MakerBot Industries

Gnome by CreativeTools

Yesterday Thingiverse citizen CreativeTools was rocking Thingiverse with twenty-four (24!!!) brand spanking new holiday themed printable designs!  And, all of these designs were uploaded within about a two hour span.  Google Translate tells me that these were made freely available through CreativeTools’ own website as a kind of 3D printable advent calendar.

Each of CreativeTools’ uploaded designs is an excellent example of the Platonic ideal of a great Thingiverse shared design:

1. Original design files.  Including the original design files to makes it easy for people to create their own derivatives of your work.  After all, derivatives are the highest form of flattery.
2. STL file.  STL files are the industry standard for printable files.  If someone doesn’t have the ability (or inclination) to open your original design files, they can always just print directly from your own STL’s.
3. Picture.  The Thingiverse STL renderer is really cool – but it does have its limitations.  It displays a green monochrome image of the STL file from a somewhat unpredictable angle and distance.  A clear picture of either a design screen shot or a printed copy of the finished design will help people visualize your work.  It’s especially useful to show a picture of a finished and assembled multi-part object.
4. License.  Obviously you’re free to select your own license.  However, you probably wouldn’t have uploaded your designs to Thingiverse if you weren’t interested in sharing with everyone.  CreativeTools uploaded their designs with an open license under Creative Commons Attribution Share Alike.  This means you and I can download one of these files, mix and mash them up in ways no one has ever thought of before, and create something awesome and new!

CreativeTools – thank you for sharing your excellent designs!