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Introduction
SolidWorks is an extremely powerful modeling tool, very likely with the best combination of
power and accessibility on the MCAD market today. This book is meant to help you take advan-
tage of its power in your work and even hobbyist applications. If I could impart only a single
thought to all readers of this book, it would be that with a little curiosity and some imagination,
you can begin to access the power of SolidWorks for geometry creation and virtual product proto-
typing. You should start with the assumption that there is a way to do what you are imagining, and
that you should be open to using different techniques.
Whoever you are, I hope that you find insight deeper than simply “what does this button do?” in
this book. I hope that you will find an intuition for thinking like the software. Jeff Ray, CEO of the
SolidWorks Corporation, has said that the goal is to make the software as “intuitive as a light
switch.” While most people will agree that they have some work left to achieve that particular goal,
I believe that approaching the interface intuitively, rather than attempting to remember it all by
rote, is the best method. Good luck to you all.
Contacting the Author
You might want to contact me for some reason. Maybe you found an error in the book, or you
have a suggestion about something that you think would improve it. It is always good to hear what
real users think about the material, whether you like it or think it could be improved.
The best way to contact me is either through e-mail or through my blog. My e-mail address is
[email protected]. You will find my blog at http://dezignstuff.com/blog.
On the blog you can leave comments and read other things I have written about the SolidWorks
software, CAD, and engineering or computer topics in general. If you want to contact me for
commercial help with a modeling project, the previous e-mail address is the best place to start
that type of conversation.
Thank you very much for buying and reading this book. I hope the ideas and information within
its pages help you accomplish your professional goals.