manifold VS build123d

Small in a relative sense compared to some larger codebase.

Here's a bit on Manifold:

https://github.com/elalish/manifold/wiki/Manifold-Library

and the author's blog is interesting:

https://elalish.blogspot.com/search/label/Manifold

For cad kernels I highly recommend manifold https://github.com/elalish/manifold

Our project https://github.com/elalish/manifold made use of this to speed up mesh processing algorithms a lot.

Wondering why no BRep support means it is not a CAD. It seems that OpenVSP doesn't use BRep but uses parametric surface [1]. I wonder if mesh-based modeling + some constraints solving will get you a CAD, or are there other requirements that I don't know? I only work on mesh processing library on my free-time and I don't know much about BRep.

[1] https://github.com/elalish/manifold/discussions/549#discussi...

Unhealthy relationship with keyboards? Comparing with the r/MechanicalKeyboards or r/ErgoMechKeyboards people this relationship is more like divorced...

I added python binding and ended up being on of the devs for https://github.com/elalish/manifold because OpenSCAD is too slow for my modeling (I am quite impatient). Optimizing my keyboard for months with more than 5 complete rebuilds to optimize my design (looks like this: https://i.redd.it/xtf0f54mt7ya1.jpg), and is afraid of open sourcing it because my code looks too bad :(

Now much faster and more stable thanks to the Manifold engine (https://github.com/elalish/manifold): in fact it is often faster than the last stable desktop release from https://openscad.org/.

Also much better code completion, and ships with a few examples from the various bundled libraries to get you started.

At the end, they gonna replace it with ( elalish manifold.

I haven't tried Zoo (really, unique naming isn't THAT hard...), and afict I can't see the code so I prob never will, but I got perfect results with build123d recently. Admittedly it's python to cad, not AI text to cad, but it was a joy to use after getting over the initial learning curve. The users and devs hang out on the slack chan and are very helpful.

https://github.com/gumyr/build123d

Yes, absolutely.

It was where GIMP still is now, for artists.

It's definitely been idiosyncratic (if not solipsistic). And it still [0] has a core flaw that is being mitigated.

OpenSCAD is actually very limited in ways that don't become obvious until you get into a bRep CAD system at least. But it's how I also got into CAD.

If you like it, you might find Build123D [1] interesting: this is a Python (and very pythonic) environment built around the same kernel as FreeCAD.

I wanted to know there was at least something I'd be able to use for my own ideas, and the fact that OpenSCAD exists is definitely a blessing.

But I got from OpenSCAD to FreeCAD and I am very glad of it; it's an amazingly capable bit of software once you get past the pain (in the same way Blender is, I gather).

GIMP is not an amazingly capable bit of software for designers. It's broken and hobbled.

[0] the topological naming problem: being corrected in the core distribution at the moment as they head to 1.0

[1] https://github.com/gumyr/build123d

https://github.com/gumyr/build123d :

> Build123d is a python-based, parametric, boundary representation (BREP) modeling framework for 2D and 3D CAD. It's built on the Open Cascade geometric kernel and allows for the creation of complex models using a simple and intuitive python syntax. Build123d can be used to create models for 3D printing, CNC machining, laser cutting, and other manufacturing processes. Models can be exported to a wide variety of popular CAD tools such as FreeCAD and SolidWorks.

> Build123d could be considered as an evolution of CadQuery where the somewhat restrictive Fluent API (method chaining) is replaced with stateful context managers* - e.g. with blocks - thus enabling the full python toolbox: for loops, references to objects, object sorting and filtering, etc.*

"Build123d: A Python CAD programming library" (2023) https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=37576296

BREP: Boundary representation: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boundary_representation

Manim, Blender, PhysX, o3de, [FEM, CFD, [thermal, fluidic,] engineering]: https://github.com/ManimCommunity/manim/issues/3362

NURBS: Non-Uniform Rational B-Splines: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Non-uniform_rational_B-spline

NURBS for COMPAS: https://github.com/gramaziokohler/compas_nurbs :

> This package is inspired by the NURBS-Python package, however uses a NumPy-based backend for better performance.

> Curve, and Surface are non-uniform non-rational B-Spline geometries (NUBS), RationalCurve, and RationalSurface are non-uniform rational B-Spline Geometries (NURBS). They all built upon the class BSpline. Coordinates have to be in 3D space (x, y, z)

test_curve.py, test_surface.py

https://github.com/compas-dev

compas_rhino, compas_blender

Blender docs > Modeling Surfaces; NURBs implementation, limits, challenges:

https://github.com/gumyr/build123d/blob/dev/examples/heat_ex...

github