Solidworks... WTF?!!!!

Hello McFly?!!! Do you guys have any clue what it takes to upgrade
your software on multiple workstations? Did you people even consider
the fact most IS departments would probably like to upgrade remotely?!
The administrative image option sucks too. Now, I have to go to
every workstation to upgrade them since it won't accept accessing the
CD over the network... and then it takes F'in forever!

And what's with the crap you can't even install Solidworks 2004 if you
have toolbox on the network and it's in use? Did you think that maybe
some IS staffs might like to work normal hours too?

And then... to top it all off... you pull a service pack off the web
to fix it... so now we have to go through all this crap again! I
thought progress meant getting better... you guys are regressing in a
big way and I expect you're going to begin losing customers (at least
not gaining new ones) if you don't make it easier to administrate the
software. And lets not forget the fact 2004 has gone backwards in
speed! We have the most powerful workstations on the market and our
productivity has noticeably decreased (not to mention coplaints have
skyrocketed) from 2003 because of the inefficiency in drawings w/ 2004
over 2003.

And another thing... what's w/ upgrading the toolbox database w/ a
service pack?! So now I have no choice but to upgrade everyone at the
same time! I can't even test the service pack first?!

I can't imagine what companies w/ 30-40 users have to go through. Oh
yeah... I almost forgot! If it's so detrimental to Solidworks if you
install or upgrade while virus protection software is running... why
don't you REQUIRE (key word... require) it to be disabled before
installing or upgrading? Other vendors can do it... why not you?

Sincerely,

A Dissapointed Solidworks Customer

 

I am absolutely shocked at how it can take so MUCH longer to apply a
service pack through the Installer than it does to install and
configure SolidWorks 2004 in the first place.

What good is the rollback option, for example, when the process often
causes certain program options (and third party add-ins) to no longer
work properly.

Frankly, I never ran into such difficulty when simply using the
Traditional Install method. Sure reverting to an earlier service pack
meant reinstalling; however, it was still faster and more reliable
than with WI, even if multiple SPacks had to be reapplied. The Windows
Installer method only allows for reverting to the previous SP - if a
user needs to go back further, then the supposed "advantage" is lost,
since reinstallation is required then as well.

Perhaps, since it's late in the day, I'm tired and missing something.
Out of curiosity I just looked for the modify option to revert to
SP1.0 (via the Add/Remove Programs Control Panel) and don't see it as
I did for reverting from 1.0 to 0.

Has the rollback option evaporated with 2.0?

Per O. Hoel
______________________________________________________________________

 

To answer your question Mike... I know my VAR has multiple computers,
probably each running a different service pack. It also allows him to
troubleshoot w/ different hardware configurations as well I suppose.

I'm sure there are people out there who are happy w/ the WI, probably
the same people who pushed Swx in that direction. I'd be hard pressed
to say they just pulled it out of the butts. Nevertheless... they
should've had the wehre-with-all to know better and do what's best for
everyone! I mean really... I just as soon keep a computer image of
each service pack and if I need to go back one... I'll just blow that
image down... it's actually faster than messing w/ Swx WI installation
/ rollback feature!

Eric

 

It seems to me that there were some pretty vitriolic posts here a while
ago that demanded that SW be able to uninstall service packs. Those are
the people we have to thank for the WI. Be careful of what you wish for,
you may get it.

I'm having a hard time finding anything positive about the WI compared to
the old way of doing it.


matt


....

 

I really don't know what takes the WI so long to do an update. And for
some

I really get worried when software on its own accesses the internet. Makes
you wonder if some of the issues we all have could be bluebeam related since
the sp2 knocked it out then they to down the sp2.

 

Of all things they focus development on being able to rollback service
packs? Maybe because they know some SP's are crap! Then to throw salt in the
wound it takes longer to apply the new service packs or roll one back than
it does reinstalling from scratch! HTH can you say we shouldn't be
complaining about that!?!?!?!

(best beaver impression)
Well, gee Mr. SolidWorks. You're the greatest.

Jeff
"Can I be a Keynote speaker at SWW 2004?"

 

From what I've been able to conclude is that when performing a SP update the
WI verifies the 'integrity' of the installed files before performing the
actual update. Good idea but takes to long. I don't know much about the WI
but I believe this is an option that can (read: SHOULD) be turned off.

 

Not so sure. You think SW has corner cases? Imagine trying to create a
web browser capable of properly rendering all the HTML in the world that
doesn't conform to any standard, but 'used to look just fine' in browser
XYZ from 1992.


Jim S.

 

Hee hee hee..... I have a secret that has helped me avoid these problems.

....snip