The World Is Quiet Here Zon

[Malka Sedano]

Hieveryone! My name is Keri! I created Quiet Girl Loud World in order to help quiet people like me travel through this loud world confidently. You can expect honest posts full of stories about my travels, tips to make traveling easier, and travel inspiration. Read more about Keri here.

Do people go where the wind blows? I tried out Rhino for some of the useful tools seen nowhere else, like more features with NURBS and Smooth objects, but later found the good Rhino results insufficient to spend much time on the learning curve. Other fields of interest compete for time. Plus the income potential was never encouraging for the particular kinds of geometry which interest me. Needless to say, I have been content downscaling economically and living in the woods, outside of costly conventions. All of this has synchronized well with the world gone mad lately.

Made the switch to Rhino some months ago and very happy with the tools after relying on FMZ since the late 90s. Development is not keeping pace at Autodessys and there's too much at stake when running a business dependent on productive design tools. I'd gladly go back to FMZ as long as there's renewed development and compelling design tools.

Seems our community is not very large anymore. Still waiting here too for a Mac M1 capable FZ version. Until my old Mac Pro's are still running, I will keep up using them for FZ, but already it's going a problem if you want to do the job on the road, on a recent MacBook. Right now I wished I could work when on a trip, but no go! If the learning curve for the "R" concurrent isn't going to result too steep, I guess this will result me into switching over. With around 1000 EUR it will be quite a serious investment, but if it keeps the job going...

Speaking of a potential FZ release 10... What I'm missing most for a future FZ version is better import / export modules, which are supporting BIM-formats like IFC or COBie. Nowadays everything seems to be available for Revit or Rhino, FZ needs a seamless bridge to use these resources. Also, the old DWG importers never worked reliably, text is still lost and layouts are not supported - this needs to be fixed and updated. Also, implement a direct PDF vector importer with built-in scaling option, so we can use PDF's easier as references directly in FZ - this is such a common task if you build models for architects. Currently I'm using a third party PDF to DWG translator combined with the FZ DWG importer, loosing a lot of time and information on the way.

3dworks: I am working with 9.2.4.0 on my MacBook Pro M1 64Gb internal in my office and on the road, this is my main computer. The only thing I've noticed is read and write the FMZ file is on hold when TimeMachine is making a backup. I mentioned this issue earlier to ADS. After the back up is made, FMZ file will continue.

Yikes! There is a demonstration on LinkedIn showing AI building a 3d model on an iphone after taking a picture of the paper CAD drawing. Not sure if it's solid modeling yet but really? There is another one in which Rhino is being run with ChatGPT, the operator is just saying things like "extrude all cylinders 2 inches" and then Rhino responds.

Yes, I'm sure AI will help but considering that Teslas with FSD technology keep crashing (both the software and the actual vehicle), Siri only hears about 70 percent of commands, and even Roomba's constantly malfunction, I don't think human illustrators are going to be replaced just yet.

The way Chris Yessios made those tools years ago that make stairs, roofs, and screws was impressive and the way everything is about to go. I have found myself using all three of these tools in formZ during making a living with the program. I don't know who or what company is gonna harness the 3d version of this AI wave. Years ago, when I worked out people's tech support questions, I envisioned a formZ that just followed spoken commands like a star trek computer because my arms would get so tired.

Heavens to Betsy! AI will never have the flair to bring the spark of a napkin sketch to life. That process requires human intelligence and artistic expression which a machine cannot hope to attain, despite being taught.

It is amazing but I didn't do anything except look at Santa's ex-machina cover and ask AI Midjourney to make the same thing. It doesn't even reference Santa's image, just my prompts, which I included. Took 2 minutes. 3D version of this is coming soon. The interior and exterior images this comes up with are super nice. Really you can ask for anything. It is truly frightening.

Me too, always concerned about formZ doing well. It's an amazing tool and I'm still in love with it even after twenty something years of using it. I want it to do well, thrive and keep up with the ever changing times.

Most of my piers use Revit and keep asking for IFC files (at least) - It'd be great to see Autodesys incorporate more file formats.

BIM as a tool is developed with cost control as the main motive, but modelling is a bad thing. Modelling 50% and working together the other 50% of the workflow. So IFC is the link, for communication with other partners.

FormZ is in my opinion still one of the best 3D modelling tool, IFC will help to communicate with others enormously.

In the vast developed areas that sprawl between our cities, quiet places are even harder to find than open spaces. Even Walden Pond, Henry David Thoreau's symbol of tranquillity has so many visitors and nearby roads that real solitude is nearly impossible to find there. But, Thoreauvian solitude is what Peter Acker seeks. Mr. Acker crisscrosses New England collecting natural sound from places Thoreau visited and wrote about: the Maine Woods, Cape Cod, and Walden. He plans to release a three CD set of these recordings later this year. Producer Kim Motylewski set out to find out what Peter Acker, and the rest of us, are up against in the search for the true sounds of nature.

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And I know that many of you have traveled to be a part of this moment and have taken time away from family and other necessary work. So, we're grateful to all of you for giving us just a little more of that time this morning, now that yesterday's storm has passed. (Laughter.)

And as some of you may know -- probably everybody here knows it: I teach at a community college not far from here. And right now, we're -- you know, educators are in the final weeks of those summer breaks, you know, where they -- the teachers are putting the finishing touches on their lesson plans. I know I am; I have my first article all run up and ready to go.

The linoleum floors, as you all walk into the schools -- you know, they're just waxed. They never look like that again after the first day. You know, the scuffs of sneakers. And there's a possibility -- the hum of possibility in the air as the year seems to stretch out in front of us. And, you know, you feel that excitement if any of you are in the classroom, which I'm sure most of you have been or -- you know, you can't even sleep the night before. Right? No matter how many years it's been, you still feel that excitement.

You know, it's the new year, filled with amazing things to discover as we learn and we grow together. And with each new semester, technology becomes a more indispensable part of making sure that our students' imaginations can soar and ensuring that administrators can run their schools smoothly and safely.

But in districts around the country, cyberattacks have brought those systems to a halt. And I know most of you have seen it: Social Security numbers and medical records stolen and shared online, classroom technology paralyzed, and lessons ended.

So, if we want to safeguard our children's futures, we must protect their personal data. And that's why my husband, Joe, is bringing together experts from across his administration to help strengthen cybersecurity for our elementary, middle, and high schools.

So, today, not only do we have with us the Secretary of Education, the Secretary of Homeland Security, and the Chairwoman of the Federal Communications Commission. And we're joined from -- by leaders from the National Security Council, the Office of the National Cyber Director, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency -- (laughter) -- and the FBI. That one was easy. (Laughter.)

But we can't do this alone, and that's why we're working with businesses across the country. And later, they'll be sharing the new commitments they are making to ensure the technology of our classrooms is reliable and more secure.

So, it's going to take all of us -- local governments, state and federal agencies, educators, businesses, labor leaders, and nonprofits -- sharing our good ideas and innovative solutions to protect our students.

Together, each day, we're building the foundation of our children's future, and we must do all that we can to keep it sound and strong and ready for whatever life may bring. Because every student deserves the opportunity to see a school counselor when they're struggling and not worry that these conversations will be shared with the world.

Every classroom should be enriched by new technologies, giving students who love computers the skills they need to succeed. And every family should know its information will stay safe and secure so that our children can keep reaching for the endless possibilities that exist inside of them -- each one of them.

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