Can one modify a DWG like one can do in autocad or is inventor a completetly different program?
The best answer is that it's a completely different program, as if you bought Revit or another separate package.
-the long answer is that Inventor can use legacy DWG data to create a 3d part from then on out, but the autocad drawing is a 'dummy' 2d data with no real Inventor usefulness, other than en elevated starting point. 3D Autocad models are also generally useless as the 2D... just a slightly more elevated starting point... but regardless, both starting points are quite a bit low compared to the finish line.
Bringing completed Autocad drawings into Inventor is the equivalent of working in Autocad from completely exploded (dimensions, text, everything..) data...without the benefit of at least being able to PRINT a copy of the data that can be used as a shop drawing.
If you use Inventor, you may as well start from scratch for any new stuff or stuff in progress, unless you have a significant investment in present material that will be used or reused in the future, in which case it may satisfy some bean counters to tell them that you can salvage the existing stuff, whereas in reality, my experience was that starting from scratch modeling the part USING the Autocad PRINTOUTS as a guide, was quite more beneficial in the end, as the models could be built intelligently as designed.
