Daily iPad App: Woodcraft helps you design your next building project
Woodcraft is for the carpenter or woodworker with an eye for 3D. The app is a visualization tool that lets you design your next building project using the basic principles of CAD. It lets you drag out lumber that you need and assemble it into a finished product using only your iPad and your imagination.
You start with a blank slate and a library of common lumber used in carpentry. You can drag the wood pieces onto your canvas and arrange them as if you were building a desk, a porch or even a shed. There are tools to let you measure the wood, cut lumber pieces down to size and attach the pieces to together. You can switch between a 3D and 2D view which helps you to place the lumber and line up the pieces with the correct orientation.
Woodcraft is a great tool if you're familiar with CAD and 3D modeling. As much as I like the flexibility of being able to conceptualize a project, the app is difficult for beginners and some may prefer pencil and paper to the iPad. New users should be ready to spend some time playing with the app before they're able to use it effectively.
If you need help, there's a community feature that lets users share their plans. You can grab the plans for a fully assembled desk, break it down and see how someone else put it together. There's also a page with several video tutorials and a version 1.2 manual that's available in iBooks or PDF format.
If you are up to the challenge, you'll be rewarded with an excellent tool to help you plan a project. There's also a bill of materials feature that keeps track of your final materials cost. There is no free demo, but Fasterre, the company behind the app, has put together a short promo video that shows how the app works.
Woodcraft is available from the iOS App Store for US$9.99.
