I am not a design draftsman, I’m not an engineer. My workflow is usually: I put something on the scanner, load the calibrated scan, trace the outline, throw a few sketches on various planes in there, round a few edges, print it and I’m done.

Fusion 360 scratches that itch very well but requires me to keep a Windows VM and also their free model felt more and more unusable. OnShape is a nice substitute that works fine for me, but I don’t like the “free or 1500€/year” approach. Without a middle ground subscription for makers it feels that I could lose anything the second their energy prices for servers go up or something.

The list of CAD software is exhaustive, so I am looking for recommendations that fit my “eh, click, click, click, good enough” workflow. FreeCAD is way too unintiuitive for that. I have tried getting into it, but 3D printing is a tool for me and the learning curve quickly made using it another hobby.

So. Suggestions welcome. Scalding criticism about my lack of enthusiasm and consumer mentality not so much, but I guess that comes bundled with useful advice, so, eh, I’ll take it.

  • DrM@feddit.deEnglish
    10·
    3 个月前

    I really hope that FreeCAD will get better with time, and the Blender story will be the same for FreeCAD. Just a few years back, Blender was really bad compared with Maya, now Autodesk lost a huge market because Blender is powerful enough for professional work, probably even better than Maya

    • Funwayguy@lemmy.worldEnglish
      4·
      3 个月前

      I’m really hoping FreeCAD gets the Blender treatment. ONDSEL is already pushing it pretty far, but once extensibility is more robust and the new user experience improved, I believe that’ll be the tipping point.

      • Captain Aggravated@sh.itjust.worksEnglish
        5·
        3 个月前

        Oh man “extensibility” in FreeCAD. The documentation is non-existent, is the main problem. It’s just about impossible to understand how anything works, it’s like trying to figure out how to run a battleship by turning cranks and seeing what they do.

        • Funwayguy@lemmy.worldEnglish
          3·
          3 个月前

          My point exactly. If FreeCAD refines that framework and documents it well, community plugin support could drive many new features and quality of life improvements into the main branch.