This FAQ is for DMEM Students - answers may not apply to students in other Departments/Faculties

Questions and Answers Specific to Homeworking are below

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Class	Question	Answer
Homeworking	Get the Student version of SolidWorks FAQ Direct Link	As part of our SolidWorks Education Campus License we get access to student licenses for use on personal laptops and PCs. Because we have a limited number of licenses they can be used only by DMEM, MAE and other eligible students so we require you to accept an agreement that you will not pass on the license information nor install the software on more than one computer without authorisation from a member of staff. You will also have to agree not to use the software for research or commercial purposes. Go here for further information and to request the license information and agree to the terms: https://www.dmem.strath.ac.uk/goto/GetSolidWorks You will need to log in with your University email and password to access the agreement form. The current version available for download is SolidWorks 2023, sometimes also referred to as SolidWorks 2023-2024; the Education edition is released after the Commercial edition and the next version is not due until late spring/early summer.
Homeworking	Student Handbook FAQ Direct Link	You can find your handbook on the DMEM Student Information SharePoint site. Undergraduate (BEng/MEng, BSc/MSci) - https://strath.sharepoint.com/sites/DMEM_Student_Information/Shared%20Documents/Current%20Students/Student%20Handbooks/2022-23/UG/UG_Handbook_DMEM_2022-23.pdf Postgraduate Taught (PgDip/MSc) - https://strath.sharepoint.com/sites/DMEM_Student_Information/Shared%20Documents/Current%20Students/Student%20Handbooks/2021-22/PG/PGT_Handbook_DMEM_2021-2022.pdf Postgraduate Taught (PgDip/MSc) January 2022 intake - https://strath.sharepoint.com/sites/DMEM_Student_Information/Shared%20Documents/Current%20Students/Student%20Handbooks/2021-22/PG/PGT_Handbook_DMEM_January-intake_2022.pdf Postgraduate Research (PhD, MPhil, EngD) - Link to be added
Homeworking	Can I get a student copy of Microsoft Office? FAQ Direct Link	Yes, Office365 ProPlus is a service which is now available to all registered undergraduate and postgraduate taught students who have an Office365 account. Further details and an installation guide are available here: https://www.strath.ac.uk/ithelpdesk/helptopics/email/office365/proplus/
Homeworking	I am off campus, I have a computer, but it does not have the OS/processor/memory/graphics to run SolidWorks. What could I do? FAQ Direct Link	The best option is likely to be using a Windows Virtual Desktop (WVD). See this FAQ answer: https://supportal.dmem.strath.ac.uk/HelpDesk/direct_homeworking_FAQ.php?q=4247 Autodesk provides all of their products free for educational purposes including Inventor (engineering), Fusion 360 (Product Design), AutoCAD (2D mainly and some 3D) and Alias (Advanced Surface Modelling). There is Mac compatibility, however, your machine may struggle with these too if older https://www.autodesk.com/education/free-software/featured If you are working on surface modelling for product design in modules like DM300 and DM982, Rhino3D is a very good package which is available in DMEM labs and there is a 90 day fully functional trial available for download. The package works on both Windows and Mac https://www.rhino3d.com/download Where it is difficult to install a package on your machine, then it is worth trying Onshape. This is a cloud based CAD package (no install, runs entirely in an internet browser on Windows, Mac or Linux) which provides many of the same features as SolidWorks, including surfacing, solid modelling, FEA and 2D layouts. Free accounts are available for education https://www.onshape.com/education-plan
Homeworking	I am off campus and do not have access to electronics prototyping systems, such as Arduino, what could I do? FAQ Direct Link	TinkerCAD provides an online simulator for Arduino with an extension library of parts which allows you to develop circuits, circuit/system diagrams, animations of working prototypes and code which can be later be transferred to a real Arduino. Accounts are free for students https://www.tinkercad.com/circuits
Homeworking	I am off campus and do not have access to physical prototyping materials or equipment, what could I do? FAQ Direct Link	In this case images, pencil sketches, renders, simple homemade (well made) models are the best way forward. Do as much research online as you can, use that research to inform your design/idea/product. Remember that showing why something will not work (at the moment) is just as valid as showing a positive result. Your research will support your project. You may come across something surprising. Some designs and forms can be made to high standard at home using paper, card, cardboard etc using a craft knife/scalpel and various off the shelf stuff. PVA, all purpose glue (UHU) rules, protractors, masking tape etc…. When folding or creasing card you can use a ball point pen (on the unseen side if possible) to create a crease for bending. Before you fold/assemble/glue your model check if you need to cut any holes or add details beforehand. This may be impossible and messy to do afterwards. Make every cut and crease count. Make sure your blade is sharp. Measure twice, cut once. If you get glue on your hands or fingers wipe it off before handling your model further. There is almost nothing worse than glue where it is not wanted on a model. There is a lot of good stuff (some rubbish) on Youtube demonstrating how to work with card/paper and cardboard. Take a look. Some good ones are: 30x40 Design Workshop: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kfj2-A5rJoQ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rGRIAIVEMzs – This one in particular is good Eric Strebel (an Industrial Designer in the US) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x6s3lGH4MyI&t=398s – Model making a cube with a notch – good for technique In fact, he’s got content on all sorts: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCFzr6ae9Uv-a_tCmHmkw49g Some good books are: Jackson, P. (2011). Folding Techniques for Designers-From Sheet to Form. Laurence King Publishing. Jackson, P. (2012). Structural packaging: design your own boxes and 3-D forms. London: Laurence King Publishing. Yoshiharu S.; Takashi K.; Masazo T.; Shinji M. (1991) Models and Prototypes. Books Nippan. Making models and maquettes by hand and experiencing the design and materials will make you a better more rounded designer. If it goes wrong? Reflect on it and make it again, only better.
Homeworking	Can I get Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator and InDesign and if not what should I do? FAQ Direct Link	Adobe software is very expensive and they no longer offer perpetual licenses so you can use the software only as long as you keep paying. They offer a reduced rate for students however even that is still expensive particularly for relatively infrequent users: https://www.adobe.com/uk/creativecloud/plans.html?promoid=NV3KR7S1&mv=other The University has a site license for the Affinity graphics software suite - Photo, Publisher and Designer - and free 1 year licenses are available to all students to use on personal computers. The Affinity products are broadly equivalent to Photoshop, InDesign and Illustrator and are now legitimate alternatives with many design houses using these products instead of Adobe. Should you prefer to buy your own license, their pricing is very competitive (often discounted) and is a one off payment. They are also currently providing a 90 day trial for students https://affinity.serif.com/en-gb/ More information and a link to request a student license can be found on 'DMEM Student Resource Page' on Myplace: https://classes.myplace.strath.ac.uk/course/view.php?id=21821#section-36 Note that often the preference for either Adobe or Affinity is their exact colour control for printing. However, excellent results (onscreen and in print) and most of the same onscreen effects and features can be achieved using different and freely available software. Free Photoshop alternatives: GIMP is an open source (free) photo editor which has a very similar feature set to Adobe Photoshop – there is very little that could not be achieved with GIMP and there is good community support and tutorials available https://www.gimp.org/ Free Indesign alternatives: Much can be achieved with PowerPoint in terms of page design and layout. As a Strathclyde student you should also be able to access Microsoft Publisher which has a very small learning curve and is effective for creating folio, brochure and poster layouts. An open source alternative is Scribus https://www.scribus.net/ Free Illustrator alternatives: Illustration and creation of vector graphics is probably a less commonly utilised tool for DMEM students. However, there are good opportunities in folio creation for this and there is a very good open source alternative in Inkscape https://inkscape.org/ This article brings up more options, some of which are paid but have free versions: https://lifehacker.com/27-free-alternatives-to-adobes-expensive-app-subscripti-1831737178
Homeworking	I want to undertake in depth material selection for my project and have heard of Granta (CES) EduPack; is this available to me? FAQ Direct Link	There used to be a student version of EduPack which could be installed on personal devices but unfortunately since Ansys took over the product this is no longer available. Granta EduPack is installed on the University Windows Virtual Desktops and is also available on the JW308 Digital Design and Manufacture Studio (DDMS) and JW706 Studio computers. The premier book on materials selection for product designers, following the same procedures as EduPack is available as an Ebook from the library Ashby, M., Johnson, K., & Elsevier. (2014). Materials and design : The art and science of material selection in product design / [internet resource] (Third ed.). https://suprimo.lib.strath.ac.uk/permalink/f/k7ss9a/SUALMA51121414020002996 Often knowing what other things are made and how they are made is a good starting point for material selection. We also have the ebook online for this excellent book: Lefteri, C. (2012). Making it [internet resource] : Manufacturing techniques for product design (2nd ed.). London: Laurence King Pub. https://suprimo.lib.strath.ac.uk/permalink/f/k7ss9a/SUALMA5185815460002996 SolidWorks has an extensive materials library and the analysis done in SolidWorks linked with the materials library is a very effective way of selecting and justifying materials choices. Another amazing feature of our SolidWorks license is that it has the Matereality (https://www.matereality.com/about) materials selection database built in. Here is a video providing a quick demonstration https://youtu.be/iUhmK-qSRAU
Homeworking	I don’t have a document/photo scanner at home, what is a good way of getting hand written or sketched work into my folio / report? FAQ Direct Link	DMEM photocopiers can be used as scanners into which you feed multiple sheets, single of double sided. Scans are converted to PDF and emailed to you. Please note emails bigger than 20 MB may not send and therefore by mindful of scanning large documents with lots of images; try splitting up. It nearly safe to assume that a majority of DMEM students have either an apple or android phone. If that is you, then consider using your phone for easy and quality scanning. CamScanner (for iOS or Android) or Office Lens (for iOS, Android or Microsoft). Both of these are mainly meant for document scanning (as well as receipts and business cards), but their image scanning is great too. Both have great edge detection and perspective fixing… so no wonky images at odd angles to tidy up. Both include optical character recognition (OCR), so depending on how neat your writing is, they will automatically capture that in an editable format too. Other worthy scanning apps are Scanbot (super fast if you have lots of separate sketches to scan in one go), Evernote’s Scannable, and TinyScanner (iOS or Android). Evernote itself has a great image scanner, and will save your photos directly to your Evernote or to any other one of your favourite clouds. If you don’t use Evernote, then the stand-alone Scannable app is worth a try. Adobe Capture CC (iOS and Android) can capture your sketches as vectorised images. It does a tremendous job of cleaning up, clarifying and smoothing out the lines of the sketch. SketchBook by Autodesk (iOS and Android). SketchBook not only lets you import an image as a new shot from your camera, but it lets you erase the colour of the paper behind the sketch, so that it sits on a transparent background. This is super useful if you want to add layers of colour ‘behind’ your sketch.
Homeworking	I have a CAD model and need to visualise it in a realistic environment for a client or in my folio, how could I do this? [Augmented Reality, AR] FAQ Direct Link	Try Augmented Reality (AR). Free or low cost apps allow you to superimpose your model in the room you are in using a clever QR code system. For example edrawings from solidworks and vurforia from PTC can do this.
Homeworking	I need help with Finite Element Analysis (FEA), what is available? FAQ Direct Link	We cover this for the first time in DM303 Engineering Design in year 3. Referring back to that material on myplace should help with the basics of setting up a static study in SolidWorks as well as mesh control, advanced fixtures and loads through split lines and optimisation studies. The level 5 DM923 Product Modelling and Visualisation class also provides an introduction to FEA. There are many examples and tutorials online, however, selecting which to do will be determined by the design scenario that is to be analysed. There are some good introductory examples included in SolidWorks tutorial library, and an excellent enhanced version of the inbuilt tutorials is included in: Akin, J. E. (2010). Finite element analysis concepts: via SolidWorks. World Scientific. Available here: https://www.clear.rice.edu/mech403/HelpFiles/FEAC_final.pdf SDC publishing also provides a number of very useful books on the topic with lots of examples and model files. Some of these books are in Strathclyde Library, but also have extensive previews on google books (so extensive that they are useable). For example: Shih, R. (2014). Introduction to finite element analysis using solidworks simulation 2014. SDC publications. Nudehi, S., & Steffen, J. (2018). Analysis of Machine Elements Using SOLIDWORKS Simulation 2018. SDC Publications. There is also a good general ebook on FEA for designers in the online university library Kurowski, P., & Society of Automotive Engineers, publisher. (2017). Finite element analysis for design engineers / [internet resource] (Second ed., Society of Automotive Engineers. Electronic publications). Available here: https://suprimo.lib.strath.ac.uk/permalink/f/2esacs/SUALMA5179423320002996 Longer term DMEM will be providing opportunities to become certified as Solidworks Simulation user. Updates will be provided.
Homeworking	I need to work with my project team who are all in different locations, how could I do this? FAQ Direct Link	Many students will naturally use the tools they are used to, Facebook Messenger, whatsapp, google docs, skype... If your team are all familiar and happy to use these then that could be the best option. Zoom is a very good meeting software platform which can provide easy and professional settup of meetings with team mates, clients or academic staff. Many prefer it over skype. Meetings can be voice only, webcam for face to face and it is possible for all participants to share screens for discussing documents or work collaboratively on software such as SolidWorks. It is available to use for staff and students at: https://strath.zoom.us/ Click 'host' to immediately start a meeting and invite people to join through email. All students have access to up to 1TB of space on Onedrive for Business. Files and folders can be shared amongst team members to ensure work is backed up and available to everyone. Access and find out more here https://www.strath.ac.uk/professionalservices/it/saveandshare/onedrive/
Homeworking	I want to improve my sketching at home, what could I do? FAQ Direct Link	There are lots of videos, etc. offering advice on how to draw things. Many are freely available on YouTube, some are linked below. Scott Robertson is a designer and design educator who has worked on another of high-level projects, including concept art for Minority Report, design work for Nike, Nissan, Mattel Toys and Sony Entertainment. “How to Draw” by Scott Robertson http://scottrobertsonworkshops.com/h2dr/videos/ Username: howtodraw Password: howtodraw “How to Render” by Scott Robertson http://scottrobertsonworkshops.com/h2re/videos/ Username: howtorender Password: howtorender From YouTube: Spencer Nugent is “Sketch-a-day” and uploads lots of videos documenting his drawing process https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCBtSgEZk914z5InEs_U2J3w The Design Sketchbook has a series of videos on how to draw, as well as regular drawing content. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCOzx6PA0tgemJl1Ypd_1FTA There are many others, but these should keep you all going initially until the next MADE on Wednesdays sketching workshop in DMEM!
Homeworking	I would like support from technical staff for my project or assignment whilst off campus, what is the best way to get this? FAQ Direct Link	Technicians are available for advice online. If you need to ask us for advice please first email us with your questions. Unless it is a simple question please send us images and a synopsis of your project/idea, what you want to make and what you need to achieve. Remember that you are familiar with your design, we will not be and so need more background information and images to allow us help you. If you are not sure which Technician to ask just email one of us and we’ll advise scott.gubbins@strath.ac.uk d.bertolaccini@strath.ac.uk (Dino) thomas.condie@strath.ac.uk (Tam) dale.gibson@strath.ac.uk neil.shepherd@strath.ac.uk duncan.lindsay@strath.ac.uk Once we have had the chance to review your work, we can then look to discuss things further via email, zoom, skype or phone. There are many online resources available to you, this could be the library or youtube. There will be stuff on myplace also. Unless you have already done so, a physical model will be difficult for anyone to make. So images, pencil sketches, renders, simple homemade (well made) models will suffice. Do as much research online as you can, use that research to inform your design/idea/product. Remember that showing why something will not work (at the moment) is just as valid as showing a positive result. Your research will support your project. You may come across something surprising.
Homeworking	I want to access my files (Onedrive for Business, H: and I: drives) at home, how do I do that? FAQ Direct Link	The recommended cloud storage option for all Strathclyde students is OneDrive for Business (OfB) which can be accessed here: https://www.strath.ac.uk/professionalservices/it/saveandshare/onedrive/ Files on OneDrive are available on PCs in the Centrally Managed Labs and on the Windows Virtual Desktops as well as being available via a web interface or the OneDrive for Business client on a personal PC. The H: and I: drives are useful for some use cases however access from offsite is slightly more difficult and the amount of storage space on offer is much less that on OneDrive. If you definitely need to use H: or I: then you can find details of how to access it here: https://www.strath.ac.uk/professionalservices/is/help/indepth/networkdrives/ Note that Strathcloud was switched off at the end of August 2023 and is no longer available.
Homeworking	I need some guidance on creating folios for my design project work, where can I get that? FAQ Direct Link	We have provided a set of curated Folio generation tutorials at the DMEM Student Resource Myplace page. this includes: document settup, Graphics, Text layout, Page Layout, Finale and Branding. Direct link here https://classes.myplace.strath.ac.uk/mod/book/view.php?id=792299
Homeworking	Can I access the DMEM E-book Library from home? FAQ Direct Link	Yes. DMEM has curated a collection of e-books relevant to DMEM modules and courses which is accessible through a physical QR code library on the wall of the DMEM studio. The same collection of titles, which is growing, can also be accessed through the DMEM Student resource page here: https://classes.myplace.strath.ac.uk/mod/lti/view.php?id=1014425
Homeworking	I think / know I have personal circumstance which are affecting my studies and assessments, what should I do? FAQ Direct Link	Please remember that class registrars, project supervisors, your adviser of studies and the overall Teaching and Learning Team in DMEM are here to support and advise you. For your circumstances to be taken into account, you must follow the Personal Circumstances Procedure outlined by the university here: https://www.strath.ac.uk/sees/studentpolicies/policies/appealscomplaintsdiscipline/personalcircumstancesprocedure/ This page very clearly sets out how to record and evidence your personal circumstances, how to request an extension and what other allowances might be made. There is also a link, on that page, to the well-being services in the university to support you further https://www.strath.ac.uk/professionalservices/disabilityandwellbeing/ From March 2020, all mental health and wellbeing, disability and counselling appointments are being offered via video or telephone. Students also have the option of obtaining online support via email if this is preferable. disability-wellbeing@strath.ac.uk Students, and staff, can obtain immediate access to support via SilverCloud, our online CBT (Cognitive Behavioural Therapy) e-learning platform: https://www.strath.ac.uk/wellbeing/stressandmentalhealth/self-help/ .
Homeworking	I am off campus, how do I access specialist DMEM and University software? FAQ Direct Link	The University has deployed a Windows Virtual Desktop (WVD) environment to allow specialist teaching applications to be made available to the University community for use off campus and from a wide range of devices. These can be accessed using a web brower at: http://aka.ms/wvdarmweb or you can get better performance by downloading the Remote Desktop Client from: https://aka.ms/wvd/clients Currently (2021-22) there are two WVDs available: "Express '21" with Office and Project and "Student '21" which has most of the software available in the centrally managed labs including SolidWorks 2021 Rhino 6 DFMA EDGECAM 2020.0 Granta (formerly CES) EduPack 2021 There is more detail about the WVDs at: https://www.strath.ac.uk/professionalservices/it/use/offcampus/virtualdesktop/
Homeworking	I am having a problem with SolidWorks FAQ Direct Link	There are a few issues with SolidWorks that we tend to see more commonly: 1) Error message when installing: "Microsoft SQL Server failed to install. Instance name TEW_SQLEXPRESS is already in use. To continue, specify a unique instance name." This happens when the SolidWorks installer tries to add a SQL Server database but can't because there is an existing version with the same name. The simplest fix is to choose Custom installation and remove SolidWorks Electrical from the options. We don't usually use SolidWorks Electrical but if you are sure you require it then you either need to uninstall the existing SQL Server Express instance or change the installation configuration for SolidWorks Electrical to give the database instance a different name. 2) Error message when installing: "Unsupported SQL Server Version. SQL Server 2016 or later is required" SQL Server 2014 Express was installed by SolidWorks 2021 and several prior versions but SolidWorks 2022 no longer supports this version. It is needed only for SolidWorks Electrical so options are either to uninstall SQL Server (from Add/Remove Programs) or do a Custom Install and omit SolidWorks Electrical. 3) When I try to close SolidWorks I get an error message that says “The operating system is not presently configured to run this application.” This is a known conflict between SolidWorks 2020 and Office 365. This page has one solution involving installing an older version of the Microsoft Access Database Engine: https://hawkridgesys.com/kb/users-using-solidworks-2020-sp4-finding-error-the-operating-system-is-not-presently-configured-to-run-this-application and this page tells you how to roll back Office updates: https://forum.solidworks.com/thread/243634?commentID=1074291#comment-1074291

This FAQ is for DMEM Students - answers may not apply to students in other Departments/Faculties

Questions and Answers Specific to Homeworking are below

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