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Issue #597 : : March 24, 2009 |
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In this issue: Build Your Own CAD System Available Now: What's Inside? AutoCAD 2010 eBook
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Write the editor. Make him smile! Through Paypal, consider donating $25 in support of upFront.eZine. Or else... We're trendy. We have a Weblog. WorldCAD Access. |
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I love reading history, especially the early days of new ventures. In the early days of CAD, progress was measured in years. Fast forward to the mid-1990s when you could begin to build your own -- no government grants or PhD-trained researchers required. The first build-your-own CAD systems arrived as a result of desperation. CAD vendors who had difficulties in the marketplace began to offer their CAD engines to developers. The idea was to rebuild the ailing CAD company on the backs of volunteers. This was the plan: 1. People pay $2,500 (or more) to get a copy of the CAD engine.
The plan, unfortunately, failed at Step 1. I still have some of those CDs on my bookshelf:
Visual CADD is gone, though it lives on through General CADD. Cadkey was bought by a Japanese company and now runs successful as Kubotek USA. ComputerVision was bought by PTC. Among others, CAD engines continue as nice little side businesses, such as AutoCAD OEM. Still, the point was made: you no longer needed to rely on a CAD vendor to get the high-end features you wanted in the software that makes you your living. If you had the programming know-how, you could build the them yourself.
OpenCAD, the Book A decade after those heady but futile times, someone's written a book on how to construct a CAD system of your own. Programmer Deelip Menezes' "OpenCAD -- A Step by Step Guide to Developing a Professional CAD Application" ($49/$99) describes the steps needed to first create a DWG viewer, and then a DWG editor, partly based on software from the Open Design Alliance. That's the catch: You need to join the ODA to get the base code. And you need to know how to program with Visual C++. But by the end of the brief 92-page book, you end up with a CAD program sporting an AutoCAD-like command prompt and a plug-in architecture. Your basic CAD program can then be expanded with DRX plug-ins that you write yourself, or obtain from third-party developers. Purchasing the book also gives you access to the added C++ code that sits on top of the DWGdirect engine. I wonder what Patrick Hanratty and Ivan Sutherland would have thought about coming across a 92-page CAD instruction guide in 1960? That it is only 92 pages says a lot about the 50 years of prior development that made this book possible. Available Now: "What's Inside? AutoCAD 2010" eBook I've just completed writing 26,000 words, 200+ illustrations, 130 pages, and 5 chapters making up the latest edition of my "What's Inside? AutoCAD 2010." This ebook delves into every detail of using the new release of Autodesk's flagship software, including new and changed commands and system variables, undocumented commands, and system requirements. (It doesn't cover programming issues.) There is detail here you won't find elsewhere. The "What's Inside? AutoCAD 2010" ebook is available now in PDF format for US$19.50 through its Web page at www.upfrontezine.com/wiaX . Pay by PayPal and I email you the ebook the same day. (If you prefer to send a cheque or money order, please mail it to the following address: upFront.eZine Publishing, Ltd., 34486 Donlyn Avenue, Abbotsford, BC, V2S 4W7, Canada.) iCADsales.com offers 20% off new licenses and upgrades to progeCAD 2009 until the end of this month. www.icadsales.com Intergraph unveils SmartPlant for Life Sciences -- software to design, construct, and qualify-commission new pharmaceutical production facilities. www.intergraph.com Parametric Exchange moves parametric models from Geomagic Studio to SolidWorks. labs.geomagic.com Lumec offers its Lumec 3D Web-based luminaire visualization software at no charge. It export 3D designs to other CAD programs. www.lumec.com - - - These were some of the news items that were posted during the last week at the WorldCAD Access blog < worldcadaccess.typepad.com >:
And at the Gizmos Grabowski blog <worldcadaccess.typepad.com/gizmos >:
Hardware News Oce launches their new CS4236 wide-format color scanner with an optical resolution of 1200x1200 dpi. www.oceusa.com
WorthWhile Web http://hdguru.com/recession-pressures-national-retailers-not-honoring-sale-or-price-match-policies-what-you-can-do-to-beat-them-hd-guru-investigative-report/399
http://blog.laptopmag.com/more-office-depot-employees-report-lying-to-customers-changing-price-tags
Letters to the Editor Re: Autodesk vs. SolidWorks Lawsuit "SolidWorks and Autodesk might hug and make up, but that doesn't mean that everything's settled and done with. More than likely, it's just a tactical retreat. "If Autodesk's goal is to get the trademark on DWG, they're better off settling with SolidWorks, and going after the ODA, since the ODA's ability to defend itself is much more limited. "If Autodesk v. SolidWorks isn't adjudicated (that is, with a decision rendered by the judge), chances are Autodesk will be able to re-open the trademark suit against the ODA." The editor replies: "I has been wondering if the purpose of the negotiation with SoldWorks was to allow Autodesk to resume its attack on Open Design Alliance, since its USPTO trademark dispute was pending the civil court's decision, which now won't be making one."
Re: 30-day Trials "I have a suggestion for the next VX press release, where they say 'Traditionally, it has been difficult for engineers to experiment and implement new software because of time pressure caused by 30 day trial periods.' "Instead of a 30-day trial period, why can't vendors give us 40 hours actual use? I know it can be done. My personal laptop came with an assortment of fully featured 'demo' games. They work for 60 minutes actual playing time then expire. I even bought one of them, which is unusual for me as I'm not much of a game player." The editor replies: "Makes sense to me. I think some of Google's commercial software has a 40-hour trial. When I download trial software, I immediately install it to get a look at it, but then often don't have time to look at it in-depth within that 30-day deadline." - - - "Times are difficult, but with the information you provide, I have been able to upgrade my skills and thus make myself more marketable. Thank you for all the good information."
Spin Doctor of the Moment "There are many ways to measure battery life. We believe the best way to determine how to measure battery life is by making proposals and debating it in industry consortiums, and not via blog post."
Notable Quotable "The A380 is so huge that in the current environment it’s really hard to fill."
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