About Using Models With Other Autodesk Applications

You can use other Autodesk products to further enhance the quality of your models.

Autodesk ® products continually improve their ability to share drawings and models, including 3ds Max ® , 3ds Max Design, AutoCAD ® Architecture, and AutoCAD ® Mechanical.

3ds Max or 3ds Max Design

With these products, you can make great improvements in your models. You have the option of opening DWG or DXF files without converting them or you can use the File Link Manager utility to create a live link with a drawing file. 3ds Max or 3ds Max Design offers expanded animation, lighting, material, and rendering capabilities that add further polish to presentation images.

AutoCAD-based Products

AutoCAD-based geometry can be opened by an AutoCAD-based vertical product with no conversion necessary. Once the model is open, you can use the feature set specific to the product and its 3D modeling tools to streamline the design and documentation process.

Other Autodesk Products

If you want to use AutoCAD-based geometry and rendering data with other Autodesk products, determine the file formats that can be imported in the other product. From the AutoCAD-based product, use the EXPORT command to export the model to one of the supported file formats. After the file has been exported, use the open or import feature of the other product to view or modify the file.