Vcad: Free BRep CAD in the Browser

10 days ago (vcad.io)

Neat example of the strengths and weaknesses of vibe coding… But if anyone here is looking for a solid browser-based parametric CAD solution, [onshape](https://www.onshape.com) is the best there is. It’s missing a few tools that more complex alternatives have but if all you need is something easy to learn so you can make things to 3d print it’s a good choice

  • Onshape is indeed fantastic for hobbyists and professionals alike.

    Their licensing model is reminiscent of early Github days in that you can use all available modeling features free of charge, but must pay for a private repo. Otherwise, all user generated content is publicly available.

    • > Their licensing model is reminiscent of early Github days

      The licensing cost has a few more digits than GitHub ever did.

      And you are locked in.

      1 reply →

  • this is free and open source :) also runs directly in your browser / offline. onshore requires an account and internet connection because it streams to your browser

Vibe coded? Nothing works.

Why is right/middle click both orbit and pan? Why is scroll wheel vertical orbit? This feels like it was vibecoded using a macbook touchpad

  • I built it for my trackpad. What mouse settings would you prefer? Or configurable?

Nice UI. Pretty cool to see a CAD program in the browser, without even an annoying login to try screen. On the other hands it seems to be pretty choppy and I was visual artifacts about 5 seconds into the tutorial. I got the same artifacts in Zen and Chrome.

And now you know why CAD is hard.

This... what is this even doing? The camera controls are all fucked up. Why is mousewheel bound to rotate on the X axis? I can't actually select and move things. The container example is... is this supposed to be an object? Why is a cylinder floating above it? Why is shading all fucked up on the "twisted ribbon"? Etcetera etcetera.

Oh, it's vibe coded? And the author seems to have a bad case of Dunning-Kruger?

Yeah, I'll pass.

This seems to have the same weakness as OpenSCAD, no relative positioning.

  • I added this to the kernel but it isn't exposed to the UI yet. What is your use case? id love to support it

    • Interesting, that would be a big plus once it works.

      I don't have a concrete use case, I just know that it's generally easier to "attach this cube to this face", than having to work out the formula to position it correctly, especially once you start working with weird angles, or wanting something to be tangent to a circle. That is how every professional CAD package I've ever used works.