Cadalyst - October 2007 - (Page 12)

cadcentral By Kenneth Wong New Machines from HP In September, HP publicly unveiled several new systems that were previewed to the media at SIGGRAPH 2007. The lineup includes two new workstations: the HP xw4550 (starting at $800, available in October) and HP xw4600 (starting at $900, available in November). Their entry-level pricing makes them both good considerations for budget-conscious CAD users. The xw4550 is powered by AMD Opteron 1000 Series processors, augmented with professional-class 2D and 3D graphics cards from NVIDIA and AMD. The xw4600 comes with a choice of Intel Pentium Dual-Core 3, Intel Core 2 The new HP Compaq dc7800 is touted as a Duo, Intel Core 2 Quad, or Intel Extreme dual- and quad-core processors. The “zero-footprint PC” for its compactness. new Intel X38 Express chipset and 2D and 3D NVIDIA and AMD graphics cards complete the setup. Both systems are Energy Star–compliant. Your Own Private Another product, the HP Compaq dc7800 Ultra-slim Desktop PC, is described as BIM Kit the “zero-footprint PC” for being one of the smallest, energy-efficient systems (starting at $695, available since September). According to HP, it has “a 46% smaller form factor Graphisoft wants you to study than the previous models. The PC comes in Convertible Minitower and Small Form Factor BIM from the privacy of your models, with the latest Intel Q35 chipset and Intel vPro 10 Processor Technology.” own home, cubicle, café, or whatever site strikes your fancy. But more importantly, the company wants you to Autodesk Goes Shopping consider its ArchiCAD software for your BIM project. In the last week of August, when word to ANSYS’s quarterly financials released To entice you, the company got out that Autodesk had secured a line on August 2, it expects revenues in the is offering a free downloadof credit from Citibank for $250 million range of $367–$371 million for the fiscal able BIM Experience Kit (http:// (in Autodesk’s SEC filing on August 23), year ending in December 2007. experiencebim.com), which several media sources began speculating Amy Bunzel, director of the Autodesk consists of a 30-day, fully about how the company might spend that Inventor product line, told Cadalyst functional (but limited) vercash. Some asked: Could the AutoCAD contributing editor Jeffrey Rowe, “The sion of ArchiCAD 11, a twogiant be planning to snatch up The Rand acquisition was consistent with rounding hour tutorial of BIM, and an Group, a value-added reseller that has out the digital prototyping strategy with online assessment test. become an attractive acquisition target? its simulation aspects and effect on digital The announcement reads, (See “Quarter-Billion Line of Credit — What prototyping” (“Autodesk Pushes Ahead “Innovative technology allows For?” WorldCAD Access, August 25, 2007.) with DP,” MCAD Tech News 219, Septusers to convert files to be As it turned out, Autodesk was planning ember 6, 2007). compatible with commercial to acquire something, just not The Rand As with a variety of technology acquisiversions of ArchiCAD upon Group. On August 27, the company bought tions, the trickiest part for the PlassoTech purchase.” In other words, the California-based PlassoTech, which purchase will be managing the postonce you buy the commercial develops and markets analysis and simulaacquisition relationships. PlassoTech is availversion, you can simply contion software for the mechanical market. It able also for Inventor’s rivals, including tinue working on the groundis an understandable acquisition, as the two SolidWorks, Solid Edge, and Pro/E. work you’ve completed with nearest midrange competitors to Autodesk “Although Autodesk will continue to supthe trial version that comes Inventor come with integrated analysis port integrations of PlassoTech technology with the kit. c packages of their own: COSMOSWorks for with other platforms . . . the company will SolidWorks and Femap for Solid Edge (UGS be winding this business down, so moving Kenneth Wong is a Cadalyst Velocity Series). Inventor often is associated forward it can focus exclusively on the contributing editor who explores with ANSYS, a mechanical simulation and Inventor implementation,” Rowe reported. the innovative use of technology. analysis software from ANSYS. The financial As for ANSYS’s role after the Plassoterms of the PlassoTech acquisition were Tech buyout, Bunzel informed Rowe that More News not disclosed, but it’s safe to conclude “ANSYS will remain a strategic partner and ANSYS’s price tag might have been much will continue to provide complementary higher than PlassoTech’s. ANSYS is better CAE products for Inventor, such as nonlinFind breaking and known, more established, and the comear, high-end FEA; CFD; and multiphysics.” current news at pany is operating profitably. According www.cadalyst.com/news. 12 October 2007 | cadalyst | www.cadalyst.com http://experiencebim.com http://www.cadalyst.com/news http://www.cadalyst.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Cadalyst - October 2007

Contents Editor's Window Cad Central Tech Trends: First-Hand Architecture in Second Life Rev It Up — Graphics Cards Pack Power for Today’s Hottest Designs TurboCAD Pro 14 — 3D Modeling Software SimEnterprise R2 — Design Simulation Software CADopia 6.2 SP3 Professional Edition — 2D and 3D Modeling Software Cad Manager: Programming Resources for CAD Managers MCAD Modeling: Customer Service Horror Stories PLM Strategies: Manufacturing Across Time Zones AEC in Focus: Digital-Asset Management in AEC/O Cad Cartoon Issue Indexes Cadfidential

Cadalyst - October 2007

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