ARES Commander 2015 Released

Graebert GmbH has released the 2015 edition of its ARES Commander 2D and 3D CAD application for Microsoft Windows, Macintosh and Linux operating systems. The new version includes enhanced features for model editing, ribbon customization and a new licensing feature called LicenseToGo. In a related announcement, the company also released ARES Touch 2015 Beta, which it says is the world’s first DWG-based CAD solution for Google Android.

ARES Commander 2015’s new PowerTrim feature lets users trim or extend multiple entities through mouse movements. Image courtesy of Graebert GmbH.

New model editing tools introduced in ARES Commander 2015 include PowerTrim, QuickModify and Dynamic Blocks editing. The PowerTrim tool lets you trim or extend multiple entities at once simply by describing a path with your mouse and allowing ARES to trim or extend as your mouse moves. You use the QuickModify command to combine multiple actions that use the Move, Rotate, Scale and Copy commands.

The Dynamic Blocks editing functionality in ARES Commander 2015 lets you edit dynamic blocks inserted in a DWG drawing with another CAD tool such as AutoCAD. You can use the grips to dynamically and interactively modify these “intelligent” blocks as well as reinsert them in the drawing.

ARES Commander 2015 also introduces new DiscardDuplicates and ExplodeBlockX commands to help fix drawings. DiscardDuplicates is similar to Overkill in AutoCAD, according to Graebert. It lets you delete duplicate entities and define advanced settings to fine-tune what should be ignored. The ExplodeBlockX command explodes blocks or tables and converts attributes in text. It’s said to be similar to AutoCAD’s Burst command.

In version 2015, ARES Commander now provides a ribbon customization functionality that lets you adapt and reorganize the tabs and panels of the ribbon interface to group together the tools you use most. Additionally, you can create your own workspaces to use with or in lieu of the 2D and 3D workspaces ARES Commander creates. One of the workspaces allows you to switch back to traditional menus and toolbars if needed.

Version 2015 of ARES Commander marks the debut of QuickModify, a new feature for combining frequently used commands such as Move, Rotate, Scale and Copy. Graebert says that this enables users to employ a single command to combine and perform multiple actions. Image courtesy of Graebert GmbH.

Improvements have also been made to ARES Commander’s in-place text editing feature. In version 2015, the Note command has been improved with a new contextual dialog to define advanced formatting like on a word processor but directly in your DWG drawing. A new Stack dialog helps you create fractions and tolerances in your text.

Graebert says that its new LicenseToGo feature makes it easy to use your ARES Commander license on other computers regardless of the target computer’s operating system. This feature lets you activate your license on another computer for up to five days. After that period, you can renew the license on the same PC or on a different workstation.

Windows versions of ARES Commander 2015 have been improved with a new set of 2D constraints powered by the Constraint Design Solver (CDS) from Dassault Systèmes Spatial. Graebert describes this set of features as providing a means to add intelligence to your drawings and to capture the design intent. With it, you can define relationships between entities in terms of geometry, such as stay parallel, perpendicular and tangent or dimensions, including equal length, proportional and formula. Later as you modify elements, the other entities will adapt according to the constraints you set.

The ARES Touch 2015 Beta CAD solution runs on Android tablets and smartphones. It syncs files via Dropbox or Google Drive and can be shared by USB. Users of ARES Commander 2015 will receive ARES Touch for one year, renewable for successive one-year terms with a Graebert subscription. Developers and CAD aficionados can apply to join the final beta phase from a link below.

The Dynamic Blocks editing functionality introduced in ARES Commander 2015 lets users edit dynamic blocks inserted in a DWG drawing by other CAD software such as AutoCAD. Image courtesy of Graebert GmbH.

“Through a combination of hard work and an acclaimed product line, Graebert has established itself as the second-largest and fastest-growing CAD community with millions of professionals using our solutions,” said Wilfried Graebert, founder and CEO of Graebert GmbH, in a press statement. “We provide unique features and unrivaled flexibility ... More than a cost-effective alternative, Graebert has established ARES as a reference for innovation in the CAD market.”

ARES Commander 2015 runs on 32-bit Windows 7, 8, Vista and 64-bit Windows 7/8 operating systems, Mac OS X (10.5.8 or higher) and Linux platforms, including Debian, Fedora, Suse Linux and Ubuntu. Graebert offers optional plugins and add-ons that extend and tailor ARES Commander for such design areas as mechanical or electrical engineering and HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning) design. A rendering option for 32-bit Windows systems is also available.

Pricing for ARES Commander 2015 starts at $250 for a one-year license that includes all updates, email support, LicenseToGo functionality and a one-year ARES Touch subscription. Perpetual licenses and network flex licenses are also available. Pricing for the optional extension plugins and add-ons ranges from $249 to $400.

For more information on the new features introduced in ARES Commander 2015, click here.

Watch an overview of ARES Commander 2015.

Download a 30-day free trial of ARES Commander for Windows (32- and 64-bit) and 64-bit OS X and Linux operating systems.

Learn more about ARES Commander 2015 pricing as well as extended functionality plugins and add-ons.

Learn more about applying to join the ARES Touch 2015 Final Beta phase.

See why DE’s Editors selected ARES Commander 2015 as their Pick of the Week.

Sources: Press materials received from the company and additional information gleaned from the company’s website.