Bangalore: How soon is too soon, to plunge into the world of 3-D graphics and imaging? SolidWorks, the United States-based global leader in PC-based engineering drawing and design solutions, thinks it can never be too early to `enter' the third dimension.

So their engineers — many sitting in their development centre in Pune — have created an attractive set of `cool tools' with which children can draw, paint and create 3-D objects — even before they can count or read.

Many of the tools have been placed on a website (www.http://www.cosmicblobs.com/) .

SolidWorks has also partnered with the `Learning Company,' which also sells a more elaborate package of 3-D tools for kids on CD for around $35 (Rs.1,500) and affordable downloads of small modules for $5 (Rs.220).

For older, but aspiring design professionals, the same company has just created a separate and rich resource called SolidWorks Lab (http://labs.solidworks.com/), which allows them to harness almost the entire range of 2-D and 3-D Computer Aided Design (CAD) tools without having to buy or install them. ``We hope that they will use these free resources to create their own designs — and become familiar with SolidWorks software in the process,'' said Chris Garcia, the U.S.-based vice-president for Research and Development, in a special briefing for The Hindu during his visit to Pune last week.

Ready for Vista

SolidWorks put out the world's first 3-D CAD package that worked on ordinary Windows PCs — without requiring high-end workstations or large memory. It is also the first and, as of now, only version ready for Vista, the new Windows `avatar,' Mr. Garcia added.

Eighty engineers working in India are putting the final touches to the next (2008) edition that will reach users by June this year.

Printer friendly page  
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail