User Manuals

Hello all,
Due to the nature of DIY OSH, typically there are few user manuals to go around. What software do you recommend in making pictures of the build. An example build in video of the Cyclops 3D scanner is [www.youtube.com]

The owner of the video has yet to post a reply in the comments to another user requesting the software to produce the video.

I am not looking to produce videos, just user manuals with "lego" like picures for the build instructions and I need the software necessary to do so.

update:
Additionally, coreldraw x7 technical suite is exactly what I am looking for in terms of creating instructions. However, it is not open sourced and very expensive. Are there alternatives?

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/24/2018 05:36PM by Joshua Overkamp.

Inkscape is the open-source alternative to coreldraw and is a very good application for vector graphics. But I suggest to take a look at scribus (also open-source) that is more appropriate for publishing.

I managed to find a way to create the pictures needed for documentation. The picture was created in FreeCAD by doing the following steps:

1. Open FreeCAD
2. Go to Edit>Preferences>Display>Colors to set the background white
3. Right click on the object and select Appearance or Ctrl-D
4. Under viewing mode, Select flat lines.
4. Under Material, select the ellipsis and choose white for all settings. Shininess is 0%.
5. Shape color is white, line color is black.

I found that for cylinders, only one line is present. To solve this for the purpose of creating drawings, a second cylinder with a 180 degree rotation is created to allow two lines. A rotation is applied to both cylinders to allow the proper view for the picture.

Additionally, an OpenSCAD script was written and imported to FreeCAD to create the model.

With the exploded assembly workbench, this can create the pictures needed for professional documentation.