Walked into a computer that would not even attempt to turn on this morning.
My problem is I am in the middle of a major project for a big 3 Automotive supplier with 3D models of the work cell about 75% complete and a timeline that requires me working on this project every available hour and instead of doing that I am trying to kludge together something that will allow me to continue to work because my XP Pro based workstation had the motherboard go toes up. Unlike the "designs" I've seen out of some recent "college graduates". Wake up Snowflake, there are actually folks out there manually cranking handles on a Knee Mill in this "modern world" and they actually produce tooling that works. Unfortunately 3D models don't work for someone operating a Bridgeport Mill, what works is a 2D paper drawing. BTW, I am aware of 3D printing and have used it rather frequently, using 3D models drawn in AutoCAD 2000. I will also point out that no matter what whizbang invention you have come up with at some point you need actual paper drawings to send to the machine shop to have tooling carved out of steel. I will also point out that the ability to "tune" AutoCAD to my specific needs and tasks was what led me to adopt it so many years ago and to still be using what may be the last version that was actually "tuneable". HEck, I expect that there will be some Model T and Model A Fords Cruising Woodward this weekend. As for it being 17 years old, this weekend is the weekend for the Woodward Dream Cruise and there will be many automobiles there that work perfectly well and which are much older than 17 years old. Mark, I would think that someone who claims to be an AutoCAD expert would know that AutoCAD 2000 was actually a 3D capable program. But if you want to stay back that's your choice and I'm not going to persuade you otherwise. Technology is constantly changing and its not always easy to maintain it (learning/cost). Do things work smoothly each and every time? No it doesn't. In the end, is every improvement Autodesk did to AutoCAd necessary over the past 18 years? perhaps yes and perhaps no.
You trying to take something you have used for "X" number of years and compare it to a newer version that you haven't even setup or learn to use the new interface. But your only efficient because you have tailored your system to meet your needs. I also want to comment on this "written by people who don't even understand the concept of EFFICIENCY". Of course its going to look greek to you and slow you down at first. In addition you are making a big big big big jump and trying to compare an 18 yr product that has been refined for that number of years. At some point I believe the 2D world of engineering will slip below the horizon and more customer will demand more in the 3D world. I believe if you want to be competitive, you need to stay ahead on technology or you will be pushed out. I'm a self taught AutoCAD Release 9 users but I'm also open to change and keep moving ahead with technology. You have your opinion and that's fine that you voiced it here. But we as users have no say in what Autodesk and/or Microsoft provides to their end users. No one here is saying you have to upgrade. Its you choice to stay on a legacy versions. Next time you consider trusting your life to a Robot ask yourself if is really to the Autodesk User's Community. Now, think about this, Microsoft can't even build an operating system that is 100% stable, impervious to hackers, and bug free. I will also point out that the hot new rage going around is Self Driving Automobiles. In fact IMO NEWER simply means it's cheaper to produce and any improvements are mainly accidental. What I am saying here is the NEWER isn't always better. I will also point out that I am also old enough to remember that it took YEARS for IBM to refine the keyboard on the IBM Selectric to the point were even today typing speed records set by the Selectric still stand.
It really saddens me because I can remember when memory was expensive and Time Cost Money and software was written to minimize memory requirements and programmers actually had to do Time Studies to optimize the speed at which the software could be used. BTW this is something that is extremely irritating and it's a worldwide phenomena.
Why should I upgrade to a newer version that was obviously written by people who don't even understand the concept of EFFICIENCY.
The menu system awkward to learn and in many cases it is faster to simply type a command than dig through multiple layers to get to the desired command. Looked at Autocad 2015 and was not the least bit impressed.
As a result of this I am blazing fast on Autocad 2000. I have also been adding to and refining a personal menu file that saves me an untold number of mouse clicks and menu layering. As a result I prefer a text based menu system. I also have this amazing ability to something called READING. I have been using Autocad since version 2.52.