Project Freewheel 1.0.3 Now Available

Using the software as a service model, we have updated the Project Freewheel server to build 1.0.3.44. This means you have access to the latest and greatest Freewheel at your disposal without having to install updates to your computers. You just visit http://freewheel.labs.autodesk.com with your browser and take advantage of the new capabilities. These include:

• View only option available (appending "&mode=ViewOnly" to URL omits collaboration user interface elements and file menu items)
• Go from embedded to full screen and revert view back to embedded
• Joining a collaboration session in progress is much faster
• Require users to login when publishing from ShareNow
  (files now always associated with a user so they can be managed (e.g. deleted) by the user)
• File names uploaded via ShareNow now match original file name (was tmp0.dwf)
• File viewed using URLs (instead of uploading a local file) appear in user's My Designs list
• Markup stokes created using Sketch tool appear as a single markup item in the Markup List
  (markup group starts when Sketch icon is clicked; ends when any other command icon is clicked)
• Performance improvements (e.g. Navigation Wheel CENTER operation)
• Users correctly notified when attempting to upload a file that exceeds file size limits
  (For Project Freewheel, Autodesk Labs has set this to 15MB.)
• Improved problem detection and recovery
• Server file caching performance improvements
• Developer documentation note: valid camera projection types are "pers" and "orth" for perspective and orthographic, respectively
• Help file updated to be more descriptive
• About Box updated to reflect newly added technologies from 3rd parties

Thanks to your keen feedback, we have also corrected some defects that you have identified:

• Markups in 3D not always displayed to all session participants
• Last markup item could not be deleted correctly
• Mouse zoom wheel zooms to center of screen instead of cursor location
• Orbiting around the Z axis uses low resolution image
• Navigation Wheel REWIND gets stuck if other collaboration users updates view
• Files with rendering errors remain in server file cache
• Users without email addresses cause internal error when exiting collaboration session
• Empty session name results in error
• Submit button not disabled during file upload
• Date format not consistent for files, sessions, and markups
• Safari look not always consistent with Internet Explorer and Firefox

So please keep using Project Freewheel and let us know what you think: labs.freewheel@autodesk.com. We welcome the good, the bad, and the occasional ugly. To our loyal Freewheel users, we thank you for your continued usage. You are making Freewheel better and better. To those who have yet to experience Project Freewheel, it's never too late to start.

Evolving our design viewing and collaboration solution that relies on only a browser is alive in the lab.