April 2004
Barriers to Model Exchange - Bob Fischer, vice president of sales and marketing at VX Corp., discusses the reasons why it's so difficult to send data from one CAD system to another, Don LaCourse, Cadalyst, April 11, 2004
Double-click Tips for Toolbars - AutoCAD tip, PostalCAD, April 19, 2004
Maximize Viewports Even Quicker - AutoCAD streaming tip demonstrates a quicker way (other than the new maximize viewports button in 2005) to maximize your viewports, Sterling Systems, April 2004
Solid Edge Sketcher Tip - Easy Polygons - Solid Edge tip on how to make a polygon, Tushar Suradkarm, Solid Edge Community, April 30, 2004 (may require free registration)
Scaling the Building Information Mountain - a look at the key issues that arise when attempting to create a Single Building Model, CAD User, March/April 2004
One Button for Individual Osnaps - AutoCAD streaming tip shows how to set Osnaps to one key and how to customize and enter other keyboard functions, Sterling Systems, April 2004
Another Unique Way to Use Fields in 2005 - AutoCAD streaming tip explores how to use fields to label room square footage, Sterling Systems, April 2004
Defining Aliases for Commands - CATIA tip, Syed Sahir, CATIA Community, April 30, 2004 (may require free registration)
Visualizing the Virtual Factory - collaborative 3D visualization tools, from such companies as Delmia and Tecnomatix, are helping manufacturers speed the design and build cycles of new products, while lowering production costs and boosting plant efficiency, Patrick Waurzyniak, Manufacturing Engineering, April 2004
Dimension Following The Mouse - CATIA tip, Syed Sahir, CATIA Community, April 30, 2004 (may require free registration)
ArchiCAD University - BIM There, Done That - the recent ArchiCAD University West seminar focused on the software program's long-established BIM (building information modeling) capabilities, Mike Bordenaro, Cadalyst AEC Tech News #117, April 8, 2004
Using Fields in Titleblocks - AutoCAD 2005 tutorial explains how to set your titleblock to use fields, Elise Moss, CADzette, April 30, 2004 (pdf)
How to Create a Simple 5 Spoke Wheel - 3ds max tutorial, Tobe & Stryker, 3DM, April 30, 2004
The Web Services Technology and its Implications for AEC - describes the upcoming technology of Web Services, which is fast becoming a buzzword in technology circles, and explores its implications for the AEC industry, Lachmi Khemlani, AECbytes, April 29, 2004
Knowledge Architecture - A Fundamental Approach - explores the fundamentals of Knowledge Architecture and the major elements required to create a Knowledge Management System, Ray Anderson, SolidWorks Community, April 27, 2004 (may require free registration)
The Key to Collaboration - barriers to successful CAD collaboration often result more from internal obstacles rather than technical insufficiencies, Rich Weissman, The Manufacturer, April 2004
AutoCAD 3D Modeling: DXB Files - tutorial shows how to install the DXB printer driver and create a 2D drawing from an existing 3D model, Alireza Parsai, CADdigest.com, April 28, 2004
AutoCAD 2005: Tables - tutorial demonstrates how to define table styles and how to insert tables, Alireza Parsai, CAD Panel, April 26, 2004
Understanding Materials, Catalogs and Inheritance - CATIA tutorial, Cedric Simard and Franck Poisson, CATIA Community, April 9, 2004 (may require free registration)
Geometry Behind a Showroom But Visible When Rendering an Image - CATIA tip, Cedric Simard and Franck Poisson, CATIA Community, April 9, 2004 (may require free registration)
Background Mask Tools for AutoCAD 2005 (Beta Release) - offers some customized tools to work with the new AutoCAD 2005 feature Background Masking, Lee Ambrosius, Beyond the UI, April 26, 2004
To-PLM Map - provides a guide to show where your company is currently in terms of PLM, and how you can progress to a more complete lifecycle management of your products, 2PLM, April 26, 2004
How to Use Probes for Results Labeling - ALGOR tutorial, Algor.com, April 27, 2004
AutoLISP 1.02 - Definitions and Getting Started - AutoLISP tutorial, Alan R. Henderson, A'cad Solutions, April 26, 2004
Double-click Tips for Toolbars - AutoCAD tip, PostalCAD, April 19, 2004
TurboCAD V9.5 Professional - Water Tower - TurboCAD tutorial for beginners, Donald B. Cheke, Textual Creations, April 26, 2004 (zipped 9.43MB pdf)
Web Weavers - GlobalSpec and Thomas Register have unveiled major upgrades to their websites that both companies promise will make product searches easier than ever, Paul E. Teague, Design News, April 26, 2004
PLM Spells Value - product lifecycle management tools can cut costs and cycle time for both large and small companies, Joel Lemke, Design News, April 26, 2004
An Interview with Alex Sharlot, Design Leader of the U.S. Marines Carousel Project - Pro/ENGINEER was deployed to help design container carousels that provide high-density storage and dedicated locations for materials for U.S. marines, Alexandra Pratt, Pro/E Community, April 23, 2004 (may require free registration)
Dallara Automobili Uses Pro/E to Make Better Racecars - one of only two companies that build cars for the Indy 500 uses Pro/ENGINEER to continually raise the benchmarks for safety, speed and performance of their cars, Alexandra Pratt, Pro/E Community, April 23, 2004 (may require free registration)
AutoLISP 1.01 - Your First Program - tutorial explains how to create three simple programs to set the Units command with appropriate Dimension variables setup, Alan R. Henderson, A'cad Solutions, April 16, 2004
Inventor: Drawing Dimensions Enhancements - Inventor 8 streaming tech tip demonstrates how to shorten the process of placing dimensions on a drawing, Avatech Solutions, April 21, 2004
A Quick Tutorial on Pen Weights - Revit tutorial, Skisouth, Revitcity, April 20, 2004
Family Pen Weights - A Simple Tutorial - Revit tutorial, Skisouth, Revitcity, April 20, 2004
AutoCAD: Using the WHO HAS Command - streaming tech tip explores a command that can reveal details about who last opened a drawing, and when, where and how long it was opened, Avatech Solutions, April 21, 2004
Machining of Runners Using Trajectory Milling - Pro/ENGINEER tutorial demonstrates how to machine a runner using the trajectory milling NC sequence, Asim Rashid, Pro/E Central, April 21, 2004
PTC Finances Improve - PTC turned a profit in the last fiscal quarter and expects to repeat the success next quarter, Ralph Grabowski, WorldCAD Access, April 21, 2004
AutoCAD Electrical: Easily Create 3-Phase Circuits - streaming tech tip illustrates how to use line objects to quickly and easily create the three-phase circuits commonly used in motors, Avatech Solutions, April 21, 2004
Land Desktop: Tool Palette Symbols that Respect Drawing Scale - streaming tech tip on how to make symbols adhere to drawing scale, Avatech Solutions, April 21, 2004
Boeing's 7E7 Project Pushes PLM Boundaries - to design its latest plane, Boeing's team of designers and manufacturers - located across the globe - will be able to access and share the same data through a Global Collaborative Environment, built upon a suite of PLM tools from Dassault, Arnie Williams, Cadalyst, April 1, 2004
Scratch the Patch - don't write your own patches for off-the-shelf codes, get your software vendor to do it, Paul E. Teague, Design News, April 5, 2004
Bonus Tools for Rhino 3.0 - explains the functions of many of the new bonus tools available, which you can download at this link, Robert McNeel & Associates, April 2004
Aligning Text on a Drawing - Autodesk Inventor tip, Andrew de Leon, Envision Solutions, April 14, 2004
Using the Derived Component Command: Part 3 - Sketches and Work Features - more on how to take a single part and split it up using the derived component command, Andrew de Leon, Envision Solutions, April 14, 2004
Associative 2D Hide Creation - AutoCAD Mechanical tip on how to produce a hidden line detail between any two or more items in a drawing, Jeff Gale, Envision Solutions, April 14, 2004
Training Tips and Strategies - advice on building a CAD training program, Robert Green, Cadalyst, April 1, 2004
Creating Loops Easily Using Pro/PIPING in Pro/E Wildfire - how to create a coil loop in Pro/PIPING, including specifying sizes and numbers of coils, Florin Neamtu, Pro/E Community, April 14, 2004 (may require free registration)
Engineering Solutions Worldwide Rides a Growing Trend - a St. Louis company is capitalizing on a trend among manufacturers to provide rapid prototyping and large-scale fabrication at one shop, Shera Dalin, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, April 18, 2004
Indian Researchers Lead World's First Search Tool for 3-D Shapes - the world's first 3D parts search engine will allow users to provide a shape - such as an existing CAD drawing or a free-hand sketch - to look for similar textures and geometry in its data base, Anand Parthasarathy, The Hindu, April 19, 2004
CFD Brings a Better Water Turbine - computational fluid dynamics software that works with an FEA program - both from SolidWorks - allowed consulting engineers to cut the cost of designing a hydraulic turbine by 50 percent, Paul Dvorak, Machine Design, April 15, 2004
The State of CAD Interoperability 2004: Survey Results - Proficiency and TenLinks studied the issue of CAD interoperability to determine how engineering model data is delivered today to manufacturers and suppliers, how CAD conversion, geometric translation and/or feature-based CAD interoperability is handled, at what expense and under whose authority, CADdigest.com, April 16, 2004
Researchers Develop 3-D Search Engine - researchers at both Purdue and Princeton universities have developed new search engines that can mine catalogs of three-dimensional objects - including CAD designs - based on user sketches, Brian Bergstein, Associated Press (hosted on MSNBC.com), April 15, 2004
NRI-Led Team Develops New Search Engine - the world's first 3D CAD part search engine will enable users to search huge industry databases by sketching a part from memory, penciling in modifications to an existing part or selecting a part that has a similar shape, Seema Hakhu Kachru, rediff.com, April 14, 2004
Using AutoCAD or IntelliCAD for Quantity Surveying, Part 1 - AutoCAD LT/IntelliCAD tutorial on extracting measurement data directly from the CAD data, rather than the traditional manual methods of extraction off paper drawings, Geoff Harrod, CADinfo.Net, April 16, 2004
Blocks & Symbol Libraries in IntelliCAD 1 - Blocks Basics - explores basic block use in IntelliCAD 4, Geoff Harrod, CADinfo.Net, April 16, 2004
Printing Using Amyuni PDF Driver - ArchiCAD tip, Erika Epstein, Graphisoft.com, April 16, 2004
Wall Materials - TurboCAD v10 tech tip, CADCourse.com, April 14, 2004
Pressure Load - TurboCAD v10 tech tip, CADCourse.com, April 14, 2004
Dassault Joins With Rand Worldwide - Dassault Systemes is investing $8.5 million to create a new US company called Rand Americas - what's in it for Dassault and Rand?, Ralph Grabowski, WorldCAD Access, April 15, 2004
Software That Searches the Parts Bin - an engineer is developing software that works like a graphics-oriented version of Google to make searching engineering databases for a part design easier, Otis Port, Business Week Online, April 15, 2004
Labor Productivity Declines in the Construction Industry: Causes and Remedies - the founding director of Stanford's Center for Integrated Facility Engineering describes the structural productivity problems afflicting the construction industry and suggests ways to mitigate them, Dr. Paul Teicholz, AECbytes, April 14, 2004
Tips on Importing Images into WORD - tips on capturing SolidWorks images to use in reports and documentation, Matthew Poster, SolidWorks Community, April 12, 2004 (may require free registration)
Migrating ADT 2004 Tool Palettes in ADT 2005 - Architectural Desktop tips, Chris Yanchar, Between the Walls ADT Weblog, April 14, 2004
Drafting Palette - TurboCAD v10 tech tip, CADCourse.com, April 14, 2004
Surface Deformation - TurboCAD v10 tech tip, CADCourse.com, April 14, 2004
Leveraging PLM for Manufacturing Excellence - explores the basic concepts and benefits of product lifecycle management and how to choose and implement PLM tools, Sunil Takalikar, Express Computer, April 19, 2004
Building (Better Drawings With) Blocks - SolidWorks tutorial on how to supply DWG files with specific block attributes to your customers, John Nolin, SolidWorks Community, April 12, 2004 (may require free registration)
"Pining" For a New Look? Texturing with SolidWorks 2004 - how to use the new texturing feature to make models look more realistic, David Baird, SolidWorks Community, April 12, 2004 (may require free registration)
Assembly Weight in the Drawing - Pro/ENGINEER tutorial explains how to calculate the weight of individual components, the combined weight of components assembled more than once and the weight of the assembly as a whole, in order to insert it as a note in the drawing, D.N. Reddy, Pro/E Central, April 2004
Automatic Purge for Nested Blocks or Other Symbols - AutoCAD tip, CAD Forum, April 9, 2004
Using the Trim Tool as An Extend Tool - SolidWorks tip, John Gifford, SolidWorks Community, April 12, 2004 (may require free registration)
Automatic Title Block Insertion for Model Space Entities - AutoCAD Mechanical tip, Envision Solutions, April 14, 2004
Where Is the "Convert Polyline to Wall" Command in Architectural Desktop 2004 and 2005? - Architectural Desktop tip, CAD Forum, April 6, 2004
How to Create a Midplane Mesh - ALGOR tutorial, April 14, 2004
Perfect Paper Space, Part 1 - tips on using the paper space (layouts) functionality in AutoCAD 2005, Lynn Allen, Cadalyst, April 10, 2004
AutoCAD 2005 Tool Palette Trick - Insert Block using LTSCALE - AutoCAD tip, Misha Belilovskiy, Autodesk (hosted on Between The Lines AutoCAD Weblog), April 11, 2004
Designing in Plastic, Part 1 of 2 - Solid Edge tutorial helps you create stylized surfaces in plastic part designs, Adrian Scholes, Cadalyst, April 1, 2004
Pioneering Hybrid Approach for 2D to Solid Model Conversions, Saves Automotive Supplier Time and Money - CADCAM-E helped an automotive supplier convert 2D CATIA drawings to Unigraphics solid models using data translation methods that combine automated and manual techniques, Jerry Fireman, CATIA Community, April 13, 2004 (may require free registration)
Solid Engineering & Design - a small mechanical engineering consulting firm in North Carolina invested in 3D technology and watched its business bloom, Andrea Dace, Progressive Engineer, April 2004
Build Your Dream House On a Couple of Hours - home design software allows you to dream up your own floor plan and also to better communicate your ideas to an architect or interior designer, Monique Beele, Argus Online, April 10, 2004
FEA Provides Winning Track Record - the Robert Yates Racing NASCAR team turned to COSMOSWorks to help eliminate engine parts failure, Michelle M. Lang, Design News, April 13, 2004
ALIAS v1.0 - free AutoLISP program and tutorial to help you assign a letter or combination of letters to a command on the fly, Jeffery Sanders, JefferyPSanders.com, April 9, 2004
XL - Excel to AutoCAD v1.0 - free AutoLISP program and tutorial to allow you to send the information you have saved in Excel to an AutoCAD drawing, have the program draw a chart, replace text values or replace attribute values, April 8, 2004
Picture This - AutoCAD tutorial on inserting and manipulating raster image files, Bill Fane, Cadalyst, April 1, 2004
Checking Part Files In and Out in Inventor R8 - Inventor tutorial to help you control which versions are in use during multi-user projects, Elise Moss, mossdesigns.com, April 12, 2004 (pdf)
User Interface Tips - SolidWorks tips to help save time and boost productivity, Greg Jankowski, Cadalyst, April 9, 2004
Changing Workspaces in INTRALINK - Pro/ENGINEER tips on changing workspaces in INTRALINK without shutting down and restarting a linked session of Wildfire, Glenn Reid, Pro/E Community, April 6, 2004 (may require free registration)
Collaboration Made Simple - MicroStation tutorial explains how adding models and references to projects instantly improves collaboration and information exchange, James Dyer, Cadalyst, April 9, 2004
Various Dimension Updates - MicroStation V8 tips on dimensioning, Shawn Foster, Sextant Consulting, April 12, 2004
Multi-Snaps - MicroStation V8 tips on using the AccuSnap and Mutli-Snap commands, Shawn Foster, Sextant Consulting, April 12, 2004
IBM to Help SMIs with PLM Solutions - IBM Malaysia’s PLM tools are being offered to help small- and medium-sized industries (SMIs) turn innovative and creative ideas into business successes, Yvonne Chong, The Star Online, April 12, 2004
AutoCAD 2005: Viewport Background - tutorial illustrates how to add a background image to shaded viewports, Alireza Parsai, CADdigest.com, April 8, 2004
Bug Watch April 2004 - AutoCAD bugs and workarounds deal with problems involving the Mtext editor, Qleader command and menus macros, Steve Johnson, Cadalyst, April 1, 2004
Getting to the Good Parts - Autodesk Inventor tips on using the Assembly Find and Component Select tools to help search for and locate parts, Kevin Schneider, Cadalyst, April 1, 2004
Escape the Documentation Treadmill - ArchiCAD tips on organizing and publishing design iterations, Akos Pfemeter, Cadalyst, April 1, 2004
Mac CAD: COFES Is Over, What Next? Tidbits and Hearsay - the announcement by UGS PLM Solutions that they are porting Parasolid to the Mac OS X platform is welcome news to Mac CAD users and shouldn't be a great surprise considering Apple's Unix-based OS and 64-bit hardware, Anthony Frausto-Robledo, Architosh, April 7, 2004
Readers Weigh In on BIM, PEN, and Other Acronyms - presents selected reader responses to the recent PEN suggestion as an alternative to the BIM acronym. as well as other acronym suggestions, Lachmi Khemlani, AECbytes, April 8, 2004
Multi/Sub-Object Materials in VizRender - Architectural Desktop tips for rendering MvBlocks, ARCHIdigm, April 8, 2004
Orient on Curve - Rhino tutorial covers a bonus tool command, McNeel, April 2004
Software Makes for Better Biking - using SURFCAM to sketch out the geometry for bicycle frames, Maine's Aegis Bicycles develops some of the most advanced bicycles available, SURFCAM, April 8, 2004
AutoCAD Grab Bag - tips on Viewport Alignment, Attribute Quick Edit, Text Style Property Hook and Variable Width Polylines, Michael Beall, CADTutor, April 2004
Hidden HIDE Options in AutoCAD and ADT 2004 - tutorial explores a little known dialog with options that help produce hidden line results with 3D Objects, ARCHIdigm, April 7, 2004
They Love Me, They Love Me Not? - thoughts on the changes in the CAD dealer/developer relationship in a time of decreasing margins and dealers going out of business, Martyn Day, CADserver, April 7, 2004
Purging in ADT - Architectural Desktop tutorial illustrates how to reduce file size by removing MvBlocks in one step, ARCHIdigm, April 7, 2004
Model Display of Objects in ADT, Part 2 - Architectural Desktop tutorial explains how to create a Model Display Configuration for Plan View, ARCHIdigm, April 7, 2004 (part 2 of 2)
Layer Manager - Rhino tutorial covers a bonus tool command, McNeel, April 2004
Spotlight to View - Rhino tutorial covers a bonus tool command, McNeel, April 2004
View to Spotlight - Rhino tutorial covers a bonus tool command, McNeel, April 2004
COFES 2004 Report - an account (with photos) of the recent COFES (Congress on the Future of Engineering Software), where more than 200 CAD users, vendors, journalist, and analysts debated the past, present and future of CAD, Ralph Grabowski, upFront.eZine, April 6, 2004
Summary of COFES 2004 - a participant offers his thoughts on some of the discussions that took place at COFES on the state of the CAD industry, Sean Dotson, sDotson.com, April 5, 2004 2004 (pdf)
The Increasing Cost of Ownership - a look at the latest trends in the buying and selling of CAD software, Martyn Day, CADserver, April 6, 2004
Racing Start for SEAT - ICEM Surf surface modeling, analysis and visualization software enabled Spanish automotive manufacturer SEAT to move from sketch to full-scale prototype in just two months, CADserver, April 6, 2004
Background Gradient 1 - Rhino tutorial covers a bonus tool command, McNeel, April 2004
Background Gradient 2 - Rhino tutorial covers a bonus tool command, McNeel, April 2004
Align - Rhino tutorial covers a bonus tool command, McNeel, April 2004
The Telecoms Challenge 2003 - a group of UK teens given a real-world design brief and a day’s training on SolidWorks discover a heightened enthusiasm for product design and development, Al Dean, CADserver, April 6, 2004
At Square One with FEA, Part 2 - implementing a new FEA program requires training users and establishing a process that lets designers get maximum benefit from the software, Machine Design, April 1, 2004
Getting More Out of Simulation - advice on how to establish guidelines for an analysis department to make it more useful to the design department, Thomas Curry, Machine Design, April 1, 2004
Inverse Kinematics - explores some fundamentals of using several tools in Autodesk VIZ and 3ds max that allow you to set up relationships between objects in the scene that can make animations and the movement of objects easier, Ted Boardman, CGarchitect, April 2004
Variable OffSet - Rhino tutorial covers a bonus tool command, McNeel, April 2004
Extrude Normal - Rhino tutorial covers a bonus tool command, McNeel, April 2004
Adjustable Curve Blend - Rhino tutorial covers a bonus tool command, McNeel, April 2004
Implementing Change With Turn-key AutoCAD Management - advice on establishing AutoCAD standards for your operation, Barrie Mathews, CADdigest.com, April 2, 2004
Computer-Aided Packaging - modern computer-based design and manufacturing techniques are revolutionizing food packaging, says UK-based firm Delcam, Foodproductiondaily.com, April 2, 2004
Pro/Engineer Tip-of-the-Month: Dimensioning Schemes for Saved Sketcher Sections - Synthesis Engineering Systems, April 2004
Power Dimensioning - AutoCAD Mechanical tutorial explores one of the Power commands, Envision Solutions, April 1, 2004
Laser System is a Bright Idea for Faster Product Development - by using a laser scanning system mounted on the arm of a portable CMM, vehicle manufacturers can speed time-to-market by having faster turns from CAD to prototypes to production, Gary S. Vasilash, Automotive Design & Production, April 2004
The Future Is Now - two Utah dentists are using special CAD/CAM tools to create partial and full crowns, veneers and other tooth restorations with great precision in less than an hour, Diana Mills, New Utah, April 1, 2004
Match Analysis With Materials - designers and engineers looking for tools to model parts before they’re produced should consider tools that are specific to the requirements, whether it's for plastics and injection molding, metal and metal stamping or general purpose analysis, Larry Gould, Automotive Design & Production, April 2004
Boat Parts Production Is More Precise With Five-Axis Machining Software - Mastercam and Vericut CNC simulation software help produce the tightest of tolerances for boat parts, MMS Online, April 1, 2004
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