Free Software

Post by **Dare2** » Tue Jul 05, 2005 6:31 pm

dmoc wrote:Hmmm, I wonder if it's Fred supplementing his income (or lack of it from PB)

Wait!

Shoosh!

RichardL · Post by **RichardL** » Fri Jul 08, 2005 2:36 pm

We used the original X-Cad on the Amiga and I sold some Amiga 2000s with X-Cad installed... many years ago. It was affordable and worked well.

The PC version is very different, at least one of my old customers moved over to using it, based on "the name being the same" and got stuck with a learning curve that was quite steep. However, he produced excellent drawings for the machine shop and in the end had no real complaints.

If I wanted to learn 3D CAD I would look for a Lite version of a big package, that way the time I spent learning how to use it would not be wasted and the name would look better on the CV.

With any good, capable CAD package you must expect to make an investment in learning how to use it; if you are really productive inside a few weeks of solid learning you are doing well. In a commercial context, and factoring in overheads, this is worth about 10% of an annual salary; on top of the CAD package itself.

At work we use Protel for printed circuit board development, it costs some thousands of pounds per seat, but is worth paying for, despite expensive upgrades and the supplier ducking out from supporting old versions. In fact, the biggest investment is not the cost of the software but the time it takes to learn.

dmoc · Post by **dmoc** » Fri Jul 08, 2005 4:01 pm

Hello Richard. I think "x-cad" here is just the name chosen for the campaign, x as in "unknown" or "surprise". From what I gather it's unrelated to xcad (without the hyphen I think). But I could be wrong.

PS: The reg count is really starting to ramp up now (~ 63000)

RichardL · Post by **RichardL** » Mon Jul 11, 2005 8:59 am

I looked around the website and could see plenty of references to X-CAD that were consistent with it being the product name...

Time will tell!

Psychophanta · Post by **Psychophanta** » Mon Jul 18, 2005 11:53 pm

To RichardL, or to someone who has managed this product; answer if possible:
Does this product allow to:
- simulate inertia with loyalty?
- simulate gravity ?
- simulate magnetism with magnets AND electrical charged particles or masses?
- attach some pieces to anothers using ideal (without mass) segments?
- attach some pieces to anothers using ideal (with mass) segments or pieces?
- manage collisions between pieces (with a given degree of elasticities (depending on material predefined properties) ?
- manage coggeds, gears...
- manage densities, and other properties of materials?
- set up the desired axis line for spin in pieces ?

Sorry, but i am looking for a product (more than one year ago) which is able to do all that with total or approvable loyalty

Thanx

dmoc · Post by **dmoc** » Tue Jul 19, 2005 8:03 am

Psychophanta, I don't think CAD is what your after. Maybe something like Mathmatica(?) or other sw geared (pun intended) towards simulation of physical systems rather than mechanical design?

Psychophanta · Post by **Psychophanta** » Tue Jul 19, 2005 8:18 am

But every mechanical gadget is based in physical principles, always. So i requested for that.

RichardL · Post by **RichardL** » Tue Jul 19, 2005 8:20 am

dmoc is correct. X-Cad is a 3D drawing package aimed at the mechanical part designer... I mean a designer of mechanical parts... not a mechanical designer of parts... you know what I mean!

Psychophanta · Post by **Psychophanta** » Tue Jul 19, 2005 8:23 am

Yeah!, thanx

eevee · Post by **eevee** » Thu Jul 21, 2005 9:38 am

Looks as if it is all for real after all.

The following has now appeared on the site.

I quote .....

X-CAD Unmasked!
It's official, today Alibre announced that X-CAD is, in fact,
Alibre Design Xpress, a new addition to our Alibre Design product family.

..... end of quote

dmoc · Post by **dmoc** » Thu Jul 21, 2005 11:05 am

...except it is crippled adware :x

http://www.alibre.com/xpress/forum/viewforum.php?f=3

thefool · Post by **thefool** » Thu Jul 21, 2005 11:36 am

no adware afaik..

Yes, the banners will be there. The product works online. You will have an option to turn off ads and work offline if needed as well through a simple upgrade. Our early reviewers are posting their impressions and so far they find the interface attractive. Thanks.

Don Dalrymple
Alibre, Inc.

banners though

however someone _could_ block the ip's or redirect it with host file to some white images

I don't mind the $47 for no ads or internet, it's still cheap and I'd willing pay it but I feel that Alibre have done some real damage here in not being up front.

however i will give the program a try.

GeoTrail · Post by **GeoTrail** » Thu Jul 21, 2005 3:05 pm

dmoc wrote:Jeez, I get "porn/viagra/wannabeRichQuick" spam no matter what... and I very rarely give out my email address Hmmm, I wonder if it's Fred supplementing his income (or lack of it from PB)

I'm using Tiscali as my broadban ISP, 2 mb connection. Telenor has now bought the norwegian part of Tiscali and they are upgrading all transfere customers to their new system which will give me a 4 mb connection before the upcoming monday. Got a letter about upgrade date yesterday and I checked the NEW email address from the new ISP and guess what? 3 spam messages, and that email address was less the a day or so old

thefool · Post by **thefool** » Thu Jul 21, 2005 5:09 pm

spammers are quite fast these days

dmoc · Post by **dmoc** » Thu Jul 21, 2005 5:22 pm

That fast I'd suspect Tiscali :P