I see printers but not software...advice and opinions?

[munter]

I hope someone can point me to a suitable sofware package.

The Ender3 printer has been mentioned so many times it looks like the way to go with hardware but software?
I am blinded and confused with that part so any input would be appreciated.

TIA
John

[chappyman66]

Most folks use Cura as the slicer..... it's free and apparently there are plenty of tutorials.

For design, there are many other choices.....Meshmixer,Blender, and real CAD pacakges...

[PetesLightKits]

Software-wise, there are 2 steps to getting things 3D printed. The design software, of which there are many, from TinkerCAD (free web-based) to AutoCAD ($$$). This is where you design your model, obviously, which then needs to be "sliced" which is a fancy way to describe converting the 3D model file format (usually OBJ or STL) into a format that is readable by the 3D printer (gcode). The most popular slicer software is CURA. It is free and comes with built in settings for the Ender3.

Hope that helps,
Peter

[munter]

Thank you...that clears my thinking and increases my knowledge.

Appreciate that.
John