Letter to Cadimage

[gpowless]

info@cadimagegroup.com


Hi,

I will not be upgrading Cadimage products. Instead I will be using Archicad native tools to model with.

In short, I find the upgrade price exorbitant and have found the past upgrades cumbersome to integrate into past projects. As Archicad has come a long way in improving their windows and doors, I no longer have a need for third party tools.

Thanks for your help in the past and good luck.

Gregg Powless
Ontario BCIN Designer

[KeesW]

You'll have trouble opening existing projects created with Cadimage tools.

[gpowless]

Only if I try to update them.

I have Archicad back to Ver. 6 and Door and Window Builder back as far as it goes so I don't think I'll have a problem.

[KeesW]

What I meant was that you won't be able to properly open older projects containing Cadimage objects with AC16 without Cadimage objects. There will be lots of dots indicating missing components such as doors and windows. That has been my experience anyway.

[gpowless]

I understood that but in the end for a 4000 sq ft home if would take under an hour to replace all the windows and doors in the house with my standard windows and doors. That is less than an upgrade for the 1 or two times I might use it.

[gpowless]

Oh and don't forget... updating old plans to use in current versions is borne by the client as billable hours. Cadimage isn't that valuable any more.

My Chief compliant as with many third party tools is that in an effort to become more detailed they have complicated the interface so much that it takes as much time to modify my favorited doors and windows as it does to create new ones. I am tired of having to open the tool to change the label settings and the appearance which always default to an insulation with a thick purple pen with purple backgrounds. As well from version to version the default colours have changed which requires me to update old Cadimage parts anyway. It just isn't worth my time to fix a tool every time I want to use it.

[Jere]

Why not write the letter to CADImage privately rather than posting it publicly on a Graphisoft forum? Not sure what you're trying to accomplish here.

[Karl Ottenstein]

Jere wrote:
Why not write the letter to CADImage privately rather than posting it publicly on a Graphisoft forum? Not sure what you're trying to accomplish here.

I suspect he was trying to get a feel for how many other people feel that Cadimage's upgrade pricing (for no announced new features - only re-compiled with the new SDK) - is on the high side.

I'm surprised no other people have chimed in. I also find the pricing obscene. Having just upgraded their D/W product just a couple of months ago, they now want more than another $100 just to give me the ability to use it with 16. I reported several bugs and missing features, none of which seem to have been fixed. For people who have bought into the Cadimage ecosystem, the total annual update price over all their products just makes no sense for a one or two person firm.

Encina generously provides updates to Objective for no charge; Cigraph provides update to its entire suite (all 18 add-ons) for just 160 euro.

Cheers,
Karl

[Anonymous]

I have a couple of C.I.'s tools, and I think they work well for the most part.
They have also been very responsive when I've called, and they have actually called me back and set up web screen share for a tool-issue resolution session at no cost to me.
However, the only reason I've not bought more of their tools, as I would like to get two more of them, is the cost of upgrading any more at their current upgrade pricing rates.
I'm afraid of getting an upgrade bill for more than I can afford in lean times, as I'm committed (at least for now) at staying current each year with AC.
lec

[David Collins]

gpowless wrote:
My Chief compliant as with many third party tools is that in an effort to become more detailed they have complicated the interface so much...

This is an old story for me. I made a declaration of independence from third-parties years ago partly because of the cost and delays with each upgrade, but also because archived projects were being compromised. One nice thing about custom library objects is that they never suffer from parametric bloat, of which you so rightly complain.