cant use Fusion offline? totally unacceptable

[ckVCFWD]

Was on a 9 hr flight the other day and figured id get some work done. NOPE. Fusion would not work without logging in online. 

There is no excuse for this. I dont care if you have a work around or a box to check... you should be able to launch the program at any time any where. this post is simply to express how stupid this is in hopes that gets changed. 

Yes, I am fully aware that if i log in within windows of 2 weeks then offline mode should work fine. garbage. that is the dumbest requirement to have to remember amongst all the other nonsense one must remember in the modern world. "shoulda remembered that you were going to maybe do some unscheduled work" is not an appropriate response. just make it work all the time. 

@ckVCFWD - this post has been edited due to Community Rules & Etiquette violation.

[lance.carocci]

Could you please clarify in what way Fusion did not work while offline? It sounds like you already had signed into the application prior to going offline - did it still ask you to sign in once more?

I see you are aware of the 2 week cache duration - how long had it been since Fusion was last online? How long do you typically go between periods of connectivity?

[RajkumarIlanchelian]

@ckVCFWD The primary reason we want to connect Fusion back in those 2 weeks are to make sure the proper entitlement is cached and the right set of features are available when you go offline. In this case it sounds like you had not logged into Fusion for over two weeks and then the attempt was to login offline? 

[ckVCFWD]

this is what im talking about. that sounds so stupid. whats better? being able to use fusion with the features you were currently aware of? or not be able to use it at all? until the new features are installed? my answer is use it. i wasted 9 hours of time I could have completed a job, all because Fusion didn't want me to not see the new features? im lost? how is that helpful?

I have no idea when I last logged in. I shouldn't have to care about that. it should just always work. always. period. does not seem unreasonable to me at all.

[ckVCFWD]

it would launch, but then a pop up would say that i needed to login to use it. only option is ok/cancel, and then it shuts down.

[TrippyLighting]

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@ckVCFWD wrote:
 ...

I have no idea when I last logged in. I shouldn't have to care about that.

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I'd have to disagree!

If you used another mainstream non-cloud CAD software, got on a flight, and forgot to check out a license on the license server before boarding the plane, you'd be in the same situation. This is how many a piece of CAD software works!

[ckVCFWD]

well I guess its been a while since Ive used anything else other then solid works and I never had to do that. however, just because everyone sucks isn't an excuse to also suck, when there is no reason to. I don't believe the licence infringement should take precedent over the usability of the app. if an app comes along that doesn't do this and makes things easy I will definitely move my subscription to them. Fusion is so buggy, has the most useless measuring tool there is, snapping capability is trash… lol, give me one more reason to swap software.

[TrippyLighting]

The proper workflow for taking Fusion offline is to log in before heading to your destination.

Add those projects you need to work on offline to the cache.

Switch Fusion into offline mode and then shut it down.

Very easy to do and has yet to fail me!

[PeterMoll]

Could you make that  Fusion RULE nr 3?

Had some very disappointing experiences with Fusion the past couple of years when I needed it offline, always seems to be something if you really need it hard offline...

I agree with the original post that there needs to be a better fallback for working offline with Fusion, it rarely happens nowadays, but there have been days.

Regards, Peter

[ckVCFWD]

Cool, but that is like saying why doesn't everyone just drive with a manual transmission, works fine for me! or since I love going barefoot whats wrong with you? except its worse. theres no reason other then autodesk wanting to confirm ownership at the expense of the usability of the app for its paying customers. either way, its flawed logic as far as attempting to create a great piece of CAD software. clearly it is what it is. so Ill just change apps when I find one that doesn't operate in a silly way. I just came here to say that not everyone likes going barefoot. And most people dont like being forced into it for no reason.

[TrippyLighting]

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@ckVCFWD wrote:
... so Ill just change apps when I find one that doesn't operate in a silly way...

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That is an excellent idea!

[JayE2021]

I'm a teacher and peruse this site to help explain things to my students. Guys like you are so unhelpful in doing so. The OP makes a great point. AutoCAD, Revit and Inventor are made to be local, and therefore, there is no need to sign into them. They are made by the same company as Fusion 360. Fusion 360 could've been made to be local also, or with an option. If Fusion 360 needs to be signed into, why push it out to the schools? Inventor would've done just fine. So he's right, it is unacceptable.

[lance.carocci]

I understand the point you're making, but want to clarify that Fusion is professional software, with education and personal-use free tiers. While we do develop specific product experiences with students in mind (especially when it comes to data collection or transactions and legal compliance therein), part of most companies' efforts to build a relationship with the EdTech community is to help the next generation gain familiarity with industry- and trade- specific tools that would otherwise be inaccessible on a student's or district's budget.

We didn't make Fusion local because that's more or less just Inventor or Eagle or HSMWorks with extra steps, under a big trenchcoat. And Inventor is only ever going to be Inventor, nothing more. Fusion, on the other hand, rapidly iterates new functionality monthly, and tries to bridge the data gap between what previously would have been multiple disparate installed applications for solid modeling, simulation, machining, electronics, etc. 

Fusion also differs from other applications in that there is one single installed Fusion application regardless of your license and feature access. Where apps traditionally gate application access up front with license checks, Fusion pulls from numerous data sources on-demand for the latest product licensing and file collaboration data - this functionality is core to the Fusion application experience and part of what makes it different from other Autodesk CAD products.

[JayE2021]

Thank you for your response. They are all professional software. So certain aspects of Fusion couldn't have been on the cloud without the entire program being on the cloud?

[TrippyLighting]

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@JayE2021 wrote:

I'm a teacher and peruse this site to help explain things to my students. Guys like you are so unhelpful in doing so.

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From a teacher I would expect some basic research before making a post. I think most of the 2827+ users and many of the Fusion team members would disagree with your assessment that I am unhelpful.

Being "helpful" does not mean that I need to agree with all other users opinions.

The cloud based approach is certainly not for everyone, and just as a "local" solution has advantages and disadvantages. For me as an advanced professional user who also uses Fusion privately for my on projects and for tutoring the advantages outweigh the disadvantages. YMMV.

If your school "signed up" for Fusion and you feel that Inventor is a better solution, maybe talk to your school admin?

[JayE2021]

Maybe you have been helpful in some things, but not this one. The OP stated an opinion, that others shared, and he/she had a point. All you had to do was leave it at that. You didn't have to respond at all. I don't need to take this up with admin because they're not the one who created the program. 

@JayE2021 - this post has been edited due to Community Rules & Etiquette violation.

[TrippyLighting]

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@JayE2021 wrote:

... Maybe you have been helpful in some things, but not this one...

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I have no intention to agree with you or the OP on this point, which you misinterpret as "being helpful!

[lance.carocci]

Thank you for your response. They are all professional software. So certain aspects of Fusion couldn't have been on the cloud without the entire program being on the cloud?

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On the spectrum of fully-local desktop software to cloud-based SaaS, Fusion occupies an amorphous space in between, depending on the workflow. Your basic model creation and documentation might calculate and process locally, but other aspects like the relationship between a part and its production cycle, or a project and its collaborators, cannot happen without a connection. At times, it's also quicker and more cost effective to maintain a single service on consistent cloud infrastructure than disparate user hardware, architectures, and operating systems. When people ask for ARM processor ports, for example, a choice has to be made of whether to maintain another codebase, or simply make one that's accessible independent of platform.

[JayE2021]

"I'd have to disagree!"

That was the first thing you said in this thread to introduce yourself to us. This forum is about solutions and clarity. It is not about debate and feelings. If you are not a Fusion programmer or an Autodesk executive that can make decisions on Fusion, then answer this: How does your disagreement give us a solution? How does your disagreement add clarity? How does your disagreement give science-backed conclusion? You're right, being helpful doesn't mean you have to agree. But, how did your disagreement help on a post that the OP was looking to promote change? So then your disagreement was not only unhelpful, but it diverted from the OP's point. Doesn't the OP have the right to not like Fusion as much as you have the right to like it? Then let them voice that and keep it moving.

[JayE2021]

Like the OP, while I still don't like having to sign in to Fusion, your explanation does shed some light. Thank you.