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Thread: Sketch up vs autocad

  1. #31
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    Quote Originally Posted by Rick Alexander View Post
    I need to look him up as well. I'd love to see what the differences are and also love a competitor since Sketch Up is starting to get more aware of its profit possibilities. I don't mine paying for the software (I do have the paid version) but always helps keep costs down to have a good competitor.
    Lars has some good tutorials though most of them are not focused on woodworking. Definitely applicable though. He also responds to emails pretty quickly. Jay Bates has an hour long walkthrough of a table he modeled in Fusion 360 that is pretty good. The Wood Knight has done some videos on Fusion as well.

  2. #32
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    I use Delta CAD for 2D and I use Sketchup for 3D work. Love them both.
    Thanks & Happy Wood Chips,
    Dennis -
    Get the Benefits of Being an SMC Contributor..!
    ....DEBT is nothing more than yesterday's spending taken from tomorrow's income.

  3. #33
    I am just a step ahead of you, although I have a long background with CAD. I just stated with Fusion a couple of months ago. Takes a while to get the hang of it. The AutoDesk tutorials will get you started for sure. The 2D drawings that it spits out for you are very nice. I am using it for 3D printing and such. I have not tried using the CAM part yet. I still use VCarve for that. Fusion is really an amazing piece of software. As a long time CAD user, I fins myself trying to figure out how to do things that it is already setup to do FOR you! Good luck with it. Be patient. Pay close attention to the fundamentals - that will make it much easier later. Don't be like me and try and dive right in to a project. Between Sketchup, IntelliCAD, old AutoCAD, Vcarve, etc. - I get pretty mixed up at times!



    Tony

  4. #34
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    I will second the Lars Christensen recommendation for Fusion 360 videos and I also just now found a series of videos by DN Handcrafted that are pretty new and aimed at woodworking. I really enjoyed the first part of his four-part pencil box series. Here's the link: https://youtu.be/5JZKSDSyP6g


  5. #35
    Thanks for the link Brian. I started watching it. 4 minutes in and he's already worked harder than I would in SketchUp to create the same thing. I'll keep watching. Maybe it gets easier later.

  6. #36
    Quote Originally Posted by Dave Richards View Post
    Thanks for the link Brian. I started watching it. 4 minutes in and he's already worked harder than I would in SketchUp to create the same thing. I'll keep watching. Maybe it gets easier later.
    Thats the same experience I have had with Fusion. Its really good when you take it to the CAM level but the CAD side is too slow for me for my day to day flow in the shop compared to Sketchup.

  7. #37
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    Just a note on subscription vs perpetual license. Most software companies are moving to a subscription model. For a number of reasons, the main one is that it is easier to get started as the up front costs are lower. Plus if they are public, Wall Street prefers that model. I am in the software business and all we do is subscription models. Also the free Autocad licenses for small businesses or students are term limited. I believe it was free for a year.
    Last edited by david blakelock; 03-20-2018 at 7:47 PM.

  8. #38
    Quote Originally Posted by david blakelock View Post
    Just a note on subscription vs perpetual license. Most software companies are moving to a subscription model. For a number of reasons, the main one is that it is easier to get started as the up front costs are lower. Plus if they are public, Wall Street prefers that model. I am in the software business and all we do is subscription models. Also the free Autocad licenses for small businesses or students are term limited. I believe it was free for a year.
    The bottom line with all subscription based is that it #1/allows them to hook the user. Get them use to the software to a point where they are committed enough to resist change (or see it as more cost effective to stay put as opposed to migrating)

    #2 It creates perpetual, predictable, revenue. Who wouldbt love the thought of a captive customer base as opposed to a percentage of customers that will live with outdated software til they are in diar need of the new version.

    It's a case where yet again the marketing arm has done a masterful job of forcing the consumer into lining the pockets of the corporate elite.

    Would be great if i could doop my customers into paying 3x over a lifetime for periodic updates to their kitchen as opposed to what the average homeowner spends on kitchens over their lifetime.

    Lifetime software costs have blown through the roof based on subscription based pricing. People are getting rich and the consumer is getting screwed.

  9. #39
    Where's the Like button?

    It's a similar thing to what is going on in the medical business. The hospital gets "free" equipment as long as they buy the consumables. The bean counters like that but the end result is the cost of the equipment is paid several times over. Buying the equipment would be a capital expense but buying consumables is not.
    Last edited by Dave Richards; 03-20-2018 at 8:56 PM.

  10. #40
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    Quote Originally Posted by Mark Bolton View Post
    The bottom line with all subscription based is that it #1/allows them to hook the user. Get them use to the software to a point where they are committed enough to resist change (or see it as more cost effective to stay put as opposed to migrating)

    #2 It creates perpetual, predictable, revenue. Who wouldbt love the thought of a captive customer base as opposed to a percentage of customers that will live with outdated software til they are in diar need of the new version.

    It's a case where yet again the marketing arm has done a masterful job of forcing the consumer into lining the pockets of the corporate elite.

    Would be great if i could doop my customers into paying 3x over a lifetime for periodic updates to their kitchen as opposed to what the average homeowner spends on kitchens over their lifetime.

    Lifetime software costs have blown through the roof based on subscription based pricing. People are getting rich and the consumer is getting screwed.
    Not to get this topic way off subject, but the statement about software cost going through the roof based on subscription pricing is simply not true. If anything the pricing has gone down if you look at the lifetime costs of S/W. With perpetual pricing, you pay a lot up front and then annual support. With subscription it is all built in. It is not a case of marketing forcing customers lining the pockets of corporate elite. Making software costs money. Even "open source" is not free if you want it supported. Criticizing a S/W company for making money is no different than someone telling a woodworker that they can buy the same thing at a department store for a fraction of the price.

    Sorry I got this thread off topic. To get it back on topic, any of the packages mentioned do a good job. The best way to evaluate S/W is to take advantage of the free trial and see which one matches best with how you think and work. Some folks find SU easy others find it hard. It is really a function of how you think and work. All of them are basically the same. There are only so many ways to build a 3-D CAD package.

    Again, sorry if I got this thread off topic. Back to my beer.

  11. #41
    Fusion 360 and OpenSCAD are my go-to software for 3d modeling. Though I'll even use tinkercad.com to get a quick visual sense of proportions.

  12. #42
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    Quote Originally Posted by Brian W Evans View Post
    I will second the Lars Christensen recommendation for Fusion 360 videos and I also just now found a series of videos by DN Handcrafted that are pretty new and aimed at woodworking. I really enjoyed the first part of his four-part pencil box series. Here's the link: https://youtu.be/5JZKSDSyP6g
    Since some have said that making the pencil box drawing looked like more work in Fusion 360, I went looking for a similar project in Sketchup. I found something very similar and I agree - it does look a bit easier in SU. I have no idea if either of these guys is doing things the most efficient way.

    Here's the SU version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4tEcGo6SyNA

    One thing to note: the Fusion version makes components and creates variables, which is something I would want to do. I know SU can do this, too, but it's not shown and that makes things look a bit quicker for SU in this video.


  13. #43
    Quote Originally Posted by david blakelock View Post
    Criticizing a S/W company for making money is no different than someone telling a woodworker that they can buy the same thing at a department store for a fraction of the price.
    I wasnt criticizing anyone for making money. As I said, I commend them for doing a masterful job. My numbers however dont add up to your conclusion. Its completely understood that software costs money to make and especially with applications like cabinet design programs where the market is pretty limited so the cost will be spread over few consumers.

    I have several friends who are in the SW biz and we/they have spoken for years about the drive for this model. Usually these conversations include a "just wait and see what it will be like".. or some giggling and snickering. Of course they feel they are finally being compensated but they also admit that its a very very keenly crafted marketing plan. Most developers are moving to forced subscription in that your output from an older version will simply no longer operate within a newer version or if it will it requires extra steps to remember to save a file being sent to this customer that uses xxx2105 and this other customer uses xxx2017, and youve go the handful of luddites who are on eve older versions still, and so on.

    Just a short time ago someone would buy a PC and run Windows office for 6, 7, 8, 10 years. Now its getting more difficult. So the office that either came bundled, or was purchased outright online or at a box store for a couple hundred bucks, is now 70 a year if you "need" to be current. So the 10 year cost for the customer is 700 as opposed to a couple hundred. I for instance cant opt out of the subscription for office because I have other software and banking/accounting software that conflicts with older versions. So now when I look at my accounting software, banking, CAD, CAM, Plug-in's for Cabinetry, maintenance on my CAD, etc.. my annual expense for software is well over a thousand dollars (closing in on 2K).

    As I said, its a great place to be, knowing you have a somewhat fixed monthly revenue stream coming through the door. It would just be nice if the subscription price somewhat followed the cost curve of upgrading. In the 10 years I will pay for a 70/yr subscription, I would be able to buy a fresh copy (or the upgrade for less) every few years if it werent for the fact that every time the new version comes out they install a bunch of trip-wires for those on older versions.

  14. #44
    Made up a box on the fly so it's a little slow. Mitered corners, sliding lid with finger pull. Rabbeted bottom in grooves. https://youtu.be/q36JnRJLM1w

  15. #45
    I prefer AutoCAD because it's so much more robust. I've done lots of 3D in AutoCAD without any difficulties. But there are different versions. I have the MEP 2008 version, designed for mechanical, electrical and plumbing contractors. But I've used it for many woodworking projects and prefer it over SketchUp, hands down.
    “Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness..." - Mark Twain

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