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73 of 74 found the following review helpful:
Harder to use than I expected -- here are some tipsNov 20, 2006
By Kira
This proved to be a very powerful program, but heed the warnings about how difficult it is to use. I use parts of MS office that no one has seen before and have a background in computer programming, and this suite still drove me very close to tears.
I used this just for an apartment floor plan to think through moving walls around, not for complete house construction or modeling.
Here are some tips that might make things smoother for you:
- For some reason, the default flooring thickness is 12", so my doors were getting lopped off at knee-level. Once I reset all the flooring thickness to 1", I could see the bottoms of my doors again.
- If you have a wide screen and it's set to 120 DPI, the display chops of some of the customization controls on the right side of the screen.
- The distinction between exterior and interior walls matters, and is often at the root of flooring and ceiling problems. (E.g., grass in the living room or tiled front lawn.) The wall types sometimes morph into each other by rules I never figured out. If I had to do this again, I'd do all the exterior walls first, lock them against changes, and then add interior ones.
- My performance with the undirected fly-through is exactly what you'd expect from watching me play speedracer. Better way: Click on the binoculars on the left and you get cursor you can position for a "controlled walkthrough." You can look around using the 3-d display, but no more accidentally falling through the floor.
57 of 58 found the following review helpful:
 You get what you put into this software.Jul 26, 2006
By Woodshop Man
I have purchased both the Home & Gardens interior and the Punch interior software. Home & Gardens is much easier to use. You can really start without reading much of the manual. Punch demands that you read the manual (342 pages). It is not intuative. But Punch can do so much more and has so much more creativity. IE: Punch has a library of trees, shrubs and flowers for your yard. Home & Gardens only have potted plants, nothing you can use to landscape. Punch also allows you to make custom doors or windows to your exact specifications. H&G doesn't. You have to choose a set style of door or window and change options.I also could place digital photos of my backyard behind my "house" on Punch to make it more realisitic. I like both software programs, but Punch has more options, but you have to do your homework first.
33 of 34 found the following review helpful:
 Versatile SoftwareJan 20, 2006
By GardenGnome
I recently purchased this software to redesign my bathroom and bedroom. Compared to other products that I have evaluated, Punch! Interior Design Suite wins hands-down in the areas of versatility, stability, and 3D. It includes many precision, dimension, and viewing options that allow you to make both simple and complex designs. Using the split 2D/3D mode also helps with placing components such as windows and doors. After I completed the drawings I showed them to my builder and he was able to remodel the rooms exactly as I had envisioned them. Like most software I have used, this package does contains a learning curve. I by no means consider myself a computer guru and I had to put in a little practice time. You will find, however, a plethora of resources available both on-line and within the manual/tutorials to assist you with your project.
22 of 22 found the following review helpful:
Punch for BeginnersFeb 12, 2007
By MimiS.
"amazon addict"
I was very anxious to receive the Punch software and thought I would be able to figure it out quickly (despite the warnings of previous reviewers). Unfortunately after 4 hours, a pinky cramp, and much frustration I found the other reviews to be very accurate. . . the software is not intuitive and you spend a lot of time just trying to figure out what you did wrong/what to do next. It would have been helpful to me if the user manual had a quick 1-2-3 guide, tipsheet, or easy button for those of us who just want to create and decorate a room---not build an entire house (or maybe that's in there somewhere and I missed it).
I also found the paint choices to be limited. Long and short of it, I put it down and have not gone back to it. My decorating project is now complete without help from Punch. Maybe I'll try tackling Punch again one day, but as of now I consider it a waste of money.
25 of 27 found the following review helpful:
Turned out to be very goodMar 16, 2006
By Careful shopper
Looked at them all and then bought this software... it can do a lot of things so, yes, it might take a bit to learn and get fast with.
There is a reason it has been voted best for several years now. It does a good job if you remember the very old computer saying,
"Garbage IN...Garbage OUT" 8-)
My wife loves the video tutorials that she can pop-up anytime she needs to without stopping the software and what she's working on.
Anything this complete, is worth the learning curve.
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