Project Freewheel update (includes DWFx support) now available

We made an update to our Project Freewheel servers. We updated them to build 1.0.1.33. Build 33 offers the following improvements over build 31:

1. Support for DWFx files. If you are publishing DWF files in the newer DWFx flavor, you are already enjoying the benefit of letting people view your designs on Microsoft Vista without requiring the download and installation of Autodesk Design Review. Using Project Freewheel, the ever present "no install" benefit for DWF now also applies to DWFx. Let's recap what this means for viewing design data.

Operating System	File	Project Freewheel	application
Windows Vista	DWFx	no install	no install - native XPS viewer or install - Autodesk Design Review
	DWF	no install	install - Autodesk Design Review
Windows XP	DWFx	no install	install - available XPS viewer or install -Autodesk Design Review
	DWF	no install	install - Autodesk Design Review
Windows 2000 SP4	DWFx	no install	install - Autodesk Design Review
	DWF	no install	install - Autodesk Design Review
Linux	DWFx	no install	unavailable
	DWF	no install	unavailable
Macintosh OS X	DWFx	no install	unavailable
	DWF	no install	install - MacDwiff

Project Freewheel never requires an install. Whether you install an application or not depends on what operating system you are using and whether or not you are using DWFx or classic DWF. In addition to viewing, Project Freewheel offers additional capabilities: What's New in Project Freewheel 1.0.1 such as real time collaboration.

2. Correction for cache file handling. When I published my article Project Freewheel: The importance of the right amount of cache, it prompted one of our users to give us feedback that Freewheel did not appear to operate as I had specified in the article. It turns out that he was right. We had a bug. We fixed it. This is exactly what this feedback thing is supposed to be all about.

3. More robust event handling. Some of you reported difficulties with sharing sessions while using Firefox. Though our event handling was working well for Internet Explorer, differences among how browsers operate needed to be accounted for in more ways than one. We have made improvements in this area.

4. Better error messages. When working with Freewheel, a variety of unexpected things can happen. For many of these, the Freewheel server would issue a message: Error rendering file. We have added additional checking to provide more meaningful error messages. For example, if you try to load a DWF that has Digital Rights Management enabled, e.g. printing disallowed, the server will rightfully tell you that DWF files with DRM are not supported at this time. When put into practice, this will be helpful for sites like CADoogle.

5. Restored Impression Rendering. Feedback from users on builds 32 and 31 identified processing problems with regard to our Impression technology integration. In response, we temporary turned off this capability. With build 33, the ability to render your designs using Impression technology has been restored.

6. Modified Impression unavailable icon. Our Impression technology works for 2D. The Impression team noticed that our icon for Impression rendering being unavailable for 3D was inconsistent with our other icons. They supplied us with an updated icon, and we used it. See, not only do we listen to our users, but we'll also take feedback from internal groups. :-)

We hope that you will continue to experiment with Project Freewheel and keep the feedback pouring in via [email protected]. Thanks to all those who have spent countless hours using it so far. Your efforts are shaping our Web 2.0 future.