Want to draw up some basic ideas for house extension - does anyone know of
any free CAD software that I might use to do this please?

DavidKendall wrote:
Want to draw up some basic ideas for house extension - does anyone know of
any free CAD software that I might use to do this please?

alt.comp.freeware can help

NT

I've used QCAD a little, and it can read .DXF (Drawing Excahnge Format)
so files can be interchanged with Autocad and others.
http://www.ribbonsoft.com/qcad.html

The new kid on the block is SketchUp - a highly intuitive 3D package -
I like. http://www.sketchup.com/

try here...
www.progecad.com
and download 'progeCAD LT 2006' - it's almost identical to AuotCAD and
fully compatible if that's a consideration. Has lots of features and is
fairly easy to pick up - there are many tutorials knocking around. It
really is excellent.

DavidKendall wrote:
Want to draw up some basic ideas for house extension - does anyone know of
any free CAD software that I might use to do this please?



There are some versions of turbocad available on the net.

DavidKendall wrote:
Want to draw up some basic ideas for house extension - does anyone know of
any free CAD software that I might use to do this please?

I used vectorengineer pro-tools to do my extension plans, which were
passed a couple of months ago. I found it easier than the normal
auto-CAD style programs. You can download the quick tools version for
free, and it may be enough. It can't do hash patterns and dotted lines
though. Program has a few quirks. Biggest one - the dotted lines cannot
be scaled, so you have to chose a reasonable drawing scale to start off
with. I started off with 1:1 and had to convert everything to 1:10 so
that the dotted lines came out dotted.

http://www.vectorengineer.com/

Cheers,
Simon.

The message om
from " contains these words:

The new kid on the block is SketchUp - a highly intuitive 3D package -
I like. http://www.sketchup.com/

Great fun, but I still haven't managed to get it to do arrays rotated
round a centre.

--
Skipweasel
Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain.

The new kid on the block is SketchUp - a highly intuitive 3D package -
I like. http://www.sketchup.com/

That looks like hours of fun.

The message .com
from contains these words:

The new kid on the block is SketchUp - a highly intuitive 3D package -
I like. http://www.sketchup.com/

That looks like hours of fun.

My 8yo boy has been designing the perfect house. So far the gym and
games room have pushed the rest of the house into a shoebox.

--
Skipweasel
Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain.

wrote:
The new kid on the block is SketchUp - a highly intuitive 3D package -
I like. http://www.sketchup.com/

That looks like hours of fun.

Yeah, it really is worth a download and a try-out of the very nice
tutorials. The basics are really, really intuitive - way better than
any other draughting package I've tried.

"Guy King" wrote in message
...
The message om
from " contains these words:

The new kid on the block is SketchUp - a highly intuitive 3D package -
I like. http://www.sketchup.com/

Great fun, but I still haven't managed to get it to do arrays rotated
round a centre.

--
Skipweasel

SketchUp looks great for rapid sketching of a building; but how does one
generate an aggregation of items into a 'building'? In other words, one can
rapidly 'sketch' a bog-standard' house, with hipped roof -even 'paint'
tiles- and generate windows with transparency form 'surfaces'; but if one
wants to 'construct' a roof using rafters, purlins, and joists of certain
sizes at certain spacing .... how does one start?

--

Brian

The message
from "Brian Sharrock" contains these words:

but if one
wants to 'construct' a roof using rafters, purlins, and joists of certain
sizes at certain spacing .... how does one start?

Do one, then copy it all down the roof. Select move/copy, choose the
item to be copied, then press and release [Ctrl]. A + will appear beside
the cursor. Now, click on the endpoint, and then type /n [Enter] where n
is now many repeats you wanted. You can change the number as often as
you like until you do something else, then it's locked.

--
Skipweasel
Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain.

"Guy King" wrote in message
...
The message
from "Brian Sharrock" contains these words:

but if one
wants to 'construct' a roof using rafters, purlins, and joists of certain
sizes at certain spacing .... how does one start?

Do one, then copy it all down the roof. Select move/copy, choose the
item to be copied, then press and release [Ctrl]. A + will appear beside
the cursor. Now, click on the endpoint, and then type /n [Enter] where n
is now many repeats you wanted. You can change the number as often as
you like until you do something else, then it's locked.

Thanks for responding; - I'm interested in SketchUp for 'modelling' my
'intended' single storey rear extension and loft conversion
proposal/project/pipedream.
I've tried to follow your instructions; but couldn't get it to work ....
Do one,

I 'constructed' a beam/joist by drawing a rectangle on the red axis/blue
axis,
then (rotating the eye point) 'extruded' the rectangle into a beam of an
arbitrary length- about twice the 'height' of the man.
I used the component tool to capture all the surfaces and this became my
'one'.

....then copy it all down the roof.

Select move/copy, choose the
item to be copied, then press and release [Ctrl]. A + will appear beside
the cursor.

That happened !

Now, click on the endpoint,

I moved the mouse and the 'move/copy' cursor moved along the red axis to a
guesstimated thirty feet .... and clicked ...


and then type /n [Enter]

...... did that (typed in figure 5) ...

where n
is now many repeats you wanted. You can change the number as often as
you like until you do something else, then it's locked.

Five 'beams' appeared all cheek by jowl with the original 'one'.

They were not spaced as I interpreted from your message .... should I nudge
each individual 'beam' into position?

Thanks for responding.

--

Brian

wrote:
wrote:

The new kid on the block is SketchUp - a highly intuitive 3D package -
I like. http://www.sketchup.com/

That looks like hours of fun.


Yeah, it really is worth a download and a try-out of the very nice
tutorials. The basics are really, really intuitive - way better than
any other draughting package I've tried.


Looks every bit as impressive as Picasa. Let's hope Google come up with
a free OS next

The message
from "Brian Sharrock" contains these words:

They were not spaced as I interpreted from your message .... should I nudge
each individual 'beam' into position?

No, if you've done it right they should be all spaced out twixt start
and finish.

Rather than try it on your Magnum Opus[1] just play with a rectangle or
even the little bloke [2] to see if you can get it to work.

[1] Large Irish cat detective.

[2] No, not play with your little man...

--
Skipweasel
Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain.

"Stuart Noble" wrote in message
...
wrote:
wrote:

The new kid on the block is SketchUp - a highly intuitive 3D package -
I like. http://www.sketchup.com/

That looks like hours of fun.


Yeah, it really is worth a download and a try-out of the very nice
tutorials. The basics are really, really intuitive - way better than
any other draughting package I've tried.


Looks every bit as impressive as Picasa. Let's hope Google come up with a
free OS next

I thought their aim was that you don't need an OS,- or at most, only enough
to support a browser.

"Guy King" wrote in message
...
The message
from "Brian Sharrock" contains these words:

They were not spaced as I interpreted from your message .... should I
nudge
each individual 'beam' into position?

No, if you've done it right they should be all spaced out twixt start
and finish.

Rather than try it on your Magnum Opus[1] just play with a rectangle or
even the little bloke [2] to see if you can get it to work.


I played with my little man .... quite quickly I had ranks of twenty odd, in
files of three; with mutiple instnaces of 'flights', squadrons and wings!
....
It's certainly powerful ....

--

Brian



[1] Large Irish cat detective.

[2] No, not play with your little man...

--
Skipweasel
Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain.