alibre on Mac OS (Apple)

[stepalibre]

the difference is that if I 'knew' it didn't work, I would simply get a MacBook Air to mirror. If I knew it worked, I'd get a loaded up MacBook Pro. FYI, going to retire early (51) and will be traveling in a small RV, hence the reason for seeing if this worked. I could eliminate the need for a monitor and just use the vision pro as my entertainment and computing setup. In theory I'd be able to sit in a coffee shop and do CAD on a "100 inch monitor" while only having to bring a laptop, keyboard, mouse. I guess a loaded up MacBook Pro couldn't hurt...

Interesting. A Mac forum or online content somewhere focused on Mac and Vision Pro would be helpful. I would buy to try it out, and return it. If you do buy it let us know how it all performed.

 

[EPowIPi]

OK, reviving an old thread here. I'm hoping things have improved since 2015, but I'm actually looking to mirror Alibre to the Apple Vision Pro, which would need to be done in Parallels, or whatever the newest app is. Has anyone had recent experience running Alibre in Mac OS (not dual boot, must be running in Mac OS in a window to be mirrored to Vision Pro).

Have tried it on a Macbook Pro M2 with the current Parallels version and Windows 11 for ARM. Works ok so far for simple (or let's say - few parts) assemblies. Windows 11 for ARM uses quite efficient x86 emulation - but it is still emulation. And I guess that it is software rendering without GPU support in Parallels. So my conclusion would be that Alibre Design can be used on already available Apple Silicon Macs, but I wouldn't buy a Macbook just for that. Fingers crossed for a Mac native Alibre app!
Edit: DirectX11 seems to be GPU accelerated to some degree in Parallels.

 

[stepalibre]

Have tried it on a Macbook Pro M2 with the current Parallels version and Windows 11 for ARM. Works ok so far for simple (or let's say - few parts) assemblies. Windows 11 for ARM uses quite efficient x86 emulation - but it is still emulation. And I guess that it is software rendering without GPU support in Parallels. So my conclusion would be that Alibre Design can be used on already available Apple Silicon Macs, but I wouldn't buy a Macbook just for that. Fingers crossed for a Mac native Alibre app!
Edit: DirectX11 seems to be GPU accelerated to some degree in Parallels.

Yes, Parallels has the best GPU support with Windows 10/11 on macOS. It's incredibly near native running my custom software. It's debatable if the performance is Parallels, Windows, the software or macOS/hardware.

 

[pstemari]

Very, very interesting. Do you need a Microsoft ID to run Windows 11 apps on Parallels. That's been my major objection to W11: you have to a Microsoft ID to log into your own computer unless you hack the installer, which I don't want to do.

 

[EPowIPi]

Very, very interesting. Do you need a Microsoft ID to run Windows 11 apps on Parallels. That's been my major objection to W11: you have to a Microsoft ID to log into your own computer unless you hack the installer, which I don't want to do.

It is essentially the same as when installing Windows 11 on a usual PC. Microsoft makes it more difficult with every revision to set up a local account. But currently it is still possible, at least with Windows 11 Pro and Enterprise (Edit: Apparently it also works for Home - with even more workarounds: Not entering the license initially, installing Pro, setting up a local account and then reverting to Home by entering a home license). (Just search for tutorials). As I want to be able to access my OneDrive share, I am using a Microsoft ID.

 

[JimCad]

I object to being forced to have a Microsoft account and or subscription.

 

[Ex Machina]

I object to being forced to have a Microsoft account and or subscription.

Yeah. I've said it before and I will repeat it here.

In MacOS the only parametric CAD that runs natively is fusion. And there are some high end computers running MacOS and some people willing to buy them are not buying MacOS precisely because of that lack of CAD alternatives

And of course if you're talking about MacOS, you have to mention Linux. Only FreeCAD works there and it is a major driver of the user base of FreeCAD. I think Atom would be a major hit in Linux with Design Pro and Expert getting a piece of the pie too.

Now, I've heard the argument against Linux before, non-standard environment=support nightmare...

But FreeCAD is getting it done somehow. It works in the exact same (inefficient) way in any distro.

 

[stepalibre]

In MacOS the only parametric CAD that runs natively is fusion.

Rhino and Grasshopper are native on macOS, not feature and history based parametric but parametric. They have a parametric sketcher in alpha (WIP). I've used FreeCAD on macOS, and it had decent performance. I'm waiting to test everything on a Mac Mini M4 pro.

 

[Ex Machina]

Yeah, FreeCAD performance is great! It can run on older hardware, and handle large assemblies with decent framerate. When I say inefficient, I meant it takes a lot more time to get to the same design.

And yeah, I stand corrected, FreeCAD is also available in MacOS.

 

[Alexander]

Yeah. I've said it before and I will repeat it here.

In MacOS the only parametric CAD that runs natively is fusion. And there are some high end computers running MacOS and some people willing to buy them are not buying MacOS precisely because of that lack of CAD alternatives

And of course if you're talking about MacOS, you have to mention Linux. Only FreeCAD works there and it is a major driver of the user base of FreeCAD. I think Atom would be a major hit in Linux with Design Pro and Expert getting a piece of the pie too.

Now, I've heard the argument against Linux before, non-standard environment=support nightmare...

But FreeCAD is getting it done somehow. It works in the exact same (inefficient) way in any distro.

Bricscad runs natively on Linux

 

[Ex Machina]

Bricscad runs natively on Linux

Yeah but isn't that an AutoCAD clone. Is it Parametric. I'm not sure.

 

[Alexander]

Yeah but isn't that an AutoCAD clone. Is it Parametric. I'm not sure.

It is an AutoCAD clone with extra functionality and modules. The mechanical version is fully parametric with 3d constraints etc.
I switched to Bricscad (replacing Autocad) in 2017 when Awfuldesk decided to change to subscription only.
I prefer Alibre for parametric modelling.

 

[JamesPat]

I have a MacBook Air with the M2, 16Gb, and much less expensive than a MacBook Pro. I always install Parallels and always ran Alibre on my Intel Macs. Parallels is using the Apple built-in virtualization hardware to allow VM creation and installing Windows ARM in the VM uses Windows compatibility emulation to run Windows Intel software. Whew, what a mouthful! Perhaps checking for Windows ARM laptop user's experiences would be worthwhile. Microsoft makes quite a few models and I'm sure people have tried it. Virtualization hardware in CPUs have a very light footprint and barely affect performance.

That said, I have had very good performance with Alibre. I have a somewhat complex design I am working on now with a lot of assemblies and imported items. Never a graphics lag, but you will notice some lag when hiding parts and assemblies. And let's not talk Drawings speed! Awful, walk away and get a cup of coffee awful! So I'll fix that and run native on a new Win 11 i7 with nVidia graphics. Wrong...barely noticed a change. It is better when hiding parts and assemblies, but drawings are still slow, painfully slow.

Now I use the Intel desktop, but use the MacBook Air when I'm on the road. Both can drive my Samsung 49-inch UltraWide display, but a Vision Pro is something I can't give an opinion about. Good luck and let us know how it goes.

- James

 

[Ty Hartnett]

alibre on Mac OS (Apple)

Does Alibre Design work with a Mac OS?

I used Alibre on my Imac by purchasing parrels 3 and loaded windows 8 operating system, it worked perfectly, in face the graphics were better. Yes it can be done. Apart from the cost of Parralels you have to dedicate some of your memorary. all the best for 2025 Ty