Live Map Service - Civil 3D 2014

In Civil 3D 2014, Autodesk has introduced a live map service to acquire satellite images.  In order to to use this service, the user first needs to log into Autodesk 360, and have a coordinate system assigned to the drawing.  After logging in, the user simply needs to type GEOMAP on the command line.

The user is presented with several choices.  The first choice is Aerial.

The second choice is Road.

The third choice is Hybrid.  This is a combination of Aerial and Road.

Lastly, the user can simply select off to hide the imagery.

AutoCAD Civil 3D 2014 - New Features

As you probably know by now, AutoCAD Civil 3D 2014 has been released to the masses.  I will try to summarize the list of new features that have been added or enhanced in this years version.  A good place to start as always is the help files.

• Pressure Pipe Enhancements
• Create Network from Objects
• Can be added to cross section views
• Can have assigned pay items in the Parts List
• Can be used via the data shortcut
• Sort parts lists by size
• New annotation options
• Can be added to plan production sheets
• Extract Corridor Solids
• Data references are saved in the drawing
• Improved interoperability with InfraWorks (Otherwise known as AIM)
• Survey Queries Import and Export

One of the more interesting features in Civil 3D 2014 is its backward compatibility with Civil 3D 2013.  This means that 2014 files can be opened and edited in 2013.  However, there are some limitations due to enhancements in 2014.  The screen capture below talks about the limitations.  This can also be found in the following link Round-Tripping Data between versions.

Lastly, here is the new logo for Autodesk going forward.