I started my studies and career during the board to computer transition. Only 2 of my college courses used Autocad. Both on IBM 8088 green screen computers and all work was done directly on 5 1/4" floppy disks.
First job was approx 50/50 hand drawings to Autocad on brand new 286 computers and everything backed up daily on 3 1/4 floppies. The computers were so amazing and super fast, there were 2 in the office and we fought over who used them - LOL.
And I learned tons from working closely with the experienced senior guys, lots of questions and hands on, trips to the plant floor, project site, etc..
Now everything is never leave your desk, full 3D models, auto dimension, networked computers, large dual monitors, video conferences, full time internet backups offsite, Google your questions, download models of purchase items, etc, etc. I'm the senior guy now and rarely ever get any questions asked of me by the newbies or interns. The internet is the experienced guy and way of life anymore - your connected or basically don't exist.
But now if there are problems everything comes to a screaming stop. Just today our internet was out for about a hour right after lunch - entire office was at a standstill.
Hand drawing did force everyone to be more thoughtful and through in their designs. After you have to redraw a few D size Mylar prints you learn to slow down and check/recheck.
I still have all my templates, eraser shields, cartridge ink pens and mechanical pencil sets - been in storage for years now though. I do miss the hand drawing, I really enjoyed it, but love the computer work too. I could go back to board drafting if I had to but it would be a step re-learning curve at first. Younger guys would be totally lost.
The only true constant is change after all. Excited to see what innovations will bring in the rest of my career.
Scott
Mechanical Design Engineer,
Autocad, NX, Pro/E, Solidworks, PDM, SolidEdge