Quote Originally Posted by old man emu View Post
In regards to software, you will have to accept that CAD and CAM software which is combined in one package tends to be for CNC operations, where material is REMOVED from a block. With 3D printing, the CAM software has to work out how to ADD material, so packages of CAD and CAM are rare.

The investigation process you should follow is to determine which CAM software looks good to you, and then find out what file types it will import (best choice is *.stl). Then look at CAD software that will export file types that the CAM software will import.

The microprocessor that runs your printer will happily accept Gcode from any 3D CAM software.

I'm using Slic3r as my CAM software and it is producing good Gcode. Since it is Open Source, it is (1) Free and (2) Always being improved. There are other free 3D CAM software programs you can explore.

Old Man Emu
Great information. I'll take your advice and work out the CAM equation first.

Just as an aside, with so much free CAD and CAM software out there, it would seem that some industrious 3d printer company could work out some kind of package that has been tested end to end and isn't expensive.