SolidWorks:HEARD!

2011 What's New - UI, Fundamentals, 3DCC & Administration:

This podcast is an audio version of the What's New PDF included with every major release of SolidWorks. Topics covered:

User Interface:

- SolidWorks Search

- PropertyManager Icons

- Error Reporting

SolidWorks Fundamentals:

- API

- Pack and Go

- Documentation

3D ContentCentral:

- Defeature Tool

- Configuration Publisher

- 3D ContentCentral for Suppliers

Administration:

- Converting Files to SolidWorks 2011

- Installation Improvements

- SolidWorks Rx

This covers the first 4 chapters of the What's New PDF which outlines changes/enhancements to the SolidWorks product line since the previous release.  If you have not done so, please download this PDF and walk through the areas that are most important to you.

The goal of this series is to provide a portable, audio version of the 2011 What's New so users can have a quick way to evaluate the features that have been changed/added/removed in SolidWorks' product line.  We all fall victim to the "ruts" of using SolidWorks and knowing what's to come brings awareness early.

I will be releasing an additional show a week as well as the usual monthly Tech News shows (up to 3 a week) in order to cover the entire What's New PDF in September before FCS (First Customer Ship). Between the podcast, blog and other posts around the web, there will be no shortage of SolidWorks 2011 content to come! ~Lou

Remember to check out the SolidWorks: Heard! Blog and to follow me on Twitter, Facebook and THE HEaRD!

SWH Episode 291

SolidWorks 2011 First Impressions: This podcast is a discussion between Josh Mings of SolidSmack and myself discussing the overall first impressions of SolidWorks 2011 publicly since SolidWorks lifted the beta NDA. Topics covered:

- General overview on the type of release 2011 seems to be

- Defeature tool and common uses

- Assembly features and weld prep

- Global variables in a text file

- Performance and display enhancements

- System requirement changes and XP's soon to be exit

- Installation improvements and background downloading

The buzz around a new SolidWorks release has changed so much from 10 years ago now that the Internet is in play. The VAR rollout events used to be the place people went to see what was being launched but now you can go to http://solidworkslaunch.com and get the rundown, not to mention the 50 or so blogs that will also post updates and screenshots.

Now that DS SolidWorks has lifted the embargo on SolidWorks 2011 Beta, the flurry of posts and reviews has begun. Josh and I talk mainly on how SolidWorks 2011 seems to be staying the course of performance and tuning existing features. SolidWorks 2011's What's New PDF seems to be about 40 pages shy of last year's so it appears to be scaled back. I think as long as bugs get fixed and performance increases, adoption will be high.

Personally, I have a list of files and features that I try to perform that have had issues in previous betas from year's past and 2011 was the first in a long time that some basic functions didn't give me issue at first glance. I have also, unofficially, noticed that a list of long lasting bugs that I have reported were closed so maybe this is an indication that 2011 is digging into the SPR list and addressing as many as it can. ~Lou

Remember to check out the SolidWorks: Heard! Blog and to follow me on Twitter, Facebook and THE HEaRD!

SWH Episode 290

SolidWorks Enterprise PDM Landscape:

This podcast covers the general landscape of how SolidWorks Enterprise PDM addresses problems within the engineering process.  I am joined by Jeff Sweeney, Data Specialist at 3D Vision Technologies and we discuss the common problems we see while performing Enterprise PDM implementations.  Topics covered:

- Common reasons for EPDM

- How PDM is typically viewed by new users

- How to use PDM as an "in-process" tool

- Integration in SolidWorks

- Workflow and common automation actions

- Common integration with other enterprise systems (ERP/PLM/MRP, etc..)

- How replication works and is used

- Other EPDM ramblings from both of us! ;-)

Jeff and I have been talking about doing this roundtable for quite some time now and we finally got time where we were both available and not on-site doing installs.  Jeff is a Data Specialist and is a wizard in implementations and API so I thought there was no better person to "talk shop" about EPDM and the process of solving issues that are common in the change process around engineering.

This show outlines the landscape of what Enterprise PDM offers and how companies are using this tool to solve real problems and automating processes that govern their departments.  I wanted to avoid doing a feature/function focused show since that is not important to the overall product.  Jeff and I share scenarios that we come across while talking to customers and performing these installs.

I hope to have a followup show gettting into the best practices of setup so those of you out there either considering a PDM solution or have EPDM installed have an idea of what pitfalls Jeff and I have witnessed.  Let's face it, no company has perfect processes and there is no one product that will solve all problems (well within normal budgets!).  I look forward to the next time Jeff comes on the show.  You rock man, thanks! ~Lou

Remember to check out the SolidWorks: Heard! Blog and to follow me on Twitter, Facebook and THE HEaRD!

SWH Episode 289

SolidWorks PDM Integrations:

This podcast covers the "out of the box" integration with some of the core features and gold partner add-ins with both SolidWorks Workgroup and Enterprise PDM. Topics covered:

- Compare Utilities (Drawings, Documents, Geometry, Features, BOM)

- Workgroup PDM issues with Compare tools in Windows 7 and Vista. (SPR 419281 & 335748)

- SolidWorks Revision Tables

- SolidWorks Toolbox

- SolidWorks Design Library

- CircuitWorks Libraries

- DriveWorks Pro 6 & 7

Over the years I have talked about PDM and the various tools in SolidWorks that can talk to PDM but I wanted to highlight some of the tight integration attributes for the SolidWorks user.  Many of the compare tools have been able to take advantage of the version/revisions within the PDM environment.  Workgroup PDM has always been the highly integrated option for SolidWorks users but Enterprise has really taken the lead in the past couple of releases.

Despite the advances, Enterprise PDM still lacks some of the tool-specific integaration like Workgroup into the compare tools, revision tables and the design library.  With the adoption of Windows 7 (starting with Vista), almost all the compare tools are no longer available to Workgroup PDM due to the lack of the vault browser (located on the left side of Windows Explorer in the File Open dialog).  This has been missing now since SolidWorks 2007 Pre release, when Vista was in testing, and officially was supported with SolidWorks 2008.  I am surprised this has not been remedied to date since the only workaround is to check out one version, save a copy, and repeat for another version to compare.  This approach side steps PDM and adds a substantial amount of work and manual file management to the user.  

To many users' surprise, both CircuitWorks and DriveWorks Pro have integrations into both PDM products from SolidWorks.  Out-of-the-box integration to PDM helps the adoption of add-in products like CW and DW! As PDM becomes more mainstream with the SolidWorks user, tight integration will become an important evaluation criteria! ~Lou

Remember to check out the SolidWorks: Heard! Blog and to follow me on Twitter, Facebook and THE HEaRD!

SWH Episode 288

August Tech News:

This podcast covers the SolidWorks tech news that broke since the middle of last month.  August tends to be a slow tech news month but with beta releases coming out and SolidWorks World registration open, the selection of topics grew.  Topics covered:

SolidWorks Blog:

- SolidWorks World 2011 Registration now open

- SolidWorks World 2011 Hotel Deals

- CRN names Sabine Gossart, VP Worldwide Channel Marketing & Sue Evans, CEO of SW reseller MCAD in "Most Powerful Women of the Channel"

- SolidWorks World 2011 Call for Presentations (Selection gets you in free!)

- SolidWorks, Boy Scouts of America, and the Inventing Merit Badge

- 5 Questions Friday with Robbie Liotta of SolidWorks 

- Submit your design of the 2012 Summer Olympic torch!

- 6 More Excel tips from Darren Henry

Tech Alerts:

- SolidWorks 2011 Beta 2 available for download

- SolidWorks EPDM 2011 Beta 2 available for download

- 5 iPads added to Beta 2011 Prize pool

- Nearly 19,000 views on SolidWorks 2010 SNL and VPN issues

Other News and CAD Blogs:

- 3D graphics performance rundown (Deelip.com)

- Design Intent definition (Dezignstuff.com/blog)

- SolidWorks World 2011 Online? (Dezignstuff.com/blog)

- Dassault's focus on CAD or Gaming? (Dezignstuff.com/blog)

- DraftSight shows up under "Free 2D tools" on SolidWorks website

- Updates and clients for THE HEaRD

- Details about Microsoft's record "Patch Tuesday" (Don't forget to patch!!)

We are right in the middle of beta testing the next release of SolidWorks and Beta 2 just went live, leaving us all digging for bugs.  August is usually a bit slow for tech news but with details now out about SolidWorks World 2011 in San Antonio, Texas and lots of stories among the blogs, we had quite a bit to cover.

Good topics out there this month at both Deelip and Dezignstuff blogs, especially around the comments.  Deelip, a developer of 3rd party plugins to many CAD applications in the market and took his unique access to all these platforms to do a comprehensive comparison of graphics performance.  A ton of videos and great detail of what the various platforms offer.  

Matt over at DezignStuff also had some posts that sparked great banter in the comments around design intent, an online version of SolidWorks World and where Dassault's focus lies.  Dassault's interactive division, 3dvia, has a number of tools for social interaction, gaming, and other artistic tools that was questioned by Matt and some readers of where their focus is and should be.

Beta is still under NDA but that will probably open up in the next month or so and we will begin the flood of coverage, outlining all that is coming in SolidWorks 2011.  We will be doing the famous "What's New Series", brining an audio version of what is to come once that NDA is lifted. ~Lou

Remember to check out the SolidWorks: Heard! Blog and to follow me on Twitter, Facebook and THE HEaRD!

SWH Episode 287