This is just something I threw together,
on the state of some of the free CAD systems,
that I thought you
might find useful. Comments?
(probably should be split up between "information about designing a CAD"
and "information about companies that sell CAD systems")
appears to be available
for $500 in a "full service distribution"
and for free via FTP with "no support".
FreeDesigner project
http://www.fpa-engineers.com/FD/
"FreeDesigner is intended to be a fully extendable
Computer Aided Design and Drafting (CAD) application for
Linux and other Unix type operating systems.
FreeDesigner is open and Free software under the GNU Public License (GPL)."
http://dragon.acadiau.ca/~025668b/develop/homepage.html
OpenGL and DirectX info for GNU/Win32
MindsEye
http://mindseye.luna.net/
"GPL
...
a complete modeling/animation package
for the LINUX operating system.
...
Object oriented modeling
...
you can inherit from a sphere"
[FIXME: tell FreeCAD]
sci.electronics.cad
Mentor Graphics Corporation
http://www.mentorg.com/
Wilsonville, OR.
HDL;
PCB/MCM layout tools.
From: Jerry Isdale/Sysop, 72662,410
To: Fred Hebbel, 72120,1342
Topic: OO VR
Msg #18347, reply to #18338
Section: VR Code Workgroup [4]
Forum: Cyber
Date: Wed, 1994 Feb 16, 08:08:07
Fred,
I've been using OO type stuff for years, but rarely in a full OO language. I learned smalltalk back in 83 on a Xerox box, then xfered some of the concepts into design of C libraries. It wasnt the same, but it sure made for better C libraries!
The class-instance form of OO design is pretty good for designing the code objects, but it forces a lot of oddities on the world designer when you start creating virtual objects. for instance A car has wheels, but the wheels shouldnt inherit most of the functions of a Class:Car (Class:Vehicle). Mostly they are interested in the geometric arrangement with the car and its physical properties (speed, moment, etc). Basically, there are two different OO structures - one defining the objects and functions in the program, another for the objects in the world. It is a semantic problem that the term 'object' gets heavily overloaded here with very different meanings. Both are highly applicable to graphic programming but in different ways. It is hard to keep them seperate and dangerous to confuse them. Sometimes I like to call the virtual world inhabitants 'entities' instead of objects. That also implies they have more complex responsive behaviors, perhaps using a production system (rules).
I think it is important for OO people to be exposed to other methods of OO than the class-instance stuff. There are a number of variations, many of which are much more applicable to certain problems. Sorta like knowing a couple different languages, so you know if you have a big string processing program to write, you dont use FORTRAN <g>.
I'll have to go dig out the Brown articles in Siggraph (91 An Object Orriented Framework for Integration of Interactive Animation Techniques). They had a good description and reasoning behind why Delegation was used for the virtual entities. Also ref'd some papers in the OOPSLA conference proceedings from a few years earlier. Hmm, its several paragraphs long. too much to type in this AM. Can you locate it?
Jerry
Sender: cliff@ix.netcom.com
Date: Tue, 21 Apr 1998 00:53:08 +0000
From: C R Johnson <iamcliff@ix.netcom.com>
MIME-Version: 1.0
To: Open Designer mailing list <opendesigner-list@jimpick.com>
Subject: ANNOUNCE: FREEdraft v0.3 released
Resent-From: opendesigner-list@jimpick.com
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Resent-Date: Mon, 20 Apr 1998 17:54:07 -0700
Status: U
Just a note you let you'all know that today - 4/20 :} - I
have
upped the version of my drafting program to 0.3
The major new features include:
- Save and recall of models
- Color and linestyle editing
- Trimming, cutting, and extrapolation of segments and arcs
- New construction function
- Geomlib2d builds as a shared library
Check out the URL in my sig for more info.
have a great day.
cliff
--
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Parametric Technology Corporation
http://www.ptc.com/
http://www.thinkthree.com/
commercial parametric 3D modeling tool.
Claims to be "fun".
``"The Monkeywrench Conspiracy"
is a 3D video game that makes it easy and entertaining
to get familiar with using thinkdesign.''
I hear that Zyvex
http://www.zyvex.com/
uses the commercial CAD product
SolidWorks 98
http://www.solidworks.com/
.
Date: Thu, 1 Jul 1999 10:20:45 +0900 (JST)
From:
Subject: Re: Future of list
To: opendesigner-list@jimpick.com
MIME-Version: 1.0
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Resent-Date: Wed, 30 Jun 1999 18:20:51 -0700
Status: U
Hello,
Brian wrote,
> Well, I kept hoping that the opendesigner project would turn out some
> software, but all the good ideas seem to have faded into silence, and
> there's no code to be found. =( I can't remember when the last message
> passed through the list -- perhaps the project coordinators could speak
> up?
I did some modification for GCAD3D.
The code can be found at <http://www.hi-ho.ne.jp/linux/gcad3d/glarea_jun09.tgz>
There are lots of things to do. But you can use it as a start point.
GCAD3D needs Mesa, GTK and gtkglarea. My version can be compiled by C++,
while original version can be compiled by C.
Cheers,
Masa Uc^ida Masatomo,Hidaka,Saitama,Japanio
<http://www1.nisiq.net/~masatomo>
<http://www.hi-ho.ne.jp/linux>
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(unsorted)
-
Heather Stern rants about the unusability of CAD software:
http://www.tldp.org/LDP/LG/issue72/lg_answer72.html
Unfortunately for me, CAD tools for Linux come in four
categories:
- Circuitboard design. Must be everybody's first project in the second
year of college. There are lots of these.
- Poor excuses for MSwin paintbrush. Obviously started in a jolt cola
moment but not finished in a weekend and therefore never finished.
- Think I'm already a masters degree in drafting, so I understand all their
widgets and dots without docs.
- support tools for 3d modelers, mostly experienced ones.
...
If you're working on a CAD project out there, I have a hint for you: if it
remains easier to do all this on ten-to-the-inch grid paper, I'm not going
to be using your stuff.
...
I recommend making the quickstart guides available
for taste testing.
...
For you
free-world coders, get some first year drafting students to try and make
sense of that gibberish;
anytime they say "huh?" treat it as a bug just as serious as broken menu
items.
Started: 1997 Dec 15.
Original Author: David Cary.
Current maintainer: David Cary.
Return to index
Send comments, suggestions, bug reports to
David Cary
d.cary@ieee.org.
end
http://rdrop.com/~cary/html/free_d.html
