System Requirements:

AutoCAD 2009 System Requirements
Hardware/Software Requirement
Operating system 32-Bit
Windows Vista Enterprise
Windows Vista Business
Windows Vista Ultimate
Windows Vista Home Premium
Windows XP Professional, Service Pack 2
Windows XP Home, Service Pack 2
64-Bit
Windows Vista Enterprise
Windows Vista Business
Windows Vista Ultimate
Windows Vista Home Premium
Windows XP Professional
32-bit You cannot install AutoCAD if Microsoft Internet Explorer 6.0 with Service Pack 1 (or later) is not installed on the installation workstation. You can download Internet Explorer from the Microsoft website: Microsoft Download Center
Internet Explorer 6.0 SP1 or later
64-bit
Internet Explorer 7.0 or later
Processor 32-bit
Intel® Pentium® 4 processor or AMD® Athlon, 2.2 GHz or greater
or
Intel or AMD Dual Core processor, 1.6 GHz or greater
64-bit
AMD 64 or Intel EM64T
RAM 32-bit
1 GB (Windows XP SP2)
2 GB or greater (Windows Vista)
64-bit
2 GB
Graphics card 1280 x 1024 32-bit color video display adapter (True Color) 128 MB or greater, OpenGL®, or Direct3D® capable workstation class graphics card.
For Windows Vista, a Direct3D capable workstation class graphics card with 128 MB or greater is required1024 x 768 VGA with True Color (minimum)
Hard disk 750 MB for installation (Windows XP SP2)
2 GB available not including installation (Windows Vista)
Pointing device Mouse, trackball, or other device
DVD/CD-ROM Any speed (for installation only)
32-bit
Download (ESD) and installation from DVD or CD-ROM
64-bit
Download or DVD

Additional recommendations for 3D use
Hardware/Software Requirement
Operating system 32-Bit
Windows Vista Enterprise
Windows Vista Business
Windows Vista Ultimate
Windows Vista Home Premium
Windows XP Professional, Service Pack 2
Windows XP Home, Service Pack 2
64-Bit
Windows Vista Enterprise
Windows Vista Business
Windows Vista Ultimate
Windows Vista Home Premium
Windows XP Professional
Processor Intel® Pentium® 4 processor or AMD® Athlon, 2.2 GHz or greater
or
Intel or AMD Dual Core processor, 1.6 GHz or greater
RAM 2 GB (or greater)
Graphics card 1280 x 1024 32-bit color video display adapter (True Color) 128 MB or greater, OpenGL®, or Direct3D® capable workstation class graphics card.
For Windows Vista, a Direct3D capable workstation class graphics card with 128 MB or greater is required1024 x 768 VGA with True Color (minimum)

* For graphic cards that support Hardware Acceleration, DirectX 9.0c, or later, must be installed.
* Installing from the ACAD.msi file does not install DirectX 9.0c, or later. Manual installation of DirectX is required, in this circumstance, for Hardware Acceleration to be configured.

What’s New in AutoCAD 2009

AutoCAD® software lets you design, visualize, and document your ideas clearly and efficiently. Autodesk redesigned the user interface of AutoCAD® 2009 software to accelerate tasks, allow commands to be easily found, and help rapidly train new users.

Take a Tour of AutoCAD
See the new features and enhancements in AutoCAD software in this interactive demo.


Ribbon
With the ribbon interface, overall drafting productivity is increased as the number of steps to reach a command is decreased. The ribbon interface presents command options in a concise visual format, allowing you to quickly select commands based on the work you’re doing. Moving between applications is now quick and intuitive. The ribbon is both customizable and expandable so that it can be optimized for each user and meet each company’s standards.


ViewCube and SteeringWheels
The ViewCube™ is an interactive tool used to rotate and orient any solid or surface model in AutoCAD. Selecting a face, edge, or corner of the cube brings the model quickly to that predefined orientation. Clicking and holding the ViewCube allows the model to be freely roated in any direction. Since the cube is in a fixed location on the screen, it provides at-a-glance orientation. The ViewCube will be introduced in all Autodesk products as a common tool for working with 3D models.

In addition to allowing quick access to the orbit command, the new SteeringWheels™ tool allows quick access to the pan, center, and zoom commands. The SteeringWheels is highly customizable so you can add walk through commands to help create and record a walk-through of your model.


Menu Browser
Reviewing and working with several files is no longer a tedious and time-consuming process. The new menu browser interface allows you to browse files and examine thumbnail images and provides detailed information about file size and file creator. Plus, you can organize recently used files by name, date, or title.


Action Recorder
The new action recorder saves time and increases productivity by automating repetitive tasks without requiring the skill or assistance of a professional CAD manager. Users can quickly record a task, add text messages and requests for input, then quickly select and play back recorded files.


Layer Dialog
The new layer dialog makes creating and editing layer properties faster and less prone to error. Changes are instantly reflected in the drawing as they are made in the dialog. The manipulation of the dialog box has been simplified, and columns in the dialog can be individually resized so the contents of that column or its title are not truncated. Individual columns can be fixed in place so that the rest of the columns can be scrolled through and referenced to a fixed column such as the layer name.


Quick Properties
The easily customizable quick properties menu increases productivity by reducing the steps to access properties information, ensuring that information presented is optimized for that particular user and project.


Quick View
The quick view feature uses thumbnails instead of file names, making opening the correct drawing file and layout faster and decreasing the time spent opening incorrect drawing files.

Autodesk Design Review

And, by using Autodesk® Design Review software, the free* integrated solution to electronically review, mark up, and revise designs, you can give virtually anyone, anywhere the opportunity to participate in the review process.