Abviewer
Verdict: ABViewer is a multifunctional program for product designing and editing files with the help of the provided expansive toolset. It allows you to work with AutoCAD DWG, DXF, STEP, IGES, STL, PLT, HPGL, and CGM files as well as multiple other formats.
ABViewer is suitable for viewing both 2D and 3D designs, measuring all of their dimensions, and converting them into different formats. It even comes with a converter that allows transforming PDFs into editable DWG files.
ABViewer allows users to open 2D and 3D files, perform various measurements, and convert their projects into different formats. The program lets you make a section view of a 3D model, examine its hidden components, and do any required measurements. It also provides conversion options for STEP to DWG, DFX to PDF, IGES to STL, and many others.
The ABViewer is a universal program for working with drawings, a full-fledged CAD platform that allows you to tinker with layers, blocks, size, and text styles, include blueprints in other files as hyperlinks and perform other standard tasks.
The program’s 2D measuring feature gives you access to functions like Distance, Polyline Length, and Area. The measuring itself is as straightforward as can be, and you can also use the snap feature.
Other features that deserve to be highlighted in this ABViewer review are Scale Factor and Set Size. They allow you to save time on doing complex calculations in cases when, for instance, the drawing components are presented in various scales or when the dimensions included in the project don’t match real ones.
Additionally, the program lets you adjust the scale factor if you’d like to measure the blueprint in different measurement units, like centimeters instead of inches.
In this mode you can measure your models made with 3D modeling software and have 3 measuring features - Distance, Edge, and Area, while the Structure menu gives you general information about the object’s dimensions, size, area, and mass center.
The measurement results are shown in a separate panel and also provided above the drawing, allowing you to save or print it as a BMP file.
ABViewer lets you print out a project on several sheets, which you can later put together to create a single big sheet. Additionally, it lets users batch print multiple drawings simultaneously regardless of the file format.
If you need to share a project with someone, you’re cooperating with so that they can give you feedback about it without making any adjustments to the drawing, then you can use ABViewer’s Redline Mode that lets people write notes or add marks to the blueprint without making any permanent changes.
The quality of the provided conversion functionality is on par with the best PDF converters you can find online. Moreover, the converted file preserves all the features of the original including color, text style and placement, vector objects, Unicode characters (with Chinese, Japanese, and Korean supported as well), and even offers text recognition.
Another benefit of using ABViewer is that it doesn’t have any size or quantitative restrictions. You can save both the layered original PDF and any DWG conversions (AutoCAD 2000, AutoCAD 2004, and AutoCAD 2010) you need. Should you want to convert a bunch of drawings with maximum convenience, you can make use of the provided Batch conversion feature.
ABViewer comes with the ability to create a control program (CP) in G-code format for CNC machines. G-code files are generated directly from DXF/DWG drawings. Saved G-code files support the following conversion primitives: line, polyline, circle, curve, ellipsis, spline, text, multiline text, and hatching.
ABViewer prices include free updates within the major version and different types of lifetime licenses. You can purchase a license for a single PC for $48, $66, or $134. The more expensive the program, the more capabilities and tools you’ll have access to.
