MeshLab

We do a lot of work with 3D triangular meshes via Art of Illusion. MeshLab is an open source, multi-platform piece of software written in C++ which might be very, very useful in that regard.

[meshlab.sourceforge.net]

that does look very useful. i wish i knew more about 3d programming.

What are we actually looking for in a 3D modeling tool? Are we looking for something simple that can be modified, or something that is already capable?

The most capable open source multi-platform tool is probably blender, but I doubt it would be easy to modify.

[www.blender.org]

Also, I haven't gotten MeshLab to work, but it seems to only open preexisting files.

You can use anything that will generate STL files to create things to print with a Reprap. Using something simple and open source for actual Darwin design and construction helps ensure the whole toolchain is replicable, using something written in Java helps ensure the toolchain is portable.

But once you have a Reprap, you should definitely use whatever 3D modeling tool you have available to you and are comfortable with, to generate more STLs to feed your hungry Reprap :-)

MeshLab seems to be for cleaning up existing files, not generating new ones from scratch. Useful, but not a general purpose modeling tool.

Jonathan