2008 Year End / German Launch Promotion

In conjunction with todays release of the German Cadimage Tools we are pleased to announce our year end promotion:

15% Off all Purchases (Suites, Tools, Objects and Upgrades) before 31st December 2008.

To qualify for this promotion simply use the YEND8 Promotion Code when purchasing via the website.

Deutsche Cadimage Tools herausgegeben!

Cadimage Tools ist stolz bekanntzugeben, dass von heute an fünf der Cadimage Tools als örtliche deutschsprachige Versionen verfügbar sind.

Die folgenden ArchiCAD 12 Tools sind heute herausgegeben und sind ab sofort zum Kauf und Download erhältlich:

• 3D Profiler
• Key Notes
• Landscaping Tool
• Revision Manager
• Stair Builder

In Verbindung mit der Veröffentlichung, wurde die Cadimage Tools Webseite komplett überholt und ist nun auch als örtliche Webseite auf Deutsch vorhanden.

Das Übersetzen, Entwickeln und Instandhalten der Tools in mehrfachen Sprachen stellt das Entwicklerteam vor zusätzliche Herausforderungen. Wir sind jedoch der Auffassung, dass die Vorteile regionaler Versionen diese internen Herausforderungen bei weitem überwiegen.

Zu diesem Zeitpunkt wird unser Online Support noch auf Englisch angeboten. Wir werden allerdings die Nachfrage unserer deutschsprachigen Kunden beobachten und ständig unser Hilfsangebot überprüfen.

Wir werden mit ortsansässigen Graphisoft Partnern in Deutschland, Österreich und der Schweiz zusammenarbeiten, um diesen grossartigen Anlass zu fördern.

German Cadimage Tools Released!

Cadimage Tools is proud to announce that from today five of the Cadimage Tools are available as localised German language versions.

The following ArchiCAD 12 Tools have all been released today available for immediate purchase and download:

• 3D Profiler
• Key Notes
• Landscaping Tool
• Revision Manager
• Stair Builder

In conjunction with this release, the Cadimage Tools website has been completely overhauled and is also available as a localised website in German.

Translating, developing and maintaining Tools in multiple languages provides additional challenges to the development team but we believe the benefits of having local versions far outweigh these internal challenges.

At this stage our Online Support is still provided in English, however, we will monitor the demand from our German speaking customers and continually review our support offering.

We will be working with local Graphisoft Partners in Germany, Austria and Switzerland to promote this great occasion.

Cadimage Tools Hotfix 2

The second hotfix for the Cadimage Tools has now been released. This hotfix addresses a number of issues that have been resolved thanks to feedback received from you, our customers. You can download the the latest versions here: http://www.cadimagetools.com/myAccount/downloads.aspx
As always, make sure you check out the release reports while you’re there to see what we actually did.

Wall Framing for ArchiCAD 12

It’s taken a while but we are ready to go with a Pre-release of Wall Framing for ArchiCAD 12.

Based on 4 years of Customer Feedback from around the world, and constant improvement, we decided it was time to rebuild our Wall Framing Tool. While this update has taken a little longer than anticipated we expect you’ll find the wait was worth it!

Before launching the final product, we will publish two pre-release versions of the tool. The idea is to give existing Wall Framing tool customers the opportunity to trial the software and provide input to ensure the best possible outcome.

The first of these pre-release versions is available now for PC, and the second is scheduled to follow in the next 7-10 days for PC and Mac.

If you would like to use the Pre-release version please contact me (andrew@cadimagetools.com)

I’m excited by the potential of our new Wall Framing Tool. While it already represents a huge step forward, we already have future enhancements in mind. The new Wall Framing Tool has been designed to last for many years. It is effectively a platform for future development, so expect to see many improvements to this product over the next few years.

Specific improvements to the new Wall Framing tool include:

Multiple Skins

Multiple skins of framing, battens and panels are integral to the new system. These skins tie into the composite wall structure for tight integration with ArchiCAD. Individual control over each skin provides unprecedented flexibility.

Automatic Framing Around Openings

Openings are now framed up correctly as the frame is placed into the wall. In the old system, you had to individually specify the framing around each opening. If you change the size of an opening, and re-build the wall frame, the lintel will be automatically re-sized. The new tool uses span tables to assign lintels, sills and studs to all the openings simultaneously.

Stacked Openings

Openings placed above one another are now framed individually. This was always a shortcoming of the original system.

Customizable System

The new tool is highly customizable. You can create your own framing members, panels, end junctions, side junctions, lintels, top plate assemblies, etc. You can define span tables for lintels and junctions. At the top level you can use the structures you defined to create framing skins, batten skins and panel skins that can be assigned to composite walls.

Simplified Settings

Each object has a relatively simple user interface, presenting only the settings needed to drive that object. This doesn’t mean that the flexibility of the system has been reduced, in fact the new system is far richer than the old Wall Framing tool. It just means that the complexity of the system is spread over a number of simpler dialogs. You can focus on one aspect of the system at a time, without being overwhelmed by the number of settings.

User Controlled Processes

To avoid unnecessary processing, frames are rebuilt on demand. If you adjust a wall, or change the position of a window opening, the frame does not automatically rebuild. To rebuild all frames use the new menu item, and only the frames that require updating will be reconstructed. Less processing means a faster system resulting in more efficient work.

Edit Individual Members and Panels

One of the most exciting new developments for the Wall Framing tool is the ability to edit the elevated wall frames. Each piece of timber is placed as a separate object that can be deleted, moved or edited individually. The panels are placed as fill polygons so these can be edited too. Special editing tools are provided. You can also add members and panels into the frame. This allows you to rather easily design a custom frame for any given wall.

To get a feel for how the new tool works, check out these tutorials:

• Wall Framing Presets
• Attach Framing to a Composite
• Place Frames
• Keyboard Shortcuts
• Elevate Frames
• Edit Frames

Website Maintenance - Website Offline

We need to make some changes to our website and database.

This will result in the website being unavailable between:

Tuesday 18th November - 10:00am and 2:00pm New Zealand Daylight Time

You can check out this website to find out your local time during that period.

We apologise for any inconvenience they may cause.

Trial Versions Available

Many of you may not be aware that we offer Trial Versions of our Tools so that you can ‘try before you buy.’ Our Trial Versions allow full use of the software during a 30 day period.

Trial Versions are available for both ArchiCAD 12 and ArchiCAD 11 and available for all Tools excluding:

• Accessory Tools
• Cabinet Builder

Note: We hope to be able to supply Trial Versions of the above Tools with the next ArchiCAD Release. In the meantime you can check out the Tool Manuals and Tutorial Movies.

Read this PDF to see how easy it is to Register a Trial Version.

Please Note:

Recently we did find an issue in our Trial Version Registration System. We were unable to determine exactly how wide spread this issue was so we took the simple approach of removing all Trial Version data back to 1st July 2008 (ie just before ArchiCAD 12 shipped)

Therefore if you previously had issues registering a Trial Version we suggest you try again.

We apologise for any inconvenience this may have caused.

As always if you experience any issues with our Tools and/or website please do to hesitate to contact us.

Accessory Tools - Overview

We decided it was time to provide a brief overview of one of our most mature tools - The Cadimage Accessory Tools.

These Tools started life back in the days of ArchiCAD 7 and through continual use and customer feedback have developed into a comprehensive set of Tools.

The Accessory Tools in essense provide a single function which has two clearly defined benefits.

The Tools allow you to ‘dress up’ your building as one of our customers explained one day! By adding detail to the 3D Model the two benefits or by-products of the Highly Realistic 3d Model are:

• Great detail for Rendering
• Increased quality of Documentation (Sections and Elevations) requiring less (or no) 2d work

One of our Australia Customers, Warwick Lloyd-Martin of 3de, uses the Accessory Tools extensively. The following two Renders are a mix of Cinama4D and also the ArchiCAD Sketch Render:

Warwick sums up the Accessory Tools as follows:

Cadimage Accessory Tools enables us to incorporate accurate and detailed modelling for our images, whilst maintaining our documentation with efficient and seamless intergration into the ArchiCAD model.

For more information check out:

• Accessory Tools Home Page
• Product Flyer
• Movie Tutorial #1 - How do I Place Weatherboards?
• Movie Tutorial #2 - How do I Place a Corrugated Roof?

Customer Feedback…

As a company we take customer service and satisfaction very seriously. This is easier said then done when you are running an international company primarily via the internet.

That is why when we receive feedback from our customers we get a buzz. Not all feedback is good but all feedback helps us develop and grow as a company.

Today we got an email from a new customer in Melbourne, Australia. Jim Fogarty recently purchased our Landscaping Suite including the Trees of the South Pacific.
Jim email said:

“Thought you might be interested to see the attached - I write for the Melbourne Age Newspaper and every now and then I do a case study of a garden from a reader that writes in with a design problem

Good to see your handy work being used?”

In response to Jim’s question “yes we are very stoked to see our handy work being used!”

We love to see our Tools being used in our customers day-to-day work!

During our email conversation with Jim he went on to say:

” It is great to see this tool develop … … I am not aware of anything this good available anywhere”

So keep the feedback coming, the Team definitely enjoy a pat-on-the-back every once in a while and also know that constructive cusotmer feedback leads to the development of even better Tools!

Our aim is to deliver Tools our customers need so keep the feedback coming!

Cadimage Tools Hotfix Released!

The Cadimage Tools team are pleased to announce that our first hotfix for ArchiCAD 12 is ready to go. We’ve ironed out a number of wrinkles found after the initial release, so head over to our website(http://www.cadimagetools.com/myAccount/downloads.aspx) to download the latest version. And while you’re there, be sure to check out the release reports to  see a full list of the changes made.