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Thread: Goodbye Free SOLIDWORKS

  1. #1
    Eric Page's Avatar
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    Goodbye Free SOLIDWORKS

    I received the following email from EAA this morning:

    Dear Eric,

    Thank you for being an EAA member and for taking advantage of the SOLIDWORKS EAA member benefit. For the last five years, we have been proud to offer SOLIDWORKS Education Premium to EAA members free of charge. The uptake and feedback from members has been tremendous.

    As we roll into the next phase of the SOLIDWORKS and EAA relationship, I wanted to communicate an important change to the program.

    Beginning today, EAA members will have access to 3DEXPERIENCE SOLIDWORKS for Makers at a 50% discount. This offering is replacing SOLIDWORKS Education Premium, which was free of charge for EAA members. This change was not initiated by EAA.

    With this new benefit structure, EAA members will have greater access to support and resources. Now included in this member benefit is:

    • 50% off 3DEXPERIENCE SOLIDWORKS for Makers: The world’s best design tools, now for hobbyists and personal projects.
      Retail: $99/year | EAA Members: $49.50/year
      Roles within this product include:
      • 3D Creator
      • 3D Sculptor
      • 3DEXPERIENCE SOLIDWORKS Professional
      • Collaborative Business Innovator
      • Collaborative Industry Innovator

    • FREE access to SOLIDWORKS training resources ($156 value)
    • FREE access to three SOLIDWORKS certification exams ($198 value)
      • Collaborative Business Innovator
      • Collaborative Industry Innovator
      • 3DEXPERIENCE SOLIDWORKS Associate – Mechanical Design

    • FREE access to quarterly aviation-focused SOLIDWORKS webinars
    • FREE access to the Maker Communities


    Those EAA members currently using SOLIDWORKS Educational Premium will be able to continue using this version until their license expires. Once a member begins using 3DEXPERIENCE SOLIDWORKS for Makers, they will need to renew on an annual basis.

    Here are some helpful links:
    Details about 3DEXPERIENCE SOLIDWORKS for Makers ›

    3DEXPERIENCE SOLIDWORKS for Makers FAQ for EAA Members ›

    Request EAA member-only access to 3DEXPERIENCE SOLIDWORKS for Makers ›

    Thank you for being an EAA member. I hope you continue to find value in EAA’s partnership with SOLIDWORKS, and enjoy 3DEXPERIENCE SOLIDWORKS for Makers. If you have any additional questions or concerns, please let me know.

    Tailwinds,
    David Leiting, EAA Manager, Membership Development
    Figures. Just when I get serious about learning and using the tool, DS wants to put their hand in my pocket…
    Eric Page
    Building: Kitfox 5 Safari | Rotax 912iS | Dynon HDX
    Member: EAA Lifetime, AOPA, ALPA
    ATP: AMEL | Comm: ASEL, Glider | ATCS: CTO
    Map of Landings

  2. #2
    rwanttaja's Avatar
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    Geeze. Now that my skill level has improved from abysmal to awful, this happens.

    Looks like Maker is $50 a year at the EAA rate. Models are stored online, not on one's own PC. Says "neutral file formats can be exported in order to share externally", which sounds like files from the program itself will only be held in the SW cloud. Nothing in the FAQ says that our existing files will be compatible with the new program. In fact, if there *isn't* a way to transfer files from our own PCs to the SW Cloud, there's no way we can get our existing SW files to the program to work with them.

    Wants Windows 10, too.

    So...what are the alternative packages out there? Which ones will accept Solidworks files, or what format should we re-save all of our files before the plug is pulled?

    Ron Wanttaja

  3. #3

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    The new 3D Solidworks experience.. Cloud storage only?

    My main question is: Will the SW Professional part still be able to store your drawings on your PC or just on the Cloud? It sounds like it is just for model storage.
    Although no longer included in the EAA membership. $49 a year for a legit copy is a good deal. I'm sure many of us could care less about the collaboration tools, that is the way everything in design is moving.

    If you can only store to the cloud, that is a deal breaker for me..no internet no accessibility.
    Last edited by gwb; 08-18-2021 at 12:25 PM.

  4. #4
    rwanttaja's Avatar
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    $49 a year for the current program would be a bargain (even though it's currently free). But if it comes with a lack of privacy (cloud storage) and the inability to access our current files or being incompatible with them....well, might as well switch to another tool.

    Ron Wanttaja

  5. #5

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    Fusion 360 is a great cad-cam package but $300+ a year.

  6. #6

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    not to rain on the parade, but this is the general feeling on the Solidworks 3D Maker support page:

    I wouldn't be sure whether the people who can make decisions are actually using the forums themselves. (Or whether they just know the how-it-should-be visions from shiny slides...).
    Think most makers are not working on projects collaboratively and thus cannot make any use of the benefits that the cloud capabilities would buy us, so we just have to suffer from the added instability and complexity. So imho it's mainly the wrong product for the wrong target group.
    E.g. SolidWorks standalone + CAM + perhaps some simulation capabilities (instead of SW Connected + xDesign + xShape + all the PLM tools) would have been MUCH closer to the the actual needs of typical makers and would imho have lead to new users with a positive attitude towards SW - instead of refund requests.
    In hindsight I guess they just wanted beta testers for the cloud solution (that even pay a little instead of having to be paid) while the actual needs of the people wasn't considered too relevant. Which backfires now, as people don't want to beta test but expect to get some use out of what they paid for.
    But let's just hope, perhaps somebody who can make decisions IS reading this and some things get reconsidered. Fingers crossed!


    https://r1132100503382-eu1-3dswym.3dexperience.3ds.com/#community:kKnaKWHGTPC4ut-q1X_9uA

  7. #7

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    "Please note, commercial products and Add-Ins are not supported or included with this version of 3DEXPERIENCE SOLIDWORKS for Makers."

    It'd be good to know what this means precisely and ...

    "Files and data created with your Maker account are digitally watermarked and can only be opened up in another Maker platform. You cannot open up files created with your Maker account within a commercial or academic platform. This digital watermark is added to native 3D file formats, such as .3dxml, .sldprt, .sldasm, and .slddrw."

    Well the spruiked collaboration benefits have just been shot down in flames with my machinist who uses desktop SW.

    https://discover.solidworks.com/make...QmFaNNuZTZhE3I

  8. #8
    Eric Page's Avatar
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    The inability to export files from this “Maker” version to file formats that are readable by production shops with desktop SOLIDWORKS, or any other 3D CAD package is, I suspect, a deal breaker for most EAA members. I need to be able to produce the parts I draw, and that requires readable file exports.

    I also have zero interest in having my files locked in the DS cloud instead of my desktop computer. Would anyone care to bet on what happens to your design files if you miss a $50 renewal, then later join up again? I very much doubt that DS will store your files for long without payment. No way am I paying $50/year, forever, to maintain access to my own work.
    Eric Page
    Building: Kitfox 5 Safari | Rotax 912iS | Dynon HDX
    Member: EAA Lifetime, AOPA, ALPA
    ATP: AMEL | Comm: ASEL, Glider | ATCS: CTO
    Map of Landings

  9. #9
    From the sound of it professional is our desktop version of SOLIDWORKS. We can still export STL and IGES. But the kick in the balls for me is the lack of simulation. That is what I need to improve designs. I already have ANSYS on my laptop but flow sim was way more intuitive sadly it seems like it's time to learn it. We can get that for free. MasterCam offers a home edition that although you can't export GCode you can validate a process (Not helpful for actual production).

  10. #10
    rwanttaja's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Eric Page View Post
    The inability to export files from this “Maker” version to file formats that are readable by production shops with desktop SOLIDWORKS, or any other 3D CAD package is, I suspect, a deal breaker for most EAA members. I need to be able to produce the parts I draw, and that requires readable file exports.
    Ditto. Almost all my SW work is aimed at generating parts to send to my 3D printer.

    Ron Wanttaja

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