I wish...

[design-engine]

I wish I could see my analysis features in my model tree like i can see annotations.

 

[dr_gallup]

I wish I could make analysis features.

 

[dgs]

My analysis features show up in the model tree in WF3 & WF4.

 

[design-engine]

HAHA .... Im talking about the saved analysis function not feature. We should be able to make analysis a feature yes. ANALYSIS_DRAFT_2
Edited by: design-engine

 

[csusie]

you can make an analysis a feature

 

[dgs]

Yeah, I'm confused as to what you are asking for too. I create saved analysis as features all the time.

 

[dr_gallup]

you can make an analysis a feature

No, my licenses are too "old". Analysis features were added after we bought our license packs. Even though we pay maintenance we don't get new functionality. We would have to pay to upgrade our licenses, then pay MORE maintenance to maintain the functionality. New licensee's get the functionality for a smaller investment and a lower maintenance fee. I swear some day I'm just going to drop maintenance for about 3 years & then buy new all over again. But if we did it probably would be different software. PTC do everything in their power do drive away long time customers.

 

[dgs]

My understanding is that after you've been off maintenance for ~12 months, they sweeten the deal to get you back on. You have to pay attention, however, because sometimes theylower the maintenance price by lowering your functionality.

I also understand that the PTC policy is to only chagre 9 months back maintenance, so once you've been off 9 months, every month you spend after that is like money in your pocket.

The value of the maintenance dollar has shrunk dramatically now that it's 18 months - 2 years between major releases. So unless you make extensive use of the KB or tech support, a year of maintenance may not get you anything at all if it falls between releases.

 

[Mindripper]

dr_gallup, are you saying that PTC's paid maintenance does not include the features in the latest release of every version of every module you are paying for, or the right to all new releases within the maintenance term? If so, the greed of PTC is even beyond my jaundiced view of them.


When I pay my maintenance to the 'other CAD company' ($1500 a year), it gives me full access to local support (including many free seminars and new product launch events),patches/enhancements to all versions (past or current), plus any new releases during that time. And of course, all of their licenses have no expiration date: once you pay for a seat, it's yours forever. If the user decides they can live without support, patches and the next version, they can simply stop paying maintenance. Indeed, I let my maintenance lapse for four years, then started it up again: no penalty fee. I was running their software at my day job, so I used that license: my personal license was inactive during that time.

 

[dgs]

What you describe is essentially how PTC mainenance works. However, if you buy package ABC which only includes modules XYZ and later, PTC replaces package ABC with ABC Deluxe and adds 3 more modules, you don't get those additional modules with your maintenance contract. They will typically offer an upgrade path, but it's not always very cost effective, as dr_gallup indicates.

 

[dr_gallup]

All the functionality is in the software release, but each user can only access what is in their license pack. When PTC adds significant new functionality it is not available to legacy license packs.

We did the upgrade once to "foundation" + AAX. That got us a lot of stuff we did not have before, like sheet metal, which didn't even exist when we originally bought our licenses. But since then PTC brought out "foundation advantage" or some such marketing double speak. Which has since been replaced by some new bundle of features with even more meaningless names.

The current Foundation XE has the following features that I can not access with my licenses that cost $25,000 + 20 years of maintenance: ModelCHECK, Advanced Parametric surfacing, Animation, Mechanism, structural simulation & 2.5 axis milling. Those are just the bullet points off their data sheet, it doesn't include many incidental gotchas like analysis features.

 

[solidworm]

wow! PTC is such a greedy animal!
even most of their product demo videos are for their maintenance customers only.


Edited by: solidworm