I know that most of my readers will not have the opportunity to attend this evenings meeting, so I decided to try out an experiment. If you have internet access, you can watch my presentation live using Ustream for free. I can’t promise anything. For this first test, I am actually broadcasting from my Android phone so I am not sure how the quality will be. I am not even sure how strong my signal will be, so you might go to the link provided and find out that I am not broadcasting. If that is the case, it probably means that there was a technical issue. However, we are hoping to also record the whole presentation with an HD camera and I will be posting online later.

If you want to see the presentation live, follow this link to The SolidWorks Geek channel on Ustream: http://www.ustream.tv/channel/the-solidworks-geek . There you will be able to see my broadcast live, or recorded after the broadcast ends. I expect to start presenting between 6 and 6:30 pm PST. If you follow me on twitter, I will send out a tweet right before I start broadcasting. Check it out and let me know what you think. Who knows you might get a chance to see me crack from the pressure and do something really funny.

Related posts:

1. A New Project for the Geek Some of you may have noticed that I have been...
2. No Experience Required Geek Treasure Hunt – One Prize Left I have been amazed at the response to the...
3. No Experience Required Geek Treasure Hunt Results The No Experience Required Geek Treasure Hunt is now over....

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

In addition to being a big SolidWorks and CAD geek, I love the technology that is all around us. When I am not designing and writing about SolidWorks, I am reading tech and gadget blogs, reading up on new gadgets, playing with software, listening to podcasts and writing code. That’s why I am the King of All Geeks. I absolutely live technology and the Internet. And I wanted to share my passion for technology with my readers.

The name of the new blog is Alex R. Ruiz – The King of All Geeks. Catchy, huh? You don’t think its too pretentious, do you? Well I just wanted to let everyone know that I am ready to share what I learn in my wanderings on the net seeking out the best news. You can visit the site at http://www.alexrruiz.com or you can click the King of All Geeks logo at the top of the right column of this site.

The great thing about doing tech articles is that I find them pretty easy to write and I can usually churn out a new article in about an hour. That is great for my SolidWorks Geek readers. You can get double the content than before. You will still get the normal flow of SolidWorks materials but now you can learn some great tech tips as well. You can also add the feed to your RSS reader.

Come by and check out the new site and let me know what you think. I hope that you will enjoy the new content.

Related posts:

1. Check Out Our New Look If you are most people, your are reading this...
2. Important Site Annoucement – April Fools 2009 I know it has been a long time since...
3. SolidWorks World 2009 Roll Call With the holidays behind us, all eyes have turned to...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

Machinery’s Handbook

Ever since I got an old beat up 12th Edition handbook from a veteran board drafter at my first job, I have always carried one to every job. This book is invaluable, it is like having a machinist on your desk to advise you every time you have a question. I constantly use mine for looking up threads, finding long lost formulas, double-checking my weld symbols and even look up standard fits and tolerances. If you are on a tight budget and can’t afford a huge library, get an earlier edition. If your library only consists of this one book, you will still be ahead of the curve. It will be one of the most popular books in your office and you will have to hide it under lock and key. Maybe tie up some zombies next to your bookshelf to discourage people from borrowing it.

Design For Manufacturability Handbook

In the past it was not uncommon for designers and engineers to start their careers in the machine shop. A strong foundation in machining enables a designer to anticipate the manufacturing method and to adapt the design accordingly. Unfortunately, the closest thing to a machine shop I experienced was the wood shop at the Buena Park Boy’s Club. So I have done the next best thing, I studied design for manufacturability. I am no expert but I have a very good understanding of most manufacturing processes and the Design For Manufacturability Handbook was what set me on that path. I still refer to it when I am working on a design that will use a process that I am not too familiar with. Depending on the desired method, you can look up suggested materials, design considerations and even ways to improve your design for cost.

Materials Handbook

The Materials Handbook was actually something I stumbled upon by accident and I am glad I did. When I was working as a drafter in Arizona, we had an engineer that left the company. I guess his departure wasn’t planned so well because he had left a few items behind. When his old office was cleaned out, many of his books were thrown out. I just happened to wander by when I saw this book sticking out of a trash bin. Of course I had no problem digging it out of the trash and I am still glad to this day that I did. When I opened the book I found the coolest reference book ever. The Materials Handbook is an encyclopedia of every material you can think of in alphabetical order. When I say every material, I mean it. I always love showing coworkers some of my favorite materials, including coffee. Yes, coffee is in there. This book has helped me so many times when a materials expert starts rambling off materials during a design review.

See more of my favorites

Rather then ramble on about books (wow, I really am a geek), I created a list of suggested books. I call it the Engineer’s Bookshelf and you can find it by clicking the link on the top menu bar of the site. In it you will find some images of my favorite books and clicking on the cover image will take you to the Amazon page for the book. Also, I want to grow this list to be the most comprehensive list of books for engineers and designers. So if you have some suggestions, let me know so I can add them to the list. Heck, I might even pick a few up for myself.

Related posts:

1. Engineer’s Bookshelf Engineer’s Bookshelf Below are some suggested books that every engineer...
2. Design Faster with Design Library and Mate References Pt1 Last week, I spoke briefly about the benefits of using...
3. Standards Tuesday – Bill of Materials Over the next couple of weeks I will be covering...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

Now enough with the shameless self-promotion…on to the winners. I am happy to announce that we actually had five readers find the hidden link. I’d have to say that I was really surprised that my hints were actually pretty easy. If you didn’t figure out the clues and locate the link, don’t worry I will tell you what each clue meant. I will also leave the link where it is so you can see if you can find it still.

Who Found the Link?

Before we move onto the answers to the clues, lets see who actually found the link. Don’t worry if you didn’t find the link and couldn’t get a copy of the book, there still may be another chance later to win a free copy. But lets not keep you from buying one anyway. It doesn’t hurt to have two copies.

Here are all the readers who located the hidden link in order of winners:

1. Ausdell Hadaway, Canada

2. Matthew Lorono, California

3. Deepak Gupta, India

4. Brian Titus, California

5. Ali Kuran, Canada

What the Heck Did They Mean?

Like I said, I didn’t want the clues to be too easy but I didn’t want them to be impossible. For some, no more then a couple of clues were needed to find the link but for others…eyes crossing and plenty of cursing was pretty much all there was. So what did they actually mean anyway? I must admit I was reaching on a few of these but they were just too damn fun to pass up.

Clue #1: I live near the centers

This refers to an image that is located near the link. I won’t say what the image is, just in case some are still looking.

Clue #2: I just got back from a Chinese restaurant and they called me a rat!

Some don’t like to think of rats when they are eating Chinese food but this is actually a clue about the year of the post that contains the link. The year that the post was written during the year of the rat on the Chinese zodiac.

Clue #3: I will keep track of the witness, he is right down there.

This is another reference to an image near the link. This time the image is located below where the link can be found.

Clue #4: 28 weeks later was not a real zombie movie

This was actually one of my favorites because I am a huge zombie fanatic. If you were able to figure out the year with clue #2, then you will be able to figure out what week the post was created. The post that contains the link was published on the 28th week of the year determined by clue #2. And no, 28 Weeks Later was not a real zombie movie…they were not dead.

Clue #5: Six degrees of birthday cake

I admit that this was a hard clue, but it had to be since it gives you the exact date that the post was published. This one actually refers to the date of Kevin Bacon’s birthday. If you remember the game “Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon”, then you might have guess that.

Clue #6: Why is it so teeny?

This one just sounds soooooo wrong. I am actually referring to a couple of comments that were made on the post. When I first published the article I was still trying to get a comment system that worked. At the time I had a commenting system that only showed a postage stamp size window for entering in comments and a couple of readers posted comments about the size of the window…nothing else…

Clue #7: The first part of the feature was the best.

The post that contains the link was had the word “Feature” in the title and was the first part of a two part article.

Clue #8: Why 14 1/2 meters?

This is actually one of the ones that I was reaching. I needed one more clue and this one gave more information about the topic of the article.  ”Why 14-1/2 meters” refers to ASME Y14.5m which is the topic of the article. Told you I was reaching.

Clue #9: I like Tuesdays.

At the time that the article was written, I was still doing “Standards Tuesdays.” The post that contains the link was one of the original “Standards Tuesdays” articles.

Clue #10: I wish I could extend my stay but I’ll just end up interfering.

This is actually a clue as to the exact sentence that contains the link. Key words in the clue are in the same sentence in the post.

Clue #11: X marks the spot.

This last one was the easiest. The “X” refers to the letter in the sentence that contains the link.

Knowing is Half the Battle

Know that you know what the clues means, you can quickly figure out where the link was located. I hope you had fun. I am thinking of what to do for a future contests. So if you have any ideas please let me know and if you like this one, let me know as well. We just might have to revisit this contest at a much later date.

Related posts:

1. No Experience Required Geek Treasure Hunt – Clue #3 UPDATED WITH CLUE#3 With less then two weeks till SolidWorks...
2. No Experience Required Geek Treasure Hunt – One Prize Left I have been amazed at the response to the...
3. No Experience Required Geek Treasure Hunt – Clue #2 UPDATED WITH CLUE#2 With less then two weeks till SolidWorks...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

I have been amazed at the response to the this treasure hunt contest. My clues must have been too easy because the first two prizes have already been claimed. When I was coming up with the clues, I was afraid that I made them too hard and that no one would be able to find the hidden link. I should have known better because I have some of the smartest readers on the web.

On Thursday, Ausdell Hadaway from America’s white sombrero (Of course I mean Canada) found the hidden link and sent me an email. He managed to find the link after only two clues. I was expecting at least six clues before anybody found it. In speaking with Ausdell, he explained that the credit goes to his 22″ monitor that his boss purchased for him. That takes dedication to dig through so many posts in order to get a SolidWorks book written by me. It’s pretty cool but it is also scary for me.

The second prize, a coffee mug from the SolidWorks Geeks Store was claimed by my close friend and fellow SolidWorks blogger, Matthew Lorono. He may be better known as fcsuper from SolidWorks Legion. I am not exactly sure how he found the link so fast but knowing Matt it had to be found by doing something shady. You just can trust those Northern Californians.

So with the first two prizes claimed, that leaves only one more prize. When I was at SolidWorks World 2010 in the great city of Anaheim, I was given a couple of t-shirts from AMD to use as giveaways. The first shirt was used as a prize in a photo caption contest held at SolidWorks Geeks. The second shirt is in safe place waiting to be claimed by the next person to find the hidden link.

Instead of continuing to torture my readers with a random clue every other day, I have decided to post all of the clues in hopes that the last prize can be claimed this weekend. I have received many comments about the clues being to difficult and not making any sense. I meant for the clues to be like riddles. If you can decipher the riddle you will get a new piece of information that can be used to locate the post and even where the link can be found in the post. Don’t worry, after the last prize is claimed I will post an explanation of the clues used. To be honest, I am actually kind of proud of the clues. Here is the full list of clues:

Clue #1: I live near the centers

Clue #2: I just got back from a Chinese restaurant and they called me a rat!

Clue #3: I will keep track of the witness, he is right down there.

Clue #4: 28 weeks later was not a real zombie movie

Clue #5: Six degrees of birthday cake

Clue #6: Why is it so teeny?

Clue #7: The first part of the feature was the best.

Clue #8: Why 14 1/2 meters?

Clue #9: I like Tuesdays.

Clue #10: I wish I could extend my stay but I’ll just end up interfering.

Clue #11: X marks the spot.

Related posts:

1. No Experience Required Geek Treasure Hunt – Clue #3 UPDATED WITH CLUE#3 With less then two weeks till SolidWorks...
2. No Experience Required Geek Treasure Hunt – Clue #2 UPDATED WITH CLUE#2 With less then two weeks till SolidWorks...
3. No Experience Required Geek Treasure Hunt With less then two weeks till SolidWorks 2010: No Experience...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

The following clues will give you information as to which article the link is located and how to identify the link. Think of the clues as riddles. Once you figure out the answer to a clue, you will have one more bit of information. As the days go by, the clues will get you closer to fining the link but remember you are not the only one looking for the link. Don’t wait for too many clues or someone else could find the link before you do. The clues may seem hard but you really need to think outside of the box. The clues could be describing a location on the page, the date of the post or even what the post is about. Remember Google is your friend.

Clue #1: I live near the centers

Clue #2: I just got back from a Chinese restaurant and they called me a rat!

[NEW] Clue #3: I will keep track of the witness, he is right down there.

Related posts:

1. No Experience Required Geek Treasure Hunt – Clue #3 UPDATED WITH CLUE#3 With less then two weeks till SolidWorks...
2. No Experience Required Geek Treasure Hunt – One Prize Left I have been amazed at the response to the...
3. No Experience Required Geek Treasure Hunt – Clue #2 UPDATED WITH CLUE#2 With less then two weeks till SolidWorks...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

With less then two weeks till SolidWorks 2010: No Experience Required goes on sale, I decided to give you a chance to receive a free signed copy.  The list price for the book is $39.99 and a signed copy has got to bring it up to $40.00 at least. Since the stakes are so high this time I decided to try something different. It may be awesome and fun or it may flop but either way you are gonna get a free SolidWorks book full of tips and tricks.

In the past I have done contests that were extremely easy. This time it is not going to be so easy. This contest will require a keen eye and an attention to detail. So get the hamster on the wheel in your head some Wheaties and let’s get down to business.

How to Play

The rules are easy. Somewhere, buried in one of the 113 posts since I started blogging, there is a single hidden mail hyperlink. Clicking the hyperlink will launch your default email program and automatically enter a special email address just for this contest. Just so you won’t be tempted to guess the email, it is made of a completely random sequence of letters and numbers. You will have to work for this one.

Now before someone gets mad that I made this contest so hard, I decided to give ya’ll some hints. Every couple of days, at varying times, I will post a new hint as to where the link is hidden. I will continue posting hints until someone finds the link and uses the hidden address to email me their contact and mailing information. Sounds good?

Only One Prize?

I am looking for some more prizes but for now the first three submissions will get a prize:

First Prize: Sign copy of SolidWorks 2010: No Experience Required

Second Prize: A SolidWorks Geeks coffee mug

Third Prize: An AMD t-shirt

What are the clues?

The following clues will give you information as to which article the link is located and how to identify the link. Think of the clues as riddles. Once you figure out the answer to a clue, you will have one more bit of information. As the days go by, the clues will get you closer to fining the link but remember you are not the only one looking for the link. Don’t wait for too many clues or someone else could find the link before you do. The clues may seem hard but you really need to think outside of the box. The clues could be describing a location on the page, the date of the post or even what the post is about. Remember Google is your friend.

Clue #1: I live near the centers

Clue #2: I just got back from a Chinese restaurant and they called me a rat!

[NEW] Clue #3: I will keep track of the witness, he is right down there.

What are you waiting for?

Okay, you got your second clue, now get searching! Have fun and I look forward to announcing a winner real soon.

Related posts:

1. No Experience Required Geek Treasure Hunt – Clue #2 UPDATED WITH CLUE#2 With less then two weeks till SolidWorks...
2. No Experience Required Geek Treasure Hunt With less then two weeks till SolidWorks 2010: No Experience...
3. No Experience Required Geek Treasure Hunt – One Prize Left I have been amazed at the response to the...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

With less then two weeks till SolidWorks 2010: No Experience Required goes on sale, I decided to give you a chance to receive a free signed copy.  The list price for the book is $39.99 and a signed copy has got to bring it up to $40.00 at least. Since the stakes are so high this time I decided to try something different. It may be awesome and fun or it may flop but either way you are gonna get a free SolidWorks book full of tips and tricks.

In the past I have done contests that were extremely easy. This time it is not going to be so easy. This contest will require a keen eye and an attention to detail. So get the hamster on the wheel in your head some Wheaties and let’s get down to business.

How to Play

The rules are easy. Somewhere, buried in one of the 113 posts since I started blogging, there is a single hidden mail hyperlink. Clicking the hyperlink will launch your default email program and automatically enter a special email address just for this contest. Just so you won’t be tempted to guess the email, it is made of a completely random sequence of letters and numbers. You will have to work for this one.

Now before someone gets mad that I made this contest so hard, I decided to give ya’ll some hints. Every couple of days, at varying times, I will post a new hint as to where the link is hidden. I will continue posting hints until someone finds the link and uses the hidden address to email me their contact and mailing information. Sounds good?

Only One Prize?

I am looking for some more prizes but for now the first three submissions will get a prize:

First Prize: Sign copy of SolidWorks 2010: No Experience Required

Second Prize: A SolidWorks Geeks coffee mug

Third Prize: An AMD t-shirt

What are the clues?

Clue #1: I live near the centers

[NEW] Clue #2: I just got back from a Chinese restaurant and they called me a rat!

What are you waiting for?

Okay, you got your second clue, now get searching! Have fun and I look forward to announcing a winner real soon.

Related posts:

1. No Experience Required Geek Treasure Hunt – Clue #3 UPDATED WITH CLUE#3 With less then two weeks till SolidWorks...
2. No Experience Required Geek Treasure Hunt With less then two weeks till SolidWorks 2010: No Experience...
3. No Experience Required Geek Treasure Hunt – One Prize Left I have been amazed at the response to the...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

In the past I have done contests that were extremely easy. This time it is not going to be so easy. This contest will require a keen eye and an attention to detail. So get the hamster on the wheel in your head some Wheaties and let’s get down to business.

How to Play

The rules are easy. Somewhere, buried in one of the 113 posts since I started blogging, there is a single hidden mail hyperlink. Clicking the hyperlink will launch your default email program and automatically enter a special email address just for this contest. Just so you won’t be tempted to guess the email, it is made of a completely random sequence of letters and numbers. You will have to work for this one.

Now before someone gets mad that I made this contest so hard, I decided to give ya’ll some hints. Every couple of days, at varying times, I will post a new hint as to where the link is hidden. I will continue posting hints until someone finds the link and uses the hidden address to email me their contact and mailing information. Sounds good?

Only One Prize?

I am looking for some more prizes but for now the first three submissions will get a prize:

First Prize: Sign copy of SolidWorks 2010: No Experience Required

Second Prize: A SolidWorks Geeks coffee mug

Third Prize: An AMD t-shirt

So what is the first clue?

Clue #1: I live near the centers

What are you waiting for?

Okay, you got your first clue, now get searching! Have fun and I look forward to announcing a winner real soon.

Related posts:

1. No Experience Required Geek Treasure Hunt – Clue #2 UPDATED WITH CLUE#2 With less then two weeks till SolidWorks...
2. No Experience Required Geek Treasure Hunt – Clue #3 UPDATED WITH CLUE#3 With less then two weeks till SolidWorks...
3. No Experience Required Geek Treasure Hunt – One Prize Left I have been amazed at the response to the...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

Did you know that you do not need to switch between these two tools? As crazy as it sounds, you can use the trim to to extend sketch entities as well. Today’s Quick Tip will show you how that can be done quickly and easily.

1. The sketch below shows a couple of lines that need to be trimmed or extended to make a single rectangle. Yes I know it would be easier to just use the Rectangle tool, but this is just an example.

2. We are going to close the rectangle all without changing tools. The only tool we will need is the Trim Entities tool.

3. In the Options section of the Trim PropertyManager, select the Trim to Closest option.

4. The first trim is pretty straight forward. All you need to do is just select the side of the line that needs to be trimmed to the nearest intersection.

5. Now this is where most users would switch to the Extend Entities tool in order to extend the vertical line to the top horizontal line. But instead of switching tools, we are going to stay in the Trim Entities tool. Select the line by pressing and holding the left mouse button with the mouse pointer closer to the end of the line that needs to be extended. While still holding the left mouse button, drag the mouse pointer to the line that will terminate the selected line. Once the mouse pointer is over the target line, a preview of the line with the extra length will be shown in orange in both the gap and on the existing line.

6. If the preview is what you want, release the left mouse button and the line will be extended.

7. You can then finish the sketch by clicking the last dangling segment of the upper horizontal line, all without switching between tools.

NOTE: Notice that in Step 5, I mentioned that you need to select the line that should be extended with the mouse pointer closer to the end of the line that needs to be extended. That is the key phrase that must be repeated, otherwise the selected line will not extend as expected. If you select the line towards the other end of the line, the line will not be extended. The line would instead move to the short gap, leaving a larger gap where the line used to be. The image below shows that instead of selecting the line to be extend towards the top of the line, the bottom portion is selected.

The orange preview appears to be the extended line at first glance but if you look closer you will notice that the orange preview is only in the gap and is not on the orginal line like it is shown in step 5.

If you were to release the left mouse button at this time, the line would move to the gap rather then extending itself to fill the gap. That maybe useful in some situations but in this particular scenario it is not the desired outcome.

That concludes today’s Quick Tip. I hope you find it information and useful. If you would like to see a quick tip about any other functions in SolidWorks, please feel free to send me an email at blog@theswgeek.com.

Related posts:

1. Quick Tip #3 – Quickly Create Symmetrical Sketches It is a very common practice to use the Mirror...
2. The Right Sketch Tool for the Job Sketches are such an  important aspect of SolidWorks. Virtually everything...
3. The Modify Sketch Tool ♫ It’s just another manic Monday. I wish it were...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.