AutoCAD Wins Best CAD Products Awards; PC World and BYTE Chose the Industry Standard, AutoCAD.

SAN RAFAEL, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 26, 1996--Autodesk's AutoCAD(R) Release 13 software has been recognized with awards from both PC World and BYTE magazines as the "Best CAD Product" in 1996.

For the tenth and sixth consecutive years, AutoCAD software has won "Best CAD Product" award from these magazines respectively. The PC World award is voted on by industry experts on behalf of the magazine and the BYTE award winner is chosen by its readers.

"There is a reason that AutoCAD has received the PC World award for ten years in a row," said Robert Carr vice president of engineering at Autodesk. "We didn't get it just because we are a pioneer in the industry, we got it because AutoCAD continues to lead the industry, giving users superb power on the PC and the first product in the industry to provide object-oriented technology to users. This further illustrates that industry experts know the value of AutoCAD, the industry standard CAD system today and the smartest choice for tomorrow's design and drafting professionals."

PC World's Annual World Class Awards this year were determined by a group of industry experts who select the best products and services of the year based on results from a survey developed by PC World magazine. Nearly 2,000 hand-picked experts including consultants, market researchers, journalists, user group presidents, and a select group of long-time PC World readers participated in this survey. Based on the results of the survey, AutoCAD Release 13 software was selected as the winner in the category of Software for Best CAD Product for 1996.

AutoCAD software also received the 1996 BYTE Readers' Choice Award for best CAD product and has been receiving the award every year since it debuted in 1991. AutoCAD has long been a favorite of BYTE readers.

AutoCAD Release 13, the latest version of the world's leading industry design and drafting software, provides users with powerful 2D and 3D design and drafting capabilities. AutoCAD R13 lets users develop web-enabled files using AutoCAD R13 software and the WHIP! plug-in for the Internet/Intranet. This release also provides a next generation object-oriented API (application programming interface), named the AutoCAD Runtime Extension (ARX), that give developers the ability to create a new breed of fast and intelligent applications.

Autodesk is the world's leading supplier of PC design and drafting software and multimedia tools. The company's 2D and 3D products and data management tools are used in many industries for architectural design, mechanical design, mapping, film and video production, video game development and Web content development. Its Kinetix division is the leader in PC-based 3D modeling and animation software, providing a full range of products for digital media and design professionals. The fourth largest PC software company in the world, Autodesk has three million customers in nearly 130 countries. Autodesk products are sold through Autodesk Systems Centers, dealers and distributors worldwide.

For more information on Autodesk, please call 415/507-5000, type GO ADESK on CompuServe, or visit its World Wide Web site at http://www.autodesk.com. Kinetix can be reached by calling 800/879-4233 or through its World Wide Web site at http://www.ktx.com. Autodesk shares are traded on the Nasdaq National Market under the symbol ADSK. -0-

Note to Editors: Autodesk, the Autodesk logo, WHIP!, and AutoCAD are registered trademarks of Autodesk, Inc. Microsoft and Windows are registered trademarks of the Microsoft Corporation. All other brand names, product names, or trademarks belong to their respective holders.

CONTACT: Autodesk Inc.

Jennifer Reidy, 415/507-6536

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