Just recently I've tried to install LeoCAD into windows 10, which I have now, BUT somehow It showed a black screen upon startup, so I've discontinued the use of such a program, & just recently installed Studio ver. 2.0, from Bricklink.com, now I'm thrilled to use the program, which does in fact runs in Windows 10 perfectly without any flaws.

From Richard

Hi Y'all,

I have been totally AWOL from the LDraw community and Bricksmith dev, but I wanted to poke my head in and let people know where I was at with Bricksmith.  Allen has not had time to work on the project in quite a while and gave me carte blanche to maintain it, but I too have been really strapped for time.

The problem we have with BrickSmith is that Apple's platform SDK is an evolving target, as are the dev tools, and at this point we've picked up some serious bugs and problems due to not keeping up.  Here's the ones I am aware of and their status:

- No 3-d drawing at all - this can be fixed by setting a clear color to an overlay view, as (I think Travis) observed.  This happens when compiling on new tools.

- Incorrect scrolling and zooming, and blocky, pixelated bricks when zooming.  This is due to some change in how the scroll and clip views interact - the UI framework is literally "zooming" the GL surface instead of telling us we should draw bigger, resulting in blocky pixels.  This happens when compiling on new tools.

- Very slow search times in the part browser. Something changed in the perf of the regex thingie Allen was using; I have a rewrite of this that fixes this.  This is OS specific, not tool-chain specific as far as I can tell.

- Code signing/notarization issues - past versions of Bricksmith were not signed and notarized to be compliant with the increased security checks in Catalina and late Mojave.  This is OS specific, although there are work-arounds you can do on your machine to turn off the security squawks.  On the very newest X-code, code signing seems to be entirely broken and I can't even get a clean build without command-line hacking; as best as I can tell the way lsynth is packed into the app package now violates some new code signing rule.

I have not seen Z-thrash artifacts in my own use of the code.

The thing that drove me to re-examine some of this (instead of procrastinating due to the hurricane of work from my day job) is that I am upgrading my laptop, and in doing so, I will be giving away my last machine that was capable of compiling a shippable Bricksmith (by compiling on the old tool chain).

So my goal over the next week is to do one of either:
- Getting the current code into good enough shape that a clean build off of source with the latest Apple tools with the latest Apple X-Code actually works or
- Cutting a binary from my old machine that (somehow) runs on Catalina, so people can at least use the app until we can get a current compile working.

Edit: it looks like document opening is broken on Catalina (but not Mojave) when a build from legacy dev-tools is used.  This is not a problem on builds from current tools, so I think I have to fix the clipping/zooming issues.  It also looks like a side-effect of the clip-zoom issues is that a bunch of things in the culling/LOD system are broken, resulting in lousy performance and sometimes entirely missing buildings - this wasn't obvious for small models but is for large ones.

If anyone else is/has played with the code and has ideas or fixes for some of the issues or experience with Mac sw development, please ping me - dealing with crazy AppKit regressions is definitely not my area of expertise.

I am sitting on one _feature_ that I'd love to ship when we can get the code cleaned up: Bricksmith is very grid-focused - you can really rapidly build something up if it's orthogonal (think 80s style lego town models).  But this strength has always been a weakness when you get off the grid.  For example, the dentist chair from Assembly Square is murder to model in Bricksmith because it can and should be posed at non-right angles.

In the latest code, there is a new mode where rotations and nudges for a part work _relative to its current orientation_.  This means you can rotate a part 45 degrees and then nudge it along its new axis.  If a plate is hanging off of a bar (by a clip) at an odd angle, building off that plate is still "in grid" and just works.

I've been testing the feature by modeling the Corner Garage - the entire front facade is at 45 degrees, with stuff hanging off of it - it's as easy to model as the rest of the building with the new change.  

cheers
Ben

How do I use the AIOI so that I get full access to the parts folder?
As a part author I have to have access them, and maybe a model maker does not.

If I understand the installer correct it will place all files in the ../Program Files(x86)-folder, but I dont want that.
I want to have all the program that needs to be there, but not my parts libraries.

When I upgraded my old Win7 to Win10 some years ago I ran into all sorts of problems with not being able to edit and save anything in the Program Files-folder. Therefor I had to uninstall the AIOI, and tried to place everything somewhere else but still had lots of trouble handling my files.

I now have a new PC and want to use the AOIO but I don't know where to direct the installer so that I have full access to all the files.

Does any of the software have to be in the Program Files(x86)-folder? Which one?
Where should I install the rest of the software?
Why do the AIOI auto-direct me to the Program Files(x86)-folder?
Is it possible to set up the installer so that it installs into more than one folder? Do I want to do that? How do I do that?

Is it possible, or even prefered, to have all the software in the same folder? Where should that one be placed?
Directly under C:\
Or in another folder? Maybe in C:\Users\Default\Documents\  ?
Is there a difference between having it in the Default / Public / Magnus -folders?

I have a minor LDCad annoyance that would be cool if it were addressed in 1.6d or later. When you click the "Add submodel" button (or the menu entry) and then subsequently change your mind and click "Cancel" on the ensuring dialog, a submodel is still created with the default name. This normally wouldn't be a huge issue (and, to be honest, it isn't now) but the "Add Submodel" button is right next to and looks very similar to the "Open main submodel" button. Sometime I accidentally click the wrong button and it would be nice if the cancel button actually cancelled the creation of a new submodel.

Hi,
Lego Dragon Wing 9 x 6 it's not present in Studio software. It's found in 76119 Batmobile set. Would be nice to have it for designing batmobiles.

https://www.bricklink.com/v2/catalog/cat...2#T=C&C=11
Thank you!
SeaGer

PRESS RELEASE

NORTHGO BUILDS ANOTHER NORTHGO COLLEGE

The Northgo College (Noordwijk, the Netherlands) is building a duplicate of the school building ... from LEGO.
14 pupils are currently busy with more than 14,000 bricks with which they build windows, doors, pieces of wall and columns and then build them from the foundation, assemble them and incorporate them layer by layer in the building.
If it all works out, there will be an exact copy of the school building in about 6 to 8 weeks.
During the open day of the Northgo College on January 25, 2020, visitors can watch the construction live.

LEGO expert
Jaco van der Molen is the initiator of building the school with LEGO bricks. In daily life, he is a scheduler, application manager and desk clerk. In his spare time, he is a huge enthusiastic LEGO fan. He has experience in building "well-known" buildings because, in addition to a replica of his own house, he also designed and built a copy of the Golden Tulip hotel in Noordwijk and made a life-size statue of Sinterklaas. The design and digital construction of the school building took about 3 years.

LEGO League and Digital Design
It is known that LEGO is not just a simple building block. During the last Sinterklaas, many fancy building sets will have been unpacked. But there is much more. The First LEGO League® (FLL), for example, challenges young people aged 9 to 14 to think of themselves as real scientists and technicians. The Northgo College has an active FLL team consisting of 10 substitute students, also supervised by Jaco, who invest a few hours extra time each week and have recently played their first FLL challenge. LEGO League prepares the students for robotics, a plus subject in the superstructure.
Another educational example is Digital Design. Digital building with Lego blocks is possibly even more fun and challenging than real building. The students of 4 mavo of the Northgo College are currently working on a project in the Technology and Application course using LDCad, a special digital LEGO program, with which they make prototypes of their design.

...as the original thread spans now over seven years, I dare to open a new one. The old one is also taking quite some time to load...

So here I go:

New Train Parts:

- 38340 Wheel with Pin -> 26.12.: on the PT: https://www.ldraw.org/cgi-bin/ptdetail.c.../38340.dat
- 38339 Wheel Holder -> 26.12.: on the PT: https://www.ldraw.org/cgi-bin/ptdetail.c.../38339.dat

- Improvement of the old wheels (they are flat on the back not conical)

Hi there,

I'd like to contribute the six models 40190-40195 "Shell Ferrari series" of 2014:
40190 red Ferrari F138
40191 red Ferrari F12 Berlinetta
40192 blue Ferrari 250 GTO
40193 yellow Ferrari 512 D
40194 Finish line and Podium
40195 Shell Station

Unfortunately, there are some prints that I could not find / do not exist so far, and all stickers are missing. For easier access, I will upload each file in a separate post below this thread, and indicate missing prints/stickers as appropriate. Some parts have different Rebrickable/Bricklink vs. LDraw numbers - thank you Philippe for your hint how to find the correct parts.

As always: any suggestion is highly welcome.

Regards
Stefan

Attached Files

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I've encountered an issue which is beyond my (admittedly fairly limited) understanding and would be grateful for any advice.

The model I'm working on instructions fine up 'til (and including) the first sub model. In the step following, when the sub model is introduced to the main model, the bottom of the assembly is cut off in that and every following step, as if some constraint has been applied.

   

   

I've done plenty of instructions with sub models and this has never happened before. Is there a way of changing the size of the box highlighted in the second picture? I've played with page sizes and margins, the only thing that worked is scaling down the assembly to fit in that box, but that quickly leaves everything impossibly small!

Any ideas?

I noticed something's up with 6135.dat—it should fit all the way onto a Technic axle pin (see for example set 8880), but the axle hole isn't deep enough—only 16 LDU, but should be a full stud.

   

Unfortunately I don't have this part in real life, so I'm not sure how it would have to be adjusted, but it's clearly not as simple as just extending the axle hole.