SolidWorks 2012: Command Search
This new feature could POSSIBLY be the best new enhancement that comes packaged in SolidWorks 2012. Have you ever had that moment when you were designing the next best thing since sliced bread and knew that command that you needed but couldn’t find it? I have, well everything except for the next best thing since sliced bread.
Starting with SolidWorks 2012, the nightmares about this situation should cease because of the new Command Search tool. So where the heck is it and how does it work? Unfortunately, there is no search tool to find the Command Search tool but it is actually quite easy to get to.
Where – In the upper right hand corner of your SolidWorks window is the search bar that previously housed the SolidWorks Help, Knowledge Base, Community Forum, and Files and Models search options. Now there is also a Commands search option that you can select (see image below).
How – Simply select the Commands search option and then start typing the name of the command you are looking for.
One of the really cool features of this I think is that no matter what the search bar has selected, as soon as you launch your Shortcut Bar, the search bar will automatically switch to the Commands option.
Also, what about when you want to customize a toolbar and you can’t seem to find the tool you need? The Command search still is functional even when you have the Customize window active. As you can see in the image below, all of the commands will be grayed out BUT you can still drag and drop them onto a toolbar as you normally would from the Customize window.
This is an AWESOME new tool. The one future enhancement I would really like to see however is a way to get this option closer to the Shortcut Bar when you activate it. This would require a lot let mouse movement in order to use it. But, baby steps for now and these are great steps.
Awesome job SolidWorks development team!
SolidWorks 2012: Unit Switcher
This enhancement was previewed last January at SolidWorks World 2011 and I remember sitting there thinking, yes, finally!
As a user that deals a lot with customer data or creating models using our customers 2D drawing, units are always something that I seem to switch back and forth between a lot. In SolidWorks 2012, this will be a lot easier. In the bottom ride hand corner of the Status Bar, you will see a button (located next to the Help button) that shows what your current units are set to. Now, with a simple click in the Status Bar, you will be able to quickly change your units and/or have access to the status units screen in Tools > Options.
If the new Recent Documents enhancement was a homerun by the SolidWorks developers, this would be a 3 run homerun. The 1 thing that would make this a grand slam would be to add units as an option to be added to a keyboard shortcut (without a macro). Either way, this is a great enhancement that will be very,very useful!
SolidWorks 2012: Cap Colors in Sections
Not only is SolidWorks 2012 packed with eye popping changes, it also includes some more subtle additions that will be very helpful in your daily design work.
This is the category that todays enhancement falls into. In previous releases, SolidWorks has offered a nice visual style when creating section views that allows you to color code or cap your sections. The image below shows this workflow however, you will notice 1 additional KEY option in the Property Manager.
In SolidWorks 2012, you will notice a checkbox that allows you to keep your cap color. What does this mean, well now when you hit the Accept check mark, your cap colors will stay on your model as shown in the image below.
Like I said at the beginning, this is not one of those WHOA enhancements, but it is a very functional enhancement that I think all users will come to love.
SolidWorks 2012: Multi Screen Support
Yesterday I posted about the Recent Documents enhancement that has been incorporated into SolidWorks 2012.
Today’s enhancement might even be a little bit better. SolidWorks 2012 now comes with multi screen support. This is an enhancement that users have been clamoring for since the introduction of multiple screens. As you can see in the image below, there are now 2 additional buttons that are located next to the window minimize, maximize, and close buttons. These 2 buttons serve primarily 2 functions.
The first function is if you are running multi screens, by clicking 1 of the buttons it will move that window whichever direction you tell it too. This is hard to show in an image, but trust me, it works.
The other function is if you are only running 1 screen, those 2 additional buttons allow you to easily tile 2 windows to your screen similar to the Windows 7 functionality when you tile windows to the left side and/or right side or your screen. This is what the image below shows.
This enhancement is only capable of handling 2 screens currently. I would say that this enhancement proves that SolidWorks is listening to its users. Again, nice job SolidWorks developers!
SolidWorks 2012: Recent Documents
One of the most interesting things to me when beta arrives for each major release of SolidWorks is what enhancement have been made to the User Interface. SolidWorks 2012 does not offer a lot of enhancements to the UI but the ones that they do are awesome in my eyes.
The Recent Documents command has been around for a while now but the enhancements made in 2012 are game changers in my eyes. One of the features in Microsoft Office 2010 that I like the most is the ability to pin Recent Documents that you use a lot so that you have quick access to them without crowding your desktop with shortcuts.
SolidWorks 2012 also now allows you to pin Recent Documents which will be extremely nice when it comes to commonly used files. The Recent Documents window can be launched by using the “R” keyboard shortcut (default). As you can see in the image below this window now allows you to not only pin Recent Documents but it also allow you to quickly open the folder that the file resides in. Quick and easy access to a project.
But it doesn’t end there. Your Recent Document can also be accessed using the File dropdown menu as shown in the image below. You will notice that your pinned documents are carried over there as well with the option to show the file in its folder here as well.
I think that this enhancement is a homerun and will increase the usage of the Recent Documents tool by many users. Nice job SolidWorks developers!
SolidWorks 2012: Quick Overview
Design That Drives Your Business!
This seems to be the rallying cry behind SolidWorks 2012. The embargo has been lifted so we are officially allowed to talk, write, tweet, etc. about the 20th, yes 20th, release of SolidWorks.
This year SolidWorks is again loaded with over 200 enhancements. The focus of these enhancements can be broken down into 4 main themes.
This year the themes are:
- Automates Design Functions That Drive Your Business
- Improved Performance and Quality for a More Continuous Workflow
- Enables Fundamental Changes to Your Product Development Process
- Extensive Support for Project Collaboration and Team Connectivity
As in years past, there was again a focus on performance and quality (#2) but it doesn’t seem to have been as big of a focus as the last few years. SolidWorks 2011 I felt was and is a tremendous release in regards to performance and I see SolidWorks now getting back to launching software with more visible enhancements as opposed to behind the scenes enhancements.
Over the next few weeks I will be covering some of the BIGGER enhancements (in my eyes) right here. But to get your mouth watering for these juicy posts, here is the OFFICIAL press release from Dassault Systemes SolidWorks Corporation that mentions some of the enhancement highlights from this release.
SolidWorks 2012 Delivers Design Solutions to Drive Business
20th Release of Leading CAD Software Provides More than 200 New Functions to Community
CONCORD, Mass., USA, Sept. 7, 2010 – Dassault Systèmes SolidWorks Corp. (DS SolidWorks) today unveiled SolidWorks® 2012, a comprehensive 3D design solution that enables users to work more efficiently and have the data they need to make better design decisions throughout the product development process. Benefits take shape throughout SolidWorks 2012 through a variety of improvements in areas such as assembly and drawing capabilities, built-in simulation, design costing, routing, image and animation creation and product data management that will positively impact design teams each and every day.
Empowering innovation and design team productivity are at the center of over 200 enhancements in SolidWorks 2012, most of which will help designers:
- Automate the design functions they use most often;
- Improve performance and quality for a more streamlined workflow;
- Fundamentally change product development processes for faster designs;
- Extend support for collaboration and team connectivity for creativity and efficiency.
“SolidWorks 2012 focuses on the areas that will help our customers drive their businesses to higher productivity and profitability,” said Austin O’Malley, executive vice president, R&D, DS SolidWorks. “It also marks the 20th release of our CAD software, remaining true to the mission of helping users transform innovation into business success. We are excited to see the passion and enthusiasm from our customers, and rewarded when that passion is channeled into great designs.”
“SolidWorks continues to listen to the people within its user community,” said Scott Maro, Maro & Associates. “What I appreciate about this is that the executives and product development teams are more in touch with what is happening in the community than I see with any other organization. Research and Development teams are always listening, asking us great questions and providing alpha testing not only internally but also at the user conference, which is a fantastic forum. The result is more than 90 percent of the features were prioritized by users as ‘SolidWorks continues to listen.’”
Automated Design Functions for Productivity
SolidWorks software helps engineering and design teams streamline their design processes simply by removing one or two steps, profoundly impacting usability and productivity. SolidWorks 2012 offers improvements in the areas of:
· Drawings – New tools help create better-looking and more-accurate drawings in order to cut down on the revision process and help users detail designs faster. For example, changed dimensions are automatically highlighted and show previous values to help with revisions. Sequential balloon ordering and magnetic lines automatically help order and position balloons, allowing users to spend less time detailing and aligning drawings.
· Sustainability – SolidWorks Sustainability’s new, advanced user interface means users can more accurately model products with “what if” scenarios and better support unique and custom materials. Users can also closely model processes with parameters such as recycled content and duration of use. Also, access to the latest SolidWorks Sustainability supplemental materials will be instant and continuous as they become available.
Continuous Workflow Through Improved Performance and QualitySolidWorks 2012 makes the design experience flow more naturally, and without disruptions — meaning faster designs with fewer errors based on features such as:
· Large design review – Allows instant opening and review of massive assemblies or any individual component with walkthroughs, sectioning and measuring without the need for a high-powered computer or any special file preparation.
· Feature freeze – Eliminates unwanted feature rebuilds by locking all features above the “freeze” bar, speeding up the design of complex models where rebuilding of specific features isn’t needed. Features can also be unfrozen at any point.
· Equation editor – New equation capabilities allow users to create equations faster and understand order more easily, providing new levels of flexibility and productivity.
Significant Improvements to Overall Product Development ProcessesSolidWorks 2012 increases productivity and streamlines the overall customer product development processes with:
· Design costing – A flexible tool that automates manufacturing cost calculations for sheet metal and machined parts. Designers can make more informed decisions based on cost throughout the design process and continually model new scenarios for instant up-to-the-minute manufacturing estimates.
- Sheet metal – Design from scratch or convert customer 3D parts to sheet metal with new tools that provide control over the unique challenges of working with sheet metal — such as precise control of edge flanges, including up-to-vertex end conditions. Designs can be automatically flattened and documented for manufacturing, with export to CNC and manufacturing equipment.
· Simulation – SolidWorks Simulation includes enhanced motion optimization that automatically uses motion study results to create sensors and refine complex and time-intensive machine aspects such as motor size, bearing loads and range of travel. Users can optimize designs in a fraction of the time as they refine inputs and immediately see changes to restraints or goals.
Extends Support for Collaboration and Team Connectivity
As manufacturing becomes more global, design collaboration between disparate teams is now more important than ever. SolidWorks 2012 brings teams of all sizes together through:
· Integrated search, customization, and wider support with SolidWorks Enterprise PDM – Now integrated into the Windows® Explorer, designers have easy access to favorite searches and a full search tool. Users can also customize the Windows Explorer UI to get faster access to the information they need. In addition, SolidWorks Enterprise PDM has new support for Office 2010 and an x64 web client.
· Life-like experience with 3DVIA ComposerTM – Designers can take more control over their renderings for a more realistic appearance. Enhancements include the easy addition of part-to-part shadows, ambient occlusion and shadows to 2D panels with precise control. A glow effect can also be added to highlight specific areas of interest.
For more information about SolidWorks 2012, including video demonstrations, visit: http://www.solidworks.com/Launch2012_PR
Availability and Pricing
SolidWorks 2012 is available worldwide through SolidWorks authorized resellers. Contact a SolidWorks authorized reseller for pricing. To locate one in your region, visit: http://www.solidworks.com/locateVAR/
Share with a Friend
Do you have colleagues that would benefit from SolidWorks 2012? Encourage them to attend one of our live seminars: (include link to VAR seminars).
Or feel free to share via twitter with these suggested Tweets:
· @Solidworks 2012 is now available! Check out a local reseller event to learn more: www.solidworkslaunch.com
· Interested in moving to 3D CAD? Check out @SolidWorks 2012! www.solidworkslaunch.com
· Want to see your ideas go quickly from design to development? Check out @SolidWorks 2012! www.solidworkslaunch.com
About Dassault Systèmes SolidWorks Corp.
Dassault Systèmes SolidWorks Corp., a Dassault Systèmes S.A. subsidiary, is a world leader in 3D solutions that help millions of engineers and designers succeed through innovation. Our products deliver an intuitive experience in product design, simulation, publishing, data management, and environmental impact assessment. For the latest news, information, or an online demonstration, visit our Web site (www.solidworks.com) or call 1-800-693-9000 (outside of North America, call +1-978-371-5000).
About Dassault Systèmes
As a world leader in 3D and Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) solutions, Dassault Systèmes brings value to more than 100,000 customers in 80 countries. A pioneer in the 3D software market since 1981, Dassault Systèmes develops and markets PLM application software and services that support industrial processes and provide a 3D vision of the entire lifecycle of products from conception to maintenance to recycling. The Dassault Systèmes portfolio consists of CATIA for designing the virtual product – SolidWorks for 3D mechanical design – DELMIA for virtual production – SIMULIA for virtual testing – ENOVIA for global collaborative lifecycle management, and 3DVIA for online 3D lifelike experiences. Dassault Systèmes’ shares are listed on Euronext Paris (#13065, DSY.PA). For more information, visit http://www.3ds.com/.
SolidWorks is a registered trademark of Dassault Systèmes SolidWorks Corporation and 3DVIA Composer is a trademark of Dassault Systèmes in the US and other countries. Other brand and product names are trademarks of their respective owners. © 2011 Dassault Systèmes SolidWorks Corp.
RockSolid Tips & Tricks: Macro Shortcuts
Note: A special thanks to Deepak Gupta, Filipe Venceslau, & Wayne Matus for answering my question on the SolidWorks Forums and for providing me the content for this blog post.
Did you just write that SolidWorks Macro that will solve ALL of the world’s problems? I recently wrote one (with help) that will not solve ALL of the world’s problems but at least it will solve 1 of mine.
However, if you are at all like me, I am a keyboard shortcut kind of guy so that I can keep my UI as clean as possible. So there in lies the problem. I wrote this super awesome macro but I didn’t really want to have a button on a toolbar that was only there so that I could assign a keyboard shortcut to it (see the normal macro button dialog box below).
So I asked the question on my original SolidWorks Forums Discussion if it was possible to assign a keyboard shortcut WITHOUT having to add a button and I was really happy to see that I could so here is how to do it (thanks to Wayne Matus).
So how would you go about doing this? Well, here you go and it is ACTUALLY extremely simple.
1. Create a folder called “Macros” in your SolidWorks install directory which is by default C:\Program Files\SolidWorks Corp\SolidWorks. You will notice that the address in the picture below is set to C:\Program Files\SolidWorks 2011\SolidWorks which I like to do in the case that I have multiple versions of SolidWorks installed on my computer (which I normally do).
2. Copy all of your macros (or only the ones that you will want to assign keyboard shortcuts too) into your new folder
3. Now if you go to add a keyboard shortcut (Tools > Customize > Keyboard tab) you will be able to select “Macros” from the Category dropdown. From there you will be able to assign a shortcut as you would with any other command.
I hope you find that as useful as I did. Enjoy!
RockSolid Tips & Tricks: Mid Surface
This post was driven by a request that I had on one of the presentations I did earlier this year at a user group meeting. I first saw this “trick” performed while watching the infamous Tips & Tricks Presentation that Phil Sluder does every year at SolidWorks World.
The SolidWorks Mid Surface tool is a tool that probably does not get used very often or probably more accurately has its really “specific” uses that are determined by each user. However, I believe the example below would have a more wide spread use by more users.
Below you will notice and extruded rod that will built off of the origin. The original sketch was created on the Front Plane but by not being on the origin it makes the other Planes unusable. Now, you could create new reference geometry to use but for what we are trying to accomplish, I think the Mid Surface tool might be a better fit.
1. Begin by going to Insert > Surface > Mid Surface
2. Select both end faces. Notice that when you select the 2nd face (as long as it is a valid selection), SolidWorks will automatically create a new Face Pair.
3. Now you will want to hide the original Solid Body that you had so that only the Surface Body is showing.
4. Now go to Insert > Surface > Extend
5. Select your newly created surface and type in what kind of end condition you would like to have. In the case of this, I am going to offset the surface by a Distance of .750in. This will insure that no matter what size my initial rod is changed to, my surface will ALWAYS be .750in bigger.
6. Now go to Insert > Boss / Base > Thicken
7. Again, select your surface, and thicken your surface by your desired amount.
In the picture below, I have highlighted the original dimensions from our model. The length was originally drawn at 10.000in and the diameter was originally drawn at 2.000in.
Now, if you would happen to change the length of your rod, you will notice that everything maintains its relationships and stays perfectly centered.
Or if you change the diameter, you will notice that the offsets maintain their relationships.
BUT, probably my favorite reason for using this tool is that you can even change the original sketch shape (in the case below, to a square) and it maintains ALL of your relationships and spacing.
Hopefully this post will trigger some ideas for you on how you can use this in a production environment. Feel free to share how you currently use the Mid Surface tool or how you might use it in the future. Also, feel free to drop a comment if you have any other questions about this tip.
New Page: SolidWorks Presentations
Because of some recent requests and inquiries, I have decided to add a new page to the RockSolid Perspective site. The new page, which is titled “SolidWorks Presentations” will host a Microsoft PowerPoint Show of every (I think) presentation I have ever done along with when and where the presentation was 1st given. To access the new page click on the “SolidWorks Presentations” tab on the top of this page (see picture above).
All of the presentations are currently hosted on my Box.net site so when you click on any of the links it will take you to the Box.net download page. From there you will have the option to view or save the PowerPoint show.
If you have a question about any of my presentations please feel free to send me an email and I would be more than happy to help you out.
Enjoy!
This Blog IS NOT DEAD!
Over the course of the last week there has been some blogs that have been stating that SolidWorks has lost its mojo because the blogs have quieted down over the last year. While this is true, the blog posts have been few and far in between for most of the SolidWorks blogs, I do not feel it is a result of SolidWorks losing any sort of mojo.
I personally want to speak to this, not for all of the other bloggers, but for myself personally and the future of THIS blog. The reason for the decrease in the number of posts here at RockSolid Perspective is because my personal and professional life has changed dramatically since I started this blog.
In my personal life since 2007 my wife and I have welcomed our 1st child and will soon be welcoming another. What this means is that the times I usually spent on my computer at night writing blog posts have now been replaced with dolls, Little People, coloring books, and spending quality family time with my daughter because I will never get these days / times back.
In my professional life since 2007 I have changed job roles, increased my hours, and have added responsibility in my every day job which is what pays our bills. I have recently moved into a Sales Engineer role which has allowed me to continue to use SolidWorks but in a sales environment as opposed to a design environment. This has also required me to spend some more time on the road which has limited my desk time and also points back to the reason why I make sure to spend time with my family when I am home. On top of my Sales Engineer role, I am also hold the Project Manager, CAD Administrator, and IT roles at work. So as you can see, my time is precious when I am at work. I have been extremely blessed in my professional life with a bunch of work, a good job, great owners, and a fast growing business.
In regards to this blog, I have a LARGE list of blog posts in the queue that I need to write when I have time. Starting this week you will see the beginning of a series of posts that cover some of my main points in a presentation I have given titled “Utilizing SolidWorks for Sales & Marketing”.
So in response to the question whether SolidWorks has lost their “mojo” or not, I am going to say NO! I feel that the reason for the decrease in activity is directly related to workload and other commitments as opposed to not having anything exciting to write about. So stay tuned because this blog IS NOT DEAD!
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