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<span style="color:#cf7606; font-size:200%;">'''Welcome to'''&nbsp;</span><span style="color:#005288; font-size:200%;">'''FreeCAD'''</span>
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== Introduction ==
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This is the documentation wiki of [http://www.freecadweb.org FreeCAD]. There are several ways to use this documentation: by exploring the hubs, by following the manual, or by using the Help menu entries from within FreeCAD. This is a work in progress, written by the community of users and developers of FreeCAD. If you find information that is wrong or missing, please [[Special:MyLanguage/help_FreeCAD|help FreeCAD]]!
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== The hubs == <!--T:3-->
'''FreeCAD''' will be a general purpose 3D [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CAD CAD] modeler. The development will be completely ''Open Source''. As with many modern 3D [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CAD '''CAD'''] modelers it will have a 2D component in order to extract design detail from the 3D model to create 2D production drawings, although 2D (e.g. AutoCAD LT) is not the focus, neither are animation and organic shapes (e.g. Maya, 3D StudioMAX and Cinema 4D).


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FreeCAD is aimed directly at mechanical engineering, product design and related features like CatiaV4 and V5, SolidWorks and Solid Edge, and therefore also falls into the category of [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CAD '''MCAD'''], [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Product_Lifecycle_Management '''PLM'''], [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CAx '''CAx'''] and [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Computer-aided_engineering '''CAE''']. It will be a [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parametric_feature_based_modeler feature based parametric modeler] with a modular software architecture which makes it easy to provide additional functionality without modifying the core system.
[[Image:Crystal_Clear_app_display.png|64px|left]] [[User_hub|Users hub]]: This page contains documentation useful for FreeCAD users in general: a list of all the workbenches, detailed instructions on how to install and use the FreeCAD application, tutorials, and all you need to get started.
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[[Image:Crystal Clear app terminal.png|64px|left]] [[Power_users_hub|Power users hub]]: This page gathers documentation for advanced users and people interested in writing Python scripts. There you will also find a repository of macros, instructions on how to install and use them, and more information about customizing FreeCAD to your specific needs.
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[[Image:Crystal Clear app tutorials.png|64px|left]] [[Developer_hub|Developers hub]]: This section contains material for developers: How to compile FreeCAD yourself, how the FreeCAD source code is structured, how to navigate the source code, how to develop new workbenches, and embed FreeCAD in your own application.
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== Manual == <!--T:5-->
Got curious? Take a look at the [[Feature list]] or the [[Getting started]] articles.


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Also a major concern of FreeCAD is to utilize all the great libraries out there in the field of [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientific_Computation Scientific Computing]. E.g. the [http://OpenCascade.org OpenCascade] library.
[[Image:Crystal_Clear_manual.png|64px|left]] [[Manual:Introduction|The FreeCAD manual]] is another, more linear way to present the information contained in this wiki. It is designed to be read like a book, and will gently introduce you to many other pages from the hubs above. [https://www.gitbook.com/book/yorikvanhavre/a-freecad-manual/details ebook versions] are also available, as well as [https://www.freecadweb.org/manual/ a couple of translations in pdf format].
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== Table of contents == <!--T:15-->


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The Table of contents is available in several languages:
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{{Click | image=FreeCAD_Screenshot.png | link=User hub | width=300px| height=221px}}
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* [[Image:Flag-en.jpg]] [[Online Help Toc|Table of contents]]
* [[Image:Flag-bg.jpg]] [[Online Help Toc/bg|Съдържание]]
* [[Image:Flag-cn.jpg‎]] [[Online_Help_Toc/zh|目錄]] zh
* [[Image:Flag-cn.jpg]] [[Online Help Toc/zh-cn|目录]] zh-cn
* [[Image:Flag-cn.jpg‎]] [[Online_Help_Toc/zh-tw|目錄]] zh-tw
* [[Image:Flag-cs.jpg]] [[Online Help Toc/cs|Obsah]]
* [[Image:Flag-de.jpg]] [[Online Help Toc/de|Inhaltsverzeichnis]]
* [[Image:Flag-es.jpg]] [[Online Help Toc/es|Índice de contenidos]]
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* [[Image:Flag-fr.jpg]] [[Online Help Toc/fr|Table des matières]]
* [[Image:Flag-hr.jpg]] [[Online Help Toc/hr|Sadržaj]]
* [[Image:Flag-id.jpg]] [[Online Help Toc/id|Daftar isi]]
* [[Image:Flag-it.jpg]] [[Online Help Toc/it|Sommario]]
* [[Image:Flag-jp.jpg]] [[Online Help Toc/ja|目次]] ja
* [[Image:Flag-ko.jpg]] [[Online Help Toc/ko|온라인 도움말]]
* [[Image:Flag-pl.jpg]] [[Online Help Toc/pl|Spis Treści]]
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* [[Image:Flag-pt.jpg]] [[Online Help Toc/pt|Tabela de conteúdos]] pt
* [[Image:Flag-pt-br.jpg]] [[Online Help Toc/pt-br|Índice]] pt-br
* [[Image:Flag-ro.jpg]] [[Online_Help_Toc/ro|Cuprins]]
* [[Image:Flag-ru.jpg]] [[Online Help Toc/ru|Содержание]]
* [[Image:Flag-sv.jpg]] [[Online Help Toc/sv|Innehallsforteckning]]
* [[Image:Flag-tr.jpg]] [[Online Help Toc/tr|İçindekiler]]
* [[Image:Flag-uk.jpg]] [[Online Help Toc/uk|Вміст]]
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== Get involved == <!--T:7-->


=== How to participate === <!--T:8-->
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'''[[Download]]'''
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'''[http://sourceforge.net/project/screenshots.php?group_id=49159 Screen shots]'''
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'''[[About FreeCAD]]'''
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'''[[Help|Help & Support]]'''
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'''[[About this site]]'''


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There is plenty to do inside the FreeCAD project, if you are interested in helping us. Of course, there are programming tasks for C++ or Python programmers, but there are also many things you can do even if you cannot code, such as
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* writing documentation and [[WikiPages|editing the wiki (en)]]
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* helping newcomers
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* translating the application and documentation
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* helping with the packaging of the latest release of FreeCAD for your favourite operating system
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* helping other people around you to discover FreeCAD.
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| valign="top" | {{Click | image=Crystal_Clear_app_display.png | link=User hub | width=80px| height=80px}}
The [[Special:MyLanguage/help_FreeCAD|help FreeCAD]] page describes it all with more details. Starting from 2016, FreeCAD also participates in the [[Google_Summer_of_Code|Google Summer of Code]].
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* Tutorials
=== Source code === <!--T:10-->
* [[Manual]]

* [[Workbenches|Workbench]] documentation
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* '''[[User hub|More]]'''
FreeCAD can be compiled on all platforms using [https://cmake.org/ CMake]. The source code is [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GNU_Lesser_General_Public_License LGPL]-licensed and hosted on [https://github.com/FreeCAD/FreeCAD GitHub] and mirrored on [https://gitlab.com/freecad/FreeCAD GitLab], [https://sourceforge.net/projects/free-cad/ SourceForge] and [https://codeberg.org/FreeCAD/FreeCAD CodeBerg]. There are build instructions for [[Compile_on_Windows|Windows]], [[Compile_on_Linux|Linux]] and [[Compile_on_MacOS|MacOS]]. The source code documentation is [http://www.freecadweb.org/api/ hosted here], generated by [[Doxygen|Doxygen]], and [[Source_documentation|documented on the wiki]].
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=== About the development === <!--T:12-->
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Check the [[Development roadmap|Development roadmap]] for news about what is being planned, the [http://www.freecadweb.org/tracker/changelog_page.php Changelog] and [http://www.freecadweb.org/tracker/roadmap_page.php Roadmap] pages on the [http://www.freecadweb.org/tracker FreeCAD tracker] to see the progress towards next release, or the [http://www.ohloh.net/p/freecad Project statistics] for even more information about the FreeCAD codebase. All the development communication happens on the [http://forum.freecadweb.org forum], so be sure to visit it if you are interested in participating.
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| valign="top" | {{Click |image=Crystal_Clear_app_terminal.png | link=Power users hub | width=80px| height=80px}}

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* Customizing
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* [[Scripting]]
[[Category:Documentation{{#translation:}}]]
* '''[[Power users hub|More]]'''
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<div style="font-size: 105%; padding:0.4em; background-color:#eeeeee; border-bottom:1px solid #aaaaaa; text-align: center;">'''Developers'''</div>
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| valign="top" | {{Click | image=Crystal_Clear_app_tutorials.png | link=Developer hub | width=80px| height=80px}}
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* [[CompileOnWindows|Compiling on Windows]]
* [[CompileOnUnix|Compiling on Unix]]
* [[Licence]]
* '''[[Developer hub|More]]'''
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[[Image:Exquisite-khelpcenter.png|right|20px|Info icon]]'''News'''
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{{FreeCAD News}}
* '''[[News|Older news...]]'''
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[[Image:Crystal 128 down.png|right|18px|Download]] '''[[Download|Current Versions]]'''
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*[http://sourceforge.net/project/showfiles.php?group_id=49159&package_id=206659 Download Installer]
*[http://downloads.sourceforge.net/free-cad/freecad_0.6.472-1_i386.deb Download debian package]
*[http://sourceforge.net/project/showfiles.php?group_id=49159&package_id=206659 Download source code]
*[http://sourceforge.net/project/showfiles.php?group_id=49159&package_id=157551 Download LibPack]
[http://sourceforge.net/project/showfiles.php?group_id=49159 All FreeCAD downloads on sf.net]
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Latest revision as of 21:46, 18 September 2023

Introduction

This is the documentation wiki of FreeCAD. There are several ways to use this documentation: by exploring the hubs, by following the manual, or by using the Help menu entries from within FreeCAD. This is a work in progress, written by the community of users and developers of FreeCAD. If you find information that is wrong or missing, please help FreeCAD!

The hubs

Users hub: This page contains documentation useful for FreeCAD users in general: a list of all the workbenches, detailed instructions on how to install and use the FreeCAD application, tutorials, and all you need to get started.

Power users hub: This page gathers documentation for advanced users and people interested in writing Python scripts. There you will also find a repository of macros, instructions on how to install and use them, and more information about customizing FreeCAD to your specific needs.

Developers hub: This section contains material for developers: How to compile FreeCAD yourself, how the FreeCAD source code is structured, how to navigate the source code, how to develop new workbenches, and embed FreeCAD in your own application.

Manual

The FreeCAD manual is another, more linear way to present the information contained in this wiki. It is designed to be read like a book, and will gently introduce you to many other pages from the hubs above. ebook versions are also available, as well as a couple of translations in pdf format.

Table of contents

The Table of contents is available in several languages:

Get involved

How to participate

There is plenty to do inside the FreeCAD project, if you are interested in helping us. Of course, there are programming tasks for C++ or Python programmers, but there are also many things you can do even if you cannot code, such as

  • writing documentation and editing the wiki (en)
  • helping newcomers
  • translating the application and documentation
  • helping with the packaging of the latest release of FreeCAD for your favourite operating system
  • helping other people around you to discover FreeCAD.

The help FreeCAD page describes it all with more details. Starting from 2016, FreeCAD also participates in the Google Summer of Code.

Source code

FreeCAD can be compiled on all platforms using CMake. The source code is LGPL-licensed and hosted on GitHub and mirrored on GitLab, SourceForge and CodeBerg. There are build instructions for Windows, Linux and MacOS. The source code documentation is hosted here, generated by Doxygen, and documented on the wiki.

About the development

Check the Development roadmap for news about what is being planned, the Changelog and Roadmap pages on the FreeCAD tracker to see the progress towards next release, or the Project statistics for even more information about the FreeCAD codebase. All the development communication happens on the forum, so be sure to visit it if you are interested in participating.