Note that AutoCAD WS is not the full AutoCAD package for Mac but AutoCAD WS offers all the basics in order view, edit and collaborate with other CAD professionals on your designs. With it you can open your files, upload them to your online account and even sync them with your AutoCAD WS mobile app.

You can perform basic editing such as plotting your DWG files as a PDF or DWFx with control over plot styles, paper sizes, layouts etc. You can also download AutoCAD drawings in AutoCAD WS in order to work offline. Note that you have to be a bit careful with the size of your AutoCAD files as AutoCAD WS imposes an upload limit on how big your files can be.

AutoCAD WS is a powerful tool for sharing and basic editing of AutoCAD files on Mac.

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Firstly, note that the download provided here is the Akamai Client Installer for AutoCAD which automatically installs the software for you. You'll need a whopping 2.5GB of free hard drive space to ensure you can download and install AutoCAD for Mac properly.

Those that have used AutoCAD on Windows will instantly recognize the familiar AutoCAD interface and layout. The commands and tools are exactly the same. For those that haven’t used AutoCAD before, you're in for a very steep learning curve although the intuitive interface, extensive documentation and context-sensitive help functions in AutoCAD for Mac make life a lot easier.

AutoCAD for Mac looks much slicker than the Windows version and takes full advantage of OS X, including use of Cover Flow, Multi-Touch gestures, Magic Mouse and Magic Trackpad. You can of course create and edit DWG files natively and you can collaborate on projects across platforms with customers, clients, colleagues etc.

It's impossible to avoid the fact that AutoCAD is one of the most expensive packages there is for Mac but the developers AutoDesk have made a superb offer to students and educators. They can get a three year license absolutely free which means you can use AutoCAD completely for free for three years although a watermark is added to designs. Alternatively, students and educators in the US and Canada can purchase an unlimited license with no watermark for a 90% discount on the full price.

AutoCAD for Mac has been a long time in coming but CAD professionals will agree it was definitely worth the wait.

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AutoCAD is a multi-purpose program that's fantastic for making precise 2D and 3D buildings, models and more in the industry standard CAD design. Unfortunately, it's also quite expensive, which might make it difficult for students or other people on a budget to purchase.

That's where LibreCAD comes in. A free, opensource tool that lets you create and edit 2D models, LibreCAD is a legitimate alternative to the more expensive AutoCAD. Support and documentation on how to use the program is also available user-made and available for free on the developer's website.

LibreCAD provides users with a palette and a variety of retouching tools that will let you both create and edit 2D designs. For more hands-on users, LibreCAD's availability as an opensource program allows you to customize it to your liking without any cost except for time on your part.

Beginning users might find it a little difficult to use initially, but the extensive tutorials made by other users and developers definitely goes a long way in helping you learn the program's ropes. The only real downside to the tool is that there's no support for 3D model creation, which might limit its usefulness, depending your own needs for a CAD-based application.

As a no-cost alternative to the far more expensive AutoCAD, LibreCAD can't be beat for creating and editing 2D designs.

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MacDraft offers a wide range of drawing tools including both ANSI and international standard dimensioning features. MacDraft supports both imperial and metric dimensions and is an ideal choice for those working in mechanical, architectural, engineering and technical illustration fields.

Most importantly for those that have worked with AutoCAD in Windows, MacDraft can import AutoCAD files as well as other programs that export to DWG and DXF. MacDraft can automatically readjust layouts for you or you can choose to manually configure them yourself.

The interface of MacDraft will come as a tonic to anyone that's only used CAD software in Windows. It's been tailored specifically for Macs with an elegant OS X look and feel. Even though this is a Pro version, it's designed so that beginners won't have a problem learning how to use it although for a slightly cheaper price tag without the professional features, a Personal Edition is also available for download here.

MacDraft is a powerful 2D CAD program for Macs that is suitable for all abilities.

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With Retrieva you can locate an image or document that you need right away, whether it's stored locally on your machine or in some other remote location. Browse through thumbnail previews of your images and other media - Retrieva will even create thumbnails for music files by automatically downloading album artwork from Amazon's enormous online artwork database - or use Retrieva's powerful search facility to pinpoint just the file you need.

Features:

• Built using solid, fully relational database technology.
• Unlimited database size.
• Preview Quark XPress & PDF documents.
• Intuitive searching.
• Find images that are similar to each other.
• Extensive metadata support.
• Built in image editor and audio & movie player.
• Preview 3D Studio & Autocad DXF files.

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