Are Your Assembly Components Fully Constrained?, by David Melvin, PE
You can easily find the number of constraints required to fully constrain your sketches by using the Auto Dimension command, but how do you know when components in your assemblies are fully constrained?

Adding Feature Intelligence, by David Melvin, PE
You’ve mastered the art of creating iParts and iFeatures, but did you know you can apply logical operators to your parts and features to make them even more intelligent?

3D Grip Constraints, by David Melvin, PE
You can use 3D Grips to edit features on your models, but how does this affect existing constraints on your sketches?

Essential Templates, by David Melvin, PE
There are an endless number of custom template files you can create, but what makes a template an essential template?

How to Create Custom Surface Textures, by David Melvin, PE
This short exercise will show you how to create two types of custom texture maps. The first type is a standard texture map that can be made from a picture of a real surface or it can be designed manually using image-editing software. The second type of texture map has transparent pixels.

Drawing 2D Splines, by David Melvin, PE
For those special circumstances when you need to draw complex geometry, this exercise will show you how to draw and reshape a 2D Spline. Subsequent Tips and Tricks will show you how to take control of your splines by mastering all the commands associated with them, and learning how to constrain them.

Constraining Splines, by David Melvin, PE
In this short exercise you will learn how to add Spline Points to a spline, and then you’ll use Construction Lines to gain more control over the shape of the spline. First you’ll create a spline loop, and then you’ll modify it to create a fully constrained elliptical shape.

The Process of Drawing Splines, by David Melvin, PE
In this short exercise you will learn a general process for drawing splines that will increase the accuracy of your splines and assure that your splines are fully constrained.

Spline Commands, by David Melvin, PE
In this short exercise you will learn how to use Spline Commands to control the shape of splines.

3D Splines, by David Melvin, PE
You can use 3D splines to draw the path for 3D sweeps, but if you’ve ever tried to do this you may have found that it’s difficult to make the profile perpendicular to the path. This short exercise will show you how to do this.

Sharing Your Files, by David Melvin, PE
You can easily show your files to vendors, colleges, and clients using Autodesk DWF Viewer, and it's free.  This short exercise will show you how to do this.

Embedding DWF Files in Word, by David Melvin, PE
Embedding DWF files in Word can make your Word documents come alive. Your readers will not only be able to see your Inventor documents, they will be able to dynamically pan, zoom, and rotate them.

Embedding DWF Files in PowerPoint, by David Melvin, PE
Embedding Autodesk's DWF Viewer in your PowerPoint can greatly enhance your PowerPoint presentations. You can rotate and markup your DWF files within each slide while you give your presentations, which in turn promotes interactive discussion with your audience.

Removing Edge Display, by David Melvin, PE
Tangency edges are the lines that are formed when two adjacent surfaces meet. By default the lines are drawn on you parts, but you can turn them off to make your parts look more realistic.

Contoured Keyways, by David Melvin, PE
The most common mistake in making a contoured keyway is to attempt to make a Sweep along a 3D spline. This usually causes more problems than it solves, and it’s really not necessary.  This short exercise will show you how to do it.