Autodesk just released it’s mobile version for the iPhone and iPad. This was something i have been excited to try, ever since I first learned Autodesk was developing it.
fter the download (through iTunes) and install it firstask’s you to either log in or create a new account (for online storage, sharing and collaborating among other things). So I created an account and excitedly pressed the ‘login’ button. This is what popped up:

All seemed to be well so far. Then it through me into the main menu, preloaded with three CAD files (see left image):

So, of course the next course of action was loading up one of those drawings and play around with the app, to discover all the possibilities. That was where disappointment started to set in… Upon trying to load one of those drawings, which it needed to pull from the ‘cloud’ (Autodesk servers), the following message popped up:

That is where it hung… It would not load the drawing, which meant i could not try out the app. Bummer.

Next thing to try, to see if it were just the app, or probably their servers, was to log into the web based console created for this app.

Upon trying it took a very long time for the website to even load, but it eventually did. Then i logged on, and it (after a while again) through me into the management console, from which you can edit your account settings, upload files, etc. I figured i’d try to load a drawing in the browser, but once again i was disappointed: The same error popped up:

So, in the end I was not able to try out this app. I will keep trying, cause from the looks of it, it seems that Autodesk’s servers are just swamped. I can imagine there are quite a few people around the world, just as excited as I was, trying this out at the same time.

So, I will just give it some time, and try again later. I am sure these problems will be resolved before long!

UPDATE:

After trying to use and try out AutoCAD WS again, it sort of worked.. First of all, the web interface loaded (albeit slow) and i was able to upload one of my own CAD drawings. After that I opened up the drawing in the browser and played around with the possibilities. Not too bad at all! This can come in handy!

Then the iPhone app was next. It actually logged on, but from the get go about every 5 – 10 seconds the message “No connection to the AutoCAD WS service. Please check your internet connection” popped up. Even though true (as the app was having trouble keeping a connection open with the autodesk servers), it was very annoying. Loading the drawing was hit and miss. One time it would load (again slow), and another it just wouldn’t at all. Those times completely closing the app, starting it up and signing in again, caused the drawing to load again. After the drawing eventually loaded, I was able to manipulate the drawing, and create new elements. Performing those (basic) functions went really well, even on an iPhone (with smaller screen real-estate). The pop up window informing me to check my internet connection continued to pop up ever 5 – 10 seconds, which of course continued to annoy me, and makes it very hard to seriously sit down for more then 5 minutes and play with the app.

Hopefully Autodesk resolves these issues (which more then likely originate as a result of overloaded servers) soon. If they don’t, I would not use it solely because it is not workable.

One more thing which i thought was disappointing was the lack of support for the new retina display. All the button’s just look pixelated. A real shame, because beside the above mentioned problems, I think this app is a winner! If the server side problems are worked out, it will be very useful indeed! Hope they update their graphics soon as well, although that wouldn’t prevent me from using it.

Below some screenshots:

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