I don't think anyone would argue no clone is a true substitute for true AutoCAD but the pricing is just silly now for what is basic 2D software. I'm just using NanoCAD rarely for modifying very old client drawings that aren't worth the time to model and generate new drawings in Solidworks - it's been fine for that. I have found it less hassle than Draftsight but I suppose it depends what you are doing.

For instance, I'd rather launch VMWare, start a Windows XP and use AutoCAD 2000 rather then use NanoCAD. It's an okay viewer, but I would never ever work with it. I use NanoCAD also, it works 'okay', if I had to chose between previous Draftsight and NanoCAD I would go with Draftsight in a heartbeat. That would be no different to you using Kaspersky. I use NanoCAD and it is great, I suppose as Tom mentions if you were working on Military or classified sensitive government projects there could be some issues with using such a vendor. I never bothered learning it through tutorials, because eventually I was provided DS. When I lost my DS, and it wasn't bought for me ( grr!), I downloaded Siemens SolidEdge 2D to use as a reader, because its interface confused me a lot. I did try several others, but none were a true clone, and had their own new learning curves. In my opinion, it is ok for personal use at home but not for mil/gov work. Read it for yourself and make your own judgements. I never expect to pursue such a dispute, but we rejected it entirely because we can work on sensitive projects.

NanoCAD has an exceptional EULA, iirc, where disputes are arbitrated by a Russian court because the software is written in Russia. However, I read End User License Agreements thoroughly because that's solely my responsibility here. That is, the same text shortcut commands that you're used to work equally, as well as the prompt order within a command.

Best (USE) option that I found was NanoCAD because it is also an AutoCAD LT clone.

Free 2d cad software