Words from the workshop
The terms that come up in my articles about 3D printing, CAD, Apple platforms and disks, each in a sentence or two. A term underlined with dots in an article leads here.
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- 3MFFile formats
A 3D printing format that carries units, colours, materials and print settings along with the mesh. PrusaSlicer and Bambu Studio both use it.
In articles: Tessellation in Preview3D is sharper again, Preview3D - quick previews of 3D models and G-code, with export, Your model is orange right now. It doesn't have to be, and it can stand on someone's desk
A
- Add-onSoftware
An extension to Blender written in Python. It adds new tools or connects Blender to other programs, and is turned on in Preferences.
In articles: Blender on buttons: a profile for the Logitech MX Creative Console
- AP242CAD
An application protocol of STEP (ISO 10303-242). Besides the geometry it carries PMI and GD&T, so the model holds everything manufacturing needs.
In articles: Preview3D - quick previews of 3D models and G-code, with export
- App ClipApple
A small part of an iPhone or iPad app that starts from a link or a QR code without installing the whole app, and goes away after use.
In articles: Your model is orange right now. It doesn't have to be, and it can stand on someone's desk
B
- B-repCAD
Boundary representation: a solid described by exact faces, edges and vertices. CAD kernels work with geometry this way, and STEP stores it so.
In articles: Preview3D - quick previews of 3D models and G-code, with export
D
- DefragmentationDisks
Rearranging files on a disk so their pieces lie next to each other. On hard drives it sped up reading; SSDs don't need it.
In articles: You can watch a disk defragment for hours again
E
- e2fsckDisks
The Linux tool that checks and repairs ext2, ext3 and ext4 file systems.
In articles: A Raspberry Pi card in the Finder: how Extent came to be
- ext4Disks
The default file system of Linux, used by Raspberry Pi OS and Ubuntu, for example. macOS can neither read nor write it on its own.
In articles: A Raspberry Pi card in the Finder: how Extent came to be
F
- Feature StudioCAD
A tab in Onshape where FeatureScript is written and debugged. From there, a feature can be added to Part Studios as a custom feature.
In articles: Voronoi right inside Onshape: how my FeatureScript came to be
- FeatureScriptProgramming
A programming language created by Onshape for creating custom functions and features in the Onshape CAD system.
In articles: Voronoi right inside Onshape: how my FeatureScript came to be · More ↗
- FSKitApple
A macOS framework for file systems that run as ordinary programs outside the kernel, replacing the kernel extensions they used to need.
In articles: A Raspberry Pi card in the Finder: how Extent came to be · More ↗
G
- G-code3D printing
The instructions a 3D printer or CNC machine follows: where to move, how fast and how much material to extrude. A slicer generates it.
In articles: Tessellation in Preview3D is sharper again, Preview3D - quick previews of 3D models and G-code, with export, Your model is orange right now. It doesn't have to be, and it can stand on someone's desk
- GD&TCAD
Geometric Dimensioning and Tolerancing: a standard way to specify geometric tolerances such as flatness, perpendicularity or concentricity.
J
- JournalDisks
A reserved area of a disk where the file system first writes down what it is about to change. After a power cut, the journal brings the disk back to a consistent state.
In articles: A Raspberry Pi card in the Finder: how Extent came to be
L
- Lloyd's relaxationMathematics
A method that repeatedly moves the points of a Voronoi diagram to the centres of their cells, making the cells more even.
In articles: Voronoi right inside Onshape: how my FeatureScript came to be
- Logi Options+Software
Logitech's app for setting up its mice, keyboards and controllers. It decides what each button does, separately for every program.
In articles: Blender on buttons: a profile for the Logitech MX Creative Console
M
- Mesh3D modelling
The surface of a 3D model made of vertices, edges and faces, usually triangles. STL and OBJ store meshes, and programs like Blender edit them.
In articles: Tessellation in Preview3D is sharper again, Blender on buttons: a profile for the Logitech MX Creative Console, Preview3D - quick previews of 3D models and G-code, with export
- Multi-material printing3D printing
Printing one model from several filaments at once, for example with a Prusa MMU or a Bambu AMS. Which part gets which colour is stored in the 3MF file.
In articles: Preview3D - quick previews of 3D models and G-code, with export, Your model is orange right now. It doesn't have to be, and it can stand on someone's desk
- MX Creative ConsoleHardware
A Logitech controller for creative apps: a Keypad with nine buttons that each have their own display, and a wireless Dialpad with a dial, a roller and four buttons.
In articles: Blender on buttons: a profile for the Logitech MX Creative Console
N
- Non-manifold edge3D modelling
An edge shared by more than two faces (or by only one). A mesh with such edges is not a closed solid, and a slicer may not print it correctly.
In articles: Preview3D - quick previews of 3D models and G-code, with export, Your model is orange right now. It doesn't have to be, and it can stand on someone's desk
O
- OnshapeCAD
Cloud-based CAD software for 3D modelling and component design. Runs directly in the browser without the need for installation.
In articles: Voronoi right inside Onshape: how my FeatureScript came to be · More ↗
P
- Part StudioCAD
The place in Onshape where you model parts: sketches, extrudes, fillets and other features, including custom ones written in FeatureScript.
In articles: Voronoi right inside Onshape: how my FeatureScript came to be
- PMICAD
Product Manufacturing Information: dimensions, tolerances, surface finish and notes for manufacturing, stored in the 3D model instead of on a drawing.
In articles: Tessellation in Preview3D is sharper again, Preview3D - quick previews of 3D models and G-code, with export, Your model is orange right now. It doesn't have to be, and it can stand on someone's desk
- Poisson disk samplingMathematics
Placing random points so that each keeps at least a given distance from the others. The result looks natural, with no clusters and no grid.
In articles: Voronoi right inside Onshape: how my FeatureScript came to be
- Printables3D printing
Prusa Research's community site for sharing 3D printable models, with ratings, users' prints and contests.
In articles: Voronoi right inside Onshape: how my FeatureScript came to be, Preview3D - quick previews of 3D models and G-code, with export, Your model is orange right now. It doesn't have to be, and it can stand on someone's desk · More ↗
- PrusaSlicer3D printing
A free, open-source slicer from Prusa Research. It prepares models for Prusa and other printers and saves multi-colour projects as 3MF.
In articles: Preview3D - quick previews of 3D models and G-code, with export, Your model is orange right now. It doesn't have to be, and it can stand on someone's desk · More ↗
Q
- Quick LookApple
The macOS preview you get by pressing Space, without opening an app. Apps can extend it to more file types and add thumbnails in the Finder.
In articles: Preview3D - quick previews of 3D models and G-code, with export
S
- Slicer3D printing
A program that cuts a 3D model into layers and works out the nozzle's paths, producing G-code for the printer. PrusaSlicer, OrcaSlicer and Bambu Studio are slicers.
In articles: Preview3D - quick previews of 3D models and G-code, with export, Your model is orange right now. It doesn't have to be, and it can stand on someone's desk
- STEPFile formats
A neutral format for exchanging CAD models (ISO 10303). Unlike STL, it carries the exact geometry of solids, not just a mesh of triangles. Extensions .step and .stp.
In articles: Tessellation in Preview3D is sharper again, Preview3D - quick previews of 3D models and G-code, with export, Your model is orange right now. It doesn't have to be, and it can stand on someone's desk
- STLFile formats
The most common format for 3D printing. It describes only the surface of a model as a mesh of triangles, with no colours, materials or units.
In articles: Tessellation in Preview3D is sharper again, Preview3D - quick previews of 3D models and G-code, with export, Your model is orange right now. It doesn't have to be, and it can stand on someone's desk
T
- TessellationCAD
Turning an exact B-rep solid into a mesh of triangles, so it can be drawn on screen or saved as STL. The finer it is, the more accurate, and the larger.
In articles: Tessellation in Preview3D is sharper again, Preview3D - quick previews of 3D models and G-code, with export
U
- USDZFile formats
A 3D format from Apple and Pixar, built on USD. iPhone, iPad and Vision Pro can show it in augmented reality straight away.
In articles: Preview3D - quick previews of 3D models and G-code, with export
V
- VoronoiMathematics
A mathematical structure (Voronoi diagram) used in 3D modelling to create organic patterns and structures.
In articles: Voronoi right inside Onshape: how my FeatureScript came to be