WorldCAD Access

How to fix a dead half-string of LED Christmas lights

Don't go be slicing them

 

As I am lazy, I keep our outdoor Christmas lights up all year. December 1 each year, I plug them in, and set the timer for dusk to 8 hours later.

This year, however, a bunch of the bulbs did not light up, right in the middle of them all -- as my wife quickly informed me. Inspecting it closer, I found it was half a string, precisely. Sixty-bulb LED Christmas lights are built from two half strings of 30 bulbs each.

There was no way I was going to replace the entire string, so I went online to see what kind of solution might present itself. The first several search results made me gag: people actually suggested cutting out the offending half-string and patching in another one. Actually.

I kept searching, and further down the list was a fellow who described in detail how strings of LED lights work, technically. See "LED Christmas Lights and How to Fix Them" by Terry Ritter.

One sentence jumped out at me: the string needs at least 75 volts to light up. That made my brain jump back to my Electricity 8 shop class:

What causes voltage to drop? 

Resistance.

What causes resistance?

Corrosion (among other reasons).

I got out some sandpaper and sanded the two dark brown prongs of the plug to a shiny clean brass color. Plugging the lights back into the outlet...

...

...the lazy lights sprang back on.

Merry Christmas!

 

 

I already have a great phone, why'd I get another one?

Enter the KEYone

 

I am so thrilled with my ASUS ZenFone 3 Zoom that I cannot image a better phone on the market today. It has these functions that I love about it:

• a huge battery (it lasts 2-3 days) in a slim case
• two-lens camera, with the second lens having an optical 2.3x zoom
• intelligent screen grab utility, important in my work as tech writer
• relatively frequent security and bug-fix updates for a phone nearly two years old
• ASUS written apps are good, especially their phone book app
• oh, and a headphone jack

It has its faults. The camera API was written by ASUS and is slow to start up. I've missed shots. Two rows of pixels at the bottom of the screen are always lit (a problem reported by other users), and with last week's update a new bug arrived, in which the phone turns on its screen by itself and doesn't turn it off.

With all the hard work I've been doing this fall, I decided to treat myself. First I eye'ed the Skagan Falster 2 smartwatch, but the price in Canada remains stubbornly high, and the Skagan site in the USA (20% off for new customers!) won't ship to Canada. During Black Friday Month sales (yes, now here in Canada too), I eyed a number of new cell phones priced ridiculously low. But none beat my ASUS.

Then I came across the Blackberry KEYone for the equivalent of US$300 in the Staples flyer with 32GB storage RAM. Same price as that Skagan watch, but could I do better? A brief time later, I found it on eBay for the same price, brand-new, free shipping, but with 64GB RAM and 7% less sales tax.

The KEYone returns the famous Blackberry keyboard to a pure Android phone -- plus Blackberry's security software. That made it distinctive enough for me to splurge on. While I sometimes get hardware free for being a technical writer, I will buy stuff just to try it out -- like the awful stand-alone touchpad or the unused VR goggles. The phone arrived after week, after delays from the on-going rotating strikes by Canada Post employees.

The KEYone runs at the same speed as my ASUS Zenfone 3 Zoom (2GHz), was immediately updated to Android 8.1 (a 1.4GB download), has the 64GB storage RAM, and 4GB operating RAM. It takes two SIM cards (good for my international travel) or one SIM and a microSD memory card (up to 2TB).

More specifically, it is the BBB100-7 model that I ended up receiving; I didn't know there were varietals. I am not 100% sure how it differs from other models in the KEYone line, but I see that another model has just one SIM card but 6GB operating RAM. (I'd rather have the two and 4.) Some models are specific to certain regions of the globe.

It feels solid, but a bit on the heavy side and somewhat top-heavy, which is unfortunate. It has an aluminum frame and a rubberized back. Also has a hardware function button that I haven't figured out how to customize, and that I keep pressing accidentally due to its placement.

In terms of multimedia, the single-lens camera takes good quality photographs, and the sound of the music playback is excellent.

The hardware keyboard will take some getting used to. It removes some of the area normally used for the screen, and I am spoiled by the big screen on my ASUS phone. Sometimes the software keyboard appears as well, so then the free screen space is tiny!

I'm not finding Blackberry's security software particularly useful, but I might use this phone should I travel to privacy-unfriendly countries next year. I had already been using the Blackberry software keyboard on my other phones, because it is superior to most others.

Getting it reminds me of how time consuming it is to fine-tune a new phone. Google offers to transfer over files and passwords but does a surprisingly incomplete job. For now I'll just use it for multimedia and playing around with features I haven't uncovered yet.

Full specs here: https://www.mobosdata.com/blackberry-keyone-bbb100-7

 

 

 

 

Exclusive: Q&A With Frustum CEO Jesse Coors-Blankenship

Generative design is hot

Generate running in NX from Siemens PLM Software

 

PTC this week made the surprise announcement that it had purchased generative-design software maker Frustum for about $70 million. For this amount, PTC gets into generative design, which its competitors Siemens PLM, Dassault Systemes, and Autodesk had already broached.

Generate works in a Web browser and as a desktop program running in Windows. PTC also gets the TrueSolid volumetric kernel, talented programmers, and a customer base.

Between Frustum and ANSYS simulation, PTC ceo Jim Heppelmann is working on turning his company's Creo MCAD system into a powerhouse: "Creo is core to PTC’s overall strategy, and the embedded capabilities from ANSYS and, later, Frustum will elevate Creo to a leading position in the world of design and simulation."

The idea behind Generate is to minimize the volume of a part (to keep cost and weight down), yet to generate a part that can be manufactured by additive or subtractive manufacturing, but without any post-processing -- which is normally needed to prepare a CAD-designed part for being manufactured. 

- - -

Ralph Grabowski: Fustum received funding from Siemens Venture Capital, and Siemens PLM Software uses your technology in its NX and Solid Edge MCAD programs (see image above). Why did Siemens not buy Frustum?

Jesse Coors-Blankenship: I can't speak for Siemens, or to who bid or not on our acquisition, but I can say that we chose to merge with PTC because it is the best fit to realize the company's aspirations.

Grabowski: Will Siemens still be using your generative technology in NX and Solid Edge, now that PTC owns it?

Blankenship: We will continue to honor our agreements to the full extent of them, and we will immediately discuss how to accomplish that with each other.

Grabowski: Is PTC also interested in your adopting your TrueSolid volumetric kernel in its software?

Blankenship: Yes, the intention is to fully integrate all of our generative design capability into Creo over time, while continuing incubation of the technologies we have under development that the public has not seen yet.

Grabowski: In the interview we held in October, you didn't seem to be interested being acquired, saying: "We are not interested in providing a traditional CAD solution. It can't be CAD, because that already exists. We are trying to shoulder into the market as the next generation of 3D design software."

Blankenship: I don't recall being asked about my interest in being acquired at the time. What I was trying to say in this quote was that Frustum has never been interested in replacing CAD or duplicating CAD -- that was not our business strategy. Our strategy was to pioneer generative design technologies and shoulder into the market.

Grabowski: What happened?

Blankenship: It was a blue ocean strategy. There were two ways for us to shoulder into the market; i.e., integration and point solutions. We pursued both paths, and our acquisition marks the success of this strategy, as shown in the monetization of ROI [return on investment] for my investors. Our IP [intellectual property] and team found a fantastic home with PTC.

Grabowski: In the interview, you listed a number of items that you planned to add to your software:

• Lattices
• Implicit modeling with primitives, extrusions, and preset parts for connecting geometry
• Closer connection to manufacturing machines
• Scale the desktop software across nodes

Are these still in the works?

Blankenship: Yes. Generate will be enhanced to further learn from users and their respective use-cases. We are working out how we will deploy it and support it with PTC.

Grabowski: How quickly did this acquisition come up?

Blankenship: We have been talking with PTC for long enough to arrive at the idea of merging, but not so long that it was just talk. We love their philosophy on generative design, their modern pace, and track record of bringing transformational technology to market. They have a very impressive record of success and culture that embraces a seriousness around transformation.

Personally, I want to see our technology change the world. I want to see that transformation through. I think that can happen now to the full extent of our aspirations with PTC by the shared vision we have with their leadership who I am very impressed with.

Grabowski: What will your role be at Frustum under PTC?

Blankenship: I am very honored to become a Senior Vice President of Technology working from the new PTC Boston Seaport headquarters. It is personally a very exciting time for me and I'm very proud to continue to lead me team within PTC.

- - -

"With breakthrough new technologies such as AR/VR, high-performance computing, IoT, AI, and additive manufacturing entering the picture, the CAD industry is going through a renaissance period, and PTC is committed to leading the way,” concludes Mr Heppelman.

Official press release from PTC: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20181120005326/en/

Frustum home page: https://www.frustum.com/

 

Archive: My tweets from the Berlin 2019 Graebert Annual Meeting

November 7, 2018

 

Getting ready for the Berlin Graebert Annual Meeting here in the Humbolt Box, a temporary structure in former East Berlin overlooking the reconstruction of the Berliner Palast (Berlin Palace) torn down by communists. The view outside the Humbolt Box reminds us we are in former East Berlin, with the modern tv tower next to centuries-old buildings -- and construction cranes as Berlin continues to rebuild itself.

The Berliner Palast at night 

- - -

At #Graebert18 we'll be hearing about what's new in ARES, Touch, Kudo, Dassault Systemes DraftSight, Corel Software CorelCAD, Onshape, and third-party add-ons. As a reminder Graebert is the CAD vendor with:

• Desktop CAD (called ARES Commander)
• Mobile CAD (Touch for Android and iOS)
• Browser CAD (Kudo)
• OEM versions of all of them
• APIs for all of them
  
  

The Keynotes

The opening keynote from Graebert ceo Wilfried Graebert gives us the history of this area of Berlin. The Palace was where the Prussian empire was centered. He notes that Graebert Gmbh has 160 employees, with 85 in R&D. Business is strong in Japan, so Graebert Japan Ltd. was created this year.

Mr Graebert says that his company is one of the last independent developers of DWG editing technology, and so he wants to help third-party developers secure their future. He adds that a growing number of developers looking for AutoCAD alternatives due to Autodesk's moves. Developers may also be concerned about Hexagon's acquisition of Bricsys.

Two corporations in Japan have more than 500 licenses of ARES Touch for mobile devices, using MDM.

- - -

Head of Greabert sales and marketing Cedric Desbordes is now giving us the rundown of software moving to the cloud. His argument is that CAD is becoming a utility like word processing, and that accessing drawings by cloud-mobile is the way to universalize access.

Mr Desbordes says Graebert's competitors are using a 'Winter is Coming' approach, where they think they have to move the whole desktop CAD package to the cloud. The other mistake is that releasing mobile or cloud CAD viewer is a sufficient strategy. Instead, the Graebert solution is both:

• Both desktop CAD and mobile/browser CAD
• Both view-only and editing on all platforms
• Both permanent licensing and subscriptions
• Both locations for files, local and cloud

One license for all products.

In general, subscription licenses outsell permanent ones 10 to 1, Mr Desbordes says, but some countries are still hardcore permanent licensees (other CAD vendors report that tends to be Japan).

Naturally, there are restrictions beyond the 30-day free use and if you are not on subscription or maintenance. If you are not paying the subscription for Kudo browserCAD, it reverts to viewing, sharing, and measuring -- no editing and no view-only links. Available as of January, stand-alone licenses of Kudo are $199/year.

OTOH, one license gives you access to ARES Touch mobile on both Android and iOS, and as many devices as you are signed into (phones and tablets). It is possible to get ARES Touch outside of the Graebert's all-in-one license by buying it through the Android and iOS online app stores. Corel Software's CorelCAD Mobile offers the same thing.

Graebert has integrated the browser-based Kudo program into the desktop ARES Commander program, so that the two work together, such as:

• Accessing the latest versions of DWG files
• Sharing DWG files with URLs
• Accessing DWG and other files on the cloud in desktop CAD and online

Kudo supports the following cloud-based storage sites:

• Box
• Dropbox
• Google Drive
• Microsoft Onedrive and Onedrive for Business
• Onshape
• Trimble Connect
• WebDAV

(Apple iDrive is not supported, except on Apple devices, as Apple has no external API for iDrive.)

"We have really worked on this synergy," summarizes Mr Desbordes. "Also, we don't force you to use one particular cloud service."

 

What's New in ARES 2019

Graebert's ARES Command 2019 gets a new block editor that creates and edit parametric blocks, tables to define states, complex and simplified states, such as hiding dashed line. These new customizable blocks with parameters and grips are not, however, compatible with AutoCAD's dynamic blocks, probably because Autodesk holds a patent on their version of variable blocks.

Also new in 2019:

• 3D modeling with push-pull
• New rendering facility
• Layers palette lets you rename layer names directly
• Polysolids for wall-like entities
• Area highlighting
• 4K support with larger icons
• Chamfer edges of 3D solids
• STL output for 3D printing
• Layer merge with options
• Digital signatures (only for Windows)
• DWG recovery

The old system for plug-ins would not move to a new computer, and so Graebert wrote a new one with Graebert's account now bound to users, not the device. New plug-ins to be introduced today using new SDK include the following:

• Render plug-in
• UNDET point cloud plug-in
• Maps plug-in (this plug-in is free to subscribers only)

The challenge is to handle very large point clouds, where AutoCAD is limited to about 10 million points, says Graebert. The plug-in from UNDET (named after leaf cutter ant, the most powerful animal in the world) supports 100 million points. It accepts data from many scanner brands.

We are seeing it rotate point cloud of 86 million colored points, nearly 2TB (not 2GB) on disk, loads in seconds. (See image above.) It changes colors, both real and fake, like by elevation, clips the points, and has a manager for scan positions. However, it is for ARES Commander desktop Windows 64-bit only.

ARES Commander 2019 will be released by Grabert in the second half of January 2019. You can try the new features in this pre-release version downloadable from:

• For Windows 32-bit: https://www.graebert.com/getares2019PRforwin32
• For Windows 64-bit: https://www.graebert.com/getares2019PRforwin64

Graebert supports more operating systems than Autodesk for desktop CAD.

Graebert is speeding up development through the use of their new plug-in architecture, allowing them to leap-frog some competitors in areas of point clouds, rendering, and mapping. You will find in ARES 2019 many more new features than in earlier years, because for the last five years they spent much energy on getting browserCAD (Kudo) right, in conjunction with Onshape. With the browserCAD problem solved, they can now accelerate base CAD development.

More updates to ARES Commander will arrive via service packs during 2019, including the following:

• Revit underlay with entity snaps, etc
• Revit export
• IFC underlays to come later
• More functions for customizable blocks

In fact, Graebert says that more features will come out in service packs than in the main release.

FxARX is the name of the new API, short for "effects." It is compatible with ARx from Autodesk, handles UI, custom entities, hidden line API, and jigs. It is due out with ARES 2019. Also new is the Commenting API, which consists of non-DWG data.

Graebert now offers an Enterprise version of all ARES software, for firms of 100+ employees:

• Controls permitted cloud services
• Mobile device management
• Disable unwanted functions
• Single signon
• Kudo on private server
• Pay only for actual users

Can disable things like sharing of links and PDF export; can lock user profiles; allow only commenting.

There is a minimum spend of US$25,000 a year, and carries a 25% premium on the cost. For example, 200 users of ARES Touch only or 100 of ARES Commander.

 

DraftSight 2019

Coming up next is what's going to be new in DraftSight from Dassault Systemes, who's been working with Graebert for ten years now. The two just signed a new agreement to continue the contract where Graebert works on DraftSight for Dassault. No wonder, as Dassault projects two million users of DraftSight by the end of 2018.

DraftSight 2019 will work with Dassault programs, such as:

• Solidworks for FEA
• Marketplace for finding manufacturers
• Homebyme for populating floor plans

DraftSight 2019 will have many of the new functions in ARES 2019, plus a new API for third-party development. (Dassault had written its own API for DraftSight, but that's been waylaid now.)

Bigger news is that Dassault will start selling Kudo under their DraftSight brand name. It might be called DraftSight Cloud, but the name is not final. It will be released in beta at Solidworks World in early February. After it is out, Dassault will see how the mobile Touch app fits into their ecosystem.

It's a pretty interesting that Onshape is working deeply with Graebert, as is Dassault.

 

Kudo Updates

Coming to Kudo is "CAD Processing as a Service":

• Thumbnails of dwg, rvt, and dgn at specified resolution & background color with specific layouts and zooms
• Extract info from DWGs, such as all text, layers, styles, layout names, layer extents
• PDF generation

https://www.graebert.com

 

 

 

Archive: What I tweeted about Bricsys 2018 London

London Calling

 

Theme music for the London conference of Bricsys 2018 is "London Calling" by The Clash. "Who's that?" asks the young-ish 61-year-old CAD journalist sitting next to me. "I bought the [double] album when it first came out," I replied, smugly.

 

BricsCAD Beyond V19

Learning about the future plans of Bricsys at BRICSYS 2018. It involves practical jobs performed by the CAD system on behalf of the human designers. Computer are best at repetitive, boring work; humans best at the creative side. Bricsys sees one assisting the other.

Bricsys sees the problem with Autodesk's dynamic blocks are being too manual, and so too difficult, and limited to 2D. BricsCAD V20 will instead have a 3D version that generates flexible blocks semi-automatically. Even add BIM data automatically using BIM styles. 

Future versions of Blockify will do more than just finding simple entities. Future versions will handle assemblies and imports of tessellated data and point clouds -- replacing them with more appropriate entities.

Other things Bricsys is planning for future releases of BricsCAD:

• Use AI to automate processes in BIM, 2D, 3D, mechanical, civil, more
• Aim to add XR (VR, AR, mixed-R)
• Adding Navisworks next
• More commercial file formats, thanks to ODA
• DWG is now 36 years old, no limit to it

 

Hexagon Acquires Bricsys

By being acquired by Hexagon of Sweden (which has a major presence in Huntsville Alabama through Intergraph), it makes it easier for Bricsys to take on the American market. If you are asking who is bigger, Autodesk has about $2.5 billion in sales while Hexagon/Intergraph/Bricsys is at about $3.5 billion in sales.

So, this is Hexagon's Trimble moment, when Trimble bought SketchUp from Google to get further into AEC, except that SketchUp isn't useful for real 3D modeling. Official reason given by Hexagon on acquiring Bricsys:

"We can now provide the AEC market with an end-to-end platform – with conceptual design, CAD design, BIM software and collaboration tools, project and cost controls, in-field construction execution tools (work packages), and progress documentation (reality capture) – to connect, automate, and ultimately ‘autonomise’ the entire building and construction ecosystem through our HxGN SMART Build solution.”

The big sales pitch is that you don't need to leave DWG or translate to/from DWG. "The flow stays in one format as you move from application to application -- at a fraction of the price. We will win one customer at a time," says Hexagon exec vp.

After Autodesk canceled his ADN agreement (he was the 2nd oldest ADN member) with no reason, Hexagon PPM exec vp Rick Allen got nervous about the future of CADWorx. Now, he says, Autodesk should be nervous, because he feels Revit penetration is not very deep, users dissatisfied.

The acquisition is closed, which means it is final. Here is a picture of Erik de Keyser’s new boss, Hexagon executive vp Rick Allen.

(Hexagon PPM is short for "plant power marine," which is what Intergraph became specialized at. "Became" because the company got its start as M&S Computing doing work on the Apollo moon shot of 1969. Which is why the Intergraph [Hexagon PPM] head office is in Huntsville, AL, the home to NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center.)

 

Future of BIM in BricsCAD V19

 Bricsys estimates the BIM penetration is only 16%, split between Revit, Vectorworks, GRAPHISOFT, and others. This, ceo de Keyser feels, gives Bricsys and Hexagon a big chance. He hopes 20-25% market share in a few years time.

 The aim, says Bricsys ceo Erik de Keyser, is to virtualize the to-be-built structure eventually to LOD [level of detail] 450 in 3D. BricsCAD V19 imports RFA (Revit family files, which are parametric blocks). When the RFA lacks parameters, then BricsCAD can add them with a single click inside the new Block Editor environment.

Doing semantic searches in BricsCAD BIM available now.

Site modeling with new commands in BricsCAD BIM V19: import TIN and then cut/fill the site to match the building's needs.

Here's the new UI for the BIM module of BricsCAD V19:

 

 

Future of Mech in BricsCAD V19

The new Animate option in the Parametric panel animates parametrics: BricsCAD briefly moves the entities related to the parameter, such as a shaft moving inside a cylinder.

Applause at BRICSYS 2018 for the real-time exploded view in BricsCAD V19. Dragging the cursor back and forth pulls the assembly apart and together.

New in sheet metal: Associative unfolding and curved junctions. Creating sheet metal parts from scratch right in the assembly view of BricsCAD V19. BricsCAD also displays both the original sheet metal and the unfolded version in the same window. One sheet metal design took three minutes, partly thanks to the semi-automation BricsCAD provides the designer. It can also design in conjunction with imported models, such as from STEP and Solidworks. Also seeing how sheet metal is created automatically from imported solids, such as corner reliefs -- and then unfold. "It takes two seconds!... Maybe 3."

 New in BricsCAD V19 is a parametric hole library, with drag and drop insertion into parts. A future release will allow holes in blocks and assemblies. All this is done with DWG. Also new with assemblies in BricsCAD V19: arrays of parametric components and automatic exploded views.

 

All this is the new BricsCAD Mechanical, the new name for the old Sheet Metal add-on.

 

Initial BricsCAD User Group Meeting

Steve Johnson lead the initial BricsCAD User Group in London, at which it was agreed that the group should be formed.

If you have a bad DWG, the BLADE LISP editor from Bricsys lets you examine it.

https://www.bricsys.com

 

 

 

Archive: What PTC told financial analysts about Q4

Discovery Live delayed

 

Each quarter, executives from shareholder-owned companies have to face financial analysts in public, and talk about the last three months and a little bit of what to expect for the future. Here is what PTC execs told them. One significant item was that ANSYS Discovery Live is delayed being integrated into Creo to customers by half a year,

- - -

PTC reports fiscal year 2018 revenues of $1,252 million.

While IoT [Internet of things] didn't quite surpass PLM [product lifecyle management] in the full fiscal 2018, it was close and we expect IoT to handily surpass PLM to become our second largest source of bookings in fiscal 2019.

It took significant development work to build ANSYS's real-time simulation technology into Creo, but the project is on schedule and the initial launch of a version of Creo that has ANSYS Discovery Live simulation embedded will happen in the first quarter. Broader commercial shipments to the entire customer base will start in the second quarter.

We plan to integrate the full breadth of the ANSYS simulation suite into Creo over time.

We raised subscription prices by 5% on Oct 1. Our industry does tend to raise prices every year. [We] introduced new pricing and packaging for Creo, which gives us an opportunity frankly to drive people to higher price points and raise the overall average price of a Creo seat.

 

Archive: Google’s smart city a privacy nightmare

You're doing distopia all wrong

 

Engadget reported on a "smart city" experimental neighborhood planned for Quayside, a portion of the waterfront in Toronto, Canada. The headline read, "Google’s smart city dream is turning into a privacy nightmare." See  https://www.engadget.com/2018/10/26/sidewalk-labs-ann-cavoukian-smart-city/. More accurately, it is Google's parent, Alphabet, doing the work through its Sidewalk Labs division, which is engaged in  smart city work.

The story was sparked by a member of the planning team, who resigned after she objected to a Data Trust being given the trust to "approve data collection that isn't anonymized or de-identified at the source." In short, Google wants Quayside to be like your Android phone, where it wishes to track everything you do, say, and view.

Returning to the headline...

But, no. It's not turning into a privacy nightmare: it always was meant to be a nightmare. The no-privacy bug is designed into smart cities, right from the beginning, but it is worded as a "feature" -- or, more accurately, the 'smart city' feature. It it's smart, it can't be a bug. Why do you suppose dictatorships like Singapore and China are keen on smart cities? It sure isn't for the green aspect. 

Smart cities is the side-effect of the envy of Google feels in seeing Facebook collecting non-anonymized data. That, and the techno-utopianism that bets billions that technology turns otherwise flawed humans into perfection -- the singularity, followed by the utopia.

And so, how can we be sure that utopia will persist if we cannot track every citizen's action, by name, to ensure he retains the Good Citizen Achievement Level. If we detect a citizen failing be an Eloi, then we are prepared to ban him to a Morlock existence.

 

What's Coming in BricsCAD Mechanical V19 & V20

Bricsys is fond of telling us what they plan in future releases. Here at the Bricsys 2018 London conference, we learned what to expect in BricsCAD V19 or V20:

Future Plans for Part Design

• Copy and paste parametric features
• Additions to the deformable modeling tool set

Future Plans for Assembly Design

• Levels of details
• Assembly features
• Trailing lines in exploded views
• Custom properties in BOMs

Future plans for Sheet Metal

• Tabs
• Gussets
• Tessellated lofted bends
• Unfolded views in paper space

Future Plans for Drawing Generation

• Threads in drawing views
• Broken-out views

Future Plans for Communicator Translation

• Import and export drawing in the background
• Rewritten Communicator code allows more and new file formats to be added easily
• Communicator can be released independently of BricsCAD

 

 

 

 

BricsCAD V19 Best: #2, Blockify Conversion

BricsCAD V19's Best Three New Functions

Blockify command detects multiple copies of identical entities, and then replaces them with an equivalent block. For example, select a line segment. BricsCAD searches the drawing for all other lines of the same length, creates a block (of a line) that mimics them, and then replaces the lines with the block.

The drawing looks no different afterwards, but replacing entities with blocks reduces the drawing size in memory and when saved to disk, as well as improving opening, drawing, zooming, and saving performance. This works, because the block is actually a reference to a definition, and not an entity in itself.

For a practical application, use Blockify to convert general polylines in imported PDF files to blocks. Here is how the command looks in action:

: BLOCKIFY

Select input entities or [Find all groups] <Find all groups>: (Select the line segment)

Entities in set: 1

Select input entities or [Find all groups] <Find all groups>: (Press Enter to continue)

Select search space or [use entire Model space] <use entire Model space>: (Press Enter to search the entire drawing)

Duration of finding similar groups: 0.000164 sec

Number of block inserts: 7

Select block insertion point or [use Default point] <use Default point>: (Press Enter)

Once done, the newly-created block looks identical to the replaced entities. BricsCAD gives the block a generic name, such as ‘block1’. Here is the meaning of the Blockify command’s options: 

Select input entities - Select one or more representative entities to be replaced by the block

Find all groups - Have BricsCAD find multiple instances of entities automatically

Select search space - Select the area of the drawing to search

use entire Model space - Have BricsCAD search the entire drawing

Select block insertion point - Pick a point, should you wish the block offset from the entities

use Default point - Have BricsCAD use the natural insertion point

 

 

BricsCAD V19 Best: #1, Nearest Distance Editing

BricsCAD V19's Best Three New Functions

 

NearestDistance variable toggles a dynamic dimension that reports the nearest distance between two selected entities. (This function does not work when three or more entities are selected.)

To use the nearest distance function, just select two entities. The distance appears on a blue dimension line.

Shortest distance shown between the circle and line

 

The distance reported is the shortest distance. You can edit the distance to move the last selected entity. In the first figure, I picked the circle first, and so it has the dot on the dimension line; I picked the line second, and it has the arrowhead -- meaning it will be the entity that moves. Type in a new distance, and then press Enter. This lets you move blocks or lines into position; it even lets you change the size of complex entities like rectangles.

When You Can't Move. When two entities intersect or connect, the distance is zero. When an entity cannot be moved, the dimension field is read-only and shown in gray (not editable). For instance, you cannot move two lines that intersect, or the entities that make up a block. (Go into the new BEdit block editing environment to change block elements.)

Distance between intersecting entities is 0, and cannot be changed

 

Hold down the Ctrl to select sub-entities, such as two of the polyline segments that make up a rectangle, polygon (see below), or even a donut! (On a donut, the distance is 0 and cannot be edited.)Hold down the Ctrl key when selecting the individual polylines making up this polygon.

 

 Here is the result after I changed the distance to 0.75 units:

Shape of polygon changed by editing the distance

 

 

Bricsys 2018 London: Day 2

#bricsys2018

 

 OK, here we are on day 2 of the Bricsys 2018 London conference and we are just waiting for the BLADE session to begin,

BLADE is the BricsCAD LISP advanced development environment for interactively programming with the LISP programming language. BLADE was introduced last year with BricsCAD V18.

 While we wait, here is an overview that I gleaned from yesterday's session for third-party developers:

• BricsCAD V19 is is compiled with Visual Studio 2017 and uses Teigha 19.5
• A public API is now available for sheet metal. It uses ARx syntax in BRx (API previously worked through LISP).
• BIM API is u pdated in V19 with IFC export classifications, all BIM properties, spatial id, such as buildings and stories, associative and non-associative rooms, compositions, linear elements like beams and columns, and BIM dialogs.
• BricsCAD App Store has been reworked to make it easier to find the specific add-ons.
•  BricsCAD Solution Build V19 will be released end of 2018. It is not AutoCAD OEM, but the end result is the same.

BLADE

 Why still use LISP?  It has low to zero maintenance, is compatible between releases (unlike C++), no compiler requires (faster development), lots of libraries available, and it good enough probably for 99% of users programming needs.

 
Steve Johnson speaking on LISP in BricsCAD

 Here is a picture of the BLADE user interface.

 It offers parentheses highlighting, pretty printing, collapsing sections, automatic code indenting, and tooltips that show function syntax.

One project can be open at a time, where a project consists of two or more files. A preferences dialog box lets you set up colors and other settings as you wish. You can add your own keywords, and can be highlighted in a different color from regular keywords. Define constants, text scaling factor, and save multiple configurations.

 A very nice feature is the side panel that lists the functions used in the current code. Click on a function name, and it is highlighted in the code -- and vice versa. The function names can be sorted in a variety of ways, such as actual order and alphabetical.

BLADE is being updated with each new release of BricsCAD, such as the new syntax and variables check. More on BLADE from https://blog.bricsys.com/inside-bricsys-blade/

 

Future of Drawing

On to the next session, "The Future of Drawing," where we are getting some more previews of the next release of BricsCAD V19. First up, linking Excel spreadsheets to tables through data linking. It works only with Excel, alas.

The Dim command has been reworked to do semi-automatic dimensioning. As the cursor passes over geometry, BricsCAD selects the correct style of dimensioning, such as linear for lines and radial for circles.

A formal block editor is added to V19, which is accessed through the BEdit command or by double-clicking a blck.

Tangent and Perpendicular entity snaps controls geometry being stretched, such as resizeing an arc attached to lines.

NearestDimension shows you the distance between two objects: just select two of them. See my tutorial on using it at https://www.worldcadaccess.com/blog/2018/10/bricscad-v19-best-1-nearest-distance-editing.html

Nudge lets you move entities with the arrow keys. The distance moved depends on the zoom level.

 Blockify converts individual entities to identical-looking blocks, which helps reduce file size. See my tutorial at https://www.worldcadaccess.com/blog/2018/10/bricscad-v19-2-blockify-conversion.html . It is useful for cleaning up imported STEP files. In one example, the filesize went from 33MB to 3.5MB.

PDF files can be imported as drawing entities.

The manipulator gets a ruler and a protractor, and recognizes snapping. The Repeat option makes multiple copies, while the Copy option makes copies at any angle or distance.

 Point clouds can be imported, and entity snaps used with them. A future release will add object recognition.

 After the break, the future of mechanical...

 The Future of Mechanical

And we're back.

A new module is called BricsCAD Mechanical, which combines BricsCAD Platinum with the old Sheet Metal module. The tease question is "What's wrong with mechanical design?"

• AutoCAD Mechanical is not a choice because it is just a toolset to create 2D drawings -- not 3D. No collision checks, no mass properties, because it is not 3D.
• Autodesk Inventor is not a choice because it loses the ability to edit 3D DWG files. "It forces you to be a programmers not a designer," because it uses history.
• Fusion is not a choice because it requires a stable Internet connection, and uses the same engine as Inventor.

The right MCAD software is

• Compatible with AutoCAD (like Bricsys), even at the API level
• Full-blown 3D with parts and assemblies, sheet metal, and drawing views
• Able to edit any DWG and imported 3D geometry from other MCAD programs
• able to do parametric modeling without getting into the history trap

Also: be affordable, work without an Internet connection, and have a permanent license.

 The backhoe was modeled from scratch in BricsCAD, and moves using parameters.

 See my Twitter stream at upfrontezine for more on mechanical and sheetmetal.

https://twitter.com/upFronteZine

 

 

BricsCAD V19's Best Three New Functions

I've been working with the beta version of BricsCAD V19 and found three commands that I feel (a) are unique to BricsCAD and (b) will prove pretty useful to end-users. Over the next three blog entries, I'll list describe them to you in detail.

BricsCAD V19's new splash screen

 

 

BricsCAD V19 Best: #3, QuickDraw Development

BricsCAD V19's Best Three New Functions

 

bimQuickDraw command draws rectangles and L-shapes with height for conceptually designing buildings and room layouts. 

When you start the command, you see this initial square. The blue square represents the floor area, the white outline is the walls. The wall thickness is fixed at 1/4" in imperial drawings and 5mm in metric ones.

As you move the cursor, the square elongates. You can enter exact distances in the dynamic distance fields. 

When you click a point to indicate the opposite corner (and the size of the floor), walls appear; the height is fixed at 10' (imperial) and 3m (metric). The dimensions show you the distance from all four walls.

Click the blue + to add stories to the floor. The more you click, the more stories you get. (When you click the blue + too many times, you cannot remove stories.)

Draw more attached rooms inside and out by clicking a point inside or outside the walls.

To cut out a portion of a wall, click at the base of the wall. You did it right when a portion of the wall turns red.

 

 

 

Bricsys 2018 London: Day 1

London skyline from near my hotel

Alright, here we are waiting for the official start of Bricsys 2018 conference here in sunny London. We've already had a developer session, where we learned of some of the nuts and bolts about developing add-ons for BricsCAD.

The big news, of course, is that Hexagon of Sweden has bought Bricsys, making it part of its PPM devision that also houses Intergraph, famous for being one of the oldest CAD programs ever. To challenge the "A" company (Autodesk) is going to take more resources. By being acquired by Hexagon (which has a major presence in Huntsville Alabama through Intergraph), makes it easier to take on the American market,

 Keynote Address

CEO Erik de Keyser is on the stage saying "We are going to rock the industry. Again."

Attendees in The Brewery conference hall

He is reminiscing about the start of BricsCAD, which goes back to TriForma, which he sold to Bentley -- BIM before it was called BIM. And then they went to write BricsCAD, first based on IntelliCAD, and then rewritten independently of ITC. "Best decision we ever made" was buying the solid modeling from LEDAS. 

 Now hearing from Rick Allen, executive of Hexagon PPM, also president of CADWorx and Analysis Solutions. CADWorkx link is important, because all this began a few years ago when Intergraph ported CADWorx from AutoCAD to BricsCAD. In the slide below, the extra 180 employees come from Bricsys.

 

 Why did Hexagon buy Bricsys?

They wanted customers to have a complete solutions. The most complex engineering problem today is the offshore platform, with issues like tight spaces and centers of gravity. Intergraph specializes in software that designs them, as well as oil processing plants, water treatment plants, and so on. 

Intergraph/Hexagon is excited by the one-DWG platform provided by Bricsys, for CAD, BIM, and MCAD design in a single file format -- no translation. As opposed to Autodesk, who suffers from CAD (DWG), BIM (RVT), and MCAD (IPT), and the conversion headaches that result.

 Bricsys ceo Erik de Keyser (see photo below) takes his inspiration from German architect Mies (full name Ludwig Mies van der Rohe):

1. Less is more
2. God is in the details, as amplified by Jim Eyre

So the aim these days is to simplify the use of BricsCAD, and yet represent the details with BricsCAD.

 

Bricsys ceo Erik de Keyser

 

User Group Meeting

The brief lunch is over, and now it is time for the inaugural BricsCAD user group meeting. First question on the boar, "Should there be a BricsCAD User Group?" Led by Steve Johnson, who says Bricsys asked him to tackle this.

 User group leader Steve Johnson

Should there be a BricsCAD user group? Yes, we'll give it a try.

What should its goals be? Have Bricsys promote it; membership is free; hope Bricsys might fund direct expenses; exchange information about pain points

What should it do? Maybe discounts for members, reduced ticket prices for the annual conference, wish list, access to beta, exclusive training info, meet with developers; existing forum does a good job, so maybe a member-only section

Should it be primarily online? Meet once a year at the annual Bricsys conference, but then meet virtually

How independent should it be? Maintaining the independence of the user group is important to attendees.

Steven Johnson offers to lead the group initially, with a few others helping. The problem being we don't know what BricsCAD might be called in the future under Hexagon (Intergraph was renamed Hexagon PPM).

 

Building Information Modeling

VP of communications Don Strimbu is asking, Who thinks BIM is awesome? Who thinks BIM is too hard? 

Four top BIM myths

• BIM is just hype
• BIM is just for the big buys
• BIM will just cost more
• BIM is just too much work

 
Bricsys vp of communications Don Strimbu

Now we are getting a demo of what's new in BIM for BricsCAD V19.  The BIM module has a new UI that borrows from the free Sketch program, such as a toolbar-like ribbon and video-based help in a panel.

 New user interface for BricsCAD BIM V19

 BIMify is already two years old, the "AI" command that turns CAD elements into BIM elements. It recognizes beam, columns, components, rooms, internal and external walls, and so on.

Compositions is the most among the most BIM part of BIM, where the details of walls and floors/roofs are defined. A typical residential wall is gyproc on the interior, then 2x4" framing, insulation, plastic vapour barrier, exterior wall of plaster or brick or wood -- and the software needs to know which walls are exterior and which are interior. BricsCAD handles this.

 

 Using BIMify to convert a generic 3D model into a BIM model

BIM V19 now imports @AutodeskRevit RFA family (component) files for use in architectural designs. This means that BricsCAD can now make use of the huge catalogs of Revit parts on third-party sites. Parameters and constraints associated with the RFA are imported. But when the RFA file lacks parameters, then BricsCAD can add them with a single click inside the new Block Editor environment.

 Revit door component inserted in BricsCAD BIM model

BricsCAD BIM V19 improves drawing generation (design documentation) with

• labeled grids
• a Project Browser to track levels (floors) and content on each level
• schedules and quantity take-offs
• reflected ceiling plan
• and so on.

Drawings generated from BIM model showing grid

 

 Hearing how to design a skyscraper with BricsCAD:

Draw the basic shape with 3D solids, then use the new multi-slicing command to create the floors. Shell the model to create walls and ceilings, and then BIMify to identify them. Add glazing. New grid is either rectangular or radial; any curve can be the grid axis, then use standard tools to modify the grid's look.

 The new Propagate command quickly adds elements to a drawing, such as columns in a room.

New Curtain Wall tool adds curtain walls, after you specify the material (such as glass), repeating patterns, and thickness.

Twisted skyscraper with curtain walls

 

 BricsCAD BIM V19 imports TIN files to display the terrain, and has site modeling tools for flattening areas for buildings and roads. Use the outline of the building's base to define the cut/fill volume. When volumes are removed, BricsCAD reports the volume. 

Editing an imported terrain file

The afternoon break is over, and now we hear about CDE -- common data environment -- which Bricsys deploys through 24/7, the new name for their online file sharing site that used to be known as Chapoo. 24/7 also handles project planning, editable work flows, multi-file viewing, and so on with unlimited users, each with different access rights. Cost is $200 per month but will be free for subscribers as of V19.

The example given is a 2.5-mile-long tunnel under Brussels being updated over a period of years.  

 

Managing data with 24/7

 For the future, notifications from BricsCAD, BIM collaboration format, and VR in 24/7.

And that's it for today!

[Disclosure: Bricsys paid part of my airfare, my hotel stay, and some meals] 

Archive: Future of Simulation with Comet

 SPDM

 

Acronym alert! SPDM is short for "simulation process and data management"

Aras recently acquired Comet, software that automates the many steps of running simulations, such as meshing the 3D model, running a variety of simulation scenarios, and then generating reports. 

Often in simulation demos given by CAD/CAE vendors are simplified to solve just one problem. In real world, however, simulation has to solve more than one problem. For instance, shown below is a simple model with four design objectives.

Aras says that Comet would handle the four simulation tasks in a single run. The Comet workspace is shown below. The large area shows the simulation process tree that is automated. Goals reached/not-reached are shown in green/red.

Simulation templates are created by experts in each of their fields, such as meshing and ANSYS. Once the simulation variables are set up, Comet runs the simulation and adjust the CAD model, as shown by th list of tasks (below) that the software performs. ARAS says this takes 14 minutes to run: Comet runs the entire simulation with no user involvement, until the end.

"If it doesn't appear in a PowerPoint, the simulation didn't happen," joked the presenter Tim Keer, Director of Customer Solutions (now with Aras, formerly with Comet) at the  Aras "Future of Simulation" seminar.

Comet normally runs on the desktop, but a version is available from Aras runs in a Web browser, which is suitable for non-expert users who don't need to set up the simulation: just enter data and wait for the results. The browser version also hides proprietary rules from the user and customers.

Aras says they do no favor any other vendor, so Comet works with any MCAD system and simulation software.

 

Q&A

Q: Does Comet come with any simulation tools?

A: None, because it works with what you have, except we provide ANSA meshing.

Q: How does Comet work with CAD and simulation software?

A: To link with other software, adapters have to be written that read-run-write the data with Comet.

Q: When will Comet work with Aras Innovator?

A: There is no target date, but fairly soon.

Q: Can I access Comet now?

A: Aras Comet SPDM will be available pretty soon. It will be for subscribers only.

Q: What does the acquisition mean for Comet customers?

A: We will honor existing contracts. 

 

https://www.aras.com/news/press-releases/2018/09/aras-acquires-comet-solutions

Why IFCs are so bad at BIM translation

 

 

A reader writes:

Here's something which has always bothered me. How can we say that IFC [industry foundation classes] is a BIM [building information modeling] exchange format? When I create walls in one BIM app, export them to IFC and then import the IFC into another BIM app, they aren't native wall objects and don't operate as them. If it really is an exchange format -- besides mere object shapes -- shouldn't this be possible? What am I missing?

     - D.E.

 IFC is a kludge.

It was first designed by Autodesk to solve the problem they created with AutoCAD Release 13's new DWG format that allowed it to store any kind of data -- and the new ARX programming interface that allowed AutoCAD to create any kind of object. These actions in 1995 future-proofed the format, but also lead to unintended consequences.

The problem became how to display that "any kind of content" which AutoCAD did not understand, such as custom objects created by AutoCAD Architectural and Mechanical.

Autodesk came up with three solutions:

• Proxy objects that display custom entities in a dumb format that could be viewed but not edited
• Plug-ins that mimicked the functions of ADT and MDT, so that the proxy object could be edited
• IFC format to transfer the data stored in the custom objects between programs

The plug-ins became unwieldy as the versions multiplied. Autodesk spun off the IFC format to a committee to deal with. The proxy objects are still supported.

For the first many years, the IFC committee worked on exchanging data between programs, such as from ADT to a thermal analysis software, and then into another CAD program. But just data.

When Revit popularized the concept of BIM (2000 and following), IFC was seen as ideal as exporting the building data (information) it stored in its models.

With successive updates to IFC by buildingSmart, the format began to handle graphical data, such as walls and windows. IFC is up to version 4 now. IFC slid into becoming the BIM translation format by default.

So, you are right to be frustrated about the quality of translation, as it was never meant to do that. The problems you encounter are due to every BIM vendor defining their parameterized objects differently.

The good news is that the Open Design Alliance has begun attacking the problem of IFCs, writing an API [application programming interface] for that, along with the API for Revit files. The other good news is that other BIM vendors want this to happen, as well.

The reader responds:

Thanks for the info. I've been seeing US Government contracts written with Revit file format requirements. They state you can use any software you wish, but I don't know of any (yet) which can fulfill this requirement. Also engineers really love having all of the "I" in BIM available to them, so we're kind of stuck when you want to work with these firms.

https://www.opendesign.com/blog/2018/october/oda-begins-work-ifc-solution

 

 

Archive: Generate for Windows

Now on the desktop

 

Frustum is one of a new spate of CAD companies that are deploying the latest mathematics and computing technology to leap ahead of established players and find themselves a niche. In the case of Frustum, their Generate software generates optimal 3D shapes; until now, it has run only in Web browsers.

The company this week held a Webinar to introduce the desktop version of Generate (for Windows only). I listened in and grabbed some screenshots.

- - - 

The Generate software determines the best design of a part based on input, such as stresses and connection points. What's new in the desktop Windows version is interactive modeling, and it is more secure than the cloud.

Frustum claims that Generate creates designs that are actually manufacturable, unlike others.

It has options for optimizing the shape for milling, 3D printing, and casting. These affect the shape in different ways. For instance, designed for casting means the shape must be able to be pulled out of a mold, while optimized for 3D printing means it should have a flat bottom.

Here is the user interface of Generate for Windows.

Generate for Windows can run on a laptop, as was done for the Webinar. But it will run faster on a multi-core desktop computer with a GPU. Only nVdidia graphics boards are supported. Real-time FEA (finite element analysis) does not mandate a GPU. GPU is optionally enabled if the machine has an NVIDIA graphics card.

A future release will add lattice design to Generate for Windows.

Output from Generate is an STL file. A future version might output a b-rep for input to CAD, but it is not a simple problem to solve.

Demo version cannot be simply downloaded from Frustum's Web site. You have to contact info@frustum.com for a trial version.

https://www.frustum.com/product

Archive: Cambashi Webinar on CAE Opportunties

Buyin' 'em up

 

Cambashi is a CAD market analysis firm out of England, and this week it held a Webinar intriguingly named "Assessing Investment Opportunities in the CAE market." (The company also provides consulting and training.) I listened in to hear what they had to say.

- - -

One of the first stats blew me away: There are 470 non-EDA companies providing 2D and 3D CAE and physics simulation software. The biggest names are listed below.

 

As the Cambashi Webinar was about the opportunities in acquiring a CAE firm, one obvious purchaser that jumped out at me is Bricsys, which could use analysis to compliment its advanced design capabilities. 

Here is a slide on investment scenarios:

Cambashi maintains a dashboard that tracks many CAE companies, which presumably would help you decide which CAE vendor to acquire, based on criteria like these: 

• Growth rate of the CAE vendors
• Specialty areas, such as which kinds of simulation and analysis they do
• Future plans

Well, that, and the cost of acquiring the software company.

http://www.cambashi.com/cae-market-data

 

Archive: MagicLeap's first developer conference

 First Look

 

MagicLeap is a secretive company that amassed a crazy amount of money over several years -- $2.5 billion in investor's money -- before finally getting around to showing its product a few months ago. This week, it held its first conference for third-party developers. 

This was an important event: what can it show for a couple of billion bucks? Two CAD vendors made brief presentation towards the end of the three hours, Trimble for SketchUp and Onshape.

Here are the notes I took during the first three hours of the Webcast, which you can view at https://www.magicleap.com/LEAPcon

- - -

Fascinating spin from MagicLeap's first developer conference. Company execs claiming media like radio and tv (which brought people together) actually were social failures, but VR goggles (which by their very nature are isolating) are inclusive.

Despite the "We Are the [liberal progressive] World" vibe from the MagicLeap developer conference, all the [video] demos show lonely people stabbing their arms in their empty-of-other-humans rooms.

 

New open-source-based LuminOS from MagicLeap to offers fastest meshing available.

 

Software roadmap from MagicLeap, looking like development will continue into 2019.

Company, which pocked $2.5 billion in funding, is offering $200,000 for bug bounties.

It's VRML time all over again. MagicLeap wants to create spatial (ie, 3D) Web experiences through their own new browser, Helio and declarative HTML library, Prismatic. Spatial Web to solve on-line shopping problems.

 

Apparently the primary purpose of MagicLeap is viewing whales. Whales feature prominently in the company's marketing images.

 

Coming this fall, avatars for picking tv dinners.

 

"MagicLeap has its own editorial point of view, and putting [MagicLeap] Studios name on content helps us reflect what the company believes in. These are the stories WE want to tell." Content created by Create software, to be delivered next year.

 

Science fiction author Neal Stephenson of Goat Labs showing the PHILTR, which was pilfered from ComicCon. He says it works with MagicLeap but doesn't say how.

 

2.5 hours into watching the MagicLeap developer conference and I still figure VR will be as successful in homes as 3D TVs.

Slide shows percentage of kinds of apps being made for Magicleap. Is CAD part of the Productivity type?

Home shopping is back at MagicLeap, which has 10 million shopping items. Pull items from their 3D Web browser into your space.

 

First mention of CAD is SketchUp from Trimble.  Trimble is talking about mixed reality made of hardware and software to capture the physical environment and manage engineering projects. SketchUp has 30 million users and its Warehouse is probably the largest 3D library.

"We are not telling stories, we are not playing games."

Prototype SketchUp software brings models from 3D Warehouse into MagicLeap. https://www.roadtovr.com/magic-leap-reveals-16-ar-experiences-at-leap-con-2018/

 

Onshape is now on. "I believe we will see CAD move to a new generation, on a new platform: Mixed reality and 3D CAD."

The new Onshape 3D CAD app for @MagicLeap is announced and shown in a video. Use markup tool, and then see the changes in real-time. "This is live editing of CAD."

Although not made explicit, the MCAD editing is done with the Onshape app running in a Web browser or on a tablet -- not by the MagicLeap interface. The 3D view is updated after the editing change is made.

https://www.prweb.com/releases/onshape_teams_up_with_magic_leap_for_new_spatial_computing_cad_app/prweb15829664.htm

How to send email from overseas when your ISP blocks you

VPN to the rescue

 

When I want to send email from outside of Canada, the outgoing email is filed to Outgoing, the purgatory mailbox. It is never sent. The problem occurs whether I want to send email from my Android phone or my Windows laptop, using a desktop client like Eudora or eM Client, or mobile app, like AquaMail. Who blocks the email, and why, I don't know.

I asked my ISP's tech support. They had no clue, suggesting that I instead use their Webmail client, which is only slightly worse than Gmail's Web client. (The Webmail client is, admittedly, effective in overcoming geographic boundaries, but awkward to use.)

 

Fool 'em with VPNs

The solution is to use a VPN, a virtual private network, which fools everybody on the Internet and all software on your computer that you are in a different country. There are numerous VPNs that provide a basic service for free. I use TunnelBear, which offers 500MB a month of data transfer at no cost; paying for TunnelBear gets me unlimited data and use on up to five computers at once. (I use it at home on all our computers as a extra layer of protection.)

So, download and install a VPN like TunnelBear (https://www.tunnelbear.com/download), and then specify your home country, the one where your ISP is located. In my case, Canada. Problem solved.

If you have emails stuck in the Outgoing box, then you'll need to resend them. In some cases, the email client is smart enough to send them once it senses that you are "back in Canada." In other cases, you need to manually resend them, which might involve moving them to the Inbox, forwarding them as an original, or some other tactic. 

I use TunnelBear to watch videos, such as live news events, that are geographically locked. Some jurisdictions, however, like China, and some software giants, like Netflix, block VPNs. So, there is an alternative. 

 

The Alternative to VPNs

There is an alternative solution, involving a "visual" VPN like TeamViewer (https://www.teamviewer.com/en/download/windows). It displays on your local screen (laptop or Android device) what is displayed on the distant computer to which you connect. I primarily use this software to support the computers used by elderly relatives. It lets me see what is happening on their computer screens, operate the software, and even reboot their computers.

When I am abroad, I use TeamViewer to access my desktop computer back home. I've used it sometimes to transfer files that I forgot to take along, but mostly I use it to access my Eudora email client running on my primary desktop computer. I go through the incoming emails, answering them, and filing them into mailboxes.

It is possible to watch geographically-locked and VPN-blocked video with TeamViewer, but the frame rate is slow. It works, because as far as Netflix is concerned, the video is being watched on a geographically-correct computer. I don't know if TeamViewer is effective at evading the Great Red Firewall imposed by China.