Scan2CAD raster to vector eNewsletter - July 2008

"Always look on the bright side of life." - Monty Python.

What's in this Newsletter

Current version

The current version of Scan2CAD is v7.6g.

If you are a registered user of Scan2CAD v7, you can upgrade to v7.6g free of charge - click here for more information.

If you are a registered user of Scan2CAD v6.1 or earlier, you can upgrade to v7.6g at the upgrade price - click here for more information.

You can see which version of Scan2CAD you have by going to the Help Menu then choosing About Scan2CAD.

Scan2CAD flies with the Valkyries at the Washington National Opera

"Scan2CAD saved me days of work or hundreds of dollars in someone else's drafting time."

In 1956, the sound of opera heralded the birth of a new opera company in Washington, DC. Today, after 52 seasons, the Washington National Opera is not only one of the USA's leading opera companies but also one of its most prolific production companies, offering 50+ performances of seven to eight operas per season. Each opera represents a considerable production challenge.

Like any business with a demanding schedule and a range of products, the Washington National Opera needs to keep its costs low while increasing productivity. While the outward signs of its success are the glamorous stars on stage, it is the unseen workers in the wings who toil to make the company more productive. Among the tools they use are AutoCAD and Scan2CAD raster to vector conversion software ...

Read more ...

If you are a Scan2CAD user and would like to showcase your business in our newsletter and on our web site please email us.

See Deskan Fastparts reverse engineering solution with Scan2CAD at IMTS 2008

Shapemakers, Australian manufacturers of the unique Deskan scanner, will be exhibiting Deskan Fastparts - the Deskan scanner plus Scan2CAD - on booth B-6582 at the International Manufacturing Technology Show (IMTS), McCormick Place, Chicago, September 8th - 13th 2008.

Aimed at waterjet, laser, plasma and router cutting businesses, Deskan Fastparts allows users to scan a component up to 46" x 34" (1180 x 870 mm) in size, vectorize the part and cut it out by machine quickly and easily with minimal knowledge of both processes.

Click here for more information on Deskan Fastparts.

Click here for more information on the IMTS exhibition.

Scan2CAD Real World Guide to Vectorization now available in French

The Scan2CAD Real World Guide to Vectorization tells you how to vectorize less than perfect scans and how to tweak vectorization settings. It helps you to get the best possible vectorization from any vectorizable image.

Canadian Scan2CAD user Marc Levesque describes the Real World Guide as "a huge help". He has translated it into French so that his French-speaking colleagues can work through it.

Marc has kindly made his translation available to us. It can be downloaded from here.

Thanks Marc!

English speaking users can access the Real World Guide by going to Scan2CAD's Help Menu and selecting Real World Guide.

Scanners4CAD - large format scanner news, views and buying advice

www.scanners4cad.com

The Scanners4CAD large format scanner comparison chart has been updated with the latest new scanners from Contex and Graphtec and now includes US pricing.

The chart lists over 45 different large format scanner models. It includes UK and US list prices, type of paper feed, imaging system used, illumination used, color capability, scan width, maximum media thickness, optical resolution, scan speed, accuracy, upgrade options, Energy Star compliance, connectivity, networkability, supported operating systems, weight, dimensions, supplied warranty details and country of manufacture for each model.

Click here to receive a free copy of the large format scanner comparison chart.

Other recent news items and articles at Scanners4CAD include ...

GREEN SCANNING: Towards a greener technical drawing office

SHORTS: Large format scanner industry news

HOT NEWS: Two U-Turns in One - Contex's new CIS-based SD Series

REVIEW: Graphtec CSX300 large format scanner

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Quick tip

Use Scan2CAD's despeckle command to get rid of unwanted detail!

We recently had a user with a scanned building services drawing. All he wanted was the building outline, but the drawing was cluttered with text and building services paraphernalia. We suggested he use Scan2CAD's despeckle command with maximum speckle size. This got rid of most of the unwanted drawing parts while retaining the building outline, leaving him with a lot less tidying up to do!

If you have a Scan2CAD tip you would like to share, please email postmaster@softcover.com.

And finally, for the engineers among you ...

Grand Union Canal
A green and pleasant corridor.

In a previous issue, I wrote about a little known London architectural treasure - the St Pancras Old Cemetery. This month, it's the turn of a little known London civil engineering treasure - the Grand Union Canal at Hanwell.

The Grand Union Canal forms a green and pleasant corridor through the gray suburbs of north west London. During the Industrial Revolution and Victorian era it was a major transport artery carrying goods between London and the Midlands. It is now used by just a few colorfully painted narrowboats.

Hanwell Locks
Part of the Hanwell Lock flight.

At Hanwell, a "staircase" of six pretty black and white painted locks - the Hanwell flight - raises the canal by 53 feet over half a mile. Imagine the time it must have taken for a barge to pass through all six locks, and the melee that must have taken place as lots of barges tried to pass up and down the flight at once! The Hanwell flight was built in 1794 and is an English Heritage Scheduled Ancient Monument.

At the top of the lock flight, the canal forms part of Three Bridges: A unique stacking of three modes of transport that all cross at the same point. Crossing beneath the canal is a railway. Crossing above it is a road, the Windmill Bridge, named after a windmill that once stood nearby and that features in a painting by the famous British artist Joseph Turner.

Three Bridges
Three Bridges: A road (top) crosses the Grand Union Canal (left) which in turn crosses a railway (right).

Particularly fascinating is the fact that the railway was built AFTER the canal and road, in 1859. The task of getting it under the canal was commissioned to engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel, who suspended the canal over the railway in a cast iron trough.