Home Design

3D Home Architect Home Design Special Edition 6

Whether you're building a new home from scratch, adding on, or remodeling a kitchen or bath, this comprehensive program delivers what you need in a friendly, intuitive interface....
Riverdeep :: 3d :: home :: architect :: home :: design :: special :: edition :: 6 :: riverdeep :: home :: education :: home :: inventory :: 3dhomearchitecthomedesignspecialedition6 deluxe :: 3D Home Architect Home Design Special Edition 6

Better Homes and Gardens Home Designer

1 stars (Helpful only in designing boxes with roofs) - This product was a horrible waste of my money. There is no option for log houses, which I find surprising. This is afterall, far from an alternative building style. It seems as though this product was made for those with little or no creaativity, seeking to create another ugly box like all those that already exist all over the nation. Don't waste your money! 3 stars (Lots of work, little reward) - I was very anxious to recieve this product. I reviewed various products and this seemed to be the one to buy for the price. At this point I'm not disappointed I bought it, just disappointed at some of the limitations. I was looking to do basic, accurate floor plans, i.e. kitchens. With this product you're forced to design a house and then focus on a specific room. I live in an area where there are alot of raised houses. A raised foundation/house on piers is not an option. I will say that it has a nice selection of finishes, though many of them look too similar to tell a difference. Overall, it's a decent product and not a bad buy. 3 stars (Limited Capability-Not for remodeling) - When I read the other reviews on this product, I was a bit surprised at their very positive nature. Then I remembered how I felt when I first tried this program and it all made sense. My guess is that the folks who wrote the positive reviews probably haven't worked with the program for very long or tried to create anything but the most elementary structures. I know I was very impressed at first. That is until I tried to re-create my own home as the starting point for a remodeling project. This program is very intuitive and easy to learn, the problem is that it is also very limited. After you get past the ease of creating floor plans, the next obvious progression is to see the building in 3D. That's where the problems begin. The roof planes are nearly impossible to control. If you are creating anything other than a simple cape ...
Chief Architect :: Improvement (1-2-3) :: Interior Design :: House Floor Plans (Planning) :: Layout :: Home Design :: Hobby Hobbies :: Computer software (programs) :: :: Better Homes and Gardens Home Designer

3D Home Architect Home Design Deluxe 6

1 stars ( 3D Home Architect Home Design Deluxe 6 ) - Very basic program. Would purchase again if price was $20.00 or less just for the basic house layout. 3 stars (Powerful but not user-friendly) - I have been using this product for about six months to redesign several rooms in our house. It is fairly flexible and powerful and has a good variety of colors, textures, materials, etc. to work with. However, don't believe the "intuitive, easy to use" claims made by the company producing this software. I have run into many problems where the program required me to do something unintuitive, such as raise all of the furniture in a room off the floor by 1 inch in order to be able to put a rug in the room. Also, you cannot "nudge" objects using the arrow keys as you can in almost any graphics program, so exact placement of objects becomes a frustrating game of, "Can I let go of the mouse on this exact pixel?" For the amount I paid (which was $20 more than it should have been because of Fry's' typical refusal to honor the rebate that they themselves advertised), it is not a bad program. But it's sad that there isn't anything out there that's much better. 1 stars (Not a true upgrade from version 4) - This is not a true update from version 4 but a completely new program. If you want the true updated verson try "Better Homes and gardens Home Designer" products by Chief Architect, they were the makers of "3D Home Architect version 4 and earlyer. I purchased 3D Home Architect version 5, and it was very hard to use I can't imagine that this will be better. ...
Encore Software :: Improvement (1-2-3) :: Interior Design :: House Floor Plans (Planning) :: Layout :: Home Design :: Landscape (Landscaping) :: Gardening (Gardens) :: Computer softwa :: 3D Home Architect Home Design Deluxe 6

FloorPlan Design Suite Version 9

3 stars (My .02) - Many software publishers allow free "trial" downloads of the product. If you didn't have enough sense to try-before-you-buy, then don't complain when your expectations aren't met. Besides, you rarely get free support on a $40 title, so stop whining. I'm going to download this and try it. If I like it, I'll buy and then add another review. 1 stars (Bad Software) - I bought this and got Amazon's usual good service. That's the good news. This software is lousy! The design objects don't even include common things like bath vanities. They must want you to use a kitchen base cabinet but the depth and height are wrong and you can't change either. The length you can change. Tech support is $10 per phone call or $5 per email. What arrogance. DO NOT BUY THIS SOFTWARE. Bill in Lansing Iowa. ...
IMSI :: House Floor Plans (Planning) :: Layout :: Home Design :: Hobby Hobbies :: 3D (3-D) :: Graphics :: Computer software (programs) :: Home Publishing :: Graphics (Graphic :: FloorPlan Design Suite Version 9

Custom Land Designer Home -amp- Garden Suite

Custom Land Designer Home & Garden Suite...
ValuSoft :: Improvement (1-2-3) :: Interior Design :: House Floor Plans (Planning) :: Layout :: Home Design :: Hobby Hobbies :: Landscape (Landscaping) :: Gardening (Gardens) :: :: Custom Land Designer Home -amp- Garden Suite

Punch- Ultimate Deck and Landscape

1 stars (Ultimately Not! Punch Out) - Deck design allows design of will/might look good, not what it takes to construct. No place to select joist size/spacing; type of footing; size and placement of cross beam(s), cross blocking or size of decking boards. I'll find a WIN98 machine and use 3D-Deck instead. 1 stars (Far better ways to spend your money and your time) - I had low expectations to begin with but they were still too high. This program is just not up to the task - plain and simple. I spent several nights trying to get a two-tierred deck designed and have wasted my time struggling with this terrible product. If I hadn't borrowed this CD from a friend who also couldn't do any constructive work with it, I'd have demanded my money back. I beg someone to write a review who's HAS designed and built a deck with this toy; add a link so we can see what you actually accomplished. Its time to use something useful like AutoCad... 3 stars (Not Bad for the Money) - This is an inexpensive CAD program for home exterior, landscape, and deck design. I found it fun and relatively easy to use. In just a few hours I had a reasonable model of my home and it's decks entered. The walk-through feature works well and is great for viewing the plan in 3D easily from any angle. The instant 3D view as you change items on the plan is very nice for getting things like roof lines, railings, and windows set up and placed correctly. Landscape design options are pretty limited, like the small number of plant and fence options, but adequate to get a rough view of how something might look. Overall, it does what one would expect from a $30 program and is useful if you aren't too picky about getting the result to look exactly like the finished product. Punch seems to have a whole range of products, and given that this one works pretty well for what it is, I am planning to upgrade to something from Punch with a bit more flexibility, assuming that it can input what I have created so f...
Punch- Software :: Improvement (1-2-3) :: Interior Design :: House Floor Plans (Planning) :: Layout :: Home Design :: Computer software (programs) :: :: Punch- Ultimate Deck and Landscape

Craftsman 2005 CD Estimator - Complete Construction Estimator

Craftsman 2005 CD Estimator - Complete Construction Estimator ...
Victory Multimedia :: Improvement (1-2-3) :: Interior Design :: House Floor Plans (Planning) :: Layout :: Home Design :: Landscape (Landscaping) :: Gardening (Gardens) :: Computer softwa :: Craftsman 2005 CD Estimator - Complete Construction Estimator

Better Homes and Gardens Landscaping and Deck Designer Bundle

5 stars (Using Better Homes and Gardens Landscaping and Deck Designer) - I am a novice to landscape design. I have in the past used a drafting table, drafting machine, and created a plan view that was almost professional looking thanks to a course I took by mail several years ago. My problem was that I did not have the drawing skills to create an elevation view, and I felt that was a vital missing skill. I had looked at several brands of software (CAD) that would give me the ability to create what my gardens should look like if I were standing looking at them. Some that were too simplified were not able to allow me to get the exact picture I wanted. Others that were even more expensive than this one were not as sophisticated in their look. I did not have the money or the inclination to spend thousands of dollars on programs that were probably meant for professionals. I am a master gardener and I get my satisfaction from designing for schools, retirement centers, and others who are looking for perennial gardens, bird, and butterfly gardens. I am a retired educator and only want to use the program to help me give back to my community. The way I can do this is to help them design a garden. I found this program relatively easy to understand as I first read it. The quick start guide and tutorial is excellent and touches on all that I need to get started. It also has a variety of plant material in the zone that I live in. This is something that I also looked for in the design software. I can also import photos of plants that are not listed in the Better Homes and Garden encyclopedia. This program also lets one know how many plants of a certain kind are needed in a certain area, and how they will look in 0 to 10 years. Although I donate my own time, it is important for an institution to know how much they are going to spend on plant material, mulch, pathway material, etc. This is done in the project cost estimating portion of the p...
Chief Architect :: Improvement (1-2-3) :: Interior Design :: House Floor Plans (Planning) :: Layout :: Home Design :: Landscape (Landscaping) :: Gardening (Gardens) :: Computer softwa :: Better Homes and Gardens Landscaping and Deck Designer Bundle

3D Home Landscape 5 Deluxe

1 stars (Read the Reviews FIRST - ZERO Stars) - I just now read the reviews of this product; unfortunately, I did not read them before I purchased this pathetic program. Basically - false advertising. Does not include anywhere near the number of items indicated on the box and queries to Broderbund indicate the items are no longer available. Save your money - get some crayons! 1 stars (Actually 0 Stars DON'T DO IT!!!!) - I have had Broderbund Home Designer 5.0 for about 4 months now. Three years ago I used 3D Architect Vers. 1.0 to remodel my kitchen and it was great. So, I decided to buy 3D Architect Professional 5.0 to design my Master Suite (converting two BRs and a bath to do it) and remodel my back yard and pool....completely. To begin, all Broderbund architectural products' names are similarly named. I thought the "professional" 5.0 included (and was led to believe by skimming the info on it) the landscape design program. You can even switch to landscape mode but NOTHING happens! After calls to tech support and customer service asking why I can't get to the landscape portion, I (not they) realized I had to buy 3D Home Landscape. So I went to buy it, installed it and went to use the program and still no landscape mode. Long story short...after many frustrating calls and e-mails, I (again me, not they) discovered how the two programs merge together to form one program (if installed in a certain method and order) named yet another program name...3d Home Designer 5.0. Unbelievable! Again, long story short...after limping through a multitude of crashes, letters to tech support and getting answers back e.g., "I don't know, I don't use the program" and countless other frustrating and irritating things, today was the last straw. I opened the program and four months of re-creating my four bedroom tri-level home and yard are gone to waste. As soon as I open the program to do anything, it crashes. I have re-installed and to no avail. BY ALL MEANS, save yourself the frus...
Broderbund :: House Floor Plans (Planning) :: Layout :: Home Design :: Landscape (Landscaping) :: Gardening (Gardens) :: Computer software (programs) :: Great Deals (Outlet sto :: 3D Home Landscape 5 Deluxe

Punch- Professional Home Design Platinum 8 0

4 stars (Punch! Home design program) - I purchased this product with very little knowledge on CAD software, and building guidelines, etc.. However with a bit of time and effort, including reading the Users guide thoroughly, I have been able to create a fairly realistic idea of what I want my new house to look like. (...) I don't rate the Users Guide as a 5-star guide, and the software's Help section is similarly not that great. I can see this software is very powerful, but getting the most out of it is going to take a lot of patience. 5 stars (Excellent choice) - I purchased this software to built a plan and get ideas for my home. The plan is coming along very nicely. The color scheme, design setails and the overall flexibility of the program is second to none. I could not be happier with a software program of this kind. 4 stars (better instructions needed) - Over all this is a good product BUT be prepared for a high learning curve and instructions that need to be updated for the layman. You can not just purchase this software, and POOF design a house. Although the software comes with a basic book, it is not very helpful when you are having an issue with something and can't figure out what you are doing wrong. The manufactures also need to have a full tutorial included with the software, like what is included with any computer game or wordprocessing program. Although the program has help buttons that you can click on for certain things, I find them to be lacking and not on nearly enough topics. There are however websites that are like "support" groups that offer help in bulletin board or email style (for free!) but once again, until you are familiar with the program and what and how to work with it, it can be frustrating. Personally I purchased this with a specific plan in mind, and I still have not been able to complete it as I am learning and stumbling through it. ...
Punch- Software :: punch :: professional :: home :: design :: platinum :: 8 :: 0 :: punch :: software :: business :: finance :: business :: finance :: punch-professionalhomedesignplatinum8 0 23 november :: 20 :: Punch- Professional Home Design Platinum 8 0

Punch- Home Design Architectural Series 18

4 stars (Jack of All Trades, Master of None) - Strengths: Support for nearly every aspect of home design, from foundation to landscaping Weaknesses: Sometimes quirky interface; less functional in some areas than others Overall, Punch! Home Design Architectural Series 18 (HDAS18 hereafter) is a pretty solid product for the price. It's big draw is that it is a home design suite. That is, it claims to provide the user with the ability to control every aspect of home design, from plotting the topography of your lot, to constructing your floor plan, to landscaping and adding furnishings to your new virtual home. For the most part, HDAS18 delivers on its promises. Unlike other comparable software packages, which are actually composed of several different stand-alone applications, HDAS18 is an integrated package. While there are different applets within the program to work on, say, the framing of your virtual home, all of these applets are launched fairly seamlessly from within the program itself. These applets, which Punch! calls PowerTools, run the gamut from the quite useful to the impossibly difficult to master. Topo designer, for instance, allows you to precisely edit the topography of your site, adding slopes and gullies to your lot which the program takes into account when you lay your virtual foundation. Other PowerTools, such as 3D Custom Workshop, are more frustrating to use. The idea of creating custom 3D objects such as furniture, decor, etc. to add to your design is appealing, but users without extensive CAD (computer-aided design) software experience will find this feature virtually unusable. I purchased this product primarily for its landscaping function. I want to add some landscaping to my existing home, and I wanted to be able to visualize my ideas in 3D before committing the time and money to creating a lawn that I would ultimately be unsatisfied with. Unfortunately, I was a little disappointed with the landscaping features of HDAS18. Li...
Punch- Software :: punch :: home :: design :: architectural :: series :: 18 :: punch :: software :: home :: education :: hobbies :: punch-homedesignarchitecturalseries18 25 october :: 200 :: Punch- Home Design Architectural Series 18

Punch- Home Design Architectural Series 3000

5 stars (The perfect solution) - Moving into a new house, I had so many projects to make it my own. This product made it all happen. It was easy to start and I had walls drawn and showing in 3D in a few minutes. First, I drew the existing structure. The ability to draw the plan easily and see it in 3D every step of the way made it quite easy. And, I've tried all the competitors. The only product that lets you show the 3D view (with shadows from lights and sun) without grueling waiting and finger tapping is Punch.. its blazing fast. Changing the plan was just as easy! You drag a wall and dimensions display showing you were you are. Move a window or door and you instantly see the results in the 3D view. When I wanted to knock down a dividing wall between the great room and kitchen, it was a couple of mouse clicks and poof, gone. This was huge in determining how open the plan would be and if this part of the remodeling was worth it. When it comes time to landscape, this was way cool. You can customize your yard and its a blast. With a few mouse clicks you can add hills/berms to your yard, I even used the excavation tool and dug a hole for a swimming pool(now if I could just really have it :) The picket fence I added even conformed to the changed landscape. And.. then I added plants. Tons of plants and I even used their tool to select only plants in my area. Then.. to top it off..with a click of the mouse I could grow the entire landscape to see how it would look when the trees grew. As for learning.. you'll love it. You can be drawing in minutes.. but if you need some help there are videos that walk you through how to use each tool. Very cool. 1 stars (Wish I'd Read The Reviews First!) - Like a fool I purchased this software based on the cool pictures on the box and the long list of features. Unfortunately, the pictures turn out to be not actual screenshots, and the features are, as Bart pointed out, little more than limited templates. A couple ca...
Punch- Software :: Gardening (Gardens) :: Edit (Editing) :: Multimedia :: Graphics :: Computer software (programs) :: Image Capture Capturing :: Improvement (1-2-3) :: Interior Design :: Punch- Home Design Architectural Series 3000

3D Home Architect Kitchen - Bath

3D Home Architect Kitchen / Bath...
Encore Software :: Layout :: Home Design :: Hobby Hobbies :: 3D (3-D) :: Graphics :: Computer software (programs) :: Improvement (1-2-3) :: Interior Design :: House Floor Plans (Plannin :: 3D Home Architect Kitchen - Bath

3D Home Architect Landscape Design Deluxe 6

3 stars (Ended Up Paying More) - I thought that I'd have a hard time learning this software, since other reviewers commented on its difficulty, but it wasn't that hard to get the hang of it. My intent on purchasing this was to recreate my house and landscape it within the program. I soon learned that wasn't going to happen, since none of the housing plans available to choose from resembled my house, and I couldn't alter the structures in any way. So, I ended up buying 3D Home Architect Home Design Deluxe 6 and recreating my house in that program. I then transfered my house design to the Landscaping software and landscaped it within that program. I should have purchased the suite available with has both the Home Design and Landscaping software combined, but I ended up buying each program individualy and spending more money. Overall, I think it's a fun program to plan a house and garden. I'd give it another star if only I wasn't pissed about having to spend more money on more software just to use this Landscaping program the way I wanted to. 1 stars (Stay away from Broderbund software) - I wish I could give them zero stars. Broderbund pulled support for software I owned only 2 years after it was released. I was unable to install it because it required internet registration which was no longer supported. To solve the problem, they offered to SELL me a different software title. They must have thought I was stupid. They expected me to give them more money??? This company has second rate software and third rate customer service. Do not buy anything from them. 3 stars (Takes LOTS of time.) - Like most people, I was initially very disappointed with this software, and though I am an experienced computer user, could not figure out how to do some simple tasks. I kept at it though, and with practice and a LOT of time was able to create a spectacular plan. I drew my house first as a series of tall fences, then eventually used photographs. I eventually learned how to dr...
Broderbund :: Improvement (1-2-3) :: Interior Design :: House Floor Plans (Planning) :: Layout :: Home Design :: Landscape (Landscaping) :: Gardening (Gardens) :: Computer softwa :: 3D Home Architect Landscape Design Deluxe 6

Picture Painter

Picture Painter ...
Chief Architect :: Improvement (1-2-3) :: Interior Design :: House Floor Plans (Planning) :: Layout :: Home Design :: Landscape (Landscaping) :: Gardening (Gardens) :: Computer softwa :: Picture Painter

3D Home Architect Design Suite Deluxe 6

4 stars (Good but not excellent) - I have tested a lot of programs for house design, and this one is one of the easiest to use, it is remarkable that there a lot of functions missing like copy and paste objects in the usual way , but it have the duplicate option (what im talking here is that some standarization is missing) you canot change the attributes of multiple objects, so you need to change the color of every single piece of wall one by one. Apart from theese little interface details, the resulting images in 3d are very nice and realistic, the product is discontinued by the company which is now selling all the components separately, so there must be a limmited quantity of copies of this package remaining. To end my review let me say that between all the programs i tested i decided to buy this one and im happy with my choice 4 stars (Really not that bad.) - I've read these reviews and some people love it and some people hate it. And I disagree with the person that uses it just to fool around with it, and said that anyone who would use this for a real life project is stupid. I have been using it for the past month in my spare time (which isn't very much with a 4 month old), I have used it to draw a plan to renovate the first floor of our house. Sure, some things are a pain, like having to block views of walls, floors, etc. to move a chair or table, but overall, I think that if you really want to draw up a plan, this program isn't that bad. I'm sure there are other programs out there that will do a better job, but for 80 bucks or whatever, you get what you pay for. If you really want to have a good program, plan on shelling out the 250-300 dollars for the better ones. 5 stars (Major Improvement!) - I found this software to be absolutely faultless. It does have the same drag around interfaces as before, which allows houses to be designed at lightning speed; only your menu choices are not put into two menu systems which allow more comprehensive choices. On...
Broderbund :: Interior Design :: House Floor Plans (Planning) :: Layout :: Home Design :: Computer software (programs) :: Mac Macintosh Machintosh Apple :: Improvement (1-2-3) :: :: 3D Home Architect Design Suite Deluxe 6

Punch- Professional Home Design Suite

5 stars (WARNING - This seller has FALSE information!) - The description on this AMAZON.com post says that the software is Mac compatible -- I work for Punch! Software and most assuredly can tell you that it is NOT compatible with Mac. 2 stars (Not ready for prime-time) - Very, very limited. Decides arbitrarily to link walls together so that an interior wall becomes an exterior wall, and changing the interior back changes all the walls in the group. No way to break a wall once you've put a window or door in it unless you first remove the window or door. Selection of textures is very, very limited and there is no documented way to import more. Selection of objects the same--the 3d designer does allow new objects to be defined but compared to any kind of real 3-d CAD program, including the freeware version of Intellicad (no longer available alas), it's horribly weak, and no way to import from a real CAD program unless maybe you spring for one of the more expensive versions. No doorknobs. No way to specify where lights are located, at least none that I can find--there are lamp objects but they don't provide light, they just sit there. It's a cheap program that acts like a cheap program. 1 stars (Not what I expected) - This program is difficult to understand. It is not easy to use. If you make a mistake it is not easy to correct it. I did not like it at all and am taking it back to Office Depot. I should have read other reviews before I got it. ...
Punch- Software :: Improvement (1-2-3) :: Interior Design :: House Floor Plans (Planning) :: Layout :: Home Design :: Computer software (programs) :: :: Punch- Professional Home Design Suite

Better Homes and Gardens Interior Designer Bundle

Better Homes and Gardens Interior Designer Bundle ...
Chief Architect :: Improvement (1-2-3) :: Interior Design :: House Floor Plans (Planning) :: Layout :: Home Design :: Computer software (programs) :: :: Better Homes and Gardens Interior Designer Bundle

Punch- Master Landscape Pro and Home Design

3 stars (Landscaping is Okay but don't bother with the house feature) - I'm a huge fan of home design programs, it's a great way to unleash creativity. I adore Punch Pro, however I agree with others I find the Punch Pro line substandard when designing houses compared to 3d Architect Home Design Deluxe 6, but Punch Pro is great for landscaping. There are a few errors with the plants not programed right in the computer, aka black box around some of the plants. Also I wasn't able to figure out all of the features, for example build your own items using the plane, and I was frustrated beyond comparison when my program's library crashed and I had to use the scary default library. That prompted it's removal from my computer! However, I'd like to note an important tip: To accuratly run this and other home design programs, I had to invest in a top of the line video card for the rendering to look good. Don't go by what the box says, trust me just shell out the extra moo la if you're serious about building! Other wise you might as well beat another level of WOW waiting for the program to render! Hope this review helps! 4 stars (Have to respond) - I read several of the reviews here and almost didn't purchase this software. But I chose to give it a try, after purchasing this product I am amazed at a couple of the reviews it received. One states either outright lies, or never bothered to try the correct method to make it work, and another assumed it would do all the work for them (if you want that hire an architect), as a tool it is very good. Example: One wrote " -- In my back yard there is cement, then 6" down, there is a garden. You can't move things in 6" units. Only 1 foot." That is an erroneous statement. If instead of just dragging the elevation bar (which is set to snap to one foot increments) right click on it, it will bring up a dialog box, select set elevation, and type in the elevation you want (I did it to 1/8") Another example of an outright lie is: ...
Punch- Software :: House Floor Plans (Planning) :: Layout :: Home Design :: Landscape (Landscaping) :: Gardening (Gardens) :: Computer software (programs) :: Improvement (1-2-3) :: In :: Punch- Master Landscape Pro and Home Design

Your Complete Landscape and Garden Designer DVD-Rom

Your Complete Landscape and Garden Designer (DVD-Rom) ...
Valusoft :: Improvement (1-2-3) :: Interior Design :: House Floor Plans (Planning) :: Layout :: Home Design :: Hobby Hobbies :: Landscape (Landscaping) :: Gardening (Gardens) :: :: Your Complete Landscape and Garden Designer (DVD-Rom)