The three-dimensional mouse from 3D Connexion is now supported by Siemens’ Solid Edge, bringing it’s useful manipulation of screen navigation to the synchronous technology involved.

Advanced navigation features in Solid Edge Part, SheetMetal, Weldment, Assembly, and Draft documents allowing engineers to move in all three dimensions simultaneously with six degrees of freedom.

The addition brings the total number of 3D software titles supporting this nifty bit of hardware to over 130.

For anyone trying to keep tabs on the flurry of law suits being undertaken and pending between the major CAD software producers, Autodesk have asked for their action against Dassault Systemes to be suspended.

This move comes after they have already spent a reported $2 million in this case of ‘handbags’ over the use of the initials DWG.

Having registered DWGgateway and DWGeditor as trademarks, Autodesk went to work on Dassault in the civil courts, being particularly annoyed with this (the same initials as the .dwg file name they feel they have rights over). Autodesk are hoping that the action through the civil courts will be enough to avoid dragging the whole carbuncle up to the US patent office. Not as exciting as OJ, but news nonetheless.

Fusty old Autodesk have decided to have a shake-up of its student design and engineering community website to make it more like the “popular social networking sites frequented by students.”

This could be viewed as an attempt to drag the 350,000 plus members of Audodesk’s online student community away from ‘poking’ each other on Facebook and back into doing some actual studying using their products.

In addition to the new, not-unlike-Facebook interface, users are offered showcases for their work, a careers centre, learning guides, and the opportunity to write their own informative, witty, nothing-like-this blog.

“We created the Student Community to provide students with the vital tools and information they need to learn the design process and be successful in their careers.” LOL’d Paul Mailhot, director of worldwide education programs at Autodesk.

New Ambient Occlusion functionality has been added to LightWorks’ latest release, offering intelligent, predictable realistic lighting for rendering.

Targeted at the AEC sector, with the new lighting settings aimed primarily for interiors, the imaging for product touts it as a universal lighting solution with a wide range of lighting effects. A range of new shaders offer users more realistic effects, allowing the creation of glossy plastics, brushed metals, car paints, varnished surfaces and lacquered finishes. All of which is good news for the users of the 80 software applications that have LightWorks embedded.