FreeCAD version 1.0 released

[Russell EberhardtParticipant @russelleberhardt48058]

After about twenty years of development the long awaited version 1.0 of FreeCAD was released two days ago.

There have been many improvements such as the addition of a built in Assembly workbench, the lack of which has been a sticking point for some. Dimensioning has been made much more intuitive and there are numerous improvements to Part Design.  For more advanced users The path workbench has become the CAM workbench with lots of improvements.

It is installed on your computer whether Windows, MAC, or Linux and all your work is kept on your computer so no problems with not having control of your work and it is really fast, no worries of slow internet.  Once I had installed it on my computer It is up and ready to go 4 seconds after clicking on the icon on the screen.

If you want to have a play with it the download page is https://www.freecad.org/downloads.php

MangJelly Solutions already have a number of Youtube tutorials available for it.

Russell

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

Thanks for that Russell …. I must have a look before deciding whether to buy another year of QCAD updates !

MichaelG.

[SillyOldDufferModerator @sillyoldduffer]

Thanks Russell,  happened fire FreeCAD up yesterday and thought something had mangled my start page.  Worked OK though.  Didn’t notice it was Version 1.0.  Will have to explore!

For those not in the know, version numbers less than 1.0 indicate software is still in development, which FreeCAD has been in since I wore shorts and a school cap, making it annoyingly unstable at times.   Reaching Version 1.0 is an important milestone – production code, should be a step more polished and reliable, hurrah.

Dave

[Michael Gilligan]

On Michael Gilligan Said:

Thanks for that Russell …. I must have a look before deciding whether to buy another year of QCAD updates !

MichaelG.

Ah! QCAD.  I installed that years ago when i wanted to read some old Autocad DWG files when I had lost access to Autocad.  I didn’t know it was still going.

Russell

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

I have this version, running on an M1 Mac Mini

https://qcad.org/en/products/qcad-cam

MichaelG.

[FulmenParticipant @fulmen]

I’m raised on the large commercial software. First Autocad, then Solid Edge, Solidworks, Inventor and now Fusion 360. I remember trying FreeCad in the past and either hating it or not making heads or tails of it, same as with all the free/open alternatives. Will 1.0 change that impression?

I’d really like to go open source but I’m pretty locked into the features and workflow that the big boys generally use.

[IanTParticipant @iant]

Still running Solid Edge CE here.

I’ve just updated my Win 11 system to SE2024 (already had it on my Win 10 one) – so I effectively have another three year academic license for free. Been using SE for about 5 years now and still learning but it is my go-to CAD for both 2D & 3D drawing/design.

Regards,

 

IanT

[Fulmen]

On Fulmen Said:

Will 1.0 change that impression?

 

I’d really like to go open source but I’m pretty locked into the features and workflow that the big boys generally use.

No. It won’t.

If you approach FreeCAD with the attitude that the commercial way is the only and best way to achieve something, you will be and should expect to be disappointed.

Only you can decide whether the cost decrement of using FreeCAD is worth the effort of learning a new way to operate. The easy way is to continue paying your annual subscription; the alternative is to invest that cost (converted to X number of hours x Y pounds per hour) learning something new.

The curricular progression of a machine shop apprenticeship is a good model for learning FreeCAD. Look at how many hours would be spent at a bench learning learning to mark out or learning to hacksaw. And yet because it is software, people expect to bypass or shortcut this and then criticise the software when they falter. When your steel hexagon does not fit the hexagonal hole in any of the six positions, do you blame the file?

[DC31k]

On DC31k Said:

It won’t.

Thanks, that saves me a bit of time. It’s not that I’m married to commercial software but it’s what I have used for 20 years or so. And with Fusion360 being free of charge (at least for now) there aren’t any economic incentives to change.

[IanTParticipant @iant]

There is no “cost decrement” advantage to FreeCAD whilst free-to-use versions of Fusion, Solid Edge or similar are available.

At the time I made the choice to learn Solid Edge, FreeCAD didn’t seem mature enough to invest my time in it. It may well be better now but I am also five years further into Solid Edge (with no regrets). My latest 2024 upgrade gives me another three years (free) use of the full Academic licence and some new features. I have no reason to change to FreeCAD as Solid Edge meets my current needs and is clearly capable of more should I need it.

The reality is that any serious 3D CAD will take time to learn and (once made) that time invested acts as a serious deterent to move away from that particular CAD product. If the experience is positive, it also tends to generate ‘brand’ loyalty.  🙂

Regards,

 

IanT

 

 

 

[IanT]

On IanT Said:

My latest 2024 upgrade gives me another three years (free) use of the full Academic licence

With respect, your statement is not made from a point of neutrality. Not everyone will qualify for the Academic license, as you have. That is a barrier to entry that could be more difficult to overcome than the rather more simple one of paying some money for Alibre.

The “whilst” in your first sentence is also doing a lot of work that is not addressed. It acknowledges that the situation is not static. To make a rounded argument on the issue, you need to discuss the risks and consequences of those licenses changing and, for example, show some facts concerning how the Fusion license has altered over time.

The image of a frog in a pot of water over a stove might help you organise your thoughts on this.

I could wax lyrical about the minimal cost of public transport in London, but if I am doing so as a Freedom Card holder, I am not in an unbiased position.

[IanTParticipant @iant]

I am using the free to download ‘Community Edition’ which when you look at the “About Solid edge” box, reveals itself to be a locally installed version of the ‘Academic’ module. Hence my reference to it being the ‘Academic’ version.

I am long retired and my Student days ended beforte IBM announced the System/360 and no one had evem dreamed of Computer Aided Design. However, I did spend the second half of my working life in the Computer Industry, finally retiring from a large multinational software company. So I do have some understanding of why companies might like to attract ‘Users’ – that might one day become ‘Customers’. It’s a win-win situation….

So whilst there is some risk in using a “Free” commercial CAD product, I am happy to take that risk for the benefit of using a product that is clearly good enough to be used commercially.

 

Regards,

 

IanT

 

 

 

 

[IanT]

On IanT Said:

At the time I made the choice to learn Solid Edge, FreeCAD didn’t seem mature enough to invest my time in it. It may well be better now but I am also five years further into Solid Edge (with no regrets).

Regards,

 

IanT

 

 

 

I use both FreeCAD and Solid Edge. I find that the best choice does depend on what I am trying to do. For instance, FreeCAD has a very intuitive Gear workbench allowing me to design and print gears for all my lathes. And, of course, gears for other uses. I cannot seem to do the same in Solid Edge. There is a gear assembly , but unless I feed in the right power and torque settings , Solid edge often fails to create any gear train. And even when it does, it chooses the size and dimensions of the gears and  I cannot semm to be able to easily edit them.  I have also found it easier to produce unusual threads in FreeCAD.

Of course this is probably all down to familiarity with the software and  I am sure more experienced Solid Edge users find the opposite, that these tasks are very simple in Solid Edge but for me I find FreeCAD much easier to use.

[Michael Gilligan]

On Michael Gilligan Said:

Thanks for that Russell …. I must have a look before deciding whether to buy another year of QCAD updates !

MichaelG.

Freecad isn’t a substitute for QCAD, Michael, it’s a 3d modeller, and you can generate conventional 2d drawings from it if required, but you have to build the 3d model first. This may or may not be what you want.

A big advantage of the 3d approach is that it is parametric – if you decide, say, to change a dimension for something, then that change propagates through the model, rather than you having to manually alter everything that you have added that depends on that dimension (this is on top of more obvious advantages, like being able to see what the finished item looks like in the round, check for intersections, look for impossible-to-make features, etc.).

A disadvantage is that this may be an unnecessarily long-winded process for simple parts.

Note, the Sketcher workbench can’t (as far as I know) be used to generate a 2d drawing directly – it’s a preliminary stage in the modelling process. OnShape (and perhaps others) can, so you could use it solely for 2d drawing, but with the advantage of the parametric approach.

I have an old version of QCAD (I haven’t bothered with the updates – it’s OK for what I want), but I mostly use Onshape  – FreeCad suffers from the common open source problems of incoherent workflow design and patchy documentation, but it is improving, and well worth giving a try to see if it suits you.

[Andy Stopford]

On Andy Stopford Said:

On Michael Gilligan Said:

Thanks for that Russell …. I must have a look before deciding whether to buy another year of QCAD updates !

MichaelG.

Freecad isn’t a substitute for QCAD, Michael, it’s a 3d modeller, and you can generate conventional 2d drawings from it if required, but you have to build the 3d model first. This may or may not be what you want. […]

Yes, I am [and was] aware of that, thanks Andy

The logic of my comment seemed obvious to me, but perhaps it was not.

I have just installed the ‘Mac Silicon’ version of FreeCAD [which was a delightfully simple job] and am looking forward to trying it.

First amusing feature was the Dolly icon for Clone 🙂

MichaelG.

[SillyOldDufferModerator @sillyoldduffer]

If I may comment as a QCAD and FreeCAD and SE user, who abandoned F360!

QCAD reminds me of an early 2D-CAD package called AutoSketch, which had been bought from an independent by AutoCAD.  Provides all the basic 2D technical drawing functionality I’ve ever needed and is far simpler to learn  than AutoCAD.  Like an electronic drawing board, so straightforward and not festooned with bells and whistles.  My first choice for 2D plans, better than anything else I’ve tried.   Although the free community edition does everything, I recommend paying for QCAD-Pro because it has a useful productivity feature.   The product is inexpensive and the license allows multiple copies on Windows, Linux and Apple.

FreeCAD has a 2D workbench, but it supports transition to 3D, which I find confusing and it’s 2D capability is inferior to QCAD.   I use FreeCAD on Linux to 3D model single parts, typically for 3D printing, and it means I don’t have to switch to nasty old Microsoft!   Works well using the Parts and Part Design Workbenches.   FreeCAD Part Design has a similar workflow to F360, but F360 goes considerably further by supporting complex assemblies and many other goodies. As does SE, except the workflow is a bit different.

Haven’t investigated FreeCAD 1.0s Assembly Workbench yet.  Expecting it to be similar to earlier attempts, and to not support moving joints yet. I shall be amazed if it competes head on with F360 or SE at this stage.  Later it will.

Not a bad place to start because FreeCAD is free, no licence restrictions.   Though early versions were a shade too buggy for comfort, not been an issue for a few years.  Main off-putting characteristic is FreeCAD comes with a plethora of Workbenches liable to confuse beginners.   Which one, what the h*ll are they? Mechanical Engineers should go straight to Parts Design.

Ian T introduced me to SE, and it is now my main CAD solution.  Does assemblies with moving parts and much more.  Not as easy to learn as F360, partly because SE has two modes.   Ordered mode is akin to how FreeCAD & F360 build models: synchronous is more fluid, and – though I prefer it – it was more challenging to learn.  Had to put many hours effort in and there’s still a lot to learn.  Nonetheless very happy with SE.

I didn’t dump F360 because it was technically inferior.   It’s more modern than SE.  At the time AutoCAD were using the Community to help debug it and identify desirable new features – jolly good idea!  Whilst still a steep learning curve Fusion’s road is less bumpy.  A major negative for me is that F360 is cloud based.  Although it can run stand-alone for about a month, it has to phone home regularly, and when it does AutoCAD can change the licence.  When they did so, and suddenly made it necessary for users to pay for certain features, I decided to walk away.  Though I didn’t need the removed features, and F360 still does all I need, I left before committing a lot of work to it in case AutoCAD did it again.  It’s allowed: AutoCAD exist to profit from selling CAD, not to shower me with freebies.

SE haven’t pulled a similar trick: their reason for offering a community edition is almost certainly to create a pool of trained users whose availability encourages employers to buy the commercial version.

The only difference I’ve found between SE’s Community and Commercial versions is that they cannot exchange models.   Not a problem for hobbyists.  The commercial version also comes with support and in-year updates and bug fixes.   Community users can only upgrade to the next version, so far annually.   Singleton hobbyists are unlikely to need support.

Dave

 

[Lee CooperParticipant @leecooper46013]

FreeCAD 1.0 is an impressive achievement for an open source piece of software of this complexity – massive step up from previous versions. One feature they’ve now incorporated is the ability to extrude multiple shapes independently from a single drawing which is a massive quality of life upgrade.

It certainly still has its quirks but for me personally it’s worth the investment of time to use something that will always be available for free. It’s not going anywhere anytime soon since they’ve got about a year’s worth of pull requests to get through after 1.0.

[SillyOldDuffer]

On SillyOldDuffer Sai

…

Haven’t investigated FreeCAD 1.0s Assembly Workbench yet.  Expecting it to be similar to earlier attempts, and to not support moving joints yet. I shall be amazed if it competes head on with F360 or SE at this stage.  Later it will.

…

 

I think the new assembly feature is the same as in the realthunder branch of FreeCAD. If so, it does support all the kinematic constraint solver stuff.

I’ve tried realthunders’s version quite extensively, and on the whole it works pretty well, albeit with a more convoluted workflow than the commercial offerings. It does have some problems where a minor change to a part can break everything, and it’s very difficult to track down why. This may have been fixed in the 1.0 release – it’s probably related to the Topological Naming Problem (https://wiki.freecad.org/Topological_naming_problem) and they have been working on fixing it.

 

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