designers any good in this respect.

You've had good suggestions about building up a toolkit of LISP routines,
and I would add a graphics tablet to which you become friends. Maybe you
need to have the hardware drivers and LISP routines on a CD you keep in
your briefcase.

And finally, you've had really excellent advice to become leadman. Keeping
your nose to the grindstone doesn't even keep your sinuses clear. If you
can't start your own business, take up the gauntlet of responsibility.
Working fast only makes fast mistakes. It takes a steady mind to find 'em.

David A. Smith

 

LOL... I'm almost 49... and am MUCH faster and more Efficient than MOST of the
'younger' CAD people I work with (70 employees.... mixed company... Architects
and Engineers). My secret is that I AM Acad knowledgable.... those who say
they know Acad don't know it (only how to use it). I write lots of LISP
routines to SPEED up my work. Many others don't have that knowledge (and
don't want to bother to learn).

So I Zip past the 'youngsters' (LOL). Always will until they learn more than
me

But again... that is 'my' success and life experience. Others may vary (and
I'm not knocking anyone... but IF someone is willing to look under the hood,
they can learn a lot).

Bruce

 

Take training classes periodically. Find the quickest way to do a task, even
if it means learning a new way to do it. Basically try to work smarter.

Best of luck.

 

What have you dobe in 17 years to make yourself a better engineer,
designer or detailer? No AA or BSME yet?

 

I bet in 17 years he at the very least learned the value of SPELL -CHECK!
Happy Holidays all!

 

<snip>
| with an engineering degree I was making $18/hr after 10 years with one
| company.
|
| I work for myself, with my wife, drawing house plans.
| we charge $45, going to $50 this Janauary because the wife is timid about
| raising our rate.

When I charge 50 Euro, at the end of the year having paid taxes, social security
etc. it ends up being 16 Euro for me ...

Alex

 

When I charge 50 Euro, at the end of the year having paid taxes, social
security

What country do you live, and how much do you earn? I think that you're
exagerating a tiny little bit... not even in Sweden you have such a high
taxation... care to share?

 

Whatever. Just trying to add to your point of "CAD doesn't make the
engineer/designer/drafter". I assume the original poster saw the
reply.

 

No spell check on google, where i access this ssite. plus typing wit
baby on my knee one hnddred.

i hope poor grammar andspelling errorrsannoy you.

 

I agree with all the posts
I'm 48 years old an I am unashamedly passionate about microstation..
I hated drawing board drafting at College and nearly failed.. I didn't start
CAD or even manual drafting at all until 3 years after I graduated at 40...
I started doing mech design drafting for the Dept of Transport drawing train
details and part lists and assemblies under an old hand at Acad but I had
to use microstation...it was the job criteria on the promotion from no
College qual required Laboratory Tech to Draftsman Technical officer (
College quals required)..
I did a 3 day coarse bought a book " inside microstation"... later
discovered the Internet and Bentley SELECT and became very proficient at
microstation including installing it and modifying printer drivers for
better line work resolution etc..ucms, third party mdls, utilities and
basic macro's etc
I became a defacto cad administrator because all of a sudden ( 2 years
later) I knew more than the pimply faced kid who didn't know cad but only
how to install it on the network.. he'd never done a drawing in his life!
in the DOT I got loads of experience with detail mechanical, piping and
electrical drawing as well...
I also had army reserve experience in reading and using topographical
maps..
After I left the DOT (forced privatisation of government utilities).. I
found work contract drafting in both Acad and microstation but only in Civil
work doing mapping.. (fooled them with army experience)..
where again I had to more learning..
cartographic projections.. MapInfo GIS, access and oracle SQL... but in my
own time...
And through the Internet Ng's & ControlAlt Delete magazine helped my keep
up with the youngsters...
and dare I say ahead of them. on most occasions.
I have had to learn to be highly organised.. paper trails for every drawing
using excel and hyperlinks..
print out sections of Help and read the paper manuals!
Cells and reference files tons of freebee macro's from all the helpful
people here in these Ng's until I was making my own to automate work and
avoid silly errors..
again I keep documentation on file to help me as I forget stuff easily now
days..as I'm getting on .. and oh those wonderfully configurable Function
keys..
At one time I had 4 different function key menus for different kinds of
work.. so I made overlays for them just to keep track..
So take heart be encouraged and for your own sake customise as much as
possible ..
Oh and really learn accudraw.. it can if used wisely it will speed you up by
saving steps...
Remember skill is nothing without the benefit of knowledge gained through
experience..and knowledge without experience can never become wisdom.
Working smarter will always save your employer more money than working
faster.
God Bless you all.
Lorys in Australia

 

"Giuseppe Carmine De Blasio" <> schreef in bericht
| > When I charge 50 Euro, at the end of the year having paid taxes, social
| security
| > etc. it ends up being 16 Euro for me ...
|
| What country do you live, and how much do you earn? I think that you're
| exagerating a tiny little bit... not even in Sweden you have such a high
| taxation... care to share?
|
| --
| Pepe
| Milano, Italy
|

Living in Belgium, and yes, we're at the top when taxation is concerned. Don't
remember the exact figures but recently a comparison was made between countries
and it was "visualised" by pretending that you started working the 1st of
january to pay everything you need to pay and then determining at what date
during the year you started working "for yourself". An average Belgian was way
past summer holidays before he had one Euro for himself.

The other thing that has to be said of course is that you get things in return.
Lots of infrastructure, a reasonable pension when you retire, falling ill
doesn't kick you into poverty, ... . But still, each year when I have to fill in
the tax bill and you're forced to make the final count, I'm have to get through
a small depression.

Alex

 

The other thing that has to be said of course is that you get things in
return.

In Italy is just NOT like that. He if you're poor, poor you stay, and can
only get poorer. And I'm not exagerating, mind you... poverty and misery in
Italy have to be visible, as the church uses guilt to make you give'em
money, money that never ever reach the ones they need it most. The church
uses the money to build more and more organisations to help the needy, but
fail to do just that. More infraestructures, more administration, more
buildings... to justify that they're doing that, they need more poverty...
it's a very simple business model, and everybody's falling for it. The
actual work that gets ever done is done by the volontary, so they have
(almost) no cost...

I get a depression everytime I think where I live, how much it costs me to
live badly and that I'm in no way can change any of that; being basically
screwed because I'm too old (I'm 45) to start over in another country, and
too old to get another job in this country if I lose mine. No financial help
from the government, no affordable housing; if you don't have a family that
can support you financially or/and housing, you just have to live in the
street. This is the reality of an european country member of the G8 elite...
elite my ass!

I'd be delighted to pay taxes, if I at least get something in return... I
pay less taxes than you, but the only thing I got in return is the middle
finger!

Consider yourself lucky, even privilegiated! It's much better get the 90% of
something than the 100% of nothing.

Pepe
Milano, Italy

 

No expenses when you are hospitalized; no expenses for house doctors; very
small, symbolic ticket when you buy medicines; small dental expenses when
compared with other countries; no school tax practically all the way through
university; normally 13 or 14 paychecks/year; a total of full paid one
month free time from work each year since the first year you are hired; one
month pay for every year you worked for a company when you live the company;
free meals at noon if you are employed full time; guarantee that your
employer cannot fire you; social "equo canone" house rent; tax deductible
interest on house loans; freedom to go to catholic church, any christian
church, synagogue or mosque whenever you wish; freedom to wear whatever your
religion requires from you, from a clergy to a burka; freedom to speak
against your employer, government or anybody you wish; freedom to vote for
the people you wish; freedom to emigrate whenever you think it is convenient
for you, especially if staying depresses you so much...

Marco S.

 

You're talking about the same country ???

Alex