Cabinet Design Software – New Board Form
Changes to new board form help assure proper input to the Optimizer
The new board form in SketchList 3D version 4 performs several different functions.
- The first thing you do with the form is to name the board.
- The second function of the form is to set the orientation of the board. This orientation is the way that you specify the two sides of the board which are the surfaces. This is important when we moved to the Optimizer to orient the board properly on the material from which it’s going to be cut..
- The size and location of the board can be set on the new board form either by entering the numbers and clicking the buttons or using the sliders.
- You can enter notes about that particular board.
- The grain direction of the board is specified on this form.
- The type of material – sheet good, solid lumber, or all can be picked.
- And finally the material for the board is selected from the list on the right.
The key change in this latest revision of the new board form – of which officially called “set up orientation, material and dimensions of board” is that you must pick an orientation before you’re allowed to size or locate the board.
This is a bit of a constraint in terms of using the form, but we were beginning to get reports from users who had managed to select the wrong orientation, enter dimensions, then change the orientation. Sometimes this combination of events led to undesired outcomes. The easiest way to ensure the proper relationship between orientation and size is to force the orientation to be selected first.
The result is that as boards are passed to the Optimizer those boards will be laid out in the correct direction.
Of course – pay attention to this – you must specify the correct grain direction on the board.
During the design process you are free to change either the orientation or the grain direction. The SketchList 3D cabinet design software will adjust dimensions accordingly.
Watch the video. Cabinet Design Software – New Virtual Board Insertion
David Rozewski
My woodworking love started in 6th grade in school shop class. I have a BS in Industrial Technology and an MBA. At my first job, I computerized a production accounting system – the results were positive, and I loved the challenges. I left the corporate world to begin woodworking full time and one of my first decisions was to use CAD for my designs. I found that CAD did not meet all my needs. I wrote a specification of what I wanted and turned it into a prototype. SketchList 3D incorporated in 2007. We completed programming and launched. Today thousands of woodworkers use SketchList 3D.
