Our team is starting to create CAD, and we are curious on what software we should use. So, what software do you and your team use to create CAD designs on Apple? Thanks.
Solidworks and Inventor both only run natively on Windows. You could use something like Sketchup on Mac, but it is quite limited. Honestly, the real answer is you should get a good PC. For almost half of the cost of an iMac you can have a PC that will run any CAD software just fine (my home PC was $800 when I got it 4 years agoā¦still runs Inventor 2016 great!). If you are part of a school the school should be willing to get you a windows PC. The cost is not that much and you are using it for an educational use. (2 football helmets = cost of one good PC).
If you have to stay with Apple, then you will need to install Windows via Bootcamp or Parallels (and hope and pray it works consistently) . However, by the time you purchase the software and the windows license you are already darn near half way to the cost of a PC anyways.
Disclaimer: I am an avid Apple hater. I am a technology coordinator and manage both Window and Apple computers at my school.
For those of you who doubt my football helmet comparison: http://www.riddell.com/shop/on-field-equipment/helmets/riddell-speedflex-helmet.html
I use Onshape. Itās cloud and browser based, so no downloads necessary and itās cross platform, so you can even use your phone to build robots. Itās also completely free unless you need many or extremely large files. It also has plugins which allow for simulation and rendering from right within Onshape, most of which have a free trial period. 2114A also compiled a part library of most vex parts which can be found here. Here is an example of what the UI looks like which modeling (early version of last yearās robot): http://i.imgur.com/Vtxff1P.png
@4149G thanks for the advice, while right now I canāt afford a PC I will use some at school if I must. @sazrocks thanks also! I will download that as soon as I can!
Fusion 360 runs on a Mac.
Just run a vm and then allocate a lot of ram to it and run inventor edu on low graphics
You should try Boot camp. You can pretty much get win10 for free and the new installation process is seamless. My main computer is an iMac and I boot camped it a year ago and it works perfectly. You get the full performance from your computer and if you want to go to OS X again, just restart.
You donāt need windows 10. I recommend that you use Windows 7. It doesnāt need as much RAM and Inventor supports it.
I think 8 uses less RAM than 7.
@( Ķ”Ā° ĶŹ Ķ”Ā° ) Can you even buy 7?
If you are going to bootcamp windows, I suggest getting windows 10 from the get go so you donāt have to deal with Microsoft constantly pushing/forcing you to upgrade to 10.
use autodesk 360, I use it on both mac and windows, works fine
Well, Iām not too good at this but IĀve checked around online and the following seem to be popular recommendations for a CAD software and have good reviews: Try looking for HighDesign , MacDraft Pro and Punch. By the way, you may try also VectorWorks SP and DraftSight. Both are free.
That is only if you are upgrading to Win10 from a legal version of 7 or 8.
Otherwise Windows 10 Home Edition is $110. (If you purchase it legally, which you should)
@4149G but the thing is, you donāt have to buy it to use it legally. If you just slap a win10 Iso on to your computer and donāt activate it, nothing will happen except for some small gray text appearing at the bottom right of your screen. You can still use all your programs, and pretty much use Windows as usual.
Yes, you can physically do that. It is still not legal. You are correct in that ānothing will happenā, but that still doesnāt make it morally āokā. At that point you are literally stealing software, no different from downloading songs illegally. Will anything happen to you if you download a song without paying for it? No. Is it legal? No.
If you spent your precious time designing software or creating beautiful songs I imagine you would be upset if you put your product up for sale and instead everyone just stole it.
I see your particular train of thought much to often with young people. I hope you can come to realize that stealing is stealing whether you are stealing a shirt from a store or a piece of software or song.
@4149G Thatās different argument. And you need to understand that morality is different from legality. Sure, maybe using a deactivated Windows 10 iso is immoral, but it isnāt illegal. Windows 10 is designed for you to be able to use it while itās deactivated. Microsoft really doesnāt make money from Windows 10, what they make money from is a user base. Thatās why everyone running 7 or 8 could upgrade for free. They canāt make that much money from just selling an OS, but what they can really make money from is collecting big data from lots of users, and selling that to companies like Google to use in their AdSense campaign. They will literally make more money from you using a deactivated windows than buying windows and not using it. I am against piracy, but this isnāt piracy because this software was distributed for free.
Some sites sell it as low as 25$ for Pro. But if you have an old/broken PC you can use the licence key from that.
You can legally download it from the Microsoft website with a product key here: Windows 7 - Microsoft Lifecycle | Microsoft Learn
I mean this respectfully, but you are factually incorrect. If you actually read the user license agreement (you know, the fine print). It specifically says you must have a license to use the product (legally).
There are other, more complicated reasons, that Microsoft allows you to install the software without licensing it IMMEDIATELY. (Most of it had to do with the massive problems the whole āfreeā update caused) When you click the little button that says āI do not have a license, I will enter it laterāā¦you are obligated to actually do it later!
To reiterate, it is both immoral AND illegal. You donāt have to like that, and you can still use it without paying for it if you choose. I simply want people to know that it is not legal. (Along with teaching 7-12 science and coaching robotics I am also the technology coordinator for our schoolā¦Iām not just making this stuff upā¦I want people to know the facts)
Also, while your distinction between legality and morality could hold water if you were in fact correct, that line of reasoning is still very disturbing to me. You should do (or not do) things in life because of whether it is right or wrong (moral), not just legal.
Edit: I figured you would ask me to prove that the user license agreement says what I said it does:
5. Authorized Software and Activation. You are authorized to use this software only if you are properly licensed and the software has been properly activated with a genuine product key or by other authorized method.
Taken from: New Page
Gotta hate that fine print.
@4149G No, I wasnāt going to ask you to prove it. But yeah, I guess you shouldnāt use windows 10 without activation.
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