QCAD 3 TP1 available

Ribbonsoft released a Technology Preview version of QCAD 3 Proffesional, available for download only for users that have bought QCAD 2 during 2010 and 2011.
QCAD 3 has many improvements, DWG support and a polished interface.
You can read more about this release here.

Debian 6 Squeeze

Q: Can I use DraftSight or Bricscad V11 with Debian 6 "Squeeze" ?

A: Of course. Debian is an excellent distro and works well with these CAD packages. The screenshots below show DraftSight and Bricscad V11 running on Debian 6 "Squeeze" 32bit in a VirtualBox installation.

 Bricscad V11 on Debian 6

DraftSight on Debian 6

Tip: If you want to use Debian 6 as a CAD workstation for professional use you will probably need a more modern web browser. You can try Chrome or ,better, install Iceweasel (Firefox) 4 by following these instructions.

Unity or not Unity

Ubuntu's 11.04 new interface, Unity,
has received both bad and enthusiastic comments for its usability.
Is Unity useful for CAD or, at least, better than the classic GNOME Panel?
See the screenshots below.

Ubuntu 11.04 with Unity

Ubuntu 10.04 LTS with Classic GNOME

Well, as you can see Unity offers you more drawing space. I believe that this is enough for a CAD user to love Unity.

VariCAD Viewer for Linux

VariCAD viewer is a freeware CAD files viewer from VariCAD. Supports various well known formats like STEP 3D, IGES 2D, DWG/DXF 2D and DWB 2D/3D ( this is  the native VariCAD format).
VariCAD Viewer comes in both .deb and .rpm packages for easy installation on the most Linux distros

VariCAD viewer on Ubuntu 11.04

The latest version comes with some interesting performance improvements,
especially in .dwg support.

Now VariCAD Viewer can handle larger drawings faster,
 with better pan and zoom performance.

You can download it free of charge after a simple registration from here

Tip: Zoom works with the mouse wheel and pan with Ctrl + right mouse button.

New VariCAD release

Just a few days ago a new release (2011-1.04) of VariCAD came out. This version brings various improvements, better dwg support, improved 2D functionality and more. You can find more information about this release here.
VariCAD is a well-known program for Linux users because of its Linux support for over a decade. It has plenty of features and very cheap price (499€ / 599€ with 1-year upgrades). It's a very good and affordable choice for mechanical design. It's available for both 32bit and 64bit architectures. VariCAD also provides both .deb and .rpm packages.

LibreCAD adds .dwg support via LibreDWG

".dwg" is a well-known, proprietary CAD file-format. Originally developed by Autodesk and commonly used, it's a headache for other CAD vendors and a big obstacle for the creation of a good Free and Open Source CAD application. CAD vendors have a very good solution called ODA, but the libraries which are provided by ODA are proprietary software so they cannot be used on a Free and Open Source project like LibreCAD.

LibreCAD's partlibrary workaround for Ubuntu 11.04 Natty

After testing Ubuntu 11.04 with the new Unity Shell for some time, I realized that the old way to embed QCAD's partlibrary in LibreCAD via the creation of the .librecad folder inside your home folder doesn't work anymore.
I have found a better way to use partlibrary with LibreCAD which I expect that works in all distros and OSes.