Sketchup is now a web application. Any alternatives?

[ivan747]

I went to download sketchup to design a nice custom acrylic case for a project and found out that Sketchup is now a web application.

I dislike web applications for several reasons, including the fact that the web browser eats up a significant portion of the vertical space (and monitors are wide...). You also don't get an icon on your start menu, you are forced to use certain browsers, you can't work with your computers file system seamlessly and there's the privacy and longevity concern.

Any alternatives?


-Ivan

[vinicius.jlantunes]

Fusion 360 seems to be all the rage right now. Listen to the recent Amp Hour episode where the guy from the NYC CNC youtube channel "sold it" to Dave.
It's free for hobby use.

(note: I have no practical experience with it).

[langwadt]

Fusion 360 seems to be all the rage right now. Listen to the recent Amp Hour episode where the guy from the NYC CNC youtube channel "sold it" to Dave.
It's free for hobby use.

(note: I have no practical experience with it).

apart from being windows/macos only it is great and it has CAM

[ivan747]

Thanks guys! I will give Fusion 360 a try.

I found an old version of Sketchup on the internet and it seems to install the free version correctly. I still want to migrate because Sketchup is now a dead end to me.

Edit: oh my! Fusion 360 is made by AutoCAD, who knew! Let's see if it's like Eagle with a subscription and stuff...

[bandgap]

Edit: oh my! Fusion 360 is made by AutoCAD, who knew! Let's see if it's like Eagle with a subscription and stuff...

Yep.

[elecman14]

They still are distributing a binary for desktop use. https://www.sketchup.com/download/all

[ivan747]

They still are distributing a binary for desktop use. https://www.sketchup.com/download/all

I'll grab it while I still can.

Edit: oh my! Fusion 360 is made by AutoCAD, who knew! Let's see if it's like Eagle with a subscription and stuff...

Yep.

Bummer...

[Aether]

I can attest to Fusion 360 being probably the best  CAD software for mechanical engineering by far, it's free for student and enthusiast use (you get the fancier version to) I use it in a professional capacity as well.
It's made by Autodesk who also now make Eagle apparently (just found that out like a week ago.

[sleemanj]

Just note that F360 is not *technically* a web application, but it isn;t exactly a traditional unconnected one either. 


Your "files" get cloud stored so you have those disadvantages (it does have a cache of sorts, so if the net is down you are not *usually* left hanging on the thing you are *currently* working on), but you also don't get the advantages of a true web app like OnShape such as working on any os, any computer, any time with nothing to install, no upgrading and so on.


If you ever get over your distrust of webapps, definately give OnShape a try, I much prefer it to F360. 

[pelule]

How aboutFreeCAD?
/PeLuLe

[endevor100]

I have been using Fusion 360 for both work and play for a few years now and I really like it. Although it's not as stable as a good professional tool like Solidworks I would say that for the hobbiest you're getting way more than you paid for in Fusion. 3D modeling is acceptable (Better that AutoCAD, not as good as Solidworks IMHO) once you wrap your brain around the different choices the Fusion developers made and having CAM built in is great if you're going to CNC or 3D print your design. If you happen to use Eagle as well they have a beta PCB functionality so you can output your layout from Eagle into Fusion and design the case around your actual PCB. Because of parametrics it will even update in Fusion if you change the layout in Eagle. Haven't gone as far as CAM'ing a connected design, but if that didn't fall to pieces as soon as you changed the board it would make for a very nice tool chain.