Just a small note to all FreeCAD users here. FreeCAD 1.0 is out.
If you used FreeCAD before, then you will have noticed the TopologicNaming-Issue is finally. Gone!
Yeah after so many years working around this issue now you can finally link and deal with faces and edges without breaking the model (within reasonable boundaries).
Also before release there were tons of changes made to improve and polish the application. It feels like a complete new application, beside the fact that everything works like before, but in many cases even better.
Betas are already 1.1 in the works.
If you had issues with FreeCAD in the past, give it another try. CAD is fun again!
Having used earlier iterations of FreeCAD I was sooo pleased to see how much improvement 1.0 delivers. It is definitely much much improved. As you say … it feels like a completely new application. And I was on a roll with working through Mango Jelly tutorials until I got stuck into a mini-project and then suffered 3 or 4 crashes a day … without any indication of why or where. However, I will be keenly monitoring future updates very closely as I will be right up there checking it and with great desire for trying it out. Bring it on. Well done to all the developers. Great job. With a little more time I reckon it will be an unbeatable more private solution than others one could mention.
I have been using 1.0 for a few weeks now, not sure exactly but it is sooo much better than before. I do have to say, most of my previous issues were self induced. It is a major undertaking to really understand how it all fits together in a good way.
I see that there is a new fork of FreeCAD in progress … called AstoCAD. From what I can gather … its intended to develop a lot of new ‘bleeding edge’ improvements … and then roll them back into mainstream FreeCAD at a later date when all tested. Its a paid subscription with 2 membership levels … to fund the work of the develop … (fair enough). Membership offers one early access to the new releases before they hit FreeCAD. It looks v.interesting … and one that I think is great to drive forward such a promising CAD package to what it deserves to be … one of the best out there. https://www.astocad.com/
AstoCAD is just the next contender. Ondsel was there before for years now.
For the most part those are skins for FreeCAD. It just looks “enhanced”. Sure the promises may come to play to improve/fix FreeCAD itself, but that is a thing for the future.