MakerBot’s 3D printing software, MakerWare, for operating a MakerBot Desktop 3D Printer, has been made easier to use. MakerWare  2.2.0, released on June 12, 2013, offers expanded features and updates that make the 3D printing experience more intuitive and helps with the overall 3D printing experience.

Here’s what’s new:

Improved Support – Now, objects use less plastic and print faster, and cleanup of support material is faster and easier too. Printing a sculpture with a distinct Romanesque nose often needs support so the nose doesn’t droop. MakerWare’s 2.2.0 release offers improved support that generates supports only where they are needed. The support material’s pattern has also been updated, so it’s much easier to break away from an object.

Improved Rafts – The new software is equipped with improved rafts. The new rafts detach more easily, creating a smoother bottom surface. A raft is a thin foundation of extruded material that helps your object stick to the build plate during a print, keeping it level and secure.

Improved Narrow Feature Handling – With the improvements, your 3D printed designs should come out complete, without as many gaps and voids.

Other New Features – also new are improved default print settings, a high-quality default MakerBot Slicer for faster-slicing high-resolution prints, easy to remove rafts, minimal support material, easy to detach support material, better handling of narrow features, removal of diagonal lines from surface walls and first layers, new smoothing algorithm, better bridging, multiple infill patterns, a new Skeinforge default profile, a subtle skybox option, a homing button for Thing-O-Matics, and more.

In addition to the update, the new MakerBot Firmware 7.3.0 was also released. This version offers added print time to the interface board during prints – the interface now toggles between print percentage and print time. The ability to swap filament at specific layer heights by using the Z Pause Height option during prints has been another highly requested feature. Small text display bugs have been fixed and during mid-print filament changes, the stepper motor now locks to prevent the extruder from becoming misaligned. We have also improved our heater-error notifications, to help users diagnose heating issues more easily.

“We are always looking for ways to make 3D printing even easier,” said Bre Pettis, CEO of MakerBot. “The new updates to MakerWare provide numerous features that should make those new to 3D printing have a great experience, and make experienced 3D printer users very happy.”

The new MakerWare 2.2.0 updates are available for download from www.makerbot.com/makerware.

MakerBot
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