I want to play with 3D Printing, but most of the software that I get on with better are Windows Only, I have tried to get on with Google SketchUp but I don’t get on well with it; While I have Windows 2008 R2 installed on my Macbook Pro Running under Bootcamp and virtualised using Parallels , I don’t like having to reboot from Mac OS to Windows 2008 and i haven’t bought a licence for Parallels, and the Mac Bootcamp Drivers that work with Windows 2008 don’t prove all the power of the hardware to Windows (and there doesn’t seem to have been an update). A quick gander on the web led me find out about Windows Tiny7 (Windows Tiny7 TPB) I was looking for TinyXP but apparently Tiny7 works better on modern hardware. One of the other advantages of running Virtual Machines is that I can set up one copy of windows for each task, so one for 3D printing, one for Family Tree etc, oh and a second advantage is that I can use Time Machine to back up the Virtual Disks, not to mention I don’t have to leave OSX

The idea behind Tiny7 is that most of the useless junk that comes with 7 is stripped out, leaving only the bare essentials. This leaves you with a functional OS that’s much smaller and faster than the original bulky 7.

Sure, it’s ¿piracy? (since you’re downloading a hacked ISO that bypasses registration), but I actually own a legal copy of 7. That doesn’t make using Tiny7 legal, but in my mind it makes it morally okay.

I have chosen to use VirtualBox from VirtualBox.org as the software to run the virtual machines, its free, and open source; This is the procedure for making the Base Tiny7 SolidWorks 2010 disk (SolidWorks 2010 TPB)

Click on New

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I have called it Solidworks, and Chosen Microsoft Windows as the Operating System, and Windows 7 32 Bit as the Version (there are two options, 32, and 64 bit)

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increase the Memory from 512 MB to 1024 MB,

The next steps are for the Harddrive:

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I prefer Dynamically allocated as they grow as you add more data; I am not sure if there is a performance hit doing it this way.

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However its an idea to make the Maximum size larger than you should ever need, as you can’t edit this early after you have started filling it

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You will still need to poke some files at this stage; but you can go ahead and create it now

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So now click settings; its next to new

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Increse the Video Memory to 128 MB, and enable 3D and 2D Video Acceleration

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Now its the time to choose the Tiny7 iso file that you downloaded from TPB, and then click OK

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Now clicking Start and we will install Windows Tiny7

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Choose the Hard drive and walk away

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Next we install Guest Additions, since Auto run is disabled on Windows Tiny7, we will first need to go “Devices > Install Guest Additions…” or click the Host Key (in this case the Left Cloverleaf key ‘⌘’) + D. then double click on the CD.

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And you have to trust Oracle to install the drivers and the ilk, (it is up to you if you always trust them or not),

At this point its a good idea to try and make the “Documents” folder on the host os available on the Guest OS, as this will save hassle and then all documents will be available.

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Click on the plus Folder

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You will want to Auto-Mount and not be read only

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This then shows up as a network location under the computer

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Because we can’t index the files in the folder, we won’t be able to add it to the Documents Library on Windows Tiny7, but this does give us a quick and easy way to access the Host OS documents from the Guest.

At this point its a good idea to shut down the guest Computer, and duplicate it

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Full Clone with a Reinitialised MAC address. (i assume this means that Virtual Box issues a new MAC address to the Network cards)

The Full clone should mean that I can use that as a Base image for any other software I wish to use (I could have done the Windows Tiny7 install then Cloned to the SolidWorks install).

All the install files for SolidWorks have been downloaded and placed in my Documents folder on the Host OS, but since the install file is a .ISO DVD image, and windows has no native way to mount them, (and WinRar doesn’t by default) I recommend grabbing a copy of Virtual CloneDrive (although I can mount the .img file using VirtualBox).

The Crack on the SolidWorks 2010 install above is as follows:

  1. Install SW2010 SP0.0 Win32 using SW Serial 0001 0001 0736 0361 JK3Q HDJ3
  2. Copy “sldappu.dll” to <SW2010 Win32 progdir> and overwrite original one

Other Software I install are Autodesk 123D and 123D Catch, both are Beta software, and look interesting:

 

Autodesk 123D – http://www.123dapp.com/

  • 123D – Design makable objects using free 3D CAD software that lets you start with simple shapes and then edit and then tweak them into more complex designs. (windows)
  • 123D Catch – Take photos of your favourite people, places and things and let the power of the cloud magically transform them into detailed 3D models. (windows)
  • 123D Make – Automatically turn your 3D model into a pattern of flat parts that can be cut and assembled into an artful creation. (mac OS)

Oh and please see statement of opinion on Do Not Try This at Home if you think I am a bad person Regarding Copyright Theft.