Lombard M. / Ломбард М. - SolidWorks Administration Bible / Библия по администрированию SolidWorks [2009, PDF, ENG]

Acknowledgments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xxv
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xxvii
Part I: Preparing for SolidWorks 1
Chapter 1: Defining CAD Administration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3
Introducing CAD Administration ..........................................................................................4
Defining CAD Administration .....................................................................................5
Comparing SolidWorks Administration to AutoCAD Administration ..........................7
Comparing project physical scale ......................................................................7
Managing file data .............................................................................................7
Process-based ....................................................................................................8
Playing the Part: More CAD or Administration? ....................................................................8
Distinguishing between CAD and design .....................................................................9
Including Information Technology ..............................................................................9
Finding a balance ......................................................................................................10
Defining Your Role ..............................................................................................................11
Establishing yourself as an expert user ......................................................................11
Becoming a CAD mentor ...........................................................................................11
Being a leader versus manager .........................................................................12
Mentoring through leadership .........................................................................12
Administering efficiently ..................................................................................13
Building a team ...............................................................................................15
Summary ............................................................................................................................16
Chapter 2: Preparing Information Technology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Selecting Hardware .............................................................................................................18
Building your own computers ...................................................................................18
Understanding the associated risks ..................................................................18
Understanding CAD requirements ...................................................................19
Selecting processors ..................................................................................................20
Specifying memory and operating system ..................................................................20
Selecting a video card ................................................................................................21
Picking a hard drive ..................................................................................................23
Selecting monitors .....................................................................................................25
Selecting a laptop ......................................................................................................25
Selecting the processor ....................................................................................25
Deciding on a video card .................................................................................26
Considering power ..........................................................................................26
Choosing RAM ................................................................................................27
Picking your operating system .........................................................................27
Selecting hard drives .......................................................................................28
Specifying a display .........................................................................................28
Touch and multi-touch screens .......................................................................28
Understanding Network Requirements ...............................................................................29
Balancing network load and capacity .........................................................................29
Understanding local and wide area networks ............................................................30
Building file storage ...................................................................................................31
Creating a Backup Plan .......................................................................................................31
Selecting a backup mechanism ..................................................................................32
Establishing a retrieval procedure ..............................................................................32
Securing data off-site .................................................................................................33
Imaging drives...........................................................................................................33
Working with Antivirus Applications ..................................................................................33
Benefiting from antivirus software .............................................................................34
Shortcoming in using antivirus software ....................................................................35
Setting Up a CAD Workspace .............................................................................................35
Understanding ergonomics........................................................................................36
Personalizing a workspace .........................................................................................36
Summary ............................................................................................................................36
Chapter 3: Preparing Document Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Naming Conventions ..........................................................................................................38
Choosing between intelligent and sequential conventions .........................................38
Advantages of intelligent part numbering ........................................................38
Disadvantages of intelligent part numbering ....................................................40
Advantages and disadvantages of sequential part numbers ..............................42
Comparing part numbers, document numbers, and filenames ..................................42
Creating a hybrid intelligent-sequential system ................................................43
Adding filenames to the mix ............................................................................44
Using a descriptive naming convention .....................................................................45
Using metadata ................................................................................................45
Metadata possibilities in PDM ..........................................................................46
Organizing Files ..................................................................................................................47
Creating libraries .......................................................................................................48
Avoiding common mistakes ......................................................................................49
Suggesting options ..........................................................................................50
Breaking references..........................................................................................50
Understanding SolidWorks document relationships ..................................................51
Organizing subassemblies .........................................................................................52
Using SolidWorks Explorer and SolidWorks or Windows Search .............................53
Controlling Revisions ..........................................................................................................55
Revisioning schemes..................................................................................................56
Revising models versus revising documents .....................................................56
Using different revisioning schemes for models and drawings .........................57
Storing revisions ........................................................................................................57
Tracking revisions of models and documents ..................................................58
Changing revision levels for documents...........................................................58
Updating stored revisions ..........................................................................................59
Putting revision levels in filenames or metadata ........................................................59
Revision levels in filenames .............................................................................60
Revision levels in folder names ........................................................................60
Mixing methods ..............................................................................................60
Retrieving old revisions .............................................................................................61
Using Configurations to Store Revisions ..............................................................................61
Summary ............................................................................................................................62
Chapter 4: Operating System Tools You Need to Know . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
Managing Your Computer ...................................................................................................64
Using the Task Scheduler ..........................................................................................64
Using available triggers ....................................................................................65
Using available actions ....................................................................................65
Using the Create a Basic Task Wizard ..............................................................66
Reading the Event Viewer ..........................................................................................69
Sharing folders ..........................................................................................................70
Setting up Local Users and Groups ............................................................................70
Monitoring Reliability and Performance ....................................................................71
Performance ....................................................................................................72
Reliability ........................................................................................................72
Using the Device Manager .........................................................................................74
Managing storage ......................................................................................................74
Services and Applications ..........................................................................................75
Using the Windows Backup & Recovery tools ...........................................................76
Backing up files ...............................................................................................76
Back up computer ...........................................................................................80
Using recovery tools ........................................................................................80
Using System protection and System Restore ...................................................81
Recommending Backup and recovery options .................................................83
Understanding the BIOS............................................................................................83
Working with the Windows Registry ..................................................................................84
Using Msconfig ...................................................................................................................86
Using the Startup tab.................................................................................................87
The Services tab ........................................................................................................87
The Boot tab ..............................................................................................................88
Using the Tools tab ...................................................................................................88
About Windows ..............................................................................................89
System Information .........................................................................................90
Remote Assistance ...........................................................................................91
System restore .................................................................................................91
Programs .........................................................................................................91
Windows Security Center ................................................................................91
System Properties ............................................................................................91
Internet Options ..............................................................................................91
Internet Protocol Configuration .......................................................................91
Performance Monitor .......................................................................................92
Task Manager ..................................................................................................92
Disable UAC ....................................................................................................92
Enable UAC .....................................................................................................92
Command Prompt ...........................................................................................92
Registry Editor .................................................................................................93
Employing the 3 Gig Switch ................................................................................................93
Setting the 3 Gig Switch in XP ...................................................................................93
Setting the 3 Gig Switch in Vista ...............................................................................94
Performing System Maintenance .........................................................................................94
Doing and not doing .................................................................................................94
Maintaining drivers ...................................................................................................95
Cleaning Windows ....................................................................................................96
Using antivirus software ............................................................................................97
Running disk checking and defragmenting ................................................................98
Microsoft Update.......................................................................................................98
Using the SolidWorks Network Monitor for Distributed Computing ..................................98
Setting up the Network Monitor ................................................................................98
Running tasks on the Network Monitor ..................................................................100
Summary ..........................................................................................................................102
Chapter 5: Training Users . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
Establishing Training and Evaluation Criteria ...................................................................104
Using outside trainers..............................................................................................105
Training in-house ....................................................................................................106
Using resellers for free in-house training........................................................106
Using books as learning materials ..................................................................106
Training on DVDs .........................................................................................107
Setting up CAD Administrator led training ....................................................107
Mentoring Power Users .....................................................................................................108
Recognizing the type ...............................................................................................109
Mentoring your protégé...........................................................................................109
Identifying Sources of Learning .........................................................................................109
Using online forums ................................................................................................110
Getting the most out of the forums ................................................................110
Addressing confidentiality .............................................................................111
Getting value from live user groups .........................................................................111
Summary ..........................................................................................................................112
Part II: Installing SolidWorks 113
Chapter 6: Installing the Software . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115
Selecting an Installation Method .......................................................................................116
Introducing the SolidWorks Installation Manager ...................................................117
Installing SolidWorks from downloaded data ..........................................................117
Installing SolidWorks manually .....................................................................119
Installing using the SWIM from downloaded data .........................................121
Installing from the DVD ..........................................................................................128
Installing from an Administrative Image ..................................................................129
Welcome to SWIM ........................................................................................130
Using the Administrative Image Option Editor ..............................................131
Deploying and installing from the Administrative Image ...............................136
Installing an Administrative Image from the command line ...........................138
Using Microsoft Active Directory ...................................................................138
Installing Multiple Versions ..............................................................................................139
Installing the SolidNetWork License Manager ...................................................................140
Uninstalling SolidWorks Software .....................................................................................141
Summary ..........................................................................................................................143
Chapter 7: Licensing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145
Selecting the Version of SolidWorks .................................................................................146
Understanding your CAD needs ..............................................................................147
Matching needs to capabilities .................................................................................148
Tracking Serial Numbers ...................................................................................................148
Identifying types of serial numbers ..........................................................................149
Using the Customer Portal to manage assets ............................................................149
Activating and Transferring Licenses .................................................................................150
Activating a license ..................................................................................................150
Working in spite of an activation error ..........................................................152
Identifying where licenses are used ................................................................152
Troubleshooting license problems .................................................................153
Administering floating licenses ................................................................................153
Using license management software...............................................................153
Using dongles ................................................................................................154
Installing Floating Licenses ...............................................................................................154
Developing a Home Use License Policy .............................................................................155
Weighing advantages and disadvantages of home use .............................................155
Identifying who is eligible .......................................................................................155
Obtaining home use licenses for SNL users .............................................................156
Summary ..........................................................................................................................156
Chapter 8: Standardizing Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157
Standardizing System Options ..........................................................................................159
Identifying the need for standardization of settings .................................................162
Selecting settings to standardize ..............................................................................163
Standardizing colors ......................................................................................163
Standardizing Sketch settings ........................................................................164
Standardizing Performance settings ...............................................................165
Controlling External References .....................................................................166
Using Default Templates ................................................................................170
Specifying file locations .................................................................................171
Collaborating .................................................................................................172
Standardizing Modeling Practice .......................................................................................173
Standardizing for productivity .................................................................................173
Establishing a best practice modeling standard ........................................................173
Relating the first feature to the part origin .....................................................174
Creating symmetry ........................................................................................174
Making relations to stable references .............................................................174
Putting fillets at the bottom of the tree ...........................................................175
Using Verification on Rebuild ........................................................................175
Fixing rebuild errors ......................................................................................175
Modeling detail .............................................................................................175
Creating simplified configurations .................................................................175
Standardizing assembly modeling ...........................................................................176
Using subassemblies ......................................................................................176
Limiting flexible subassemblies......................................................................176
Mating to in-context features .........................................................................176
Limiting in-context modeling ........................................................................176
Summary ..........................................................................................................................176
Chapter 9: Maximizing Your Use of Templates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177
Creating Part Templates ....................................................................................................180
Identifying the most important settings ...................................................................180
Drafting Standard ..........................................................................................181
Selecting settings in the Grid/Snap page ........................................................182
Units .............................................................................................................183
Detailing settings ...........................................................................................184
Controlling document specific colors ............................................................185
Image quality controls display accuracy .........................................................185
Controlling plane display parameters ............................................................186
Using custom properties..........................................................................................187
Finding hidden settings in part templates ................................................................188
Link values and global variables ....................................................................188
Adding reference geometry ............................................................................189
Including sketch settings ...............................................................................189
Set configuration properties in your templates ...............................................190
Creating Assembly Templates ...........................................................................................191
Drafting standard ....................................................................................................191
Setting detailing options for assembly templates ......................................................191
Establishing image quality settings for assembly templates ......................................192
Establishing Drawing Templates .......................................................................................192
Understanding the difference between drawing templates and sheet formats ...........192
Identifying settings to control with drawing templates ............................................193
Drafting standard ..........................................................................................193
Setting units for drawing templates ...............................................................195
Establishing line font settings for drawing templates......................................196
Establishing line style settings for drawing templates .....................................196
Line thickness ...............................................................................................197
Controlling image quality ..............................................................................198
Standardizing sheet metal settings for drawing templates ..............................198
Putting views on the template .................................................................................198
Using predefined views .................................................................................198
Projecting predefined views ...........................................................................199
Polishing your templates and formats ......................................................................199
Establishing Standardized Sheet Formats ..........................................................................200
Creating a new format .............................................................................................200
Placing table anchors in the format .........................................................................203
Using multiple sheet formats ...................................................................................203
Changing the size or format of a drawing ................................................................203
Standardizing Other Types of Templates in SolidWorks ...................................................204
Summary ..........................................................................................................................204
Chapter 10: Implementing Toolbox . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 207
Understanding Toolbox ....................................................................................................208
Understanding how a default Toolbox installation works ........................................209
The Toolbox default install ............................................................................210
The Toolbox database ....................................................................................211
The part library .............................................................................................211
Program files .................................................................................................211
Managing Toolbox data ...........................................................................................212
Underlying basic flaw in Toolbox ..................................................................212
Configuring a multi-user installation .............................................................212
Combining libraries .......................................................................................213
Administering Toolbox .....................................................................................................214
Installing Toolbox ...................................................................................................214
Installing a shared Toolbox............................................................................214
Creating a shared Toolbox from an existing installation .................................216
Upgrading Toolbox .................................................................................................218
Dealing with version incompatibility in Toolbox .....................................................219
Upgrading and keeping both versions .....................................................................219
Configuring Toolbox .........................................................................................................220
Starting Toolbox......................................................................................................220
Setting up Toolbox ..................................................................................................221
Selecting your hardware — Step 1 .................................................................222
Customizing hardware — Step 2 ...................................................................223
Creating parts or configurations ....................................................................226
User Settings — Step 3 ..................................................................................227
Permissions — Step 4 ....................................................................................228
Smart Fasteners — Step 5 ..............................................................................229
Adding user parts to the Toolbox library .................................................................230
File management and Toolbox ................................................................................231
Alternatives to Toolbox .....................................................................................................232
Summary ..........................................................................................................................232
Chapter 11: Establishing Libraries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 233
Creating Library Parts .......................................................................................................234
Adding parts to the Design Library ..........................................................................234
Using Mate References.............................................................................................236
Including metadata in libraries ................................................................................240
Custom properties and tags .....................................................................................240
Using Library Features ......................................................................................................241
Accessing SolidWorks Content and 3D Content Central ...................................................244
Examine a Routing library component ....................................................................245
Adding to the Weldments library ............................................................................246
Using Dissection Results ...................................................................................................247
SolidWorks Search ..................................................................................................248
Windows Desktop Search .......................................................................................249
Summary ..........................................................................................................................249
Part III: Maintaining SolidWorks 251
Chapter 12: Writing a SolidWorks Standard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 253
Defining a SolidWorks Standard .......................................................................................254
Putting together a 2D standard ................................................................................255
Putting together a 3D standard ................................................................................256
Enforcing Standards ..........................................................................................................261
Summary ..........................................................................................................................263
Chapter 13: Using Custom Properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 265
Establishing the Need for Custom Properties ....................................................................266
Using custom properties in the BOM ......................................................................266
Using custom properties in the title block ...............................................................269
Establishing linked notes ...............................................................................269
Establishing the Title Block ...........................................................................272
Building Custom Property Tabs ........................................................................................274
Creating the Forms ...........................................................................................................276
Using Configurations with Custom Properties...................................................................277
Summary ..........................................................................................................................277
Chapter 14: Establishing Best Practice Rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 279
Understanding the Concept of Best Practice ......................................................................280
Defining what best practice is ..................................................................................280
Identifying what best practice is not ........................................................................281
Adjusting your expectations to reality .....................................................................281
Establishing Best Practice for Sketching ............................................................................282
Handling sketch relations ........................................................................................282
Choosing between brevity and longevity .......................................................283
Using sketch Contours ..................................................................................283
Using under defined sketches ........................................................................284
Choosing between features and sketches .................................................................285
Using layout sketches ..............................................................................................286
Layout sketch ................................................................................................286
Understanding Horizontal Modeling .............................................................286
Determining Best Practice for Features ..............................................................................288
Selecting feature types wisely ..................................................................................288
Using Dome versus Shape versus Freeform .............................................................289
Selecting Rib feature versus Thin feature .................................................................289
Pattern/mirror features, faces or bodies ...................................................................290
Sketch on a plane or on a face .................................................................................290
Edit or delete ...........................................................................................................290
Selecting a draft technique ......................................................................................290
Deciding to use many or few features ......................................................................291
Employing Best Practice in Assemblies ..............................................................................291
Using layout sketches in assemblies.........................................................................291
Organizing assemblies .............................................................................................292
Using virtual components ..............................................................................293
Reorganizing assemblies with in-context references .......................................293
Mating with best practice ........................................................................................294
Mating for position ........................................................................................294
Analyzing degrees of freedom ........................................................................294
Mating for motion .........................................................................................295
General mating standards suggestions ...........................................................296
Standardizing Best Practice for In-Context Modeling.........................................................297
Understanding how in-context and external
references work ..................................................................................................297
Using file management techniques with in-context features ....................................299
Summary ..........................................................................................................................300
Chapter 15: Automating Tasks with the API . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 301
Recording Macros .............................................................................................................302
Recording a rectangle sketching macro ....................................................................302
Recording the macro .....................................................................................303
Taking advantage of journal files ...................................................................305
Replaying the macro ................................................................................................307
Storing your macro ........................................................................................308
Connecting to a hotkey .................................................................................309
Connecting to a custom toolbar button .........................................................310
Creating a Macro with a User Form...................................................................................310
Building the Form .............................................................................................................311
Finding Macro Help ..........................................................................................................313
Summary ..........................................................................................................................314
Chapter 16: Supporting SolidWorks Users . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 315
Providing Support through an External Organization .......................................................316
Using the SolidWorks Forums ................................................................................322
Using other social media .........................................................................................323
Going beyond technical support .............................................................................323
Providing Your Own Tech Support ...................................................................................324
Troubleshooting hardware and software ..................................................................325
Eliminating PEBCAK errors ...........................................................................325
Determining software bug or data corruption ................................................326
Distinguishing between hardware failure and setting problem .......................327
Troubleshooting with SolidWorks Rx ......................................................................328
Using Problem Capture .................................................................................329
Diagnosing with Rx Diagnostics.....................................................................330
Troubleshooting your system ........................................................................330
Performing regular system maintenance ........................................................332
Understanding Files & Logs ..........................................................................332
Transferring data to SolidWorks ....................................................................333
Looking past the obvious for solutions ....................................................................333
Finding Answers to User Questions ..................................................................................334
Summary ..........................................................................................................................335
Chapter 17: Collaboration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 337
Sharing Data .....................................................................................................................338
Using the settings ....................................................................................................339
Enable multi-user environment .....................................................................339
Add shortcut menu items for multi-user environment ...................................339
Making It Work ................................................................................................................342
Using Selective Open ..............................................................................................344
Using Lightweight as a collaboration option ............................................................344
Summary ..........................................................................................................................346
Chapter 18: Managing Change . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 347
Evaluating Your Situation Honestly ...................................................................................348
Acting on things you learn ......................................................................................348
Thinking like a manager ..........................................................................................349
Choosing Your Battles .......................................................................................................349
Encouraging Reluctant Users .............................................................................................351
Summary ..........................................................................................................................352
Chapter 19: Rolling out New Service Packs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 353
Deciding When or If to Update .........................................................................................354
Calculating return on investment ............................................................................355
Making an intuitive decision ...................................................................................355
Considering Early Visibility testing ..........................................................................356
Installing a Service Pack ....................................................................................................356
Applying a service pack to software installed
from DVD or download ......................................................................................357
Applying a service pack to an Administrative Image ................................................363
Applying service packs in SolidWorks 2010 ............................................................367
Rolling Back a Service Pack ...............................................................................................368
Summary ..........................................................................................................................369
Chapter 20: Rolling out New Versions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 371
Deciding When to Upgrade ...............................................................................................372
Weighing software maintenance costs .....................................................................372
Evaluating a new version .........................................................................................374
Upgrading as an option .................................................................................375
Taking into account third-party issues ...........................................................376
Implementing a new version ...................................................................................376
Going Cold Turkey ........................................................................................376
Phasing in by group .......................................................................................376
Phasing in by project .....................................................................................377
Failed implementations .................................................................................377
Training ........................................................................................................378
Installing .......................................................................................................378
Working with upgraded installations where Toolbox already exists ...............378
Other libraries ...............................................................................................379
Getting a Fresh Install .......................................................................................................379
Taking care of activations ........................................................................................379
Uninstalling SolidWorks .........................................................................................380
Wiping the SolidWorks registry ..............................................................................381
Using Ccleaner ........................................................................................................383
Summary ..........................................................................................................................383
Part IV: SolidWorks Workgroup PDM 385
Chapter 21: Introducing SolidWorks Workgroup PDM . . . . . . . . . . . . . 387
You Need Product Data Management ................................................................................388
PDM is not the solution to everything .....................................................................388
Discovering how PDM works ..................................................................................390
The vault .................................................................................................................390
Organizing data into folders with PDM ...................................................................391
Implementing Workgroup PDM .......................................................................................392
Implementing general PDM .....................................................................................393
Mapping the road ahead ..........................................................................................393
File naming non-negotiable ...........................................................................393
Using installation best practice ......................................................................394
Attempting unsupported cross-platform installations ....................................395
Planning for the Workgroup PDM Viewer ...............................................................395
Preparing for Vault and Client Maintenance ......................................................................396
Utilizing your backup plan ......................................................................................396
Performing vault maintenance .................................................................................396
Service pack updates .....................................................................................396
Major version upgrades .................................................................................397
Moving the vault .....................................................................................................397
Summary ..........................................................................................................................399
Chapter 22: Installing and Configuring the Vault . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 401
Installing the Workgroup PDM Vault and VaultAdmin Tool .............................................402
Configuring the Vault .......................................................................................................411
Vault Settings ..........................................................................................................412
Vault information ..........................................................................................412
Vault Lock .....................................................................................................412
Global settings ...............................................................................................412
Administrators ...............................................................................................414
On vault startup ............................................................................................414
Viewing with eDrawings ................................................................................415
Delete, Rollback, Archive documents.............................................................415
Vault Log .......................................................................................................415
Search .....................................................................................................................415
Revision Scheme .....................................................................................................416
Revision Table .........................................................................................................417
Projects ...................................................................................................................418
Archive ..........................................................................................................419
Bulk Check In ...............................................................................................419
Lifecycle ..................................................................................................................419
Properties ................................................................................................................421
Standard Libraries ...................................................................................................422
Using vaulted libraries ...................................................................................423
Setting up Toolbox Multiuser Network Installation .......................................423
IsFastener and IsToolbox properties ..............................................................424
Triggers ...................................................................................................................424
Summary ..........................................................................................................................426
Chapter 23: Establishing Permissions and Managing Toolbox . . . . . . . . 427
Assigning Users and Groups .............................................................................................427
Assigning users........................................................................................................428
Assigning groups .....................................................................................................429
Establishing a Project Folder Scheme ................................................................................430
Recognizing limits ...................................................................................................432
Looking to future development ...............................................................................433
Using Lifecycle ..................................................................................................................433
Assigning Permissions .......................................................................................................435
Using Toolbox with Workgroup PDM ..............................................................................436
Handling configurations in Workgroup PDM ..........................................................437
Recognizing Toolbox parts ......................................................................................437
Using the IsFastener and IsToolbox properties ........................................................439
Establishing Libraries inside the Workgroup PDM Vault ...................................................441
Summary ..........................................................................................................................443
Chapter 24: Establishing Client Best Practice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 445
Accessing the Workgroup PDM User Interface ..................................................................445
Using SolidWorks Explorer .....................................................................................446
Using the SolidWorks add-in client .........................................................................447
Establishing Workgroup PDM Client Options ...................................................................449
The Local tab ..........................................................................................................449
The References/Where Used tab ..............................................................................450
The Vault tab ..........................................................................................................451
The Command Defaults tab .....................................................................................452
The Folders tab .......................................................................................................454
The Labels tab .........................................................................................................455
Using the Right Mouse Button menu .......................................................................456
Searching in Workgroup PDM ................................................................................456
Running reports in Workgroup PDM ......................................................................458
Checking in associated documents ..........................................................................459
Creating attachments ...............................................................................................459
Collaborating with other users ................................................................................460
Using Lifecycle settings ...........................................................................................460
Distilling recommended SolidWorks settings ..........................................................461
Getting the most from the software through general options ...................................462
Summary ..........................................................................................................................463
Part V: Appendixes 465
Appendix A: Online Help Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 467
Accessing the SolidWorks Customer Portal .......................................................................467
Getting Information from SolidWorks User Blogs .............................................................470
Accessing Help on Non-SolidWorks CAD Administration Blogs .......................................473
Using Social Media Sites to Connect .................................................................................473
Twitter ....................................................................................................................473
Facebook.................................................................................................................474
LinkedIn .................................................................................................................475
Design World ..........................................................................................................475
Appendix B: Sources for Standards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 477
General Services Administration .......................................................................................478
American Society of Mechanical Engineers ........................................................................478
American National Standards Institute ..............................................................................479
American Society of Testing and Materials ........................................................................479
Deutsches Institut für Normung (DIN) .............................................................................479
International Organization for Standardization .................................................................480
Japanese Industrial Standards (JIS) ....................................................................................480
National Institute of Standards and Testing .......................................................................480
Society of Automotive Engineers International ..................................................................480
Concerning ASME or Other Standards ..............................................................................480
Establishing the Need for Standards ..................................................................................481
Appendix C: Tools, Options Menu Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 483
System Options .................................................................................................................483
General Settings ......................................................................................................484
Drawings .................................................................................................................489
Display Style ..................................................................................................492
Area Hatch/Fill ..............................................................................................492
Colors .....................................................................................................................494
Sketch .....................................................................................................................496
Relations/Snaps .......................................................................................................499
Display/Selection .....................................................................................................501
Performance ............................................................................................................505
Assemblies ..............................................................................................................508
External References .................................................................................................509
Default templates ....................................................................................................512
File Locations ..........................................................................................................513
FeatureManager.......................................................................................................514
Spin Box Increments ...............................................................................................517
View ........................................................................................................................518
Backup/Recover .......................................................................................................519
Hole Wizard/Toolbox ..............................................................................................521
File Explorer ...........................................................................................................521
Search .....................................................................................................................522
Indexing performance ...................................................................................525
Dissection ......................................................................................................525
Collaboration ..........................................................................................................525
Advanced ................................................................................................................526
Document Properties ........................................................................................................527
Drafting standard ....................................................................................................527
Annotations ...................................................................................................528
Dimensions ...................................................................................................530
Centerlines/Center marks ..............................................................................530
DimXpert ......................................................................................................532
Tables ............................................................................................................532
View Labels ...................................................................................................534
Virtual Sharps ................................................................................................534
Detailing .................................................................................................................534
Display filter ..................................................................................................536
Text scale ......................................................................................................536
Always display text at the same size ...............................................................536
Display items only in the view in which they are created ...............................536
Use assembly setting for all components ........................................................536
Hide dangling dimensions and annotations ...................................................537
Grid/Snap ................................................................................................................538
Units .......................................................................................................................539
Fractions .................................................................................................................540
Line font .................................................................................................................540
Line style .................................................................................................................541
Line thickness .........................................................................................................541
Colors .....................................................................................................................542
Curvature ......................................................................................................542
Apply same color to wireframe, HLR, and shaded .........................................542
Ignore feature colors ......................................................................................543
Image quality ..........................................................................................................543
Deviation .......................................................................................................544
Optimize edge length ....................................................................................545
Apply to all referenced part documents .........................................................545
Save tessellation with part document. ............................................................545
Wireframe and high quality HLR/HLV resolution ..........................................545
Plane display ...........................................................................................................545
Sheet metal..............................................................................................................545
Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 547