Category: SWW13

SolidWorks World 2013: What’s in Orlando, FL besides Walt Disney World Resort?

Dothan, AL is the Peanut Capital of the World.  Salinas, CA is the Lettuce Capital of the World.  Alma, AR is the Spinach Capital of the World.  Though Orlando’s nickname is The City Beautiful, some might call this sprawling area in Florida the World Capital of Amusement Parks.  There are so many, it’s hard to think of other things to do there.

Guess what!  There are other attractions too!

And, other stuff to do too, depending on your interests.

If you are staying an extra few days after the end of SolidWorks World 2013 with or without kids, there’s plenty to do for all sorts of interests in the greater Orlando area.

SolidWorks World 2013 just weeks away

Breakout Sessions

SolidWorks World 2013 is only a weeks away!  It’s shaping up to be a great convention!  The session schedule is filled with great topics.  These are a small sample of what is on the schedule as of January 1, 2013 (schedule is subject to change):

  • Advanced Motion Simulation Techniques in SolidWorks by Shrikant Savant.  Learn about advanced simulation techniques using SolidWorks Motion, such as control design, event-based motion, exporting motion loads to SolidWorks Simulation, etc.
  • Think Differently! — Multibody Techniques in SolidWorks 2013 by Alin Vargatu.  See how SolidWorks 2013 adds new and spectacular tools for creating and managing multibody parts. We can even call them “game changers.”  Once mastered, these multibody techniques will open up surprising possibilities for saving time and shortcuts.
  • IAW ASME Y14.5 – Use It Only if You Know It by Rustin Webster and Jeremy Clark. Explore the right and wrong way of creating drawings (IAW) ASME Y14.5M. Attendees will learn fundamental drawing rules concerning view orientation and position, tolerancing, interpretation, dimensioning, accuracy, simplicity, and clarity.
  • Automate Your Design with Equations by Don Van Zile III and Frank Ruepp.  Get a closer look at equations. SolidWorks 2013 has significant enhancements to equations, and we will learn how these enhanced capabilities can help you to speed up and automate your design process.
  • Fifteen Years of SolidWorks Tips and Tricks by Phil Sluder.  Learn how to use SolidWorks 2013 in the real world in this fast-paced session of tips. These will not be found in the help file, they come from years of learning, teaching, and using the software daily in a small dynamic design environment.
  • Power Surfacing by David Gill.  Demonstrate how to easily create and import organic, free form surfaces in SolidWorks. Demonstrate new Sub-Division surface modeling plugin for SolidWorks.
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Getting ready for the new year

It’s that time of year again. You know, the end.  2012 had a lot of changes in my life which happen to coincide with changes in SolidWorks in various forms for various reasons, some of which I control, much of which has nothing to do with me whatsoever.

I moved from California and from industry to take a job as a Definition Product Manager for SolidWorks drawings In Massachusetts.  As I write this, I’m snowed into my home, or at least my car is.  I can get outside and leave a trail of 2 foot deep holes anytime I want.  I just won’t get to anywhere useful very quickly.  Contrary to popular conceptions, there is snow in California.  The difference is that the snow is limited to the hills and mountains.  Great for skiing and for going about your daily life without weather getting in the way very often at all.  I will say that I prefer to be walking about in light snow rather than light rain.  It’s the blizzards that are annoying.

Surprize, suprize, the world didn’t end 5 days ago.  The next prediction for the end of the world has already been floating around and was being promoted in the weeks leading up to December 21, 2012.  Sir Isaac Newton predicted the end of things to be 2060 based on his interpretation of Bible prophesy.  We cannot get more creditable than that!  Here’s some others: Yup, there’s others.

2012 was particularly busy for me, with all the changes and the fairly new job.  Can you believe that I’ve already been in Massachusetts about 1 and a half years?  Still seems like yesterday.  A very special Thank You goes to my wife for being a good sport and indulging me in this grand change.

I do have a prediction for 2013.  It will continue to be very busy for me.  There’s a lot of cool stuff going on right now.  I’m very proud of my role in SolidWorks 2013, eDrawings for iPad, and eDrawing Pro for iPad; not to mention all the new stuff planned for 2013.  Keep an eye out at SolidWorks World 2013.

SolidWorks World 2013 Top Ten voting is open!

Over 300 Ideas have been submitted for the SolidWorks World 2013 Top Ten list!  It’s now time to vote for your favorite enhancements!  If you are a user with a current subscription, you can vote (even if you aren’t attending SolidWorks World).  The more users that vote, the better the results will be.  Just sign in once you go to this link: SolidWorks World 2013 Top Ten.  Vote for the items that you want to see in SolidWorks and related products.  Be sure to view the entire list.  There are some gems that were submitted early (near the end of the list) that need your attention.

Tip: to see more Ideas at once, set the number of Ideas per page to be 50 (set in the bottom left corner of each page).

Have fun with it.  Feel free to leave comments on Ideas that particularly interest you.  If you vote down on a particular Idea, please leave a comment explaining your vote to help others understand as many perspectives as possible.

 

Guessing SolidWorks World 2013 Special Event

The SolidWorks World 2013 Special Event hasn’t been officially announced on the SolidWorks World website just yet (unless we are going to travel across time and space back to Feb 2012 in San Diego, which would be cool in and of itself). People are making a lot of guesses on the forums. Where do you think it will be? Post you ideas here.

Free Certified SolidWorks Associate or Profession exam when you attend SolidWorks World 2013

There are a lot of extra benefits to attendees of SolidWorks World 2013.  One benefit is that when you sign up to attend, you are given the option to take a free SolidWorks certification exam at SolidWorks World.  My advice is that if you do not yet have certification, take the exam!  It’s free with your full conference pass!

There are two entry points for certification on SolidWorks:

  • SolidWorks Certified Associate (CSWA) which covers basic SolidWorks skills.
  • SolidWorks Certified Professional (CSWP) which covers deeper understanding of SolidWorks skills.  This certificate is required to qualify for advanced exam modules as you work your way to earning CSWE.

I’ve heard that some people shy away from taking the exam because they are not confident in their skills.   I’ve heard this from some well experienced individuals.  If you have neither certification and are nervous about the exam, then attempt the CSWA exam.  If you are already a CSWA or have been in industry for awhile, than take the CSWP-CORE exam.   Preparation is still very important in either case.  There are plenty of materials that are available to help get yourself read for the exam.  There’s even a sample exam with which you can practice!

The exams are held on Sunday, January 20, 2013, the afternoon prior to the official start of SolidWorks World 2013 at Disney’s Swan and Dolphin Resort.