SOLIDWORKS Design & Help

For personal experience, our company started using SolidWorks in late 2005. I use OnShape for brainstorming and little personal things, plus i use and iPad with OnShape.

Our company will not change platforms. By the time that you've purchased all the needed modules (BOM, Fasteners....) it is not worth the learning curve nor the sacrifice of some of the higher end capabilities of SolidWorks Professional package.

Hope this helps.

Thanks for the insight! Your usage of OnShape for brainstorming and quick projects is interesting and something I want to learn more about.

To be clear, I am trying to learn from professionals what their pain points are as I am looking into building something new (I have 20+ years of experience building CAD applications).

Now when you mention brainstorming, do you feel comfortable doing that in OnShape? Do you feel anything particularly lacking or uncomfortable? Also, what's your usage percentage comparing desktop OnShape use vs. on the iPad?

Thanks again!

When it comes to brainstorming, I have used a stick in the sand. Brainstorming is just working out concepts. You can use a restaurant place mats and noodles...(done it).

I have never used the desktop version of OhShape (well, I can't say never). I do not own a computer. I will assume that the desktop is closer to SolidWorks, but I also use a 3Dconnnexion Enterprise mouse. I don't know if you can use that on OnShape.

If you are starting something new, using a different platform is always an option. The first new machine designed in SolidWorks (no longer AutoCAD) was slow but fun. Within 6 months I was producing three times the work with almost zero errors.

We have never had a reason to switch platforms after 20+ years. SolidWorks is pushing to go to the cloud with 3Dxperience, but still not worth the cost increase.

Would you ever consider brainstorming in a CAD system instead of in the sand, napkins, or with pencil and paper? If yes, then how would you go about doing it? If no, then why, and what would you like to have in the application?

Yes, SolidWorks has functions that helps a lot with concept designs. 'Layout Sketch' and 'Envelope' I quite often.

I am an old guy that started with a board and teesquare...all innovation comes out of the designers head, the platform is of little consequence, it just makes visualisation easier for the client. Designers can already visualise. Da Vinci had no problem. Pencil and paper is as good as anything, electronic lines do not make the ideas come. Some believe AI will make all original thought redundant, I don't agree.

I had try it and it is not bad, but as someone using SW since 98 it is hard to switch because the UI if they offer an addon that would change UI to more resemble SW I would use it more , you don't want to fight your muscle memory when you trying lay out some concepts out .

the workflow without clear separation between parts and assembly and file management, takes some use to.

And i'm not particularly hot about storing my data in the cloud, .. you know they will train AI on this one day if they haven't done it yet.