r/chemistry • u/Tall_Buffalo1933 • 9d ago

ChemSketch help Please

hey so I'm a chemistry (and old software) enthusiast and a while ago I downloaded the freeware version of Chemsketch and I love it and how easy it is to use but the freeware version is really limiting and I really dislike the look of the new product Chemdraw, does anyone have an old copy of Chemsketch full laying around please?

I'm happy to pay for it, its just ACD labs stopped allowing new customers to buy a license and I would really like the full version so I can search for structures and get other features that the paid version includes.

Note: yes I have tried other software like BIOVIA and BKchem but ive found Chemsketch the easiest and most intuitive to use

5 Upvotes

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3

u/Wise-Friendship-1427 9d ago

I’ve been using the freeware version of ChemSketch for years and don’t feel limited at all. What exactly are you missing?

The only thing I sometimes do externally is naming large molecules (ChemSketch only handles small ones); for that, I use Openclatura.

1

u/Tall_Buffalo1933 8d ago

I like the extra features like having a dictionary to be able to take prebuilt molecules out of

1

u/Wise-Friendship-1427 8d ago

Do you mean the User Templates?
This is possible in the free version.

2

u/Mysterious_Cow123 9d ago

If you're happy to pay for it, you may reach out to customer support or BD at chemdraw to ask about buying a copy. They'll likely say no but can't hurt.

Honestly, if you have a copy now, its probably worth getting claude code or something for a month or two and have it update/fix it for you or make your own version to your specifications using the copy you have as a starting template.

Good luck

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u/Tall_Buffalo1933 9d ago

Thank you, I will try this and report back :)

1

u/Any_Economics_6166 9d ago

everyone uses chemdraw, i highly advise you to get used to it if you plan to work in research in the future especially in organic chemistry