In AK we had C3D with the Sincpac add on, I didn't use it too often myself a my work was boundary and ROW determination, so I just used the points that the locations people created in the survey base drawing, they seemed to like it. If he's lurking somewhere in the background here DIG would be the guy to ask.
I have been using C3D for close to 12 years for a variety of work. For boundary type work, the better "seed" file you have to start with, the more efficient producing plats is, which translates to any software. If you stayed with C3D, maybe having a Template file with your Title Block, Legend, North Arrow, Scale, etc. already loaded might help, if you're not already set up like that? Also, our "Seed" file utilizes point codes from the field crew and when the points come into C3D, they come in on different point groups, on different layers depending on what the point is, different colors corresponding to our plot style, and also with appropriate symbols for items such as fire hydrants, water valves, meters, etc. This makes it so much more efficient to have these items setup before beginning to draw a plat. You may already have this done, but if not, it may be an alternative to purchasing additional software. I like C3D for creating surfaces, and personally, would prefer to use 1 software for all of the work we produce. We have Carlson Takeoff (We have a Construction Branch) and I did use it some for Construction related items, but I haven't used it in 3-4 months now.
“I was astonished at what they are going through to just inverse between points in C3D.”
I might be missing something here but if I need to inverse between 2 points in C3D I ether use the acad DISTANCE command and snap from point to point. Tells me brg & dist in the command line. Done.
Or sometimes I draw a LINE from point to point. Then select the line and in the PROPERTIES panel it will tell you brg & dist. Done.
I think sometimes if people try to do everything with C3D commands it can be a bit frustrating. But use C3D in conjunction with traditional acad commands it can go pretty smoothly.
C3D has become the industry standard CAD platform in the E & S world, so, clearly, C3D is the choice to go with for your CAD platform. Carlson comes with the option to use IntelliCad for free as an included CAD platform, but, with the C3D licensing information, you can make C3D your default CAD engine.
I've been running Carlson software for roughly 22 years and have used both platforms as my CAD engine. Personally, I prefer using C3D as my CAD engine for a number of reasons.
I love the power of Carlson and how the commands are intuitive in doing my boundary and layout calcs and. in full disclosure, I am, by no means, a drafter. I draw what I have to (deeds, subdivision plans, etc.) on my own layering system, then pass off my line work to the trained drafters who take my crayon work and apply the company drafting standards.
In the end, it all comes down to how you import and export coordinates, using Carlson to export to any platform is a simple matter of exporting an ASCII file in the correct format. If you are using F2F in Carlson with the layering conventions that are your standards, the choice between IntelliCard and C3D could be an issue.
I started using ACAD back in the DOS days and still use the old school commands.
"I was astonished at what they are going through to just inverse between points in C3D."
It's actually not to bad once you let go of the idea of working between numbered points. First, you dock the inversing toolbar button to the "Quick Access Toolbar" . You have lines drawn between your points and click on the line and BOOM! Inverse with two clicks, more inverses with every click.
Nevertheless, I have to agree that inversing between points by using their numbers, while possible, is a PIA in C3d.
I just started running Carlson civil survey on top of civil 3d. So far Carlson has made my limited cad experience much easier. It is way more intuitive for me. We do the f2f in Carlson but they have civil 3d set up so they do the final mapping in civil 3d. All the deed comps etc are done in Carlson which for me is much easier. All the drawing templates have been set up to match in both platforms. Bring all the raw data into Carlson get everything checked drawn labeled roughly and export ascii file along with the dog is right there for the drafters to xref and see any notes or comps etc for final work to be completed. I am still learning so only 4 weeks into it but I have no complaints really. I do miss having TBC though. That complete chain back to raw data and all information from file job to time stamp etc at any point is priceless. Managing that with points is not as efficient but Carlson is a great tool for surveying for sure.
I was originally going to let slide the comment about how difficult it is to inverse between points in C3D, but since several people have chimed in lately, I'll add my two cents. Inversing is not hard. People have offered suggestions, and there's nothing wrong with any of their suggestions, but I think the easiest way is to just use the Inquiry palette. I'm going from memory, and will correct if wrong, but the palette is found on the Analyze ribbon, toward the right side. I keep this palette open all the time. At the top of the palette is a Point Inverse routine. You can plug in point numbers, plug in coordinates, or just select a point on the screen to get your inverse. I don't remember what it was like to inverse using DCA, or Softdesk, or LDD, or Carlson, but I would guess that doing it in C3D is just as easy, if not easier, than any of those other programs.
I will edit this to say that officially it is called the Inquiry Tool on the ribbon, and that you can also select points by point object, the same as using 'po as a transparent command.
