<p>What software is best for the basest of n00bs when it comes to 3D parts creation?</p>

<p>I have a heavy math background and know how to create explicit functions of volume, surface area, center of mass, etc. Ideally, I'd like a program that uses those strengths but I realize that most n00bs have a crippling math phobia so I'm not holding my breath.</p>

<p>I tried freeCAD once and made some headway but the next time I turned my computer on, it refused to open. It was just a weakling netbook that I don't even have in my possession anymore but the computer I'm currently using is rather slow and doesn't seem to have much memory left either, so I still need something lightweight.</p>

<p>tl;dr: Seeking a free, lightweight program to create .stl files that is good for n00bs that are <strong>not</strong> afraid of math.</p>

[{'answer_id': 742, 'author': 'fred_dot_u', 'author_id': 854, 'author_profile': 'https://3dprinting.stackexchange.com/users/854', 'pm_score': 5, 'selected': True, 'text': '<p>I don\'t have a heavy math background, but enjoy using such skills when applicable.</p>\n\n<p>If you\'ve not yet explored <a href="http://www.openscad.org/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">OpenSCAD</a>, you may find that it meets your qualifications. It\'s more or less a scripting/descriptive language "compiler" that takes ordinary text and converts it to your model design. I use quotes, because I\'m not skilled enough to qualify it as a true compiler, although it works in a similar manner and may indeed be a compiler.</p>\n\n<p>It meets another qualification of yours in that it\'s free and there\'s quite a supportive mailing list/forum for any questions or difficulties that arise. If you look on Thingiverse using OpenSCAD as a search term, you\'ll find others\' code available for examination and integration into your own models.</p>\n\n<p>For the folks who are not so much into the math and text and logic, there\'s a GUI of sorts for OpenSCAD called <a href="https://www.blockscad3d.com/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">BlocksCAD</a> that allows drag and drop of various modules in a manner akin to Scratch programming. </p>\n\n<p>I\'d been using OpenSCAD long enough that I found BlocksCAD to overly complicate the creation of models by obscuring details. It may be better suited for younger model makers in that respect.</p>\n\n<p>Syntax and punctuation errors would be eliminated with BlocksCAD, while it\'s far too easy to create such errors in the editor for OpenSCAD. One gets used to it and error count quickly is reduced.</p>\n'}, {'answer_id': 747, 'author': 'Kevin Morse', 'author_id': 66, 'author_profile': 'https://3dprinting.stackexchange.com/users/66', 'pm_score': 2, 'selected': False, 'text': '<p>OpenSCAD sounds like the best fit for the original poster given his math background but I think SketchUp is probably the easiest software for most beginners to use for basic part creation.</p>\n\n<p>There are two (or three) plugins I would recommend for anyone looking to use it to produce STL\n<a href="https://extensions.sketchup.com/en/content/sketchup-stl" rel="nofollow">https://extensions.sketchup.com/en/content/sketchup-stl</a>\n<a href="https://extensions.sketchup.com/en/content/solid-inspector" rel="nofollow">https://extensions.sketchup.com/en/content/solid-inspector</a>\n<a href="https://extensions.sketchup.com/en/content/solid-inspector%C2%B2" rel="nofollow">https://extensions.sketchup.com/en/content/solid-inspector%C2%B2</a></p>\n\n<p>The first one allows export to STL\nThe second and third check models to ensure they\'re solid. This is important for 3D printing as slicers have issues when models have holes in them.</p>\n\n<p>One more tool I would recommend to the beginner is\n<a href="http://www.netfabb.com/basic.php" rel="nofollow">http://www.netfabb.com/basic.php</a></p>\n\n<p>It also checks over STL files to ensure there won\'t be any problems slicing them.</p>\n'}, {'answer_id': 4701, 'author': 'jadsq', 'author_id': 8623, 'author_profile': 'https://3dprinting.stackexchange.com/users/8623', 'pm_score': 2, 'selected': False, 'text': '<p>The software I began with was <a href="https://www.tinkercad.com/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Tinkercad</a>, it is a fully online solution that is <em>very</em> beginner friendly. The interface is trivial to use and there\'s a 15 minutes tutorial that guides you over everything the software has to offer to the common user.</p>\n\n<p>Here is a screenshot of the interface and a part I made using the basic tools :\n<a href="https://i.stack.imgur.com/DOr6M.jpg" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><img src="https://i.stack.imgur.com/DOr6M.jpg" alt="enter image description here"></a></p>\n\n<p>It works the following way : you are provided with a dozen basic shapes (cube, sphere, etc...) and you create your model using boolean combinations of those shapes and translation, rotation and scaling. That\'s for the base.</p>\n\n<p>Then there is a very large collection of more complex shapes provided by the community (screw, stairs, tree) that tend to be very useful to create specific things and a very important aspect is that those shape usually have some parameter you can adjust at the creation of the object (say the thickness of the trunk and the number of branches of your tree). </p>\n\n<p>The last increment of complexity is that those community objects are actually made using JavaScript (with their own API, it\'s not related to openjscad) and you can create your own objects by using their <strong>interactive JavaScript interface</strong>. That\'s when your programming and mathematical knowledge will be required.</p>\n\n<p>As a small PS note: my personal taste is, depending on the part I want to make, to use either Tinkercad, Freecad or Openscad</p>\n'}, {'answer_id': 4705, 'author': 'Markus Appel', 'author_id': 4285, 'author_profile': 'https://3dprinting.stackexchange.com/users/4285', 'pm_score': 2, 'selected': False, 'text': '<p>I am using DesignSpark Mechanical. It\'s super cool and easy to use.</p>\n\n<p><a href="https://www.rs-online.com/designspark/mechanical-download-and-installation" rel="nofollow noreferrer">DesignSpark Mechanical Download Page</a></p>\n'}, {'answer_id': 9799, 'author': 'DrEureka', 'author_id': 16291, 'author_profile': 'https://3dprinting.stackexchange.com/users/16291', 'pm_score': 2, 'selected': False, 'text': '<p>I recommend Fusion 360 as it is free to use, full of tutorials and is super simple.</p>\n'}, {'answer_id': 9800, 'author': 'Greenonline', 'author_id': 4762, 'author_profile': 'https://3dprinting.stackexchange.com/users/4762', 'pm_score': 2, 'selected': False, 'text': '<p><a href="https://www.blender.org" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Blender</a> is a free professional level application, where maths isn\'t particularly necessary but can be used to good effect, and its <em>minimum</em> requirements aren\'t all that excessive (my copy of Blender runs on a maxed out 20 year old Dell 380):</p>\n\n<h3>Minimum (basic usage) hardware</h3>\n\n<ul>\n<li><p>32-bit dual core 2&nbsp;GHz CPU with SSE2 support.</p></li>\n<li><p>2 GB RAM</p></li>\n<li><p>24 bits 1280×768 display</p></li>\n<li><p>Mouse or trackpad</p></li>\n<li><p>OpenGL 2.1 compatible graphics with 512 MB RAM</p></li>\n</ul>\n\n<h3>Recommended hardware</h3>\n\n<ul>\n<li><p>64-bit quad core CPU</p></li>\n<li><p>8 GB RAM</p></li>\n<li><p>Full HD display with 24 bit colour</p></li>\n<li><p>Three button mouse</p></li>\n<li><p>OpenGL 3.2 compatible graphics with 2 GB RAM</p></li>\n</ul>\n\n<h3>Optimal (production-grade) hardware</h3>\n\n<ul>\n<li><p>64-bit eight core CPU</p></li>\n<li><p>16 GB RAM</p></li>\n<li><p>Two full HD displays with 24 bit colour</p></li>\n<li><p>Three button mouse and graphics tablet</p></li>\n<li><p>Dual OpenGL 3.2 compatible graphics cards with 4 GB RAM</p></li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>If you like coding, then Python and C libraries are available as well.</p>\n\n<p>Also, there is a <a href="https://blender.stackexchange.com">StackExchange site dedicated to Blender</a>, which is useful.</p>\n\n<hr>\n\n<p>As a comparison, from <a href="https://all3dp.com/1/best-free-3d-modeling-software-3d-cad-3d-design-software/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Best 3D Design/3D Modeling Software 2019 (15 of 30 are Free)</a>, this comparative list could be useful</p>\n\n<pre><code>Name            Level             OS                                           Price                                Formats\n3D Slash       Beginner        Windows, Mac, Linux, Raspberry Pi or Browser    Free, 24<span class="math-container">$/year Premium               3dslash, obj, stl\nLibreCAD       Beginner        Windows, macOS and Linux                        Free                                 dxf, dwg\nPhotoshop CC   Beginner        Windows and Mac                                142€/year                            3ds, dae, kmz, obj, psd, stl, u3d\nSculptGL       Beginner        Browser                                        Free                                 obj, ply, sgl, stl\nSelfCAD        Beginner        Browser                                        Free 30-day trial, 9.99$</span>/month       stl, mtl, ply, dae, svg\nTinkerCAD      Beginner        Browser                                         Free                                 123dx, 3ds, c4d, mb, obj, svg, stl\nClara.io       Intermediate    Browser                                         Free, Premium from 100<span class="math-container">$/year         3dm, 3ds, cd, dae, dgn, dwg, emf, fbx, gf, gdf, gts, igs, kmz, lwo, rws, obj, off, ply, pm, sat, scn, skp, slc, sldprt, stp, stl, x3dv, xaml, vda, vrml, x_t, x, xgl, zpr\nDesignSpark    Intermediate    Windows                                        Freemium, 835$</span> (All Addons)             rsdoc, dxf, ecad, idf, idb, emn, obj, skp, STL, iges, step\nFreeCAD        Intermediate    Windows, Mac and Linux                          Free                                 step, iges, obj, stl, dxf, svg, dae, ifc, off, nastran, Fcstd\nMakeHuman      Intermediate    Windows, Mac, Linux                             Free                                 dae, fbx, obj, STL\nMeshmixer      Intermediate    Windows, Mac and Linux                          Free                                 amf, mix, obj, off, stl\nMoI            Intermediate    Windows and Mac                                 266€                                 3ds, 3dm, dxf, fbx, igs, lwo, obj, skp, stl, stp and sat\nnanoCAD        Intermediate    Windows                                         Freemium, 180<span class="math-container">$/year                  sat, step, igs, iges, sldprt, STL, 3dm, dae, dfx, dwg, dwt, pdf, x_t, x_b, xxm_txt, ssm_bin\nOpenSCAD       Intermediate    Windows, Mac and Linux                        Free                                 dxf, off, stl\nSculptris      Intermediate    Windows and Mac                                Free                                 obj, goz\nSketchUp       Intermediate    Windows and Mac                                Free, 240$</span> Pro                       dwg, dxf, 3ds, dae, dem, def, ifc, kmz, stl\n3ds Max        Professional    Windows                                         1505<span class="math-container">$/year, Edu. licenses av.        stl, 3ds, ai, abc, ase, asm, catproduct, catpart, dem, dwg, dxf, dwf, flt, iges, ipt, jt, nx, obj, prj, prt, rvt, sat, skp, sldprt, sldasm, stp, vrml, w3d xml\nAutoCAD        Professional    Windows and Mac                                1575$</span>/year                           dwg, dxf, pdf\nBlender        Professional    Windows, Mac and Linux                          Free                                 3ds, dae, fbx, dxf, obj, x, lwo, svg, ply, stl, vrml, vrml97, x3d\nCinema 4D      Professional    Windows, macOS                                  3695<span class="math-container">$                                3ds, dae, dem, dxf, dwg, x, fbx, iges, lwf, rib, skp, stl, wrl, obj\nmodo           Professional    Windows, macOS, Linux                        1799$</span>                                lwo, abc, obj, pdb, 3dm, dae, fbx, dxf, x3d, geo, stl\nMudbox         Professional    Windows and Mac                                 85€/year                             fbx, mud, obj\nOnshape        Professional    Windows, Mac, Linux, iOS, Android               2400€/year, free and price reduced business version available    sat, step, igs, iges, sldprt, stl, 3dm, dae, dfx, dwg, dwt, pdf, x_t, x_b, xxm_txt, ssm_bin\nPoser          Professional    Windows, Mac                                    Standard 129.99<span class="math-container">$, Pro 349.99$</span>        cr2, obj, pz2\nRhino3D        Professional    Windows and Mac                                 495€ Educational, 995€ Commercial    3dm, 3ds, cd, dae, dgn, dwg, emf, fbx, gf, gdf, gts, igs, kmz, lwo, rws, obj, off, ply, pm, sat, scn, skp, slc, sldprt, stp, stl, x3dv, xaml, vda, vrml, x_t, x, xgl, zpr\nZBrush         Professional    Windows and Mac                                 400€ Educational, 720€ Single User   dxf, goz, ma, obj, stl, vrml, x3d\nCATIA          Industrial      Windows                                         7180€; Edu. licenses av.             3dxml, catpart, igs, pdf, stp, stl, vrml\nFusion 360     Industrial      Windows and Mac                                 499.80€/year, Edu. licenses av.      catpart, dwg, dxf, f3d, igs, obj, pdf, sat, sldprt, stp\nInventor       Industrial      Windows and Mac                                 1935$/year                           3dm, igs, ipt, nx, obj, prt, rvt, sldprt, stl, stp, x_b, xgl\nSolidworks     Industrial      Windows                                         9950€, Edu. licenses available       3dxml, 3dm, 3ds, 3mf, amf, dwg, dxf, idf, ifc, obj, pdf, sldprt, stp, stl, vrml\n</code></pre>\n'}, {'answer_id': 11764, 'author': 'cmm', 'author_id': 2082, 'author_profile': 'https://3dprinting.stackexchange.com/users/2082', 'pm_score': 1, 'selected': False, 'text': '<p>I would add OnShape.com to the list.  The only downside of a free account is that your designs are publicly viewable.</p>\n\n<p>I would also add support for OpenSCAD.  It is my go-to program for difficult problems, especially where being able to script something is far more efficient that dozens of clicks and careful GUI actions.</p>\n'}, {'answer_id': 11773, 'author': 'Joel Coehoorn', 'author_id': 12562, 'author_profile': 'https://3dprinting.stackexchange.com/users/12562', 'pm_score': 2, 'selected': False, 'text': '<p>I\'ve had good luck using <a href="https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/p/3d-builder/9wzdncrfj3t6" rel="nofollow noreferrer">MS 3D Builder</a>. Most of <a href="https://www.thingiverse.com/jcoehoorn/designs" rel="nofollow noreferrer">my thingiverse models</a> were designed with 3D Builder. Depending on your Windows and Office installations, <em>this program may already be on your computer</em>, but otherwise you install it via the Windows Store. This program may also make good use of your math skills; I\'ve done more trigonometry getting dimensions right for my models than all other areas of my life combined.</p>\n\n<p><a href="http://www.meshmixer.com/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">MeshMixer</a> is another good free option. It\'s significantly more powerful than 3D Builder and many other free options, but I\'ve found it much harder to get comfortable using. The visualization, especially, just hasn\'t been as clean, often making sharp edges appear to be rounded on the screen. Still, and I know and desire the power it offers, and I\'ll occasionally open it up for specific things. If nothing else, it\'s good for measuring/verifying the thickness of a section, and sometimes I can use it to repair models botched by other programs.</p>\n\n<p>Finally, I\'ll bring up <a href="https://www.openscad.org/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">OpenSCAD</a> again. OpenSCAD effectively lets you write a program to generate your models. As such, it\'s especially good when creating things you will want to do more than once, where you\'ll tweak or customize the initial part for later uses. One way you can achieve re-use like this is creating a library of partial-designs or raw shapes which you can then resize/stretch/etc and add or mix into other parts using the other programs. The other area where OpenSCAD really shines is in prototyping. When you discover just this one section of a part shoud have been a couple millimeters longer after the initial print, it\'s much easier to adjust this with OpenSCAD than with many of the other options.</p>\n'}]
['https://3dprinting.stackexchange.com/questions/740', 'https://3dprinting.stackexchange.com', 'https://3dprinting.stackexchange.com/users/965/']