The V12 badge carries prestige in the automotive world; 2020 Design now carries it…
2020 Design V12 has been out for a little over 3 weeks now, and many users are beginning to see the benefits of this powerful upgrade. The V12 engine has always represented at the pinnacle of performance in the automotive world, and the upgrade to 64-bit architecture for 2020 has done much the same thing for users of the popular interior design program. Chief among them should be increased performance, due to the ability of the program to use the entirety of the system RAM, or operating memory. This means the ability to use more complicated textures and 3D shapes in users’ designs with less risk of crashing the program. It also means that for the first time, a major version release has the same hardware requirements as the previous version (see this article for details).
The return of the 3D Warehouse Browser
Returning to 2020 Design V12 is the ability to import 3D objects directly into users’ designs without having to use workarounds or manipulating them in SketchUp, the program where they are created, This gives users the ability to import items that are not available in manufacturers’ catalogs or in the 2020 Cloud. With the return of the browser comes the ability to theoretically import any SketchUp shape in the 3D Warehouse.
New Features
Screen Preset
Screen preset is a brand-new feature that will help you keep your Drag and Drop and other windows organized. Anyone who has used 2020 for any length of time has lost their Information or Placement window once or twice. This helps prevent that by allowing you to set them up once and save them as a preset in case you accidentally close one or more windows.
Lighting Location
The precise location of light fixtures is now much easier, thanks to the addition of “crosshairs” to the light fixtures placed from the internal catalogs. Users can now generate lighting plans much more easily and efficiently.
“Real” Shaker Doors
“Real” Shaker-style doors have been on many users’ wishlists for a long time, and now they’re here! They are currently only available in the Sample catalogs, but hopefully, they will be used in manufacturers’ catalogs before too long.
New Interior Doors
This is what I’m most excited about! 2020 has had the same few doors available for decades, but they have increased their selection of styles exponentially, and they have added open-able pocket doors and barn doors. The selection is amazing.
What’s Missing?
A few minor features available in previous versions are disabled in V12, including exporting to AutoCAD, the NKBA Assistant, and the Auto-Deco Assistant. All three features are planned for reintroduction in later releases.
The new features, along with features introduced in the previous version, make 2020 Design V12 the industry leader in interior design software. Like a luxury automobile, 2020 Design V12 delivers performance and reliability.
