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3D Modelling in a Browser

vectary.com

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Re: 3D Modelling in a Browser

#61

Post by m-ee »

johnwalkr wrote: post #37
AlunAlun wrote: post #16

See also: Clara.io [0], Onshape [1], Lagoa (bought a few years ago by Autodesk) [2] I must confess I struggle to see the long-term market for these services - I was working on a startup in the field for a while, and eventually decided it wasn't worth continuing. The only thing these services really offer above desktop equivalents (which Autodesk totally dominate) is the collaboration (like Google Docs for 3D). But do…

I’ve used Solidworks for 15 years, and I think Onshape is close to as good for modeling, and now much better for collaboration and version control. Collaboration is great, but version control and configuration management is the killer feature of online CAD tools. These also facilitate typical collaboration which is at a part level more often than part level. The existing tools rely on a lot of discipline and are very…

It's kind of incredible how big a pain in the ass the SW license and PDM servers are. Definitely requires full time IT support and small riots are likely to form when they try to upgrade them during a busy period, especially if someone suggests using an SP1 version.

Re: 3D Modelling in a Browser

#62

Post by lbill »

redindian75 wrote: post #22
AlunAlun wrote: post #16

See also: Clara.io [0], Onshape [1], Lagoa (bought a few years ago by Autodesk) [2] I must confess I struggle to see the long-term market for these services - I was working on a startup in the field for a while, and eventually decided it wasn't worth continuing. The only thing these services really offer above desktop equivalents (which Autodesk totally dominate) is the collaboration (like Google Docs for 3D). But do…

For lightweight & quick conceptual work, even final deliveries most of the time, nothing beats a browser based available-everywhere tool. No files to sync, same tool to both view & edit the files. I used Industry heavyweight Photoshop for 15+ years, Sketch for 4 and dropped everything for Figma[1] after playing with it for 2 days. Now my UX comps, UI sketches all available EVERYWHERE. All inspirations, rough concepts…

That is a compelling argument. Be careful with the terms of use though, they can hide a few surprises. Example: in Vectary's terms of use[1] I interpret the section 4.6 as "backing-up your data is your responsibility. If our servers burn, we might not be able to recover your data and we won't be responsible for it".

That being said, the limits of Vectary's services seem to be clearly stated, so one can adapt to them (by using some storage drives from OVH, Digital Ocean or any such provider to back-up the data, for instance)

[1] https://www.vectary.com/terms-of-use/

Re: 3D Modelling in a Browser

#63

Post by mmjaa »

spectramax wrote: post #31

I am a Mechanical Engineer and we use SolidWorks for CAD. I was surprised to find there exists no 3D modeling software (Nurbs / Polygonal based) that I can model using accurate dimensions. 3DSMax, Maya, Modo, C4D, Blender, Houdini, you name it. I understand that they’re not doing parametric modeling such as SolidWorks, Inventor, etc. but there has to be a way to merge both modeling paradigms. I was honestly shocked a…

Tried OpenSCAD?

Re: 3D Modelling in a Browser

#64

Post by wccrawford »

dvfjsdhgfv wrote: post #3

Oh man I hate receiving spam from these people. They don't provide an unsubscribe link, and when I ask them to stop sending me these e-mails, they say they won't and that I should manually log in to their website and delete my account. I don't have time to deal with this but I hope someone takes them to task for that.

Thanks for the warning. I don't need more of that crap filling my spam folder.

Microsoft did it for a long time if you signed up for their Azure service, but just recently finally provided and unsubscribe after so many people complained.

Re: 3D Modelling in a Browser

#65

Post by chansiky »

spectramax wrote: post #31

I am a Mechanical Engineer and we use SolidWorks for CAD. I was surprised to find there exists no 3D modeling software (Nurbs / Polygonal based) that I can model using accurate dimensions. 3DSMax, Maya, Modo, C4D, Blender, Houdini, you name it. I understand that they’re not doing parametric modeling such as SolidWorks, Inventor, etc. but there has to be a way to merge both modeling paradigms. I was honestly shocked a…

Rhinoceros 3D is a Nurbs modelling software that uses dimensions and is used heavily in the architecture/arch-viz industry. But I agree, its shocking that every mainstream 3D modelling software has no concern for dimensional accuracy.

Re: 3D Modelling in a Browser

#66

Post by PudgePacket »

tokyodude wrote: post #50
AlunAlun wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

WebGL, which is now supported by all modern browsers, with WebGL2 (more flexible, fewer restrictions) around the corner. Most of the professional level tools as exhibited by the OP will be using a custom engine built on top of it. For smaller projects, the excellent Three.js [0] is an easy way into creating 3D in the browser. [0] https://threejs.org/

WebGL2 is not around the corner. Apple has indirectly made it clear they will never be shipping WebGL2. WebGPU is "around the corner". Apple/Mozilla/Google/Microsoft are all working on it. Google and Mozilla will ship it. Apple and Microsoft remain to be seen.

https://caniuse.com/#search=webgl2

It's supported in safari, currently gated behind a setting though.

Re: 3D Modelling in a Browser

#67

Post by chansiky »

AlunAlun wrote: post #52
spectramax wrote: post #31

I am a Mechanical Engineer and we use SolidWorks for CAD. I was surprised to find there exists no 3D modeling software (Nurbs / Polygonal based) that I can model using accurate dimensions. 3DSMax, Maya, Modo, C4D, Blender, Houdini, you name it. I understand that they’re not doing parametric modeling such as SolidWorks, Inventor, etc. but there has to be a way to merge both modeling paradigms. I was honestly shocked a…

Maybe I missed something in your question, but in every modeling package, even online ones, you have always been able to numerically specify the size, position and orientation of every object in your scene, with a precision of several decimal points. No need to rely on your ‘eye’ at all.

Yes, you can model accurately in these programs but you really have to understand how construction documents are put together. You aren't going to be able to quickly take dimensions from a drawing and convert it into an accurate 3D model with any of the big 3D model packages out there. When I was an architect, I stayed far away from 3DS max, Maya, Blender, etc because modelling in them felt like drawing with crayons. Its the difference between using pencils, rulers, and compass on a drafting board and using paint and brush on a canvas. And that is what's surprisingly lacking in the market, the accurate measured generic 3D modelling program.

Re: 3D Modelling in a Browser

#68

Post by cannedslime »

spectramax wrote: post #31

I am a Mechanical Engineer and we use SolidWorks for CAD. I was surprised to find there exists no 3D modeling software (Nurbs / Polygonal based) that I can model using accurate dimensions. 3DSMax, Maya, Modo, C4D, Blender, Houdini, you name it. I understand that they’re not doing parametric modeling such as SolidWorks, Inventor, etc. but there has to be a way to merge both modeling paradigms. I was honestly shocked a…

> Everything is done by “eye” in the visualization industry.

Im not sure if we tried the same version of blender... Its pretty easy and even intuitive to enter numerical values for dimension, rotation etc.

Re: 3D Modelling in a Browser

#69

Post by cannedslime »

So can you actually do useful work in this? Or is it just drag & drop of prefabs like the marketing would lead you to believe?

What about modifiers and tools, what can I actually make with this aside from drag&drop of prefabbed iphones?

Why would I choose to pay for some cloud BS over just downloading blender?

Re: 3D Modelling in a Browser

#70

Post by inred9 »

d-sc wrote: post #47
AlunAlun wrote: post #16

See also: Clara.io [0], Onshape [1], Lagoa (bought a few years ago by Autodesk) [2] I must confess I struggle to see the long-term market for these services - I was working on a startup in the field for a while, and eventually decided it wasn't worth continuing. The only thing these services really offer above desktop equivalents (which Autodesk totally dominate) is the collaboration (like Google Docs for 3D). But do…

CAD tools generally have pretty good lock in. So that certainly helps with the long term the prospects. I’m not going to convince my team to move over from the tools they use. But the engineering team that makes their jobs irrelevant because they bid by 50% lower through increased efficiency will. Rendering is computationally heavy, so a browser is not ideal. However, offloading simulation, file storage, version hand…

gpu does a favor to this kind of rendering?
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