CAD and Software clones

So, like a lot of people, within the last 2 weeks, we have probably all heard about popular software like Photoshop and the Adobe suite being clean-room reverse-engineered and having the "Craft Suite".

Basically, for those who don't know, Adobe has been a very abusive company to its users for well over a decade. It has anti-consumer practices, like making canceling the subscription a very strenuous and frustrating, by design, task. Every update busts users' knees with Terms of Service changes, and they use our art to train datasets for LLMs. I know and work with a lot of artists in my laser-cutting hobby, and many of them see Adobe as the devil. They have the software people need to draw or be creative, but they punish the user for choosing it.

Which, for a long time, has led to people begging for an alternative. A lot of artists hate Adobe's practices but need their software. The more I write this out, the more it feels like I'm describing an abusive relationship, which really hits it on the nose. Leaving that analogy, it has led to many people allegedly pirating cracked versions of the software, or seeking FOSS software like Krita or GIMP. And I'm going to say this now: GIMP is not Photoshop!

With the increasing nickel-and-diming of every service for that crispy and succulent dataset, it felt rather bleak for people who use mainstream proprietary software for their work or hobby. Companies like Twitch recently have a "use my content for AI training, auto-on" option, making a lot of streamers and fans upset with them. Rightfully so, but within the last 2 weeks it seems a lot of very smart developers have decided to turn the tables on these corporations—by programming and using an LLM to assist in developing open-source software that very closely mimics the paid, enshittified software.

At first, the word AI just made me sigh. Recently, while I work at Walmart and continue my college education, there are constant overhead PA-system speakers talking about a built-in LLM chatbot in the Walmart app, which, to be honest, just annoys me! But the recent reversal—from companies stealing user data to users stealing companies' data—has really improved my outlook on the future.

For example, in my previous post I talked about building a linked dipole. I wanted to design it in such a way that best fits my needs, given how proficient I am in Fusion 360. That has left me, for the last 6 months, in a kind of shitty decision. Autodesk wants you to pay out the ASS for a license; Onshape is free, but nothing is private, and both are cloud-based, requiring an internet connection. I just hate it! Both ways, I feel like I'm getting screwed!!! Then came an AI clone of Fusion 360 called SolidCraft, and it's SCARY how close it is to Fusion! It runs on my local computer and exports the files to my computer, and it doesn't need a login or a cloud subscription? SIGN ME THE FUCK UP!

Now, I have tried Onshape, Inventor, FreeCAD, and so, so many CAD software, and I always crawl back to Fusion 360. Everything just feels right and works the way I expect, but just like artists with Adobe, I feel abused by Autodesk—$400 a year for a license to a service where it's all cloud-based, and that means if they're experiencing issues. SUCKS TO SUCK!

I have tried SolidCraft, and I really like it! It still needs a lot of work and fixes, but it really excites me to have a Fusion 360 I can own!

What are your thoughts on AI cloning cyber space?