LT Unlimited

AU 2009 -- the wrap-up

Whew, what a week! AU 2009 is over and done, and now I'm back home again, trying to remember where I left off before the Thanksgiving break. (Sometimes I think I reach my own personal memory storage limits at AU, there's so much good stuff to learn and new people to meet.)

When I left off blogging on Wednesday, I was about to present my Introduction to Macro Writing class. It ended up going quite well, I think. If you're curious as to what was covered, you can find my handout, PPT, and sample CUIx file on the class page at AU Online. Later that day, I went to the AUGI annual meeting and watched the presentation of the official wishlists for AutoCAD, Civil 3D, Inventor, and Revit Architecture. AUGI also announced that CAD Camps will be returning next year -- very exciting! They have over 25 cities on the tentative schedule, so odds are good that there'll be one near you (if you're in the US). Details are still being finalized, so stay tuned...

On Thursday, things finally settled down a little. I spent time in the AutoCAD booth, did some more AutoCAD Exchange taping, and finally attended the AU party, where the main attractions were the Shark Reef exhibit and a caricature artist whose medium was Sketchbook Pro. Unfortunately the line was really long and I didn't get a caricature done. Maybe next time...

My favorite part of every AU is meeting people. It's so much fun to share AutoCAD stories, travel tales, or just chat. I met a lot of people from outside the US this year, including Lasse from Finland...

...Jose from Switzerland...

 

...Dario from Italy, Bill from Australia, Luciana from Brazil...

 

...and a ton more that I didn't get pictures with. Hope to see you all again next year!

Last but not least, I brought home a new friend & traveling companion from Australia:

(If you're wondering, "What the heck IS that?", it's an echidna. Much furrier (and blue-r) than the real thing, though. Thanks again, Bill!)

The arrival of Friday meant it was time to get back on the plane...

...and say goodbye to Vegas and AU until next year.

 
Of course, you know that AU never *really* ends, right? How can it, with all the content available at AU Online and AU Virtual? Handouts, datasets, presentations, session recordings, and so much more...all for free! (Or for $99, if you buy the AUv Premier pass.) There's plenty there to keep you busy & well-informed until next time.

And speaking of next time, tips & tricks will resume in the next post.

For now, though, signing off from AU 2009!

News from AU

(I wrote this post on Wednesday, hit "save", and went on to the rest of my day...only to find out today that I forgot to change the status from "draft" to "publish now". Sigh. I'll have a post on the rest of the week later today.)

This morning is some of the first breathing room I've had since I arrived in Vegas Monday morning. AU is just a non-stop action-packed whirlwind of "learning, connecting, and exploring" (to paraphrase the motto).

Monday I was interviewed for AU Virtual (look for an "on-demand studio interview"), then moved to the other side of the microphone to chat with bloggers at the Blogger Social. Those interviews will eventually posted to the AutoCAD Exchange.

Tuesday started bright and early with an 8:00 a.m. lab by Michael Beall, the AutoCAD Trainer Guy. I was an assistant there, along with Shaan Hurley and Hugo Hernandez of Southwest Airlines. Lots of excellent tips & tricks, and the attendees seemed to enjoy the class. Then it was on to the AU Keynote, which was very well done and interesting (not always a given for keynotes). See Shaan's post for pictures. After lunch, I assisted at a lab with Darren Young on Custom Object Snaps and the Geometry Calculator -- stay tuned for some posts with tips I picked up there. Next was Lynn Allen's standing-room-only class on AutoCAD 2010, and some more on-the-spot interviews with customers for the AutoCAD Exchange. The last structured event of the day was the AutoCAD and Media & Entertainment Keynote, where we heard some great customer stories and saw a 20-minute preview of the upcoming movie Avatar, which was created with Autodesk MotionBuilder technology. Really impressive stuff. The day wasn't over, though -- I spent the evening at the AutoCAD booth in the Exhibit Hall, talking to customers and meeting my first in-person Twitter follower (all the way from Finland!). It was quite a day!

Today will be just as busy -- one more lab to assist in, then teaching a class on macro writing. The AUGI Annual Meeting is this evening, followed by the annual Beer Bust and the Design Slam finals.

I'm collecting lots of useful tips for future blog posts, but haven't had much time to write them up. Hopefully I'll have time soon, but for now, I better finish preparing for my class!

See you next week...in Vegas!

Autodesk is closed this week for Thanksgiving, so the blog is taking some time off too. It'll be nice to have a bit of a lull before the week-long high-speed CAD-mania that is Autodesk University.

A few final reminders before I sign off for the week:

• If you'll be in Vegas with us, stop by the AutoCAD booth and say hi. (If the exhibit hall is open, odds are pretty good that I'll be there.)
• If you can't come to Vegas, don't forget to check for an AU Extension near you.
• And if neither of the above work out, it's not too late to register for AUv to get access to all kinds of live and recorded content, both during the conference and throughout the year.

I also don't know how much I'll be blogging during AU (although I'll try), but I will be tweeting regularly. Most of my tweets in the past have been links to blog posts, so AU will be my first foray into more real-time updates. We'll see how it goes. If you want to follow the experiment, you can find me at twitter.com/katemorrical.

Next stop, AU!

One more way to get to AU

There are now THREE ways to see AU 2009 content and events (and that's not even counting all the stuff that's already available at AU Online).

1. AU in Vegas
Of course there's the live event. You get in-person classes, networking, the AUGI Beer Bust, etc.

2. AUv
There's also AU Virtual, which is a way to see live classes and events over the web. No security lines to get to this one, and it's free. (Or $99 for a Premier Pass.)

3. AU Extension
Last but not least, there's AU Extension, which combines expert-led class content from AU in Las Vegas with face-to-face interaction with local instructors. With over 90 Authorized Training Centers participating, in 35 countries, chances are pretty good there's one near you. Even better, AU Extension is free, and comes with the option to purchase additional training at a discount.

I hope one of the 3 AU options works for you!

Can't make it to Vegas? Come to AU Virtual!

I know that a lot of you won't be able to make it to Autodesk University this year, so I'm happy to help spread the word about a new alternative -- AU Virtual.

AU virtual provides some of the best of AU content, delivered right to your desktop. We'll be streaming over 50 virtual sessions live over the web, plus product clinics where you can get answers to questions from experts on a variety of topics. (Full session listing.)

If you're already a member of AU Online (and why not, it's free), you can attend any keynote or product clinic absolutely free.

If you want more, $99 gets you an AU Virtual Premier Pass. The Premier Pass includes all the keynotes and clinics from the Free Pass, plus the 50+ virtual sessions I mentioned earlier, where you get to interact with other attendees as well as with the presenter. The Premier Pass also includes post-conference on-demand access to recordings of over 350 classes from AU 2009, for viewing at your leisure.

Even better, if you're a Subscription customer, the Premier Pass is free. And everyone who registers for AU in Vegas gets 4 free Premier Passes to share with friends, so that's one more way to get to AU Virtual for free.

And in case you need one more reason to register, if you sign up for an AU Virtual Premier Pass by November 13, 2009 you'll be entered in a drawing for a full pass to AU 2009 or AU 2010 in Las Vegas (your choice)—a US$2,395 value!

Still have questions? Check out the AU Virtual home page, the FAQ, and the comparison of AU On-Site and AU Virtual.

Hope to see you in Vegas, or at least in cyberspace!

AU Early Bird Registration Ends Tomorrow

Thinking about attending AU 2009? You may want to think a little faster -- the $500 early-bird discount expires tomorrow.

AutoCAD LT doesn't always get a lot of mention at AU, but there's still plenty training available for it. To prove it, I've put together a schedule showing the LT-relevant classes in each time slot. Especially on Wednesday, there are so many classes in each slot that I'm going to have a hard time choosing which to attend! Click here to download the schedule (XLS format).

If it's too expensive even with the discount, there's still time to enter the AU YouTube contest. We're giving away 3 all-inclusive passes (you only pay airfare), and so far there's only 11 entrants. Pretty good odds! Upload your video by October 12th to be considered, and visit the official contest page for all the rules and regs.

Another way to get to AU for free

A couple weeks ago I posted about the AU 2009 YouTube contest -- have you submitted your video yet? (I'm guessing you haven't since there's only one entry so far. What are you waiting for?)

If making videos isn't your thing, though, there's another way to win a pass to AU 2009 or 2010: the AUGI Top DAUG t-shirt design contest. Designs are due in DWF format by October 2nd, 2009, and you have to be an AUGI member to participate. But it's free to join, so that requirement shouldn't be a problem.

Good luck!

Win a trip to AU 2009

If it doesn't look like a trip to Vegas is in the cards this year (ha ha), maybe it's time to get out your video camera!

Autodesk University is sponsoring a YouTube contest and giving away 3 all-inclusive passes to AU 2009. (Looks like you'd still be on your own for airfare, but everything else is covered...hotel, meals, etc.)

The basic idea is to watch a YouTube video about reasons people go to AU, and then post your own video response telling everyone why you want to come to AU.

Finalists will be determined by number of YouTube viewings, and the final round of voting will be done through the AU Facebook page.

For all the details, including eligibility (open only to residents of the US and Canada, with some geographical exceptions), click here.

I'm definitely looking forward to watching the entries -- hope to see some of you in Vegas!

Autodesk University 2009 Registration Now Open!

Okay, so I'm a little behind with this one (I already had a bunch of posts stacked up for last week), but it's still news worth sharing.

Register now for AU 2009!

That's right, you can now sign up to attend AU 2009 -- if you're a member of AU Online (it's free). General registration opens Wednesday, and the early-bird rates run through October 9.

There are over 640 classes and labs to choose from over the 3 days of the conference, and there's PLENTY of material to fill an LT user's schedule -- classes in dynamic blocks, the CUI, customization, CAD Management, training, and more.

In the customization category, you'll find my Introduction to Macro Writing class, as well as two labs I'll be assisting in: The AutoCAD Toolbelt with Michael Beall, and Custom Object Snaps and Other Geometry Calculator Tricks with Darren Young.

To browse the entire course catalog, click here.

And one last thing -- don't get sticker shock. AU looks expensive at first glance, I know, but when you consider that it's 3 very full days of classes, plus all your meals and 4 nights' hotel expenses, the costs are very much in line with other industry seminars and training. You won't find more AutoCAD information in one place at one time anywhere else.

Hope to see you in Vegas!

Vote for me! (Or at least for your favorite AU classes.)

Once again, the AU team is asking for feedback on the 1400+ class proposals received for AU 2009.

To vote, just go here and log in with your AU Online account (it's free to create if you don't have one). You don't need an access code.

You can vote for up to 20 classes...of course I'd like you to vote for mine, but there are lots of other worthy classes to choose from too.

Don't procrastinate too long -- voting closes this Friday, May 8th.

Even if you don't think you'll attend AU this year, it's a good chance to weigh in on what you would like to see, because the content gets posted to the site after the fact.

Hope to see you all there!