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Software Tricks of the Trade

In ten steps or less, make a tutorial with your favorite tip or trick in the CAD-related software of your choice.

We want to give our Community an advantage by providing them with the fastest and easiest ways to work in all software types! What are keyboard or mouse shortcuts you use to help you get work done faster every time you create a model? What is the fastest route to get to a command in your software? How do you alter your settings to port in all the necessary information for starting or finalizing a project?

Our second tutorials-focused Challenge in this three part series to improve Tutorials on GrabCAD is meant to add more resources to beginners and pros alike. We saw some great tutorials in Build Models for Reuse and we hope to see the same quality of insights here too.

What you need to do:
1) Create a question or answer an existing one.
2) Make sure your answer is started by "Answer as a tutorial." See tips, below.
3) Add a link to your completed tutorial on an uploaded model through the "Submit entry" button on this page OR in the comments to be considered - unfortunately entries with only an answer and no model will not show in the entries tab.

Recommendations after our first Challenge:
* Create a question. Answer as a tutorial with a short intro and create as many steps as you think you'll need.
* Once steps are created, add descriptions for steps and images.
* Keep images smaller than 7MB. If you add large pictures, save your tutorial before you do the next step.
* One-step video tutorials are encouraged.
* If people can see this trick in one of your models, be sure to link to it.

Screenshot from How to Identify the Assembly file and its child parts by Danny Tasmakis.

Requirements

  • Ask a new question as follows: "Tutorial: How to 'write trick here' in 'put your software here…' Example... 'Tutorial: How to save like a pro in Autodesk Inventor'

  • Add the tag "tipsNtricks" when creating your question.

  • All participants must 'Add tutorial to answer' (this option shows in the answer box) with less than ten tutorial steps. Keep them short but helpful.

  • Link to any original content used from Library or externally.

  • If posting a video tutorial, add a link to YouTube or Vimeo video in Step 1.

  • Each tutorial has to be entered in the Q&A under a new, clearly asked question: http://grabcad.com/questions/new.

  • Leave feedback in the comments on this process!

  • Tutorials must consist of screen shots and comments in a way that is easy for someone else to follow.

  • No tutorials in document files accepted.

  • Only public entries will be considered.

  • Picture tutorials are limited to ten steps and video tutorials limited to five minutes.

Rules

  • The competition is open to everyone.

  • Tutorials can be done for any CAD software as long as pictures or video is also uploaded.

  • By entering this competition, you...
    1. Warrant that the work is your original work.
    2. To the best of your knowledge, it is not, and has not been in production or otherwise previously published or exhibited.
    3. Neither the work nor its use infringes the intellectual property rights (whether a patent, utility model, functional design right, aesthetic design right, trade mark, copyright or any other intellectual property right) of any other person.

  • Applicants are not entitled to any compensation or reimbursement for any costs. The applicant’s participation shall not constitute employment, assignment or offer of employment or assignment.

  • Only tutorials uploaded to GrabCAD Tutorials (http://grabcad.com/questions/new) AND a link to this tutorial is added as a comment on this Challenge page will participate in the competition.

  • Winning designs will be chosen based on the rules and requirements.

  • All cash prizes awarded through Paypal (http://grabcad.com/faq#money). Void where prohibited.

  • The sum of the Awards is the total gross amount of the reward. The awarded participant is solely liable for the payment of all taxes, duties and other similar measures if imposed on the reward pursuant to the legislation of the country of his/her residence, domicile, citizenship, workplace, or any other criterion of similar nature.

  • Tag your model and tutorial with “tipsNtricks”. Only tutorials with valid tag will participate!

  • This Challenge starts on June 4, 2013 and ends on June 19, 2013 at 11:59pm UTC.

  • Winners will be announced latest July 3, 2013.

Prizes

1st Place Winner

Choice of ONE of these prizes: Jawbone Jambox, Pebble Watch, Sphero + Blog post on your work + GrabCAD Shirt and mug

2nd - 10th Place Winners

GrabCAD shirt and mug

About GrabCAD Community

We are the largest online mechanical engineering community and we help you get your work done faster by connecting you to the world's engineers, free CAD models, and helpful tutorials.

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