- #MONKEY WRENCH THINK3 HOW TO#
- #MONKEY WRENCH THINK3 MANUALS#
- #MONKEY WRENCH THINK3 SOFTWARE#
- #MONKEY WRENCH THINK3 FREE#
- #MONKEY WRENCH THINK3 WINDOWS#
Soon after the game begins, users are presented with the task of modeling a trigger for a gun. Play occasionally pauses so users can construct parts that help defeat the villain. The game involves a fairly standard scenario: You march around a labyrinth of stone hallways blasting bad guys. Those who do not, find it just gets in the way of an otherwise entertaining learning experience. Avid computer-game players will enjoy the activity, as did one 14-year-old tester. Think3’s Monkey Wrench Conspiracy provides a clever and entertaining way to learn solid modeling - a video game. The videos use Cadkey as the backdrop for the modeling functions, but the program deals with modeling operations used by all programs.
#MONKEY WRENCH THINK3 HOW TO#
Each section includes one or more videos that show how to perform the operations just explained. Here’s what to expect from a few CBT disks:Īn introduction to solid modeling from Distance Engineering, Ann Arbor, Mich., starts by explaining the basics such as the difference between wire-frame and solid modeling, and progresses through 16 chapters detailing operations such as extruding, blending, and lofting. The only flaw in this plan is that most copies of the CAD or FEA program must be kept in the office, thereby ruling out off-site studying.
#MONKEY WRENCH THINK3 WINDOWS#
Picking program labels at the bottom of Windows 95 or 98 lets you jump from lesson to program and back.
#MONKEY WRENCH THINK3 SOFTWARE#
Windows makes this possible by keeping both training and engineering software simultaneously active. With just a little CAD experience, most users can work through beginning or introduction titles in less than 2 hr.Įxperimenting with a copy of the engineering program after a lesson improves the learning experience. A few break with that tradition.ĭisks described as introductions means their material is basic enough for those who may have not seen a CAD program before. Regardless of the medium, the abundance of material leaves no one an excuse for not upgrading their skills.Īll of the courses we tested on CD-ROM work with about the same theme: A narrator discusses a software function while the viewer watches. When that happens, there is no software equivalent to someone who can provide an instant solution. Students will always get into modeling trouble making the occasional wrong menu pick and not know how to correct their errors. An auxiliary phone line provides verbal communications between the people involved.īut don’t think computer-based training is a complete replacement for instructor-led classes. Students can watch lessons and run software that’s on another computer miles away.
#MONKEY WRENCH THINK3 FREE#
One FEA developer suggested that they were planning more personalized instruction using Microsoft’s NetMeeting, free software that connects two computers. And they all may become less appealing when more Web-based programs get rolling.Ī few course developers we’ve spoken to are convinced that lessons over the Web may dominate the other three methods because a lesson can be live and customized, thereby encapsulating the advantage of an instructor in a classroom. Tapes are widely used but don’t allow the interaction a computer-based course does.
#MONKEY WRENCH THINK3 MANUALS#
However, third-party training manuals remain a valuable source of tips and experience.
Newcomers can start at ground zero with an introduction to the advantages of wire frames versus solids while more experienced users can jump right in to lofting techniques or guidelines for working with splines.īecause CBTs are the current trend, this article focuses on them. The books, tapes, and CBT programs provide a range of learning avenues for different skill levels and learning rates found in each engineering organization.
Some are better than others but all provide a good foundation that helps turn a new CAD program into a revenue generator. To sample the instructional software, we worked our way through a few recent CAD, FEA, and engineering tutorials. Better yet, the new methods provide a teacher with the patience needed to let engineers and designers learn at their individual pace, review lessons over and over, and even learn at home. Computer-based training (CBT), lessons on video tape, the World Wide Web, and even well-written third-party manuals turn any computer into an instructor. A few managers might wonder how long it will take for productivity to rise to the level of the previous package. Some people envision projects slipping behind schedule because of days lost to training while others wince at the high cost of out-of-state classes. Announcing that new CAD software will be introduced to an engineering department often sends groans through the organization.