[kojack]

IM in the market for a solids / Parametric software
I use Rhino on a daily basis for surfacing
and it works really good .
My digitizer plugs in and has plugins..

But now my projects have turned into Solids with assemblies
Does Ailbre compare to Solids works or Pro-e
Not looking to break the bank

any inputs or suggestions we be helpful

Thanks ~ Kojack

[MichaelHenry]

I've only used Alibre and can't compare directly to SolidWorks but it's been working pretty well for me for R&D prototypes and hobby work.

What sort of projects do you envision?

[TXFred]

I've used both Solidworks and Alibre.

Solidworks is far better than Alibre, just because it has a better user interface. Things that take a minute in Alibre will take seconds in Solidworks.

But Solidworks costs a lot more. If you can live with the occasional clunkyness, Alibre is perfectly adequate.

I use Alibre now, but plan on upgrading once my business gets going.

Frederic

[awerby]

It has been around for a long time, and it has strong parametrics, using both the Parasolid and ACIS kernels, so its interoperability with other programs is good. It is good for mechanical assemblies, with built-in interference checking and assembly animation, and it's set up for easy collaboration over the net. With a feature-set that compares favorably to that of Solidworks, its price is much lower. It has an excellent 2-d drafting module, but if you don't need that, you can purchase their Inovate product for considerably less than full IronCAD. There's a feature-by-feature Solidworks/IronCAD comparison chart here:

IronCAD and SolidWorks Comparison Chart. Part 1/3: Mechanical CAD Capabilities - CAD Software Support from CAD International

(Fill in your name and email address for the chart to appear)

Andrew Werby
ComputerSculpture.com — Home Page for Discount Hardware & Software