CAD Forum

I think having a narrow focus is clear to users, Google and the rest of the world. So if we're all moving from the SW forum to this, maybe this could just be a SolidWorks forum. I get the idea of adding groups for other software, but I expect those groups will only reach 10% of the SW subforum if you try to appease everyone. That means those users don't get timely answers to their questions and go away.

When I started CAD Booster I also had to make this decision and I chose to support SolidWorks only for now. Four years later, that's still the case and it works.

I agree on this.
We dont need another 3DSwym that try to reach everything

Here's why I started this as a multi-CAD site:

I'm interested in more than just one CAD system. You'd have to be blind to not see that SW is imploding. They killed off SW World, now the SW Forum, two big and popular customer favorites. Their goal is to kill off SW desktop and drive you to the 3DX. A new forum should not exclusively focus on a topic the maker is trying to kill off.

Even SolidWorks users aren't completely monogamous. A lot of users don't get through their week without interfacing with some other CAD package. It's best not to be ignorant about the world around you.

Plus, there are new approaches out there, and you're not going to get more innovations from SW desktop. Subd, all optimization, CAD in a db, functional modeling, direct edit, Tsplines, hopefully innovations in referencing, better MBD implementations, new assembly methods, etc... There's no good reason to avoid information like this, and I want to invite those users to share their information and experience.

And, if the SW side caps off at a certain size, then you can never have too many friends.

If you don't like the non-SW stuff, it's easy enough to ignore.

I totally agree with you, @matt! I'm always interested in finding something better. Like you said I can almost guarantee SW is going to kill SW desktop sometime in the next 10 years. Why would they not? SW they have to pay rights to Siemens to use the Parasolid kernel and 3DX they don't b/c they're using their own kernel. More money's what it's all about!

matt wrote: ↑Tue Mar 16, 2021 8:26 am
You'd have to be blind to not see that SW is imploding. They killed off SW World, now the SW Forum, two big and popular customer favorites. Their goal is to kill off SW desktop and drive you to the 3DX.

Considering our company just standardized on SolidWorks for CAD and Windchill for PDM/PLM, killing off the desktop guarantees they will lose the approximately 500 seats of SolidWorks we have as don't see the company dropping Windchill.

I see your point matt, but my thought is that unless we have a strong enough community for that particular CAD software, user will not stay.

People (at least for me) use the forum to get "answer" for their "question".
Unless we have a people like Deepak for every software, people will not get timely answers to their questions and will just go back to their own forum.

I am not saying to remove the multi-cad section entirely, but to rethink what we really want...

Zhen-Wei Tee wrote: ↑Tue Mar 16, 2021 9:47 am I see your point matt, but my thought is that unless we have a strong enough community for that particular CAD software, user will not stay.

People (at least for me) use the forum to get "answer" for their "question".
Unless we have a people like Deepak for every software, people will not get timely answers to their questions and will just go back to their own forum.

I am not saying to remove the multi-cad section entirely, but to rethink what we really want...

I don't know who you are, but ask any question, and you will get an answer. @Alin Vargatu is here, @Krzysztof Szpakowski is here, @linsd Shaodun Lin is here, @SolidMuse Anna Wood is here, the author of the SolidWorks Bibles is here, @jcapriotti , @KQuigley @MichaelLord @mattpeneguy and lots of others (who are now annoyed at me for being left out - oops). Deepak is good, but there are several here who know an awful lot too.

I don't think having a lot of SW users precludes having other expertise here as well. We have some serious SE talent lurking in the wings.

You can continue to come here without paying any attention to anything but SW if you like, and you won't hurt anyone's feelings. Although it wouldn't hurt you to broaden your horizons a little.

Deepak is here too as @gupta9665 , FYI. We need to draw him out.

mike miller wrote: ↑Tue Mar 16, 2021 10:06 am Deepak is here too as @gupta9665 , FYI. We need to draw him out.

Whoa, how'd I miss that!

Hey, @gupta9665 Deepak!

I certainly will stay.

I just don't want here to become the next 3DSYWM where we lost sight of what's matter (in this case, CAD)
But I guess I am just worrying too much.
Cheers.

Zhen-Wei Tee wrote: ↑Tue Mar 16, 2021 10:29 am I certainly will stay.

I just don't want here to become the next 3DSYWM where we lost sight of what's matter (in this case, CAD)
But I guess I am just worrying too much.
Cheers.

We're glad to have you. We won't lose sight, I promise that. I've been pretty focused on CAD for, uh, longer than I want to put in writing. I talk about other things connected to CAD like design or manufacturing, but it's a lot of CAD. My blog gets a little distracted here and there, but that's my blog.

Just my opinion, but I think this multi CAD forum is nothing like the smelting pot of 3DSWYM. Completely different drive. Maybe this is a bad analogy but saying a forum will have better answers because it's focused on only one CAD platform might be a bit like saying StackOverflow should only discuss one language. I understand there are single programming language forums out there...
In general people that have a bunch of experience to share (meaning a couple decades) will have likely worked in more than one CAD system and maybe see 3D modeling as the discipline and software as tools rather than the specific software being the focal point.

CAD is only a tool to help you do your job better and faster. The real power is inside yer skull.

For that reason, nothing is sacred. If SWX stops being productive for me, I'll take a look elsewhere. Don't get me wrong, I'm a sentimental person. I like SWX and I like the user community. But once it interferes with my ability to do my job.........look out!

mike miller wrote: ↑Tue Mar 16, 2021 11:45 am For that reason, nothing is sacred. If SWX stops being productive for me, I'll take a look elsewhere. Don't get me wrong, I'm a sentimental person. I like SWX and I like the user community. But once it interferes with my ability to do my job.........look out!

This certainly wouldn't be the first time a software/product got "too big for it's britches" and failed to server it's customers and went the way of the dodo. Dassault should heed history.

the big plus is.. when we ditch SW we don't have to ditch our forum

I understand your considerations Matt. My opinion hasn't changed, but it's your forum

Sorry friends, I had been away a little. Will start participating more now

gupta9665 wrote: ↑Sun May 02, 2021 3:02 am Sorry friends, I had been away a little. Will start participating more now

Awesome!!!

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gupta9665 wrote: ↑Sun May 02, 2021 3:02 am Sorry friends, I had been away a little. Will start participating more now

Nice to see ya here