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EEVblog:
Altium Designer is now 5% cheaper, they have given me the coupon code ADIL5 to share.
 :popcorn:
tggzzz:

--- Quote from: Simon on May 16, 2023, 06:55:34 pm ---
--- Quote from: floobydust on May 15, 2023, 09:40:32 pm ---
How are we measuring the difficulty changing over, learning the new software?
If it's taking a long time, surely it's due to low IQ? How many hours are you allotting for the new staff to get up to speed?

I saw many well-educated, intelligent EE's choke when expected to figure it out on their own. Because CADD software complexity is ever increasing and most has old legacy and clutzy UI to make it harder. No EE likes to be in a new job and starting from scratch with the tools. Or even hired in the first place - employers want the skills right off the bat.
Try sit down with AutoCAD or SolidWorks and tell me you can pick that up in a few days - no, you need the courses on it and months of experience.

Still thinking a software change is not difficult - it trashed morale, needed new libraries built, and months before people were fluent, and even then slow going.
We are assuming it's no big deal to change over and I say careful, it may no longer be trivial.

--- End quote ---

I have found that by and large ECAD is the same process and methods most of the time. It's not too difficult to get the basics if you need to.

3D CAD is what you give an example of, this is somewhat different. I was trained on Solid Edge, I then tried to use free CAD, and my god, I take issue with those that claim it is the greatest etc, it's appalling. Then I started my current job, we use Creo, of fuck! what a mess that is, I now see where freeCAD came from, beyond it's actual limitations it reminds me of creo. 3D CAD programs have nowhere near the pretty standard way of working that ECAD has, it's a different beast. Having learnt one I was more prepared to learn another, but still it can be a challenge.

--- End quote ---

I've only dabbled in 3D design, but it seems to me there is a lot in common with programming paradigms and languages that support a paradigm.

There's the OpenSCAD type, where you add/subtract parameterised geometric shapes. Very similar to procedural languages.

There are constraint-based tools, where specify a subset of relationships between objects and let the tool work out the unspecified relationships. Much like declarative languages.

There are wire-mesh tools, where you squeeze and pull the mesh to get what looks right. Much like office diagram tools.

You have to choose the paradigm (and therefore tool) that best matches the way you think about and express your solution to the problem. Hence if you want to make a box, don't use a wire mesh tool; do use OpenSCAD. OTOH if you want to make a sculpture of a bust, then don't use a constraint-based tool but do use a wire mesh tool.

The analogies with programming languages is, I hope, uncontroversial.
MarginallyStable:


--- Quote ---The fact that no open source desktop app has ever managed to dethrone its commercial counterparts...

--- End quote ---

Web browsers is but one example I feel you are incorrect in this statement.
PlainName:
Commercial web browsers got dethroned by Microsoft embedding IE in Windows. Nothing to do with open source.
tooki:

--- Quote from: MarginallyStable on May 18, 2023, 05:12:29 pm ---

--- Quote ---The fact that no open source desktop app has ever managed to dethrone its commercial counterparts...

--- End quote ---

Web browsers is but one example I feel you are incorrect in this statement.

--- End quote ---
Hmmm, true, I think that is worth a half point. :) I mean, the leading browsers themselves (Chrome, Safari) aren't fully open-source, but the underlying rendering engines are. I think Firefox is the only fully open-source one that manages to crack 2% market share (and not by much).

I'm sure there are assorted little utilities and the like where open-source has nudged out commercial, but in terms of big stuff... I'm still waiting.
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