Javelin / TriMech Author
Andrew Lidstone, CSWE
Auto-Rotate SOLIDWORKS View On Sketch Creation [VIDEO]
By Andrew Lidstone, CSWE on April 14, 2013
When teaching the SOLIDWORKS Essentials training course one habit that I try to instill in any new (or not so new) SOLIDWORKS users is to always, always, rotate the view normal to the sketch plane when creating a new sketch or when editing an existing…
Accessing Additional PhotoView Appearances [VIDEO]
By Andrew Lidstone, CSWE on April 12, 2013
A great new feature in SolidWorks 2013 is the ability to use Luxology native appearances for PhotoView 360 renders. This opens up to SolidWorks users the ability to make use of the huge selection of additional appearances in Luxology’s online library. But even better, for customers with an…
SOLIDWORKS Document Units Quick Select
By Andrew Lidstone, CSWE on March 28, 2013
One of my favorite enhancements to the SOLIDWORKS interface is a new addition to the Status Bar, the document Unit System quick access button. This new feature has two great functions, first it immediately shows you what unit system the current document is using, which…
Refreshing the SOLIDWORKS Drawing View Palette [VIDEO]
By Andrew Lidstone, CSWE on March 18, 2013
The SOLIDWORKS Drawing View Palette is a great way to add standard drawing views to your SolidWorks document. As you drag and drop the Top, Right, Front or other views onto the drawing sheet they disappear from the list. A common question that new users…
Do worries about non-sequential drawing balloons keep you up at night? No? Well you still might like a new enhancement that was introduced in SolidWorks 2012 that allows you order the item numbers in drawing balloons sequentially.
When setting up custom properties in your SolidWorks parts, assemblies and drawings you have no doubt noticed the list of Property Names that are available when adding a new custom property. Where does this list come from? And how can you use it to help…
SOLIDWORKS Workgroup PDM Check In Performance
By Andrew Lidstone, CSWE on June 18, 2012
Have you started using SolidWorks Workgroup PDM to manage your files, but are finding that checking files into the vault is taking way too long? This could be being caused by some of the settings you are currently using within Workgroup. Making a few minor…
Windows Aero Themes and SolidWorks Performance
By Andrew Lidstone, CSWE on April 27, 2012
Starting with the release of Windows Vista and continuing with Windows 7, Microsoft has included Aero themes with the several editions of the operating system, from Home Premium up to Ultimate. The Aero themes are intended to provide a more aesthetically pleasing interface (apparently Aero…
Customize SOLIDWORKS Mouse Gestures and add your own commands
By Andrew Lidstone, CSWE on April 20, 2012
In the 2010 release of SOLIDWORKS, Mouse Gestures were introduced. In SOLIDWORKS 2012 this functionality has been further enhanced with some NEW commands. Now you can customize SOLIDWORKS Mouse Gestures with the Ok, Cancel, and Escape commands, as well as keyboard shortcut keys, and macros. To…
NEW In SolidWorks 2012 – SolidWorks Part Reviewer
By Andrew Lidstone, CSWE on April 3, 2012
A new feature added in SolidWorks 2012 is the SolidWorks Part Reviewer Add-In. This new tool can be used to review, step-by-step, the features used to create the geometry of a part. Many SolidWorks users are aware that an effective way to learn how to…
NEW In SolidWorks 2012 – Span Displays
By Andrew Lidstone, CSWE on March 27, 2012
New in SolidWorks 2012 is the feature Span Displays. This new feature allows SolidWorks to intelligently span across dual monitors. Clicking the “Span Displays” button on the SolidWorks Title Bar, or going to Window > Span Displays, will automatically position and resize the SolidWorks window…
Modifying the “Admin” user password in SolidWorks Enterprise PDM
By Andrew Lidstone, CSWE on March 19, 2012
When Enterprise PDM is set up to use the Windows Active Directory for user logins, the EPDM users’ passwords will match their Windows passwords. But what about the special “Admin” user account? This special account is automatically created for each new vault and cannot be…
How to customize the SOLIDWORKS CommandManager
By Andrew Lidstone, CSWE on March 19, 2012
The CommandManager was first introduced in SOLIDWORKS several years ago as basically just a “super toolbar”. However it has been enhanced over time and now allows for a fully customizable ribbon interface that adjusts automatically depending on the environment you are working in. In this tech…
New Way To Show Off Your SolidWorks Certifications
By Andrew Lidstone, CSWE on March 12, 2012
During a recent visit to the SolidWorks Certification Centre website, I noticed something new. In the download column for each certificate was a new link to download a QR Code image.
Using the SOLIDWORKS Selection Filter
By Andrew Lidstone, CSWE on October 17, 2011
Have you ever been working in SOLIDWORKS when suddenly you are no longer able to select items in the graphics area, your cursor now showing what looks like a small blue funnel next to it? If so you’ve accidentally turned on the SOLIDWORKS Selection Filter. The Selection…