What Is The Latest Version Of Chief Architect
Aida Mazyck
I am an individual who bought v10 then upgraded to v12 when I was designing my house. I ended up having to hire someone for the "design" because the county required it. So I sent my design to someone and she did what she had to do and sent it off to the engineer, etc. Problem is she used v15. I need to get in there to get some specific measurements and framing and things that were not included in our final plans. In order for me to open it I have to subscribe to v15 and shell out another 1k to check what I need. But am I reading this right that I'll only be able to open these for a year unless I keep paying for it very year??? I had paid over 3k for the original program and I understand upgrading if you want all the new and "live" features, but a monthly subscription when I'm not an architect seems excessive. Is there no way to permanently upgrade the one v12 so I don't have to keep going back and upgrading or continue to subscribe to open my plan I already made?? I understand not having the upgrade perks and new ssa and things like that, but that isn't necessary for me since this isn't my career.
You can rent X15 at $199/month whenever you need it instead of renting it for a whole year. You could even rent HD Pro at $59/month. Just be aware that the Pro version won't be able to do everything that Premier can so you might open your plan and find some things are locked.
Good idea on using the trial. I'll do that to get what I need and try to anticipate what I might need over the next year, the OP suggesting paying for a month is a good idea also. Thanks! Frustrating I cant just own it but it is what it is.
You would need to be running the same or newer version of what they are running. Or on future projects, they would need to run an older version. Once a file is saved into a newer version, it cannot go back.
Chief Architect Software is a developer of 3D architectural home design software for builders, interior designers, architects, and DIY home enthusiasts.[1] Chief Architect uses BIM tools to create a 3D model of the structure and automatically generates all of the building systems of the home.[2] For the professional architectural and building market, it publishes the Chief Architect product line. For the consumer DIY market, it publishes the Home Designer product line.
Chief Architect was first released in 1992 as 3D computer graphics software product that ran on an early version of Microsoft Windows Version 3.1.[3][4] Chief Architect Software has been reported to be easy to use (in comparison to other 3D CAD packages) for 3D home design, and thus provides a valuable tool in the hands of builders, contractors and homeowners who have traditionally lacked the skills to run complex CAD software.[5][6]
Chief Architect software was initially created for home design due to Simpson's frustration in designing by hand.[7] Finding that intuitive residential design software did not exist, Simpson created Chief Architect - a tool to design homes. Chief Architect's first version of this professional 3D CAD home design product line was officially sold as version 2.0. New versions released over the years with key automated building features to help improve the process for residential design.[8]In 1993, the Company licensed a simplified version of the software to Broderbund for sale in the retail / DIY market.[9] The Company ended its relationship with Broderbund in 2002 following the release of 3D Home Architect 4.0. In 2003, Chief Architect signed a license agreement with Meredith Corporation to license the name Better Homes and Gardens.[10] The Company used Better Homes and Gardens Home Designer as the successor to 3D Home Architect. In 2009, the Company replaced Better Homes and Gardens name with Home Designer.
In February 2014, the Company released its first macOS compatible version for the professional design market. This release is engineered in a way that allows users to run a single license on either a Mac or Windows computer and most notably, there is file compatibility when moving a plan between operating systems.[11]
In June, 2016 the Company released the Chief Architect 3D Viewer mobile app for iOS and Android.[12] This app allows users to experience 3D models generated in the Chief Architect desktop software to help visualize the design before construction has begun. The app features a virtual reality experience without use of a headset.[13]
I do Design and Estimating for a lumberyard and demo'd SoftPlan, Chief Architect and Envisioneer before deciding on SoftPlan. All 3 do a good job of creating floor plans, elevations and sections. What sold me on SoftPlan is it's Material Take Off capabilities. Their SoftList module is leaps and bounds above the others in regards to customizing, accuracy and the ability to synchronize with our Point of Sale software. There is a bit of a learning curve with SoftList, but between the documentation, videos and their VERY patient and knowledgeable support team I quickly had it up and running. Once I have a house properly modeled in SoftPlan I can have a very accurate and detailed take off in less than an hour. I could not do my job without SoftList and SoftPlan.
I currently have both and I never was a big fan of Chief Architect. The main difference to me is that while CA produces awesome 3D renderings the plan portion of the software is lacking. SoftPlan is getting much better in the 3D rendering game but I am able to produce much better looking working set of drawings. While the 3D is fun to look at for my clients, most people will never see them, while my plans are seen by plan reviewers, contractors, building material suppliers, tradesmen and of course the beloved building inspectors.
From a strictly learning curve perspective, SP was much easier for me to pick up and run with. As a carpenter, I've built from drawings produced by both. Final plan quality depends on what is put into it by the creator...whether it's SP, CA, ACAD, or any other software...I've seen crap from all. So for me, it boiled down to how fast I was able to learn the software, and then be able to produce a quality set of drawings in a reasonable amount of time. SP for me is far and away more intuitive and usable for my purposes.
I can only give limited feedback about chief. I knew about softplan long before I purchased and before I knew anything about chief. I downloaded their demo sometime around 2005/2006...spent no more than an hour with it and just couldn't wrap my head around how it worked. It didn't take long to decide that wasn't the software I was going to buy. I started on Softplan with V13 LITE...was easily drawing floor plans after just a few hours of learning the commands, and upgrade to the full version when v14 came out. I've been very pleased with not only the software but also the amount of support received from the support staff. Answers to questions or problems are answered quickly and clearly. The awesome support is enough to keep me upgrading each time and sticking with softplan!!!
I have to say, I am with Sam on this one. I know many Architects that seem to use a mix of several design programs, to this day, I've no clue why, except one did seem to like the plan presentation in a simple version. (no dimensions, only names and size notes) It did look kinda cool, a little sketched looking with line intersects extending slightly past the corners as in the old fashioned drafting way.
I started with AutoCAD back in the 80's, version 1.4. It was fun to learn and with a lot of time and effort, you could produce a decent set of prints, but a LOT OF TIME, and you (yourself personally) had to be very accurate, or you had just another average drafted plan set.
Having self taught me, around about a version 4 of SoftPlan, once I started using it, finally went to a class, and continued with updates, I never looked back. I did try Chief, Sketch up and various others, but after a day or so of attempting to even begin to learn it as fast as I did SP, I knew I had the right stuff.
I know that these other programs likely have their place, but with all you can currently do with SP, they just take up hard drive space for me. I have the full 2016 AutoCAD Architecture suite, BIM and all, but I normally use it to convert files and once in a great while, if I can't find what I want in a online 3-D site, I might make something.
I also have Illustrator and Photoshop, but rarely use them either, SP has such fantastic 3-D capabilities, even I am still learning them and getting better and better.
I've spent hours and hours watching videos, I am that committed.
I have also taught more than a dozen others over the years, guys/gals that worked with and for me, how to use SP, and once they learned it, they too question why anyone would want to use other programs.
I've even used it for a variety of engineering and tool and die design projects, steel detailing and so many things, building race cars as part of my number of business ventures, it even works for me in designing and making various parts.
I am just getting started with SoftPlan and have used Chief for many, many, many years. Like any program it has its good and not so good points. While I do find it (Chief) fairly easy to use, it has, in my opinion, about the worst file management system ever invented by man.
I really do not know if SoftPlan has the same issue, but with Chief if you want to alter an existing plan (say "House1") then save it as "House 2" for a different client, or just an alternative design for the same client, you must save House 1 forever, you cannot archive it, you cannot save it on a separate hard drive, it must remain active in your system for as long as you want to use House 2. You can save it as a different plan name, you can save it on a different location in our computer, but if you ever lose House 1, or if the file ever gets corrupted you are out of luck and have to recreate the entire drawing for House 2 . As I have a lot of plans over the years that are based on previous drawings, this is a real time consuming issue. I certainly hope this is not the case with SoftPlan, but since I am an brand new user, only time will tell.
One thing I liked about SoftPlan is how you create different floors. In SoftPlan it appears the first floor is copied to either a foundation level or second floor, and all of the walls and other components are copies along with it. You can then change wall types if it is a foundation, and remove the unused portions of the original floor plan. Chief derives a blank floor plan. Things like plumbing drops or fixture locations need to be refigured manually with Chief, as they will not appear from floor to floor.