SolidWorks:HEARD! - Episode 472 - April Tech News

April Tech News:

This podcast covers the SolidWorks and CAD-related tech news that broke since mid-March covering the SolidWorks Blog, various tech alerts and other industry tech news. Topics covered: 

SolidWorks Tech Blog:

- SolidWorks Mold Tools - 3 Part Video Series
- Working Across the Network vs. Working Locally
- Animating Rotary Motion in SolidWorks
- Imported Files - Turning Surfaces into Solids in SolidWorks
- Comparing your Purchase & Licenses Shown on the SNL Manager (Pt.1)
- How to Design a Garage in SolidWorks
- Using SolidWorks Plastics to plan your mold
- Loop Selection
- Hidden Gems of SolidWorks
- PLC I/O Wire Numbering in SolidWorks Electrical

Tech Alerts:

- SolidWorks 2014 SP3 Early Visibility is available for download
- SolidWorks Hole Wizard and Toolbox cannot be used after Kasperksy anti-virus update
- My.SolidWorks.com adds Learning

Support Monthly News:

- Spotlight on features - Improvements to the Animation PropertyManager in SolidWorks Simulation 2014
- Spotlight on features - Sheet metal: Flat Pattern Performance improvements anyone?
- Spotlight on features - Scale Sketch with first dimensions in SolidWorks 2014.
- Noteworthy Solutions from the SolidWorks Knowledge Base.

Industry News:

- Microsoft releases Windows 8.1 Update 1 (quick review)
- Windows XP and IE6 are officially retired
- Office for iPad is launched, editing still requires Office 365 Subs
- Amazon releases FireTv streaming box
- Dropbox makes it easier to handle Business and Personal accounts.
- Heartbleed OpenSSL vulnerability is reveals leaking of user data for the past 2 years!

Windows XP was released the month I first started working in the SolidWorks channel. I remember attending a rollout event and noticing the guys at DDi were sporting the newly released Windows XP.  On April 8th, 2014, Microsoft officially retired this OS after a long 13 year run.  Obviously since then there has been 4 other OSs launched so I think retirement is long overdue.  In the wake of this retirement, Microsoft pushed out the first update to WIndows 8.1, refining further Microsoft's new generation operating system.

A few other products also shipped this month for SolidWorks including SolidWorks Inspection and SolidWorks Mechanical Conceptual.  With SW Inspection being a more traditional product, SWMC, on the other hand, is the first 3DExperience platform product so SolidWorks is spending these first months educating everyone, including those of us whom will support it, what exactly is involved in use, support and management of these new tools.

Despite April staring off with a bang in the technology space, Heartbleed, an OpenSSL vulnerability, was discovered and effects many of the web servers tethered to this thing called the Internet.  In light of this news, there is a hope many will take the opportunity to first make sure the sites you use have fixed this issue and then change your passwords using a password manager like LastPass.  Changing your passwords before those sites have patched their servers is a waste of time.  The alarming part of this news is around the issue being present for the past 2 years, allowing hackers to "bleed" user data 64K at a time.  I am using this news as an opportunity to comb through my online accounts and verify services that were compromised and take action.  I suggest you do the same. (Call it my Internet PSA).  ~Lou

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