Archistage - is there a need for such a thing?

[richardfrick]

Hello my dear cgArchitects,

 

This question is ment for Architects - no matter if you plan buildings, or if you're an interior designer. Of course I'm interested in the thoughts about this from anybody else too!

 

To get anything in a *meaningful context, let me start of with telling some things about me... As this is my first post here, I guess that's a good idea anyway

 

My name's Richard, I'm a software-developer. The last couples of years, I was involved in the building of many Business-Applications, based on Windows, Mac and the IPad.
We made one very cool project which was an e-Detailing-Platform and it's main-feature was a presentation-application for a*pharmaceutical company.
You can build your presentations on the PC and make a smooth presentation for the IPAD.
Unfortunately, it's an inhouse-product so there's no website, or appstore-download.


But there's an analogical project called*http://www.pitcher.com/en/

 

You might wonder why I'm telling you this? 
Well, I always saw a lot of potential for architects with such a tool... Working for a pharma-company, it's hard to explain why there should invest in such a version though...

 

Well, now, I'm only working 60% and I'd like to build my own company with my own products.
 This idea of building a cool presentation-application for architects was always something which stuck in my head - so I decided this should be my project for now.

 

But I'm not an architect... So I don't know if there's a real need and the whole concept (especially the user experience) should be build with professional expertise.


So that's why I'm here: I'm looking for someone who likes the idea, has some time on his/her hand and want to build a great solution!

 

To get a picture, here is a very rough concept of the application so far, or a rough concept:


-Step 0: On your Mac / PC => Define the*cooperate design (must be done only once)


-Step 1: On your Mac / PC => Select the 3D-Model, select a scene, set day-light, trees, aso.


-Step 2:*On your Mac / PC => There's a library (and import-possibility) for*furniture, textures and lamps. You can add indoor-lamps as well.


-Step 3:*On your Mac / PC => Build the presentation:


Step 3.1: Select "Scene" and add "Camera effects" (like bluring, bloom, aso), change day-light-setting,...
Step 3.2: Define what can be done in the scene: Like "look around 360°" or "Move around"


-Step 3.3: You can add 3D-Elements like*yardstick, ....

-
Step 3.4: Add texts / Image and define how they're getting*presented (this is fully 2D).
-Step 4: With your IPAD / Mac / PC => Go to your customer and show him a great presentation.

 

Listen, I'd love to give you money for your work. As I'm not a company and I'm building this thing on my own*bill, I will have to spend a couple*thousand*of dollars already for licenses and software already (and a lot for pizza hehe).


But of course this software will be commercial - and you will get your fair share.

 

I hope I find some other enthusiast to get this thing flying!


Let me assure this is no one day-idea and tomorrow I'll do something else. I planed a lot already - especially for the technical stuff.
So once we start, we'll finish!

 

Best regards,


Richard

[artmaknev]

Not sure exactly how this is different from any other arch-viz software, other than it is a bit simpler to use? But from years of working side-by-side with architects and interior designers, I've noticed that they are, just like any other professional, just want to do their job and go home, they are not that interested in trying new non-industry standard software, even if it improves their lives. I am not trying to discourage you, and you might have an amazing idea, it is just hard to visualize without examples, and it sounds like sketchup on steriods (easy to use and looks great).

 

The company I worked had couple of software related lunch and learn meetings, where some new software was presented, there were lots of positives during the meeting (especially free food), but at the end of the meeting, everybody was back to their regular software use, some got really excited and wanted to try the trial, but I don't know what happened next. It is really tough to implement new software into existing company structure, they have expensive license with industry software providers, but I guess your situation is different, if you are targeting to individual architects and interior designers or smaller companies, you might actually have better success than larger companies.

 

You should at least have some screenshot ideas, it is a visual community, and its tough to understand how this software will be different form a dozen of available on the market.

[Trick]

Interesting idea!! But I wonder how this is all different from Lumion3D and/or PromenADD Viz ??

[richardfrick]

Hi Art Maknev,

Thanks for your estimate.

 

I do know that it's nearly impossible to get an enterprise-solution to the market as little company, but my main-target are indeed freelancer-architects and SME.

-----------

 

Erik, thanks for the links, didn't know these products exists.

As I googled for things like this, I missed obviously some buzz-words...

Because they certainly go in that direction... Unfortunately...

 

Especially Lumion3D with it's easy-editor is something very similar to my idea... the big difference is, that Lumion3D looks like a mix of a scene-builder and a video-editing-software (like sony vegas) and I wanted to build a scene-builder mixed with a presentation-tool (like powerpoint).

 

That brings 2 advantages with you:

-You can add technical informations as text with easily show/hide them

-If a client want's so see more about a room or a special detail, you can easily move around / to that object (as everything gets rendered in real-time).

 

Another big difference is, that Lumion3D runs on Windows-Only and mine would run on a Mac too, plus you can use your IPad as a presetation-device.

 

But still, these tools are similar and I therefor I don't see the point in making another Tool XY...

Thank you guys!

[Fooch]

Here's my 2 cents.

There is a market for add-ons to unity which is a good platform for getting things out to mac, pc, iapple-ish bits and web.

Its not built for architecture but there is a huge community there.

 

If you build something that adapts it, there could be a market for that.