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The problem with Alibre is that it only works on Windows. I switched from FreeCAD to the free (as in beer) version of Onshape, which works in the browser and is

The problem with Alibre is that it only works on Windows. I switched from FreeCAD to the free (as in beer) version of Onshape, which works in the browser and is a night and day difference over FreeCAD. Your designs are wide open for anyone to see, but I can live with that for hobby stuff.

andybak 2y ago
I think there's probably a vast range of use cases where having the models freely available isn't hindrance
ajmurmann 2y ago
I wouldn't mind having my models public, but that it SaaS is such a nuisance and the reason I am sticking to FreeCAD. I want to be able to edit offline, like on an airplane and not lose the ability to edit my stuff if some company shuts their servers down.
- tverbeure 2y ago
  I probably spent 100 hours trying to tame FreeCAD, and ended up thinking CAD was just not for me. I then tried Onshape and found out that the problem was elsewhere.
  - ajmurmann 2y ago
    Did you do any tutorials? I've done like 10 hrs of the MangojellySolutions beginner tutorials on YouTube and after that I've been pretty much able to do what I want or only had to look up solutions to a very specific problem. I one time had an issue where I messed up and had to post on the FreeCAD forum and got two of the best responses I've gotten anywhere on the internet ever. Two people opened up my model and took screenshots highlighting where my issue was and gave me several suggestions on how to improve my model in other ways. The initial time investment was substantial and there are still a few workflows that could be smoother for me (attaching a sketch to a different face after it's been created), but that's fairly minor.
    - wdfx 2y ago
      On the flip side I spent probably 30 minutes each to get acquainted with Fusion and Onshape, and completed my first designs within a couple of hours. I've invested several hours already in trying to learn FreeCAD and achieved nothing. Its a hot mess that desperately needs a new UI.
      - ecjhdnc2025 2y ago
        It might take more than several hours. But the Mango Jelly Solutions videos on Youtube will get you into FreeCAD.
        wdfx 2y ago
        Sure, but my primary objective is not "to learn CAD systems" - I just want to get models done for making things.
        ecjhdnc2025 2y ago
        Right. But this is the choice, isn't it? I don't know if you can really get away without learning general things about CAD systems if you want to make complex things, because those general things are so influential on the existence and design of real world objects. It's like saying "but I don't really want to learn about different programming languages or software design, because I only want to write apps for iPhone." If you want to make very simple objects and not learn deeper concepts, use TinkerCAD. It's fine. Weirdly competent in places; people pull off crazy stuff. It uses a simple physical world model. Beyond that, you need more abstract tools. Ultimately you have to decide whether you want to exist within the (shifting) free plan limitations of a commercial cloud package, spend money on something like Alibre Atom3D, pay the cloud firms, or use something open source. I'm not sure if it should be surprising that the open source systems are more of a commitment. FreeCAD (main branch) has one fundamental limitation which is being mitigated -- the topological naming issues -- and some smaller issues to do with fillets/chamfers, but apart from that is a disorganised-but-competent, open source workbench-based system. And the tradeoffs are not straightforward. This is less like Photoshop vs GIMP and more like ArcGIS vs QGIS. Is ArcGIS initially more coherent? Yes, allegedly. Is it universally more powerful? No. FreeCAD is really a lot like QGIS, IMO. You can learn QGIS, and when you learn it, you might decide that the freedoms and flexibility it offers are worth the pain. Or you might front up the cash for ArcGIS.

andybak 2y ago

I think there's probably a vast range of use cases where having the models freely available isn't hindrance

ajmurmann 2y ago

I wouldn't mind having my models public, but that it SaaS is such a nuisance and the reason I am sticking to FreeCAD. I want to be able to edit offline, like on an airplane and not lose the ability to edit my stuff if some company shuts their servers down.

tverbeure 2y ago
I probably spent 100 hours trying to tame FreeCAD, and ended up thinking CAD was just not for me. I then tried Onshape and found out that the problem was elsewhere.
- ajmurmann 2y ago
  Did you do any tutorials? I've done like 10 hrs of the MangojellySolutions beginner tutorials on YouTube and after that I've been pretty much able to do what I want or only had to look up solutions to a very specific problem. I one time had an issue where I messed up and had to post on the FreeCAD forum and got two of the best responses I've gotten anywhere on the internet ever. Two people opened up my model and took screenshots highlighting where my issue was and gave me several suggestions on how to improve my model in other ways. The initial time investment was substantial and there are still a few workflows that could be smoother for me (attaching a sketch to a different face after it's been created), but that's fairly minor.
  - wdfx 2y ago
    On the flip side I spent probably 30 minutes each to get acquainted with Fusion and Onshape, and completed my first designs within a couple of hours. I've invested several hours already in trying to learn FreeCAD and achieved nothing. Its a hot mess that desperately needs a new UI.
    - ecjhdnc2025 2y ago
      It might take more than several hours. But the Mango Jelly Solutions videos on Youtube will get you into FreeCAD.
      - wdfx 2y ago
        Sure, but my primary objective is not "to learn CAD systems" - I just want to get models done for making things.
        ecjhdnc2025 2y ago
        Right. But this is the choice, isn't it? I don't know if you can really get away without learning general things about CAD systems if you want to make complex things, because those general things are so influential on the existence and design of real world objects. It's like saying "but I don't really want to learn about different programming languages or software design, because I only want to write apps for iPhone." If you want to make very simple objects and not learn deeper concepts, use TinkerCAD. It's fine. Weirdly competent in places; people pull off crazy stuff. It uses a simple physical world model. Beyond that, you need more abstract tools. Ultimately you have to decide whether you want to exist within the (shifting) free plan limitations of a commercial cloud package, spend money on something like Alibre Atom3D, pay the cloud firms, or use something open source. I'm not sure if it should be surprising that the open source systems are more of a commitment. FreeCAD (main branch) has one fundamental limitation which is being mitigated -- the topological naming issues -- and some smaller issues to do with fillets/chamfers, but apart from that is a disorganised-but-competent, open source workbench-based system. And the tradeoffs are not straightforward. This is less like Photoshop vs GIMP and more like ArcGIS vs QGIS. Is ArcGIS initially more coherent? Yes, allegedly. Is it universally more powerful? No. FreeCAD is really a lot like QGIS, IMO. You can learn QGIS, and when you learn it, you might decide that the freedoms and flexibility it offers are worth the pain. Or you might front up the cash for ArcGIS.