[PLUG] Re: Only on Windoz/AutoCAD

Lancashire, Pete plancashire at ci.portland.or.us
Wed May 10 20:17:27 UTC 2006



the one cad+manufacturing shop i've had experience with,
one part owned by a friend now used linux for everything
but cad. there is even one cad-driver (mech.eng.)that has
two boxes and displays on his desk, one box running $Soft
for cad the other linux for everything else, the 2nd
display connects to both pc's.

they were hacked by some windoz hole a couple years ago.
it never got past the webserver, but that was enough for
them.

hmmm .. how about digital version of a video editor box
that lets you overlay two feeds onto one display ?

-pete  oh well, im getting way off the PLUG topics, and
need to get back to workin' for the man.




> -----Original Message-----
> From: Eric Wilhelm [mailto:scratchcomputing at gmail.com]
> Sent: Wednesday, May 10, 2006 12:50 PM
> To: plug at lists.pdxlinux.org
> Subject: [PLUG] Re: Only on Windoz/AutoCAD
> 
> 
> # from Lancashire, Pete
> # on Wednesday 10 May 2006 11:34 am:
> 
> >what advantage would there be to have a FOSS CAD
> >package, other then cost ?

I would love to be able
> >to push FOSS CAD to some of my ME - Architect - Civil E
> >- etc friends but have not found what to say while
> >on the FOSS Server/Desktop soapbox.
> 
> umm.  Hackability?  Vendor-independent interoperability?  
> Inter-office 
> change tracking?  Contract/working-drawings/BOM integration that 
> actually works?  Custom software for small businesses pushing the 
> envelope?  Any other number of things that Scratch Computing aims to 
> enable?
> 
> Seriously, the de Young cladding would been practically 
> impossible and 
> riddled with human error had it not been for the hardcore automation, 
> and that wasn't even feasible to do as a commercial cad system plugin 
> ((a)  startup cost, lock-in risk, and vendor evaluation latency would 
> have basically killed it, (b) the project requirements changed about 
> daily (more on that at tonight's perl-mongers if you're so inclined), 
> and (c) GUI-based/VB/whatever automation can really suck when all you 
> need to do is twiddle an input and regen.)
> 
> In the current environment, it is still really difficult to 
> get any sort 
> of CAD users onto Linux.  QCad isn't going to do it.  I don't believe 
> it is going to grow out of community contribution either -- engineers 
> might know how to program FORTRAN, Pascal, etc.  But, even if they've 
> got mad C, C++, Perl, Ruby, or Python skills, the fact is 
> that they are 
> way too worn out at the end of the day to try to assemble a complex 
> software architecture into their head and hammer out some code.  So, 
> the Linux/Apache codebase growth model is looking bleak, what 
> about the 
> Mozilla/OpenOffice/Blender opening-of-proprietary-code model? 
>  Well, I 
> guess AutoDesk could decide to drop that bomb whenever they feel like 
> it, but my guess is that there is way too much licensed "not 
> my IP" in 
> there to make that feasible for them or anyone else.  The government 
> funding to BRLCAD is encouraging, but they are heavily focused on 
> simulating ballistics and designing tanks, so usability suffers.
> 
> Which brings us to private funding.  I'm not seeing a huge 
> list of open 
> source CAD software development companies with $2M seed funding and a 
> business model to make it work.  I've been particularly focused on 
> trying to find a sustainable-growth model involving custom 
> development 
> leveraging open-source, but the combined challenges of "lack of 
> infrastructure, lack of time, lack of sales, and trying to get 
> something in a price-point that works for small businesses" really 
> stack up against it.
> 
> Okay, getting closer to on-topic...
> 
> How many people on this list know of engineers, architects, etc. that 
> would like to be running Linux if it weren't for that sticky 
> CAD issue?  
> I would be happy to hear from them on or off list.  I'm certainly up 
> for putting together something (maybe even at OSCamp) if there is 
> enough interest.
> 
> --Eric
> -- 
> I arise in the morning torn between a desire to improve the 
> world and a
> desire to enjoy the world. This makes it hard to plan the day.
> --E.B. White
> ---------------------------------------------------
>     http://scratchcomputing.com
> ---------------------------------------------------
> _______________________________________________
> PLUG mailing list
> PLUG at lists.pdxlinux.org
> http://lists.pdxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug
> 



More information about the PLUG mailing list