The thing I've been grumbling about almost since I started using Free Software all to many years ago is the lack of a competent 3-D CAD package.... LibreCAD is OK for 2D, and it is being actively maintained and worked on, but it is ONLY a 2-D package, and a lot of people look at you like you are nuts for even considering using a 2-D package these days....
I have looked at several open / free 3-D packages and have yet to find one I could actually do useful (as in can take the drawing to a machine and MAKE the part....) If we have ANYTHING that compares to SolidWorks for capability, or the Autodesk Creative Suite, I have never heard about it... There are a few 'Free Beer' trap programs like OnShape that offer 'free' 'Software as a Service' 3-D capabilities but that is no less of a trap than proprietary software.... As an 'inmate' at the Artisan's Asylum, one of the worlds largest hacker spaces, I get a lot of grief because I refuse to use the Solidworks / HSMworks / AutoDesk / MatLab / Simulink installs in our computer lab that are 'Free' for me to use as a member.... What FLOSS 3D package can compete? Solidworks / HSMWorks can do FEA analysis on the drawing, can animate the moving parts to check for proper operation and fit, and can then generate the G-code needed to make the part on most CNC machines... As an ethical Free Software person, I have to generate HAND WRITTEN G-code (can take longer than drafting the part, and mistakes are potentially catastrophic that we don't even ALLOW hand written code on some of our machines.... Inkscape might be able to animate a drawing, as long as you don't care about dimensions... I'm told there are FEA tools, but not that take a drawing from anything else.... ART ======== Original TRIMMED message ========== Message: 6 Date: Thu, 4 Feb 2016 09:35:31 +0100 From: Fabio Pesari <[email protected]> To: [email protected] Subject: [libreplanet-discuss] Updating the High Priority List Message-ID: <[email protected]> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8 https://www.fsf.org/campaigns/priority-projects/ This list is severely outdated. What about we propose new high-priority projects? What proprietary programs (or network services without free servers) do you or the people around you use _daily_ that haven't been replaced by free software? Which free programs need more attention in order to replace their proprietary counterparts? <SNIP> ------------------ Arthur Torrey - <[email protected]> -------------------
