AutoCAD Exchange: Have you stopped by lately?

Autodesk recently reworked their AutoCAD Exchange website.  If you haven't heard of it, AutoCAD Exchange is a website created by Autodesk meant to be a central online community where users of AutoCAD and AutoCAD Vertical programs can go for support and information.  Gabrielle Friedly, AutoCAD Exchange Community Manager was kind enough to write a guest post for CAD-a-Blog that discusses AutoCAD Exchange and its new features.  Here is her post:

If AutoCAD Exchange were a movie, I might invite you to “see it again for the first time.” That’s because we recently gave this popular site a new look and feel.

We launched AutoCAD Exchange in March 2009. An average of 70,000 visitors now stop by every month to access learning and productivity tools, discussions, and blog posts related to the AutoCAD® family of products. They also ask questions of colleagues, share work in the design showcase, and network with one another. Based on the feedback from these visitors, we’ve now made it easier to find, view, and experience the content that makes you even more productive with AutoCAD software. Here’s a preview of what we’ve done. 

New Look and Feel

AutoCAD Exchange can now remember your username and password, so you won’t have to log on every time you visit the site. Once you’re in, you’ll notice our brighter, cleaner interface that makes AutoCAD family product content easier to spot at a glance. In addition, our redesigned home page provides instant access to the three most popular areas of the site: Ask the Expert, New AutoCAD Tips, and Discussion Forums.

Hunting for something specific? The Search box is now easier to find because it’s located in the top right corner of every page—and we’ve enriched our search results to help point you in the right direction.

Enhanced Tips and Tricks Section

As you collect AutoCAD tips and share your knowledge, you’ll find the Tips and Tricks page easier than ever to use. It prominently displays featured tips at the top, divided by topic onto four tabs. For each topic area, you can watch a featured video in a large, YouTube-style video player.

Below, the Featured Playlists let you watch videos from other topic areas. When you click any topic, the video player will load all videos associated with that topic. Like what you see? You can easily share any video with a colleague.

Revamped Ask the Expert Section

The revamped AutoCAD Exchange also makes it easier to navigate through our Ask the Expert content. We’re allowing more space for our current expert—and for answers to questions submitted by users like you. Want to review previous Expert content? Our Expert Archive is one click away.

Check Out Our AutoCAD Community

Want to keep up with Autodesk blog postings and tweets? Get our daily blog feed in our Community section. Searching our Member Directory? Results are now easier to scan. Participating in our Forums? You’ll find our new navigation more intuitive.

You’ll also want to stop by the Design Showcase, where you can “Like” a drawing or share it on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. I hope you’ll also “Like” the new look and feel of AutoCAD Exchange. Keep sending us your comments and suggestions, and we’ll do our best to make sure AutoCAD Exchange continues to meet your needs.

Gabrielle Friedly, AutoCAD Exchange Community Manager

gabrielle.friedly@autodesk.com