Hi there,

Vladimir Michl wrote: Unfortunately Draftsight does not read or write full DWGs (not 100% compatible files). So you may consider AutoCAD LT or AutoCAD Mobile (AutoCAD 360).

Please clarify as that sounds like total BS to me.  What is your definition of a "full" drawing?

Maybe you were referring to the version of AutoCAD that Draftsight can read?  It is a known fact Draftsight can read .dwg and .dxf versions as early as 2.5 and at least to 2010.  Personally, I haven't tested it for the ability to read 2013 file formats but that would be immaterial to many users like the OP above.

Addendum: Just tested.  DS cannot open an AutoCAD drawing saved in 2013 file format.

Re: Price of Draftsight Pro.  It is being sold for $299 U.S. and that includes the first year subscription.  To renew the subscription a yearly fee of $99 U.S. will be charged.

For comparison, AutoCAD LT 2017 current sells for $360 for a single year license, $685 for a two year license, and $970 for a three year license.


Edited by John Connor - 01.Feb.2017 at 12:37

Most users are not going to experience that problem.  I can open any 2D drawing I've created with AutoCAD using the latest version of Draftsight without the loss of information.  These drawings can be site plans, P&ID's, PFD's, block diagrams, electrical schematics, architectural floor plans, elevations and sections as well as any tank fabrication drawings sent to us by outside vendors who also use AutoCAD.  And if the drawings have been saved to 2013 file format I could, if I really needed (obviously I don't), use DWG Trueview to open and save the drawing to the 2010 file format and then open them.  On the other hand I've had AutoCAD 2017 refuse to open drawings created using AutoCAD 2013 (one of the worst releases ever) yet I've been able to open the drawings using Draftsight.  The drawings were saved to 2010 file format too.  That got AutoDesk's attention when I sent them a sample file.  To this day no one at AutoDesk has been able to come up with an explanation for the problem. 

I think Vlad is making reference to the Open Design Alliance and the various .DWG formats they have come up with.  From one of the alliance's own reports...

Originating in the late 1970s, drawing files created with microcomputer based computer aided design software were saved with the .dwg extension. In the early 1980s, Autodesk® released AutoCAD® which eventually became the most used CAD software in the world and which used Autodesk’s undocumented  and proprietary DWG™ file format (using the .dwg extension).  The Open Design Specification for .dwg files serves AutoCAD’s undocumented and proprietary DWG file format. This specification includes DWG file format versions 13 up to and including version 2013.

Further, the Open Design Specification for .dwg files serves the Teigha® software development platform of the Open Design Alliance.  While our Open Design Specification for .dwg files is able to read and write .dwg files with excellent AutoCAD compatibility, we continue to work to improve our understanding of all the data in a .dwg file.

If you are the kind of person who gets off on minutiae then follow this link where you'll find the 256 page report detailing the Open Design Specification for .dwg files Version 5.3.  Read a few pages of this and you'll fall fast asleep in no time.  LOL

https://www.opendesign.com/files/guestdownloads/OpenDesign_Specification_for_.dwg_files.pdf



Edited by John Connor - 01.Feb.2017 at 16:09