Comments on: AutoCAD 2009 - Why do you hate the Ribbon?

By: Zach

Zach — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 21:16:55 +0000

I hate that thing. I tried it, I even tried to learn it. I didn’t like it from the first time I tried to use it. yeah, it was a shock not having everything where I expect it, but even now when I’m looking for something that I know exists I can’t find it. I like hot-keys, and it’s easier to read a menu that goes up and down, not sideways. I’d support a re-vamp of the old style way before an entire new style.. they are trying to re-invent the wheel here.

By: JT

JT — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 21:01:19 +0000

Why I hate the ribbon, by JT:
The ribbon takes up a whole lotta space, requires more clicks to get you where you wanna go, and the response time for the clicks you make in the ribbon is sooooo slow, goodness - it drives me nuts when I’m in the big ‘A’ and are flipping from recent documents to file or something. Another thing that’s just such a dog-n-pony show is the preview thumbnails of all the drawings you have open - pleeeeeease, go back to the list. Again, alot of time wasted !!!! And one more whining comment: why can’t we get the command line down to one line? The least lines I see available for viewing / working is either two or none, and unfortunately I like just one. Sup with that? I don’t think it’s too much to ask? But back to the ribbon issue: I gave it more than an honest try, I used it for six months - really tried to like it - didn’t happen. I am now back to my limited icons and the trusty ol keyboard (along with the layer dialogue box that doesn’t autohide and exit the dialogue box everytime you set the color of a layer - so annoying) I am usually not so negative about things, but 2009 has really been a downer!
The End

By: Matt

Matt — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 14:54:32 +0000

I can’t stand the ribbon because I much rather them quit adding useless features and work on making AutoCad stable instead. My company has a subscription plan so I have to use the “wonderful” new version with each subsequent year. 2009 uses about a gig of RAM and is the most unstable version yet. I have been using AutoCad since R12. Why can’t they do something like windows does and release a new version every couple years instead. Maybe create add-ons for whoever clamors for all these useless features. I don’t understand why my system resource usage tripled between this version and the last. Sloppy programming most likely.

By: Jon

Jon — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 08:49:26 +0000

I dont get the idea of having more strange features to the toolbars instead of actually developing a better software that can make things without all users having to create their own patches /lisp routines. I do NOT suffer from a big screen as a cad worker, but i do lack time. I hate to have to re-learn the software frequently, adjust it back to what we are used to etc.
The new toolbars are ridicilous , and why the f… would i need to minimize them when most people use at least 22 inch screens , and very often dual 40″…?

By: D. Scheu

D. Scheu — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 15:11:26 +0000

When I first saw the ribbon, I wondered why Autodesk would buy in to the Vista-style interface after the market rejected it so wholeheartedly.

But I gave it a fair shake. I tried to draw with the ribbon for a month, and after a month I concluded that it was a slower, larger, and less functional version of a toolbar. It was not slower because I was unfamiliar with it, but because it slowed down startup, it was slower to respond to input, and it required more clicks to get anything done. And on the plus side… well, there was no plus side. Nothing got easier, faster, or more intuitive because of the ribbon.

So I canned it.

By: Petros Liapis

Petros Liapis — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 16:10:55 +0000

I am located in London UK, and I teach Autocad for the last 5 years. I am an autocad user since release 12.
The HUGE advantage of Autocad over any other CAD package in the market is the KEYBOARD input. It saves time and money.
The ribbon was sold to Autodesk by Microsoft, and thus has NOTHING to do with drawing productivity. It is a corporate gimmick nothing more nothing less. The ribbon slows down the drawing process it does not speed it up.
The Autodesk managing directors should stop paying attention to corporate rubbish and listen to autocad users.
We do not want corporate “gurus” rearranging the software features every year, just for the shake of ..rearrangement. We want a rock solid application which is keyboard based for speed and efficiency.
I must say I am very disappointed with the way Autodesk treats us (the users).

By: Space Cowboy

Space Cowboy — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 06:27:54 +0000

Not only the “Ribbon” is a STUPID idea… the persons ho designed it do not seem to know very much of real wok with the program… The idea of collapsing all the menus in one single menu inside a limited space like the “Menu Browser” is definitely a very STUPID idea too, is no wonder you have to use a browser to find something… like it would be a database… I am very disappointed of Autodesk because, since i started to use Autocad i admired the capability of it and all the great tools that it has, and even, in various discussions I’ve defend it against other people who use other CAD software. Now i now that the company i admired for so long, has been corrupted by the opportunist and monopolistic Microsoft, who for long time has demonstrated lacking of original ideas… I’m evidently Downgrading to Acad 2007, but i don’t know how much time i will keep using it… Now i know why Autodesk has never consider changing to the Mac platform…

By: Sean

Sean — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 14:08:01 +0000

Like many Autocad users, I am very busy drawing, and do not have the time to re-learn the software every year. I have many custom toolbars and lisp routines that I stuggle to get working after every reinstall.
I draw very efficiently with the program “as-is” and wish the boss would quit throwing down the next “greatest” version on my desk.
As soon as I saw Ribbons using screen space, I switched to Classic View.
Now… back to trying to figure out why my attributes keep going dark when I regen (groan).

By: Janina

Janina — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 14:16:59 +0000

I tried using it for a while, but it takes longer to get to the command you want. (more clicks of the mouse, plus slower reaction time)
I do like it for multi leaders/dimensions, but for the most part it’s not worth it.
I was starting to get used to it, but then all the images on the ribbon menus disappeared. Now they are completely useless! (Don’t know what anything is - anyone know why that would happen - know how to get them back?)
That added to my frustration so i am sticking with the old way (tool bars/typing)

By: John Bogie

John Bogie — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 09:30:17 +0000

Quote=Shaan Hurley
“The Ribbon is one of those features that you gradually get used to otherwise we would all still be using the screen menu and a digitizer. ;-).”

The screen menu WAS excellent - until it was revised to match the pull-down menus - and I’m still convinced that the digitiser is the most efficient input device available.

By: John Bogie

John Bogie — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 07:29:36 +0000

I had to start using 2009 only because of a (temporary) problem with 2008. I use the keyboard for 90% of commands but I needed the tools from the (3d)view(point) toolbar or equivalent - I gave up after 15 minutes of trying to find them and switched to Classic.

By: Joao Santos

Joao Santos — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 19:36:51 +0000

Waste of space, waste of time, not usable. As an AutoCAD trainer I already didn’t advise the use of Dashboard, neither I do for Ribbon or menu browser.

By: R.K. McSwain

R.K. McSwain — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 12:58:23 +0000

See my comment on part 2 of your “Ribbon Man” interview.
URL = http://www.blog.cadnauseam.com/2008/06/11/the-ribbon-man-interview-part-2/#comment-364

By: diffd

diffd — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 11:38:12 +0000

keyboard for 90% of commands. One slither of a toolbar for the other 10% of commands I never quite get round to learning /setting keys for. I want screen space and plenty of it not things hovering about, popping up here there and everywhere blocking my view. I gave it a chance, but it was too slow, unintuitive (too many clicks to work with it and damn well ugly)

By: Mark

Mark — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 17:04:48 +0000

It’s too slow (hovering, etc), it adds mouse clicks (click to expand?), and it takes up real estate that could be more efficiently used by a standard toolbar.

Three strikes, you’re out.

By: metis

metis — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 16:32:25 +0000

it’s a waste of real estate. i use a keyboard or nostromo n52 to hotkey 90% of my input, and 2 rows of toolbars across the top and one down each side give me all of the less common, but daily use, tools and macros i need.

if don’t use it that often i’ll use the menu’s to get the command, or type it.

it might be useful if it accomplished something quickly, but it’s another layer of useless but pretty gui. take 20 minutes to make yourself a few custom tool bars and you’ll have the functionality you need. if you want to waste 2 seconds every time you want a tool to wait for it to appear, just use the menus, it’s faster.

By: Rick Moore

Rick Moore — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 15:02:44 +0000

The OOTB ribbon is unusable, IMO. The idea that clicking a tab to show a hidden tool is somehow desirable escapes me. This only works for tools that aren’t used much but in the default configuration you can’t work without clicking tabs. I tried to make a ribbon with one default one-line tab work but it had problems that ADSK couldn’t solve in this release. I wanted to use tabs in place of workspaces - a default 2D tab and a 3D tab. Maybe next release…

By: Chris Cowgill

Chris Cowgill — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 14:35:29 +0000

It’s not that I dislike it, I dont use the ribbon because I keyboard everything, I have no use for tool bars, and therefor see no need to waste the screen space of even a reduced ribbon. My favorite feature of 09, the menu browser, now I can hide the menus and get that extra space at the top of my screen.

By: Q Rexus

Q Rexus — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 07:22:15 +0000

I don’t like the Ribbon because is designed wrong.
I hate use of Clear Type by default, I hate the looks. I think that Office 2007 Black theme Ribbon is 10 times better.
Autodesk should change the looks of the ribbon like the one in Office 2007, with, at least, silver and black themes and make it an option at AutoCAD install.
I want that the Ribbon to contain ALL commands on a large number of tabs. In this way it could have a chance.