progeCAD 2022 Milestone AutoCAD Alternative Released on CADDIT.net

 Sydney, Australia 3 January - CADDIT Announces the release of progeCAD 2022 on CADDIT.net for Australia and New Zealand. progeCAD is an advanced general-purpose 2D and 3D CAD package with similar commands to AutoCAD but with perpetual license and lower price. CADDIT has been supporting progeCAD users in the Australia/New Zealand region for almost fifteen years.  Now, after months of thorough testing, the CADDIT team is happy to announce their official release of this milestone product version.

progeCAD 2022 from CADDIT Australia

progeCAD 2022 from CADDIT Australia offers a dramatic feature update over previous versions. 2D Drafting now includes a fully-implemented and hugely improved interface for drawing text and data TABLES, including improved cell support and a full list of FIELD types. Data cell selection now seamlessly brings up a full text editor. DIESEL fields are now properly implemented and real-time spell checking has been added for text. MTEXT likewise has new support for clear and strike-through formatting, as well as better symbol- sub- and super-script support. progeCAD 2022 now offers the much-anticipated SHEET SET MANAGER displays, publishes and manages sheet sets, a named collection of drawing sheets. Each sheet in a Sheet Set is a layout in a drawing (DWG) file.

A new geometry solver improves reliability for almost all drawing commands like Trim, Chamfer, Fillet, Hatch etc. General performance improvements have also been made to FILE open speeds, REGEN, SAVE, AUTOSAVE as well as the end user's experience in OSNAP, LAYOUT and many other commands. General interface improvements have been made to the program's START page, VIEW MANAGER, SETTINGS window, CUI customization dialog and the ARRAY command. Feature GROUP handling is now offered in progeCAD via the new GROUPEDIT command, complete with visualization grips. Several new tools will save estimators time in progeCAD, such as the new TOTALAREA command which gives the sum total of multiple selected closed entities, the new ATTSYNC command which updates attributes for all block instances (useful for updating material lists) or IMPOINT which automates the creation of new points, polylines or splines from coordinates in a text file. TPNAVIGATE has also been added for palette navigation, which can be helpful for users who create or use multiple tool palettes.

New TABLE and FIELD interface for progeCAD 2022

progeCAD 2022 now supports all new Spacemouse and CADmouse models from 3DConnexion. This can be an absolute boon for end users doing a lot of 3D design in progeCAD. 3D Solids now fully support the use of GRIPS for direct editing. a new 3D STEEL library for quick 3D weldment design in progeCAD has also been added.

A free no-obligation thirty-day trial of progeCAD 2022 can be downloaded directly from CADDIT Australia here, even if you have downloaded progeCAD before. Due to the significant improvements made to this software for this version, we need to repeat our usual call for existing users to strongly consider a low cost upgrade to progeCAD 2022 stand-alone, USB or Network licenses. We plan to publish several more in-depth reviews of the important new features in progeCAD 2022. Please contact CADDIT at their Sydney office with any questions.

progeCAD 2022 Coming Soon: Free Upgrade Offer Begins

 

Sydney, Australia 7 September - CADDIT announces the free upgrade to 2022 version for all progeCAD purchases on or after 01 September 2021. progeCAD is a powerful general-purpose 2D and 3D CAD solution very similar to AutoCAD, with additional tools and a lower cost. With progeCAD, designers have a professional yet affordable perpetual-license alternative to high-cost AutoCAD rental fees, with the ability to create, read, write and edit native AutoCAD DWG and DXF files fluently using and interface very similar to what AutoCAD already know. Based in Sydney, CADDIT has been supporting progeCAD users in Australia, New Zealand and surrounds for more than twelve years.

 

Much of what will come in 2022 is still confidential but we have several detail which we can pass on now. Significant effort has been invested in making progeCAD 2022 a truly cutting-edge release that is stable and reliable from initial release. Many improvements are still confidential during an internal testing period. What we can expect are new features for the AEC industry with further improvements to BIM and REVIT compatibility, as well.  Many features are expected to be completely re-worked or refactored, such as the MTEXT and TABLE elements. Pursuant to last year's improvements in hardware acceleration, this year progeCAD 2022 release is expected to offer many new improvements in 3D view handling, modelling and new 3D content specifically targeted to architects and structural engineers working in steel. GUI customization will also be improved with several new commands.

 

A detailed list of these new features will be released soon, but we are delighted to share what we know now and begin offering the free upgrade to all customers. progeCAD 2021 can be downloaded now as a free 30-day trial. As in previous years, all new licenses as well as upgrades for existing licenses, including single stand-alone, floating NLM network, USB and total office licenses, purchased on or after 1 September 2021 will be entitled to the same for progeCAD 2022 upon our announcement. Multiple purchases will qualify for multiple upgrades. progeCAD Upgrades will also qualify, again as in the past. As in past, eligible users with a USB upgrade will usually not be required to replace their hardware dongle for the next version. We are really excited about the upcoming new release and making those upgrade entitlements available well in advance. So watch this space over the next weeks as more details and images become available. Contact CADDIT Australia for more information about progeCAD or this upgrade offer.

Civil Survey DTM Features Introduced in progeCAD 2019

Sydney, Australia  09 May 2017 - CADDIT Software announces the second major class of new features to ship with their upcoming progeCAD 2019 release. progeCAD is an affordable, robust general purpose CAD system used by designers, architects, builders, engineers, civil survey and government planning offices for over ten yeas in Australia and New Zealand. progeCAD requires little or no learning curve for AutoCAD users because of its compatible interface and command structure.

Along with thousands of general-purpose CAD drafting features such as AutoCAD-similar drawing commands, full native DWG format read-write, PDF import and export, direct 3D modelling and realtime and advanced rendering, extensive block libraries, 3D architecture, tables and data extraction, new 3D model translation from STEP IGES and STL-mesh models as well as countless other tools, progeCAD 2019 will introduce a new suite of civil survey functions.

This new suite of DTM functions offer civil engineers, landscapers, environmentalists, builders and other land-development professionals an easy-to-use set of basic land survey tools for generating terrain profiles and slope lines. Some of the new civil survey commands include:

AUTOSECTION - generate full section detail views with full annotation from drawing contours
SECTIONLINE - create a profile path to be used by AUTOSECTION
CONVERTLCURVES - convert SPLINEs into 3DPOLY usable by AUTOSECTION
SLOPEBLOCK - generate normal or "slope" lines along a single polyline
SLOPEAREA - generate normal or "slope" lines between two polylines

To gererate a new civil section view simply create a new SECTIONLINE through your drawing like so and then select it using AUTOSECTION:

progeCAD 2019 can create DTM section views directly from LINE, 3DPOLY and 3DFACE. SPLINE need to be converted into 3D polylines first, using the "convert level curves" tool (CONVERTLCURVES)

 AUTOSECTION begins with a comprehensive dialog which allows you to customize your new DTM section view or click OK to accept prior defaults. After clicking OK your terrain section view will be generated like so:

 CADDIT is pleased to announce that starting 15 April 2018 all new and upgrade progeCAD 2018 orders from that day will be entitled to a free upgrade to 2019 upon its release on CADDIT.net. For a free 30-day trial of the current 2018 release of progeCAD or for more information about affordable CAD software, visit our website at www.caddit.net.

CAD File Translation Improvements in progeCAD 2019 Preview

Sydney, Australia  01 May 2017 - The CADDIT Team is happy to share an exciting announcement and first look at the upcoming major release of our progeCAD 2019 CAD Software. progeCAD is an affordable, robust general purpose CAD system used by designers, architects, builders, engineers, civil survey and government planning offices for over ten yeas in Australia and New Zealand. progeCAD requires little or no learning curve for AutoCAD users because of its compatible interface and command structure.

Now beginning with progeCAD 2019, users will have access to industry 3D CAD file support for STEP, IGES, and many other popular CAD file formats. Additional new tools include bi-direction (read and write) support for popular 3D modelling formats from Maya (.RTG), 3D Studio(.3DS), Alias(.OBJ), LightWave, STL and other formats. Along with existing native file support for over a dozen others like AutoCAD .DWG and .DXF, Adobe PDF, ACIS SAT, Microsation .DGN, LIDAR (.LAS and .XYZ), ESRI .SHP and more, progeCAD becomes a powerful CAD "swiss-army-knife" useful for almost any graphics professional. To put this another way, simply compare the import file format support from progeCAD 2019 with that of the previous release as shown below here:



Extended (DOUBLE) CAD formats supported in 2019.

Basic CAD file import offered in progeCAD 2018

progeCAD's new CAD import features now mean that architects can now directly insert mechanical parts into their design from programs like SolidWorks, Inventor and CATIA which have been saved in either a STEP or IGES neutral exchange format. This also means that graphic designers can insert mesh models from their favourite animation package like MAYA or 3D Studio. With progeCAD's powerful new 3D rendering feature, beautiful 3D graphics can then be generated combining files from all of these different formats, or converted into new formats for use by other 3D software..

In this "round-robin" CAD translation stress-test, a twenty-year old IGES file was imported into progeCAD 2019 as ACIS 3D surfaces and exported again as a neutral 3D STEP model which was read by another CAD system without any noticeable data loss.  



Another exciting CAD data feature coming in progeCAD 2019 is the new BIM IFC underlay support. This means progeCAD can now incorporate industry-standard IFC data as a visual underlay to your active drawing, as shown in the the image below..

 



IFC Underlay support in progeCAD 2019 from BIM



 

progeCAD 2019 will also add enhancements and new functionality in other areas, adding new value for CAD designers of all disciplines which we will discuss further. CADDIT is also happy to announce that starting 15 April 2018 all new and upgrade progeCAD 2018 orders from that day will be entitled to a free upgrade to 2019 upon its release on CADDIT.net. For a free 30-day trial of the current 2018 release of progeCAD or for more information about affordable CAD software, visit our website at www.caddit.net.



Alibre Returns with New Licensing and Free Upgrade Promotion

Sydney, Australia  07 August 2017 - CADDIT and Alibre LLC together announce a new future for Alibre users. Alibre, LLC based in Houston Texas USA recently acquired all rights to any materials from 3D SYSTEMS related to Geomagic Design. Since then a new product and licensing has been in development, which we can now announce release for on the CADDIT.net website. Alibre Design will continue its focus on affordable 3D parametric mechanical design for the Windows platform. Alibre Design is an intuitive, easy-to-use mechanical design system offering advanced features like Keyshot 3D rendering and optional FEA analysis.

New licensing. Alibre will move away from Flexera to now use a similar online activation system from Nalpeiron, along with several updated license options. Alibre will not offer a USB dongle option. Geomagic Design users with a USB license from 3D Systems will be offered a Nalpeiron "offline" license instead (this license type uses an email activation, see http://docs.nalpeiron.com/display/NND/NSL+V10+-+Offline+Activation ) There will continue to be a floating network license option. At this time, Nalpeiron licensing is stored in local user profile, within C:\Users\\AppData\Local\Alibre Design. To reset the activation of Alibre Design, simply delete all file inside this directory. Otherwise, moving Alibre licenses will operate in a similar way as they did with Geomagic Design.

Free upgrade. Because Alibre's Nalpeiron-based licensing is not compatible with 3D System's Flexera system, everyone with a valid Geomagic Design license from October 2015 and later will be moved to Alibre 2017 without charge, see https://www.alibre.com/alibre-llc-faq/. Essentially this consitutes a free upgrade for everyone having a valid Geomagic Design license from October 2015 or later. Previous Geomagic Design users who were still on the original Alibre CRM licensing system (e.g. Alibre 2013) will not be upgraded for free. In such case a valid Alibre Design subscription will be required for the user to move to the new licensing system. More information will be following soon.

CADDIT is happy to continue offering Alibre Design as a cost-effective 3D mechanical design option and we look forward to the upcoming releases under new management of the software. We ask users to be patient during the transition period. Further questions can be directed to CADDIT via our CONTACT US page: https://www.caddit.net/store/index.php?main_page=contact_us

CADDIT Launches Powerful Low-Cost 3D CAD Software ZW3D with Time Limited Discount Offer

Sydney, Australia 03 April 2017 - CADDIT announces an exciting new 3D CAD product line agreement with ZWSOFT to sell and support all ZW3D products Australia-wide. ZW3D offers mechanical designers, engineers, machinists and manufacturers a powerful suite of integrated CAD and CAM software for parametric 3D part and assembly design, hybrid freeform and direct editing, sheet metal nesting and weldment construction, 3D publishing and printing, prismatic and multi-axis machining, lathe turning and more. ZW3D also delivers powerful 3D CAD translation tools for importing SolidWorks, Solid Edge, Siemens NX, JT, PTC Creo, Autodesk Inventor, STEP, ACIS .sat and .sab, IGES and many more formats from even very recent versions of the software. ZW3D supplies thousands of businesses globally, including Yamaha Motor Co, Bridgestone, Johnson Controls, Baosteel and many others.

ZW3D uses specially written state-of-the-art modeling technology, originally developed by VX Corporation of Melbourne FL USA, with software R&D still located in Florida to this day. The user interface includes a modern ribbon-based UI with visual help cues and prompts. Traditional bottom-up assembly design is offered in every version of the software without limitation. Standard and higher versions also offer advanced assembly options, top-down down and animation. There are also two CAM-specialist versions for CNC machinists at reduced cost in CAD features. CADDIT also announces a special price release of ZW3D 2017 for the Australian small business user called "Workshop". ZW3D Workshop by CADDIT edition will include all features of ZW3D Premium minus the costly electrode and mould tooling libraries, to be made available at a much lower cost.

To help introduce this high-value 3D CAD and CAM software option to small business users in Australia, CADDIT has arranged for significantly reduced pricing on both software, support and one-year upgrade options. Level one support for ZW3D will be local. A series of free comprehensive one-day training events are planned around Australia, based on number of requests. The first event is planned in Parramatta NSW near our offices. Frequent news and updates will be posted over the next few weeks on  our websites. For immediate contact or general ZW3D inquiries, CADDIT.net will be the nation-wide software partner which can be contacted HERE.

progeCAD 2018 Preview and Free Upgrade Offer

Sydney, Australia 15 March 2017 - CADDIT announces the free upgrade to 2018 version for all progeCAD purchases on or after 15 March 2017. Selected users have already started second-stage internal testing with the new version with very positive results. progeCAD is a general-purpose 2D and 3D CAD package which offers very similar work environment as AutoCAD, at a much lower price. With progeCAD, designers have a professional yet affordable perpetual-license alternative to high-cost AutoCAD rental fees, with the ability to create, read, write and edit native AutoCAD DWG and DXF files fluently using and interface very similar to what AutoCAD already know. Based in Sydney, CADDIT has been supporting progeCAD users in Australia, New Zealand and surrounds for more than ten years.

progeCAD 2018 will deliver major refinements for many progeCAD features. Currently these improvements introduce a brand new 3D rendering system from Artisan, completely re-written MTEXT, REFEDIT, RENAME and ARRAY command interfaces. 3D scan data will now be directly accepted from several more formats including .ply and vanilla .xyz files. Existing functionality will also be greatly expanded in a number of key areas, such as Workspace management, fading controls for XREF, REFEDIT and LAYERS. New commands VPMAX, VPMIN, TEXTFRONT and more. progeCAD 2018 will also add support for many new system variables like DIMLAYER, HPLAYER, CACHEFILES and HPTRASPARENCY usage. progeCAD will now support reading many more file formats from Microstation (.dgnlib,.rdl,.cel) and can snap to UNDERLAY entities. progeCAD 2017 was the first version to offer the new RIBBON interface. The progeCAD 2018 interface will add controls for Toolbar locking, Contextual Ribbons and a PathWatcher for control of a folder for automatic dwg opening. As usual, this is only a cross-sampling of the numerous new features and optimizations coming in our 2018 version.

To qualify for this free upgrade offer, simply order any quantity progeCAD 2017 (English) new or upgrade licenses from CADDIT.net on or after 15 March 2017. Multiple purchases will qualify for multiple upgrades. progeCAD 2017 Upgrades from older versions also qualify under this promotion, including all new progeCAD USB and Network license upgrades, essentially resulting in two version upgrades for the price of one. Note that eligible users with a USB upgrade will not be required to replace their hardware dongle for the next version. Within a few weeks after the 2018 release announcement, eligible users will be issued upgrades with a progeCAD 2018 serial key and an updated download link for the software, similar to how has been done in past years. Promotion does not apply to OEM repackaging or to languages other than English. This promotion will last until the day that progeCAD 2018 release is announced on this website.

To try progeCAD free for a month, progeCAD 2017 can be downloaded HERE. For questions about this free 2018 promotion please contact CADDIT here.

progeCAD 2017 Graphics and GPU Review

Sydney, Australia 05 October 2016 - With the recently available progeCAD 17.0.8 service pack, the CADDIT team has revisited last year's review of CAD hardware. As stated in the update announcement on CADDIT.net, progeCAD is a low-cost general-purpose 2D/3D CAD system with very tight compatibility to recent versions of AutoCAD. Since the landmark progeCAD 2013 release several years ago, our development team has been spending considerable effort to improve our use of OpenGL hardware acceleration commonly employed by CAD software  like AutoCAD and Geomagic. OpenGL is essentially a machine language for sending commands like draw and shade directly (in a process sometimes called "direct rendering") to an OpenGL-speaking graphics card for display on the screen. These commands are often wrapped inside other languages like C++ for callable use by developers to tie into their software - like CAD, games, many video players and other highly-demanding graphics applications.


The inner workings of OpenGL per diagram from Wikipedia

This year we began introducing two significant hardware assets for graphics testing in our labs: Dell XPS Laptops (15 inch series) with Nvidia GTX 960M series GPU, now with a "game-ready" driver update version 372.90 (free update from NVidia.com).  I really like the XPS and have taken one for use myself. Other legacy systems tested are an HP Pavilion running Windows 7 on a Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 2,4GHZ processor with Nvidia Quadro K1200 GPU and a new Asus with Intel i7-3770 @ 3.40 GHz Windows 10 PRO x64 / Nvidia GeForce GTX 550 Ti (working at 1680x1050) - both with updated Nvidia v372 driver updates as well.

This year we again employed the FRAPS graphics utility for our performance analysis. Combined with results from the previous year, average speed on all systems all measured between 20 and 30 refresh frames per second (FPS) with the shaded ISS 3D test drawing, with the Dell XPS and HP Pavilion with the Quadro having slightly higher (smoother) graphics performance than the others. Results were similar when loaded with mid-sized 2D drawings roughly 12 - 14 megabytes in size, with the new progeCAD 2017 64 bit handling of larger files somewhat better than last year's version.

Early year observations of regular crashing on systems using Nvidia Quadro graphics seem to all but completely disappear with updated Quadro drivers from nvidia.com and installing the latest progeCAD update from caddit.net. We also notice the same improvement when updating the Intel business graphics drivers on systems like the Surface Pro 3. Unfortunately we were unable to make similar comparisons with legacy systems equipped with ATI 7470M Radeon graphics because the new ATI driver sent an incompatible signal voltage to the LED backlighting of the screen.  Based on last year's problems and comparatively poor performance of the ATI card, we really didn't feel like buying another one. We have heard remarks that OpenGL support on the ATI FireGL series is somewhat better, however.

In conclusion, we repeat last year's recommendation of intel CPU / NVidia graphics for progeCAD when possible. Using the latest progeCAD service pack (currently 17.0.8) and recent Nvidia device drivers is highly recommended for best results, although users should double check any possible incompatibility that newer drivers might have with their own hardware.

progeCAD 2017 Released on CADDIT.net

Sydney, Australia  18 May 2016 - CADDIT announces the release of progeCAD 2017 Professional on the website for immediate download. progeCAD is a flexible general-purpose CAD drawing program that is used in a wide range of industries, including architecture and building, fabrication, landscaping, strata management, mechanical design and many more. progeCAD is the long-standing low cost alternative for AutoCAD® and AutoCAD LT® software in Australia. progeCAD 2017 still offers perpetual licenses (no rental, no annual subscription is required) and is tested for compatibility on all major Windows platforms from 7 through Windows 10, both 64-bit and 32-bit versions. 2016 marks the tenth year of progeCAD availability in Australia and New Zealand and the ninth year of their partnership with CADDIT in the region. It is fitting that for such an occasion we offer the most significant release of the program.

progeCAD has long offered low-cost CAD software with the purpose of being as highly compatible with AutoCAD as possible. progeCAD has long offered advanced AutoCAD-like functionality in the areas of 2D and 3D CAD drawing using similar commands, icons and user interface. progeCAD supports all AutoCAD-native file format DWG versions from the newest 2017 version to very old. This year progeCAD will offer a native x64 (64-bit) environment while continuing to support x86 (32-bit) processors as well. Significantly, progeCAD 2017 offers a 1.5x - 3x performance improvement through use of multicore CPU processing as well. CADDIT now offers trial users the choice between 64-bit or 32-bit CAD download versions. All progeCAD 2017 licenses from CADDIT, including single stand-alone, mobile USB and company network licenses, will now conveniently work with either the 32-bit or 64-bit versions.


progeCAD 2017 x64 still offers 32-bit version on CADDIT

progeCAD 2017 offers users other new choices as well. Users can select, on first-time start up of the software, to use either the new ribbon-UI based interface or the legacy toolbar environment. Additionally, progeCAD 2017 now supports the newer AutoCAD® CUI user interface customization format. progeCAD 2017 offers better support for Microstation users with improved .DGN file import and underlay support through use of updated libraries. progeCAD also works with more AutoCAD® applications by introducing support for Civil3D, ADT and MDT extension formats. 3D scanner point cloud data is also now directly supported in progeCAD for either the Autodesk .PCG format or the Ambercore .ISD format. Other scan formats such as LIDAR and XYZ can possibly be converted to .PCG by downloading the Autodesk ReCap 360 tool. Updated programming interfaces for developers now includes a supported .NET API.

As Mr. Damiano Croci, COO at ProgeSOFT SA, commented: “We are taking progeCAD to the next level making it native 64-bit and giving it a fresh Ribbon-look, not forgetting improved performance with multi core computers support. The main ProgeSOFT’s focus is to provide good value for money and progeCAD 2017 Professional is a shining example of that. ProgeSOFT will continue to improve the CAD application based on the demand the company receives globally”.

Current iCARE subscribers and those participating in our recent free upgrade promotion will begin to receive their progeCAD 2017 serial codes in the next several days. Users of previous versions of progeCAD can order the appropriate upgrade for them from the CADDIT progeCAD upgrade price list. There is much more to be said about the new progeCAD 2017 release, including dozens of other new commands, variables and improved functions (such as the 3D rendering) which can be explored by downloading the software for a free 30 day trial from CADDIT. We are very excited about this release and hope that many users will benefit form the hard work invested in this version of progeCAD. Any questions about general features of progeCAD can be directed to CADDIT via the CONTACT US page HERE.

progeCAD 2017 Free Upgrade and Preview

progeCAD has long stood as the default "professional" low-cost AutoCAD alternative software option. progeCAD offers and affordable perpetual-license alternative for "renting" high-cost AutoCAD access, with the ability to create, read, write and edit native AutoCAD DWG and DXF files fluently using and interface very similar to what AutoCAD users are accustomed.

CADDIT now announces the worldwide offer of free upgrades to progeCAD 2017 of equivalent type for all progeCAD 2016 licenses and upgrades paid for on or after 24 February 2016. This means that a purchase of progeCAD 2016 USB will also get a free upgrade to 2017 USB at no extra cost, an upgrade from progeCAD 2014 to 2016 will also get 2017 upgrade at no extra cost, and so forth. Upgrades will be distributed during the first few weeks after the global release announcement of progeCAD 2017 on the CAD Software Blog and on CADDIT.net. This free upgrade offer applies to ENGLISH language license purchase only, and will continue until the release of progeCAD 2017, on CADDIT.net.

progeCAD 2017 represents the most exciting release of progeCAD to date, offering one fell swoop of general improvements, including:
NATIVE 64-bit version with theoretical memory limit of 16-terabytes for x64 PC architecture, Windows tuning model (8 terabytes "User" and 8 terabytes "Kernel"). This means ability to edit vastly larger DWG drawing files than under the previous 32-bit architecture. progeCAD no longer supports 32-bit as of 2017 release. New RIBBON-BASED INTERFACE option. Users now have the choice between ribbon, toolbar, both or neither. Updated status bar, with icons and new features. Improved memory management and hardware graphics acceleration (OpenGL), again increasing stability and drawing speed. Multi-core support for opening and regenerating files, which provides 1.5 to 3 times performance improvement on multi-core computers (er.. well, we hope that is most of us by now..) Other platform improvements include: Support for "workspaces", .NET API with user drawing interaction support (AutoCAD compatible), vastly improved Microstation DGN format read support, AutoCAD .CUI menu support and many other general platform improvements.

Here is our FIRST SNEAK PEAK of this new platform (in beta testing):


New progeCAD 2017 64-bit multicore with ribbon UI from CADDIT.

progeCAD 2017 will also deliver DOZENS of new commands and variables to be used. At this point these new functions are to include: BCOUNT, XOPEN, XPLODE, POLYSOLID, POINTCLOUDATTACH, SETBYLAYER, PRINTTRANSPARENCY, TABLESTYLE, Layer-walking and many more. Significant changes and improvements have also been made on QSELECT, PURGE, LOFT, CUSTOMIZE, AUTOCOMPLETE and many others.

To benefit from this free upgrade offer, simply buy progeCAD 2016 (English) on the CADDIT.net website. After the 2017 release, free upgrades will be sent to all progeCAD customers with orders paid on or after 24 February 2016. At a time agreeable to the user, the progeCAD 2016 serial key will be replaced with a progeCAD 2017 serial key and a new download link will be sent for the software, similar to how has been done in past years. The free upgrade will apply to all new progeCAD Professional, progeCAD USB and company Network licenses purchased on or after 24 February. New dongles will not be required for the progeCAD USB upgrade. Free upgrades will also be sent to any users now purchasing a progeCAD 2016 upgrade for an existing seat of progeCAD 2010, 2011, etc. Promotion does not apply to OEM repackaging. This promotion will last until the day that progeCAD 2017 release is announced on this website.

To try progeCAD free for a month, progeCAD 2016 can be downloaded HERE. For questions about this free 2017 promotion please contact CADDIT here.

Alibre Upgrade No Longer Available after 30 April 2016

On 19 July, 2011 3D Systems first announced its acquisition of Alibre Inc. and its flagship 3D mechanical design software. The product was subsequently rebranded under the "Geomagic" portfolio as "Geomagic Design". This year will mark the fifth anniversary since this acquisition and new features which have subsequently been introduced. 3D Systems has thus far supported all versions of Alibre, including Alibre Design Standard, Professional and Expert with either ongoing maintenance subscriptions or upgrade opportunities. For several months a well-published opportunity for flat fee "update and upgrade" was made available in Australia through CADDIT.net. Many users took good advantage of this window of advantage to update Geomagic Design and Alibre versions that were three, four or even six years old and we wish to extend thanks to all who are participating. The flat fee promotion has now ended, as was announced, on 31 December 2015.

3D Systems business channel has made it known to CADDIT of the intention to drop all upgrade support for Alibre Design PE, Alibre Design Standard, Alibre Design Professional and all similar levels of Geomagic Design Standard and Professional. Going forward, there will only be one product level available to all Geomagic Design users, as demonstrated on the CADDIT webstore. Users of lower-version products will need to buy a completely new license if they wish to update their software. The date for this change is 30 April 2016, and only affects users of the old PE, Standard and Professional product levels -  Expert and Geomagic Design (full) are not affected, can continue to update their subscriptions per usual at this link. Also, any users under current active Geomagic Design maintenance are likely not affected as they will mostly likely already be migrated to the full product version.

Users in Australia at any level can still order maintenance at any product level and receive a free level upgrade to the full version of Geomagic Design at this link. All indications are that this is the final opportunity lower-level users in Australia will ever have to have their package updated. Without current support, CADDIT is unable to answer user requests for licensing help, account lookups etc. After 30 April all such requests will be referred directly to 3D Systems without assurance of a response due to the outdated support.

I renewed my Geomagic Design Subscription just last year. Am I affected?
No. You should continue your maintenance subscription per usual.

I have Alibre Design PE 2012 version. What happens if I don't upgrade?
You will have no support, and likely will not even be able to run the software on newer versions of Windows. You are encouraged to maintain your investment by renewing the maintenance subscription  HERE.

I have two licenses. One is Alibre Design Pro 2011 and the other is Alibre Design Expert 2010. Should I upgrade both and what does it cost?
A subscription will need to be purchased for each license that you wish to keep updated, using this link which shows the current AUD pricing including applicable lapse fees. It is strongly recommended not to mix versions of Alibre / Geomagic Design as this will lead to serious file compatibility problems between them. 

I have other questions.
CADDIT Australia can be contacted the usually way via these details:
https://www.caddit.net/store/index.php?main_page=contact_us

New Geomagic Design Features & How to Move a License

Geomagic Design offers the best of both worlds with robust feature-based parametric modelling side-by-side with direct editing tools for manipulating imported geometry from STEP, Parasolid, Inventor and other 3D CAD software, at a comparatively affordable price. With the release of Geomagic Design 2015.1 (17.1.0) will come several new features available to software subscribers as part of their product update. Updated MCAD file format support will help ensure ongoing model read/write interoperability with newer versions of 3rd party CAD systems like Solidworks and Siemens Solid Edge.

Two new features provided in the 2015.1 update will be associative assembly mirroring and "live linking" with KeyShot rendering software. Both features will save time for designers.

Assembly Mirror Component feature allows designers to create mirror-reverse instances of existing parts and subassemblies across a selected plane. This mirror feature can maintain associativity and reflect changes made to the parent instance, including motion etc. Live linking with KeyShot likewise saves design time by allowing designers to update scenes with new geometry from the Geomagic Design model while keeping all existing scene settings, material bitmaps and light positions. Below is a video released by 3D Systems demonstrating an early version of this functionality:

 



For users of previous versions of Alibre or Geomagic Design, these new features add to the value of the excellent flat-rate upgrade-and-update amnesty offer on CADDIT.net. Questions about Geomagic Design CAD Software can be submitted to CADDIT here.

Speaking of questions, several users have been asking about how it is possible to "move" a license using the new Flexnet license management for Geomagic Design. Simply stated, the software is deactivated from the "License Key Status" on one PC and activated on another. Without a license activation, Geomagic Design will ask for one each time it is started. If the license code is already activated on another PC, this license can be made free again using these steps as shown below: 1) Make sure the current system is connected to the internet. From the Home Window of Geomagic Design click "Help" -> "About Geomagic Design". 2) Click the "License Key Status" button. 3) Select "Virtual Dongle":

4) Click "Deactivation" from the Virtual Dongle functions. Select your license and click the grey arrow (lower right of box) to proceed. Once the license is deactivated online, it can be activated on the new target PC/Laptop/etc:

Geomagic Design users wishing to move their license offline, without use of an internet connection, may consider purchase of a hardware USB dongle available from CADDIT here.

Upgrade Alibre or Geomagic Design Any Version to V17, Special Offer

CADDIT announces a limited, one-time maintenance fee which will allow CAD users to upgrade to the most current version of Geomagic Design from any previous version of either Alibre- or Geomagic Design. Any customer in Australia who bought Alibre Personal, Alibre Professional, Alibre Design Expert and Geomagic Design Elements, and who are not on current maintenance can subscribe now for one flat fee on the CADDIT.net website until December 31, 2015. Maintenance subscribers receive all updates and support from 3D Systems for a one-year period after booking, so for outdated / lapsed users this represents an excellent return on the original investment and an opportunity to migrate over to the new license system. Note that the exact AUD price is subject to change. Offer applies only to each seat of purchased software. Multiple installed seats on one license will be charged separately. Dongle and network fees may apply seperately.  This offer does not apply to the AlibreCAM, Mfiles/Vault or Dynamics add-ons.

For one flat fee, any user of previous versions of Alibre or Geomagic Design can now update - includes hobby users.

As previously announced, newer versions of Geomagic Design now use a new serial-key based floating license which requires occasional connection to the internet for verification purposes. Users with problematic internet, or having no internet, may wish to take advantage of the new Geomagic Design USB license dongle instead. The USB dongle can be ordered on the same page as CADDIT Geomagic Subscription Renewals.

These offers are only valid for online purchases placed using the following web link:
https://www.caddit.net/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=74&language=en

At a highly affordable price point, Geomagic Design delivers top-end tools at lower cost, including comprehensive assembly, parametric and direct editing tools, 2D documentation, sheet metal design, motion analysis and integrated CAD data sharing tools. For more information about 3D Systems Australia, Geomagic Design or this promotion, contact CADDIT HERE.

Important Free Update for All progeCAD 2016 Users

Sydney, Australia 24 April 2015 - An important update has been released free for all English version progeCAD 2016 Professional Single, USB and Network installations. progeCAD 2016 is a general-purpose 2D/3D DWG/DXF-native CAD, the optimum cost-effective alternative to AutoCAD® and AutoCAD LT®. progeCAD 2016 Professional reads and writes AutoCAD® DWG versions 2.5 - 2016. progeCAD 16.0.6 has been released as both an automatic update and as a fully downloadable package on the CADDIT website. The following is a non-exhaustive list of important improvements have been delivered in progeCAD 2016.0.6.6:

• Fixed COPYCLIP between progeCAD and other software products
• Fixed EXTRUDE of not closed polylines but with equal end and start points
• Dynamic Input: Fixed SPACEBAR to change grip function
• Layer Manager: Fixed creation of layer group filters
• Removed wrong ortho glyph used with ETRACK on NWUCS
• Dynamic Input: Fixed not allowed chars
• Annotative Dimension: Added regeneration of annotative dimensions to avoid disappearance
• Fixed BOX command starting from not 0 Z
• Fixed update of angle with rotation in Z axis in VIEWCTL dialog
• Fixed ROTATE3D X/Y/Z options in NWUCS
• Fixed CONE/CYILINDER specify radius with Z point
• Fixed creation of BOX by length in NWUCS
• Fixed command WEDGE length option
• Dynamic UCS: Fixed exception in some cases
• Disabled OSMODE for command LOFT
• Annotative blocks: Fixed assign of annotative scale after SAVE and re-OPEN
• Annotative blocks: Added BLOCKSCACHE variable to disable cache of blocks
• Annotative blocks: Fixed BLOCKSCACHE change removing automatic reload of current drawing to avoid hang
• Annotative blocks: Added check to annotative blocks changing active annotative scale, if found pcad asks the user to disable blocks cache and reload drawing
• Added check to avoid useless and slow set of pdf printer margin
• Fixed JPEG printer
• Fixed LOFT command. Now it accepts parameters from LISP
• Fixed crash/exception saving (also autosave) drawing with thumbnail
• Fixed save of last used path to allow to set it by external IRX
• Fixed lisp PRINT and PRIN1 with "\\"
• Fixed FILLET command of a closed polyline
• Fixed FLATSHOT and implemented dragging of created blocks
• Fixed error when autosaving a 2013 drawing
• Dynamic Input: Fixed CONE, SPHERE, CYLINDER commands typing diameter instead of radius
• Added new contextual menu items for viewports. "Viewport Clip", "Display Viewport Objects" and "Display Locked".
• Command VPORTS : Fixed ON/OFF for option Lock
• Fixed ESNAP on ACIS with NWUCS
• Dynamic UCS: Added dynamic UCS to CONE command and direction of extrusion
• Dynamic UCS: Added Dynamic Ucs to WEDGE command
• Dynamic Input: Fixed NNx and NNxp annotation in ZOOM command
• Fixed extrude command with mouse direction and esnap
• Fixed a wrong option in the ucs menu
• TBSIZE variable set to readonly
• QLEADER position error (with modified ucs)
• Fixed specify of height of CILYNDER depending from mouse direction, ESNAP or ORTHO 3d
• Fixed specify of height of BOX depending from mouse direction, ESNAP or ORTHO 3d
• Dynamic UCS: Fixed Cylinder command with dynamic UCS
• Changed the saving version parameter for command line
• Fixed freeze with files with OLE objects
• Removed colon at the end of EasyArch object's attributes in the edit object mask
• Cloud: Fixed save to cloud without fonts
• Fixed INSERT command setting angle with keyboard and POLAR
• Fixed Missing Arc Aligned Text label in QSelect
• Fixed ROTATE command setting angle with keyboard and POLAR
• Added some check to avoid exception in NCOPY
• Fixed DWGPREFIX and DWGNAME variable for files in 2013 format
• Dynamic Input: Fixed dimension pointed lines scale in imperial/metrics drawing
• Dynamic Input: Fixed height of text in dynamic dimension in drawing if current text style has fixed height
• Dynamic Input: Fixed FLATTEN prompt for options
• Dynamic Input: Moved dynamic controls away from cursor position
• Dynamic Input: Fixed prompt text of command TEXTMASK and MOCORO and various messages in express
• Dynamic Input: Fixed display of unselected text in dynamic control
• Dynamic Input: Fixed draw of caret in active edit control
• Fixed Hatch of dynamic blocks
• Fixed BREAKLINE command in NWUCS
• Dynamic Input: Fixed PAN and ZOOM during selection in localized version
• Dynamic Input: Fixed cursor on mandatory option list after select (PEDIT, IMAGECLIP,...)
• Removed grips from solid face perpendicular to view direction
• Fixed position of tooltip of ESNAP/ETRACK/POLAR
• Dynamic Input: Fixed RAY and XLINE input
• Dynamic Input: Fixed reset of value in GetString mode
• Dynamic UCS: Fixed dynamic UCS during RTPAN/RTZOOM
• Fixed the "File" menu when closed all documents
• Dynamic Input: Fixed display of dynamic input controls after RTPAN in REVCLOUD command
• Dynamic Input: Fixed display of selection set coordinate controls after RTPAN
• Dynamic Input: Fixed options in RASTER commands
• Dynamic Input: Fixed update of controls and dimensions using only keyboard
   

progeCAD 2016 Released with New "Dynamic" Features

Sydney, Australia 24 February 2015 - CADDIT Announces the release of progeCAD 2016 Professional CAD software. Since 2007 progeCAD has delivered the leading low-cost AutoCAD-alternative product for Australia and many other regions. progeCAD offers an affordable way to read and write AutoCAD files, using similar commands and toolbars as used in previous releases of AutoCAD itself. Many choose progeCAD over AutoCAD LT because of it's low cost (currently a little over AUD $500) and features like 3D modelling and AutoLISP which are blocked in AutoCAD LT. progeCAD is commonly used in a wide variety of industry domains, including building design, electrical and plumbing, telecommunications and fibre-optic diagrams, civil land survey, engineering, fabrication, joinery and much more. With progeCAD Professional 2016, a CAD drafter can create very large complex drawings and save directly to AutoCAD or AutoCAD LT without data loss or conversion, as shown:

  Left, AutoCAD 2015 DWG, Right same file read in new progeCAD 2016

Existing users who upgrade to progeCAD 2016 version will enjoy a host of new features, including dynamic input at the screen cursor, dynamic UCS for selecting 2D drawing planes on-the-fly, solid grips for editing 3D solids dynamically and support for annotative objects.

Dynamic input allows the user to enter options and values for drawing commands via context-sensitive "tooltip" boxes and menus which appear near the graphics cursor. progeCAD dynamic input works with geometry, text and dimensions. For some users, this graphical input system seems more "user-friendly" than the traditional command prompt and use of relative polar notation.

Dynamic UCS allow users to choose a 2D planar coordinate system (UCS) merely by starting a drawing command like LINE and "hovering" over supported entities which will temporarily appear 'dashed' indicating a temporary UCS is selected. Both Dynamic Input and Dynamic UCS can be switched off at any time via their buttons on the bottom status bar.

Annotative Objects were introduced in AutoCAD 2008. Using Annotative Objects in progeCAD allows the user to create dimensions, text and even hatches which scale automatically scale according to the viewport or plot scale they are presented with. With more flexible detailing, drafters will not need to create as many text and dimension styles. Those which are created can be more flexible. In progeCAD, to make any supported detailing style or hatch "annotative" simply by clicking the new "Annotative" option provided.

progeCAD 2016 also offers a new ARCTEXT command with a very similar interface to the one provided by AutoCAD Express Tools. You can define text justified to an arc (not a full circle) with options on spacing, height etc. as shown here.

New commands also include support for saving drawings and configurations to and from supported Cloud Storage accounts including Dropbox, Google Drive and Microsoft OneDrive. Since we now live in a time where cloud storage is more common, this new feature may prove very convenient for some users. Other new features include a new BREAKLINE command, updated icons and a larger selection of interface skins to choose from.

progeCAD 2016 Professional is available for immediate download form CADDIT. The new version will run for 30 days with all features enabled, thereafter a license must be purchased. Existing users can purchase an upgrade to progeCAD 2016 Professional from their current version. Any other questions about the new progeCAD 2016 release can be submitted on the CADDIT Contact Page.