SolidWorks:HEARD! - Episode 449 - eDrawings for Android

eDrawings for Android:

This podcast covers the newly launched Android version of eDrawings discussing install, comparisons to the iOS launch, compatibility and overall impressions.  Topics covered: 

- Overview of the launch

- Android V1 feature set

- Differentiation between iOS and Android versions

- Speculation on a Pro version

- Compatibility testing chart

- Overall impressions

As mentioned in a previous post, the demand from customers for an Android version of eDrawings was not going to just go away.  SolidWorks has been slow to realize a few things about eDrawings for mobile, one of which was the need to have it on phones and not just tablets.  This thought of it being only useful on a tablet seemed to be the reason ignoring Android as a viable platform was so strong and why it took so long for the Android version to ship.

Despite the iPad still being dominate in the tablet space, Android as a mobile platform is nearing 80% market share according to IDC, shipping 187 million, yes million, devices last quarter alone.  SolidWorks recognizing that eDrawings for iPad was also needed on the iPhone seemed to be the catalyst for Android needing to be a priority. 

As it's iOS sister, eDrawings for Android became an overnight, de facto standard for opening and viewing SolidWorks files on the platform (go figure?) but will move to a level of it's own once the Pro version comes out.  No official word yet but last year the Pro version shipped around the launch of the next version of SolidWorks (October-ish?). ~Lou

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SolidWorks:Heard! - Episode 374 - SolidWorks World App

SolidWorks World App:

This podcast covers the features in the SolidWorks World 2012 app that was launched just last week and some of the interesting features this app provides for attendees of this year's SWW conference. Topics covered:

- SWW2012 App is available on iOS and Andriod

- iOS is a universal app, scaled for the iPad

- Navigating sessions, speakers, floorplans, partner pavilion and more

- Adding sessions to your agenda

- Scanning badges from the QR code tool

- Quick links to Twitter, Facebook, Flickr and YouTube

- Dassault Systemes aquires Netvibes and launches a landing page for SWW12

Last year SolidWorks released an iPhone app that was especially built for SWW 2011 giving users the ability to browse sessions and get valuable info about speakers, partners, maps etc of the event.  After 10 years of thumbing through the little conference booklet and trying to determine where I was going next, this app made navigating the conference simple.  Having a lot of detail, especially of the partner pavillion, allowed me to get more out of SWW than previous years.

The issue that many had voiced about the app was the fact it was only on iOS (iPhone) at the time. Considering Android is taking the market by storm, it only makes sense that if SolidWorks is to offer such a great tool that it be available on the lion's share of devices. This year they launched a 2012 version of the app but this time it is available on both iOS and Android and the iOS version is a universal app, giving iPad users full use of the screen real estate.

After navigating around in the app I find that browsing sessions is so easy, especially researching and signing up right from within the app. You can log in with your registration account and see what is is coming up next in your agenda and figure out how to get there.  This makes getting around and gaining the most of the conference much easier. ~Lou

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SolidWorks:Heard! - Episode 318 - Tablet Engineering Tools

Tablet Engineering Tools:

This podcast covers a growing trend of tools available on the tablet to aid Engineers to do lightweight tasks while on the go.  Topics covered:

CAD Tools (iPad):

- AutoCAD WS - open, edit, and share DWG (Free)

- iRhino 3D - Viewer for Rhino 3DM files ($3.99 USD)

- 3dvia Mobile HD - Viewer for model on 3dvia.com

- Inventor Publisher Mobile - Viewer for Tech pubs 

- vueCAD - Universal 3D viewer and markup tool ($9.99 USD + $$$ per translator)

Current iPad App Announcements (not shipped):

- SolidWorks n!Fuze - Viewer, Browser and Comments 

- DraftSight - View, Edit, Share (no elaborate details were shared)

- CADFaster - Collaborative Tools

- NEI Nastran Mobile FEA App - FEA Cloud Computing

My Wishes...

- SolidWorks Live Buildings - View & collaborate?

- Post3D - Pull participation with chat and 3D avatar?

- eDrawings - something web-based and live clients for view and markup?

I have been wanting to do a show on a landscape of some of the applications available on the iPad for Engineering purposes.  Due to the iPad really being the only mainstream tablet on the market I focused mostly on the apps available on this platform.

Although 2011 will probably be the year of the tablet with HP, Rim, Motorola, Samsung and Apple all having players in the market, I am probably going to stick with the iPad for now since that is the platform that gets the quickest access to new applications.  What I would like to see is mobile clients built on HTML5 and other browser based technologies so the tablet platform is not as important.  Choice is good but creates complexities when it comes to application support!

As more CAD companies begin to create experiences that fit the mobile platform, engineers are going to have more choice of how they perform certain duties.  Pairing tablets with cloud based computing can deliver a "lean-back" options to certain aspects of the design process.  Tablets will not replace the desktop but can definitely complement them for certain tasks.  ~Lou

Remember to check out the SolidWorks: Heard! Blog and to follow me on Twitter, Facebook and THE HEaRD!