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Does AutoCad work on a Mac?

baker1

I need to buy a new computer for home and I am considering the Mac. I have not only been pursuaded by their humorous and catchy advertising, but their reputation, as well.Does anyone have experience using AutoCad on a Mac? Or, anyother Cad software for that matter?

Thanks

 
Apr 7, 16 1:12 pm
Non Sequitur

" I have not only been pursuaded by their humorous and catchy advertising, but their reputation"

 

Says everything we need to know. Enjoy wasting your money.

Apr 7, 16 1:25 pm  · 
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SpontaneousCombustion

Yes, AutoCAD works fine on a Mac - there's a Mac version and in my experience it's more stable than the PC version - though I'm not a fan of AutoCAD and haven't used it at all in a few years.  ArchiCAD and Vectorworks also run native on a Mac.  Revit doesn't have a Mac version but I run it on my Macs with Parallels, no problems.  This idea always encounters scorn here - there's a perception that Revit on a Mac runs too slowly or can't be used for large projects, though we haven't found this to be the case.  I made this choice because it was less much expensive to put Parallels and Windows on several existing computers than to purchase PCs and upgrade/update all of our other software in order to switch them all to Windows licenses

Apr 7, 16 2:03 pm  · 
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thisisnotmyname

I have used Apple products since 1982 but am phasing out all of the Macs in my office due to bad experiences I have had with Apple over the past 3-4 years.  They have really become more of a phone and tablet company with a small sideline in laptops and desktop machines.

This Reddit post mirrors many of my experiences with Apple, especially with forced upgrade hell and early hardware obsolescence : https://www.reddit.com/r/MacSucks/comments/28docp/25_year_former_mac_user_says_apple_sucks_and_why/

We ditched our iPhones about 18 months ago, our iPads will be gone soon, and we hope to have our MacBooks retired by the end of 2016.

Apr 7, 16 2:48 pm  · 
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won and done williams

I have a 2013 MBP, 2.7 GHz Intel Core i7, 16GB 1600 MHz DDR3, Intel HD Graphics 4000 512 MB. I run 2013 AutoCAD LT, and I'll be honest, it runs slower and locks up far more often than I remember it running on a PC. Fortunately, I rarely do intensive CAD work on my MBP, but if I were doing a ton of CAD, I probably would opt for a PC. 

Apr 7, 16 2:49 pm  · 
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won and done williams

All that being said, the rest of my life is on a Mac, and I would never leave it for another two bit hussy.

Apr 7, 16 2:52 pm  · 
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Anonymoose

Oh, you were persuaded by their advertising? In that case, I have a bridge to sell you...

Apr 7, 16 3:09 pm  · 
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proto

We use it with no more hassle than I remember having with PCs when working for someone else.

Apr 7, 16 4:36 pm  · 
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arch76

I have been running ACAD LT 2014 on a mac book pro since 2014, 16gb ram and an ssd hard drive at home and ACAD 2016 on a bitching new PC at work. The PC certainly 'hangs' more than the Mac, even though the PC is a faster machine. The PC will make a mesh from contours in sketchup in the time it takes me to take a sip of coffee. For some reason ACAD will hang it up though. It may be larger files, but who knows.

I think it ultimately depends on the rest of your software- I had to replaced my PC laptop and knew I would be purchasing CAD and photoshop and went the Mac route. If you have software already, than a platform jump may not make sense, but if you are starting from scratch... it might make sense.

I have had 4 laptops over the last 16 years- mac, pc, pc, mac. The macs always seemed to have a better build quality and seemed to fail with a bit more grace. pc #2 was replaced when every session made me wonder if the machine was going to make it, both cooling fans wailing while trying to launch libre office... 

Apr 9, 16 4:53 pm  · 
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DraftSight is available for the mac for free (for a single user) and works pretty well:

https://www.3ds.com/products-services/draftsight-cad-software/

It'll open native AutoCAD files just fine, although AutoCAD complains about it when you make a round trip. Printing/publishing between the two is a bit of a hassle.

Apr 11, 16 9:46 am  · 
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SneakyPete

Most Apple stores were designed using Adesk software running on Windows.

Apr 11, 16 11:52 am  · 
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gwharton

^^^ True story.

Apr 11, 16 11:58 am  · 
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baker1

Thank you for your opinions.It has been quite helpful :)

Apr 11, 16 4:29 pm  · 
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