Half time

I'm sure you are all well aware of the old saying: Time flies by when you're having fun. For me then it should mean that I've been having the time of my life so far this year. Why then, does it not feel like it? Easily fixed, just replace the word "fun" with "crazy busy" and all is good in the world again. Just in case I was not aware of it however, I received an email earlier this week reminding me that we are at half way point and that Christmas holidays are "only" six months away. A little early to get your advent calender out I say, but each to their own.

Back to the future then and to Palette CAD. I am hoping that a lot of you have now got your hands on version 8 and have started to play around with the new layout and some of the new features.

My personal highlight is the new Palette PLAY feature in version 8. It is a very impressive sales tool that can be used to walk a customer through a finished design and paves the way for a very innovative future. In essence it is a computer game like application that is accessed online and can be sent to a potential customer as a hyperlink or simply stored on a companies website allowing others to walk through your virtual showrooms. Below is an example of one such plan that can be found on our homepage.

Click on the image above to start Palette PLAY. On the right hand side you can see the movement instructions.

Other thing that really impressed me about version 8 is its ease of use and speed with which I can create a simple plan thanks to the new simplified program layout. To demonstrate this I have set my self a challenge of making some 20 minute plans. Idea is to make something in time allocated and then also have a attractive looking images to present to a potential customer.

The problem I had was not in designing stage but creativity. Once you have an idea what you want to create and work out your dimensioning, everything else falls into place quickly. Here below was my first try, where I had a go at a living room. I managed to also create a photo-realistic image and this can be found at our Facebook page.

Ready to present or send as a jpeg in watercolour representation.

I then designed a bathroom, again from scratch, complete with custom tiling, both on floor and walls. This time also managed to set up multiple camera angles for presentation purposes.

Photo-realistic in under twenty minutes.

Above in photo-realistic, below second camera angle in marker and third camera view in watercolour again, which can be found on Facebook.

Having had my fun, I would like to also challenge some of you out there, to see what you can come up with in 20 minutes or less. If you would like to take part, please send your entries by email to me at egrabic@palettecad.com, with subject title "20 minute projects" or post them on our Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/groups/164040557075439/.

Enough from me, more next month, but for now, let the PLAY begin!

Greeting from Stuttgart,

Your Palette CAD-Blog Team

Tip of the month! June: Drag & Drop material editing

A major innovation in Palette CAD 8 is the drag & drop function for material changing.  In version 7 the process was a little long-winded, as designing and material editing was done in separate windows. Only within the material library could you see and change the material of a desired object.

With version 8, material management was introduced for the first time. Now you have an optimum
overview of all materials in the design using the "Material List" found on the right hand side of your screen.

To change materials in your design, simply open the "Material catalogues", find the desired material or texture, and apply it to the desired object via drag & drop.

As seen below you can also use the same Drag & Drop feature to edit objects using your material list.  

I hope this will save you some time allowing you to make even more fantastic designs. Happy planning!

Greetings from Stuttgart,

Your Palette CAD-Blog Team