I've had over a decade of engineering experience with Autodesk's AutoCAD. AutoCAD is a well-accepted industry standard; I've used it when I worked for both small businesses and large organizations.

At first, I thought it required an annoying, in-depth knowledge of a multitude of finicky functions. Over time, I began to appreciate all the perks that it allowed. I also realized that it allowed you to work within your own skill level. You really didn't need to learn all the bells-and-whistles in order to get the job done. And I began to welcome taking refresher courses... it was like seeing an old friend again, one that has helped me, time after time.

I've used just about all of the functions. I love being able to tweak my drawings into perfection. It's also great when others send you their drawings. The only potential problem is really a non-software issue: you hope that the other person has the same basic drawing setups.

I wish that there was a much cheaper and simpler version for home usage. My employers can easily justify purchasing large software packages, but, not me, especially since my hand-drafting skills are really quite good.

AutoCAD has certainly met my needs over the years. I'd give it a 9 out of 10. I'm tempted to give it a perfect score, but I've had some minor grumbles about merging various user's drawings.

Learn more about this author, Jeff Parsons.
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