I also realized that I'm far more familiar with using a scale on Sketchup where 1mm resolution is tiny, since the smallest thing that I've used it for previously is a bed frame, but I imagine that it's got to scale.

the open areas, particularly when I design in screw holes and slots to be open for multi-part projects which have to be assembled after printing. I am kind of used to the interface, and I think that I could do MOST of the things that I want with it, including weird curves and shapes, but since I've basically only done wire-frame type work with it before, I'm not as sure that I will be able to predict what it will interpret as solid area vs. I've worked with Sketchup before, though not for 3D printing, but for doing drawings for other projects, so I've never tried getting an STL file from it. Probably not TOO big a deal, as I'll probably want to do some sanding to get a smooth surface from the print once completed anyway, as all of the prints that I've seen have at least a bit of a rough surface to them. If I use this model, I'll basically have to trim the curve to fit after printing. Nice parallel lines, rectangular openings and fixed screw positions weren't hard, but trying to get a complex curve like the instrument panel opening was rather maddening, and very difficult to get a good profile on. I popped together some little projects for my car (A gauge pod to hold some extra instruments in my dash, and a part to install a 7' LCD to use a Raspberry Pi in place of some of the factory electronics) using it, which worked well. The biggest downside is that it requires Internet access, and if their server is down, or under maintenance, you can't get access to edit your drawings. It's not very powerful, but with a bit of creativity, it has some potential. I did a little bit of playing around with Tinkercad. Solidworks is kind of out of my price range (And in my profession, using the software without a documented license could cost me a lot more than the price tag, so that's out of the question.) I'm building my 3D printer (Just got my Prusa i3 kit yesterday, in fact) for hobby use, rather than professional, so I can't get work to cover software. I haven't loaded up FreeCAD yet, though from looking around, it seems to be a front-runner.

Avoiding 'the other OS' isn't so much an issue, so that leaves a few more options open, but it's likely that linux support would be a big plus.

I'm experimenting with different solutions.

Designspark mechanical 32 bit