“Brand New Car”

In case anyone is in doubt, but not over finances, right now is a GREAT time to buy a car.  I cannot overstate this fact.  With the economic woes causing our system to collapse all around us, there are many opportunities for which to take advantage.  Stock market is one, if you don’t mind the rollercoaster ride.  Another way is in using one’s buying power for the big ticket items (cars in particular, but yeah, I’m sure boats and such are going for huge discounts too).

I recently traded in my old 2003 Acura TL Type-S for a 2009 Pontiac G8 GT.  As I began on this strange move months ago, I got asked “trade in an Acura for a Pontiac?”.  Yes, without reservation.  I waited to make this exchange until the end of Sept, and I’m glad I did because I got great pricing.  (OK, the reasons why I readily dumped my Acura for a Pontiac are best covered some other time.  I’ll just say that no one asks why once they see my G8 GT and ride in it.)  Anyway, the point is, right now is a great time to get some really great deals on the cars.

This isn’t a message to tell people “Hey, go out and support the American economy.”  This is a message saying “Now is the time to strike; to get the really great bargains.”  The consumer advantage is not limited to GM.  All the car companies are in pain right now.  As I shopped around in recent months, many of the dealers put on a brave face, but there is an air of desperation.  I guess a better way to put is that they are willing to actually deal.  No more dealer mark-ups.  I’ve actually seen quite the opposite.  Some brands are selling 2008’s for WAY under even the invoice price (prolly close to what is actually paid by the dealer).

Of course, if you invest your money, you might score a 3.0% yield CD, which is running at about 1/2 the current inflation rate.  You can try to time the stock market, but much bigger money is likely timing you instead.  If you are going to lose money, you might as well enjoy the ride (literally).

SolidWorks World 2009 is coming together

If interested, I encourage everyone to check out the SolidWorks World 2009 website.  Included are details about SolidWorks World 2009 (SWW09), of course.  Yes, it’s that time of year already.  Time flies by, doesn’t it?  The first announcement of Breakout Sessions and Hands-on Sessions is now available for viewing too. This is useful for planning attendance and maybe even in justifying the trip to one’s boss.

As usual, there are diverse topics covering the basics to advanced ideas, and the abstract to the very specific.  There is already a large selection to choose from.  Here’s the list of the categories.

CAD Administration
Data Management
Design Automation
Design Validation
Education
Modeling Essentials
Productivity Tools
Customer Success/Designing Better Products
Tips and Tricks
Design Communication

And, here’s a quick snap shot of just a few of the actual sessions:

  1. Surfacing for Beginners
  2. Using SolidWorks to create a greener World
  3. Connecting SolidWorks Enterprise PDM to your ERP system
  4. Saving time using Smart Components

From the looks of what scheduled so far, this promises to be a very educational conference.

Measure that Mate (Why are results different?)

I was recently asked,

“I did a check where the distance mate value and the measurement for the same features shows two markedly different values.  Have you ever seen anything like this?”

Distance Mate Result

This individual wondered how it was possible that his measurement of two associated features was different than the dimension he entered for the distance mate assigned to those two features.

Measurement Results

My reply was pragmatic.

“Without seeing the model directly, it’s hard to confirm the error.  However, I have found that whenever SolidWorks gives me a number and it doesn’t make sense, it is due to something the user is doing or some misinterpretation of the data.  This causes me to try to investigate when such issues arise by first considering what the user is doing.

“In this case, I’m assuming you are measuring from the center of the circle to the flat face.  However, I notice that your mate is set up face to face. I’m guessing SolidWorks is mating your hole based on the closest point of the circular face, and not the hole’s center.

“To fix this, use the temporary axis of the hole as the selected entity for your mate instead of the hole’s face.”

This individual followed my advice and was able to eliminate the apparent discrepancy.  In general, it is a good idea to check look at how SolidWorks (or any software) functions in order to understand why something is happening.

Free Training: SimulationXpress

SolidWorks is now providing free online training for the new SimulationXpress at this website.  SimulationXpress represents a rebirth of sorts to CosmosXpress and the new direction which SolidWorks Corp is taking with the Cosmos product offerings for FEA.  Check out the training site, not just for training, but also general information regarding this stress analysis application.