the confusion of autodesk

Today I got to see both the autodesk packages MDT and Inventor.
Instantly I realized the confusion Autodesk is in , Since I am working on a
project which requires studies of almost all of the available MCAD
software , and studied proe, sw before.
The MDT introduces the parametric concept and surely autodesk had to
develop this package so as to compete with the then sprading
Parametric design market revolutionized by PTC.
So is the case with the Inventor.The motivation behind this software
is clearly SW from Dassault which is rich in its user interface and
one can learn it quickly as almost everything in SW becomes trivial
and so easy.(extrusion,sweep and loft operation to name a few).
The study of autocad,MDT and Inventor in the same order will give
oneself the insight into the history of development of CAD and the
logical explaination of why the other software came into being.(eg.
autocad : - 2D drafting,No parametric no constraint based with little
bit of 3d operations,
MDT : -3D drafting but not solid modeling.
Inventor : a solid modeler.)

regards,
Yogesh Joshi.

 

The confusion at Autodesk runs deeper than you can possibly believe <g>, but
......

Acad evolved from 2D into 3D "solid" (volume definition) representations
using a variety of representation methods; faceted surface models - ACIS
body reps.

MDT is a parametric solid modeler with parametric assembly abilities. (My
use of "parametric" may not conform to the strict definition, if there's a
distinction to be made.)

Inventor essentially adds top down design capabilities that MDT didn't have
and a modern UI.