Jeff's Tool Shed

I’m a few days behind on this, but 3DConnexion has improved the driver for their 3D mice (mouses?) by automatically determining the optical center of rotation. I was part of the beta testing of this driver and I really like what they’ve done. Rather than defaulting to the origin, or having to select a particular point manually, this new driver figures out what the “new” center of rotation is. Personally, I think it’s pretty damn sweet. While I’d figured out how to rotate a model around the origin while zoomed in, it was still a pain in the you-know-what. This new driver takes care of that annoyance. Color me happy!

For your enjoyment, I’ve ctrl+c, ctrl+v’d the press release:

3Dconnexion Announces the Next Step in Intelligent 3D Navigation for SolidWorks Users
Newest Update Allows 3D Mice to Automatically Follow Point of Interest for Smarter Model Design Work
ANAHEIM, Calif. (SolidWorks World, Booth 201) – Feb. 1, 2010 – 3Dconnexion today announced new 3D mouse capabilities for SolidWorks, bringing increased navigation intelligence to the design process. With this new feature, 3Dconnexion 3D mice can now automatically follow a designer’s point of interest and continuously determine the optimal center of rotation, enabling an easier and more intuitive exploration of the largest models and the smallest details. In addition, the center of rotation can now be seen at all times via an icon, further enhancing the navigation experience.
3Dconnexion will be demonstrating the new intelligent navigation feature in Booth 201 at SolidWorks World in Anaheim, Calif., Jan. 31 – Feb. 3, 2010.
“Previously, SolidWorks users had to zoom in fairly close and manually select a new center of rotation. We have listened to the feedback of our customers to provide designers with total control over the point of interest,” said Dieter Neujahr, president of 3Dconnexion. “By automatically establishing and displaying the optimal center of rotation, designers are now free to focus on design creativity and flexibility when using 3D mice in SolidWorks.”
When using the new update, two modes of setting the center of rotation are available. The new Auto Rotation Center sets the center of rotation to a point on the model that is nearest to the display screen center, particularly useful for use at higher zoom levels. For additional control, users can easily pick a new center of rotation point on the 3D model to suit the design task.
Availability
The new feature will be available in late February via a free 3DxWare software update, and will support SolidWorks 2005 – 2010 on Windows® XP, Windows Vista®, and Windows 7 across the entire product line. The 3Dconnexion product line includes the Professional Series with the new SpacePilot PRO (MSRP $399), SpacePilot™ (MSRP $299 with promotion) and SpaceExplorer™ (MSRP $299), and the Standard Series with the SpaceNavigator (MSRP $99) and SpaceNavigator for Notebooks (MSRP $129). For additional information, visit www.3Dconnexion.com.
About 3D Mice 3Dconnexion 3D mice deliver a level of comfort and control that is not possible with a traditional mouse and keyboard. Users engage both hands in a balanced and cooperative work style with one hand using the 3D mouse to position the model, while the other hand simultaneously uses the traditional mouse to select, create or edit. By spreading the workload across both hands, users experience productivity increases of more than 20
percent as well as a more comfortable working experience by reducing traditional mouse clicks by up to 50 percent.
About 3Dconnexion, a Logitech Company 3Dconnexion, a wholly owned subsidiary of Logitech (SIX: LOGN) (Nasdaq: LOGI), is the leading provider of 3D mice for 3D design and visualization. 3Dconnexion devices support today’s most popular and powerful 3D applications by offering users a more intuitive and natural way to interact with computer-generated 3D content. 3Dconnexion’s award-winning 3D mice serve a wide variety of industries and are used by 3D designers, animators and artists worldwide. 3Dconnexion is headquartered in Fremont, Calif. with European headquarters in Seefeld, Germany and offices worldwide. For more information, visit www.3Dconnexion.com.
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© 2010 3Dconnexion. All rights reserved. 3Dconnexion, the 3Dconnexion logo, and other 3Dconnexion marks are owned by 3Dconnexion and may be registered. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

It’s like it’s the day after Christmas; all the toys have been played with, food and drink consumed and the relatives have left. Now, I just have this weird empty feeling. Not as bad as losing your best friend, though. Close, but…

As I’ve come to expect, SolidWorks put on a great show. I really liked the layout of the Anaheim Convention Center. I didn’t feel like I had to walk miles to get to wherever my destination was. Which isn’t to say I didn’t do a lot of walking, ‘cause I did. I’m quite confident that I lost a couple of pounds. Well, extremely hopeful anyway. As has become the norm these past few years, I spent more time observing than attending with most of my observing taking place in the Vendor Fair. It’s here that I thank those companies that have given me the opportunity to try out their products, while meeting with new companies. The amount of partner products out there is pretty impressive. There are times when I want to say “there’s an app for that”, then look over my shoulder to be sure the Apple police aren’t coming after me for copyright infringement. This year’s Vendor Fair was well attended by vendors from all segments of the industry: rapid prototyping, CMM, CAM, PLM, PDM, etc. Need a model of a human body for your Weird Science experiment? Zygote has your back (and front…left foot). Design automation? DriveWorks or TactonWorks will duke it out for your business. How about a new computer? Boxx, HP and Dell will regale you with stories of why there PC kicks the other guys’ butt! What about a cool 3D model of your completed Weird Science experiment? Zcorp, Objet or Solido would be more than happy to impart their wondrous knowledge of all that is 3D printing upon you.

One of the greatest things about SolidWorks 2010 was the arena where the general assemblies were held. Rather than a large conference room where the people in back had to stand to see, the Anaheim convention center had an arena with 2^nd and 3^rd level seating. I think this helped to get everyone “close” to the stage. It also seemed to lessen the running of people to get to the front of the venue. A lot of people seemed quite happy to sit in one of the upper levels. James Cameron was a great choice as the keynote, too. Much better than Wozniak a few years ago.

I’d say my biggest complaint was the Tuesday night event, a complaint that is being voiced by many. It was held in the same huge room that we ate breakfast and lunch in and was really a step down from previous years. An Aerosmith cover band was the entertainment and BBQ was the food. For a 3D software conference event, it was rather one dimensional. Too loud, too dark, too few seats, too few food choices. I’m trying to find out why there was such a deviation from years past. If I get anything, I’ll let you know.

Would any of the above stop me from going to San Antonio next year? Hell no! I think the plusses way outweigh the negatives and wouldn’t miss it for anything. I hope to see you there.

Wow, what a day it’s been; not that it’s actually over yet. I just returned to my room to relax a little bit before heading over to Jon Hirschtick’s room. He was kind enough to invite the Twitterverse over and I’m not one to turn down such an invitation.

Right now, this is turning out to be the best SolidWorks World I’ve been to yet. Why? Honestly I can’t put my finger on why. Maybe it’s the venue. Maybe it’s the people. Maybe it’s James Cameron. Maybe…
All I know is that I’ve woken up each day raring to go. Looking forward to seeing what the day has in store. Part of it could be the fact that I’ve remained sober every night, but I think that’s a small part of it. I’ve just felt really comfortable this year, almost like I’m at home. Whatever it is, I’m lovin’ it!

Let’s get into the nitty-gritty, shall we? Today was the day for James Cameron. Much like Sir Richard Branson last year, Jim was interviewed instead of just speaking to us. Jon Hirschtick had the honor and did a damn fine job. I was simply amazed at Cameron’s grasp of engineering, among other things. The guy is brilliant. We got to see an 8-minute behind-the-scenes video of the making of Avatar. I was really impressed with the technology they used. Each actor had a small camera, attached to a small boom, recording their every facial move. I remember talking about how realistic the facial expressions where after seeing the movie, now I know why. The innovations that were created before, and during, the making of Avatar will probably change movie-making, as well as TV. I think it will be a good thing. Imagine being able to feel immersed in every show like you did when you saw Avatar. If you haven’t seen it, what the hell are you waiting for?

I spent more time in the vendor pavilion, lining up more products to review for all of you. Coming in the not-too-distant future will be DriveWorks Solo and ElecWorks. I’ll be meeting up with SolidNEST tomorrow to, hopefully, line something up with them as well. I’ve had conversations with the guys from igetit.com and will be loading up their software soon as well. I’m also keeping my fingers crossed that Dell might be sending toys my way, too. All-in-all, the review cycle looks to be heating up.

My very first solo presentation went well, I believe. I’m optimistic that SolidWorks Crashes & Slowdowns was well received. I was damn nervous at the beginning, and admitted as much to the audience which, by the way, was much larger than I’d thought it would be. The session was also on a live feed, so there were people watching me that I couldn’t see. (Hmmm, that’s actually kind of creepy when you think about it.)The bonus to it being broadcast is that I’ll get a recording of my session. I’m sure my boys will love watching it with me once I get it. It’ll provide plenty of material for a “pick-on-dad” session.

Next came Stump the Chumps II. So far, we’ve been hearing nothing but good things so far. However, I’m waiting for Mr. Doyle to weigh in. We’re also thinking of a format change for STC III. It’ll involve coolers of beer and the movie Animal House. I don’t want to give up all the details though. Just keep an eye out when they release next year’s agenda.

Every year there’s plenty of shwag to bring home to the kids. I have to say, though, that this year’s haul is the best yet. First, I’ll never be short handed again thanks to Solido:

Next, from Julie at Z Corp,  is my new friend, Jane:

Today is the last day of SolidWorks World 2010. Bummer.

Ok, first and foremost, contrary to what Josh may have said via Twitter, I was not taking shots every time ‘Cloud’ was mentioned. I just want to get that out of the way.

Now for the good stuff…
5000+ attendees at SolidWorks world this year. That is an awesome number! A surprising one, too. Given the economy, one wouldn’t have thought that SWW attendance would exceed last year’s. Very impressive.

Jeff Ray started things off, as usual. He then introduced Bernard Charlès, Dassault Systemes’ CEO, who talked about Dassault, how the acquired SolidWorks and where the company is going. If his vision comes true, life for designers will be very different come 2021.

Jeff then brought up Jeremy Luchini  and the guy from Prototype this (my note taking abilities suck). They built an electric 1933 roadster! It is, in a word, awesome! I’m going to try to lay out some bribes to take it for a spin around the convention center. How many electric cars do you know of that can bust out tire burning donuts? Awesome!

It was time for a sneak peek into the future and what did we see? Well, what I saw was my presentation being obsoleted right before my eyes. Here I am, nervous as hell to do this presentation on how to maintain your hardware and drivers, and SolidWorks is looking at moving to the cloud. That’s right, the cloud. That means any computer, any OS. It’s years away, but it’ll be interesting to see how it plays out. Right now, I see bandwidth being a huge issue.

The session ended with James McLurkin, roboticist extraordinaire. This guy, like me, makes being a geek cool. He’s one of the top robot guys in the world and is doing some amazing stuff with them. He did allay the fears of robots ever taking over the world. Not sure if that’s good or bad.

It’s actually Tuesday right now. I had nothing but problems getting this post done yesterday. Today I have two presentations. Frankly, I’m nervous as hell. Depending on how they go, I may be quite hungover tomorrow.

After an uneventful flight on my current favorite airline, Virgin America, I arrived in Anaheim to the welcoming committee that was Alex Ruiz. He’d run into Mr. Christy Jordan (nee Ricky Jordan) and Rich Hall, so the twosome became a foursome and off we went to the hotel.  (Tangent here – more swag just came my way courtesy of Al Dean and Develop3D. I love swag) After a quick shower, it was time for an informal tweet-up in the lobby of the Hilton. After a bit of discussion, a group of us were off to Chubby’s for dinner. You can see said group over at Deelip’s blog.

As seems to be the norm, a large contingent of SolidWorks World attendees, employees, bloggers, VARs were congregated around the bar. With this being my fifth SWW, it was a time to reacquaint myself with friends from years past. One of my favorite parts of the evening was when I was approached by three gentlemen. They wanted to know if I was Jeff Mirisola. Though the temptation to say ‘no’ was there, I admitted that I was. Turns out, they were from AMV and wanted to thank me for my review of SteelWorks. Phew! You’re welcome, guys, it’s a great product!

The night ended quietly, unlike last year. I’m quite happy that I don’t feel compelled to apologize to anyone I may have spoken to. Today is a mellow day. Tonight, well, that may be a different story.

In just over 24 hours I’ll be boarding a Virgin American plane (my current favorite airline) for Anaheim, and I can’t wait. Ever since my first SolidWorks World, way back in 2005, I’ve been hooked. Each and every one I’ve been to has been remarkable in one way or another. Aside from the fact that I’ll be presenting for the first time, this year won’t be any different I’m sure.

While I’m planning on going to some sessions while there, inevitably I’ll end up altering my schedule. There’s always something, or someone, to see. It truly is one of the most hectic weeks during the year, but worth every single energy sucking moment. The rush of seeing thousands of users pouring into the general assembly, the wide-eyed stares of first timers, the camaraderie of friends who see each other only at SolidWorks World. I don’t think I can do it justice with my feeble writing.

There is going to be a ton of info coming out of SolidWorks World next week. Blog posts, tweets, Facebook posts…it’s going to be insane. I wonder who will put out the most info? Personally, my money is on Mr. Mings. If you go to the SolidWorks Blog, there’s a list of places for you to be able to keep up with all the goings on. If you are going, and you see me, please introduce yourself. It’s always nice to meet the people who take the time to read my drivel.

Every so often the “is getting my CSWP worth it?” question crops up in one forum or another. Granted, should a potential employer gloss over the fact that a candidate has earned their CSWP, or not understand what the CSWP certification means, the whole question becomes moot, but let’s make a couple of assumptions so that I can continue with this post, ok? Good. The assumptions are that the employer knows, or finds out, what the CSWP is and the employer puts some stock into the CSWP. Yes, I realize that my conclusions will end up being lopsided, but if a potential employer doesn’t know anything about the certification or, worse yet, doesn’t put any stock in it, then there’s no point in going any further with this post. Right? (Then again, the CSWP only costs you time for the most part. At least that’s the case now. Back when I took it, it cost somewhere in the neighborhood of $500 and 8 hours of your time. That’s when the whole “is it worth it” question really had merit. At the most, you may end up having to pay $99 if you flunk it the first time around. Chump change, but I digress. )

The more I think about it, the more I question whether there’s actually an answer. I know that for me, having the CSWP has opened doors, especially where I don’t have a degree. I realize that all it says is “this guy is a CAD jockey”, but when it’s coupled with my other experience it helps me to rise up.

Rodney Hall, the celeb du jour of last year’s SolidWorks World, had this to say about the CSWP:

“I now work for a very large company as their CAD Administrator and manage over 100 seats of SolidWorks and would almost certainly not have been offered the position without CSWP Certification. My management now only prefers to consider CSWP as first choice when booking interviews with job candidates. I also teach SolidWorks at a local community college and being a CSWP again iced the cake when they considered me for the position.

I would recommend certification to anyone who is serious about keeping or advancing any career that involves using SolidWorks to bring home the groceries.”

Ok, so Rodney is only one person. Add me to the mix, and you get two people who wouldn’t be doing what they’re doing without the certification. I’m willing to bet that there’s more of us, too.

That all being said, I don’t think it’s possible to make a definitive statement one way or the other. It’s strictly related to people’s perception of it. Nothing more, nothing less. If you ask me or Rodney, we’d say it’s very worth it.

What say you?

That’s right, SolidWorks World 2010 is right around the corner. Like so many other SolidWorks addicts, I can’t wait! Thousands of SolidWorks users from around the world all converging upon hapless Anaheim for an orgy of learning, networking and, yes, partying.

This year marks a milestone for me, too. It will be my first time presenting at SolidWorks World outside of Stump the Chumps I 2 years ago. I was nervous enough about it, then I was informed that my session, SolidWorks Crashes & Slowdowns: It’s not always the software’s fault (read: it’s your fault), was going to be streaming L-I-V-E live! Great, now not only can I make a fool of myself in front of a room 1/4 full of people, but potentially hundreds of people online. Great. Just great. I wonder if it’s frowned upon to have a cooler under the podium. You can find out more about all four available webcasts on the SolidWorks World website. I’m willing to bet that the other three are completely worth it.

Thankfully, after that stress inducing session I get a bit of a break before getting together with the rest of the chumps for Stump the Chumps II. (We really should have come up with some sort of cool sequel title. Well, maybe next year.) This years panel may be a bit more subdued than its predecessor, though Mr. Mings is a bit of a wild card. If that doesn’t help to relax me, there’s the big bash that night.

It’s going to be an incredible week. I just wish you could all be there with me.

I feel a rant coming on, but I’m going to try to control it as best I can…

I read a forum post earlier where a person was upset that their hardware wasn’t supported by the newest version of SolidWorks. Said hardware is about 10 years old and no longer made. They felt that SolidWorks had kicked “a whole bunch of users and their computers to the curb”. First, I’m compelled to question the validity of that statement. A whole bunch of users? Really? It was my understanding that the average engineering computer was upgraded about every 3 years (+/- 1 year).  Is this wrong? Even if I’m off by two years, doesn’t it stand to reason that the vast majority of engineering computers have hardware that is less than 8 years old?

None of that is the point I was trying to make, though. My point is this, does it not seem asinine to expected software to not progress at a rate that almost equals that of hardware? Why would any software manufacturer decide it’s better to hinder their software’s potential performance so they can continue to support out-of-date hardware? This makes absolutely no sense to me whatsoever. I can’t think of a single software company that doesn’t want to be cutting edge. To do this, they need to take advantage of all that a computer’s hardware offers, old hardware be damned.

How about we go a little further? If your company is still using 10 year old systems for their engineering needs, what does that say about the company, and their want to stay current and competitive? Prior to coming back to work here, I had a couple of interviews. At both of them, one of the questions I asked was about their PCs. My mentality was that if their systems were up to snuff, then they, the company, wanted to be competitive and were willing to make the necessary investments to do so. If I’d have been told that they were PIII with 1Gb RAM, I’d have just said thanks but no thanks.

Outside of easy file sharing, no one forces you to move up to the newest version of SolidWorks, it’s your choice. In making that choice, it’s your responsibility to make sure that your system is still within spec. Don’t go blaming SolidWorks, or any other software manufacturer, if you’re behind the times. That, too, was your choice.

</rant>

My buddy Josh, he of Solidsmack fame (infamy?), has lost it. He managed to put vomit, 3D CAD, Windows7 and a SpacePilot Pro all into the same post and make it work, mostly. The best part of the whole thing is if you can convince the contest fairies your response is the best, you can win the aforementioned SpacePilot Pro. Go check out Josh’s latest (scariest?) post, just be sure to not have eaten recently. Actually, I’m not sure why I’m posting this. I’d be willing to bet that anyone reading this blog reads Josh’s…well, there goes 10 minutes I’ll never see again. Thanks, Josh.