Management decided that because Smartcam/Camax is dead, it was time to get a more "up to date" cam package. They decided on Unigraphics. After messing with UG for a few weeks I have come to the conclusion that if it can do it with 2-1/2 axis, Smartcam can do it better, get it faster, and with less input. I have also concluded that Camax can easily outperform UG in 3 axis work. UG can still outperform Smartcam in 3 axis, but just barely. It took me 3 days to program a roughing program in UG for a retainer plate in a mold. I could have done it in 2 hours in Smartcam.
When it comes to customization by the end user, Smartcam is so far ahead of the game that there is no comparison. The same can be said for training and ease of use. Our local UG rep was actually proud that in order to use UG the end user needs to go to 4 weeks worth of classes. He told me that there was no way possible that I could have learned Production Milling in 3 days. I was also told that UG needs to be difficult because it's the only way a cam program can be powerful. Smartcam's code generators actually do work. UG Post works after a week of hacking away at it by the end user with no tech support from UG. I was told by tech support that I was talking "over their heads." I never talked over anybody's head when getting support for Smartcam. He finally sent out his local tech support guy. After two hours of looking at my post the local tech told me that what I was trying to do was impossible. UG's idea of using a post to drill holes is to send X/Y coordinates to the NC and let the operator on the shop floor edit in the speeds, feeds, canned cycles, and any other required code. The same can be said for any toolpath requiring the use of G41/G42. All by myself I finally did get UG to output the proper code in the right order so it at least bears a somewhat close resemblance to something coming from Smartcam. As far as I can tell, UG lacks any support for subprograms. I was told that nobody uses subprograms. What I programmed today in Smartcam must be something that nobody will use. I never was a big fan of the new Smartcam tool list, mostly because I always had trouble getting it to do what I wanted. But I always could use the toollist.tmp from ver. 8.0 and get exactly what I wanted. I printed a tool list from UG. 7 pages for 11 tools and it didn't tell the operator anything useful. It did spit out some really nice pretty pictures in the list. Smartcam has the better GUI by far. UG requires the end user to wade through seemingly endless dialog boxes with cryptic labels just to spot drill one lousy hole. Smartcam requires just 3 (setting up the tool, setting up the operation, and drilling the hole). You can skip the first two by importing a jof file from a previous job, thus really saving time. I quickly learned that UG's idea of a graphical toolpath editor means deleting a toolpath, changing a bunch of parameter settings, and regenerating the toolpath hoping that it comes out right. Everybody here knows what Smartcam lets the operator do to toolpath that needs a bit of tweaking. So my advise to SDRC is to get off their lazy butts, rehire the Smartcam brain trust, and then get out of the way and let them restart development on the best all around cam package. My advise to anybody contemplating on getting UG: buy stock in a drug company first and then buy the aspirin in the extra large economy size bottles. The only good news is management is starting to have second thoughts about UG. Jeff Guse FFM User Disgruntled UG user with a very bad headache ----- Original Message ----- From: "Mike Gailey" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: "Michael Senack" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; "SMARTCAM" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Wednesday, June 07, 2000 9:41 AM Subject: Re: [mfg-smartcam] Communicate install > I would like to add that Smartcam is still probably the best program ever > killed and left for dead. I still can't see why it wasn't updated and given new > life. I look at lots of other cam software, none of which yet compare to > Smartcam. > Long live Smartcam! > Michael > > Michael Senack wrote: > > > Absolutely yes. We do it here. We have a dedicated computer on the shop > > floor as a file sever hooked up to a 6 way switch box. We also installed > > Edit Plus so the operators can view the files if need be, before > > downloading. Also, they can use Edit Plus to make minor changes so the > > program will run on both Agie wire machines. > > Our MIS department checked with SDRC about running multiple copies of > > Communicate and Edit Plus on more seats than was licensed for and they had > > no problem with it. Since SmartCAM is a dead product and there is no SDRC > > support what the heck! > > > > -----Original Message----- > > From: Steve Buck [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]] > > Sent: Wednesday, June 07, 2000 9:11 AM > > To: SmartCam user Group > > Subject: [mfg-smartcam] Communicate install > > > > Can I install Communicate on a computer that only will have > > Communicate > > on it? > > > > Steve > > ATM > > > > > > ====================================================================== > > To find out more about this mailing list including how to > > unsubscribe, > > send the message "info mfg-smartcam" to > > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > > > ====================================================================== > > ====================================================================== > > To find out more about this mailing list including how to unsubscribe, > > send the message "info mfg-smartcam" to [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > ====================================================================== > > -- > Visit us at http://www.microsystemsgeorgia.com/toc.htm for > Smartcam and Rhino information. > > > ====================================================================== > To find out more about this mailing list including how to unsubscribe, > send the message "info mfg-smartcam" to [EMAIL PROTECTED] > ====================================================================== ====================================================================== To find out more about this mailing list including how to unsubscribe, send the message "info mfg-smartcam" to [EMAIL PROTECTED] ======================================================================
