* Dotan Cohen <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> [2008 Jun 22 01:45 -0500]: > 2008/6/22 Nate Bargmann <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>: > > * Dotan Cohen <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> [2008 Jun 21 10:05 -0500]: > > > >> When someone develops and maintains a FOSS solution that runs on Linux > >> that lets me interoperate with my Solidworks-using colleagues > >> flawlessly I will happily donate to the project twice what I would be > >> paying to Solid. That's a lot of money to motivate someone. Until they > >> fill that need that I have, I will continue to use the only solution > >> that exists, which is a proprietary solution. > > > > I understand what you're asking for and where you're coming from. Are > > the CAD document file formats open or are they proprietary like .doc > > and .xls, etc.? The answer is important to anyone choosing to > > implement your idea. > > > > Proprietary binary formats.
Which makes your whole proposition very dicey. As a practical matter, trying to implement not publicly documented formats leads to a "chasing of the taillights" scenario where every time the FOSS developers get close to full interoperability, the company will issue a new release that breaks the format in various ways. As a legal matter, the FOSS developers could face DMCA lawsuits. Only if your vendor becomes convinced that a sufficient market exists will they port their software to Linux. In the mean time, VM Ware may be your best option. - Nate >> -- "The optimist proclaims that we live in the best of all possible worlds. The pessimist fears this is true." Ham radio, Linux, bikes, and more: http://n0nb.us/index.html -- To UNSUBSCRIBE, email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with a subject of "unsubscribe". Trouble? Contact [EMAIL PROTECTED]
