AUGIWorld Magazine November/December 2007

AutoCAD Turns 25! Shaan Hurley of Autodesk talks about the product, its history, and the lengths to which he will go to collect memorabilia In September, Matt Murphy, AUGI CAD Camp content manager and contributor to AUGI publications, conducted an exclusive interview with Shaan Hurley, technical marketing manager for the Platform Technologies division of Autodesk, Inc. Shaan is also widely recognized as the “unofficial historian” of Autodesk and AutoCAD. Here’s a glimpse at the genesis of this groundbreaking software Murphy: Shaan, how did your career with Autodesk begin? Hurley: Well, Matt, I was a mechanical designer and Autodesk product user. Then while I was an Autodesk customer, I became a beta tester. Finally, I was offered a position in San Rafael with Autodesk to be on the Beta Team. Murphy: You’re not still on that team though, are you? Hurley: No. As Technical Marketing Manager, I would describe myself more as a technical resource/geek, rather than the marketing person who creates ads. I am also the Worldwide Manager of Autodesk MyFeedback Community, which is the center stage for beta, research, and product usability for all Autodesk products. Murphy: How did you become the unofficial historian? Hurley: Boy, that’s a long story. When I first entered through the magical Autodesk doors, it was like a dream come true. First, I searched for all the CAD geek “holy grail” 12 items, such as the mystical one place list for all AutoCAD commands and sysvars, but realized it simply didn’t exist. Then I looked for the Autodesk historical museum and, surprise, surprise, that didn’t exist either. Back in those days, I was a complete CAD geek who didn’t need much sleep, so I put my AutoCAD passion to good use and developed a variable map. This map showed all the commands and system variables and when they were added, edited, or removed since AutoCAD R12. It generated a lot of public interest, so I knew there were others wanting the same things I did. This command map lives on today and is expertly maintained by customer Lee Ambrosius of Hyperpics.com. Murphy: And I hear you’ve built up quite the collection of Autodesk artifacts and memorabilia. Hurley: Guilty as charged. After the quest of the command map, I went in search of all old Autodesk logo merchandise and products. It took a huge amount of time and banging on doors, emails, web posts, and phone calls, to say nothing of a little arm twisting here and there. I looked in storage lockers, put out a plea to the AutoCAD user community, and even resorted to delving in garbage cans! Luckily, it paid off. Murphy: Autodesk thanks you for the dumpster diving. Tell me about the things you’ve acquired. Hurley: In the garbage, I discovered some true gems from the Autodesk founders, such as an AutoCAD R11 rubber football, NURBS chocolate bar, old literature, and the very first Autodesk business card. I also have many AutoCAD boxes and manuals dating back to the AutoCAD 80 and AutoCAD 86 first releases. Believe it or not, these manuals were typewritten and list John Walker’s house as Autodesk’s address! I have also traded on eBay—that’s where my recent AutoCAD R12 pin came from. When employees clean out their offices or move on, I make a point of swinging by. People sometimes donate their old products. I recently struck gold with a full boxed and mint AutoCAD 2.17. w w w. A U G I . c o m http://Hyperpics.com http://www.AUGI.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of AUGIWorld Magazine November/December 2007

AUGIWorld Magazine November/December 2007 Table of Contents The CAD Manager Education & Training Finance Training Google Earth: Now Showing in AutoCAD Civil 3D Get Your Input Here A Good First Impression, Part 2 Share and Share Alike Who's Using Revit MEP? Ready… Get Set… Properties! On the Back Page: The Brazilian Model

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