In an earlier contribution to this discussion,
Lobster wrote:

Does anybody have any recommendations? Haver tried googling and come
up with a number of possibilities, but would like to hear if anyone
has any particularly favourable experience.

I'm looking for something like estate agents might use, or those
Beeny-esque TV programmes. Strong preference for something free, or
at least shareware.

Thanks
David


I use a package called - would you believe - FloorPlan 3D, from IMSI. I got
mine free on the Coverdisc of PCPlus Magazine a few years ago, but you can
buy the current version from the likes of Amazon for about £20. It enables
you to create a 2-D plan view, and then place 3-D walls, doors windows,
roofs, etc. on it - and then render the image to look (more or less!) like a
photo of the finished building. You can hide layers so as, for example, to
see inside with the roof removed and you can do walk-throughs etc. You can
furnish the rooms with tables, chairs, fire-places, bathroom suites, etc. -
except that the standard fixtures are somewhat Americanised (although they
can be customised).

As with any CAD-type package, you have to invest some time in learning how
to get the best out of it - but you can produce some fairly impressive
results without *too* much effort. There's a reasonable amount of on-line
help available (contributed by third parties IIRC) with tips on how to do
end gables, etc.
--
Cheers,
Roger
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