ARES Commander 2024 - Release Notes

ARES, Commander, 2024, Release Notes

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Written by Rodrigo Leiria
Updated over a week ago

LAST UPDATE: 2024 SP1.1 (24.1.1.2172)

You can download the last update from here.

Build No. 24.1.1.2172 (SP1.1) - Released 31/07/2023

In this release, numerous areas have been improved to prevent unexpected behaviors that may cause the application to close. Below is a summary of the changes:

  • Event Handling

  • Threading operations

  • Trackers

  • Rendering

  • Printing

  • Licensing

  • Voicenote

  • Cycling Selection

  • Layers

  • Plugins

Build No. 24.1.1.2113 (SP1) - Released 15/06/2023

  • Main enhancements:

    • MacOS ARM-based systems are supported natively.

    • Drawing order command enhancements.

    • Add support to display Menu Bar and Ribbon.

    • DIMSPACE Command.

    • Ability to insert multiple XRefs at once.

    • Revit 2023 file format support for BIM Features.

  • Open and Save:

    • SMARTNEW command takes the wrong template after changing the application language.

    • Drawing Recovery Manager was not allowing open autosave files.

    • Fixed issue to open shape files that display a warning message about color not matching.

    • Startup time improvements with AMD Graphics Adapter.

    • Command alias wasn't copied by Migration Assistance.

  • Print, export and sheets:

    • Improvements to honor the viewport limits on printing.

    • Fixed issues with displaying or printing preview text with a specific font.

    • Some specific hatches were not printed with the "Adobe PDF" printer.

    • Incorrect behavior of the spinning wheel when printing multiple sheets, it shows progress for each sheet instead of progress for the printing process.

    • On Linux, "Custom paper size" is no longer displayed correctly (it contains artifacts)

    • BATCHPRINT command was not generating output for some page layout settings.

    • "Print to file" option not enabled even after selecting the Printer Name.

    • Specific pattern entities are not displayed on sheets.

    • To activate a viewport was taking a long time for some specific drawings.

    • The EXPORTSHEET command missed some geometries in output when the viewport was created from the region.

  • Geometry draw or modification:

    • The display of hatch patterns was incorrect.

    • Improvements to display hatches on some specific files.

    • MAKEFLATSNAPSHOT command was hanging when solid entities in large coordinates.

    • Hatch is getting failed with closed boundaries as well in the attached drawing(closed boundary combinations with arcs)

    • Closed spline entity appears as not closed (Open boundary detected) at a specific zoom level.

    • The command BREAKLINE fixed to support modified CCS..

    • Fixed the application hang when rotate or move hatch "AR-SAND" in some specific file.

    • Error when trimming "RichLine".

    • All lines are not loaded when load the Richline style

    • Cannot cancel "Analyzing boundaries...", Application hangs

    • XtraTools command was not included on undo list.

    • Right-click menu option is not automatically popup at Qinput prompt

    • Undo fails to revert CONVERTSIMPLENOTES/FITTEXT/NUMBERTEXT/ EDITTEXTORIENTATION execution

    • "Hatch spacing too dense, or dash size too small" appears when annotative text is within a boundary.

    • Parallel lines can't be created with a specified length,

    • EDITHATCH command was deleting the hatch when use "Highlight boundary entities" after another operation.

    • Hatch pattern is not finding Attribute Block / Block as a Text in the "Normal" mode in the internal region.

    • The MOVE command was allowed to move dimensional constraints independent of associated entities.

    • Unable to create a hatch in multiple "Open" contours in one go using "Specify points".

    • Importing a PDF some hatch has "Shattered" appearance.

    • Application was hanging when selecting entities for Hatch command.

    • Hatch is not created on blocks with multiple closed areas.

    • Copy and paste improvements for blocks.

  • Blocks and Data extraction:

    • Highlighting behaviour changes after quitting Block Editor without saving

    • On Tool Palettes properties of the tool are not retained when executing the last tool via ENTER/SPACEBAR key.

    • The Block was not rendered correctly after editing and when inserted.

    • "Error" message when inserting the "Custom/dynamic block" tool in GA in the attached drawing.

  • Annotations:

    • Linear Dimension value is overridden even when the user types the value.

    • SimpleNote wasn't mirrored correctly.

    • Text in "SimpleNote" / "Note" disappears when performing the Zoom In command.

    • Multileader arrow angle and text position was improved.

    • When notes are put into a note editor, Hindi or other Indian language texts are incorrect and numerous strings are lost.

    • Unit of cell data lost after editing without any warning.

    • When the user selects the "Landing Line First" option in the multileader command, the landing point is continuously going down.

    • Multileader text and landing line reverted after editing in attached drawing.

    • Text spacing was wrong in the 2024 version and doesn't regard the changes correctly.

    • When the user clicks on the graphical area or clicks the "Create Note" button the changes on table cell formula are not accepted.

  • Graphic System:

    • Geometries disappear in the viewport when zoom in / zoom out.

    • Entities disappear when run PAN command outside the graphical area boundary on sheet space.

    • Decrease memory consumption related to Graphical System improvements.

    • Zoom in or out performance improvements after selecting some entities.

    • Preview (tracker) was not generated for the 2nd instance and next

    • Performance improvements in specific scenarios.

  • User Interface:

    • Unable to run commands after run commands to get distance, angle and area.

    • Some button labels were cropped with scale more than 100% on Retina Monitor.

    • Add a message to notify the user if the drawing is not valid on the Recovery command.

    • "Select All" button on the FIND Command dialog wasn't working.

    • The FIND Command search list wasn't saving the last expression searched.

    • "View Tiles" toolbar scale control was not updated when migrating settings from previous versions.

    • Useless RGB colors added to colors list for a hatch pattern tool.

    • On the Customize dialog, Interface tab, Quick access toolbar, "Show command explorer" & RMB context menu no longer work.

    • Alias pgp file wasn't imported in the correct way.

    • Load cuix files by adding more commands than what defined on the file.

    • Wrong Workspace name when new one is saved.

  • BIM Features:

    • BIM Models were not visually correct in different shademodes (many BIM Elements are no longer visible in Shademode = 2D).

    • Conversion did not consistently work when importing multiple BIM Files, sometimes stopping and crashing as well on pressing ESC key.

    • Cursor sticks with Mirror grip after clicking over it (Stretch command gets executed).

    • On the BIM Navigator, Drawings Category remains active after removing the BIM file

    • In white background model some BIM elements weren't visible correctly.

    • Incorrect display of windows for BIMSECTION > "Plan" command

    • The cut graphics properties associated with BIM Section entities are not properly applied.

  • Cloud and Commenting:

    • Unable to see permission dialog for files shared by other users as view-only.

    • After saving the drawing to cloud storage and opening it on another device with the same user, the editing session is not switched to view-only mode on the first Device.

  • API and Customization:

    • Function strlen returns wrong string length for unicode strings.

    • Initget function wasn't working if control bits parameter provided after keywords.

    • DCL dialogs support Dark UI style.

  • External References:

    • Images clipped were considered hidden parts when performing cross selection.

    • Slow performance when opening drawing having external reference.

    • "One or more externally referenced documents could not be loaded." message on opening drawing with XRef and referenced file layer is frozen.

  • Application stability improvements:On this release many areas was improved to avoid unexpected behaviors that lead on close the application, below a summary:

    • Commands: Trim, Find, Batchprint, Powertrim, Loft

    • UI: toolbar close

    • Cloud Storage / Commenting

    • BIM

    • XRef on cloud

    • Tool Palettes

    • Dimension style

    • SheetSet Manager

    • Datalink

    • GS / Previews: Select entity

Build No. 24.0.1.1146 (SP0.1) - Released 22/05/2023

  • Geometry draw or modification:

    • Layer state changes now correctly freeze layers in the active viewport.

    • Copying a certain element was freezing the application.

  • Blocks and Data extraction:

    • Dynamic block redefinition changed visibility state.

    • Custom block redefinition lost the stretched values.

  • Graphic System:

    • Issues with displaying or printing preview text with a specific font.

  • Application stability improvements:

    • Associativity Array

    • Blocks

    • External References cloud support

    • Graphics System

    • Insert Objects

    • PDF Import

    • Print

    • Richline styles

    • Sheet Set Manager

    • Sheets

    • Startup

    • Threading

    • Tool Palettes

    • Trim lines

    • Undo operation for specific file

Build No. 24.0.1.1114 (SP0) - Released 04/04/2023

YOU CAN QUICKLY REVIEW THE TOP UPDATES:

COMPATIBILITY WITH AUTOCAD®


TOOL PALETTES

Import/export collections of customized tools and data previously created with AutoCAD to ensure a smooth migration of your users to ARES. You can also create new tool palettes, and share them with other ARES Commander or AutoCAD users in the same *.xtp file format as AutoCAD.

IMPROVEMENTS FOR MAC & LINUX


RIBBON UI AVAILABLE ON MAC & LINUX

The well-known ribbon user interface (UI) in the Windows version of ARES Commander can now be used in the MacOS and Linux versions. Enjoy the benefits of the contextual ribbons, which provide a seamless experience across all platforms.

3D FEATURES


FLATTEN & FLATSHOT

Flat snapshots (alias flatshots in AutoCAD®) generate 2D representations of 3D objects, based on the current viewpoint. New options are introduced to better differentiate what is visible and what is hidden in the background. The new FLATTEN command is furthermore introduced to convert 3D entities into a 2D projection. It is also useful to solve issues with entities whose elevation is not properly set.

MAPS & SURVEYING


IMPORT/EXPORT TOPOGRAPHIC POINTS

Surveyors use total stations to collect exact coordinates of specific elements on the field. The new TopoPoints module enables users to import/export these points in ARES Commander, with support for file formats used by total stations from Leica (GSI 8 or 16), Trimble (CSV), and others (custom text).

DWG FOR BIM


BIM DRAWINGS AUTOMATION

In previous versions of ARES Commander, we introduced the unique ability to import BIM projects (IFC or Revit) and extract 2D drawings — such as floorplans, elevations, or sections — that can be enriched and saved in DWG. The new feature automates this process, generating a set of drawings with a script that can be customized by the user.

ARES TRINITY COLLABORATION FEATURES


TRINITY BLOCK LIBRARY

Create block libraries that will follow you on all your computers or mobile devices in ARES Commander, ARES Kudo, and ARES Touch. The Trinity Block Library also makes it easy to use one consistent block library for all the users of your organization. The blocks are stored in the cloud, so any update to the library is instantly available to all your users!

MOBILE CAD – ARES TOUCH


VIEW & CONVERT PDF TO DWG ON MOBILE

In addition to DWG, you can now open PDF files with ARES Touch on Android and iOS. The PDF files can not only be viewed, but also converted to DWG with the new PDF Import feature. After conversion, you can modify the drawing, then save it in DWG or export it back to PDF.

LICENSING


FLEX CLOUD: SHARE LICENSES WITHIN A COMPANY

The new Flex Cloud license is a Trinity license (ARES Commander + ARES Kudo + ARES Touch) shared within a group of users. It enables users to reduce costs by mutualizing licenses, just like they can with traditional network licenses, but with the key advantage that Flex Cloud licenses are shared via the Internet. That means users can be located anywhere: in home offices, out of the office, or even in different countries…

PERFORMANCE


25–50% FASTER ON CERTAIN OPERATIONS

New upgrade of the core DWG technology of ARES Commander enables significant improvements on a number of operations in this version. Select can be for example 50% faster than before, Copy and Paste 25% faster, and Undo can in some cases be as much as 8x faster.

API & FEATURES FOR DEVELOPERS


FLISP – LISP EDITOR & DEBUGGER

Debugging LISP programs can sometimes be challenging. This new LISP Editor is a Visual Studio Code extension that enables you to easily edit and debug your code. For example, if there is an issue, the debugger will show you where your code is breaking — saving you precious time in isolating the problem!

System Requirements

Windows OS

Minimum

  • 64-bit version: Microsoft® Windows® 8.1, Windows 10, or Windows 11 (with latest Updates and Service Packs)

  • Intel® Core™ 2 Duo, or AMD® Athlon™ X2 Dual-Core processor

  • 1.5 GB free hard disk space depending on accessory applications installed

  • 4 GB RAM

  • 3D Graphics accelerator card with OpenGL version 1.4

  • Display with 1280 x 768 pixels resolution

  • Mouse

Recommended

  • 64-bit version: Microsoft Windows 11 (with latest Updates and Service Packs)

  • Intel® Core™ i5 processor, AMD Athlon/Phenom™ X4 processor, or better.

  • 1.5 GB free hard disk space depending on accessory applications installed

  • 8 GB RAM

  • 3D Graphics accelerator card with OpenGL version 3.2 or better

  • Full HD monitor

  • Wheel mouse, or 3D mouse

MacOS

  • macOS v10.14 (Mojave), v10.15 (Catalina), or v11.0 (Big Sur)

  • Mac® with Intel® Core™ 2 Duo processor or better

  • 4 GB of RAM (8 GB or more recommended)

  • 1.5 GB of available hard-disk space for installation

  • 3D Graphics accelerator card with OpenGL version 1.4 (OpenGL version 3.2 or better recommended)

  • Display with 1280 x 768 pixels resolution, or better

  • Mouse

LINUX

  • Ubuntu® 18.04 LTS and 20.04 LTS, Fedora® 33

  • Intel® Core™ 2 Duo, AMD® Athlon™ X2 Dual-Core processor, or better

  • 4 GB of RAM (8 GB recommended)

  • 1.5 GB of available hard-disk space for installation

  • 3D Graphics accelerator card with OpenGL version 1.4 (OpenGL version 3.2 or better recommended)

  • Display with 1280 x 768 pixels resolution, or better

  • Mouse (Wheel mouse recommended)

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