Newbie here. I don't have a store set up and have all the models set to private. Until a few months ago I could download the models from Shapeways, now i can't find the download option anywhere. Can someone tell me exactly where it is (i.e. click here, then go there)?
It might be a silly question but where is the list of materials? This is what I see when I try to view a model.
and it never loads. this happens with all models I have and I have updated my Java and tried on 2 different browsers.
Seems you get a different and broken layout of the model page (the "model/upload-and-buy" URL) for some reason, I still have the one with the image on the right and "File", "Size" and "Category" fields to the left of it, with three tabs "Materials", "Details" and "History" below, and the "show details" just above them.
Seems that is the same borked new layout as featured in this thread https://www.shapeways.com/forum/t/help-problem-creating-shop.97449/
I have tried I.E., Firefox and Chrome, so I can rule out browsers. I don't understanding why it hangs like that but I could live with that as long as I can do other things such as download for backups. Is your layout a newer version or older? I use Windows 7 on a mobile device. I have nothing else to test it on currently. Is there someone at SW I can contact or a right place to post this for staff to comment (not that you're not helpful, but it's their site). : )
LOL! Now I'm getting a page cannot be found error when I click on your link. It's okay Shapeways, you can hate me. Just let me have my models back.
My layout is older, what you see seems to be what they trialed by opt-in a few months ago (without much success). From the thread I linked to, that seems to have become the standard layout for users without a shop (but also from that thread, it is not possible to open a shop now even just to get rid of that layout.) Guess your best bet is to email service and request that they email you the files you need...
My fault with the link, seems I clipped the thread number in the cut-and-paste. Will update it once I have found that thread again.
That's fine. Just post it when you can. In the meantime I have contacted customer service. I wish there was a way to revert back to the old style you said that you have. I tried a cached version but it would not let me log in.
I just read the post now. This other guy seems to have a problem opening a store. Whereas, i have no store, but the button is just missing and the file never gets loaded. it just goes around in a loop. I wish Shapeways would pull their finger out and answer email, if they no loner monitor the boards. This is really frustrating.
I checked my other dummy account on here and see the button and layout you mentioned. the only differences between the two accounts was one had a store (the one that did not show the download button) and other did not. Plus, the broken one had most of my files and the working one did not. I deleted my store since I don't use it yet, but that made no difference. I have now tried on I.E., Chrome, Firefox and opera, with all brining the same results. How can one account work fine and the other be so badly messed up. GET YOUR ACT TOGETHER SHAPEWAYS!
So, I got this from SW today. Bottom line, if you have the new layout and want to download your models you are SOL and screwed. If you still have access to downloading your models get as many back ups as you can from Shapeways, or they will be lost. Bravo, Shapeways! What a messed up decision that was!! ''Thank you for reaching out. The new model edit page does indeed not include a model download button. Since people upload models onto Shapeways, we expect them to have the original files on their computer already. At the moment this feature is excluded and unlikely to be added back. However the other issue seems strange, let me check with our developers team to see how we can fix this for you I'll get back to you as soon as possible.''
Sounds like minimal effort from one of the less than stellar members of customer service. Legally they may be safe in that there is probably something in the T&C that says "we are not your backup storage", but surely there must still be a away to pull files from the database, in particular for printing any orders.
Well, this guy is going to ''investigate'' the broken page, but made no mention of giving me back my files. I would advise all to create a stink about this and get that button back. What's next on the list of bright ideas? Why i it never coming back? This makes no sense to me. Be warned though.
Could be a normal blunder (the new user interface looks "different" enough to suggest an entirely new team with a new attitude) and the cs guy not allowed or able to say more without feedback from the engine room. It could also be seen as an indication that shapeways is beginning to care less about experienced CAD users and wants to concentrate on their various "creator" tools for laypeople, complete with vendor lock-in to ensure that a design that was created "on" shapeways cannot be printed anywhere else.
I can see the point of not wanting to release SW generated items back to "designers" but on occasion I've needed to download things from creators to modify them a bit for intended use. Losing that capability in the long run would be a real downer. Another reason to suppress downloading would be to protect users from hackers that might gain access to an account outside of Shapeways and then download all the models in a store or the models library. Of course a hacker might also be able to retrieve those files from a hacked user computer directly assuming they have backup copies. The worst case scenario is a hacker hacking into the Shapeways system, or into the computer of a SW super-user that has access to all models to download them. Eliminating the download feature from account facing pages might be a pre-emptive measure recommended by a security consultant.