A FreeCAD Review from a Developer's Perspective

As a developer who has been using FreeCAD for several years, I have had a mixed experience with this open-source CAD software. While it has its limitations and quirks, I believe that more users and feedback would greatly benefit the project.

One of the biggest challenges I face when using FreeCAD is its somewhat-different UI and controls. It takes some getting used to, but once you become familiar with it, you can tolerate the software's noticeable wrinkles. Another issue is the lack of built-in assemblies, which is probably my biggest pain point.

In addition, I have experienced issues with file format compatibility. The format has changed significantly enough to break access to older files over the past five years. This has forced me to hold onto a copy of FreeCAD 0.16 to ensure that I can still open files created years ago.

Despite these challenges, I am an advocate for using open-source software and understand that FreeCAD is still in its early stages with few contributors. The project's willingness to provide migration tools is commendable, even if they didn't work perfectly in my experience. In some cases, I have had to recreate models from scratch in the latest version.

Another aspect of FreeCAD that I appreciate is its experimental nature. While it can sometimes crash and features are still evolving, this allows multiple developers or teams to experiment with different approaches. For instance, there are several competing implementations for assemblies of multiple parts that you can install as plugins.

Overall, while FreeCAD has its limitations, I believe that it's time for the project to pick a direction and collaborate to add any missing features or functionality from other CAD software like OpenSCAD/CADquery. With more contributors and feedback, FreeCAD could become an even more powerful tool for developers and designers alike.

In conclusion, my experience with FreeCAD has been mixed, but I believe that it's a project worth supporting. If you're considering using FreeCAD, be prepared to learn its unique UI and controls, and don't be afraid to experiment with different plugins and features. With time and effort, FreeCAD could become an essential tool for anyone working in the CAD industry.

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