Pros and Cons of AutoSketch
Landscape Design Software
AutoSketch Review by Heidi Schreiner
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Available on Amazon for $204 here.
 
I've used AutoSketch for a few years. Overall, it's a good software for landscape design. It does have a few things to get used to though.
First, the good. If your budget is small due to the economy or starting your design business, this landscape design software is an easy fit. It still has the AutoCAD drafting style, although the commands are different.
Basic drawing like copy, rotate, etc. are all handled differently in this landscape design software, and that is possibly one of the biggest transitions from AutoCAD.
Once you get used to it, commands like 'stamp' are nice. You can create basic blocks quite easily. The block menu keeps it all organized.
Blocks are symbols that you can use to represent shrubbery, chairs, or whatever you like.
One thing that may keep you from using this landscape design software is the inability to create multiple sheets from one drawing.
AutoSketch requires you to break your drawing into separate drawings in order to create new pages. Ouch.
You'll find a selection of hatches that work nicely for garden design, also. Although they don't cover everything, having a hatch for a basketweave brick paver, aggregate, butted herringbone, flagstone, and soil is a nice selling point. I'm often reviewing the hatches to speed up my drawing time.
Finally, if you're just breaking into this software, do know that it does not use dwg format like AutoCAD. If your company interacts regularly with other companies -- such as with commercial work -- this will be frustrating.
It does have some compatibility with AutoCAD, but it will be difficult.
You'll be able to create blocks easily, the learning curve isn't too steep, and the value is great. If you're stepping up from other 2D software, this is what you need.
Pros
- AutoCAD drawing style
- Stable
- Easy to learn
- Drawing blocks created easily
- Landscape hatches
- Professional-style prints
- Great Value
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Cons
- Difficult to work with other dwg formats
- One drawing = one sheet
- Preselection of drawing scale required
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For the cost, AutoSketch is a great product -- as landscape design software, home design software, or anything else you might need a quality 2D software for. Here's what one owner said...
"This one is a work horse. ... Don't waste time downloading trials of the less expensive 2-D drawing programs. They are not as intuitive and in my experience, tend to lock up the computer just about when you think you got a useful drawing."
Hermon A. Boyd
Read the entire AutoSketch review here.
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