Mike Puckett's Blog

Why You Should Attend Solidworks World Reason 18: What's New With Solidworks The Company...

Each year at Solidworks World, Jeff Ray normally gives everyone a rundown on the financial status of Solidworks.  Number of users, licenses, amount of sales, and other tidbits are released.  What's interesting to see is how the number of users continues to grow each year.  The information provided really gives you a sense of what kind of community of users we all belong too.  It also gives you an insight into just how much Solidworks puts back into it's product year after year.

While not one of the most exciting reasons to attend, it certainly is information that fills you in on what's going on.

Solidworks World Details Emerge....

More details in regards to Solidworks World 2008 have begun to roll out.  Discount hotel and travel info can now be found on the official site, and today word of the Tuesday Night offsite event have been released.  Here is a description of what's planned:

Vintage San Diego ’s downtown waterfront district…neighbor to the Pacific Ocean and the rousing GasLamp Quarter…is the stylish locale for this year’s SolidWorks World 2008 Block Party! Over 30 settings of restaurants, clubs, pools halls, boutiques and European-inspired eateries are offered for this year’s sensational event. Laser lightshow, tightrope and stilt walkers, high-energy Latin-infused music band…Experience the robust nightlife in this historic landmark named for its gas lamps along the sixteen and one-half block area.

Sounds like a good time, weather permitting!  I was so hoping for a party on board the USS Midway, but I'm sure this will be fun too!

Also, this Friday September 28th is the last day to submit a presentation idea to be considered for next years event.  Get your submission in today, and enjoy free entry into the entire event.

Checkout the Official Solidworks World 2008 Site for all the information.

Down The Home Stretch.....

Living in Southern California our seasons seem to blend together during the year.  There is one event however that for me really tells me summer is over, and the miserable time of year is upon us.  Thats rain.  We had our first rain of the year this week (OK so 1/2 to 1 inches of rain isn't a lot to some, but it is to us!).  So yes, time to put away the sun tan lotion, and break out the long pants for a few months.

But it's not all bad.  The holidays are coming, Solidworks World will be here before we know it, and some much needed vacations are on the agenda.  So while not all bad, I can't wait for the day we change our clocks back in early spring, and summer will be here once again.

Just some weekend fodder for those online on a Saturday, and an end to a busy week on the blog!

Why You Should Attend Solidworks World Reason 18: Unique Once In a Lifetime Presentations...

Imagine being able to pick the brain, or see a presentation from some of the top Solidworks users in the country.  Now imagine having them team up to do a presentation together at Solidworks World!  Well at Solidworks World 2008, you will see just that.  Ed Eaton of DiMonte Group and Phil Sluder of Triaxial Design will be teaming up to give what is sure to be a highly attended breakout session in San Diego.

I have had the opportunity to see both these guys present, and they always deliver.  They both have a way of presenting information in a way that everyone can understand.  Phil has spoken and given presentations at two of our user group meetings, and they are always a well attended and fun meeting.

So if you need one further reason to get to San Diego, this is an event that you should make sure to not miss!  And hopefully this won't be a once in a lifetime event, but continue to happen every year!

The Early Bird Get's The Worm...

Or in this case, a $200 discount on Solidworks World 2008!  This Friday the 21st is the first early bird deadline for a $200 discount.  So get those managers and check writters to get you registered today:

Solidworks World 2008 Registration Site

Sw 2008 Tip: Dragin' Dot's...

Ever wanted to simply drag and drop a feature from one face or edge to another?  Well in Solidworks 2008, you can. 

In this picture you will see the blue highlighted fillet edge.  Notice a small pink dot?  If you control drag that dot onto another edge or face, you will get the same fillet on the target edge.

You can see the result in this picture.  However, one catch, you will end up with a new feature as highlighted in the tree, as opposed to Solidworks adding it to the original feature.  So make sure to submit that enhancement request early and ofton, and let's get them to hopefully change it!

Oh, and one other thing, to get the drag dot option, you must have "Instant 3-D" turned on!

Solidworks 2008/Vista nVidia Drivers

Solidworks has announced the first batch of certified drivers for those using Windows Vista, and Solidworks 2008.  It has so far been a slow process getting certified drivers and card info out there.  At our last two user group meetings, I have had multiple people ask if there was any more information on graphics cards.  Let's hope the list continues to grow, and at the quickest pace possible.

"In conjunction with the release of SolidWorks 2008, Microsoft Windows Vista users can now download certified driver version 6.14.11.6250 (NVIDIA version 162.50) from our Hardware & Graphics Cards webpage (http://www.solidworks.com/pages/services/videocardtesting.html). This driver is certified for use with SolidWorks 2008 for the following NVIDIA cards:

Quadro FX 350
Quadro FX 550
Quadro FX 560
Quadro FX 1400
Quadro FX 1500
Quadro FX 3400
Quadro FX 3450
Quadro FX 3500
Quadro FX 4500
Quadro FX 4600
Quadro FX 5500
Quadro FX 5600

No certified Vista drivers are posted at this time for any ATI cards, laptop cards (vendors such as Dell, HP, etc.) or for SolidWorks 2007. More drivers will be made available for downloading as soon as they complete the SolidWorks certification process."

Live From Boston, it's Saturday Night.....

Well it's actually only Friday afternoon, but something is still live from Boston.  Yesterday, Solidworks announced that Solidworks 2008 Service Pack 0.0 is available for download.  So now the waiting game begins.  When will the DVD ship, when will SP1 be available?

At a recent user group meeting, a huge majority of people said they were going to wait until SP1 to upgrade.  In actuality, SP 0 is really about SP4 when you factor in the betas, the pre releases, and then the EV downloads.  So download away to your hearts content, at least you wont have the RIAA after you!

And don't forget, SW2008 will be available on DVD only, so now is a good time to make sure you have a DVD player in your computer!  Downloads will be available in the customer portal on solidworks.com to those on current maintenance!

Why You Should Attend Solidworks World Reason 19: Surprise Guests...

Two guys with a sausage rocket, a guy with a real rocket, a father and son that got rich because they argue a lot, someone who once battled Klingon's?  What do they all have in common?  They have all been surprise special guests at Solidworks World the last 4 years.  In case your wondering who I'm talking about, they were The Mythbusters, Burt Rutan, Paul Sr and Jr and Mikey from Orange County Choppers, and Leonard Nemoy.

Each year the rumors start to fly about who will be the surprise guest speaker.  In 2006 in Vegas, there was quite a bit of guesses based on celeb sightings, but in the end it was the Mythbusters.  So Solidworks World is not only about information, its also about entertainment!  Who knows what to expect in San Diego?  Anyone want to start guessing?

Rembering Six Years Later.......

It's a day that will be forever in our memories.  Yet when you stop and think, there is a new generation that wasn't yet born on that day.  It seems like just yesterday that I was standing in front of a machine loading parts when a coworker came around the corner and said that a plane had hit one of the World Trade Center Towers.  Dismissed at first as a bad accident, it shortly became apparent what was going on.  I didn't get to see the entire grasp of the situation until getting home that evening, and turning on the T.V. to watch the news.

For me, one memory will stand out the most.  Most of us will remember for one week, all the professional sports organizations canceled their games.  On Tuesday September 18th, myself and a friend got tickets to a Los Angeles Dodgers game.  To start the pregame ceremonies, they played a video of legendary Dodgers Announcer, Vin Scully.  He talked about starting to get back to normal, and how being out watching a baseball game was a big step in that direction.  They also played an video of President George W. Bush in which he asked everyone to remember the events, but to try to get back to life as much as possible.  I remember sitting there in the early evening noticing how quiet the sky was since the airspace had yet to be reopened to airplanes.  On the field, they unfurled an American flag that stretched from left field, all the way to right field.  It was done by local firefighters.  The standing ovation they received lasted for minutes.  The emotions standing there, hand covering my heart, and singing the National Anthem, was unreal.  Still to this day, that very act means something completely different.

We will never forget where we were, or what we were doing.  It is an event that is forever ingrained in us.

Solidworks and September 11th......

Here is a link to a video of Mike J Wilson's Solidworks animation he created to debunk the conspiracy theories surrounding the attack on the Pentagon:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YVDdjLQkUV8

Los Angeles Solidworks User Group To View Solidworks 2008

Tomorrow night September 11th, the Los Angeles/Orange County Solidworks User Group will get the first official look at Solidworks 2008.  As part of the annual official software roll out, Solidworks Territorial Technical Manager, Patrick Rainsberry, will be in attendance to give the group the inside look at what's new in Solidworks 2008.  Much similar to the official roll out that the V.A.R.'s will be hosting later this month, this annual presentation is always a big hit among user group members, but of course without the sales presentation!

Also on the agenda is a remembrance of September 11th, and the roll Solidworks played in reconstructing the events at the Pentagon that day. 

A review of upcoming events, Solidworks News, and give aways will take place like always.  So if you are free on Tuesday night from 6-9pm, come join us.

RSVP to: mpuckett@laocswug.com

Meeting Location: Google Map

Why You Should Attend Solidworks World Reason 20: Meet Solidworks Staff

Each year at Solidworks World you are bound to bump into Solidworks employees.  Of course each one is just as friendly as the next.  How would you like to share a lunch table with the head of the team that developed Toolbox?  Well that is certainly a possibility.  How about having a cup of coffee with one of the execs in the wireless cafe area each morning?  Your more than likely to see one of them there each morning checking emails.  And of course it wouldn't be a complete event if you weren't able to have a beer with one of the founders of Solidworks right?  Walk around the offsite event, and you will undoubtedly run into him there.

So while Solidworks World is mostly about learning, its also a great opportunity to meet and talk with many of the Solidworks employees that make the software happen.

2008 Discovery Day's & What's New Seminars

Starting this week, Solidworks Value Added Resellers nationwide will begin rolling out Solidworks 2008 Officially.  Solidworks has launched the Discovery Day's Events Page.  At this site you can enter your country and state, and see all the upcoming events near you.  The events are broken up into two different catagories:

Discovery Day Event: Designed for non-Solidworks customers, and those considering a change from their curent CAD package.

What's New Events: This will be the annual roll out designed to highlight many of the new features that Solidworks 2008 has to offer.

Both these events ae being conducted by, and located at VAR locations across the country.

For those that want a non-sales atmoshpere, another great place to see the same information presented by Solidworks Technical personal, are User Group meetings.  Many of the meetings being held for the next month or two will have Solidworks personal in attendance giving pretty much the same presentation you will see at a VAR, but without the sales feel some may chose to add on.  So head on over to the Solidworks User Group Network Calendar, and catch a meeting near you!