Now that Autodesk University 2009 is over we get back in the groove with Video Friday!

It may be late in the evening but this the first Friday since Autodesk University 2009 ended. Long time readers of Kung Fu Drafter know that around here Fridays always mean that it is time for us to share some our favorite online videos. Since we haven't done a video post in a while we certainly have enough videos to go around. So let’s all take slip into some great old habits.

In honor of Autodesk University 2009 having just ended we are going to take a look at some video featuring, that’s right, CAD. It might be a surprise to some readers that there are CAD videos online. What they may find even more interesting is that there are some really old CAD videos online. Just today the WorldCAD Access blog brought this great home video from 1987. In this blast from the ancient past (1987) we see some sights from our treasured past. Between the digitizer pad and the old IBM “clone” to the MS-DOS install of ACAD R9 and pen plotter we were ready to go dig out our Huey Lewis cassettes. After watching the video twice we suddenly realized that there is a blatant question that the video leaves unanswered: “Where did the baby go?” The camera sees him enter the office, but when it enters he is gone! Another 22-year old mystery taunts us from the past!

As long as we already have all of our readers loaded into the WABAC Machine let’s make another 20+ year leap into the past. Our landing spot is 1963. This little video highlights Alan Kay's presentation of Ivan Sutherland’s ground-breaking vector sketching system, “Sketchpad”. In the presentation we see some amazing tools being demonstrated. While parametric design may be a buzzword in 2010 we can see that some of the first implementations occurred over 40 years ago. Besides parametric tools we also see examples of object snaps, rotating, and even external referencing! As if all this were not amazing enough not that even though the Sketchpad footage is from 1963, the presentation is from 1987! Just like our first video. Creepy, huh?

So there you go, two video’s that have been lurking around the storage bins and the internet for over 20 years. If there is a better way for us to have saluted Autodesk University 2009 with Video Fridays, we just don’t know what it is. Hopefully this was a great way to end your first week back at the office. Remember no matter how bad it seems to be back at work, even the rat race can be music to your ears (thanks to Laughing Squid) …

- KFD -