[cad-linux] Re: 2d vs. 3d
- From: "Lars O. Grobe" <grobe@xxxxxxx>
- To: cad-linux@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Mon, 28 Aug 2006 10:26:54 +0300
Hi Yorik,
seams that we have experience with very different apps. That is
certainly useful here.
There are some architectural CADs which have some kind of 2 parts or
workspaces.
E.g. Archicad, where you do the work on a model (you do not realize that
usually, as you are drawing a plan, but every object has 3d properties,
and with little effort you have both plans and model at once as a
result. Pro: We are used to define 3d by plans with additional
information like floor heigth etc. Contra: It only works well with
designs that can be expressed by classical architectural plans, with
free-forms it is getting difficult. For plot and layout, you use an
external tool (called plotmaker).
E.g. Vectorworks, basically a 2d program, very graphical, more close to
Illustrator than Autocad IMHO ;-) It allows to link 3d-objects to 2d
objects. So while 2d and 3d are connected, they are not the same, and
afaik the plans are not really generated from the model. Produces very
nice plans, famous for contest entries. Still limited, especially if you
want to create a form the developers did not think of.
E.g. formZ, which is more modeler, but specific for Architecture. All
you create is geometry, a model. Than you create 2d-views from it. To
refine these, there is an own 2d-part, something like Illustrator for
CAD (with dimensioning, hatches and all the stuff). There is a third
workspace, which is for layout and printing.
So there are very different approaches. I think that the difference is
resulting mostly from the applications history, e.g. Vectorworks started
as 2d with more and more 3d additions (compare to Autocad), while formZ
had been explicitely designed to allow the design of new types of
architectural forms in 3d.
I really do not worry so much about if extending a 2d app for
architecture is so difficult. svg e.g. allows precise drawing exchange.
An example for such an extension in a commercial app are the CAD-tools
for Illustrator. Not much more is needed. It is more the exchange of
data between the 2d and 3d app that is worth thinking about. Would be
not really comfortable to reimport and work from zero after a change in
the model, so model and drawing data should still be linked.
In fact, if we would get brlcad be useful for architecture, we would be
much better right now...
CU Lars.
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