Extruding 2D into 3D for less than $500 ????

[signguy]

Bryce also has a render option called distance mask which will turn 3d objects into a grayscale map

[sales@bitcam.com]

Look at www.bitcam.com

[jimmythethief]

What about this stuff...I'm very new to the scene so...I don't know very much about whats good and whats not, but they seem to have some interesting offerrings for pretty cheap. http://www.deskam.com/

[rgbrown@itexas.net]

Erik,

CAD and CAM programs are like horses. Each of us has our favorites and some are better at certain chores than others. One does not get a plow horse for working cattle or a race horse for plowing. And, even in individual chores we would still have personal favorites. And one familiar with their horse can sometimes do certain tasks even when there night be a better tool for the job. And, the familiar horse doesn't surprise one with unexpected actions and you spend more time in the saddle and less trying to figure the horse out.

When one has a horse they care to sell, they will get a great rider and put it in the show ring and ask far more than it is worth. Only when one gets the horse home will they realize it might not be suited for the task.

But, when raw stuff is fed to a horse or CAD/CAM it is difficult for the average observer to distinguish the end result between one processor or the other.

Try a few CAD/CAM programs before you settle on one. Try to get one that suits the chore and your temperament. Learn the program. Others may have taken other programs and brag on them but, we all know if you put the right data in the front end, the stuff coming out will look just the same unless one cares to pick through it.

Ron Brown
Diplomacy is the art of saying 'Nice doggie' until you can find a rock. - Will Rogers

[gerald_d]

". . . . when raw stuff is fed to a horse . . . . . . the stuff coming out will look just the same unless one cares to pick through it."

Enter, the dung beetle.

[kerrazy]

Interpretaion of Socretes above...
many Cad/Cam programs even the expensive ones offer a free evaluation period of 30 days or more. Try and experience as many as possible to see which ones can be used most easily by you. With people who have a Cad/Cam background like AutoCad, then masterCam or Rhino/ mill wizard may be what you are looking for. If yoou have a Graphic background and you are familiar with programs like Corel Draw or Adobe illistrator than programs like artCam or ProfileLab will suit you.

Try them all knowing at the end of a telephone there is always great support especially if you have demo version as they want to imprees the hell out of you and show you that their product does what you want it to do.

Layman
Dale

PS Ron, what sort of horse are you using?

[gerald_d]

The best CAD/CAM system, without a doubt, and nobody should argue with me, definitely the most optimal, yeah the very best . . . . . . . .has to meet two essential requirements:

1. The evaluation period must be MUCH longer than 30 days. None of us have the luxury of finding 30 days of free time to play with a program. *would the official suppliers please plug their ears for the next part* Get/borrow/steal a full-featured package from someone for evaluation and pay the full price when you like it.

2. The guy that you borrow the program from, must be willing to hold your hand in the evenings and on the weekends and drive you through the learning curve.

Practically all CAD/CAM packages will be fine for you, provided that you bite the bullet and get past the learning curve.

Don't think of changing packages before you FULLY understand the first one. This is particularly true for the freeware that comes with the SB - don't give up on the freeware because you think it is something cheap and nasty that has been bundled with the SB like other computer hardware suppliers often do.

Having said that, it looks as if DesKAM only concentrates on the CAM side and assumes you already have CAD?

[rgbrown@itexas.net]

Dale,

I'm a large fellow and ride a Rhino. The bridle I use to control it's actions in called Vector.

BTW - I just got a notice Vector is to V9.5 and has a pre-release price "upgrade" of $300. From the fancy poop sheets, it looks like a REAL upgrade.

I'm afraid Gerald may be right about evaluating software. I know I have cursed enough programs to never grace the Pearly Gates if cursing a monitor is a non-pardonable sin. Learning is a lot easier if you have someone to help you translate the manual until you get the hang of it.

Ron

[kerrazy]

Gerald, once again, Well said!!!

[artisan]

I too ride a Rhino. It seems to be the best 3D tool for the money by a LONG shot. I am currently testing Inovate... a drag and drop 3D tool from Ironcad. http://www.ironcad.com/default.asp?U...aldownload.asp It costs around 500.00 and looks pretty promising. It also has a 60 day trial of the FULL operational version....D