Produce construction-quality blueprints in minutes.
Design Intuition from GizmoLab is woodworking-oriented computer-aided design software for Apple MacOS X. Design Intuition makes it possible for the average craftsperson or independent woodworker to produce construction-quality blueprints in minutes, in both 2D and 3D. This is the first full-featured CAD software that's affordable for the individual woodworker. Users can download a fully functional trial version (less printing and saving) to see for themselves the great value and utility Design Intuition delivers.
This review was originally posted on VersionTracker.com.<br />This is niche software at it's most promising. Based on some good ideas, with a well thought-out user interface and excellent graphics, it is aimed nicely at its market.
The ease with which one can manipulate 3D images catches the imagination. And the bookcase-designing tutorial gets the feet even further off the ground. But then warning bells start to ring - have I got the information I need to make the bookcase? The answer is No. And the reason becomes clear when you start to exercise the package. It's based on lego-like building of rectangular and circular cylinders, and the only dimensions available are those for each cylinder itself. The system is very useful as far as it goes, but the trouble is that inter object dimensions are not apparent. So if you want to make a door with a centre rail for example, it's distance from either of the other rails is not recorded. This may not matter if you only want to get a 3D impression of what the door will look like, but it's not much good if you want to make the thing. The fatal flaw as I see it is the absence of a ruler and associated construction lines. If you want to see how it could be done, take a look at SketchUp. Unfortunately SketchUp is not right for serious woodworking, but then nor is Design Intuition - yet.
Top Class!
gjts07
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This review was originally posted on VersionTracker.com.<br />Metric or Imperial whatever you prefer.
In the later Versions Metric works fine. Jonathan fixed it in 1.30 or thereabouts. When you want to use the included ready made Designs and you have DI set to â??Metricâ?? (as default) everything is shown in mm cm and meters, so it re calculates inches and yards for you. Ready for Europe! Itâ??s an extremely clever piece of software and I am just hooked! I just happened to find it on the Internet, tried it an bought it within a day. Whenever you have a question just email Jonathan and you will receive a helpful (and friendly) reply almost instantly!
He actually practices what he preaches! Not just a promise! And Wow does he work hard!
I had been looking for a sensible design program for my woodworking (hobby) for a long long time and this is IT! The first version I tried was buggy indeed (1.17) but itâ??s near perfect now. I canâ??t make it go wrong. (even when I do stupid things which I am rather good at...) What attracted me in the first instance was the 3D feature. You design something and you can look at it from all angles in 3D. If it doesnâ??t â??look rightâ?? you can stretch and push and the measurements follow the changes. It does all these calculations for you. You can do a layout when you want to use sheet material, it even lets you feed in the thickness of your cut (of your saw-blade)
And then there it is: your cutting list just print it and start building! Yes it really works! Simple things or more complex designs with repeats etc. Like stairs or fences or shelves. Mini size, room-size, or bigger if you want it.
I started with a layout of my sonâ??s bedroom just to see what would fit where and how to rearrange things. (it was hard to picture things standing in his untidy room!) Then I designed a bed (frame) and build it. It fitted perfectly! Itâ??s so easy to use itâ??s fun! And of course there are all the ready designs you can stretch and prod to suit your need. You donâ??t need to buy plans anymore just make your own!
At the same time it is a program very suitable for professionals/designers as well (lots of them already use it I understand)
We are very lucky to have this for the Macintosh!
Highly Recommended!
GJTS UK Customer
Impressive
AVFolk
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This review was originally posted on VersionTracker.com.<br />Nice improvements in multiple views, making internal structure more accessible and visible. Smart objects and grouping capabilities are awesome. Yes, metric would be nice -- but our professional shop has problems locating metric router bits, and other precision tools as well. We are converting as tooling becomes available... and I'm confident that Jonathan will keep pace.
BTW -- I have found the developer to be responsive, helpful, with plenty of ideas for future development of DI. I only wish other software companies shared his philosophy and dedication to excellence and service.
We've found DI to be indespensable and a bargain.
Superb Interface - Conceptually Strong
stardog2000
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This review was originally posted on VersionTracker.com.<br />I am a user of Design Intuition and Vectorworks. I use both primarily for what DI was designed for - "Woodworking Projects". Vectorworks can do virtually anything you want in complex (shapes etc) modeling. But, the learning curve as pretty steep and the user interface takes some practive. It, however can do modeling jobs DI can't (at this time).
DI has an GUI that is a joy to use. Simple and straigtforward. For most projects it has become my choice for fast and easy design work. There are some great concepts here - X-Ray vision -a variably opaque wireframe model that just makes sense once you've used it -- A hiearchical structure that make it easy to select elements and change their size (attributes) and Smarts Objects - items which can be drawn an resized while changing certain dimensions but not others (fixed dim lumber)
I believe from the developers website notes about plans for the future there is a great time ahead for this program. The efforts to this point are superb.
