I'm here making the usual musings about starting my office. I'm very keen for publishing reasons to have legal software. What a challenge I know. I am curious, what your selection be for the best 3d software perhaps for 2-3 machines be - knowing full well that you may not have the clientele to support it.
I second sketchup, easy to catch on to, very cheap, powerful. Only thing it lacks is a renderer, but the basic output is usually good enough for most uses, unless you need photorealistic renders, in which case you can export sketchup files to other programs, also exports and imports autocad files.
sketchup is GREAT for a small firm. it's inexpensive (relatively) extremely easy to learn. and it "renders" (not really though) realtime and is good enough for small clients. easy to make walk throughs etc.
if you want a good renderer. 3ds and form-z are your standard gotos... but much clunkier than sketchup. but you'll get your quality renderer there. i've always preferred 3ds though...
hmmmmm..... well i hate sketchup with a passion: ive used it a bit and found it extremely frustrating. its ok for "sketching" but as soon as i want to add some details and get nicely rendered images, i move on to formZ (i find that with autoCAD plans making a formZ model is as fast if not faster than sketchup)
---keep in mind that i'm a student and im not at all considering price here! and i know fromZ is VERY expensive, and crashes about once every hour on pc...
It's a complicated question because there are so many variables. But to boil it down (platform & goals)
Platform? assuming it's not Mac (Archicad, FormZ) I think it depends on your style of design and your plans for the future. ALthough I haven't used Sketch up, I am under the impression that it is more of a 2D portrail of a 3D image. Which seems great for quick visualization, but is a dead end after that.
FormZ (roughly $1100)(clunky UI, but not overly complicatesd) for orthagonals,
Rhino ($895)(simplest for AutoCAD users because it was originally designed to be run inside cad) for organics
Viz & Max might be good because so many within the architectural community use them.
and if you want to do it all including planning for a future w/ rapid prototyping, Z printers, BIM, etc. I understand Microstation $3300-$5000 is unbeatable.
FormZ is the best bet for accuracy. Sketchup is good for the quick stuff, and from what I understand (never done it or used it), it can export fairly well. Either one you could have models that you send to other firms (like mine) for better rendering, if your clients want it.
Max is the best for rendering, but it is harder to learn and 'clunky' simply because it is so incredible powerful and diverse (it, unlike the other two, is aimed at the professional 3D crowd and makes use of terminology and workflow that isn't all that intuitive for architects -a pain, if you aren't familiar with them).
I also agree Sketchup, then Piranesi for simple quick painterly renderings and including entourage unless you're blobbing it or some other. Piranesi is quick as you want to be or as detailed as you want. Sort of a Photoshop for architects.
Also, trace is right - Sketchup is great for the quick conceptual work (has completely changed the way my office designs) and can be emailed to a professional for finishing.
I have to admit I am a fan of sketchup as well ... it even allows you to export your work in dxf, dwg, eps, and pdf formats, in case you want to make your work look even that much better ...
We use accurender, and i find it gets the job done. I find it very easy to build models in autocad, but accurender does not render all that well, IMO. VIZ is a far superior renderer. The VIZ learning curve is preventing me from making the jump...
I hadn't heard of sketchup until this thread, I downloaded the trial and I can't wait to give it a shot.
Yea Max kicks ass, nasty learning curve and expensive, but can't be beat for rendering power. I've found a good combo is to import sketchup models into Max for rendering, fastest way I've found to go from idea to finished product.
from what i've seen, Rhino is superb for both curves and accuracy overall. also, the next v.4 will have Brazil as its radiosity renderer. don't know if Brazil will be a plug-in or if it will be built-in. if built-in, that would certainly detract form Rhino's current status as an unbelievable bargain.
Mar 16, 05 11:15 am ·
·
Block this user
Are you sure you want to block this user and hide all related comments throughout the site?
Archinect
This is your first comment on Archinect. Your comment will be visible once approved.
3d for a small office
I'm here making the usual musings about starting my office. I'm very keen for publishing reasons to have legal software. What a challenge I know. I am curious, what your selection be for the best 3d software perhaps for 2-3 machines be - knowing full well that you may not have the clientele to support it.
can I hear your thoughts?
We have a bunch of 3-D software, this is the one everyone uses- quick, easy, intuitive, not too expensive. Has a free trial for you to try.
I second sketchup, easy to catch on to, very cheap, powerful. Only thing it lacks is a renderer, but the basic output is usually good enough for most uses, unless you need photorealistic renders, in which case you can export sketchup files to other programs, also exports and imports autocad files.
sketchup is GREAT for a small firm. it's inexpensive (relatively) extremely easy to learn. and it "renders" (not really though) realtime and is good enough for small clients. easy to make walk throughs etc.
if you want a good renderer. 3ds and form-z are your standard gotos... but much clunkier than sketchup. but you'll get your quality renderer there. i've always preferred 3ds though...
hmmmmm..... well i hate sketchup with a passion: ive used it a bit and found it extremely frustrating. its ok for "sketching" but as soon as i want to add some details and get nicely rendered images, i move on to formZ (i find that with autoCAD plans making a formZ model is as fast if not faster than sketchup)
---keep in mind that i'm a student and im not at all considering price here! and i know fromZ is VERY expensive, and crashes about once every hour on pc...
It's a complicated question because there are so many variables. But to boil it down (platform & goals)
Platform? assuming it's not Mac (Archicad, FormZ) I think it depends on your style of design and your plans for the future. ALthough I haven't used Sketch up, I am under the impression that it is more of a 2D portrail of a 3D image. Which seems great for quick visualization, but is a dead end after that.
FormZ (roughly $1100)(clunky UI, but not overly complicatesd) for orthagonals,
Rhino ($895)(simplest for AutoCAD users because it was originally designed to be run inside cad) for organics
Viz & Max might be good because so many within the architectural community use them.
and if you want to do it all including planning for a future w/ rapid prototyping, Z printers, BIM, etc. I understand Microstation $3300-$5000 is unbeatable.
FormZ is the best bet for accuracy. Sketchup is good for the quick stuff, and from what I understand (never done it or used it), it can export fairly well. Either one you could have models that you send to other firms (like mine) for better rendering, if your clients want it.
Max is the best for rendering, but it is harder to learn and 'clunky' simply because it is so incredible powerful and diverse (it, unlike the other two, is aimed at the professional 3D crowd and makes use of terminology and workflow that isn't all that intuitive for architects -a pain, if you aren't familiar with them).
I also agree Sketchup, then Piranesi for simple quick painterly renderings and including entourage unless you're blobbing it or some other. Piranesi is quick as you want to be or as detailed as you want. Sort of a Photoshop for architects.
Also, trace is right - Sketchup is great for the quick conceptual work (has completely changed the way my office designs) and can be emailed to a professional for finishing.
microstation for a seamless 2d to 3d workflow.
Anyone have experience with Accurender? How does it compare to VizRender?
I have to admit I am a fan of sketchup as well ... it even allows you to export your work in dxf, dwg, eps, and pdf formats, in case you want to make your work look even that much better ...
Or Viz?
BUMP
We use accurender, and i find it gets the job done. I find it very easy to build models in autocad, but accurender does not render all that well, IMO. VIZ is a far superior renderer. The VIZ learning curve is preventing me from making the jump...
I hadn't heard of sketchup until this thread, I downloaded the trial and I can't wait to give it a shot.
Why would you worry as far as publishing your work? What does publishing and not having cracked software have to do with each other?
---Also I gotz to tell ya, 3ds seriously kicks ass (once you know it) .
Yea Max kicks ass, nasty learning curve and expensive, but can't be beat for rendering power. I've found a good combo is to import sketchup models into Max for rendering, fastest way I've found to go from idea to finished product.
Sketchup after 3ds appears to be missing alot of control.
from what i've seen, Rhino is superb for both curves and accuracy overall. also, the next v.4 will have Brazil as its radiosity renderer. don't know if Brazil will be a plug-in or if it will be built-in. if built-in, that would certainly detract form Rhino's current status as an unbelievable bargain.
Block this user
Are you sure you want to block this user and hide all related comments throughout the site?
Archinect
This is your first comment on Archinect. Your comment will be visible once approved.