Microspot of the United Kingdom has been making Macintosh CAD and graphics software for many years. Most longtime Mac users will know them by their flagship MacDraft product, which now ships in two different versions. What many don't know is that the company has greatly expanded their software product line since Mac OS X came out and this includes some fine new consumer and low-end professional design software. One of these products is Microspot Interiors 3.6.

Microspot Interiors is aimed primarily at those interested in doing home remodeling projects or those in professional settings who are in charge of business environments and planning. It is even suitable for professional interior designers, however, it isn't a CAD drafting package. But given how popular the home design and renovation market is, this software application gives Mac OS X users a great tool to visualize their ideas before they start swinging the sledgehammer or bringing out that paint brush.

The Basics

Interiors 3.6 lets you create simple rooms of various sizes in 3D. Then you insert doors, windows, wall openings and furniture and accessories to bring your rooms to life. Lastly, you can present these rooms with flyby animations using the built-in animation features.

01 - Wall are generated in 2D mode for accuracy

To start, you establish your modeling units (feet or meters) and assign a grid to model on. This helps you snap your walls to predefined units. There are two primary wall tools. One lets you draw a rectangular room, the other lets you draw walls in a more free-form assembly. When you select one of the wall tools you automatically jump to the plan view, regardless of what 3D or side view you were previously in. Walls can be made to snap to other walls and objects by changing the snap preferences so generating accurate rooms is actually quite easy.

When you draw a single wall an Edit options dialog pops up at the end of the second click, this allows you to precisely assign width, depth and height information to the wall as well as thickness. (see image 01).

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