Since my post in March I have moved to Simplify 3D for slicing and have learned a lot more about using Fusion 360. I am very happy with both.
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I too settled on Fusion 360 earlier this year and using Simplify3D.
ā¦and I just keep partying with my Snapmaker
Have a great day
Doug
Are the features and performance actually worth the $150 investment over using Slic3r and Cura. Obviously you have spent the money but can you offer some examples of what your experience has been. What it does better than the others. Based on their website is looks great but I like personal recommendations. 
Thank You.
Well, thatās an interesting question considering that $150 buys about five kg of filament.
Simplify 3D (S3D) seems to produce better quality prints in most cases. I havenāt done a whole lot of testing to confirm this but observed an improvement when I changed software - this should really only be classed as anecdotal evidence, but there are some older reviews out there which support this.
The main aspect of the software I like is the workflow improvement, both from the simple easy to use interface and the Factory Files. Factory Files hold the model and all of the settings for the development of the particular STL - they are very useful when trying to narrow down the best settings for a particular model and filament. I understand similar things are possible with other software but itās not as easy to use.
Other software has steadily been improving and Iām not sure if Iād go for S3D based upon printing/slicing features alone. For me the ease of use and workflow improvements are the real power of S3D - your use case might not support that. Additionally, the writers of S3D are very slow on their updates (seems to be yearly only) and itās probably due for one soon.
In summary, S3D hasnāt directly saved $150 in filament from fewer failed models, but it has saved me quite a bit of time. Thatās worth $150 to me but might not be to you.
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What do you use for the laser cutting? I have just received my unit in the post but am unsure how to design something to cut out
@rick
Thanks for the feedback. Iām going to look at Cura some more first but Iāll keep an eye on S3D also. I like the idea of the Factory files. I still need to do a lot of reading on 3D printing in general. Itās a fun learning process though.
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Thanks @doug I new I had run across that page but couldnāt remember what is was called to find it again. I have it bookmarked now.
Best, D_Cubed
I have the nozzle temp setting non existent as well, seems only to happen when I modify an stl. file in Cura or SnapMaker.
I think I have figured it out, the gcode works differently on Cura, it warms the bed up first and then heats the printhead. Snapmakerjs heats the print head first, then the bed.
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I downloaded Emachine software. Its free and has tutorials how to use it. You can draw in 3D and seems pretty simple. Although I havānt received my Snapmaker yet Iām ready to learnā¦ cheers
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I remember checking out eMachineShop back in 2004, but didnāt have much use for it back then. Iām surprised to see itās still around.
Unfortunately the .stl export is not quite ready for prime time (i.e. not fully operational) but itās probably worth keeping an eye on.
Back in the '90s I (for my personal use) used to be a fan of AutoCad, starting with Autosketch, then moving up to LT, but I parted ways with Autodesk because of itās aggresive marketing and licencing model. Iām not big on subscription licencing, so you wonāt find me using Fusion360, Tinkercad or any other Autodesk products.
I do use Sketchup for most of my woodworking projects this is the standalone Maker version as Iām often working in places where I have no Internet - so no cloud or online apps for me. I like Sketchupās ease of use, but do miss the boolean functions in the freeware. For the amount I use it however I canāt legitimize me getting the Pro version.
So Iām currently taking a look at FreeCad. Iām not totally taken with it, I find it somewhat overcomplex, and the UI is very inconsistent within itself. You can tell itās being put together by a committee and it is rather unstable. But I shall persevere; perhaps I will also end up re-evaluating eMachineShop 
As for slicers, Iāve noticed that SnapmakerJS seems to be based on the same opensource foundation as Cura and 'til now serves my purposes.
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Hi, are there any more people here who regularly use Sketchup to design for the Snapmaker? Iām considering to use the Black Friday special offer (valid until the 2nd of December) buying the Sketchup Pro version, mainly to design the conversion of our barn into a liveable space but Iām not sure yet. I used to work with the free version but I badly miss the layers function. One of the reasons to buy / not to buy the Pro version would be if it works well for 3d printing / CNC design. Still waiting for my Snapmaker so I canāt very well test it myself 
Very interested in anyoneās experience.
Iām wondering if you would help me Iāve been trying to get a program to work with snap maker I have not figured out how to download but it will not open up on the snap make your lamb and if there is anyway I can get a copy of your account that 3-D CAD Iād appreciate any help you can give me thank you Iām new at this and Iām just trying to learn
Do TinkerCAD and Fusion360 work for 3D printing as well as laser engraving and CNC routing? Or do I need to acquire and learn different software for each toolhead?
Tinkercad is for creating 3D shapes.
Fusion can also create 3D shapes and create the tool paths for CNC.
I still use both. Tinkercad is super simple and fast so for a lot of things Iāll just use that.
Sometimes even if Iām going to use Fusion for the tool paths.
You can create and slice in Fusion, but I think there are better slicers like Cura or Prusaslicer that are free.
Technically Fusion also works for laser but Iāve never figured out why anyone would want to use it for that. Better off just using a graphics program.
-S
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@sdj544 Thanks for the forceful backup. I do have some follow-on questions though. Can I create files in TinkerCAD and Fusion, then slice them with Luban?
What do you mean by graphics program? Say I want to make a wooden sign that is engraved, what program could I make that in and get it into the Snapmaker?
Inkscape would be a good choice, using an SVG with text converted to lines.
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Yes. Any 3d modeling program, tinkercad, fusion, blender, sketchup, etc that can output an STL. Import STL to luban and slice.
Inkscape, gimp, krita are some free graphics programs. Photoshop, illustrator, Affinity Photo, Affinity Designer, Coreldraw are some paid ones. Export as svg (convert text to curves or paths - whatever nomenclature your program uses) or as png. (Luban can take some others like jpg or dxf, but those are the best/cause least problems)
-S
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I use Sketchup. For free! I found Sketcup 8 from one of my old computers and an addon which can export in .stl and .dxf formats. 
Good enough for me