Save to file

[jjneeb]

Hi,
I haven’t asked about this in quite a while, but now that you have the capability to export into a native Shapr3D file format, and I see you are starting to work on file orgnaization, and export/import. The next logical thing to add is the standard open/save/saveas capability that pretty much all other software has. Continuously importing and exporting is cumbersome, especially when you want to do a save to the same file.

I use Shapr 3D to create 3D models that I have to import into another CAD/CAM program so that I can edit the file and create toolpaths. I want to store all of my various files for a given project in a folder for that project. I also want to save my files on my shared drive, and back them all up to my backup drive. Saving the files by burying them in the windows ether somewhere is not my idea of security or convenience.

Thanks,
Jim

[Peter_Gy]

On a high level, I can only refer you to @Istvan’s answer about this issue earlier:

Shapr3D doesn't integrate into Windows very well

Hi, no, we will not implement a traditional file based storage for Shapr3D, as the underlying architecture would make it impossible for us to do so. Shapr3D is using a database under the hood that is stored locally on your computer, and the concept of “files” is alien to this system. This has many advantages, eg. you never have to save your designs manually, and data corruption is virtually impossible, you’ll never lose any data, and this solution makes it possible to add collaboration and colla…

Our thinking about this and our plans have not changed since then.

That being said, we could indeed make the very common use cases of transferring exported designs over to CAM and being able to store all data relevant to a project in a single location more convenient. This is something that’s on our mid-term roadmap, but I can’t give you an exact timeline for when we’d get there.

[jjneeb]

I really don’t understand your logic, a database’s data is still stored in files, and clearly you can save the data off seperately and re-integrate later because you have the export/import working, so you already have the underlying capability, it just doesn’t have a usable interface.

Shapr3D’s advantage over other CAD programs is its user interface, not its underlying architecture. I’ve never had problems with CAD programs not being able to save automatically (its called autosave and has been around for 30 years), or crashing and loosing data (if they did, people would buy the competitors software products), and everyone has had collaboration capabilities for the last 5 years as well.

If you want to remain in the domain of single users on iPads, what you have is fine. If you want to move into the enterprise, or small businesses that do CNC, I think you are going to have to stop hiding the design data and let the user have more ability to manage it, and obviously you’ll need to add CAM at some point (which I think you already mentioned somewhere that you are).

However, its your software and obviously you can take it in any direction you want. I do appreciate you being honest about your plans so I don’t waste money on a licence renewal again. I guess my search for a better CAD program will continue.

Thanks,
jim

[Istvan]

@jjneeb

I really don’t understand your logic, a database’s data is still stored in files, and clearly you can save the data off seperately and re-integrate later because you have the export/import working, so you already have the underlying capability, it just doesn’t have a usable interface.

Without going into technical details, at the moment it’s virtually impossible to lose data with Shapr3D. If we exposed the underlying data, this advantage would be gone. While the data itself will be never exposed, we could expose “soft links” to the files, which you could place wherever you want on your file system, that would open the linked Shapr3D design for you. If the only reason why you want file access is to organize your data in your folders locally, then this will solve the issue.

@jjneeb

If you want to remain in the domain of single users on iPads, what you have is fine. If you want to move into the enterprise, or small businesses that do CNC, I think you are going to have to stop hiding the design data and let the user have more ability to manage it, and obviously you’ll need to add CAM at some point (which I think you already mentioned somewhere that you are).

For our enterprise clients we can implement PLM/PDM integrations. If you are interested in that and in the other Enterprise package benefits, please contact our sales team: Shapr3D Pricing