Chief Architect Home Designer 9.0

I bought this program to draft plans for a house extension. It is quite easy to learn, especially using with the free on-line tutorials which explain most features quickly and clearly. I was a bit disappointed with the roofing features of this version (Home Designer 9.0) because I cannot do custom roof designs which is what I have in my house. As well, this version of the program does not seem to include landscape elevations and as a result I have been unable to add exterior stairs from a deck. Other than that, I am very pleased with the purchase and would recommend it to others. The program is very intuitive to learn and the 3D views are great. At $42.99 it was excellent value for money.
Rating: 4 / 5

I purchased this computer program because both of my kids asked for a compter “game” that they could design houses…..an architect game…..They are a 10 y/o boy and 13 y/0 girl. I bought this for Xmas thinking that it would probably be over their heads and too technical but couldn’t find anything else that fit. I had read reviews of most computer architect programs and this one sounded great but most likely too complicated for them. I was wrong. Both of them are consumed with designing their own home. They have had no problems with the programming or language. They are so excited about telling us the new features they created. The program can be downloaded onto more than one computer and does not need the disc for playing. I really thought this home program would be complicated for them but they are loving it and getting a wonderful feeling when they create something so uniquely theirs and “adult like”. I have not worked the program but if you have a kid interested in architecture……I think this is a great creative program for them as long as they are moderately computer savy. I am sure it is wonderful for adults to use as well! First present they both used and most favorite present they received. Sorry Santa!
Rating: 5 / 5

We spent a casual week or so shopping for DIY home design software; I wanted to finalize a home design I’d been doing on napkins and in my head for years. Studied all their websites and compared/contrasted. Finally pulled the trigger on the $99 Punch software at Best Buy. Long story short; after a week of frustration, I took it back for a refund (BB doesn’t like to do that on opened software, so I called and got a mngr’s approval.)

What were the problems with the Punch? In no particular order:

1) The OOBE (out-of-box-experience) was not very good. It installed and ran OK; and the initial start-up scheme they have developed to get the rank novice going (that of dragging boxes (rooms) into rough locations) went OK; but the process began to bog down quickly due to my inexperience with the program. That’s to be expected, but viewing the tutorials and then digging deep into the manual were often more frustrating than illuminating. Hey Punch: suggest you hire someone with ISD (Instructional System Design) experience to solve this problem.

2) No support for adding a fireplace? YGTBKM! Maybe it’s in there, but I searched and searched, and the word “fireplace” was not to be found in the index, nor the reference manual, nor the search function.

3) No ICF support. This is becoming far too popular a modern green home construction technique to ignore.

4) I found the program to be far too finicky in such simple functions as “snap-to-point” when building a wall; I was wasting a lot of time trying to get it to do the simplest things. This is where Punch drops the ball the most; they don’t appear to have designed the tutorials and training to overcome the most common errors of a typical beginner. (I have a Master’s Degree in Educational Technology, so feel qualified to judge).

I then bought the Chief Architect 9.0 from Amazon for $53. At least for me, I’m having an easier time of it. (I’ll grant you that the struggles with the first product made me somewhat more skillful with the second).

Not everything is perfect with CA 9.0 however. Expect some learning curve and frustration.

1) Very disappointed that the Punch had a 300+ page printed manual, while the CA 9.0 has only a .pdf.

2) I liked the fly-around camera function much better in the Punch than the CA 9.0; it’s simpler and more intuitive. Quite often with the CA 9.0, with just a gentle flick of the mouse I get crazy gopher’s-eye-view of my house from underneath, or sometimes a termite’s-eye-view from inside the wall. Sheesh.

For $53….. thumb’s up!

Rating: 5 / 5

I’ve been working on a rather large project involving the design/layout of several custom buildings. I’ve been using some pretty old CAD software, both 2D and 3D to rough out my designs. A year ago I splurged and bought a program specifically for house/architectural design.. I was excited about it. and it took a while to get comfortable with the new format and eventually I got going on redoing all my previous drawings.

Though it was much better than what I had, it was still lacking…

About mid summer I was watching for the upgraded version of that same program to be discounted…and was nearly ready to buy…..

Just a few days before I had intended to place the order I got an email of features from Amazon and just on a lark clicked on the link for the Home Designer software being offered.

I went to the page and saw the video and just sat here gap jawed.. then I read the reviews.. and I was sold…

Now.. to be fair the video is a bit misleading. It shows all the features of all their programs, not telling you just exactly what you can, or can’t do, with a given package. I bought the low end product and I admit that I was disappointed when I found that it didn’t do EVERYTHING in the video… and when you go through the tutorials.. you have to watch for the little logo on the bottom of the screen to see if what they are discussing is included in your version.. but other than that….

It’s wonderful. The learning curve isn’t too bad. Watch the tutorials and play around a bit with a practice project until you get used to how things work. Once you get the hang of it layout and customizing goes very quickly…

The detail in how you can do interior layout of the rooms and even outdoor areas makes it really fun to work with, you can SEE what the furniture will look like in the room.

There are plenty of ways that you can customize objects and such within their software so that you can get pretty close to furniture size and such to approximate your own pieces.

One feature that I VERY much wanted, and found is not in the version I purchased.. was to import objects that I created in my other software. Since this package doesn’t include that feature, I’m saving up to upgrade. Since the drawings that I’m working on now can be imported into the upgrade I’m not wasting my time in continuing to work, and when I am able to upgrade I will then be able to use my own object designs as well.

The walk through feature, I must add, is a blast… to layout a ‘dream design’ that has only lived in your mind.. and then be able to do a virtual walk through… makes it all worthwhile!
Rating: 5 / 5

I love this application, and have been using it for years under older versions (4.5 and earlier). Upgrading to version 9.0 is a HUGE improvement over the old ones – there are so many more features, and the graphics are unbelievably fast compared to the old versions. I love the huge number of library items you can add to customize your design. The improved camera tools make looking at your design very easy. I like the ‘glass house’ view too. And the final rendered views look great. Deck and landscaping design has greatly improved too, with great flexibility.

Minor irritations: It is very frustrating trying to build a house to exact measurements, due to the overpowering ‘snap’ feature, which I can’t seem to turn off effectively – you can temporarily disable it, but it also disables all the other features so the wall you’re resizing winds up separating from all the other walls. Very frustrating. Also, in trying to create a section of a room that is slightly raised from the rest, it doesn’t display correctly on the views – the room is drawn without any floor.

These are minor inconveniences in an otherwise fantastic product.

Rating: 5 / 5