3dpowertools news

Exciting New Application Transforms AutoCAD 2000 Into a Powerful, Intuitive 3D Modeling Package

SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA - November 17, 1999 -- 3DPowerTools, Inc. announces the availability of its first product, a new 3D modeling plug-in for AutoCAD 2000. 3DPowerTools, now available at the special introductory price of $195, provides a full suite of powerful 3D editing and visualization tools to AutoCAD 2000, Mechanical Desktop 4.0 and Architectural Desktop 2.0 users.

"We are putting a new face on AutoCAD," says Jon Tyson, president and co-founder of 3DPowerTools. "AutoCAD 2000 has a new and underutilized 3D graphics system. Our program harnesses this engine and allows people to visualize and manipulate their models in a powerful and intuitive fashion."

Among the features:

Transparent Orbit: Change your viewpoint in the middle of any command. One user has said that this feature alone would make him 25% more productive.
Rich Primitive Set: Create solids and surfaces using a wide array of primitives (sphere, box, pyramid, torus, cylinder, cone, and wedge) and sweeps (extrude, taper, revolve, sweep, loft, and helix).
Interactive Shaded Dragging: All commands provide feedback in the current shading mode. Work with large assemblies since only the changed portion of a scene is redrawn.
Powerful Solid and Surface Editor: Perform vertex and face-editing of solids and surfaces with a UCS-free editor that allows you to easily sculpt complex objects.
Intuitive Object Manipulation: Manipulate objects with a simple click-and-drag system that combines move, scale, and rotate. Interactive dimensions, constraints, and angular snap points provide precise control.
Editing in Perspective Projections: Visualize models more realistically by using commands that allow point entry in perspective.

Feedback from early users has been extremely positive. "My reaction after experimenting with it for 15 minutes -- WOW!" said our first customer. Quinn Zander, a 3DPowerTools beta tester said, "We (news group junkies) have been screaming for this functionality in MDT4." And from user Nino Caldarola, "The tools are easy to use and should be appreciated by both novice and hard-core ACAD users."

Before starting 3DPowerTools, co-founder Jon Tyson led the team that implemented the 3D graphics system in AutoCAD 2000, Mechanical Desktop 4.0, and Architectural Desktop 2.0.

3DPowerTools is available immediately. A fully functional trial version can be downloaded from http://www.3dpowertools.com/downloads.htm. An electronic license for 3DPowerTools is now available at the introductory price of $195. To order, visit https://www.3dpowertools.com/cgi-bin/order.cgi.

Media Contact:
Jon Tyson
3DPowerTools
jon@3dpowertools.com