yang686526

adobe 3d
how many of you have seen the new 3d pdf's that adobe has?
i've been working with the trial version and i am absolutely floored with this. it has the potential to do away with all the mcad-specific viewers...
the big question is how to integrate the 3d views into drawings in the "most correct" way...
we aren't looking into this solution from adobe. we've had a lot of success with edrawings. i would be interested to hear about others that have implemented this from adobe though.
art without engineering is dreaming; engineering without art is calculating.
steven k. roberts, technomad
it seems to be adobe trying to give pdf even more functionality. as opposed to edrawings which is solidworks trying to do acrobat's job for it. really a standards thing, like beta v. vhs - whichever wins will just be 'the way'.
we haven't used the adobe version yet, but i also only use edrawings to glance at things because it's quicker than opening swx.
for supplier feedback it's a pdf drawing and an igs file. if it's something really complicated i'll throw together a word document with snapshots from the model. (which i imagine is the point of the adobe 3d pdf format)
i see the two programs as complimenting each other rather than being in competition. edrawings as a manufacturing package, adobe 3d as a presentations package.
adobe 3d is a superset of acrobat and allows all the usual functions like markup, etc. in addition, it also allows for measuring, sectioning, etc - all from a free reader.
i think it has the potential to replace edrawings, etc from all the regular suspects in mcad. with the number of big name mcad folks who were involved in creating adobe 3d, i think that may be what is planned.
so, my humble prediction is this... two years or so and no more mcad-specific viewers. all u3d stuff.
if you can section and measure and rotate, what more do you need to distinguish between a manufacturing and a presentation package? i still think that one package will win out, especially if they both have identical functionality, all comes down to the business model i guess.