MadeByDan reports on his first experience using 3D print technology. Ironically, it was not jewelry that came out of the printer, but instead o a simple platter. We expect that he’ll soon be printing jewelry models too.
He used Shapeways, a popular 3D print service. Here’s the part we found most interesting:
I thought it would be relatively easy to upload a file and have it made but apparently creating an STL file is a bit more complicated than I first thought. The guys at Shapeways were quite helpful though and massaged my file so that it was printable (it was as easy as opening it in Blender and then saving again).
This confirms our belief that although the 3D print services are trying very hard to be as easy to use as possible, it is still not without bumps, even for a technically-oriented person such as MadeByDan. Don’t believe us? Take a look again at how easy it is for virtually anyone to produce 2D prints. That simple ease of use is the goal that at the moment eludes us.
Via MadeByDan
Yes, we too have issues with this. In our site http://www.jujups.com we have made it relatively easy for consumers to create 3D designs with limited objects and limited creative freedom. But desingers want creative freedom !
So that is the space that Shapeways is beginning to crack. I believe they will sooner or latter.
Cool. Thanks for the post.
The entry barrier for 3D printing is a lot higher than 2D printing and the likes of Ponoko’s Photomake, but creation tools like the Shapeways creator are helping to bring it down. The onus is on the designer/web developer to create the system that allows a customer to easily interact and customize the product. It’s only a matter of time before this sort of thing becomes more mainstream.
Dan
http://www.madebydan.co.nz