3D Home Architect Deluxe 3 (Jewel Case)

Product Details

Platform : Windows 98, Windows 2000, Windows Me
Binding : CD-ROM
EAN : 0772040811594
Manufacturer : Broderbund
Model : 381159
Product Group : Software
Release Date : 2002-08-02
UPC : 772040811594

ASIN : B00006IS82

Customer Reviews

Easy Learnning Curve (2003-09-07)

This is the first 3d cad software I've ever bought. I bought the program to wet my toes in home design software and discover what features I needed for a later, more serious purchase. To test the program I had two projects in mind. The first project was a remodeling project for our church's sound booth and the second was to create a 3d model of the whole church building. Within minutes of starting the program I had the walls, stairs, doors, and a raised platform for the sound booth layed out in the program. A little while latter I was taking a 3d walk through of my design. The program was very easy to learn and had a very intuitive user interface. However, the selection of objects (doors, stairs, furnishings, etc) are quite limited in this version of the program. Also the 3d walk through viewing angles and controls seem a bit too restrictive. Later I tried my hand at the exterior of the church building. Again the program prooved easy to use and learn. I had no trouble adding a roof and other exterior components to my design. However, as before, the selection of components (roof types textures etc...) is very limited in this version. All in all, I recomend this program for users wanting to get a feel for home modeling software or users with small projects using standard components. This is not a professional program, but is very useful in its own right. I did not have any trouble with the program (no crashes or strange behavior) on my system (Athalon 700MHz, W2000, 320Mb) during the two weeks I was using it.

Easiest To Use of 3 I tried--built my home from it! (2003-07-27)

I purchased three highly recommended PC architect programs to put my ideas onto paper. One was too complex, almost a full CAD program that would have taken months to learn by trial and error. The next was too simple to do any serious planning. Broderbund's Home Architect (previous version with book included) was JUST RIGHT. I didn't need the book which was mostly documentation of the fixtures and models included. I started playing with simple frame designs and tried to replicate parts of my favorite layouts from Home Design books. It took me a few weeks in my spare time to get good enough to do some serious drawing. By the time I finished my plans three months later, I had 3-D views, all the electrical switches & outlets installed to code (automatically), an exact measurement to the sq. ft. and materials list I actually used for estimates. Sharing those estimates with the contractor showed him I knew what the house would cost to build except for labor and helped us settle on a fixed price up front. In fact, my estimate turned out to be better than his. Early in my designing, the materials list showed I couldn't afford the house I wanted so I scaled it down to what I could afford without losing anything important or incurring thousands in loan costs. I took the plans to an architect who basically charged me $400 to re-draw and print out my plans on his plotter. I built the house and the only problem the contractor had was where the architect didn't follow my computerized plan. Next time I'll do it with just this software! It really works. [and now does roof designs] I've enjoyed my home for seven years now and it suits me well because I designed it carefully to meet my needs, my lot and the FL climate. Try several sw packages including this one. Its more intuitive to use than the others and loaded with nice features. Don't settle for a cookie cutter home.

YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR (2003-06-14)

This software shows good promise, but the lack of documentation and/or online help makes this product extrememly frustrating and difficult to use. After several hours of trial and error and creating work arounds to very basic editing tasks I was able to create very basic floor plans. This program is supposed to do much more but without any instructions it is just not intuitive enough to get the job done. Even though the program is cheap don't buy it if you put any value on your time.

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