New tutorial about constraints

It's finally here ! Learn now how to use constraints and create smooth designs !

The next tutorial will cover the use of the workplane, how to move it and rotate it interactively.

And I did the kitty again, with an SVG this time:

Contact box and color experiments

I have a lot of work to create the next tutorial. This will enable you to import a .svg file and then use the lines as constraints to draw around or fill inside. This is almost done, I hope I'll be able to publish it in 6 or 7 days. Previously I used the html5 canvas to draw in 2D, but it will be more user friendly to do everything in the 3D view. It's just more complicated for me.

I also had time to add two small features which will be on line soon. There is a contact box to report bugs, write comments or just to say thanks :). It's very basic, and it could be useful to attach some screenshot.

I was also considering changing the colour of the background, the grid, and this green to yellow to red gradient. The colours are hard-coded, but I will try to add a dialog so anyone can try to cutomize it.

New tutorial about engraving

The first tutorial was about controlling the 3D view. The second was one about changing the brush thickness. But, you can also engrave, by subtracting matter. This can be especially useful for jewelry.
So here it is, the 3rd tutorial !

Try it now at www.makeyour3dshape.com/en/discover/webapp !

New UI and tutorials are online !

That's it, I've just released the new version with tutorials !

The other big change is that I've started to code on the server. This means that I've started to support several languages, I created user accounts, and finally the login is powered by Mozilla Persona so I don't have to store any password by myself.

This also means that now, only the tutorials are public, whereas you need to be logged in to use the full version.

With this server part, I plan to add user files hosting. This will replace the awkward download/openfile process. And who knows, maybe a user gallery, and file sharing !

Developping Tutorial (2)

My new tutorial is to make people learn how to change the thickness of the brush. It will answer to "When you do it, it seems easy but we don't understand what's happening on the screen."
I have automatic triggers to go through tutorial steps, so the tutorial doesn't rely on the user to press a 'Next' button. I'm very happy with the result !

I need to polish these first tutorials, and then I will push them online !

 

Developping tutorials

One of the first feedback I got was a big surprise: "It's great, but why can't we move right, left and rotate around the object ?" 

I thought that everyone knows the combo : right-click / middle-click / wheel. But I was wrong. So my first tutorial explains how to rotate the 3D view. I imagined a small game to find the 6 cubes in the scene.

I also cleaned the UI, which will be I hope more intuitive. This is still work in progress, but the next release will be online soon !

Printed objects

I have finally printed some of my designs. So I can show people what can be achieved with the software. There may be some limitations due to the printing technology on the kind of shapes you can print. You allways have to ask yourself : is my design printable ?

I needed some advices, and I went to DimensionAlley. This is a 3D printing cafe in Berlin. I already had a workshop there so I could understand what can, and what can't be done with the printers.

Here are the final results !

In order to save time and plastic, you can see the honeycomb inside the models, while they are printed.

After several tries, we added a raft under the tree. This raft makes the printing easier, and can be removed easily at the end.

Final thanks to Norma and Amin at DimensionAlley !

1 hour workshop in BetaHaus, Oct. 27

The code seems to behave correctly, and I was able to bring some of my ideas to life. But, now it's time to find early adopters and power users, so I can understand what people expect. I still have a lot of ideas to improve the software, but the choice doesn't belong to me anymore.

I rent a room on Monday 27th October at BetaHaus. Bring your laptop and we'll discuss during one hour about your needs and your user experience. 10 people max, and free drinks !

Link to the event:
http://www.betahaus.com/berlin/event/discover-how-to-use-www-makeyour3dshape-com-the-new-software-to-create-3d-objects/

First Designs

After some long coding sessions, it's time to play with our new tool. Using the new user interface, we have started to create some designs. But you know, we are not professional artists.

Do you think you can do better than us ? ;)

New Release - online printing

We are proud to annonce a new release. Missing features are now available : preview, save, open and print through Sculpteo.com website.

The homepage video has been updated, and the first tutorial is also online, it explains how to make a jewel using a 2D blueprint.

We are really looking forward to see your own screenshots, feel free to share with us !

Pitch at Betahaus

We are registered to pitch on October 23rd at 9:30am  ! This will be our first pitch, and we are quite excited about it. Here is the link to the event.

Betahaus is well know in Berlin startup scene for its coworking space and for all the events that take place here. For exemple, I was there last thursday for a meetup about web development, and specifically about how to price when you are freelance. This was orginised by the Web Devs HQ Meetup group. And I had the possibility to introduce myself in 1 minute.

It was a good place to meet interesting people, and was sponsored by Career Foundry.

Real size grid

You have an idea, and sttart your work. And you would like to know how big the object will be.

I have just finished to copy the grid feature of Tinkercad and 123Design. So you can see easily how many millimeters or centimeters your object will be.

It may seem obvious but I didn't think about it (or I didn't care while programming)... And that's why user testing is important !

On the following screenshots, we know the object is about 3cm x 2cm, and its height is 2mm.

First weeks in Berlin

We are two French guys, arrived in Berlin one month ago. We don't speak German, and well... we don't know many people here.

This is a perfect setup for us to show our motivation !

Berlin is quite famous for its startup ecosystem. With London and Paris, it is a key place to find investors and really good energy from other people. We have a product and our website is live.

The adventure of www.makeyour3dshape.com has just started !