There is a problem in 2010 for automatic updates for administrative images. SW 2010 SP0 installation does not update automatically after upgrading Admin Image. This issue only affects Installation Manager-based administrative images; no other images are affected by this. The problem is due to the swspamanger.exe installed with SolidWorks on client machines failing to check and install the latest Installation Manger/Administrative Image.

The workaround for updating client machines is to deploy the service pack similar to deploying a new administrative image (i.e. ask users to browse to the \StartSWInstall.hta). NOTE: The person responsible for deploying SolidWorks, often a system administrator, should not send the .HTA file via email as the paths will not be recognized; instead the system administrator should send a shortcut/link to the .HTA file so it runs directly from the administrative image folder.

The issue will be resolved in SolidWorks 2010 SP2. Please note the fix will not be implemented until SP2 is installed (i.e. the automatic update won’t work until going from SP2 to SP3). To upgrade to SolidWorks 2010 SP2, the same method described above must be used.

There is also an issue when trying to update an install as per the work around when there is an admin image install of 2009. The only way to get this to work is to remove the 2009 install.

These two issues are covered under SPR 530079 for the auto update and SPR 530818 for the 2009 image install. They are both slated to be fixed in 2010 SP2.

There are several reasons why you may need to find the internal volume of your design:  the amount of oil needed to fill a gear box, the volume of a tank with a pump, heater, or other items inserted, or the fluid volume of a bottle or jug.

The process is easy and quick.

Preparation

Part (Can be a multibody part): No preparation necessary.

Assembly: Save the assembly as a part including all components.

Create a box around your model

Start a sketch that completely encompasses your model on the left, bottom, and right side.  The top will be the “fluid” level.  In the case of the gear box, I want to find the entire interior volume so my sketch completely encloses my model.  And since I know one of your standard planes goes through the middle of the part (remember to try and be symmetrical to the planes) this sketch will be on that plane.

Now do a midplane extrude to completely enclose your model.  Make sure to uncheck Merge result.

Combine

I now have 6 bodies in this file: 5 from the original assembly and the one that I called oil, which will eventually represent the interior volume.

Select the body that is the “fluid”, then hold “Ctrl” and select the other body (bodies).  Right click and select “Combine.”  You want the Main Body to be the “fluid” and everything else to be the Bodies to Combine. 

We are going to Subtract the “fluid” (the rectangular block) from the gear box.

Click the green check mark.  A dialog box will appear. To select the Bodies to Keep – click on Selected bodies, then check Body 2.  We want to keep just the interior fluid.   

What remains is an exact shape of the interior.

Check the mass properties to get the volume which can then be converted to whatever units you need.  In this example, the volume is 72.46 in³ which converts to 0.31 gallons. (multiply by .00433)

Recently, we’ve had several customers recognize a slight quirk in SolidWorks 2009 SP5 and SolidWorks 2010 SP1.   There was a change made to how the Edit Referenced File location dialog box works, but the directions on how this tool now functions were not included. 

To open a file with a new reference you can go to File>Open, and hit the References… button in the Open dialog.  In previous releases users could double-click the filename in the table to browse to a new file to reference.  In these 2 specific versions, you now have to hold the Ctrl key down while double-clicking – but careful!  You must double-click within the cell, but not actually on the text within the cell.  Since this new behavior is not exactly intuitive, and any indication that the functionality had changed was omitted, a hot fix has been released to restore the previous behavior.

The hot fix is attached to Solution S-045011 on the SolidWorks Knowledge Base (accessible through the Customer Portal).  Or contact us here at (763) 560-8600 option 4 or support@symsolutions.com and we can provide it for you.

Dell has launched the Precision M6500 – the first mobile workstation based on the Core i7 Mobile processors.  Based on the same chassis as the popular M6400, the M6500 supports up to 16 GB RAM, up to three hard drives and/or solid state drives, and a choice of high-end graphics from nVidia and ATI.

There are three processor choices.  All are quad core CPUs running at 1.6, 1.73 and 2.0 GHz.  Don’t let the low clock speeds fool you, these are top performers.  In TurboBoost mode, these same CPUs run at speeds up to 2.8, 3.06 and 3.2 GHz, respectively.   Even the entry level 1.6 GHz Core i7-720QM performs as well as the fastest mobile Core 2 Duo and Quad processors. And the top-end Core i7-920XM outperforms any previous mobile CPU by 15-40%.

Now for the bad news:   These puppies are expensive!  Even a modestly configured system with the 1.6 GHz CPU, ATI graphics and 4GB RAM comes in at over $3000.  Opt for the fastest CPU, 8 GB RAM, an SSD drive, and Quadro FX graphics card and the price can easily climb over $5000.

And the silver lining:  Dell is offering up to $627 Instant Savings on the M6400 (up to $485 Instant Savings if configuring with a 64-bit OS.)  I priced out very robust configurations (8GB RAM, Quadro FX2700, 250 GB hdd, UXGA screen) for under $3200 with a 2.53 GHz Core2 Quad CPU
 and under $2700 with a 3.06 GHz Core2 Duo processor. 

HP and Lenovo should be introducing their Core i7 mobile workstations soon.