CMU School of Drama


Sunday, September 21, 2008

Nemetschek North America Releases Vectorworks 2009 Product Line

Stage-directions: "Nemetschek North America has announced the 2009 release of its Vectorworks line of design software, including: Designer, Architect, Landmark, Spotlight, Machine Design, Fundamentals and Renderworks. The Vectorworks 2009 product line features a new engine that gives users 2D and 3D capabilities, at speeds the company says are up to five times faster for modeling operations."

11 comments:

aquacompass said...

Its appealing to know that Nemestcheck is concentrating more heavily on the 3D element to their suite of software. One of the biggest downsides of drafting light plots in VW is its very rudimentary 3D capabilities. Well, maybe the power is there, but the syntax and methodology and the hoops one must jump through to render any sort of useable/workable 3D image is cumbersome and exhaustive. The speed of the rendering has always been prohibitive, especially with complex images and many fixtures -- good to know they claim an up to 500% decrease in time.

Dave said...

I wonder if they will be giving away educational versions of 2k9 to students for free...
Does anybody that uses Vectorworks have a tablet and think its worthwhile to get one?

Anonymous said...

I would agree that the 2009 version seems appealing in its concentration on the 3d modeling elements of the software. I would say that the most useful part of Vectorworks is the tools it has built in for creating light plots, though some added 3d capability in this area would be very nice. As a vctorworks user it is nice ot see that they are working to get their product into a niche within the drafting and modeling industry.

Ethan Weil said...

It's good to see companies like nemetschek integrating outside software in their product. It would be even cooler if there was a good open source core for CAD, but a somewhat standardized format is certainly a good step.

Anonymous said...

Theatre moves really fast these days and being able to design and physically see your designs before actually being in the space, saves time and money. These programs are great for these needs and I'm glad that they are not only constantly being updated but that they are including and refining their 3-D capabilities. The other nice thing about this is its application in theatre. The programs work together so well that the set designer and the lighting designer can work on the same platform and even present their designs in a more visual and practical way for the directors and actors. Can't wait to get my hands on this.

AndrewLeitch said...

This is exciting! I'm glad to see that Nemestcheck is working on their 3D aspects of the software. While their basic drafting is very easy to use, I often get frustrated with modeling and 3D imagery. I'm always excited to see them pulling in other software to integrate with their own, too. I'm anxious to see how this evolves for use with scenic designers and their renderings. It would be cool to get a given "show file" that can contain a multitude of information about a design. As Michael says, it's very useful for anyone involved in the show.

Any news on an educational version? I'd love to try the new 3D components and the new interface.

Anonymous said...

Wow! Quite a conversation going on over on this blog. Then again, it's News from the "Real World," so I shouldn't be surprised.

Here's the scoop on the educational version of Vectorworks 2009. YES! Students (and faculty) can get a free copy. They should be available in a few weeks. http://www.nemetschek.net/student/

You can also contact Howard D. to get a copy: hdonan@vectorworks.net

MBerger said...

I have been a VW user for about 5 years. I am a huge fan of the program due to its ease of use and support of students. Echoing Jeremy's comment, one thing I have never got into was the 3D elements of VW. Namely because of the amount of time rendering required and the 'clunkiness' of it. I am looking forward to the educational release of VW2009. Thanks to VW for making this available to us.

dmxwidget said...

It will be interesting to see if Vectorworks has switched to a ribbon format, instead of the classic menu system. It will be interesting to see how it looks and functions in comparison to the previous versions of the software. I am happy with the 2008 interface so far, and I wonder if 2009 will be easier to use and give more power to different features.

Anonymous said...

I am interested in Dave's question of whether this new update is free for students.. It is a shame that we are not taught Vectorworks here as Freshmen just as AutoCAD is taught. Both are very popular and both I think should be known by all of the students who come to Drama no matter what emphasis. It's somewhat annoying though that software gets updated so often when you are just getting used to it. For example the whole sophomore class just learned AutoCAD but now there is a new version and it is very different from the new version. I'm sure in a professional world when the plot has to be referenced by many people it is required that people use the most updated version of their software so I'm sure updates sometimes annoy designers.

Anonymous said...

Hi Bart, Hey, we wish Vectorworks was taught in more schools too! It's really something to read all the comments on this blog and to understand the enthusiasm for both our intuitive software and for our new product upgrade.

To answer your question about the cost of Vectorworks 2009 for students, it's free. As, in 100% FREE. All you and your colleagues have to do is request the software. http://www.nemetschek.net/student/

The VW techboard is a great resource for finding support from our active user community. You can check that out here: http://techboard.vectorworks.net/
You can always get help from our Tech Support Team at 410-290-5114, too.

Feel free to contact us any time you need any Vectorworks-related questions answered.