Inventor VS. AutoCAD 2007?

I wanted to know what is going to happen to Inventor now that AutoCAD 2007 has integrated so many easy 3D commands. I have used Inventor a lot and it makes very nice 3d objects. Inventor also has a size limit of about a half mile and AutoCAD doesn’t really have a size limit to how big your model could be. I am waiting for the 30 day trial of AutoCAD 2007 to come in the mail so I can try it and see if you can be as detailed as Inventor. If AutoCAD 2007 can be as detailed, easy to use, have larger models, same commands as previous versions of AutoCAD and have Inventor commands in it too. Then why would Autodesk keep Inventor unless it’s cheaper and there are fans that refused to let it go?
Don’t get me wrong I am a fan!!!! And that is why I am writing this.

I guess to look on the positive side of things that we won’t have to switch between the two programs. But then again I am not doing much switching now.

dytoractor,

IV is a parametric modeling program, whereas AutoCAD is and always will be an electronic pencil. No matter how many features and buttons AutoCAD gets, you can only draw lines, arcs, solids, etc. Every time your design changes, you will need to manually reposition or redraw every affected item, and manually ensure that your design remains within the proper criteria.

With IV, that is different. In IV, you create geometry that follows rules. If you tell two lines to be perpendicular, they will always remain perpendicular. If you give the geometry a conflicting rule, IV will tell you that both rules cannot coexist.

These rules allow you to create the design as you go, always knowing that the rules you've created in past features will hold true. Equations and interrelationships can be made that actually contain the design criteria necessary for a successful project. With AutoCAD, the engineer/designer/drafter must keep all those balls in the air at once. IV retains the intelligence of your design, so that any changes made to the design will always fall within the proper criteria.

For example, I'm working on a layout involving large process ductwork (11'-0" ID) with two runs that were both skew to the orthagonal planes and to one another.

I created my sketches (using constraints and parameters), inserted the segmented elbows and supports, and made a set of drawings full of dimensions and annotations. Then, the boss came in and told me the ducts were to be 7'-9" ID instead, and the final work point was to be moved East by 7'-4".

In AutoCAD, I would have to manually delete and redraw my ductwork for the new design, then redraw and reconfigure my drawings. Every work point would have to be recalculated and drawn.

In IV, I opened my master part and changed 3 parameters (2 duct diameters, one dimension). Because of the intelligence that IV allowed me to put into the design, my computer was able to chug through the calculations, projections, and dimensions, and both my model and drawings were updated perfectly in 15 minutes. Every dimension, annotation, and work point changed per the new information, and all I had to do was readjust a few leaders.

BTW: IV isn't really meant to deal with scales like 1/2 mile +. AutoCAD can, because it is meant to be a useable tool for almost any application. IV is meant to be a superior application for mechanical design.