2. Drawing with a computer

We will have to make many drawings for an integrated home system file. Because of their complexity, it is definitely advisable to produce them with a good drawing program. Some “learning time” will be required in the early stages, but you will soon find that it is quicker to produce drawings by computer than to draw them manually. Furthermore, there are many other benefits. You might make a mistake. You do not have to redo the entire drawing to correct it. And each “printout” gives a nice clean result.

You have a free choice regarding the drawing program. Certain professional CAD programs are very expensive and have many more facilities than we will ever use. You can also purchase other programs at a good price. When choosing it is important to select a program that can read Autocad files. These files end with the extensions “DWG” or “DXF”. This because most architects have drawing programs that can convert to this standard. Then you will not have to create a floor plan yourself with the walls, windows and doors. Your can just ask the architect for a “DXF” or “DWG” file and you can immediately start putting in electrical symbols.

In this course the simple, cheap, but reliable CAD program, DesignCad Express 2D, has been used for the drawings.