Presented by We’re enchanted with the idea of working from home. We imagine ease, flexibility, and access to a completely stocked pantry, fewer meetings, higher efficiency, and more getting things done. While we’re at the office, the idea seems simple. Then we get home, happy to leave work behind. And then a virus spreads around…
Digital food storage is the name of the game in this tutorial. In a recent assignment, I sought to coach my CAD students at Virginia Tech through an Onshape modeling exercise in the kitchenware category. Our aim was to build a parametric model that was robust and could be morphed into different configurations by changing…
In this post, I’m celebrating another Onshape CAD mystery solved! You see, time and again I was left scratching my head as to the mystery of why my nicely and precisely placed dimensions kept disappearing when building up my 2D sketch sections in Onshape! Before me was the case of the “Disappearing Sketcher Dimensions” (DSD).…
The season of festive celebration is upon us! With the semester of teaching ID at Virginia Tech behind me, I’m thoroughly enjoying my extended moments of family, fellowship, and food! So when my daughter Phoebe got inspired to make a batch of cookies the other day, I was all in! Being the creative type that…
Well, the end of the year is rapidly approaching! And if you are an aspiring Onshape CAD user I’ve got an early Christmas present for you! I’ve compiled my SkillCoach Onshape CAD Improvements Mega Resource Pack! Yep, I scoured the Onshape website for every CAD improvement they posted pertaining to modeling tools and techniques that…
It’s been long suspected that Onshape would eventually land in the hands of a larger enterprise product development (or non-product development) company — that day is here. PTC has just announced the acquisition of Onshape, web-based 3D product design platform, “for approximately $470 million, net of cash acquired.” The deal is moving fast, expecting to…
As anyone who has used a AR/VR headset for gaming purposes would know, it’s always more fun to play with friends. Well, the same concept applies to AR/VR on an industrial working scale, which is why Onshape has paired up with VR virtuoso Magic Leap to create a 3D design app for the headset. Temporarily…
Sponsored by Let’s say you sit down in your office chair, it absorbs you back to 1992 where a mustached salesman in a mauve shirt smiles and starts pelting you with hard drives. What a nightmare… And exactly how I feel about the process of evaluating 3D CAD software. I’ve been through it multiple times,…
Fasten your eye-buckles kiddos. Now, you know Onshape kicked off the year announcing Parametric Modeling 2.0. They got a two-for-one deal on 2.0 names apparently, announcing today Data Management 2.0. They also got a two-for-one on kickin’ design problems IN THE ASS since, like configurations, multi-part and in-context design in their Parametric Modeling methodology, the features…
Last week Onshape released possibly the most major update since launching out of beta. This week they introduce “Parametric Modeling 2.0” on the 30 year anniversary when parametric modeling software came screaming onto our screens. I think it’s important to point out up front that, though I like the idea around Parametric Modeling 2.0, this is more…
2017 was a good year for Advanced Modeling Tools enhancements inside of Onshape. In particular, I’m talking curve and surface creation tools. These are the kind of features that have got this ole ID guy chomping at the bit to model something curvy and sweet in form! My aim in this post is to highlight…
Ya know, while there are various ways to collaborate online around a 3D CAD project with other like-minded designers and engineers, you don’t hear about it too often. We’ve yet to get to the real-time, live-edit environment, à la Google Docs, but we’re close. You may have built a few 3D models in Onshape but,…
Forehead slap. This Onshape update has so many great additions. Really, it’s impossible to pick a top 3 – All 10 could be in the Top 3. But that’s also impossible, so I squeezed my eyes as tight as they could go, until tears popped out onto three new features – those are the top…
Sponsored by Your days are spent looking into each other’s eyes, sometimes you even meet up over lunch, and if you push the right buttons, mmm-hmmm — hot, steamy 3D geometry, baby. You hear that? It’s the sound of love, CAD LOVE… or the sound of your software crashing for the fifth time today. Toss…
Are you an aspiring CAD Designer or maybe a seasoned professional seeking new digs? Perhaps you are hesitant to start your search, not quite knowing which geographic locale will offer the best ratio of income to living-expense. Well, here’s a little tip “Go Midwest young man!” (and ladies too). I’m talking Michigan, Illinois, Indiana and…
Wel, well, well. Onshape features this year to date? A buck 0′ two. That’s right, Onshape has passed the 100 mark with a small nod and rumors of cookie dough ice cream for all Onshape employees over the next month on everyday that ends in ‘Y’. It’s a modest update, a modest update of MASSIVE…
Chitty, chitty, chat. Chitty chitty chat chat. You want to get chatty in Onshape? Well, the update they rolled out this week makes 92.8% of 3D CAD software chat dreams come true. Maybe you’re are not so chatty, but I guarantee you’ll want to use that chat to tell your co-workers about the new sheet metal angle flange reference. Yeah,…
Look at all these drawing updates! …well, five updates at least. Which is A LOT if you’re using another 3D CAD software that didn’t have ANY drawing updates this week *ahem* These updates take a knife to the neck of complexity. “You are morbid.” No, no complexity is morbid and has no place in the workplace.…
This month, Onshape has a few more features to whet your appetite than last month. And, it looks like were back to seeing incremental additions to create favorable conditions for surfacing. It was hard to pick the top three this time with surface updates, hole feature updates, section and drawing improvements, and a new FeatureScript addition that’s…
It’s a little update this time around with a mere five new features but, oh boy, are they important ones. If you hadn’t asked for these features yet, you may even wonder how they were not in there before. In other words, they are very much needed. You can see the past update history and…
You remember rolling out of bed extra early for a week long CAD training session? The coffee and breaks couldn’t come fast enough. Outside of online courses here and there, onsite, expensive training is the norm. Onshape isn’t the norm. And they’ve headbutted standard practice again with the launch of their own Learning Center. Onshape…
Onshape snuck one in on us last Friday. By which I mean, we totally missed the 11 new updates/improvements released that make the previous curve-rich update even more convincing that surfacing is maybe, could be, definitely on it’s way to Onshape. Oh, glorious day that will be! You can see the past update history and…
Presented by Anyone involved in product development knows there’s constant pressure to get to market faster. However, success often comes to, not necessarily those who get to market faster but, those who are able to iterate and innovate faster. For that to happen, companies across every industry need tools that promote rapid discovery, decisions and…
Late last week Onshape rolled out another major release. If I was to read into this at all, I would say preparations are being made for surfacing. Reason, to work with surfaces efficiently, you need to be able to work with curves and existing surfaces efficiently – this update adds a bit for all of…
It’s been but a few weeks since the last Onshape update, but once again the Onshape team has locked arms, jumped into the air with a collective shout of “FORM ONSHAPE!” and transformed into a giant robot that opens it chests and delivers another round of new features and updates. You can see the history and…
We’ve taken a broader look at Onshape and even talked about some lesser known Onshape features. The company is pouring out an update every few weeks – some big, some little – that, combined together, speak to the agile nature of the company and how they develop solutions around someone’s ability to install and understand their software, but also…
Use Onshape? Well, there’s a reason why, today, your coffee is tasting especially good, why your underwear seems to fit a little better, and why you don’t have to pretend Onshape has sheet metal tools anymore… because now THEY DO. Onshape just announced sheet metal. They’re out at the Pacific Design and Manufacturing Show where they’re previewing…
Presented by Throughout all the years (decades? yeow!) I’ve use 3D modeling software, I can’t think of a time where I didn’t use some type of in-context assembly design. Not building out a design like that gives me the shakes – I honestly can’t grasp how to get accurate fit and function without it. “That…
Not sure if you realize this, but Onshape broke out of beta exactly one year ago. They celebrated their first birthday this week with a tiny chocolate cake I’m sure was fought over after this photo was taken. Not sure why Kevin Bacon photo-bombed that lovely picture. Rude. It honestly feels longer, doesn’t it? Especially…
Well, well, well. Just as you were getting comfy with the limited private storage of Onshape’s free plan and dumping your Documents occasionally to clear room for others, they’ve gone and switched things up on you. As of this week, Onshape is offering a new 21-day Pro plan trial with no storage limits, unlimited private…
The one instrument I would have my bodyguards play as we sauntered down the street is a violin. They’re sound is just wonderfully ominous and mysterious, while equally enchanting and… mysterious. After building a traditional wooden Guarneri-style violin, Brian Chan, an Engineer at Formlabs, took it upon himself to design a functional (and quite good…
In this video, we’ll build on last week’s hex nut code to add a drop-down list of standard metric nut sizes. We’ll begin with a simple example using simple reusable code snippets, and then use that knowledge in our live code. Don’t know what FeatureScript is? Look here. Onshape FeatureScript: Pump Up the Presets This…
Create your first useful Onshape feature: a hex nut. I walk you step-by-step through building 58 lines of simple, human-readable code, explaining helpful tips and tricks along the way. Onshape FeatureScript: Hex Nut This will be the first in a series of videos using a simple hex nut as the foundation. Through these, we’ll cover…
FeatureScript is easy. Even if you’ve never coded before, Adam gets you up and running with 15 mins of free video goodness.
Adam shows you how to use FeatureScript for Onshape, and possibly also how to be Mr. Handy Pants around the house. But mostly FeatureScript.
Presented by When Onshape added linked documents a few weeks back, I don’t think I even looked out from my box of Cheetos. On second look, it might just be the most important feature of the year thus far.
The Onshape guys think Part Studios set them apart from other multibody CAD systems. I’ve been skeptical. After a few weeks of testing, I have some thoughts.
Presented by Once upon a time we shoved pounds of paper into binders and carted them off to the conference rooms for design reviews, sifting through them under bad lighting and a hazy caffeine buzz from coffee that was clearly past the expiration date.
You’ve heard the joke. An engineer walks into a bar, unboxes a Chromebook and says, “I bet you, I can load Onshape on this here Chromebook in 10 seconds flat.” The bartender say, “No flippin’ way! You’re high on the crack cocaine! You can have the finest whiskey in this fine establishment if you can.”…
Presented by We’ve given you a quick overview of Onshape, but wow, there is so much more. More than I thought actually. It’s hard to keep up when they’re releasing new features every three weeks. But that right there, that is just one thing that makes Onshape such a powerful 3D modeling platform.
Presented by “No way” you say. “Cloud services aren’t ready for prime time. They’re not secure/fast/reliable/full-featured enough for my business.” Let me tell you why you’re wrong.
Presented by Collaborating with CAD data sucks. In fact, you told us it’s the third most annoying thing in CAD back in late 2014. Onshape wants you to think they’ve solved it. Have they, really? Let’s think this through.
Onshape has had a bang-up year. After launching in March, upending CAD pricing, and locking down additional $80M funding (for a total of $144M), there were only two things left to do in the year: break out of beta and launch a freakin’ app store.
When Onshape came out swinging earlier this year, it was speculated that whether users chose to use the new full browser CAD program or not, it would change the greater landscape of MCAD pricing and licensing structures forever. Needless to say, Onshape sent a ripple through the industry that acted as a wake-up call for…
Just six months after they announced $30M in Series C funding, Onshape has announced $80M in new funding, led by Silicon Valley firm Andreessen Horowitz, known for their investment in Airbnb, Box, Facebook, Github, Twitter, Skype and others. This brings Onshape’s funding efforts to a grand, grin-inducing total of $144M.
It’s ok, you can uncover your child’s eyes. That’s only a 2D drawing they’re seeing on the computer screen. I know, it looks all sultry with its sassy projected views and consistent dimensioning, but it’s really quite innocent. Finally, Onshape has introduced drawings to their browser-based 3D CAD platform.
There’s a shift going on in the 3D CAD industry. The shift from perpetual license pricing to monthly subscription pricing. Some will bring up those who have tried it before, the benefits and why it needs to happen faster. Suddenly however, it’s nearly 2016, and pay-as-you-go pricing models have been around a few years. We’ve…
If Zoolander was an actual person and came across Lance Abernethy’s miniature tool collection, there’s a good chance that he would ask “what are these? tools for ants?” – and for good reason. Abernethy, who resides in New Zealand, has been actively building miniature ‘micro-machine’ replicas of his power tools for the past year that…
Since they started coming up in CAD in the Cloud discussions earlier this year, Frame (fra.me) has shown no signs of slowing down their pursuit of allowing users to put any Windows application in their own personal Cloud. Among other reasons why the platform has been of interest is because it will allow users of…
The last time we checked in with Frame – the cloud platform that lets users run any software from within their browser – we had the chance to chat with the young startup’s CEO and founder Nikola Bozinovic about the near-future of CAD in the Cloud and how his platform could revolutionize the workflows of…
