CAD for older computers

[sanddrag]

I have a set of computers that are Pentium 4 2GHz with only 256mb of DDR RAM. Quite lacking by today's standards, especially in RAM. Is there any free or inexpensive CAD program still around that would run on these things? If I recall, 256mb of RAM is just barely enough to keep XP SP3 running, without even running any programs.

[RoboDesigners]

My first suggestion is to take the computer to BestBuy and ask them to put in more RAM if possible. (Or if you're the adventurous type, do it yourself.)

If you can get 512MB of RAM, you could try Google SketchUp. (sketchup.google.com/) It is totally different than AutoDesk Inventor (my only other CAD experience), but it is quite intuitive and great for quick prototyping...

Hope this helps!

[sanddrag]

It isn't just one computer, it is about 16 for a class. Also, I should mention Bestbuy is the absolute last place I'd take any computer. I'm trying to see if I can work with what I have before requesting upgrades. The machines are not in a setting where I have full control over upgrading them, but I am plenty capable if they were.

[MrForbes]

What type of CAD program are you looking for? Years ago there was something like Expert Cad or KeyCad or something that would run on really old computers (like the original Pentiums)

3d modeling software seems to be kind of expensive, and the folks who sell it don't sell old versions cheap or give them away, as far as I can tell.

[Andrew Schreiber]

http://brlcad.org/d/about BRLCad comes to mind. Sadly it has a pretty crazy learning curve on it.

Originally Posted by RoboDesigners

If you can get 512MB of RAM, you could try Google SketchUp. (sketchup.google.com/) It is totally different than AutoDesk Inventor (my only other CAD experience), but it is quite intuitive and great for quick prototyping...

Hope this helps!

That was my suggestion, too.


Thaine

[Greg Needel]

Why not just find some older versions of CAD software that will run on those machines. CAD is one of those things that learning the fundamentals even on old software will be better than nothing. Google sketchup, while it has it's interesting features is NOT an engineering CAD software with very few features that will translate over to a real system. I would rather run Inventor Version 5 than sketchup.


You might also want to check pro-e student edition, they did some things to lighten the software so it is capable of running on things other than $1000 work stations.

[sanddrag]

Originally Posted by Greg Needel

Why not just find some older versions of CAD software that will run on those machines. CAD is one of those things that learning the fundamentals even on old software will be better than nothing. Google sketchup, while it has it's interesting features is NOT an engineering CAD software with very few features that will translate over to a real system. I would rather run Inventor Version 5 than sketchup.

I agree. Sketchup is a great tool, but is not an engineering tool. It does lack many of the dimensioning, relation, and sketch and modeling tools of a real CAD program. I don't think it would be adequate for my purposes.

Inventor 5 is still a favorite of mine for simple and lightweight work. It'll run adequately on most computers from the last 7 years. The problem is, I don't think there's any way I'd legally be able to get licenses for Inventor 5.

Thanks for the tip on Pro/E. To be honest, I kind of forgot about Pro/E. It looks like they have a great school program. I'll definitely look into it, and it may be worth upgrading the computers if we can get better software at no cost.

I had been looking to see if there's anything that can get me by for a few months on these older machines, but I know, their time has past.

[Ether]

Originally Posted by sanddrag

Is there any free or inexpensive CAD program still around that would run on these things?

http://cadstd.com/lite.php

http://users.telenet.be/desi-iii/MainFrmE.html

http://www.justcad.com/downloads.html

http://www.vectorengineer.com

I haven't tried these yet, but they're supposed to be free.

[sanddrag]

Originally Posted by Ether

http://cadstd.com/lite.php

http://users.telenet.be/desi-iii/MainFrmE.html

http://www.justcad.com/downloads.html

http://www.vectorengineer.com

I haven't tried these yet, but they're supposed to be free.

Wow, those will definitely run on some much older computers. Good find.

[joek]

it would probably be better to get a new computer, if it's old enough that it only has 256 ram, it probably will have some other issues as well. most cad programs require a decent computer ( at least 1 gig ram, 80 gig HD or better, and a nice graphics card). your cpu probably isn't up to par either, so you would be looking at almost a new computer as-is. if your going to be doing a lot of cad work, get a basic gaming computer, but if it's just occasional use, almost any new/ slightly used computer would work. if your goin to get a used one, get one that is less than 5 years old.

[Ether]

Originally Posted by joek

it would probably be better to get a new computer

The operative word above is "a".

It isn't just one computer, it is about 16 for a class. I think that's why he is looking for a less expensive solution.

http://www.chiefdelphi.com/forums/sh...78&postcount=3

[sanddrag]

Well, I tried out DraftSight and it appears to work just fine on these. I'm impressed. That's my temporary solution. It seems that with some upgrades, I could run something like Pro/E. It would cost about $1400 to max out all 16 to 2 gigs of RAM, which could be do-able.