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Designer Plus


Questions And Answers:

Table of Contents

  1. Why does Designer Plus cost so little?
  2. The copyrights on DeisgnCAD 3D seem to stop in 1993.  Is this software still supported ?  
  3. When will there be a Window's version of Designer Plus?
  4. Are Menus Pull Down ?
  5. Are drawings done in floor plan ... ?
  6. Are Counter tops drawn automatically ?
  7. Angle front cabinet?
  8. Full door base ?
  9. 3 Drawer Base ?
  10. Radius End ?
  11. Angled stiles ?
  12. Micro Base?
  13. BDS-42 w/recessed front?
  14. Curved cabinets?
  15. Splayed Cabinet?
  16. Finished backs?
  17. Flutes?
  18. Arched top cabinets?
  19. I am using Sheetlayout v 7  and I noted that you can produce parts list and export them to other programs.  Have you ever known them to be used together.
  20. Can the end panel (bulkheads)  be made from timber in the std  framed way?
  21. Can special sizes be catered for? 
  22. How long does it take to learn how to use Designer Plus?
  23. I can't get DesignCAD 3D to work
  24. no wooden frames around the cupboards?
  25. We use 16m.m. to make our carcass;
  26. Do you use m.m. in your measurements?
  27. Can we build corner cupbards in an "L" shape using your system?
  28. Are the kitchens in 3D?
  29. Do we need other software to support this soft ware?
  30. Is there an agent in Australia?
  31. How do we change money from Australian to American dollars?
  32. I use DesignCAD 3DMax to design kitchen floor plans for my customers. Will Designer Plus let me turn my 2D floor Plans into 3D drawings?

How do we change money from Australian to American dollars?

Use a credit card I can take MC Visa and Discover, the conversion is done by the cc company.
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Is there an agent in Australia?

No
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Do we need other software to support this soft ware?

Designer Plus requires DesignCAD 3D v4 to operate this is an old DOS program but as far as I am concerned it is easier to use and more reliable than the new versions.  However you will probably want (and I recommend) a Windows version for printing and editing the final 2D drawings.  Any 2-3D Windows version of DesignCAD can do this, but to do a shaded drawing (like a cartoon picture) you need a 3D version.

If you think you want to texture map drawings (apply pictures (wood graining etc)  to the surfaces of the drawing) to make photo type pictures of your drawings you need more.  Besides the basic Designer Plus and DesignCAD 3D v4 you also need: DesignCAD 97 PRO (I prefer 2000 PRO) or later.  The textured drawings can be printed with an output as that shown on the web site. 

For Photo Realistic renderings you will also need a "RENDERING ENGINE" and the more expensive they are the better job they do.  But unless your clients are very demanding and willing to pay "big bucks" (US slang for a lot)  I wouldn't even consider rendering, and I have only used texture mapping or shading a few times.  These advanced features take a lot of time to accomplish and require a lot more computer than the simpler line drawing.

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Are the kitchens in 3D?

You work in real full sized 3D space - means that there is a dimension that is not readily viewable in either plan or elevation view but you must keep track where you are working.  You can create 2D drawings from the 3D master in any viewing angle to create the selling and shop documents.  Refer to the Designer Plus manual for how this is done.
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Can we build corner cupbards in an "L" shape using your system

2 door pie-cut (L shaped) corner cabinets can be made with equal or un-equal side lengths with Designer Plus as a standard cabinet.  Lazy Susan cabinets cannot, both sides are equal.
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Do you use m.m. in your measurements?

Designer Plus can use mm, cm, or inch units for values.  To select between use the 'Start New Drawing'  from the main menu.  Inch units is the default.
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We use 16m.m. to make our carcass;

This is the same as 5/8 or 0.625 inch units (16/25.4).  Designer Plus and DesignCAD don't care what kind of unit you work with (could be ant legs).  In the setup programs you set values for the sizes of things you use, however this feature is not available in the demo, but the scope of the set up can be seen in the downloadable full manual for Designer Plus. 
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no wooden frames around the cupboards?

We call this type of construction frameless, and yes Designer Plus works with this type of construction.  This type of construction was the rage for about 10 years but we're back to mostly traditional construction methods again.  I think this happened because of the cost, the hardware needing adjusted periodically, and Victorian styling being "in" now.  And who knows what's next.  Using a generic CAD program you will never be unable to get presentations done, even if you have to draw the job one line at a time.
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I can't get DesignCAD 3D to work:

 If you already own DesignCAD 3D this demo cannot be used with it, because Designer Plus has a different menu system.  

The most common reason DesignCAD will not work is the path set for where the program looks for components is set wrong;   files - set path,  each path value must be complete.

The second is the line color being set the same as the background.  The program is working you just can't see it.  Edit the line color 1;  tools - shade - color edit.  

For any other problem please contact me .

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Why does Designer Plus cost so little?

 Designer Plus is not a mystical program, practically anybody with the need and ambition to try, could create a comparable program.  Designer Plus was not developed with the intent of selling it to anyone, so development costs were covered in the day to day operations of Kitchen Consultants, a retail kitchen dealership in Port Angeles, Washington USA.  

DesignCAD 3D is an older program by computer standards but it is still functional, available, and the drawings made with it are 100% compatible with the latest versions of DesignCAD.  

My offering it for sale to others was based on two reasons:

  1. Looking for something to do as I looked at retirement.
  2. Helping small shops with limited funds and lots of  ambition compete.

The price was set using the following rational:

  1. How much is overhead and marketing going to cost per item?
  2. How much is support going to cost?
  3. What can a small shop afford?

Once a program is developed the selling price is divided up between the cost of marketing, support, and return on investment, with marketing being the single largest cost.  In order to keep the price of Designer Plus at an absolute minimum I have to keep marketing costs at a minimum, since advertising is the largest cost of marketing I advertised very limitedly.  A large sales volume would require employees for support which would add costs and negate one of the reasons I made it available to the public. 

Limiting advertising, produces a limited sales volume resulting in the best possible marketing cost/unit.  By restricting free support to e-mail the consumer has more incentive to read the manual, where most questions are answered already, and allows me to use free time to answer the questions that aren't.  Because  my answers are written I can then add them to the users Q&A section of this site or the manual without a great deal of added work.  Thus keeping further overhead at a minimum.  

From feedback comments I know that for many small shops even what I have priced Designer Plus at is expensive, and I will continue to find ways to lower the cost further.   

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When will there be a Window's version of Designer Plus?

Unless customer demand warrants the time investment I see no reason for rewriting Designer Plus for the current version of DesignCAD.  See also the answer to the question on DesignCAD's copyrights.

When the first Window's version of DesignCAD came out the BasicCAD language was changed, and there were many problems with it.  At the time there was debate about keeping the BasicCAD language available in the program.   In later versions the problems were fixed. 

Internally Designer Plus reuses as much code as it can to save space and debugging.  The new BasicCAD will not allow "IF" statements while performing a DesignCAD command.  This requires a program to be written in total for each routine.   For instance all of the shaped styled doors in Designer Plus are drawn using one program with a hand full of subroutines to create the specific arch style.  To do the same thing in the new DesignCAD requires a separate program for each style, which will substantially increase debug time.

But the greatest problem is DesignCAD's rapid improvement history. There is a new DesignCAD released ever 1-2 years and every new version has new features and changes that would necessitate the reworking of Designer Plus.  I would need to be compensated for this reworking, which would result in the program becoming as expensive as other comparable programs - negating the reason I made it available in the first place.

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The copyrights on DeisgnCAD 3D seem to stop in 1993.  Is this software still supported ?

While IMSI no longer  sells or supports DesignCAD 3D (it was the last DOS version) I am allowed to to offer it free and support it in conjunction with Designer Plus.  Designer Plus was started and has developed to meet my own needs (I am a kitchen maker first) making Designer Plus available to others is secondary.   When American Small Business Computers (later to become ViaGrafix, then Upperspace and now IMSI) released the first Windows version of DC3D in 95 they had completely rearranged the BasicCAD language and I was told that they were going to drop it from the program.  Not much incentive to spend a year or two rewriting.  
 
The current version DesignCAD 3D MAX still has BasicCAD support.  DesignCAD releases a new version every couple of years and each new version has made changes to the BasicCAD language.  It takes me a year, to modify Designer Plus for any major change in the program, version 1 did not have part listing, in version 2 all common parts were in the same layer.  Each change for the new version of Designer Plus took 2 years to reach distribution quality, and I did not have to learn a new language for each. 
 
When DC97 came out I found that there was no means of selecting from a list, only tool bar icons.  (The program would make the list, centered on the screen then put the input dialog box over the list also centered on the screen .) As you can see my program depends on selecting from lists.  I have made plenty of requests and was told that they had fixed that with DC2000 but I have not been supplied with any documentation either with the program or as a supplement.  So from my experiences with the upgrades and the time it takes me to make major changes to my program I see no rational reason to make a Windows version unless there was enough demand for the program to justify changing occupations.  
 
What I do see as practical is the use of the DOS program as a cabinet builder (editor) and using the finished cabinet as a pre-drawn symbol with the newer DesignCAD products.
 
My goal is to help smaller shops project a professional image which they will have to do if they are to stay in business, Designer Plus will do that if they are willing to use a little effort.  In my case I work alone and remodel a few kitchens a year in the $15-25,000 price range, I could not justify the cost of dedicated cabinet software with that volume but could see the hand writing on the wall in the late 80's.  So after trying a rationally priced dedicated kitchen program and finding it full of gee-gaws but lacking in basics I bought DesignCAD 3D v3.  I was then at a loss of what to do with it, I first tried purchased pre-drawn kitchen cabinets which were sloppy (they had drawn 1 cabinet and then stretched it for all of the other sizes), the rest of the story is in the history section of the manual. 
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Are menus Pull Down?

Yes and no. To access Designer Plus from DesignCAD 3D you press the space bar and type "cab" and press enter, or use the cabinet pull down menu from the DesignCAD main menu. The pull down menu will access many of the Designer Plus programs.  There are some short cuts but this accesses the main menu. You then select what you want Designer Plus to draw. Then Designer Plus instructs DesignCAD 3D to perform the same steps to draw the item as you would have done one keystroke at a time. After the item is drawn it is blocked and defined as a solid automatically so you can copy, rotate, delete, or move it as a single unit. At this point Designer Plus is terminated and control is returned to DesignCAD 3D.

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Are drawings done in floor plan then extruded to 3D or do you draw in 3D?

You draw in real, full size 3D space.  You can set the view to 2D, for plan or elevation, but you still have X Y Z coordinates to work with.  For example assuming base cabinets are setting on the floor the elevation (Y) will equal 0.  Base cabinets are referenced to either lower rear corner, and wall cabinets to an upper rear corner. These reference points were chosen because base cabinets usually set on the floor, and wall cabinets usually have a common top height. But any item can be placed anywhere in 3D space.

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Are counter tops drawn automatically?

No. There is a specific program for drawing counter tops. (CTOP.BSX )   This eliminates the construction lines between each cabinet that would need to be edited out if a counter top were drawn on each cabinet.

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Full Door Base?

All door and drawer base cabinets can be modified to no drawer in Designer Plus.

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3 Drawer Base?

After selecting a drawer base you are asked how many drawers are in the stack, Designer Plus will draw up to 6 in a standard stack and allow split top drawers (side by side). A standard drawer base uses a standard height drawer head at the top then evenly divides the balance of the cabinet. A custom drawer base defaults with a standard top height (modifiable) then asks for the height of each drawer for the balance.

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Radius end?

Use the panel and filler from Designer Plus, then using the DesignCAD 3D command "fillet edge", radius the edge to whatever you need.

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Angled Stiles?

Set 4 points and use DesignCAD 3D’s plane command.  Or draw a 2 point box and rotate it.

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Custom cabinet not directly supported ? 

Not directly supported by Designer Plus it would have to be drawn using 1 or 2 other cabinets, parts or DesignCAD itself.  If you use standard sizes, draw this cabinet once and save it to disk, you can then recall and insert it whenever you need it. This is how symbols are created and stored. Designer Plus draws a cabinet with a plain door blank for each of the overlays turned on. Styled doors if desired are drawn over the plain door blanks. NOTE, symbols are the normal method of drawing kitchens using CAD, but if you load a drawing then stretch it to fill a different space the scale of the cabinet parts will change. Stretching a 30 inch cabinet to 36 inches will increase the door spacing on that cabinet 20%.

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Radius cabinet? 

Designer Plus has full support for institutional type radius cabinets.  That is to say Designer Plus will draw any arc segment of any radius inside or outside curved cabinet.  However there are no styled doors or part listing available for radius cabinets at this time.

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Splayed Cabinets?

Is this a cabinet with an angled front? If so, these require more work to draw than other cabinets. There are step by step instructions for this in the manual.

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Finished backs?

Designer Plus has plain or styled panel drawing. You can also put doors on the end, or back of cabinets.  As well as 2 faced peninsula cabinets.

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Flutes?

Yes, in the styled door menu.

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Arched Top cabinets?

There are several styles of shaped top sections on wall and tall open shelf cabinets only.

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Sheet Layout Programs:

The part-list is saved as an ASCI text file which can be opened and parsed in any good spreadsheet.  You can then sort the parts to get those using the same materials together then copy and paste them to another sheet, this forms a cutting list.  I would imagine that if Sheetlayout v 7  and your spreadsheet are both Windows programs you can copy and paste data between them.  However you may need to reorder the columns so the data is in the correct order.  The order of Designer Plus' part- list export is: quantity, simplified nomenclature, item, width, length (example - 1 30W5033 top 18.75 49.00).  The Demo is setup for imperial measurements, but the program can handle metrics (convert your cm to inches by dividing sizes by 2.54 ).  The only difference between the two is the text size, the CAD program works with full size units of any sort.  I use Snap-It v2 for optimizing and it is a simple copy / paste to transfer data.  Download Designer Plus and try it.
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Framed End Panels:

A cabinet is drawn and a part-list created in a modular format, the end panels are only panels.  The steps you will have to follow if you want to convert an end panel to a styled (frame and panel) end are:
  1. Ungroup (solid free) the entities that form the cabinet.  (You cannot delete an element of a cabinet after it is drawn because it is converted into a solid, this is done to make area modifications in a room easier one point anywhere on the cabinet will remove the entire cabinet.)
  2. If you are using the part-list remove one of the end panels from the part-list, this is much easier to do if you draw this cabinet alone and save it to be reloaded into another drawing.
  3. Rotate the drawing so you are looking at the panel in the x-y plain.
  4. Place points on the outside corners top left and lower right, of the panel.
  5. Run the Doors program and draw the styled door over the end panel.  If this is a cabinet that was drawn with shelves you can see and you have selected all of the end panel for the frame and panel end, the existing end panel is removed and a frame and panel end is drawn.  If this end panel is to be glass framed, by selecting the glass frame in the style you want the end panel drawn can be seen through. 
This is how the desk drawing was made.  Download the Demo and try it.
 
If you are only placing a door styled panel on the end of the cabinet (typically done with frameless construction) then you can use 'door on end'  from the Panels menu (under Misc).  To draw a styled (frame and panel) door you treat this door blank the same as any other door blank.
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Special Sizes:

Not sure what your looking for here, put the program will draw any sized cabinet with any number of door / drawers equally divided on it.  You combine cabinets to make a kitchen.  If you need variable door/drawer configurations there is a program (DORMOD.BSX) which is used specifically for this purpose.  See the unfitted vanity drawing, the cabinet was drawn with 3 doors first, then 2 of the doors were changed to 2 drawers each.  Note that when you change the drawing the part-list is not changed, you must manually remove parts that have been altered and enter new ones if you are going to use the parts-list.  The cabinet itself can be individually customized for drawing the cabinet only (does not effect the part-list), by picking 'Modify Multiple Items' from the MODIFICATIONS window, or if you are using Designer Plus generated nomenclatures select 'Details' at the CABINET TO BE DRAWN SPECIFICATIONS window, and the default will let you change items.
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Learning time:

This is not a 'kitchen in a can' program but a professional grade CAD based communications tool very good at custom drawing applications, while you can draw with it, it won't be mastered in 10 minutes (more like 30 hours).  I discourage people from purchasing it if they have not allowed time to learn the program.  This is why I have a working Demo available rather than a video; I don't want or need unhappy customers.  
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Converting 2D drawings to 3D:

The short answer is no.  2D drawings have only 2 axis x and y of information in the drawing.  The information needed for the z axis is required for 3D.  You can view in, or make 2D drawings from 3D but to go from 2D to 3D you are limited to extrusions.

See also the question on drawing in 2D

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R L Davidson
Copyright © 1999 R. L. Davidson. All rights reserved.
Revised: March 11, 2008