3dvia composer release notes - - get a free blog here

3DVIA COMPOSER

RELEASE NOTES V6R2012x and V6R2012

September 2011

3DVIA Composer - Release Notes

2/56

Contents

1 Version V6R2012x ............................................................................................................. 3

1.1 New Features ............................................................................................................ 3

1.2 API Changes ............................................................................................................. 24

1.3 System Requirements ............................................................................................. 25

2 Version V6R2012 ............................................................................................................. 27

2.1 New Features .......................................................................................................... 27

2.2 API Changes ............................................................................................................. 54

2.3 System Requirements ............................................................................................. 55


3/56

1 Version V6R2012x

1.1 New Features FlexNet 11.9.1: 3DVIA Composer now uses version 11.9.1 of FlexNet Publisher®

licensing software from Flexera Software™. V6R2012 used version 11.6. For details

about licensing, see the 3DVIA Composer License Administration Guide and FlexNet

Publisher License Administration Guide, both available from the 3DVIA Composer

Resource Center:

http://www.3ds.com/products/3dvia/3dvia-composer/resource-center/

IMPORTANT: Server daemons for concurrent licenses need to be updated to be

compliant with V6R2012x. Daemons for all supported operating systems are delivered in

the 3DVIA Composer media kit.

Camera Enhancements: Significant camera enhancements add power and simplicity

to using cameras in views and animations.

o Multiple cameras: 3DVIA Composer now lets you create multiple camera

actors. To create a camera, click Home > Navigate > Attach Camera > Add

Camera on the ribbon. The new camera actor is created at the current

viewport camera position.

Cameras are listed under Cameras in the Collaboration pane:

To rename a camera, right-click the camera and click Rename Actor

(F2).

To delete a camera, right-click the camera and click Delete Actors. You

cannot delete the default Camera actor.

To toggle camera visibility, click its check box.

http://www.3ds.com/products/3dvia/3dvia-composer/resource-center/


4/56

Each viewport pane can have a different active

camera. To specify the viewport camera, display

viewport properties in the Properties pane (click

in empty viewport background or press Esc

while your mouse is over the viewport), and then

select a camera from the new Camera property.

The Camera property is animatable; your

animations can switch between cameras.

Note: Creating a new camera does not automatically make it the viewport

camera. You must set the Camera property.

If you have multiple viewport panes, Camera is animatable for the main

viewport pane only. “Main Viewport” is displayed at the bottom of the

main viewport.

Tip: To facilitate working with cameras, split the viewport into multiple panes and

set different viewport cameras. In the following illustration, the left viewport

shows the model from the perspective of Camera 1 and the right viewport uses its

active camera to show the Camera 1 actor.

o New Camera Properties: Cameras have several new properties:


5/56

Color Specifies the color of the camera icon in the viewport and

camera keys in the timeline.

Roll Allows the camera to rotate about the z-axis (twisting

movement) to track its target.

Pitch Allows the camera to rotate about the x-axis (up-down


Yaw Allows the camera to rotate about the y-axis (side-to-side


Lock distance

to target

Freezes the distance between the camera and its target.

Translating the target also translates the camera to maintain

the Distance to target value.

Distance to

target

Specifies the distance between the camera and its target, in

document length units.

o Camera attachments: You can now attach cameras and their target points to

actors. Creating attachments lets cameras move with or track the motion of their

attached actors. Attachments are maintained after geometry updates.

The following commands under Home > Navigate > Attach Camera specify

useful attach modes. Selecting these modes clears all animation keys for the

active viewport camera and sets camera properties as appropriate.

'Fly-With' Mode (Translate

keeping distance)

Attaches the camera target to the selected

actor. The camera follows the attached

actor at constant distance.

'Target' Mode (Follow keeping

position)

Attaches the camera target to the selected

actor. The camera remains stationary but

tracks the movement of the attached

actor.

'Move-With' Mode (Rigid

attachment)

Attaches the camera center and target to

the selected actor. The camera moves in

lock-step with the attached actor.


6/56

'Free' Mode (Detach) Detaches the camera center and target

from its attached actors. The camera can

move freely in the viewport.

In previous releases, this was the only

available camera behavior.

The following commands under Home > Navigate > Attach Camera create

camera keys at the current time without clearing existing keys.

Attach Target to Selection Attaches the camera target to the selected

actor. The target moves with the actor.

Attach Center to Selection Attaches the camera to the selected actor.

The camera moves with the actor.

Detach Target Detaches the camera target from its

attached actor. The target no longer

moves with the actor.

Detach Center Detaches the camera from its attached

actor. The camera no longer moves with

the actor.

o Camera anchors: Cameras now have anchors that you can drag to move the

camera and its target point in both view and animation modes. It is recommended

that you use the predefined camera modes and attach/detach commands to

manage attachments, and then use the anchors only when necessary for fine

tuning.

To move the camera, drag the anchor.

To attach the camera to an actor, press Alt while dragging . To detach

the camera, press Alt while dragging onto empty viewport background.

To move the camera target, drag the anchor.

To attach the target to an actor, press Alt while dragging . To detach the

target, press Alt while dragging onto empty viewport background.


7/56

Copy Collaborative Actors: You can now copy, cut, and paste collaborative actors

using the new Cut , Copy , and Paste commands. These commands use the

Windows clipboard, so you can copy and paste within the same 3DVIA Composer

document, across documents, and even across 3DVIA Composer applications. You

can also paste text and images from other applications into 3DVIA Composer to create

labels and 2D panels, respectively.

Note: These commands also cut, copy, and paste geometry actors, but only within the

same 3DVIA Composer document. These commands call the existing cut/copy/paste

commands for geometry actors, which do not use the Windows clipboard.

Access these new commands:

o On the Home ribbon tab:

o On the viewport mini-toolbar:

o Using shortcut keys (Ctrl+C, Ctrl+X, Ctrl+V) in the Collaboration pane and

viewport.

Note: You must use shortcut keys in 3DVIA Composer Player; menu commands

are not available.

You cannot use shortcut keys in the viewport to copy/cut/paste geometry

actors.

Cut (Ctrl+X) Same as Copy , but also deletes the selected actors.

Copy (Ctrl+C) Copies the selected actors to the clipboard, replacing the

previous clipboard content.

Note: You cannot copy the following collaborative actors:

cutting planes, grids, cameras, coordinate systems, paths,

intersection lines, BOM tables, ground, and compass.

Paste (Ctrl+V) Pastes the clipboard into the current 3DVIA Composer

document. The result depends on the content:


8/56

Clipboard Content Paste Result

Geometry actor New geometry instance named copy of original_name

as a child of the currently

selected geometry actor.

Collaborative actor New actor of same type named Copy n of

original_name.

Image of supported format

(BMP, JPG, etc.)

New image 2D panel named

Pasted Image n.

Text New label named Pasted

Label n.

Important:

You cannot paste 3DVIA Composer actors into other

applications.

In 3DVIA Composer Player, you can only paste

collaborative actors that can be authored in 3DVIA

Composer Player and for which you have the necessary

Right Manager right. For example, you cannot paste

arrows because you cannot create arrows in 3DVIA

Composer Player, but you can paste labels when you

have the Annotations right.

The location of pasted actors in the viewport depends on the

content type and whether the actor is associated with (attached

to) geometry.

Clipboard Content Paste Location

2D collaborative actor Preserves location with

slight offset from the

original actor:

Before After

Geometry actor Preserves location. When

the original actor is present

at that location, the copy

completely overlaps the

original.

3D collaborative actor with no

association

Preserves location. When

the original actor is present

at that location, the copy

completely overlaps the

original.


9/56

3D

collaborative

actor with

association

Associated

actor found

(GUID match)

Preserves location in the

associated actor's local

coordinate system.

Associated

actor not

found

Arranges pasted actors in a

circular pattern around the

viewport center to facilitate

reattachment.

Text and images from other

applications

Creates actors in the

viewport at the current

mouse position.

Tip: If pasted actors are not visible in the current viewport, use

Zoom Selection or Zoom Fit All .

Note: This copy/cut/paste capability was also added to previous 3DVIA Composer

releases in the following hot fixes: V6R2011 HF4, V6R2011x HF5, and V6R2012

HF2. Use shortcut keys (Ctrl+C, Ctrl+X, Ctrl+V); menu commands are not

available.


10/56

Smart Outlines: The new “smart outlines” feature uses curve detection to draw center

lines for some circular fillets (depending on fillet angle and length). Using smart

outlines can produce superior technical illustrations in cases where showing

construction edges draws too many lines but turning off construction edges omits

important lines. Note: Smart-outline generation can be time intensive.

You can display smart outlines in the viewport and when generating vector graphics

images. On the ribbon Render tab and the Technical Illustration workshop Lines tab,

Show/Hide Constructions Edges has been replaced by Outline Style .

You can choose the following outline styles:

Sharp Edges

Draws significant model edges only as

determined by the Minimum angle

document and actor properties.

This option corresponds to Construction

Edges being disabled in previous

releases.


11/56

Construction Edges

Draws surface construction lines in

addition to sharp-edge lines. Construction

edges are the boundaries between faces

(as defined in some CAD formats).

This option corresponds to Construction

Edges being enabled in previous releases.

Smart Outlines

Draws center lines for some circular

fillets (depending on fillet angle and

length) in addition to sharp-edge lines.

This option is new.

Style Improvements: Several enhancements add power and convenience to 3DVIA

Composer styles.


12/56

o Styles by Family: In the Styles workshop, every style now has a Family property

that associates the style with an actor type. For example, to make a style for

arrows, set Family to Markups. To make a style available for all actor types, set

Family to Generic.

o Default Styles by Family: Each actor family can have its own default style,

which is applied by default to new actors in that family. When a family does not

have a default style, the default Generic style is applied. To make a style the

default, select the style in the Styles workshop and click Set as Default , or

right-click the style in the Styles tab and click Set as Default . Default styles

have stars on the Styles tab preview images.

o Styles Tab: The new Styles ribbon tab includes the features previously available

on the Home tab plus a style gallery with preview images. When one or more

actors are selected:

Only styles applicable to those actors are shown.

When the actors are subscribed to a style, that style is highlighted.

You can perform the following operations from the style gallery:

To apply a style to the selected actors, click the style. When Auto

Subscribe is selected, the actors are subscribed to the style

(automatically update when the style changes). When Auto Subscribe

is cleared, the style is applied without subscribing the actors.

Note: Clicking a style also makes it the current style in the Styles

workshop.

To scroll through the styles, click and , or click More to see all

styles organized by family.

To set or clear default styles, right-click a style and click Set as Default

, Unset as Default , or Unset All Defaults .

To delete a style, right-click a style and click Delete . You cannot

delete locked styles and default styles (use Unset as Default first).

o Quick Styles: You can quickly create a new style from all properties (except

name and location) of an actor. To create a quick style, select an actor and then

click Quick Style on the Styles tab or in the Styles workshop. When multiple

actors are selected, the style contains only the common properties.


13/56

Publish to 3DVIA Studio: You can now publish 3DVIA Composer documents as

3DVIA Studio projects. To publish the active document, click File > Publish >

3DVIA Studio .

The first time you publish to 3DVIA Studio, you are prompted to install vkConverter

(a 3DVIA Studio component). Click OK, and then double-click

InstallVkConverter.bat. Administrator rights are required. The installation also

installs Microsoft DirectX 9. When the installation completes, publish your document

again.

Publishing to 3DVIA Studio creates the following files:

*.smgStudio.zip Archive file of your 3DVIA Composer document

containing the following:

project.smgxml (product structure)

project.smgView (view definitions)

project.mp3d (product geometry in

3DVIA Studio format)

Resource files, such as view thumbnail

images and linked files

ComposerPlayerInStudio.mpexp 3DVIA Studio project archive file that lets 3DVIA

Studio play 3DVIA Composer documents

To play the project in 3DVIA Studio:

Note: Requires 3DVIA Studio 2.13.191 (V6R2012x) or later.

1. Double-click ComposerPlayerInStudio.mpexp.

2. When prompted to extract the project, click Ok.

Tip: You need to extract the project only once. You can start 3DVIA Studio

and view published 3DVIA Composer documents in the future by double-

clicking ComposerPlayerInStudio/ComposerPlayerInStudio.mpproj.


14/56

3. When 3DVIA Studio finishes loading, click Play (Playback toolbar).

3DVIA Studio displays thumbnails of the 3DVIA Composer documents

published in this folder.

4. Click the document you want to view.

5. To view a different document, click in the lower-left corner of the

document window.

Important: Publishing to 3DVIA Studio has the following limitations:

o 3DVIA Studio has no built-in mechanism for navigating views. Include

navigation buttons or linked panels in your documents to navigate multiple views.

o 3DVIA Composer animations are not published.

o Published documents always use Smooth render mode.

o The following actors are not published: redlines, 3D image panels, 3D vector

image panels, some measurements (such as plane-related measurements and arc

length), associative paths, coordinate systems, user-created lights (custom

lighting), geometry primitives, PMI, intersection lines, cutting planes, grids,

magnetic lines, and the compass.

o Advanced OpenGL hardware acceleration (Application Preferences – Hardware

Support page) is required to publish 2D panels.

o Not all properties of published actors are supported. For example, the following

are not published: text 2D panel shadows, GDT symbols, polyline back-line

styles, link icons, arrow borders, and ground shadow/mirror/grid . Also, all attach

lines are single, straight lines (no bends or arcs), and 2D vector image panels are

published with an empty file path.

o The following CAD objects are not published: points, axes, and curves/wires.

o Sizes and positions of actors created in 3DVIA Composer V6R2010x or earlier

(before the introduction of paper space) might be incorrect.


15/56

Print All Views: You can now print all 3DVIA Composer views with one command:

o In 3DVIA Composer: File > Print > Print All Views

o In 3DVIA Composer Player: File > Print All Views

Previously, you had to print each view separately using Print .

Print All Views displays the Print dialog box, where you can specify a printer, the

number of copies, and other printing options. You cannot specify a print range; All is

always selected.

Note: In 3DVIA Composer, Print All Views applies the current High Resolution

Image workshop profile to each view, so image resolution is determined by the profile.

In 3DVIA Composer Player, image resolution is computed using the viewport size.

Application Preferences Profile Changes: Application Preferences profiles, which

define application settings for different work conditions, have changed:

o The Default profile has been renamed Standard .

o High quality is now the default profile. Previously, Default was the

default.

o All profile definitions have changed. For example, Standard (formerly

Default ) now disables the HardwareSupport.Advanced option, and Safe

now disables OpenGL hardware acceleration.

High Resolution Digger Images: 2D Images created from the Digger tool are now

high resolution. The resolution is determined by the High Resolution Image workshop

resolution and scaled for the viewport size.


16/56

Navigation Button Enhancements:

o 3DVIA Composer now creates navigation buttons in one click. You can then

resize buttons if desired. Previously, you had to click twice (to position and size

the button) and press Esc to exit button-creation mode.

o The new Create Set of Navigation Buttons command (Author > Panels >

Image 2D > All Buttons ) creates a complete set of navigation buttons in

one click. Previously, you had to create each button and align them manually.

BOM Table Enhancements: Several enhancements improve the interactivity and

appearance of BOM tables.

o Hovering over BOM table rows in the viewport highlights the corresponding

geometry actors and callouts. To enable this behavior, select the Model

highlighting BOM property in the Properties pane. Previously, BOM highlighting

was available in vector graphics output but not in the viewport. Note: BOM

highlighting in the viewport is unidirectional: highlighting a geometry actor or

callout does not highlight the corresponding row in the BOM table.

o Shadow properties, previously available for other 2D panels, are now available

for the BOM table.

o The new BOM colors properties define BOM text and row colors, letting you

configure the BOM table to conform to corporate drawing standards. Previously,

BOM table colors were not configurable.


17/56

Hide Measurement Red Lines: The new Show red lines property controls the

display of construction circles for radius and diameter measurements. When Show red

lines is enabled, the Show construction line property controls display of construction

lines. Previously, you could hide construction lines but not construction circles.

Freeze 2D Panels in Player Only: You can now freeze (prevent selection in the

viewport) 2D panels in 3DVIA Composer Player without freezing them in 3DVIA

Composer. The Freeze property, previously a check box, is now a choice list with

three options:

No Freeze The actor is not frozen in

3DVIA Composer Player or

3DVIA Composer. This

behavior corresponds to

Freeze being cleared in

previous releases.

Freeze The actor is frozen in both

3DVIA Composer Player and

3DVIA Composer. This

behavior corresponds to

Freeze being selected in

previous releases.

Freeze only

in player

The actor is frozen in 3DVIA

Composer Player only (and

3DVIA Composer when

Design Mode is off). This

behavior is new.

Show red lines disabled

Show red lines enabled

Show construction line disabled

Show red lines enabled

Show construction line enabled


18/56

Read-Only Properties: The new DisableMatchingProperties option on the

Application Preferences - Advanced Settings page lets you define properties as read-

only to prevent editing values in the Properties pane.

Specify a regular expression (regexp) that matches the properties to disable. For

example, to prevent changes to CAD metadata and geometry actor names, specify:

(Meta\..*)|(Actor\.Name)

This regexp matches all properties starting with Meta. and the property Actor.Name.

Note: Disabling Actor.Name also disables renaming of collaborative actors in the

Properties pane. To rename collaborative actors, visit the Collaboration pane, right-

click the actor name and click Rename Actor (F2).

Tip: To get internal property names (for example, Actor.Name), use Insert

Property on the Text pane, or use File > Properties > Show XML .

Administrators can create the following string registry value to disable properties for

all users on the machine:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Dassault

Systemes\3DVIAComposer\Preferences\DisableMatchingProperties

However, specifying the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE value does not completely prevent

users from modifying those properties. A user-specified value on the Advanced


19/56

Settings page, which is stored under HKEY_CURRENT_USER, overrides the

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE value.

Note: This feature was also added to previous 3DVIA Composer releases in the

following hot fixes: V6R2011 HF3, V6R2011x HF4, and V6R2012 HF1.

Note: All installed versions of 3DVIA Composer use the same application settings.

Installing a new version does not change existing settings.

SolidWorks Mouse Behavior: You can now easily configure 3DVIA Composer to

use the default SolidWorks mouse behavior. On the Application Preferences –

Navigation page, click Set as SolidWorks and then click Yes to confirm.

Disable Tessellation Optimization for 3DXML: When importing SolidWorks,

CATIA, and 3DXML files, 3DVIA Composer rearranges tessellation triangles to

reduce tessellation size in memory and improve render performance. For 3DXML

only, you can now disable this optimization to improve file load time. On the [Default]

Document Properties – Advanced Settings page, clear the new

IOImportGeometriesAsTriangleStripSet option.


20/56

Italian and Russian Language Support: 3DVIA Composer, 3DVIA Composer

Player, and 3DVIA Sync graphical user interfaces are now available in Italian and

Russian. These choices are available from the 3DVIA Composer installation wizard

and from the Language option on the Application Preferences – General page.

Note:

o Support for Italian and Russian were also added to V6R2012 HF3.

o Translated release notes for all supported languages, including Italian and

Russian, will be available in an upcoming V6R2012x hot fix (HF) release.

Italian and Russian online help will be available in a future release.

Animation Range Uses Frames: When generating multiple images from the High

Resolution Image workshop Multiple tab and choosing an animation range, files are

now named by frame number instead of starting at 1.

Note: This feature was introduced in V6R2012 HF1.


21/56

Import Solid Edge and Inventor Files: 3DVIA Composer and 3DVIA Sync can now

import Siemens Solid Edge® and Autodesk® Inventor® files using the SolidWorks

importer.

Note: o You must have SolidWorks installed. If SolidWorks is not available, Inventor

and Solid Edge files are listed as “Unavailable”.

o For Inventor files, you must have Autodesk Inventor Viewer installed.


22/56

Non-Unicode Wavefront Output: You can now generate Alias Wavefront (.obj) files

with ANSI instead of Unicode encoding for use by applications that do not support

Unicode. To generate ANSI Wavefront files, clear the new Input >

IOGenerateUnicodeOBJ option on the Application Preferences – Advanced Settings

page.

3DVIA Converter Return Codes: To better integrate into custom batch processes,

3DVIA Converter (3DVIAConverter.exe) now has improved return codes.

Previously, 3DVIA Converter always returned “0”. For the list of return codes, see the

3DVIA Composer Programming Guide. In additional, the new IOErrorLevel option

(Application Preferences – Advanced Settings) specifies whether output files are

generated for non-fatal return codes or for success only.

Note: o 3DVIA Sync does not propagate 3DVIA Converter return codes. When return

codes are required, call 3DVIA Converter directly.

o This feature was also added to previous 3DVIA Composer releases in the

following hot fixes: V6R2011 HF3, V6R2011x HF4, and V6R2012 HF1.


23/56

Additional Scheduling Tabs in 3DVIA Sync: You can now access the Microsoft

Task Scheduler Task and Settings tabs from 3DVIA Sync. In 3DVIA Sync, on the

Scheduling page, click Create/Edit Scheduling. Previously, only the Schedule tab

was available.

Important: You can create schedules with 3DVIA Sync and 3DVIA Enterprise Sync,

but 3DVIA Enterprise Sync is required to run scheduled tasks.

Improved TEMP Management: 3DVIA Converter now creates temporary files in

per-process subfolders. Previously, all 3DVIA Converter processes used the same

folder, potentially causing conflicts when processes ran simultaneously.

Other Minor Changes: o In the Technical Illustration workshop, the Hidden Line Removal (HLR) option

and HLR tab have both been renamed Lines to better reflect the tab’s function.

o On the Application Preferences – Advanced Settings page, the Add debug

information to the property list option now appears in the settings list as Debug

information > ShowDebugPropertiesInPropertiesPane. This change makes the

user interface more consistent; it does not change the option behavior.

o The HardwareSupport.Advanced option on the Application Preferences –

Advanced Settings page is now also exposed as the Advanced radio button on the

Application Preferences – Hardware Support page. This change makes this option

more visible and quicker to access, but does not change its behavior.

o You can now specify a pulse color for 2D and 3D panels. Pulse highlighting uses

this color and no longer displays a box around the actor.

o 3DVIA Composer now creates meta-properties for CATIA V5 Density, Mass,

and Center of gravity properties.


24/56

1.2 API Changes For details about the application programming interfaces (APIs), see the 3DVIA Composer

Programming Guide. In 3DVIA Composer, click Help > Programming Guide.

The following functions have been added to the 3DVIA Composer Player ActiveX API.

GetActorsClassName() – Returns the class name (for example,

CLitTextMultiplePoints for a label or CLitActorMesh for geometry) of the

specified actor. **See Note.

GetFamily() – Returns the collaboration family name of the specified

collaborative actor. **See Note.

GetFileVersion() – Returns the version of the 3DVIA Composer file format

when the file was saved.

GetVersion() – Returns the 3DVIA Composer ActiveX version in the format

major.minor.hf.build.

IsPlayerPro() – Returns whether the 3DVIA Composer Player ActiveX is the

Pro version (True) or the free version (False).

SelectViews() – Selects the specified views. **See Note.

ScrollViewToTop() – Makes the specified view visible in the Views pane by

scrolling the pane when necessary. **See Note.

**Note: Also added to previous 3DVIA Composer releases in the following hot fixes:

V6R2011 HF3, V6R2011x HF4, and V6R2012 HF1.

The following property has been added to the 3DVIA Composer Player ActiveX API.

ApplicationProfile – Specifies the application-settings profile used by all

3DVIA Composer applications.


25/56

1.3 System Requirements

Important: Depending on the file formats you import into 3DVIA Composer, 3DVIA Sync

or 3DVIA Enterprise Sync, different requirements might apply. For example, if you import

SolidWorks files, you must satisfy the minimum requirements for your version of SolidWorks

(see http://www.solidworks.com/sw/support/SystemRequirements.html).

Hardware Recommended Hardware: 3DVIA Composer

3DVIA Sync 3DVIA Enterprise Sync

Minimum Hardware: 3DVIA Composer


Disk Drive 3 GB minimum free space is required to store program executables (including all importers), program data, usage environment, and paging space.

3 GB minimum free space is required to store program executables (including all importers), program data, usage environment, and paging space.

Network Adaptor An active Ethernet adapter is required for licensing purposes.

An active Ethernet adapter is required for licensing purposes.

Processor Intel®

Core™ 2 Duo (or similar) Intel Pentium®

4 (or similar)

Memory (RAM) 2 GB 512 MB

Keyboard A specific keyboard compatible with the selected installation locale might be required for national language support.

A specific keyboard compatible with the selected installation locale might be required for national language support.

Display Recommended resolution for Windows®

workstations is 1280x1024. 16-bit color or higher graphics mode required, with 32-bit color recommended.

Recommended resolution for Windows workstations is 1280x1024. 16-bit color or higher graphics mode required, with 32-bit color recommended.

Graphics Adaptor A graphics adapter with 3D OpenGL acceleration is required for optimal

performance. NVIDIA®

is highly recommended

(NVIDIA Quadro®

FX).

OpenGL 3.2 or higher is required for some advanced rendering effects.

A graphics adapter with 3D OpenGL acceleration is recommended to ensure performance. NVIDIA or ATI™ are recommended. Frame rates and interactivity will be significantly reduced if no acceleration is available.

Pointing Device A 3-button mouse is recommended for usability reasons.

A 3-button mouse is recommended for usability reasons.

Optional Components and Features

SpaceTraveler™, SpaceNavigator™, SpaceExplorer™, SpaceBall™, and

SpaceMouse™ from 3Dconnexion®

can be used,

in addition to the mouse, to perform graphic manipulations (zoom, pan, rotate, etc.). Necessary drivers are delivered with the device.

SpaceTraveler, SpaceNavigator, SpaceExplorer, SpaceBall, and SpaceMouse from 3Dconnexion can be used, in addition to the mouse, to perform graphic manipulations (zoom, pan, rotate, etc.). Necessary drivers are delivered with the device.

Hardware Recommended Hardware: 3DVIA Composer Player

3DVIA Composer Player Pro

Minimum Hardware: 3DVIA Composer Player


Disk Drive 50 MB minimum free space is required to store program executables (.exe, .ocx, Adobe

Reader®

plug-in), program data, usage

environment, and paging space.

50 MB minimum free space is required to store program executables (.exe, .ocx, Adobe Reader plug-in), program data, usage environment, and paging space.

Network Adaptor An active Ethernet adapter is required for licensing purposes (Player Pro only).

An active Ethernet adapter is required for licensing purposes (Player Pro only).

Processor Intel Core 2 Duo (or similar) Intel Pentium 4 (or similar)

http://www.solidworks.com/sw/support/SystemRequirements.html


26/56




Display Recommended resolution for Windows workstations is 1280x1024. 16-bit color or higher graphics mode required, with 32-bit color recommended.

Recommended resolution for Windows workstations is 1280x1024. 16-bit color or higher graphics mode required, with 32-bit color recommended.

Graphics Adaptor A graphics adapter with 3D OpenGL acceleration is required for optimal performance. NVIDIA is highly recommended (NVIDIA Quadro FX). OpenGL 3.2 or higher is required for some advanced rendering effects.

A graphics adapter with 3D OpenGL acceleration is recommended to ensure performance. NVIDIA or ATI are recommended. Frame rates and interactivity will be significantly reduced if no acceleration is available.






Operating System All 3DVIA Composer Products

32-bit 64-bit (x64 Edition)

Microsoft Windows XP 32-bit

N/A

Microsoft Windows XP 64-bit (WOW*)

Microsoft Windows Vista 32-bit

N/A

Microsoft Windows Vista 64-bit (WOW*)

Microsoft Windows Server 2003 32-bit

N/A

Microsoft Windows Server 2003 64-bit (WOW*)


N/A


Microsoft Windows 7 32-bit

N/A

Microsoft Windows 7 64-bit (WOW*)

*WOW (Windows on Windows) lets 32-bit processes run on Windows 64-bit operating systems.

Note:

Install the latest Windows service pack (http://www.microsoft.com) for your

operating system.

Install the latest driver available for your video card.

3DVIA SolidWorks Plug-in 32-bit 3DVIA SolidWorks Plug-in 64-bit

Software Prerequisite SolidWorks 32-bit SolidWorks 64-bit

http://www.microsoft.com/


27/56

2 Version V6R2012

2.1 New Features Import Textures from 3DXML: 3DVIA Composer can now import textures,

including UV textures, from 3DXML files. 3DVIA Composer cannot export textures

to 3DXML.

CAUTION: Because texture support required a change to the .smgGeom file

format, .smg and .smgXml+.smgGeom files generated by 3DVIA Composer

V6R2012 applications cannot be opened in previous 3DVIA Composer versions. To

view 3DVIA Composer V6R2012 documents, use 3DVIA Composer Player

V6R2012.

To import textures, select Import textures on the Import page of the Open dialog box

(also on the [Default] Document Properties – Input page).

Note:

o 3DVIA Composer can import one texture per face (single-channel). If geometry

has a multi-channel texture, 3DVIA Composer imports the first channel only.

o Changing the Texture > Map path property of an actor with imported textures

loses texturing-by-face. The specified texture is applied to all actor faces.


28/56

o You can apply texture properties such as Environment effect, Blending, and

Transparency to imported textures.

o The Texture > Projection mode property is set to Imported texture for actors

with imported textures. Changing the projection mode loses the imported texture.

o The Update 3DVIA Composer Document command updates UV coordinates of

imported textures. Texture property changes made in 3DVIA Composer, such as

Map path and Scale, are retained.

Simplified Trial Licensing: A 30-day trial license is now generated automatically

when you run 3DVIA Composer evaluation software. The trial license provides access

to all features of 3DVIA Composer, 3DVIA Sync (not 3DVIA Enterprise Sync), and

3DVIA Composer Player Pro. Previously, you had to request and install a trial license.

Note: This feature was introduced in V6R2011x HF1.

When you start 3DVIA Composer or 3DVIA Sync without a license or with a trial

license, the 3DVIA Composer - Licensing dialog box appears. Click Trial to begin the

trial period, or press F1 to display the online help for additional details.

Managing Actor Visibility in Views: You can now control how 3DVIA Composer

defines actor visibility in views. Previously, view definitions listed every visible

collaborative and geometry actor. As a result:

o Views with many visible actors produced large files, increasing disk usage and

load times.

o When updating documents from CAD files, all new geometry actors came into

3DVIA Composer as hidden.

The new Define actor visibility in views by option on the [Default] Document

Properties – Update page lets you choose different behaviors.


29/56

Note: The following illustrations use these symbols:

Existing actor New actor from update

Visible

Hidden

Mixed n/a

Visible actors Note: This is the pre-V6R2012 behavior.

All visible geometry and collaborative actors are listed

in view definitions. New actors resulting from document

updates are hidden.

Hidden actors All hidden geometry and collaborative actors are listed

in view definitions. New actors resulting from document

updates are visible.

Visible assemblies Note: This is the default V6R2012 behavior.

All visible collaborative actors are listed in view

definitions, and geometry actors are listed as follows:

o Visible assemblies are listed, but their subassemblies

and parts are not. New actors resulting from

document updates are visible (inherit assembly

visibility).

o Hidden assemblies are not listed, nor are their


30/56

subassemblies and parts. New actors resulting from

document updates are hidden.

o Mixed-visibility assemblies are not listed, but their

visible parts are. New actors resulting from

document updates are hidden.

For more compact view definitions, choose Visible

assemblies or Hidden assemblies.

Hidden assemblies All hidden collaborative actors are listed in view

definitions, and geometry actors are listed as follows:

o Hidden assemblies are listed, but their

subassemblies and parts are not. New actors

resulting from document updates are hidden (inherit

assembly visibility).

o Visible assemblies are not listed, nor are their

subassemblies and parts. New actors resulting from

document updates are visible.

o Mixed-visibility assemblies are not listed, but their

hidden parts are. New actors resulting from

document updates are visible.

Note: o This option also affects animation visibility (actor visibility at time=0).

o This option does not affect custom views. Custom views that capture actor

visibility always list visible actors.

o In all modes, ghosted actors are always listed in view definitions.


31/56

Delete Unused Properties from Views: You can remove all properties that duplicate

the neutral (default) values from your view definitions. In the Views pane, right-click

and select Delete Unused Properties. Use this command before publishing

documents to reduce file size and increase performance.

Note: o This command removes unused properties from all normal views but does not

affect custom (intelligent) views.

o Previous versions of 3DVIA Composer stored unnecessary properties (such as

bound-box volumes) in view definitions. It is recommended that you run Delete

Unused Properties on existing documents to remove these properties.

o Using this command during document development can affect view behavior. For

example:

1. Start with an actor with blue neutral color.

Neutral properties are part of the actor definition and are not stored in view

definitions.

2. Make the actor red.

3. Create a view.

The view stores the non-neutral red color property. The neutral color is still

blue.

4. Set red as the neutral color (Set as Neutral Properties command).

5. Right-click in the Views pane and click Delete Unused Properties.

Because the view's color property matches the neutral value (both red), the red

property is deleted from the view definition.

6. Make the actor green and set green as the neutral color, but do not update the

view definition.

7. Make the actor purple without updating the view definition.

8. Activate the view (for example, drag it into the viewport), and click No when

prompted to create a new view.

The actor turns green because the view does not define a color to override the

neutral value. However, if you skip step 5, the actor turns red because the view

captured the non-neutral red property in step 3.


32/56

Cutting Plane Vectorization Improvements: The following improvements let you

create sophisticated vector output using cutting planes:

o You can use multiple cutting planes. Previously, you could vectorize at most one

cutting plane.

o Vector output now shows capping and hatch lines.

Note: HardwareSupport.Advanced (Application Preferences – Advanced page)

must be enabled.


33/56

New Multiple Tab: The High Resolution Image workshop options to generate

multiple images from animations and views have moved from the High Resolution tab

to the new Multiple tab.

Animation Range Control: You can now limit image generation to a specified

animation range. On the Multiple tab, under Range, specify the animation range to

capture:

o All - The entire animation

o Selection - The selected timeline segment

o Seconds - The specified range in seconds

Naming View Image Files in the High Resolution Image Workshop: You can now

control file naming when creating images for multiple views in the High Resolution

Image workshop. Previously, files were always named filename_viewname.


34/56

On the Multiple tab, the new File-name

template option is available when you

select Views.

You can specify valid file-name characters and the following case-sensitive keywords:

%filename% The file name specified by File name in the Save As dialog box. %viewname% The view name, as listed in the Views pane. %index% A counter from 1 to the number of views. Index values have the same

number of characters (1-9, 01-99, 001-999) for all files created.

For example, when File-name template is %filename%_%index% and you specify

Gearbox in the Save As dialog box, the resulting file names for a document with three

views are: Gearbox_1.jpg, Gearbox_2.jpg, Gearbox_3.jpg.

Note:

o The Save As dialog box does not consider File-name template when checking for

existing files. Use caution to avoid overwriting files unintentionally.

o Do not specify file-name extensions in File-name template. Extensions are

determined by Save as type in the Save As dialog box.

o When File-name template does not contain %filename%, File name in the Save

As dialog box is still required but is not used in the file names.

o When File-name template is blank, files are named %filename%_%viewname%.


35/56

Detail View Fit to Selection: In the High Resolution Image and Technical Illustration

workshops, two new behaviors make it easier to resize detail views to fit selected

actors.

o When you select actors before clicking Detail view, the image area fits to the

selection automatically.

o To resize the image area to fit to your selection, click in the upper-right

corner of the image area.

High Resolution Image Workshop Size/Resolution Improvements: The High

Resolution Image workshop now always preserves the paper-space aspect ratio,

ensuring that scene composition is retained. Previously, specifying an output-image

size other than the paper size did not scale the scene.

In addition, when Use document’s paper is cleared, you can now specify any two of

Pixels, Dpi, or Size and have 3DVIA Composer compute the third value. Under Auto,

select the value you want computed automatically. Previously, you could not specify

Pixels and Dpi and have 3DVIA Composer compute Size.


36/56

Direct Input for Slider Properties: You can now type values for properties that were

previously sliders only. This change makes it easier to view and specify precise values

in the Properties pane, Filters workshop, and Styles workshop.

V6R2011x V6R2012

Configurable Profiles for HTML Publishing: When publishing to HTML (File >

Publish > HTML ), new predefined profiles provide enhanced features. On the

Save As dialog box, select a profile on the HTML Output options page. These

profiles replace the HTML features and Browse model options.


37/56

The following sample HTML page shows the available features:

Feature Description Profile

Toolbar Provides quick access to navigation and other

common tools.

Simple, Full,

Meta-properties,

PMI, View

Assembly Displays the model assembly tree. Full, Meta-

properties, PMI

Main 3D

Window

(Viewport)

Displays the 3DVIA Composer document

using the 3DVIA Composer Player ActiveX

control.

All

BOM Table Displays an interactive BOM table. BOM, Full

Views Displays thumbnail images of all document

views. Click a view to activate it in the

viewport.

Full, Meta-

properties, PMI,

View

PMI List (not

shown)

Shows product manufacturing information

(PMI) for actors with PMI.

PMI


38/56

Meta-Properties Shows part and assembly meta-properties. To

see meta-properties, hover over actors in the

Assembly pane that have "meta" labels.

Full, Meta-

properties

Detail View Shows a zoomed version of the actor selected

in the BOM Table or Assembly pane.

BOM, Full

Note: o Most features require 3DVIA Composer Player Pro. When a published HTML file

is opened without a Player Pro license, a message box tells the user that some

commands are unavailable and only non-Pro features (Main 3D Window,

simplified Toolbar) are loaded.

o HTML profiles (.smgPublishHtmlSet)are located in

<install_dir>\Profiles. For information about customizing HTML

profiles, see the 3DVIA Composer Programming Guide.

Links and Buttons for View and Animation Navigation: New event link types let

you navigate views and animation markers without hardcoding view or marker names.

Because the link definitions are relative, you do not have to modify the links when you

add or remove markers or views. To create a link:

1. Select an actor or hotspot.

2. Click in the Event > Link property (Properties pane), and then click the ellipsis

.

3. In the Select a Link dialog box, for the URL field, choose previous://, next://,

first://, or last://, and then click OK.


39/56

previous:// In animation mode, moves the animation timebar to the previous

marker. In view mode, activates the previous view.

next:// In animation mode, plays the animation from the current time to the

next marker. In view mode, activates the next view.

first:// In animation mode, moves the animation timebar to the first marker. In

view mode, activates the first view.

last:// In animation mode, plays the animation from the current time to the

last marker. In view mode, activates the last view.

In addition, you can quickly create image 2D panels preconfigured as view and

animation navigation buttons. On the ribbon Author tab, in the Panels group, the

following commands are available under the Image 2D button: Create Next

Button , Create Previous Button , Create First Button , Create Last

Button . These 2D panels use predefined styles to define their appearance and

behavior, most notably defining next://, previous://, first://, and last:// links,

respectively. You can modify the styles from the Styles pane.


40/56

Arrow Improvements: New capabilities simplify and enhance the creation of

straight, corner, and circular arrows.

In the Properties pane:

o The new Arrow shape category groups all new and existing shape properties.

o New Head shape, Head width, and Head length properties let you customize

arrowhead shape and size.

o The Thickness property, which specifies shaft width, is renamed Width.

In the viewport:

o You can change arrow size and shape by dragging anchors. Anchor behavior

varies between arrow types (straight, corner, circular).

Scales arrows by multiplying size properties by the

same value. Note: Scaling does not change straight-

arrow length because length is typically determined by

the positions of geometry actors with which arrows are

associated.

Changes shaft width, head width, head length, and

head shape. Dragging the head-width anchor changes

head and shaft widths simultaneously. To change just

head width, press Shift while dragging the anchor.

Changes arrow length, position, rotation (circular

arrows), and association.

o You can now change arrow associations by dragging anchors onto geometry

actors. Previously, you could not change associations after creating arrows.

o When changing the length of a linear arrow, an axis line appears to help you

retain the arrow orientation. As in previous releases, you can also press Alt


41/56

while dragging to lock the orientation.

o You can rotate and resize circular arrows by dragging the arrow body. A

dashed line shows the original radius. The arrow snaps to this line when nearby

so you can easily change the rotation angle without changing the radius.

Previously, you had to use Rotation mode to rotate a circular arrow.

Shadows for 2D Panels: You can now add shadows to 2D panels (image 2D, vector

image 2D, text 2D) to give the actors a 3D effect. In the Properties pane, under the

new Shadow category, enable Show. Choose a predefined shadow style under Preset

or define your own style by changing shadow properties (Distance, Orientation,

Opacity, Blur).

No Shadow Shadow


42/56

CATIA-Style Arrowhead for Paths and Polylines: The new Arrow extremity for

path and polyline actors matches the default arrowhead used by CATIA software.

User-defined Line Styles for Paths and Polylines: You can now define your own

dashed lines for paths and polylines. In the Properties pane, under Front line or Back

line, choose User defined for Type. For the Dash pattern property, specify a series

of decimal values representing the length, in millimeters, of each dash and space. In

the following illustration:

o 2.0 4.0 8.0 8.0 defines the front line as a 2 mm dash followed by a 4 mm

space followed by an 8 mm dash followed by an 8 mm space, and then repeat.

o 1.0 1.0 defines the back line as a 1 mm dash followed by a 1 mm space, and

then repeat.


43/56

“Advanced style” Property Change: To unify the user interface, the Advanced style

property is now the Advanced choice of the Type property. The behavior of the

property has not changed: it defines a custom line style using symbols.

V6R2011x V6R2012

2D Panel Highlighting: When you hover over or select a 2D panel, the image shape

(as specified by the Shape property) now highlights. This behavior is particularly

important in 3DVIA Composer Player. Previously, the only indication that a panel was

clickable (link defined) was a change in mouse pointer shape.

Clickable 2D Panel

V6R2011x

(No Hover-Over Highlighting)

V6R2012 (Hover-Over Highlighting)


44/56

Arc Tooltip Curvature Anchor: You can now change the curvature of Arc tooltip

attach lines for 2D panels by dragging an anchor in the viewport.

Note: The curvature anchor is available for 2D panels only (not 3D actors such as

labels).

Smooth Animation Paths: You can now easily create smooth actor and camera

animation paths, for example, to create realistic walk-through animations. In the

Properties pane, under Animation, select Smooth for the Path property. This option

creates curved paths (cubic Hermite splines). Path, rotation, and speed are optimized

to produce smooth animations.

Note: For best results, define at least four keys because the path at any point is

calculated using the two preceding and the two following keys.

Bezier Animation Path Renamed: The Bezier option for the Animation > Path

property has been renamed Custom. Its behavior is unchanged.

Depth-of-Field Enhancements: The following enhancements provide additional

controls for managing the depth-of-field (DOF) rendering effect:

o For convenience, DOF commands are available on the new Render tab.


45/56

To enable DOF, click Depth of Field . Previously, you could enable DOF only

in the Properties pane.

o You can now set the DOF focal point manually. Previously, the focal point was

always located where you last panned or rotated your model. To set the focal

point, click Set Focal Point and then click a geometry actor in the viewport.

The focal point is associated with the actor; moving the actor moves the focal

point. To set the focal point without actor association, click in empty viewport

background or press Alt before clicking an actor. The focal-point icon is red

when associated with an actor and white otherwise.

o You can now show the focal point in the viewport. On the Render tab, select

Visible. Previously, there was no focal-point icon in the viewport.

o To retain the previous behavior of changing the DOF focal point automatically

when panning or rotating the viewport, select Automatic on the Render tab.

o The Depth of field > level property (Properties pane) is now a slider field to

simplify specifying values and to block extreme values.

Shadows in Standard Lighting: You can now display shadows (also known as

“shadow mapping” and “part-to-part shadows”) in all lighting modes. Previously,

shadows were limited to Custom lighting mode with only one spot or directional light

enabled.

No Shadows Shadows


46/56

o Enable shadows with the Shadows viewport property, which is available when

Per-pixel lighting is enabled. The Shadow mapping property for light actors has

been removed.

o You can also enable shadows from the ribbon: Render > Lighting > Shadows .

o Configure when shadows are rendered from the Application Preferences –

Viewport page. You can enable or disable shadows for all documents, or obey

each document’s Shadows property. You can specify the effect to be applied

Real time, On idle, or On demand. In addition, the new Real-time preview

setting, which is unique to shadows, applies an approximation of the effect in real

time and then applies the full effect on idle.


47/56

Note:

o For standard and custom lighting modes with multiple lights, shadows are cast by

one light only. When using three or more lights, artifacts might result.

o Per-pixel lighting must be enabled.

o HardwareSupport.Advanced (Application Preferences – Advanced page) must

be enabled.

o Requires a graphics card with OpenGL 3.2 or higher.

o Shadows are not displayed in all render modes or when one or more cutting

planes are enabled

Primitives Support Lighting Effects: 3DVIA Composer primitives (Geometry >

Primitives on the ribbon) now support all lighting effects, such as shadows and

ambient occlusion.

V6R2011x V6R2012

.


48/56

Glow Lighting Effect: The new glow effect displays a halo of radiant light on

portions of the model with light color and high specularity.

Disabled Enabled

To enable the glow effect, do one of the following:

o On the ribbon, click Render > Lighting > Glow .

o In the viewport Properties pane, select Lighting > Glow. Change the amount of

glow effect with the Glow intensity property.

Note:

o This effect depends on scene lighting characteristics. Changing rendering and

lighting modes greatly affects the results.

o This effect considers the viewport background. A white or light background

color might produce unintended results.

o You cannot configure this effect from the Application Preferences – Viewport

page. Glow is enabled or disabled based on document settings and is always

rendered in real time.

o This effect requires that HardwareSupport.Advanced (Application

Preferences – Advanced page) be enabled.

o This effect is not available when using cutting planes or custom render mode.

o This effect requires a graphics card with OpenGL 3.2 or higher.


49/56

Configurable Ambient Occlusion: New Ambient occlusion intensity and Ambient

occlusion radius viewport properties (available when Ambient occlusion is selected)

let you control ambient occlusion shading.

Advanced Rendering with Custom Lighting: Custom Lighting mode now

supports all advanced rendering effects, such as ambient occlusion and per-pixel

lighting. Previously, these effects were not rendered when using spot, positional, and

directional lights.

Digger Rendering Improvements: Digger now more accurately depicts the 3D

scene, such as displaying all rendering effects (for example, ambient occlusion).

Unicode Font for Collaboration Text: To facilitate working with multiple languages,

the default 3DVIA Composer font for collaboration text has changed from Arial to

Arial Unicode MS. This font is used when you clear the Use default GUI font for

text option (Application Preferences – Viewport) and create collaborative actors with

text, such as labels and text 2D panels, without using a style that defines the font.

PDF Publishing Supports Unicode: Publish to PDF now supports Unicode

strings.

Depth Buffer Control: The new HardwareSupport.DedicatedDepthBuffer option

on the Application Preferences – Advanced page allows 3DVIA Composer to create

its own depth buffer. Enable this option if ambient occlusion or silhouettes render

poorly. Choose a format that is supported by your graphics card.

o Disabled - Uses your graphics card's built-in depth buffer. Choose this option

unless you have rendering problems.

o RGBA8 - Best choice for some older cards.

o R32F - Best choice for most newer cards.

o RGBA32F - Best choice for newer cards that do not support R32F.

Note: If the viewport becomes black, try another setting.


50/56

Disabling the OpenGL Silhouette Shader: 3DVIA Composer V6R2011x introduced

fast silhouette rendering using the OpenGL silhouette shader. Some older graphics

cards, such as NVidia Quadro series 5 (FX [x]5xx) and older (for example: FX 1400,

FX 3450, FX 4000, FX 1500, FX 4500), might draw unwanted lines when using this

shader. To disable the OpenGL silhouette shader and instead use the previous (slower)

technique, clear the new HardwareSupport.SilhouetteShader option (Application

Preferences – Advanced Settings page).

Technical Illustration Advanced Properties: The Application Preferences –

Advanced properties related to the Technical Illustration workshop have changed:

o HLROffsetRelative and HLROffsetValue have been removed.

o VectoShowEllipsesInBlue has moved to the Technical illustration option

group.

o New options SvgOutput.ShowPaper and SvgOutput.ShowTooltip let you

control whether SVG output shows the paper space and whether hotspots in SVG

output have tooltips.

Motion Blur Restored: Motion blur behavior has been restored.

Mouse Customization with Paper Space Commands: On the Application

Preferences – Navigation page, Zoom paper and Pan paper are now available as

mouse-button customization commands.

Properties Renamed: The following properties have been renamed to better describe

their functions:

o Renamed the Text > Relative property for collaborative actors to Size in Paper

Space.

o Renamed the Size > Absolute camera property to Fixed in viewport.

o Renamed the Text > Height property for collaborative actors to Size.

Improved Behavior when Creating Assembly Groups and Dummy Actors: The

Create Assembly Group and Create Dummy Actor commands now expand the parent

assembly tree node and let you immediately rename the item. Previously, you had to

navigate to the item and use the Rename Actor command.

Sample File Improvements: The sample 3DVIA Composer documents located in

<install_dir>\Samples have been enhanced to demonstrate more 3DVIA

Composer features and to improve their visual appeal.

Filtering with Non-Visible Meta-Properties: In the Filters workshop, you can now

specify non-visible meta-properties. Previously, you could filter using visible meta-

properties only.


51/56

Improved highlighting: Viewport highlighting now has a bolder outline. Note:

HardwareSupport.HighLightEffect on the Application Preferences – Advanced

Settings page must be enabled.

V6R2011x V6R2012

Color Scheme: The 3DVIA Composer window now uses a gray color scheme instead

of blue, which helps emphasize viewport content.

Display Tab: The Display tab has been eliminated and its commands moved to other

tabs:

o Rendering and lighting commands are on the Render tab.

o Viewport and pane commands are on the Window tab.

o Create Camera Key is on the Animate tab.


52/56

Render Tab: The new Render ribbon tab centralizes rendering and lighting

commands.

o The Mode, Lighting, and Ground groups were previous on the Display tab.

o The new Depth of Field group lets you control depth of field (DOF).

o You can now select the lighting mode from the ribbon. Previously, lighting

mode was only on the Properties pane.

Window and Pane Management: Several user-interface enhancements simplify

document-window and pane management:

o The new Window tab centralizes window- and pane-management commands.

The Viewport and Show/Hide groups were previously on the Display tab, which

has been eliminated. The Window group is new:

Switch Windows displays the Windows dialog box, where you can

activate and manage document windows.

Cascade , Tile Horizontally , and Tile Vertically provide quick

access to commands also found in the Windows dialog box.

o You can access Cascade by right-clicking a document tab.


53/56

o As before, you can change the active document by clicking a document tab. If a

tab is hidden, click the new Active Files button.

API Documentation Navigation Improvements: The 3DVIA Composer

Programming Guide is now easier to navigate:

o The Contents tab provides direct access to different API object types. Previously,

all API objects were in a single topic.

o Method and event topics have improved linking and formatting. The function

summaries at the top of the topics link to detailed descriptions, and the detailed

descriptions include links to related functions.


54/56

2.2 API Changes For details about the application programming interfaces (APIs), see the 3DVIA Composer

Programming Guide. In 3DVIA Composer, click Help > Programming Guide.

The following functions have been added to the 3DVIA Composer API:

AddCustomRibbonTab() – Adds a custom tab to the 3DVIA Composer ribbon.

AddCustomRibbonItem() – Adds an item (or subitem) to a custom ribbon tab.

UpdateCustomRibbon() – Updates the 3DVIA Composer ribbon. Call this

function after AddCustomRibbonTab() and AddCustomRibbonItem() calls.

The following functions are deprecated: AddMenu(), AddMenuItem(), and

UpdateMenu().

The following functions have been added to the 3DVIA Composer and 3DVIA Player

ActiveX APIs:

SetMouseNavigationMode()– Associates the specified viewport navigation

behavior (select, pan, rotate, zoom, fly-through ) with the left mouse button.

GetAllMetaPropertyDefinitions()– Returns the definitions for all meta-

properties.

GetGround() – Returns the properties of the ground actor.

SetGround() – Sets the properties of the ground actor.

GetCompass() – Returns the properties of the compass actor.

SetCompass() – Sets the properties of the compass actor.

SaveImageFullViewport() – Saves a raster-image snapshot of the entire

viewport.

The following properties have been added to the 3DVIA Composer Player ActiveX API:

AssySelectionModeViewportIndicator – Returns or sets the state of the

blue viewport border that appears by default in assembly selection mode.

LoopPlay – Returns or sets Loop Play mode, which plays the animation

continuously.

ShowPaper – Returns or sets paper space visibility.

The following functions have been enhanced to accept filter expressions (as found in

.smgFilterSet Filter profiles):

GetAllActorsOnFilter()

GetOnFilter()

SelectOnFilter()


55/56

2.3 System Requirements

Important: Depending on the file formats you import into 3DVIA Composer, 3DVIA Sync

or 3DVIA Enterprise Sync, different requirements might apply. For example, if you import

SolidWorks files, you must satisfy the minimum requirements for your version of SolidWorks

(see http://www.solidworks.com/sw/support/SystemRequirements.html).

Hardware Recommended Hardware: 3DVIA Composer


Minimum Hardware: 3DVIA Composer


Disk Drive 3 GB minimum free space is required to store program executables (including all importers), program data, usage environment, and paging space.

3 GB minimum free space is required to store program executables (including all importers), program data, usage environment, and paging space.

Network Adaptor An active Ethernet adapter is required for licensing purposes.

An active Ethernet adapter is required for licensing purposes.

Processor Intel®

Core™ 2 Duo (or similar) Intel Pentium®

4 (or similar)




Display Recommended resolution for Windows®

workstations is 1280x1024.

Recommended resolution for Windows workstations is 1280x1024.

Graphics Adaptor A graphics adapter with 3D OpenGL acceleration is required for optimal

performance. NVIDIA®

is highly

recommended (NVIDIA Quadro®

FX). OpenGL 3.2 or higher is required for some advanced rendering effects.

A graphics adapter with 3D OpenGL acceleration is recommended to ensure performance. NVIDIA or ATI™ are recommended. Frame rates and interactivity will be significantly reduced if no acceleration is available.




SpaceTraveler™, SpaceNavigator™, SpaceExplorer™, SpaceBall™, and

SpaceMouse™ from 3Dconnexion®

can be

used, in addition to the mouse, to perform graphic manipulations (zoom, pan, rotate, etc.). Necessary drivers are delivered with the device.


Hardware Recommended Hardware: 3DVIA Composer Player


Minimum Hardware: 3DVIA Composer Player


Disk Drive 50 MB minimum free space is required to store program executables (.exe, .ocx,

Adobe Reader®

plug-in), program data, usage environment, and paging space.

50 MB minimum free space is required to store program executables (.exe, .ocx, Adobe Reader plug-in), program data, usage environment, and paging space.

Network Adaptor An active Ethernet adapter is required for licensing purposes (Player Pro only).

An active Ethernet adapter is required for licensing purposes (Player Pro only).

Processor Intel Core 2 Duo (or similar) Intel Pentium 4 (or similar)


http://www.solidworks.com/sw/support/SystemRequirements.html


56/56



Display Recommended resolution for Windows workstations is 1280x1024.

Recommended resolution for Windows workstations is 1280x1024.

Graphics Adaptor A graphics adapter with 3D OpenGL acceleration is required for optimal performance. NVIDIA is highly recommended (NVIDIA Quadro FX). OpenGL 3.2 or higher is required for some advanced rendering effects.

A graphics adapter with 3D OpenGL acceleration is recommended to ensure performance. NVIDIA or ATI are recommended. Frame rates and interactivity will be significantly reduced if no acceleration is available.






Operating System All 3DVIA Composer Products

32-bit 64-bit (x64 Edition)

Microsoft Windows XP 32-bit

N/A

Microsoft Windows XP 64-bit (WOW*)

Microsoft Windows Vista 32-bit

N/A

Microsoft Windows Vista 64-bit (WOW*)


N/A



N/A


Microsoft Windows 7 32-bit

N/A

Microsoft Windows 7 64-bit (WOW*)

*WOW (Windows on Windows) lets 32-bit processes run on Windows 64-bit operating

systems.

Note:

Install the latest Windows service pack (http://www.microsoft.com) for your

operating system.

Install the latest driver available for your video card.

3DVIA SolidWorks Plug-in 32-bit 3DVIA SolidWorks Plug-in 64-bit

Software Prerequisite SolidWorks 32-bit SolidWorks 64-bit

http://www.microsoft.com/

3dvia composer release notes - - get a free blog here

Documents