Assista

    Patch notes

    What’s new

    Assista3d is on v0.52. Recent updates, newest first.

    v0.52

    Print-time estimates tuned to real slicer times

    2026-10-28
    • Dialed in the new print-time estimates against real slicer prints: a single part's quoted time now lines up closely with what your slicer reports, where before it was reading roughly half the real time.
    • This also sharpens makers who charge by the hour — the print time behind that pricing now reflects a real single-part print.
    • Your own-prices preview now shows how far above or below the standard Assista price each material sits, so you can see at a glance that, say, your PETG is +3% while your PLA is right at standard.
    v0.51

    Free model downloads

    2026-10-26
    • Makers can now share free downloads: a digital listing can be set to Free, and anyone can grab the files with just their email. No checkout, no card.
    • Free downloads show "Free" in the marketplace, list their license on the page, and arrive by email too, with a link that works for 7 days.
    • Makers see every free download in their Orders tab, including who asked to hear about new free models.
    • Makers can now change the email registered to their store, right from the dashboard's Contact settings — it's where job offers, orders, and messages are sent.
    • The marketplace is for things people can buy, not ads for services. A listing that reads like an ad, or an item priced under $5, now gets a quick policy note that points makers to where their shop, design work or CNC skills already reach customers. Only digital downloads can be free.
    • Download files are now kept for as long as the listing is live, instead of expiring after a few weeks.
    • Fixed: since mid-September, keywords and some listing details weren't being saved. Saves keep everything again.
    • Fixed: links in cash-pickup, order, review and download emails now open assista3d.com.
    v0.50

    Simpler own-prices, and charge by the hour

    2026-10-25
    • Makers can now price by the hour. In your dashboard's own-prices editor, switch on "Charge by the hour" and set a dollars-per-hour rate — we estimate each part's print time from how much plastic it uses and its finish.
    • A slider decides what that hourly rate covers: from just your printer time added on top of your normal prices, through replacing your fees and minimum, all the way to a flat per-hour price for the whole job (material included). The settings it replaces grey out, so you only fill in what you actually charge.
    • The own-prices editor is tidier: the fine-tuning options (fees, tiny-part, long-print, infill and finish pricing) now tuck into a "More fine-tuning" section, keeping the everyday settings up front. Nothing was taken away.
    v0.49

    More accurate print-time estimates

    2026-10-25
    • Print-time estimates on the instant quote now track how much plastic your part actually uses — the same figure behind the estimated weight — instead of a rough size category. A dense, chunky part and a hollow shell of the same size no longer read as the same print, and estimates line up far better with what your slicer shows.
    • Ordering more than one of a part now adds up the real print time for the whole batch, and finer-detail finishes correctly show a longer print.
    v0.48

    Nearby-maker quotes now show their colors too

    2026-10-25
    • With "Also get quotes from the 3 nearest makers" on, the color picker shows every color those makers stock for your material — so you can pick anything at least one of them carries.
    • If one of those makers doesn't stock a color you picked, their quote now says so, right next to their price.
    v0.47

    Quotes from nearby makers, right on the quote page

    2026-10-19
    • On the instant quote, flip on "Also get quotes from the 3 nearest makers" and we price your exact part against the closest makers within 25 miles — right there, no extra page to open.
    v0.46

    Discount codes and a cart

    2026-10-17
    • Makers can now make their own discount codes, for a percent or a dollar amount off, in their dashboard under Pricing & capabilities. Add or delete codes any time, switch one off, or give it a last day and it stops by itself.
    • Got a code from a maker? Type it on their shop page, on one of their items, in your cart, or at the top of the marketplace. Their items show the lower price, and it comes off your checkout and the instant quote on their shop. Shipping, delivery and tax stay full price.
    • A code only ever comes off its own maker's items, and takes at most $50 off. Shopping from several makers? Add each one's code, up to 5 per order.
    • New cart: add items from as many makers as you like, then pay each maker in turn, by card or with cash at pickup. Each maker is paid directly, and your cart shows exactly what each one gets.
    • Makers see which code was used, and how much it took off, on each order.
    • In the dashboard's own-prices editor, the live preview now shows a price for every material you stock — ABS, PETG, whatever it is, not just PLA — plus a sample 100 g part, so you can see at a glance what customers pay across your whole range.
    v0.45

    Easier to find

    2026-10-11
    • Every page now lives at one clean address (like assista3d.com/quote), so Google and Bing can find and show more of the site. Addresses that don't exist now show a proper Page not found page.
    • City pages for every town with a local maker, like Eastvale, Chino and Cincinnati, now load straight away and can show up in search.
    • New material guides for PPS-CF, PEEK and Nylon GF: what each one is good for, what to avoid, and common questions. The assistant can quote them now, and every material page shows its real starting price.
    • Opened the site inside Facebook or Instagram? The sign-in page now offers to open it in your phone's browser, and the Google button no longer gets stuck after you tap Back.
    • Quotes you send to a maker, from their shop page or the chat's "Send to" button, now go straight to that maker's inbox.
    • Orders from the instant quote page now reach the nearest maker who can print them, with the part file and quote attached, and makers get 45 minutes to accept.
    • A slow tap on a signup button now goes through instead of opening a help card. In maker signup, "Already have a code?" asks for your email first, and the pickup pin is only placed for you when we find the exact spot.
    • Brand-new makers get a one-time "Share your new shop" card, and a new shop's link shows its own name and photo when shared.
    • Cherishables and 3DPrintThread have shorter shop links: assista3d.com/m/cherishables and assista3d.com/m/3dprintthread. Old links, QR codes and flyers still work.
    • Shop view counts in the maker dashboard no longer include automated visitors, so they reflect real people.
    • Makers who list a general material like "Carbon fiber" or "Glass fiber" under Other materials keep it as a hand-quoted extra, instead of it switching on an engineering material.
    v0.44

    Pickup on the map

    2026-09-29
    • Quotes now show a map of where to pick up your print, with a Get directions link, both in the chat and on the quote PDF. Until a maker places their exact spot, the map shows their general area.
    • A quote from your nearest maker in the chat now has a Send to maker button: add your name and email and the quote goes straight to them, and the assistant points you to that button instead of an email address. Makers who take messages still have a Chat link too.
    • New makers now put their pickup spot on the map when they sign up, and makers who joined earlier can add theirs from the top of their dashboard.
    • In Design a part, the assistant no longer says your brief is ready while it's still asking you questions.
    • Quote PDFs are much smaller and faster to email.
    • Can't find your sign-in code? The code screen now tells you who the email comes from and to check your Junk or Spam folder.
    v0.43

    Make it in 3D

    2026-09-28
    • In Design a part, a part that's mostly about the look can become a free full-color 3D model of your concept picture or photo. Turn it around in the chat, choose a color or one-color print and a size, see the price, and send it to your nearest maker to print.
    • Files you upload are now deleted after 20 days instead of 30.
    • From the very first message of a design chat, the assistant no longer names one maker as yours: your request goes to up to three designers near you.
    • The Design brief card now says the designers will come from near the ZIP code you typed.
    • Design a part now shows a small progress line under the newest message: a dot per step and the one you're on. Parts that are mostly about the look add a free 3D model and go to a maker to print; parts that have to fit exactly go straight to designers.
    • The Design brief card's boxes now start empty, and only fill in with what you tell the assistant: no suggested budget, size, or dates.
    • The 3D model's size slider now starts exactly at the size in your brief, and makers get the print request email with the model files.
    • For full-color AI model prints, makers now get a 3MF with the colors painted in (up to 4 colors, for Bambu Studio or Orca), and a See it in color link that shows the model on the site, with its main colors and a one-color view.
    • In Design a part, the Design brief card now shows up once the assistant's questions are done, ready to check and send, instead of filling in on screen while it asks.
    • While your 3D model is being made, sending the brief to designers waits until it's done.
    • The 3D model card now shows the colors a full-color print will use, and unticking full color shows the model in one color. The brief and 3D model cards are wider, too.
    v0.42

    See how it works

    2026-09-28
    • Typing your ZIP code or address works again everywhere, so the site finds the maker nearest you instead of guessing from your connection.
    • If the site updates while you have it open, the page you open next reloads to the new version instead of going blank.
    • In Design a part, the assistant asks for a photo or offers to sketch your idea, and it no longer names a single maker as your designer.
    • If every designer passes on your design request, it keeps waiting for the next free designer instead of stalling.
    • City maps now show designers too: violet pins for designers, and a violet ring on makers who also design.
    • When the assistant asks whether you have a 3D file, just tap I have a 3D file or Design it for me.
    • Designers can link their Instagram, Facebook, or X work, which shows as a link on their page, and TikTok videos now come in with their cover picture.
    • Green hover walkthroughs now cover signup, quotes, shopping, orders, messages, guides, and the remaining pages, with examples tailored to each feature and the original material information preserved.
    • Maker dashboard tips now explain settings, pricing, listings, and job actions with individual green walkthroughs while keeping the detailed help text.
    • The 3D viewer now has soft green help cards with individual previews for inspecting models, exploring print layers, checking size and colors, and starting a quote.
    • Material tips show their full descriptions again, with clearer infill cutaways and restored layer-height previews for surface finishes.
    • Home-page hover tips now have a softer green look and individual animations for chat, maps, services, and more.
    • The chat's file picker has its original warm, rounded hover preview again.
    • Hover over controls across the site to see a short animated walkthrough, with example inputs and the finished result.
    • Feature help also works with keyboard focus or a touch-and-hold, and respects reduced-motion preferences.
    v0.41

    Design a part

    2026-09-27
    • Design a part is open. Tell the assistant what you need (a broken part to replace, a sketch, or just an idea), add photos, and send one brief to up to three designers. Local makers who can also print it are asked first.
    • Designers send a price, their hourly rate, and a date. You compare the quotes on your own private page, message one designer or all of them, pick one, and pay by card right on the site.
    • No part to photograph? The assistant can draw a quick concept picture of it from the front, side, and back to help the designers.
    • Designers without a printer can now join. Go to Become a designer, answer one question, and get your own page with your portfolio, rate, and reviews. Paste links to your work and we pull in the pictures and videos for you.
    • Makers who design: design requests now arrive at the top of your dashboard, with a new Design work tab for your rate, your design tools, and your portfolio.
    • Designers now appear on the globe in violet, and makers who print and design get a violet ring around their dot.
    v0.40

    Big files, no freeze

    2026-09-22
    • Dropping a big 3D file into the site no longer freezes the page. Detailed 3MFs, large STEP assemblies, and heavy STL or OBJ files now open in the background, so you can keep scrolling, typing, or choosing options while they load.
    • Large 3MF files also open about twice as fast.
    • Changed your mind mid-load? The 3D viewer and the assistant now show a Cancel button while a file opens, and dropping a new file on the quote page simply replaces the one still loading.
    • The homepage's Become a maker card now holds the live makers globe, hanging in space: it spins on its own, and clicking a glowing green dot opens that maker's shop. It also reads "Free forever. Put yourself on the globe today."
    • The homepage scrolls noticeably smoother. The sky behind the site is far lighter to draw, the spinning globe rests while it's off screen, and the big footer logo now waits until you reach it instead of loading with everything else.
    • The site's own images are a lot lighter too, so pages land faster on a phone or a slow connection.
    • The homepage's maker photos now load one at a time as they come around, instead of every photo at once. That's a big drop in what your phone has to hold at once, and the hero appears sooner.
    • Maker photos are now resized and modernised on the way to you, so a shop photo straight off a phone arrives as a small, sharp image instead of a many-megabyte original. Galleries, shop pages and listings all load much faster, especially on mobile data.
    • Makers: a very large photo is now scaled down for you as it uploads, instead of being turned away for its size. Ordinary photos are stored exactly as you picked them.
    v0.39

    A map of your makers, and a cleaner hero

    2026-09-18
    • The quote panel now shows a small map of your area with your nearest maker pinned, so you can see we've placed you. Haven't shared your location? It shows a map of the US until you pop in your ZIP.
    • Tap a maker's name to open their shop in a new tab, without losing your place.
    • Freshened the homepage colors to Assista blue while keeping the signature green headline, swapped the quote and intro panels, and evened them to matching heights.
    • The maker gallery now quietly skips any photo that's gone missing, so you never see a broken image.
    • The quote panel now gets most of the room at the top of the homepage, tinted with a light wash of our logo's neon green, while the intro card beside it slims down.
    • A simpler homepage headline: one short line at a time, like "Made local." or "Made same day.", with more room for photos from local makers.
    • Fixed the AI assistant cutting out with "unavailable right now" just after it set your location or priced your part. It now finishes its answer.
    v0.38

    A spinning coverage globe

    2026-09-18
    • The Become a Maker map is now a slowly spinning globe. Each maker lights up the area they cover with a soft green glow, so you can see at a glance where the network already reaches — and where's still wide open.
    • Zoom in, drag to spin, and click any glowing shop to jump straight to their storefront.
    • It shows the whole world now, so makers outside the US appear too.
    v0.37

    A bolder homepage

    2026-09-18
    • The homepage now reads like the rest of the site — bigger, bolder headings and full-width spacing so it makes better use of your screen.
    • Local makers lead the page: the hero shows a rotating gallery of real shops, one at a time, cycling through every open shop before any repeats, with a quick way to become a maker right on it.
    • A looping 3D-printing timelapse now plays further down the page.
    • The assistant's dino buddy is back on the homepage. Switch to the manual quote and the chat shrinks into the dino in the corner, ready to reopen whenever you like.
    • Made the "Become a maker" invitation large and centered at the foot of the page.
    • The 3D viewer now stretches to the full width of your screen, matching the marketplace.
    • Hover the viewer's Choose file button and you'll see a quick drag-and-drop tip — the same friendly one the assistant's attach button shows.
    v0.36

    A guided maker signup

    2026-09-18
    • Becoming a maker is now a short, guided setup instead of one long form — the same everywhere you start, whether from the main Become a Maker page or your town's page. Sign in with Google or your email, then six quick screens cover your area, the printers you run, the materials you stock, and what you can make.
    • Most makers finish in about a minute, and everything can be changed later in your dashboard.
    v0.35

    Homepage polish

    2026-09-15
    • Tidied the top menu: the links are now evenly spaced, and "My orders" is tucked away for now (your orders still track to your email, and the page is still there by link).
    • Fixed the animated 3D logo so it sits beside the Assista name instead of overlapping it.
    • Made the assistant's chat text easy to read in the evening view — it was showing too light before.
    • Evened up the two homepage panels so they match in height, with tighter spacing under the intro.
    v0.34

    A roomier, smarter homepage

    2026-09-15
    • The homepage now uses more of your screen — the panels are wider with even margins, and the hero sits tighter with the extra space under the headline removed.
    • The quote panel finds your area automatically to match your nearest maker, and can ask to use your location for a closer match. Prefer not to? It just invites you to pop in your ZIP.
    • The 'Good things, made nearby' gallery now cycles through every open shop before it comes back around, so you see a wider range of local makers.
    v0.33

    Clearer local-pickup wording

    2026-09-15
    • Updated wording across the site so local pickup is highlighted as the easy, everyday option without ruling out shipping, which some makers offer.
    • Reworded the large-part question on the How it works page so it reads clearly whether or not you own a printer.
    • On phones, the 3D viewer's printing-basics cards now open their answer right under the card you tapped instead of below the whole group.
    v0.32

    Glitter and glow-in-the-dark colors

    2026-09-14
    • Makers can now mark a color as glitter or glow-in-the-dark when adding it, so specialty filaments show up as their own option.
    • On a maker's page, glitter colors show a sparkle and glow-in-the-dark colors get a soft glow, and the finish is spelled out next to the color name.
    v0.31

    Shorter links for makers

    2026-09-13
    • The homepage now uses the same header and footer as the rest of the site, and its maker gallery is a smooth auto-playing carousel of real local projects — each one links to that maker's shop.
    • See your matched maker and change ZIP throughout AI quoting, with direct maker contact and clearer separate design costs.
    • Find your nearest maker from the homepage, revisit AI chats, and watch local makers’ projects stack up in a moving photo gallery.
    • Quote from the homepage with photos, PDFs, pasted images, or 3D files, and expand into a full workspace for AI or manual quoting.
    • A new homepage brings ideas, AI help, instant quotes, and local maker services together in one place.
    • Makers: the Pricing tab is simpler and shorter to scroll. A Basic / Advanced switch sits right by the price level. Stay on Basic to nudge the Assista price up or down 5% at a time (this always works now), or flip to Advanced to set your own exact price per material, which only appears once you ask for it.
    • The viewer gives model names more room above the upload controls, and Glep’s preview moves along a little faster.
    • The 3D viewer has a colorful model showcase, simpler explanations, and a clearer path from opening your file to getting a print quote.
    • Makers can open their own Stripe payment-method settings from the dashboard, with a separate button for business and payout details.
    • More regional wallets, bank payments, and installment options are available at marketplace checkout, with eligible choices tailored to your location and purchase.
    • Marketplace checkout now offers eligible payment options from each maker's Stripe account, with payment confirmation shown before an order is treated as paid.
    • The marketplace can now be sorted by newest, price, or nearest to you, and two sliders let you cap the price and the distance so you only see what fits your budget and is close by.
    • The link you copy from your dashboard and the QR code on your flyer are now just your page address, like assista3d.com/m/your-name. Short enough to type, and the same link to put on Google Maps.
    • Inviting another maker? Your invite link is now assista3d.com/join/your-name, and we'll know you sent them.
    • New makers get a short, clean page address even if they sign up with a long shop description or their website as the shop name.
    • On the maker signup form, the last box is now labeled “About your shop”, since what you write there appears on your page.
    • Maker pages and guides are simpler and focus on what matters: your storefront, your prices, and local pickup. The fine print now lives in one place, the Terms.
    • Signup: the explainers on skill tiles and earned badges now open as soon as you hover (no need to hold), they say “badges” in plain words, and the painting & finishing icon was redrawn.
    v0.30

    See who's finding your shop

    2026-09-13
    • Makers get a new Analytics page in the dashboard: see how many people visited your storefront, how many opened your marketplace posts, and which posts are getting the most views.
    • A simple 14-day chart shows your store visits and post views day by day, so you can tell when interest is picking up.
    v0.29

    CNC mills and lasers at signup, and a lighter wizard

    2026-09-13
    • The printers step is now Printers & machines: CNC mills and routers (Haas, Tormach, Shapeoko, X-Carve…) and laser cutters (Glowforge, xTool, OMTech, Epilog…) are in the typeahead alongside printers, and each earns its CNC or laser chip automatically. A machine we don't list can still be added by name — pick its kind from four icons.
    • The signup wizard is mostly visuals now: a step tracker with an icon per screen, icon tiles for skills, and short labels. Every screen, label, and tile has a ⓘ or hold-to-reveal tip if you want the explanation.
    v0.28

    A smarter maker signup

    2026-09-13
    • Setting up a shop now asks for your actual printers instead of a blank “equipment” box. Start typing (“pru”, “bambu”, “ender”) and every matching model appears; tick it, say how many you run, and whether a filament switcher (MMU, AMS, CFS, ACE Pro…) or extra toolheads are attached. Printers we don't list can be added by hand.
    • Your shop's badges come from those printers: multicolor printing, large format (300 mm+), print farm (four or more machines), resin, and FDM are awarded automatically, and the biggest part you can print is filled in for the quote calculator.
    • The materials step is pre-filled with the filaments your printers can realistically run. Press × on anything you don't stock and it moves to an Others tab, where every other material — and anything you removed — can be added back, so a shop with a basic printer never launches with PEEK on its quote calculator. Common filament colors are one tap; custom colors still work. You can always change these later in the dashboard.
    • New Design skills and Skills steps: say whether you're comfortable with CAD and pick the programs you design in (Tinkercad, Fusion 360, SolidWorks, Onshape… or type your own), then tick other skills like CNC machining, laser cutting, resin, and painting & finishing. All of it shows as chips on your shop next to your name.
    • The shop address box now suggests real addresses as you type; picking one confirms your spot on the map straight away.
    • For makers: the dashboard's Pricing & capabilities tab has a new Printers card and a CAD programs box, so everything from signup can be changed later; your storefront card lists your printers and CAD tools under your chips.
    v0.27

    Privacy-friendly analytics

    2026-09-13
    • We switched on our own, privacy-friendly analytics so we can see which pages are helping and which need work. It's first-party only — no third-party trackers, no advertising cookies, and nothing personal: we don't record your name, email, IP address, or precise location, only anonymous counts like which pages get viewed and how long they're read.
    • Our Privacy Policy now spells this out, and if your browser sends a “Do Not Track” signal we skip our analytics for you entirely.
    v0.26

    Message makers on Assista

    2026-09-13
    • Makers can now turn on direct messages. Once a maker switches it on, you'll see a “Message” button on their storefront and on any order you've placed with them, so you can ask a quick question or sort out the details without leaving the site.
    • Your conversations live on a new Messages page — sign in with the email you used at checkout (just a code we email you) and pick up right where you left off.
    • Choose how you hear about replies: email, text, or both — or keep it all on Assista and just check in when you like. Makers get the same choice for messages from customers.
    • Messaging is entirely opt-in for makers, and off until they choose to turn it on.
    • Tidied up some wording around the site — trimmed a few repeated lines so a handful of pages read a little cleaner.
    • Slimmed the 3D viewer's FAQ down to the essentials, so the answers that matter are easier to find.
    • Makers can now set the colors they offer per material — so the colors a customer sees for, say, PETG are the ones you actually stock in PETG, separate from your PLA colors.
    v0.25

    Pay with Cash App at checkout

    2026-09-12
    • You can now pay with Cash App Pay when you buy from a local maker — pick “Pay online” and it shows up right alongside card, Apple Pay and Google Pay in the same secure checkout.
    v0.24

    See all your orders in one place

    2026-09-12
    • New “My orders” page: sign in with the email you used at checkout and see everything you've bought from local makers, newest first — no password, just a code we email you.
    • Each order shows a simple progress tracker, from placed through to picked up, delivered, or ready to download, so you can tell at a glance where it's at.
    • Cash-at-pickup reservations show up here too, with the amount you'll pay when you collect it.
    • Makers can now mark an order as picked up or delivered from their dashboard, which updates your tracker so you know it's on its way or done.
    v0.23

    Track your print, and buy more than one

    2026-09-10
    • You can now follow your print the whole way through. Once a maker takes your job you get a private tracking link — no account needed — showing whether it's been accepted, is printing, is done, and is ready for pickup or on its way to you.
    • Every step emails you too, and each email carries the same link. Your maker moves it along from their dashboard as they work.
    • Delivery orders finish with “Order is on the way!” and then “Delivered”; pickup orders end when your maker marks that you've collected it.
    • Fixed: makers were being offered jobs with only a one-line description. Your uploaded file, your quote PDF and your full quote now actually reach them, so they can see the part before they accept it.
    • Sell & reuse listings now say exactly what they are: spare and recycled filament list the plastic type (PLA, PETG, ABS and so on), and 3D printers list their brand and model. It shows on the listing and its marketplace card, so buyers can tell at a glance what they're getting.
    • Marketplace: you can buy more than one of something. Pick a quantity on any listing — the price, the shipping and the cash-at-pickup amount all update together, and you can't order more than a maker has left.
    • Shipping for multiple items is priced from the boxes it would really take, not one box no matter how many you buy. Makers say how many of an item fit in a package, so ordering six keychains doesn't get billed like six parcels.
    • Digital downloads stay at one per order, since one purchase is one file.
    • Vacation mode now actually takes a maker off the board. Setting “away until” means no new job offers, no quotes priced at their rates, and no marketplace confusion until the day they're back.
    • Makers who are away show “Away · back Sep 15” rather than a bare “Paused”, on their storefront, in the city listings, and in the compare-quotes results — so you can tell whether it's worth waiting or moving on.
    • The instant quote no longer matches you to a maker who's paused or away. If nobody near you is open, you'll see standard pricing and we'll route the job to the nearest maker who is.
    • A job offer now shows a live countdown of exactly how long you have left to accept before it moves to the next maker, turning red in the last five minutes. If you have auto-accept switched on there's no clock, because jobs come straight to you.
    • Makers who are away no longer take marketplace orders either — Buy and Reserve are closed for the days they're out, and the listing says when they're back instead of disappearing. Digital downloads keep selling, since those need nobody at home.
    v0.22

    Price by weight, print time, infill and speed

    2026-09-10
    • Makers can now set a cheaper minimum for parts that are both light and quick — “under 50 grams and under 4 hours” — with its own price for each material, so a small PLA part can start at $5 while PEEK still starts where it needs to.
    • New optional machine & time fee that sits on top of whichever minimum applies. Set a $5 material minimum and a $5 machine fee and no part leaves for under $10.
    • Long prints can cost more: add bands like “over 8 hours, add 15%” and tune both numbers. Only the tightest band a part passes applies, so the surcharges never pile up on each other.
    • Infill density and print speed each get their own adjustable percentage, so denser or finer work can carry the extra machine time it really costs — or a fast draft print can be discounted.
    • The pricing preview now shows each sample part’s weight and print time next to its price, so time and weight limits can be set against what parts actually come out at.
    • None of this changes any existing price until a maker turns it on, and shared quote links still reprice to exactly what the maker’s storefront shows.
    v0.21

    Shop around straight from your quote

    2026-09-10
    • Added a “Compare every maker near you” button to your quote, just above the pickup and delivery map — one tap to see what every maker in range would charge for the same part.
    • It carries your details across, so the comparison is already on screen: your location, your material, your strength setting and your quantity. No re-typing your zip.
    • You still choose how far to look — 10, 25, 50 or 100 miles — right there on the comparison page.
    v0.20

    Pricing, simplified: base price or your own

    2026-09-10
    • Makers now pick one of two ways to price, right at the top of the pricing settings: use the Assista base price and move it up or down 5% at a time, or set your own exact price per material.
    • Your own prices start from the Assista base, so you're always editing real numbers rather than guessing from scratch.
    • The two no longer stack. If you set your own prices, the ±5% price level stops applying — the numbers you typed are the price — and the level is greyed out with a note explaining why. Switch back to the base price and it works as before.
    • The quote preview on your dashboard now uses your real prices. It used to show the standard Assista price even when you had your own rates saved.
    v0.19

    Shop around — compare every maker near you

    2026-09-09
    • New “Compare quotes” page: put in your zip, choose how far you're willing to go (10, 25, 50 or 100 miles), drop in your file, and see what every maker in range would charge for it — all at once.
    • Sort the results by cheapest or closest, and the lowest price is flagged. Each price uses that maker's own rates and price level, so it's the same number you'd see on their page.
    • Makers who can't take the job aren't hidden — you'll see why, whether they don't stock that material, the part is too big for their printer, or they've paused orders.
    • Your file is measured in your browser and never uploaded, same as the free viewer.
    • The instant quote now has a “Compare every maker near you” link, so you can shop around without starting over.
    v0.18

    See how your prices compare to standard

    2026-09-09
    • Makers: when you set your own rates, each one now shows how far it sits above or below Assista's standard price — “+12%” or “−8%” right next to the value — so you can tell at a glance where you've priced yourself.
    • The pricing preview adds one headline figure for your whole setup: how a real customer's price compares with the standard quote, counting both your price level and any custom rates. Each sample also shows the standard price beside yours when they differ.
    • Fixed a confusing label: a 1.00× price level read “base price” even when you had custom rates saved underneath. It now says “same as standard”, and tells you when custom rates are in play.
    v0.17

    Preview sliced print files in the viewer

    2026-09-09
    • The free 3D viewer now opens sliced print files. Drop in a .gcode — or a .bgcode, PrusaSlicer's smaller binary version — and you'll see the actual toolpath your printer would follow, not just the model's outer shape.
    • A layer slider scrubs up through the print so you can check any layer, and you can switch on travel moves to see where the nozzle hops between extrusions.
    • Like the rest of the viewer, it all happens in your browser — the file is never uploaded.
    • Sliced files can't be sent to the instant quote (they're already set up for one specific printer), so the viewer explains that and points you to upload the model instead.
    v0.16

    OBJ files in the viewer & quote

    2026-09-09
    • The free 3D viewer now opens .obj files (Wavefront OBJ), alongside STL, 3MF, and STEP.
    • The instant quote accepts .obj too and auto-measures its size and volume, just like the other formats.
    • Makers can list OBJ as a file type they accept, so it shows on their storefront's quote as well.
    v0.15

    Sell print-ready G-code files

    2026-09-09
    • Digital listings now accept PrusaSlicer binary G-code (.bgcode), plus .gcode and .gco. Binary G-code is a few times smaller than plain .gcode, so big print files upload faster and download quicker for buyers.
    v0.14

    Ratings & reviews on the marketplace

    2026-09-09
    • Marketplace listings now show star ratings. Each item's card and its page display the average rating and how many reviews it has, so buyers can tell at a glance what others thought.
    • Buyers rate several things, not just one number: quality (labelled to fit the item — print quality, filament quality, service quality, and so on), service, how quickly the maker responded, and value. The headline star is the average of what they rated.
    • Only verified buyers can leave a review: after a marketplace purchase, your confirmation email includes a link to rate the order, so every rating comes from a real purchase.
    • Each listing page has a Reviews section with a star average for each aspect, plus buyers' comments.
    v0.13

    Clearer listing categories

    2026-09-09
    • Posting an item starts with a clearer question — “What will you list?” — and four straightforward choices: Service or product, Sell & reuse, Recycled filament, and 3D printers & parts.
    • Recycled filament spools, and whole 3D printers or printer parts, each got their own category, so they're easier to post and to find.
    • Sell & reuse now focuses on unused filament spools and 3D printed scraps or parts to be shredded.
    • Offering a filament recycling service? It now lives with your other services under “Service or product,” and can still be “contact only” so buyers reach out and you quote by weight or per job.
    v0.12

    Sell & reuse — the recycling exchange

    2026-09-08
    • The marketplace now has two tabs: Shop and Sell & reuse. The new Sell & reuse tab is a home for keeping 3D-printing gear and material out of the trash.
    • List used gear and scraps — spare printer parts like nozzles, heat blocks and bed plates, whole printers, filament scraps, and spools you don't need — so other makers can put them to use.
    • Sell recycled filament: makers can list spools of recycled PETG, PLA and more for buyers who want a greener, cheaper print.
    • Got a shredder? Offer a filament recycling service: take other makers' scraps and reprocess them into fresh filament at your own price. Set a fixed price buyers can pay, or mark it “contact only” so buyers reach out and you quote by weight.
    • You can be a maker who only recycles — offer shredding and recycling without selling any prints.
    • Makers without card payments can now go live: any item offered for local pickup can sell as cash-at-pickup, and recycling services can be contact-only, so you no longer need Stripe just to start.
    v0.11

    Pay with cash or card + item keywords

    2026-09-08
    • You can now pay in cash. Any item offered for local pickup has a “Pay cash at pickup” option: reserve it and the maker emails you to arrange when and where to meet — you pay them in cash in person, nothing is charged online. Prefer a card? “Pay with card” still checks out securely through Stripe.
    • This means makers who haven't set up card payments can still take orders — buyers can reserve their pickup items for cash.
    • When you pay by card you choose shipping or local pickup right on the item page.
    • Item pages have a cleaner layout: the name sits above the photo with the description below, so listings are easier to read at a glance.
    • Makers can add keywords to a listing (Dashboard → Marketplace → edit a listing). Keywords help buyers find it in marketplace search and on Google.
    • The maker Orders tab now includes cash-pickup reservations, with the buyer's phone number and a clear label, so you know to reach out, arrange the handoff, and collect cash.
    v0.10

    See your marketplace orders

    2026-09-08
    • Makers now have an Orders tab in the dashboard. Sign in, open your dashboard, and it lists every marketplace sale of your listings — newest first — so you can see what sold without digging through email.
    • Each order shows what was bought, the buyer's name and email (tap to reply), whether it's pickup, shipping, or a digital download, and the shipping address when it needs to be sent.
    • A running total at the top shows how many sales you've made and how much you've earned, so you can see how your shop is doing at a glance.
    v0.9

    Sell digital files + real shipping

    2026-09-06
    • Makers can now sell digital downloads. Pick “Digital download” when adding a listing, upload the file (STL, 3MF, STEP, OBJ, ZIP… up to 200 MB), and buyers get a private download link by email the moment they pay — nothing ships.
    • Shipping is now priced from the box. When a maker turns on shipping, they pick a box size and enter the packed weight; the buyer sees the shipping cost automatically, no guesswork. Assista quietly covers part of it so it isn't all on the buyer.
    • After a shipped sale, the maker gets the buyer's address and a link to buy a discounted Pirate Ship label; makers can also flag that they'd like Assista to buy the label for them (coming soon).
    • Listings now clearly show whether an item is a digital download, ships, or is local pickup — on the card and on the listing page.
    • Signed-in makers now get an “Add an item” button right on the marketplace. If card payments aren't connected yet, it takes them to set that up first (so their listing can actually be bought); otherwise it opens the new-listing form.
    • New browser-tab icon: the green “3d” is now a real 3D wordmark — extruded, beveled, and lit — that fills the whole tab icon instead of sitting small on a dark tile. The dark background is gone from the tab, bookmark, and phone home-screen icons, so it sits cleanly on light and dark browsers alike.
    v0.8

    Marketplace, first pass of fixes

    2026-09-05
    • Marketplace listings now show the maker's city and whether an item is for local pickup, shipping, or both, and you can filter the marketplace by city as well as category.
    • Your category, city, and search choices on the marketplace now stay in the link, so the Back button, a reload, or a shared link bring up the same view. A count of matching listings and a Clear filters button were added.
    • Every listing page now has an “Ask the maker” link to the maker's request form, so you can check details before paying. Items from makers who haven't set up card checkout yet say so plainly and point you to that form instead of showing a dead button.
    • After paying, the confirmation now reflects what you chose (pickup or shipping) and tells you the maker will reach you at your checkout email. Backing out of checkout now shows a clear “you haven't been charged” note.
    • When the marketplace or a listing can't be loaded, the page now says so and offers a retry instead of looking empty or reporting the listing as missing. A mistyped listing link shows “not found” right away instead of spinning for ten seconds.
    • For makers: the dashboard's Shop tab is now called Marketplace; listings can't accidentally go live before card payments are set up; each listing has a “view as buyers see it” link; deleting a listing asks for confirmation; and a half-written listing is no longer lost when you switch tabs or tap Cancel by mistake.
    • For makers: editing a sold-out listing no longer turns it into a hidden draft, sold-out items stay visible with a Sold out badge, and image upload errors now say what actually went wrong.
    • The marketplace is now linked from the homepage and footer and included in the sitemap, and the phone menu button appears immediately instead of fading in over several seconds. Pages no longer scroll sideways on phones.
    v0.7

    Standard PLA

    2026-09-03
    • The free 3D viewer now shows 3MF files in their print colors: each part's filament color and any areas painted in Bambu Studio, OrcaSlicer, or PrusaSlicer, plus colors saved by CAD tools. The colors found in the file appear under the preview as named swatches (Red, Blue, White…), in the same style as the color picker on the quote page.
    • Click “Get this printed” in the viewer and the file’s colors come with it: the quote page opens with the matching filament colors already selected.
    • 3MF project files from Bambu Studio and OrcaSlicer that used to fail with “a format we cannot preview yet” now open.
    • New beginner guide under the viewer: tap-to-open answers to what STL, 3MF, and STEP files are, how a file becomes a print, sizes and units, multi-color printing, supports and infill, and more. Quick buttons at the top jump straight to the most-asked ones.
    • Night look, readable everywhere: after dusk the sky goes dark, and blue labels, links, icons, and red error text used to fade into it. They now switch to a light blue (or light red) on the dark sky and go back to their usual colors inside white cards.
    • The “your local maker” card on the instant-quote page now sits on its own white card, so it stands out from the sky day or night, and the ZIP box and “browse other makers” link inside it are readable again.
    • Panels that were only a faint tint over the sky now sit on a proper light card at night: the Get a quote card on the homepage, the “Put your printer to work” and “biggest way to get found” panels, the maker-finding placeholders, and the 3D viewer's WebGL notice.
    • New material: standard PLA. The everyday budget filament now sits next to PLA Plus in the instant quote, about 5% cheaper per part, with the same colors and the same $4.60 per-part minimum. Pick PLA for prototypes, test fits, and display pieces; stay with PLA Plus when a part needs more toughness.
    • Makers: there's a new PLA checkbox under Materials & colors in your dashboard. Tick it if you stock standard PLA so customers can quote it on your storefront and PLA jobs can be matched to you. PLA Plus is unchanged.
    • New PLA vs PLA Plus guide explaining the difference and when to choose each, alongside the other material guides.
    • In the material picker, PLA now sits right after PETG, with PLA Plus just below it. PLA Plus is still the pre-selected default.
    • Maker dashboard: the material checkboxes now carry the same “New” badge and carbon-fiber / engineering symbols as the quote calculator, so it's easy to spot what's new.
    • Material cards in the quote calculator are now the same height across each row, so a card with a longer description no longer sticks out past its neighbor.
    v0.6

    Homepage refresh

    2026-09-01
    • The moon in the night sky is redrawn to look like the real thing: its seas and craters are where they really are, the edge between day and night fades softly instead of cutting straight across, and the dark side stays faintly visible in earthshine. It tilts toward where the sun set, glows brighter as it fills toward full, turns amber when it sits low on the horizon, and even runs a touch bigger on supermoon nights.
    • Marketplace product pages now sit on a white card, so the title, price, and description stay easy to read when the site is in its night look.
    • The homepage now opens with what Assista3d is for: 3D printed parts made in your town, with an instant quote from the maker nearest you and pickup in as little as four hours.
    • New “The goal” section on why we make parts locally: hours instead of weeks, parts kept out of the shipping network to save you time and money, hometown makers, and group buying power that keeps parts affordable.
    • Tighter homepage layout with far less empty space, so the maker near you and the become-a-maker panel sit closer to the top.
    • The box at the bottom of the maker dashboard now takes both suggestions and bug reports: tap the lightbulb or the bug to say which. The footer links straight to each.
    • Assista3d has its own icon now: the green “3d” with its shades, straight from the top of the site. You'll see it in your browser tab, bookmarks, search results, and as the home-screen icon on your phone, instead of the Assista CNC “A”.
    • The site icon is now just the green “3d” on a dark tile — the sunglasses are gone and the dark background makes the green pop, so it's bigger and easy to recognize at browser-tab, bookmark, and phone home-screen size.
    • On phones, the page buttons in the menu wheel no longer overlap each other.
    • New makers now get a welcome email from Elijah with the two fastest ways to get customers: a free Google Business Profile and asking every customer for a Google review.
    • The Google Business Profile guide now matches that welcome email: show your address or pickup spot on the map (a profile that shows its location gets roughly 30% more views and clicks), add your phone number since some customers would rather call or text, and send your Google review link after every job. The first step now shows Google's actual page.
    • Sending a suggestion or bug report is now instant instead of taking up to half a minute.
    • If your sign-in expires while you're setting up your maker shop, you're asked to sign in again and your answers are kept, instead of getting a confusing bot-check message.
    • The sky behind the site now follows your own sunrise and sunset, wherever you are. At noon on the East Coast the sun sits high, while a visitor in San Francisco at that same moment still sees it climbing.
    • Setting up a maker shop now asks for the address you make things at (store, garage, spare room) and works out your city and zip from it, showing the pin on a map to confirm. Can't be found? Drop a pin by hand or type coordinates. You choose whether customers see the address as your pickup spot; keep it private and they see a pickup spot you name instead, while the address stays on your dashboard for you.
    v0.5

    Marketplace + smarter maker matching

    2026-08-30
    • Clearer wording on the “Something else” option on the homepage, so it's obvious you can ask the AI assistant to help quote a file, explain a material, or answer anything.
    • Instant quote now finds your nearest maker and updates your price to that maker's rates automatically. No location? Share it or type your ZIP, and change it anytime from the maker card to re-match to another area.
    • If your matched maker doesn't carry a material or color you picked, we keep your choice, tell you, and can match you to the nearest maker who does.
    • New Marketplace — buy ready-made and made-to-order goods and services directly from local makers, with secure Stripe checkout.
    • Every maker storefront now shows its own coverage map — their pickup and local-delivery area, or their shipping range — instead of a generic one.
    • The AI assistant now matches you to the maker nearest to YOU: tell it (or the new 📍 button) your ZIP or city and it re-quotes with that maker's price and pickup.
    • Maker dashboard: a new Supplies page with vetted bulk-filament and shop-supply picks, plus Pirate Ship for discounted shipping labels.
    • Storefront quote fixes so pickup, delivery, and payment always reflect the correct maker.
    • Added a plain-language Privacy Policy page (linked in the footer) covering what we collect, why, and how your uploaded files are deleted.
    • New maker setup guides with step-by-step pictures: create a Google Business Profile, and link your bank to Stripe for payouts.
    • Materials are easier to tell apart: newly added ones (PEEK, PPS-CF, Nylon GF) carry a glowing “New” badge, and carbon-fiber and engineering-grade filaments now show a symbol.
    • The glowing dots that drift across the header now glide smoothly over and around the logo and menu words instead of getting caught between them.
    v0.2

    New quote engine

    2026-08-24
    • Rebuilt the pricing engine with updated rates and five more materials — including PEEK, carbon-fiber, and glass-filled nylon.
    • Clearer material, strength, and finish choices on every quote.