|
upFront.eZine |
|
|
a
publication from |
|
|
Issue #443 : : September 20, 2005 |
|
|
C o n t e n t s File Formats Rule
the Universe Below
the Radar, but no other
regular columns. |
Write the Editor. Donate to upFront.eZine with Paypal. Access nearly-daily CAD commentary at our blog: WorldCAD Access.
|
|
|
|
|
File Formats Rule the Universe "It seems to us that every time four people get together to talk about 3D they come out waving their arms and announcing a standard," proclaims Kathleen Maher of Jon Peddie Research, and last week was no exception. UGS says they and Microsoft have 3D CAD models appearing in non-CAD documents. I'll leave it to UGS to describe the latest standard: "a single file included XAML, JT, and PLM XML data using the open packaging convention formally known as XPS packages. That file was then viewed using the Windows Presentation Foundation, demonstrating how PLM users can now share files with Windows users who do not have a computer-aided design (CAD) or PLM software application installed on their PC." WorldCAD Access commenter Mike DeKoning reports that a transcript of the demonstration includes the following sentence: "But because Autodesk and UGS are working together, using XAML in conjunction with our own [UGS] formats, a UGS user can open and save parts that were saved in AutoCAD directly in Edge." Don't all those Xs make you cross-eyed? You certainly see Microsoft's hand in this: their current mode of thinking is that all data should be accessible by all software and all hardware. This will lead to unintended disasters, as did their earlier dictate that the difference between Internet and the desktop should be indistinguishable.
What Kinds of Disaster? To broaden sales, CAD vendors are broadening software offerings to include PLM -- the cradle-to-grave documentation of projects, "project lifecycle management." Menno Huijben describes a problem in the latest issue of PLM World < www.johnstark.com/2plm197.html >: "Of course, data ownership isn't static. During the product lifecycle, ownership will be transferred from organization to organization, from process to process, and from system to system." But, he reminds us, the issue of data ownership is a difficult and tedious concept, "not easily understood or accepted in the business world." Ultimately, a 'PLM system' is an IT architecture -- not CAD software -- that owns all product-related information." By making file formats more obscure, CAD vendors make it more difficult for customers to access their data independently. I use the term "more obscure" to avoid the it's-encrypted/it's-not-encrypted controversy. By "data" I mean the drawings and associated documents produced by drafters. If some customers are already chafing against the increasingly-difficult-to-access CAD data, how much worse will it be when CAD vendors lock up PLM data in file formats that are bound to be even more obscure? 20th Anniversary Quiz It was twenty years ago this week that I began my career in CAD journalism, by answering an ad for a "technical writer/editor" for a "fast growing computer magazine." The magazine was 'CADalyst', and the magazine's owner-editor, Lionel Johnston, was working on the first issue with color pages -- after two years of black-white. After five years with the publication, I struck off on my own. (At first, I didn't think 'CADalyst' would survive past Christmas, 1984. Today, it's one of the very few CAD print publications still in existence.) To celebrate twenty years in CAD journalism, I've created a visual trivia quiz. Figure out the items listed below; they're all CAD-related promotional items that I was given over the intervening decades. How to play: 1. View the image.
Q01: http://www.upfrontezine.com/Figs/20quiz/Q01.jpg
Q02: http://www.upfrontezine.com/Figs/20quiz/Q02.jpg
Q03: http://www.upfrontezine.com/Figs/20quiz/Q03.jpg
Q04: http://www.upfrontezine.com/Figs/20quiz/Q04.jpg
Q05: http://www.upfrontezine.com/Figs/20quiz/Q05.jpg
Q06: http://www.upfrontezine.com/Figs/20quiz/Q06.jpg
Q07: http://www.upfrontezine.com/Figs/20quiz/Q07.jpg
Q08: http://www.upfrontezine.com/Figs/20quiz/Q08.jpg
Q09: http://www.upfrontezine.com/Figs/20quiz/Q09.jpg
Q10: http://www.upfrontezine.com/Figs/20quiz/Q10.jpg Kurta
Q11: http://www.upfrontezine.com/Figs/20quiz/Q11.jpg Yellow ball
Q12: http://www.upfrontezine.com/Figs/20quiz/Q12.jpg
Q13: http://www.upfrontezine.com/Figs/20quiz/Q13.jpg
Q14: http://www.upfrontezine.com/Figs/20quiz/Q14.jpg
Q15: http://www.upfrontezine.com/Figs/20quiz/Q15.jpg
Q16: http://www.upfrontezine.com/Figs/20quiz/Q16.jpg
Q17: http://www.upfrontezine.com/Figs/20quiz/Q17.jpg
Q18: http://www.upfrontezine.com/Figs/20quiz/Q18.jpg
Q19: http://www.upfrontezine.com/Figs/20quiz/Q19.jpg
Q20: http://www.upfrontezine.com/Figs/20quiz/Q20.jpg
Redo "I'd like to provide some clarification on your article titled 'Color Stereolithography.' The term 'stereolithography' refers to a specific additive fabrication process that was commercialized by 3D Systems and several Japanese system manufacturers. It is a process of using a UV laser to harden photopolymer layer-by-layer. "Many other additive processes have been developed and commercialized, such as a 3D printing technique by Z Corporation. It also builds parts layer-by-layer, but the approach is quite different from stereolithography: it deposits liquid binders using an HP inkjet printhead onto a bed of fine powder. Using colored binders, these 3D printers are capable of printing 24-bit color parts -- something that is not possible with stereolithography. "(Using a special resin and build process of overexposing laser light on certain areas of the part, it is possible to build stereolithography parts that consist of two colors -- the natural color of the resin, plus another color such as red.) - Terry Wholers The editor replies: "I had thot that they were all generically known as stereolithography, because most 3D CAD packages have some sort of STLout command."
Mr Wohlers responds: "The STL file format was created and published by 3D Systems in 1987. It subsequently became a de facto standard for moving CAD data to machines that produce parts additively." These news items were posted during the last week at the WorldCAD Access blog < http://worldcadaccess.typepad.com >:
- - - - Foresight from In Situ Simulation instantly visualizes and manipulates projects a real-time 3D environments. http://www.insitusimulation.com
... that's all folks. I'm suffering from the flu, and will have more for you next week.
Copyright 2005 by upFront.eZine Publishing, Ltd. All rights reserved worldwide Article reprint fee US$250.00.
All trademarks belong to their respective holders. "upFront.eZine,"
"Talking About CAD," and "On your desktop every Tuesday morning"
are trademarks of upFront.eZinePublishing, Ltd. |
|
|
|
|
