CAD Tech Tools

[Aren Siekmeier]

touchpad and judicious use of "Select other..."

Or rotate the view with the arrow keys. I pull out CAD when I'm on the go with my laptop and I've got something I want to mock up real fast. Assuming it can't be done on the back of a napkin.

[z_beeblebrox]

Accident. Mods, please delete.

[M. Mellott]

I've used a 3DConnexion "SpaceExplorer" spaceball (USB interface, forget wireless) forever, both at work and with my own laptop for running/teaching Inventor. With the spaceball in my left hand and a 3-button mouse in the right, I can zoom and rotate the part/assembly much quicker and more accurately while selecting features with the mouse. I find that having the wrist rest attached allows me to more accurately move the image (unlike the SpaceNavigator, which has no extension).

Yes, spaceballs are expensive (mine was free from work ), but I swear by them, and I highly encourage all of my students to get one (or something similar) if they plan on getting serious with CAD--makes working in 3D so much easier. They are always fascinated when I pull out the spaceball and show them how to use it...plus, they get jealous after seeing how fast I can maneuver.

[Cory]

As someone who was excited about the space navigator (the base model one), bought one, used it, then left it untouched 98% of the time, I don't understand how anyone can possibly think they are faster using it than a mouse and keyboard. You have to take your hand off of it every 3 seconds to use keyboard shortcuts if you are generating parts and actively editing assemblies.

If you are giving a presentation or just viewing an assembly then sure, maybe it could be faster. Anyone expecting it to revolutionize their CAD experience is going to be disappointed. Anyone who thinks it's "way faster" is either not doing much editing of parts/assemblies or falsely thinks they're doing it way faster because they're using a cool toy.

As I said before in another thread I could potentially see why a specific use case would allow the space mice with the additional hot keys to be useful, but let's be real, FRC teams aren't doing anything that crazy.

[Michael Hill]

I also bought a space navigator. It's okay....I do find it a bit faster than a mouse in getting just the right view that I want, but it's at the expense of several hotkeys. I did bind the keys on there to keys that would allow me to make measurements, mate and reset the views.

I also bought the cadmouse from 3dconnexion. It's actually a pretty legit mouse that works great for CAD. I also got the enormous mousepad. The mousepad really isn't too necessary because the mouse works on pretty much every surface well (a distinct difference with the previous 2 mice I used). It's also got a bunch of keys that can be bound to various functions. The only downside is that it's wired, but it's a sufficiently long cord that can reach pretty far if you need to route it through a desk. I'm on a laptop most of the time, so the cord generally just gets in the way, but I can see it for desktop use. The big difference this mouse has over a lot of others is a 3rd mouse button plus a scroll wheel (not too many mice have that). The middle button acts as a scroll wheel click, so you can scroll wheel click without worrying that you're going to zoom in or out accidentally.

[Chak]

Originally Posted by Michael Hill

I also bought the cadmouse from 3dconnexion. It's actually a pretty legit mouse that works great for CAD. I also got the enormous mousepad. The mousepad really isn't too necessary because the mouse works on pretty much every surface well (a distinct difference with the previous 2 mice I used). It's also got a bunch of keys that can be bound to various functions. The only downside is that it's wired, but it's a sufficiently long cord that can reach pretty far if you need to route it through a desk. I'm on a laptop most of the time, so the cord generally just gets in the way, but I can see it for desktop use. The big difference this mouse has over a lot of others is a 3rd mouse button plus a scroll wheel (not too many mice have that). The middle button acts as a scroll wheel click, so you can scroll wheel click without worrying that you're going to zoom in or out accidentally.

What makes the cadmouse great for CAD? When I first saw this mouse I thought it was a joke - a hundred bucks for a middle mouse button?! Are there other features I'm not seeing?

[JesseK]

This one looks like fun: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/granto/the-z

[dirtbikerxz]

Does anyone now of any cheap (like 50 dollar range) for one of these 3d "mouses"

[Michael Hill]

Originally Posted by Chak

What makes the cadmouse great for CAD? When I first saw this mouse I thought it was a joke - a hundred bucks for a middle mouse button?! Are there other features I'm not seeing?

Nothing about it is super special. It does feel good in the hand and the buttons are easily accessible. It is a pretty rock solid mouse that works on pretty much every surface. It is nice that you can use the same software as the space navigator to set up bindings (though Logitech has similar software for their mice). I just had some money to blow and was fed up with the Logitech mice I had.