SpaceClaim got way more press than it deserved for its new “natural 3D design system” last year, then PTC embraced its inner pushmi-pullyu by buying CoCreate. Today Siemens PLM Software becomes the latest CAD company to abandon the CAD Reich gospel of parameters uber alles with the introduction of what it calls synchronous technology (as if there is something mysteriously asynchronous about using existing 3D CAD tools; but we digress).

The Pushmi-Pullyu, new mascot of Siemens PLM Solutions

No less an authority on these things than Dr. Ken Versprille, the father of NURBS and resident PLM guru at CPDA, says in a published quote (I’ll bet a dollar he was paid to write), “its ability to recognize current geometry conditions and localize dependencies in real time allows synchronous technology to solve for model changes without the typical replay of the full construction history from the point of edit.”

Ken's quote is a real mouthful, so let us translate for the SolidWorks bloggers among our readership: You don’t have to redraw the damn part to make a single damn change all the damn time anymore. The good doctor goes on to say that “… users will see dramatic performance gains. A 100 times speed improvement could be a conservative estimate.”

Wow! Models 100x faster than with Autodesk Inventor and probably 300x faster than CATIA? Siemens resellers must be doubled over with orgasmic spasms at the mere suggestion of such superior results, especially because this new technology will be added to both NX and Solid Edge. Maybe Solid Edge will actually sell some copies again.

When you get the previous word picture washed out of your mind, let us consider something a bit more serious. CAD pundits (self glamourously included as shown below) refer to the Big Four CAD Vendors: Autodesk, Dassault Systemes, Siemens PLM, and PTC. A year ago not one of these had history-free feature-based modeling; now two do. Not that long ago Autodesk and Dassault entered into a bidding war over Seemage; perhaps SpaceClaim just might survive long enough to be so lucky.

A self-proclaimed Leading CAD Pundit caught in the act of meditating on synchronous technology at COFES 2008.

Our story starts with a band of merchant-monks known as The Hungry Rats. They wanted to build a weapon that would offer 90% of the firepower of existing weapons at 10% of the price and would work on the new generation of weapon platforms just coming on the market. They did so, and as a result they created a grand army the likes of which had never before been seen.

The Merchant-Monks practicing their levitation.
The founders of Autodesk.

The General was a tall, likeable fellow who could be as nice or as mean as required by circumstances. He became known in his younger years as one who would speak his mind. Once when he was a young lieutenant he was fired for offering constructive criticism when none was requested. Not long after, the general who fired him brought him back, and he rose through the ranks to become general of a large army which built the weapons preferred by most soldiers, the army founded by the merchant-monks.

The General, testing new hardware.
Autodesk CEO Carl Bass, winner of the 2008 CAD Society Leadership Award.

The Arms Merchant never thought of himself as such. He preferred to think of himself as an entrepreneur who worked to enable a level playing field in times of war. The General once tried to bring shame upon this humble entrepreneur by naming him The Arms Merchant, who in turn accepted the new name as a badge of honor. For years The Arms Merchant supplied keys to all The General’s opponents. When the key was placed into the weapon built by the enemies, it allowed the weapon to use the same bullets as used in The General’s weapons. This was a wonderful benefit because millions of bullet makers were all creating bullets that worked in The General’s weapons, but few were making bullets that would work in each of the opponent’s weapons.

The Arms Merchant on a fishing trip.
Consultant Evan Yares, winner of The CAD Society’s 2008 Joe Greco Community Award.

The Samurai was a wise and gentle soul who only wielded his sword when his guitar could not solve a problem. Years ago, when the General was fresh out of military school and The Arms Merchant was an itinerant peddler, the Hungry Rats mentioned above asked The Samurai to solve a problem they had trying to build the weapon.

The Samurai went into hiding for weeks, meditating on the problem. When he came out, he spoke to them the code that answered all their problems. The merchant-monks became wealthy. They asked The Samurai to join their band, but he preferred life in the desert. After several years of disagreements over fees, a judge told the merchant-monks to pay The Samurai a handsome settlement, allowing him to continue to craft codes for other weapons and to play his guitar more often.

The Samurai, notoriously camera-shy, is spotted receiving guests in his desert hideaway.
Evolution Computing Chief Software Architect Mike Riddle, winner of the 2008 CAD Society Lifetime Achievement Award.

Years passed. The General turned his attention to building new weapons that would be nicer to the environment. The Arms Merchant was forced by his clients to stop selling keys after a thief was found in his camp. He found other ways to help small weapons builders and started to write his memoirs. The Samurai continued to meditate on codes and play his guitar. In time their work became known to The CAD Society, who decided they were as worthy as any to receive honor for their past exploits.

So, on the night of April 12, 2008, The General, The Arms Merchant, and The Samurai will gather under a tent in a desert oasis. Each will receive a trophy for their accomplishments, courtesy of The CAD Society, and they will set aside any thoughts of past animosity. All three owe a debt of gratitude to those merchant-monks.

The moral of the story is simple: Keep your friends close, and your enemies closer. You never know when the roles may change.

It is time for another episode of "Who Wants to Be Top Marketeer at Bentley!" This year's contestant is a nice guy (they are all nice guys) named Edward Mueller, who comes in with the title Chief Marketing Officer. He's been around IT marketeering for 20 years or so, his bio says. Most recently he was chief marketeer for Everdream; its dream came true recently when it was acquired by Dell Computer (which explains why he is available to Bentley; marketeers are always cast aside like yesterday's newspaper in acquisitions).

The game works like this. We (virtually and metaphorically) shove Ed (Ed, can we call you Ed?) into a revolving door. Then the audience--our readers--start laying bets on how long he can last. Either Ed gets dizzy reviewing the marketing history at Bentley and jumps out the door immediately, or he gets pushed the first time Greg Bentley thinks revenue is slumping and blames it on whatever poor schulmp happens to be chief marketeer at the time. Either way, Ed is a short-timer and everybody down the marketeering chain of command at Bentley knows it.

Ed Mueller gets his shot at the Bentley Revolving Door any moment now.

It didn't used to be this way. At one time Bentley's chief marketeer was the one and only Grand Poobah of CAD Marketeers, the esteemed Yoav Etiel. He launched some promotional campaigns that to this day bring tears to the eye. Who can forget the beautiful and/or handsome models (some of them were both) in Viecon shirts at A|E|C SYSTEMS 2001? Who can forget the Bentley bus circling the convention center when Autodesk University was in Philadelphia? This was grand and heady marketeering, the kind of in-your-face promotions that skyrocketed Bentley sales in the 1990s. But even a Grand Poobah of Marketeers can't last forever at Bentley. There was a power struggle over Viecon (their late entry in the online project management sweepstakes that soon after faded into oblivion), and Yoav Etiel became the first winner/loser (they are one in the same) of "Who Wants to Be Top Marketeer at Bentley!" Today Yoav Etiel is happy and successful, selling real estate in his native Israel when not introducing hot Israeli software prospects to VC in the USA.

So, rest at ease, Ed; there is life after Bentley. Just don't count on much of a life while you are there.

The Merax AutoDesk is $14.95 plus shipping at Newegg.com. There is no mention at the website how much you must contribute to the Merax legal defense fund, after Autodesk sends a cease-and-desist order for trademark infringement.

This novel device with the obviously infringing name was brought to our attention by Evan Yares. This is the man once described by Autodesk CEO Carl Bass as “the arms merchant to my enemies.” It would seem Carl now owes Evan a debt of gratitude for unearthing this fine example of Chinese manufacturing prowess and marketing idiocy.

Evan Yares with Exhibit A for the prosecution. The next thing you know, he'll land a six-figure consulting contract with the real Autodesk.

Look for a terribly clever report on this during the next edition of CCNtv, coming to a browser window near you March 3.

• Market understanding and response to needs
• Product or service experience
• Brand perception and reputation
• Communications quality and frequency
• Accessibility and availability of support
• Corporate confidence, trust, and credibility