Do you use the Excel BOM feature?
Do you use the Excel BOM feature?
(OP)
If you use the Excel BOM feature SolidWorks is not planning to support it. I've has an SPR in for over 2 years. When I refused to continue maintenance until they provided a response they said replied it was not being supported. Hawkridge Systems advertises the Excel BOM as a top feature.
Needless to say I have dumped Hawkridge Systems and have started to look for a replacement CAD package.
Needless to say I have dumped Hawkridge Systems and have started to look for a replacement CAD package.
Ed Danzer
www.danzcoinc.com
www.dehyds.com






RE: Do you use the Excel BOM feature?
"Needless to say I have dumped Hawkridge Systems and have started to look for a replacement CAD package."
Why?
RE: Do you use the Excel BOM feature?
I am not looking forward to seeing a bland SW knockoff that is almost 25% as capable.
RE: Do you use the Excel BOM feature?
-handleman, CSWP (The new, easy test)
RE: Do you use the Excel BOM feature?
Hopefully, when/if SW ever introduces its own version, it will have all the necessary functions built in. The vast majority of users do not need all the bloat of Excel. Also, IMO, the less dependence SW has on Microsoft products, the better it will be. I would like to see SW offer users a choice of using various spreadsheets.
Anyway, SW would never release a half-baked function ... would they?
RE: Do you use the Excel BOM feature?
You can run SW without Excel. The Excel functionality is licensed and installed w/ SW whether Excel is already present or not.
RE: Do you use the Excel BOM feature?
According to http://www
RE: Do you use the Excel BOM feature?
I've installed and used SWX on my personal laptop that doesn't have any components of MS Office installed. I've not done anything with design tables or Excel BOMs on this machine, but SWX functions OK.
RE: Do you use the Excel BOM feature?
My Take on this is Excel and SW tables have never been very stable in the SW software, especially on the drawing side of the software. I constantly fight with excel (very little) and SW tables moving around, fonts changing when you edit the tables, and column's not freezing when making a width change, etc...However, excel works the best in Design Tables and would hate to see that change. I love the capability of saving an Excel BOM because I can import it into our ERP system.
Just may take on this.......
Have a good day,
Colin Fitzpatrick (aka Macduff)
Mechanical Designer
Solidworks 2008 SP 4.0
Dell 490 XP Pro SP 2
Xeon CPU 3.00 GHz 3.00 GB of RAM
nVida Quadro FX 3450 512 MB
3D Connexion-SpaceExplorer
RE: Do you use the Excel BOM feature?
As far as Excel being included with SWX, you can check this quite easily. Go to your Office install directory and change the filename for EXCEL.EXE. Then try to edit a DT.
-handleman, CSWP (The new, easy test)
RE: Do you use the Excel BOM feature?
RE: Do you use the Excel BOM feature?
It may not be quite that simple, handleman. API access to Excel functionality may not require the actual presence of Excel.exe, only key DLL's.
I recently read a blurb (on SW web site) that seemed to indicate that Excel license was part of SW license. I imagine it's a limited use license, similar to the way VBA objects' licenses can be limited.
RE: Do you use the Excel BOM feature?
I'd trust the system requirements over a "blurb", SW website or not.
-handleman, CSWP (The new, easy test)
RE: Do you use the Excel BOM feature?
RE: Do you use the Excel BOM feature?
I know this is straying a bit off-topic, but that is a very nicely done design table. Misumi's use of 3D PartStream.net makes it easy enough to configure part numbers and get models, but you've taken that one step further by bypassing the website all-together. I've often wanted to do this for some of the "configurable" components that I purchase. I've just never taken the time time to do it. On a DT like this, is it possible to "validate" (not sure if that's the correct term) some of the cells, so you can only enter certain numbers?
Joe
SW Office 2008 SP3.1
P4 3.0Ghz 3GB
ATI FireGL X1
RE: Do you use the Excel BOM feature?
As far as Misumi components go, you'd be hard-pressed to find a model of SNLBR on the website. It comes from a Japanese-only catalog of extra-super-configurable components. http://misumi.jp/cp/gizyutsu/fa_catalog.html. I'm not sure if we have a special relationship with Misumi to be able to order from this catalog or if anyone can as long as they can figure out the part numbers.
-handleman, CSWP (The new, easy test)
RE: Do you use the Excel BOM feature?
TheTick,
If SW were independent of Microsoft Applications like Excel, it could be exported to non-Microsoft OSs like Linux. I would like that.
On the other hand, I use design tables systematically, and I seriously abuse Excel doing it. I use text functions and logic, and I name cells. I do not want to multiply $A3 by pi, I want to multiply DIAMETER.
OpenOffice under Linux is very reliable at reading and writing Excel files, although not quite as user friendly. It is Free Software, so SW would be able to access the source code, and hack it or modify it.
We still use the Excel parts lists. This is primarily because we export the data to an external spreadsheet. We generate complicated assemblies, some with over a hundred parts. Such an on-drawing parts list takes over the drawing sheet, and is often better left off it. An external parts list is a useful stand-alone document, anyway. Exporting from the SW BOM is less convenient.
JHG