Direct CAD file support vs. import

I have not seen much value in CAD applications directly supporting (instead of importing) a foreign CAD file format. I thought that when you can import such CAD format, you are done as well.

But there is a difference. New Inventor 2008 can not only import but it can also directly work with the AutoCAD DWG file format. Similarly, AutoCAD 2008 can not only import but also underlay Microstation DGN V8 files and DWF files.

The main advantage is that you doesn’t need to take care about the updates of such external files. Inventor or AutoCAD will just load (underlay, open) the most current version of this file (e.g. from a shared network location) – you don’t need to explicitly import the new version all the time.

DWFX from Inventor 2008

One thing my Autodesk dealer didn’t know is whether Inventor 2008 will come with the option to publish the new style DWFx files. I like the idea of sharing CAD files which do not need to first install a viewer to display them. I am aware of the limitation to 2D but it still would be useful.

A I understand it, neither AutoCAD 2008 will be shipped with the DWFX driver in a box. So maybe for Inventor 2008 it will also come later after the release, in some form of a downloadable add-on.