CAD, BIM & 3D

From http://aecnews.com/news/2008/06/18/3561.aspx but too interesting to just reference. However, I had to make some corrections, such as indicating the free but not Open Source applications. Commerical Products Podium, www.suplugins.com , $178, Direct SketchUp Integration. IDX Renditioner, www.idx-design.com , $199, Direct SketchUp Integration, formerly TurboSketch. Vue 6 xStream, www.e-onsoftware.com , $695 and up, imports .skp files. Vue 6 infinite, www.e-onsoftware.com , $895 and up, imports .skp files. Piranesi, www.piranesi.co.uk , $750, non-photorealistic, requires plug-in for SketchUp. Artlantis, www.artlantis.com , $795, requires SketchUp exporter plug-in. Vray for SketchUp, http://asgvis.com , $799, Direct SketchUp integration. Maxwell Render, www.maxwellrender.com , $995, requires SketchUp exporter plug-in. FryRender, www.fryrender.com , $1240, requires plug-in. Free Products Indigo, www.indigorenderer.com , unbiased renderer, requires SketchUp exporter plug-in. Free, but n...

There are different Open Source CAD applications, which might be worth to keep an eye on. Some of them are actively being developed, but not fully usable yet. wildcat full CAD system, using MCAD concepts, but in early development (no end-user application yet) CADEMIA 2D generic CAD in Java, an academic research project thancad 2D CAD for engineers, using Python PythonCAD 2D CAD in Python JCad 2D CAD in Java QCad 2D CAD in C++ Archimedes 2D AutoCAD-clone FreeCAD 3D MCAD in C++ (feature based parametric modeler) B-processor Building Information Modeling in Java, an academic research project BRL-CAD general Solid Modeling and Raytracing by the US Army Most of them are cross-platform. Some of them exist in a free (and Open) community edition and commercial add-ons. But it might be an approach to build further on an existing toolset.

The new generation of AccuRender is called nXt . It is a rendering plugin for AutoCAD, Revit, SketchUp or Rhino. The software will be commercial, but you can currently subscribe to test a pre-release version. This is free. You can indicate if you are a Mac user, but the software is currently targeting Windows applications mostly. But when you know that Rhino is being ported to OSX, AccuRender might follow.

DualCAD is a free Windows-only 2D CAD program to edit MicroStation DGN files. It is a full application, used to demonstrate the capabilities of the PcsCustom ActiveX control from the developer (not free), which can be used to develop a Windows-based CAD application. http://www.pcscad.com/index.html

The "Explicit History" plugin for Rhino 4.0 is currently in development. It provides an interface to make the history of modeling steps explicit (visible) instead of being hidden behind the scenes. It allows users to define a parametric history tree for modeling, not unlike Bentley Generative Components. Beware that it is still in development and that many steps in the Rhino modeling flow are not exposed with history at all. http://en.wiki.mcneel.com/default.aspx/McNeel/ExplicitHistoryPluginMainPage.html System requirements: Rhino 4.0 SP3 A nice example of the possibilities of this plugin can be followed at the DesignReform blog.

Antics provides a solution to develop realtime animations. It is used for pre-visualization, machinima and general multimedia purposes. There are two versions: free and pro, with different content available and with better integration in the pro version. http://www.antics3d.com Available for Windows only.

nVidia will provide the latest (and last) version of Gelato for free. This is a rendering system which utilizes your graphics adapter (but it has to be an nVidia Quadro card!). The software was previously available in a free and non-free pro version. The pro version will not be developed anymore and has become free now. http://www.nvidia.com/gelatozone Available for Windows and Linux and with integration for Autodesk 3ds Max and Maya.