Larry Jaques blessed all and sundry with:
I entered a drawing to win a copy of Rhino 3D a few years ago and was
overjoyed when they called. Unfortunately, it wasn't a winner's call,
it was notice that I had not won and an attempt to sell me the
product. It looks like a great program, but I don't do enough to
warrant the price. OK, now I'll read on.
This is from the perspective of someone who is much happier learning
alone rather than in a classroom, generally speaking. There are
exceptions to that of course. I have taken a couple of Rhino's
self-paced tutorials but no 'official' training at all.
We're two of a kind here. I'm usually self-taught.
Autodidacticism is underestimated. I learned that all by myself!
I coached a contractor buddy of mine as he assembled a 3D frame building.
(...)
That's amazing, Winston.
Don't get me wrong. They guy is definitely smarter than I am, so it's
reasonable that he should have been able to understand the concepts faster
than I did. I still marvel at how he 'picked up' CAD in minutes
instead of weeks.
Contrast that with the weeks of frustration it took me to make U$99.95
Generic CADD 2D do something useful. (And the day from hell trying to
get Autocad to do anything except reject commands.)
At the end of your first Rhino session you'll say "Only about a grand for
that functionality? What's the catch?" There ain't no catch.
It works real well.
I'm sure of two things. First, I'd probably agree that it worked well.
Second, ain't no way in the world I'd ever utter the words "Only about
a grand", period. g If I had my druthers, I'd own a copy of either
Chief Architect or SoftPLAN for my construction business. But they're
both nigh onta $3k each. _Ain't_ gonna happen. g
It's a time or money thing.
Next time you visit someone with cable TV, I invite you to check out
the n + 1 shows on house remodeling. See how they use
CAD to show the homeowner how changes will affect the house?
Very Cool!
(Note to self: Stop Evangelizing)
I used Rhino to design this bracket to convert my hydraulic cart to
'lift it itself' functionality a while ago.
http://www.metalworking.com/dropbox/...es/HydCart.txt
http://www.metalworking.com/dropbox/...rtOverview.jpg
http://www.metalworking.com/dropbox/...ydCartLeft.jpg
http://www.metalworking.com/dropbox/...ydCartMech.jpg
http://www.metalworking.com/dropbox/...artRelease.jpg
Cool! Is that a rotary-to-linear pump adaptor you built, with a small
motor to run it?
Actually, it's much simpler. That's just a small bottle jack.
I unscrewed the pad from the top and welded on a piston extension to
drive the table mechanism. I made a connecting rod to couple a gear motor
to the master cylinder. See, after I was happy with the design, I
grabbed each of the pieces and made G-Code files. The mill made all
the parts and I welded them up.
If an untrainable retarded geriatric can do that, (and I did!) then
it means Rhino is just a great tool.
OK, OK, I'm sold! Saaaaaay, can you loan a buddy about $1174?
Ya know, I wish I could.
By now, Rhino has lots of competent low - cost competitors.
I am long since flat out of time to evaluate them and for me,
Rhino comes the closest to the perfect CAD software.
End SPAM */
Ah, another satisfied customer. Oh, what do upgrades cost, or is it
one of the fantastic free-upgrade programs? I love those.
Upgrades are not free. But they are very reasonably priced, given the
added functionality. In 6.5 years, I've upgraded once and was delighted
with the increased functionality.
The first taste is free.
BwahHAhahaha!
http://download.rhino3d.com/eval/?p=25
You WRETCH, you! 
Ain't I though?
--Winston