Why no STL viewer when importing STL files?

OpenR2

STL is such a basic format and its huge with the maker crowd.
Its just triangles. Nothing fancy. No normals or tristrips or trifans or trisets.
Any plans for at least a viewer for the imported files?

jared_reabow434

I  have to say, i am shocked so many professional CAD tools out there do not support one of the largest community used file formats.

michael3424

Aren't there several free or low cost tools that support STL file creation and revision?  

I don't have much experience with STL files, but have been using a 3D printer for the past year or so and that only understands STL files.  My designs and interests are mostly mechanical in nature and I'm most productive when doing all the design and revisions in 3D CAD software, like OnShape or GeoMagic Design, and then exporting the final product to STL with that file used solely for 3D printing the design itself.  My attempts at editing an STL file have been largely unsuccessful and very frustrating.

kevin_quigley

jared_reabow434 said:

I  have to say, i am shocked so many professional CAD tools out there do not support one of the largest community used file formats.

Why? pretty much all CAD tools EXPORT Stl fine. 

andrew_troup

Exactly as @kevin_quigley implies: STL is a format for final output.

If people are using it for other things, that's like baking a pie or freezing a batch of ice cream when you haven't finished adding the constituents: it irreversibly and irretrievably degrades the result. 

daniel_chow

michael3424 said:

Aren't there several free or low cost tools that support STL file creation and revision?  

I don't have much experience with STL files, but have been using a 3D printer for the past year or so and that only understands STL files.  My designs and interests are mostly mechanical in nature and I'm most productive when doing all the design and revisions in 3D CAD software, like OnShape or GeoMagic Design, and then exporting the final product to STL with that file used solely for 3D printing the design itself.  My attempts at editing an STL file have been largely unsuccessful and very frustrating.

Hello Michael, 

We use Blender which can load and edit .STL files. 

daniel_chow

I should mention that I don't think Blender is an adequate tool for mechanical designs. So if you wanted to view and edit a stl file of a mechanical object, I'm not sure Blender would be the right tool. In that case, I'm not sure what you would use. 

michael3424

daniel_chow said:

I should mention that I don't think Blender is an adequate tool for mechanical designs. So if you wanted to view and edit a stl file of a mechanical object, I'm not sure Blender would be the right tool. In that case, I'm not sure what you would use. 

I downloaded Blender but it and I didn't get along too well.  To be fair I didn't spend much time with it.  As you say, it really isn't suited for a mechanical design part. though I've seen it used for such:

http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:328569

It seems like it would be far easier to design that clock in Onshape.  And probably easier to design the object in your screen shot in Blender.  Matching the tool to the job is good practice.

daniel_chow

Blender is a popular tool but it has a huge learning curve. I wouldn't know how you could make something like that clock on Blender. Its like using Photoshop to write an essay. You can do it I guess, if you really wanted to. 

andrew_troup

daniel_chow said:

.... I wouldn't know how you could make something like that clock on Blender. Its like using Photoshop to write an essay. You can do it I guess, if you really wanted to. 

Vivid analogy!

michael3424

When all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail.

daniel_chow

andrew_troup said:

daniel_chow said:

.... I wouldn't know how you could make something like that clock on Blender. Its like using Photoshop to write an essay. You can do it I guess, if you really wanted to. 

Vivid analogy!

I always admire people who have the time to hack technology, make it do something that its not intended to do. Must be nice!