mCADForums.com - Only News Items

INVENTOR: ADSK to Provide Free Software to Chinese Students

Author: PeterCharles
Subject: INVENTOR: ADSK to Provide Free Software to Chinese Students
Posted: Tue Apr 22, 2008 5:50 pm (GMT 0)
Topic Replies: 10

http://www.chinatechnews.com/2008/04/22/6651-autodesk-supports-chinas-digital-design-education/

Is this actually necessary.......

INVENTOR: Leno uses AutoCAD

Author: SeanDotson
Subject: INVENTOR: Leno uses AutoCAD
Posted: Thu Apr 17, 2008 8:00 pm (GMT 0)
Topic Replies: 7

According to Shaan Jay Leno's garage uses AutoCAD...

http://autodesk.blogs.com/between_the_lines/2008/04/the-matt-murphy.html

Why? Why not Inventor? Hell even Solidworks. Who except electrical engineers, civil guys and people stuck in 1980 use AutoCAD?
_________________
Sean Dotson, PE, AICE
RND Automation & Engineering

"SWIM 2.4 miles, BIKE 112 miles, RUN 26.2 miles, brag for the rest of your life" -John Collins, founder of the Ironman

INVENTOR: Feature Recognizer for 2009

Author: SeanDotson
Subject: INVENTOR: Feature Recognizer for 2009
Posted: Wed Apr 09, 2008 8:57 pm (GMT 0)
Topic Replies: 1

Over at Autodesk Labs the Feature Recognizer add-in ro Inventor 2009 is ready for download. Pretty nifty tool.

http://labs.autodesk.com/blogs/its_alive_in_the_lab/view/its_alive_in_the_lab_2008_04_feature-recogni2008-04-09T04%3A00%3A00-07%3A00/
_________________
Sean Dotson, PE, AICE
RND Automation & Engineering

"SWIM 2.4 miles, BIKE 112 miles, RUN 26.2 miles, brag for the rest of your life" -John Collins, founder of the Ironman

TECH: NVidia Responsible for most Vista Crashes

Author: SeanDotson
Subject: TECH: NVidia Responsible for most Vista Crashes
Posted: Thu Mar 27, 2008 11:43 pm (GMT 0)
Topic Replies: 2

This does not bode well for our beloved graphics card manufacturer..

http://www.engadget.com/2008/03/27/nvidia-drivers-responsible-for-nearly-30-of-vista-crashes-in-20/
_________________
Sean Dotson, PE, AICE
RND Automation & Engineering

"SWIM 2.4 miles, BIKE 112 miles, RUN 26.2 miles, brag for the rest of your life" -John Collins, founder of the Ironman

MCAD: Site credibility

Author: kellings
Subject: MCAD: Site credibility
Posted: Mon Mar 24, 2008 2:09 am (GMT 0)
Topic Replies: 2

I was just reading Roopinder Tara's blog cadinsider.typepad.com where there is an interesting little spat going on between a blogger and the CEO of Alibre, Greg Milliken.
http://cadinsider.typepad.com/my_weblog/2008/03/blogger-speak-t.html

In one of the paragraphs he suggests that Mike Puckett doesn't have to worry Alibre pulling its advertising from his site because he is a "pure blogger".

"Mike doesn't have to worry about Greg pulling his advertising, either. Pure bloggers don't do advertising, so no worry about advertising pressure -- the secret and unstated fear of us all in the trade press."

So now it seems that I am supposed to believe that I can't trust Sean or the things on his site because he allows advertising on Mcadforums.com? I think I'd be pissed if I were you Sean.

Oh Sean, I've know for years that you are in the Mcad vendors pocket

Kevin

MISC: Trail Running

Author: SeanDotson
Subject: MISC: Trail Running
Posted: Thu Feb 28, 2008 2:18 pm (GMT 0)
Topic Replies: 7

This last weekend Cherry and I did a 10k trail run. Wow, talk abut fun. I may never run on roads again...

http://www.seandotson.com/blog/index.php?title=the-chase-10k-almost-trail-run&more=1&c=1&tb=1&pb=1
_________________
Sean Dotson, PE, AICE
RND Automation & Engineering

"SWIM 2.4 miles, BIKE 112 miles, RUN 26.2 miles, brag for the rest of your life" -John Collins, founder of the Ironman

MCAD: CAD Bloggers - and what's wrong with them

Author: SeanDotson
Subject: MCAD: CAD Bloggers - and what's wrong with them
Posted: Wed Feb 20, 2008 4:17 pm (GMT 0)
Topic Replies: 7

As many of you have noticed I have not been posting many items to the front page recently. That's partly due to the fact that I've been busy with my real company but also because I have really not found anything too exciting to post about. There is really nothing too exciting going on in the MCAD world right now. Sure there are new versions of Inventor and Solidworks on the horizon but noting really earthshaking. No major breakthrough or amazing new features. Heck there even seems to be a lull in the usually exciting "my dad can bat up your dad arguments' between Autodesk and Solidworks.

But perhaps more importantly is that I'm finding the whole concept of the blog to be a bit wasteful. Let me explain...

I started posting entries on this (and sdotson.com) website a LONG time ago. I think the first entry was in 2000. The Internet Archive has pages saved back to May of 2002.. Despite what others might think I can claim that I was one of the pioneering people in the CAD blog-o-sphere (wow, as I typed it, I just realized how much I hate that word).

In those years I have tried (and I think pretty successfully accomplished) to provide new and original content. Whether it be an observation, a new tutorial or a link to a product announcement, I have priced myself on trying to produce content.

Which leads me to one of my gripes. It seems that today a lot (not all, and not everyone who is guilt it guilty all the time) of bloggers are simply linking to other blogs that have content. I'm not trying to say all that they do is to leech off the other blogs as the leech-ers are ofter a few weeks later the leech-ees. Furthermore a blog post on one blog will lead another blogger to comment on that post on their site. Then that other blogger replies to a comment made on their blog on the other blog. Pretty soon you are following hyper links all over the place trying to piece together the conversation.

It's really a pretty ineffective method of communication. This is why I prefer forums. On this site, items that I feel are important or newsworthy are "floated" to the front page and appear on the RSS feed of sdotson.com. What's better is that the "comment" mechanism is a forum. It allows people to communicate in a easy to read format. (Have you ever tried to reconstruct a conversation on a really popular blog post? You need a degree in forensic linguistics to figure out who said what to whom and why this person is upset at this other person. Reminds me of an episode of Lost).

I think the other issue is that it's *cool* to have a blog. I see corporations and VARs now staring blogs to help reach their customers and potential clients. Honestly, when was the last time you saw a GOOD corporate blog? Most of the good ones are written by one or two person teams who often have another *real* job that pays the bills.

The final thought on my list (I guess the coffee was a bit strong this morning) are many of the "professional journalists" who are bloggers. I often have to question the motivations. Why are they blogging. Is it part of their job? What about the freelance ones? Is it to help sell their books? Or maybe to build up a site and then one day sell it off. Maybe they just like writing? Who knows maybe I'm just being cynical. Maybe a few can tell me why they do it. I'd love to know.

Let�s end on a positive note. There are some good blogs out there. Matt Lombard's comes to mind. I�ve been reading it quite regularly lately. Matt quite often has some really insightful posts on his blog. Things that trigger a thought and make you really *read* the post. Sure he chose the wrong CAD package to write about but we'll forgive him of that (just kidding Matt).

So what's to happen to the CAD blogging world? I�ll leave that as a start to our discussion.
_________________
Sean Dotson, PE, AICE
RND Automation & Engineering

"SWIM 2.4 miles, BIKE 112 miles, RUN 26.2 miles, brag for the rest of your life" -John Collins, founder of the Ironman

MISC: Super Y-Tri

Author: SeanDotson
Subject: MISC: Super Y-Tri
Posted: Tue Feb 12, 2008 4:36 am (GMT 0)
Topic Replies: 6

Last weekend I competed in my first triathlon since high school (wow has it been that long). All the gory details are here:

http://www.seandotson.com/blog/index.php?title=superbowl-y-tri&more=1&c=1&tb=1&pb=1
_________________
Sean Dotson, PE, AICE
RND Automation & Engineering

"SWIM 2.4 miles, BIKE 112 miles, RUN 26.2 miles, brag for the rest of your life" -John Collins, founder of the Ironman

MISC: I'm back in the game

Author: SeanDotson
Subject: MISC: I'm back in the game
Posted: Fri Feb 01, 2008 3:21 pm (GMT 0)
Topic Replies: 15

After a LONG hiatus I'm back in the running game. Cherry (my wife) and I did the Sarasota YMCA Ringling Bridge Run a couple of weeks ago.

This weekend.. my first triathlon in over 15 years.. YIKES!!!

Here is more info if you are interested...

http://www.seandotson.com/blog/index.php?title=sarasota-ymca-ringling-bridge-run-v&more=1&c=1&tb=1&pb=1

600) {this.width=600}" style="cursor: hand" onClick="javascript:window.open('http://aplusprophoto.com/_library/images/rb5edit/RBR-276.gif')" title="http://aplusprophoto.com/_library/images/rb5edit/RBR-276.gif" border="0"/>
_________________
Sean Dotson, PE, AICE
RND Automation & Engineering

"SWIM 2.4 miles, BIKE 112 miles, RUN 26.2 miles, brag for the rest of your life" -John Collins, founder of the Ironman

TECH: A Manufacturing Parable

Author: SeanDotson
Subject: TECH: A Manufacturing Parable
Posted: Fri Feb 01, 2008 2:06 pm (GMT 0)
Topic Replies: 83

A Japanese company ( Toyota ) and an American company (Ford) decided to have a canoe race on the Missouri River Both teams practiced long and hard to reach their peak performance before the race.

On the big day, the Japanese won by a mile.

The Americans, very discouraged and depressed, decided to investigate the reason for the crushing defeat. A management team made up of senior management was formed to investigate and recommend appropriate action. Their conclusion was the Japanese had 8 people rowing and 1 person steering, while the American team had 8 people steering and 1 person rowing.

Feeling a deeper study was in order, American management hired a consulting company and paid them a large amount of money for a second opinion. They advised, of course, that too many people were steering the boat, while not enough people were rowing. Not sure of how to utilize that information, but wanting to prevent another loss to the Japanese, the rowing team's management structure was totally reorganized to 4 steering upervisors, 3 area steering superintendents and 1 assistant superintendent steering manager.

They also implemented a new performance system that would give the 1 person rowing the boat greater incentive to work harder. It was called the 'Rowing Team Quality First Program,' with meetings, dinners and free pens for the rower. There was discussion of getting new paddles, canoes and other equipment, extra vacation days for practices and bonuses.

The next year the Japanese won by two miles.

Humiliated, the American management laid off the rower for poor performance, halted development of a new canoe, sold the paddles, and canceled all capital investments for new equipment. The money saved was distributed to the Senior Executives as bonuses and the next year's racing team was out-sourced to India .

Sadly, The End.

Here's something else to think about: Ford has spent the last thirty years moving all its factories out of the US , claiming they can't make money paying American wages.

TOYOTA has spent the last thirty years building more than a dozen plants inside the US. The last quarter's results:

TOYOTA makes 4 billion in profits while Ford racked up 9 billion in losses.

Ford folks are still scratching their heads.

IF THIS WEREN'T SO TRUE IT MIGHT BE FUNNY
_________________
Sean Dotson, PE, AICE
RND Automation & Engineering

"SWIM 2.4 miles, BIKE 112 miles, RUN 26.2 miles, brag for the rest of your life" -John Collins, founder of the Ironman

SOLIDWORKS: SolidWorks on a Stick

Author: JDMATHER
Subject: SOLIDWORKS: SolidWorks on a Stick
Posted: Wed Jan 23, 2008 7:11 pm (GMT 0)
Topic Replies: 0

http://www.solidsmack.com/solidworks-applications-usb-thumb-flash-drive/2008-01-22/

I didn't get to go to SWW 08 this year. Looks like some interesting stuff.
_________________
Autodesk Inventor Certified Expert
Certified SolidWorks Professional
http://home.pct.edu/~jmather/content/CAD238/AutoCAD_2007_Tutorials.htm

MISC: It took me 10 years but I did it..

Author: SeanDotson
Subject: MISC: It took me 10 years but I did it..
Posted: Mon Jan 21, 2008 3:52 pm (GMT 0)
Topic Replies: 7

I finally got seandotson.com (not much to see as it's currently just parked with nothing on it. )

When I fist got into web design back in 1997 I tried to snag it. This was when just about EVERY domain was available. Well except that one. And the guy had a 10 year lease on it.

I've tried contacting him several times but he never replies. So I patiently waited until it expired and placed a backorder on it. I just got the news that I now own it!

YIPPIE!
_________________
Sean Dotson, PE, AICE
RND Automation & Engineering

"SWIM 2.4 miles, BIKE 112 miles, RUN 26.2 miles, brag for the rest of your life" -John Collins, founder of the Ironman

ADD-IN: COG++

Author: Neil
Subject: ADD-IN: COG++
Posted: Thu Dec 20, 2007 4:36 am (GMT 0)
Topic Replies: 0

Complete COG reporting and management tool.

- Track COG in parts, and for each Positional Rep+LoD Rep combination in assemblies.
- Track multiple locations relative to COG.
- Recover COG in drawing views, including overlay views.
- Extensive UI customization, and chm based help.

Download a 30 day trial at www.c3mech.com

Neil

Add-IN: Plot Stamp

Author: Neil
Subject: Add-IN: Plot Stamp
Posted: Thu Dec 20, 2007 4:28 am (GMT 0)
Topic Replies: 0

Create and manage Plot Stamps for Inventor drawings (works inside IV and with Task Scheduler prints). Multiple plot stamps per sheet, precise positioning and formatting, client and author licenses will be available.

Download a 30 day trial at www.c3mech.com

Neil

AU: So Where Are Those AU Reports?

Author: SeanDotson
Subject: AU: So Where Are Those AU Reports?
Posted: Tue Nov 27, 2007 4:17 am (GMT 0)
Topic Replies: 9

Those of you at AU this year, remember that I expect detailed reports. Post them here or start a new thread. Just start them with "AU:"
_________________
Sean Dotson, PE, AICE
RND Automation & Engineering

"SWIM 2.4 miles, BIKE 112 miles, RUN 26.2 miles, brag for the rest of your life" -John Collins, founder of the Ironman

INVENTOR: Frame Generator Author

Author: cbliss
Subject: INVENTOR: Frame Generator Author
Posted: Mon Nov 12, 2007 8:22 am (GMT 0)
Topic Replies: 14

I see that there is a Frame Generator Author on
http://labs.autodesk.com/utilities/framegenerator/
Has anyone tried it yet?

AU: 2007 Get Together

Author: alumframedesigner
Subject: AU: 2007 Get Together
Posted: Thu Nov 08, 2007 11:49 pm (GMT 0)
Topic Replies: 15

Ok, now that there's an independent thread for this...

Is anyone up for a good ol' MCAD Forums shindig somewhere at AU 2007?

_________________
Brian Hall
"6 Liters = 300 Gallons... THAT'S A FACT!!" - Jackie Moon

SITE NEWS: Slow Site Today

Author: SeanDotson
Subject: SITE NEWS: Slow Site Today
Posted: Thu Nov 08, 2007 3:49 pm (GMT 0)
Topic Replies: 1

You might experience some slow load times on the pages today as I'm doing some database backup and maintenance. Thanks for your patience.
_________________
Sean Dotson, PE, AICE
RND Automation & Engineering

"SWIM 2.4 miles, BIKE 112 miles, RUN 26.2 miles, brag for the rest of your life" -John Collins, founder of the Ironman

MISC: Magazine Swap

Author: SeanDotson
Subject: MISC: Magazine Swap
Posted: Sun Nov 04, 2007 10:56 pm (GMT 0)
Topic Replies: 11

Any one else a magazine junkie? I have several subscriptions and on average I read on in only a few days. If I did not control myself I'd have 100s of them coming in. Of course I'd also be broke.

I read one a few sites about a magazine swap. After you save up a few back issues you trade with another person who has the magazines you want. You can send 4-6 issues via media mail for the cost of one issue on the newsstand. And if you are like me you have several backissues sitting there that have not made their way to the recycle bin.

For our friends in Europe and Aisa it might be cost prohibitive but if you guys are willing to fund the shipping I'm sure people over here in the US would be willing to send them.

So anyone interested? I'm going to leave it up to everyone to organize their own trades. Just list what you have to offer and if someone contact's you work out the details. If you make a trade you might want to remove it from your list so people do not continue to bug you about it.

Here's what I have to offer:

Outside
Field & Stream
Wired
Inc. (small business)
Men's Health
Real Simple (wife's)
Newsweek

I also get Design News, machine Design, Packaging Machinery, Packaging Digest etc.. at work but you can sign up and get these free if you want.
_________________
Sean Dotson, PE, AICE
RND Automation & Engineering

"SWIM 2.4 miles, BIKE 112 miles, RUN 26.2 miles, brag for the rest of your life" -John Collins, founder of the Ironman

MISC: Set em Back

Author: SeanDotson
Subject: MISC: Set em Back
Posted: Sat Nov 03, 2007 2:48 pm (GMT 0)
Topic Replies: 13

Don't forget that this weekend (2AM Sunday to be exact) we all set our clocks back one hour. Well except for some people in IL and most of Arizona.

So now I get to run in the dark when I get home after work. Sigh.

What a screwed up concept.
_________________
Sean Dotson, PE, AICE
RND Automation & Engineering

"SWIM 2.4 miles, BIKE 112 miles, RUN 26.2 miles, brag for the rest of your life" -John Collins, founder of the Ironman