If you or your students already know Onshape, Autodesk Fusion or SOLIDWORKS, SchoolCAD will feel familiar. It uses the same CAD terms and the same core workflow (a Part Studio, a feature tree, sketches on the Top, Front and Right planes, then features such as Extrude, Revolve and Fillet), so skills move in both directions. This guide shows how to make SchoolCAD work the way you're used to.
Make the mouse work like your program
Open Settings (⚙), and under Mouse buttons like choose your program. Options include Onshape, SOLIDWORKS, Autodesk Fusion, Autodesk Inventor, Tinkercad, SketchUp, Blender, Creo, Siemens NX and AutoCAD. Each choice sets that program's buttons and its way of turning and zooming, and a table shows what each button now does.
Other settings that make the switch smoother:
| Setting | Why you might change it |
|---|---|
| Reverse the scroll wheel | Zoom direction like SOLIDWORKS. |
| Double-click the scroll wheel to zoom to fit | As in SOLIDWORKS and Fusion. |
| Look straight at a sketch when it opens | On, like SOLIDWORKS and Fusion; off to work like Onshape, where you press N. |
| Turning | Turntable keeps the floor level; Free lets the model tumble. |
Tip
If your class is heading to Onshape or SOLIDWORKS next year, have everyone pick that program under Mouse buttons like from the start, so the mouse already works the way it will there.
Use the keyboard shortcuts you know
Keyboard shortcuts like can be set to SchoolCAD, Onshape or SOLIDWORKS (choosing Onshape's or SOLIDWORKS' mouse buttons sets this too). With Onshape's keys, for example, Shift+E is Extrude, Shift+S is Sketch, N is normal to, and in a sketch L is line, G is corner rectangle, M is trim and D is dimension. Press ? in SchoolCAD to see every shortcut.
Find tools by the names you know
Press Alt+C (or the backtick key, as in Onshape) to open Search tools, then type the name from your program: press pull, hole wizard, smart dimension and so on. SchoolCAD shows its own tool with your program's name beside it, so students learn both names. Typos and everyday words work too.
Each tool's Help page also shows what Onshape, Fusion and SOLIDWORKS call it, and the Guide panel names the equivalent tool as students work.
Name tables for each program
These Help pages list each program's tool names with the closest SchoolCAD tool:
Moving files between programs
SchoolCAD can Import STEP files (for example hinges, screws or motors from supplier sites, or a model from Onshape or Fusion) as exact solid parts, and can Export STEP to take a design into other CAD programs. See Import and Export STEP.
Not affiliated
Onshape, Autodesk Fusion and SOLIDWORKS are trademarks of their respective owners. SchoolCAD isn't affiliated with or endorsed by them; we use the same terms so students' skills transfer.