FreeCad basiccourse

[Shalmeneser]

What is your version ? Follow the red banner in Help forum.

[kitman]

Version 0.17
What you mean, red banner.

[chrisb]

Version 0.17
What you mean, red banner.

Go to Help forum. Follow the link in the red banner at the top.

0.17 is utterly outdated. Nevertheless it should have this button. You can try to reset the configuration with the button in the preferences. Another possibility is to delete your config files or to move them in case you want to restore them.

I recommend to reset your config as well, if you decide to upgrade. With a garbled config, unpredictable mess can happen.

[eajmarceau]

Hi Kitman,

If you venture back to this forum, I would suggest that we start from first principles to make sure we are both on the same page.

Step 1:
To that end, it is best to download what is considered the current best offering of the application. That is available as a stand-alone binary, called an AppImage, from the wiki. The URL is https://wiki.freecad.org/AppImage .

On that page, you will see the table heading "Available FreeCAD AppImages", offering the two choices for binary. The Stable version (changes over time; check regularly) is always rock solid with minor glitches that could creep up very rarely (I recommend this).

If FreeCAD publicizes a new function being introduced in the Development version that you cannot do without, you could try that version. However, when using the Development version, never work on your good copy of a model that you have invested time building. Only use the Development version with a renamed copy of your *.FCStd file, because there is always the chance that it might corrupt you model in a way that is either not recoverable, or create structures that are not recognized/usable in a later Development version.

Step 2:
Once installed, you need to move the AppImage file to where you want to keep your application (I recommend on a separate disk/partition in a folder dedicated to all you FreeCAD-related activities), then make the AppImage file executable.

Step 3:
Upon execution, the initial display should look like the following image:

Display at Application Startup

FreeCAD__01_DisplayAtApplicationStartup.png (207 KiB) Viewed 836 times

That is the display from the Development version at this time, which is version 0.20 build 28611.

In the white-coloured area to the right, you should see a rectangle with a big + sign. If you don't have that this is a major stumbling block and others will need to help you there.

Step 4:
If your display looks like the above, the next step is to click on the + sign to start a new model. Also, to the left, if you click on the "Model" tab, you will see displayed the tree of objects that make up your model. The default name for any new model is "Unnamed". You should see the following on your display:

3D View and Model Object/Element Tree

FreeCAD__02__3DView_with_ModelTree.png (168.36 KiB) Viewed 836 times

Again, if you do not see those two then, again, more knowledgeable people will need to guide you in fixing that, but I believe that the issue would lie in the current contents of the FreeCAD-related hidden directory in your home directory, and more specifically corruption of the configuration files located there that were created during your earlier problematic sessions. Which of those files is the culprit would need to be identified by the experts (not me).

Step 5:
If you can get this far with no problem, the recommended first step is to save your model file (yes, it has no user-defined geometry). It is good practice to give it a name that will allow you to easily identify or manage your collection of models. It is also good to think about naming conventions that will be meaningful, at least for you, but also that will be meaningful to others that import your model and try to navigate it to solve your problems. Note: That name is also used as the file name at the Operating System level.

Step 6:
The next step before creating any other geometry is to create a body. To do that, you must click on the drop-down menu which is highlighted in blue and showing "Start":

Workbench Selection Drop-down Menu Location

FreeCAD__04__ChoosingWorkbench_a.png (35.44 KiB) Viewed 777 times

Then look for "Part Design" and click on that:

Workbench Selection - Part Design

FreeCAD__04__ChoosingWorkbench_b.png (58.88 KiB) Viewed 777 times

Then, click on the menu choice "Create Body" as shown below:

Step 2 - Create Body - Menu Drop-down

FreeCAD__03__MenuDropDown_CreateBody.png (223.43 KiB) Viewed 836 times

Again, it is good practice to think about giving all bodies (i.e. in an assembly) names that are meaningful, sometimes suggestive of hierarchy, but there are various opinions on that point. Choose a convention that works for you. You will need to click on the "Model" tab again to see the object tree and right click on that "Body" to rename the object.

At this point, it is again recommended to save the file at this point.

Step 7:
Often, the next step is to create a sketch which will define the shape and size of the desired object's profile. To do that you must click on the blue box showing Part Design, to see the drop-down menu of Workbenches currently installed on your computer's installation of FreeCAD, then look for "Sketcher", then choose that. Where the 3D view was previously displayed, you will now see the object space in sketch mode.

Why and how the sketch is oriented the way it is are explained in the FreeCAD wiki (https://wiki.freecadweb.org/Sketcher_Workbench).

If the Sketcher WorkBench, or any other workbench, is not seen in the menu list, you will need to install that using the "Addon Manager", https://wiki.freecad.org/Std_AddonMgr, which is available from the top menu list under "Tools", last item on the list.

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If you do join us here again, with an update on you progress and challenges, we could try to get you further along. Good luck!

Eric