Chances are if you’ve been around SolidWorks for any significant amount of time, you may have seen some of these before, but I’ll be surprised if more than a handful of seasoned SolidWorks users have seen all 5 of these tips and tricks. While I’ve shown countless tips and tricks... Continue reading

Most users run the SolidWorks Copy Settings Wizard after they have initially set up the SolidWorks interface to their liking. The problem with this is you turn on all the possible options you may use and leave them at that. In most cases, you’re working on a project for a... Continue reading

Using Simulation tools in SolidWorks for the first time can be an exciting adventure. However, like anything in life, it’s a good idea to go over a few checklist items before you begin. Here are four suggestions for settings that will provide a great experience for you as you dive... Continue reading

When adding sketch dimensions from one circle or arc to another, a dimension will be added between the center points by default. However, by selecting the circle and/or arc when adding the dimension, the properties for that dimension now have options to change where the extension lines display. These options... Continue reading

You’ve anticipated installing a newer version of SolidWorks Enterprise PDM for the last month. You’ve let everyone know of the impending update. You’ve downloaded the latest service pack from www.SolidWorks.com. You’ve made backups of your SQL databases. You’ve ensured the archive folders have been backed up. You performed the upgrade... Continue reading

SolidWorks Simulation Premium includes a variety of analysis types (click here for full list). An assumption that Linear Static analysis makes is that the stiffness of the structure remains constant no matter what type of load is being applied. This is usually a good assumption when the displacements are relatively... Continue reading

Many times a SolidWorks user wants to experiment with a part they are working on, but want to do it ‘safely’ as to not adversely change what they have already done. If there isn’t a data management system in place that safely stores previous versions, another alternative technique is to... Continue reading

Applying colors to parts and assemblies in SolidWorks is not a difficult task, but one must be aware of the many levels at which color can be applied as well as what feature colors ‘overrule’ one another. Colors can be applied to a part as a whole, or to many... Continue reading

Hiding and Suppressing parts in SolidWorks assemblies can have similar looking results, but both operations behave quite differently from each other. At the time this article is written, SolidWorks 2012 has several capabilities of both Hide and Suppress, and even a way to essentially capture the benefits from both. Hiding... Continue reading