Those of you using Fusion 360 more that likely know all the changes coming October 1st. If not....
https://www.autodesk.com/products/fu...8yF3JgU_e76YnU
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Those of you using Fusion 360 more that likely know all the changes coming October 1st. If not....
https://www.autodesk.com/products/fu...8yF3JgU_e76YnU
I was always leary of Fusion 360's coke dealer marketing plan, but I never saw the "cut the product" down even more coming. For sure this reinforces my decision to avoid the product
I agree Gary and I have another program I use, in fact paid for two of them. The cry baby whine from AutoDesk makes me sick. They routinely buy start up CAD design companies and put them out of business. They have one of the most lucrative companies going.
Autodesk has done this over, and over, and over, and over, again. Its their core business model which dovetails into my recent post/rant on the cutlist post in the General forum and response to Jim's seemingly constant devils advocate position to subscription based software (no offense Jim, if you have the cash to pay, by all means pay).
The Fusion360 drones and those like NYC CNC pounding the daylights out of it plays right into their hand (which Im sure was very well orchestrated).
Ive warned people for years that this "free for startups" shenanigans was a falsely baited hook that so many out there took far deeper than the lip. Its been a shell game from the start and again, their business model has always been to pay a flawed/bugged release out for "free" for a while, use the user base to debug and refine the offering, then simply cut the line once their users have wrapped their production around the software, and make them swim back with dollars in hand.
Autodesk got me on that with a few 3D options very early on in my CNC jump and I vowed to never let them in my house ever again. Caveat emptor.
I used F360 as free software until a year ago when they told me they were changing their business model, which I expected. And they made me a sweetheart deal to do the annual subscription. Since I use F360 for about 95% of my CNC work it was an easy decision. And I have it in writing that the price will never change regardless of how much they are charging years from now. Basically I make enough to cover the annual fee with just a handful of Longworth chuck orders, so while I prefer 'free' I'm ok with this pricing structure.
David
Right, and this option will degrade, and degrade, and degrade, as time goes on for others. Im not in anyway saying you shouldnt have taken the deal you were offered. Very smart. But its simply a very small cog in the wheel of the masses accepting a small crumb to keep their mouths shut, while the profits roll. All legal, all fine, all allowed... is it "good"... who knows. The term "sweethart deal" speaks volumes to their intentions. What you will likely see is they will morph "Fusion 360" into "Fusion 361" and your contract with them will be null and void. Theyve done the exact thing over, and over, and over.. oh... and over.Quote:
Originally Posted by David Falkner
Canned response is "well at least I got what I got for as long as I got it".. again.. reprogrammed.
Here is what I use and I am now just a hobby user but if you have a need for F360 by all means pay and use.
https://www.punchcad.com/ The price starts at maybe $200 and goes to $2000 or so. The ViaCAD 12 is what I use. For the CAM part I Import into VCP Version 9.5 right now and let it do the tool paths.
They have a "Free" to use Trial download.
They seem to be very clear about what's going to be available going forward in the free version and what isn't. It makes sense to me in the context of the hobby user that the free version is intended to serve. It's honestly very nice of them to even provide a free version for hobbyists. For folks who have been using it to make money...even if it's pocket change...if you need the more advanced features it's a cost of doing business. Perhaps qualifying for the StartUp licensing is a better choice there. To be clear, I don't use Fusion360 and have no skin in the game, however.
I agree with Jim. I use Fusion 360 (free version) and the changes coming in October really will not affect me at all. I also use SolidWorks for 3D modeling, but Fusion 360 is nice because of the CAM portion. If you are a business making money using Fusion 360, then it makes sense to pay for it. For hobby and educational use, it makes perfect sense (for obvious reasons) to offer the free version.
David