The nature of this forum?

[Dan B]

I have just registered on this forum in the hopes of getting some input from a more professional group, and less of a hobbiest point of view. Am I in the right place, I wonder?

I have been with CNCZone for quite a while, even being a moderator there. It's a good site, but I think the emphasis and discussion is very hobby oriented. When I ask questions about CAM software, I get responses that seem more orientated to people working out of their garages and basements. Nothing wrong with that, and I appreciate the advice, but I think (excuse the lack of humility here)I am coming from a different level. I am a CAM manager at a company that employs over 100 people and does annual business in excess of $20 million.

To us CAM software is one of the most critical tools we have to remain competitive in a very cut-throat business. We currently use WorkNC, and have been for 12 or 13 years. As a CAM Manager, one of my duties is to make sure our CAM software remains current and valid. In other words, is there something better out there?

CNCZone participants heavily promote OneCNC as the "best" CAM software out there, but don't seem to be "up to speed" with the idea of HSM, or completely understand the delicate balance between profit and loss and how a CAM software fits in that role.

Interestingly, I was given references from OneCNC for users in my area (which is the automotive capital of Canada, with 120+ mold shops and numerous other tool shops) and not a single user in this city. That says a lot.

So here is my question:

Is this forum geared toward professionals in the mold/tool&die/fixture business, or is it more hobby oriented, like CNCZone.

Thanks

Dan

 

[ARB]

Dan,
I think you will find that this forum has some of the brightest programers in the buisness. There is a broad spectrum of skills and personalities. Not everyone is a Cad/Cam Guru or even uses it all. Some of us have small shops and others work for large companies.
You will find that this forum is one of the best tools on the net for this information. I for one look here 4 to 5 times a day to see what is going on. Don't be afraid to add your 2 cents.


ARB

 

[mrainey]

Lots of experience here, helpful attitudes, humor. Also the occasional food fight.

A great place for beginners and pros.

 

[rj newbould]

Welcome Dan.

I think you'll find what you want in here.

 

[pi]

CNCZone participants heavily promote OneCNC

why do you think that is? onecnc sponsors cncbonz. all it is is a big onecnc lack of infomercial

 

[Solar71]

Welcome DAN!!!

Im a newbie here...
And i have learned a lot of good things in this furom... I do CAD/CAM for a living... not as a hobbie...

I think, from what i have seen in this forum, that MasterCAM is the best CAD/CAM software out there... It is expensive, but from what i read in this forum, its the best...

Also, it is what i use at my work... and i love it...

so there

 

[smallshop]

welcome to the dark side Dan...

Actually, you may answer the question best yourself by reading the posts here in the CNC forum. You know what you have been reading at the other site. Let us know what you think. The bulk of us here make chips for a living.The other forums are excellent also. I actually learn more in the general forum than here. This forum is comfortable like old slippers cause these guys all speak the lingo....

 

[pi]

there's a general forum?

 

[smallshop]

 

[Jeff]

GibbsCam, noting better, only cheaper

 

[smallshop]

points and connectors?? single color///nothing better???

 

[moldcore]

Hello Dan, good to see another familiar sig here. I’ve only been here a few months myself. I believe you’ll find this forum pretty much like CNCzone, and CADchat with pretty much the same groupies with about a 50/50 mix of hobby and professionals.

As for the best CAM software…. who knows? You get what you pay for. Your company, because of its size, should attract some highly skilled individuals that should be able to direct you in your quest. Go with what’s being used in your area, what’s being taught in the schools or tech centers. Cutting corners in this area is not an option if you want to be competitive. Why choose a $6,000 for a program that no one knows and have to invest another 6K for training and lost time if you can get a 12K program that everyone uses and is familiar with and of course have larger pool of users to hire from.

Wayne
Surfcam, Solid Edge, KeyCreator (not always in that order)

 

[dennis k]

dan , I own a small shop and learned alot about what to look at and witch companies to look at try using the information you gain that fits you and your company to better you and it , in plain english you get whar you want from it .

 

[Solar71]

Gimmie an M
Gimmie an a
Gimmie an s
Gimmie a t
Gimmie an e
Gimmie an r
Gimmie a C
Gimmie an A
Gimmie an M

what does that spell ?
MASTERCAM!!!
weee!!!

 

[mrainey]

MASTERCAM!!!
weee!!!

Well, you just ran the new guy off.

 

[Boris]

Well, you just ran the new guy off.

Well thats just proved solar's learned something from Pi

Boris

'its a wet sunday afternoon and I'm outa beer... what else to you expect?'

 

[HuFlungDung]

I'll toss in a metaphorical comparison here to try to outline my perspective on choosing cadcam.

If you already own and can afford to drive a Hummer, and I try to sell you a budget half-ton like a Chevy S10, I'm gonna have a pretty hard sale to make Both vehicles will take you where you want to go, but one will do it with less frills than the other.

But, if you own a bicycle, and I try to sell you a Hummer instead of an S10, it is going to be easier to sell the S10.

End of metaphor.

I started with Bobcad, and stuck with it as long as I could, until it utterly failed to produce. Then I got OneCNC (the old 2000 version) and it saved my bacon. So I've moved on up, and now I admit that I probably feel a bit of disdain for the cheaper packages, even though I haven't looked at them in exhaustive detail. So I can understand the similar feelings of the guys using the more pricy software, that they are not going to give OneCNC an honest shot, because they are really not vitally interested. That is ok, but it doesn't have much to do with the actual capability of the softwares.

I'm not going to look further than OneCNC until it fails to produce what I need. Then I'll look.

One the other hand, if I ran a large shop, and wanted to pick up some relatively idiot proof software for the shop floor guys to mess around with, I'd sure look hard at OneCNC. I would probably have less to worry about, and they could likely do 99% of the jobs on it. They might never get stumped, but I wouldn't know that, because I might only know a higher end package.

OneCNC will continue to grow in popularity, if for no other reason than attrition of the old timers who already know the currently popular softwares. The newbies want something that is easy to learn. Their managers like software that doesn't produce unexpected results.

I cannot speak for the Mastercamers who have 'downgraded' to OneCNC. There are things they don't like about Mastercam, but I am not intimately acquainted with those beefs.

 

[Dan B]

I see there are a few names here that I am aquainted with from CNCZone and CadChat. It feels like home already!

I appreciate all the responses so far.

I spent a significant amount of time last night looking at the MasterCam forum, based off of Solar's comment. I even saw a few comparisons of MCam to WorkNC. All I can say is that they sure are a loyal bunch. Their perception of WorkNC was quite humourous. There was one complaint about how many files WorkNC produces in a workzone, like that was a bad thing. They didn't realize (nor did I bother saying so) that those numerous files allow you to keep working while the toolpaths are processing. I did notice that most comparisons were between version X and 5-10 year old WorkNC.

I did read enough to know that MasterCam lacks what I feel are some necessary functions that we take for granted with WorkNC. Editing toolpaths, which allow for rapid programming (gives you the option to spend the time up front to set every parameter just so, or quickly throw together a boundry or two, then take 2 or 3 seconds to trim paths later)was a main one. Of course, MCam users don't see the need for that, just as KeyCreator users will justify why parametrics makes no sense.(no offense intended to any KeyCreator users who feel that way)

For the record, I re-examine our CAM software every two years to make sure we are using the best application for what we do. I start early enough that I can have all my "ducks in a row" by the time IMTS rolls around in September. Maintenance fees on WorkNC are high, and it would be great to find something like OneCNC that is just as capable, but without the ridiculous annual fees. I would like to add a few more seats of CAM, and I don't have a problem with the $20K+ that WorkNC charges. But those fees on every seat, every year will be outlandish over the long haul.

But as Hu knows from our discussions on CNCZone, we will not buy without doing test cuts. If a CAM company wants to sell to the discriminating professionals, they are going to need to change their marketing strategies.

Dan

 

[pi]

keep in ming huflung is a cncbonz plant here

 

[HuFlungDung]

as posted by Pi
keep in ming huflung is a cncbonz plant here

That's quite a weighty argument.

Even if I were being compensated in some fashion, so what? Does that stop anyone from extolling the virtues of any other program? I suspect most cannot be bothered. I do more than just advertise, because I am intimately acquainted with the software I use. Plain and simple.

I liken my actions more to a lead climber, tossing a line to those in need, insofar as I see them struggling to come up the same path as I already walked. If you are ahead of me, then I cannot lend much assistance.