coffcons Posted April 2, 2021 Share Posted April 2, 2021 I currently have Chief Arch 9.5 running on a slowly outdated Windows Vista system. I'll soon need to buy a new computer running Windows 10 and will then of course need to buy a new version of Chief. I'm a remodeling contractor and I mostly use the software for designing my various remodeling projects which helps me with my estimates and also with allowing my customers to see a scaled perspective of whatever I'm to do for them. I occasionally need to print out a scaled set of prints for permitting on larger projects but that's fairly rare (11' x 17" and 13" x 19" format). My question is would Home Designer Pro fit my needs or do I need to pay the extra money and get the Chief Architect Premier? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rich_Winsor Posted April 3, 2021 Share Posted April 3, 2021 Best to give Chief sales a call. It's been a long time now but when I upgraded from Home Pro to Chief Premier they subtracted the Home price I had paid from the cost of Chief. And of course, you could always download the trial versions of each and give them a spin. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dermot Posted April 4, 2021 Share Posted April 4, 2021 This pdf will give you some more info about the differences between Chief Premier and HD Pro: https://cloud-hd.chiefarchitect.com/1/pdf/product-info/compare-chief-architect-to-home-designer-pro.pdf You might also want to download the trial version for HD Pro and try it out for yourself. Since you haven't used Chief since version 9.5, you may even want to download the trial version of Premier to compare it with. Typically you can get a $500 discount when you upgrade from HD Pro to Premier which makes it relatively low risk to buy HD Pro first and then upgrade to Premier later. And finally, as Rich said, you might want to call during our normal business hours on Monday to speak directly with a sales representative. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lbuttery Posted April 4, 2021 Share Posted April 4, 2021 If you are in business then I recommend getting Premier using PRO is feasible - but remember layout is ONE page at a time that alone can be a hassle CA has a rent to own offer costs more in the long run - but spreads the cost out if you buy used get at least X4 - but consider going to X8 or X9 as they would be a savings and yet not be "ancient" if buying used the seller should be willing to work with you and CA to verify it is a valid license if its a first seat the transfer fee is $50 (or was) - but if a lesser seat the fee could be $$$ Lew 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coffcons Posted April 4, 2021 Author Share Posted April 4, 2021 20 hours ago, Dermot said: This pdf will give you some more info about the differences between Chief Premier and HD Pro: https://cloud-hd.chiefarchitect.com/1/pdf/product-info/compare-chief-architect-to-home-designer-pro.pdf You might also want to download the trial version for HD Pro and try it out for yourself. Since you haven't used Chief since version 9.5, you may even want to download the trial version of Premier to compare it with. Typically you can get a $500 discount when you upgrade from HD Pro to Premier which makes it relatively low risk to buy HD Pro first and then upgrade to Premier later. And finally, as Rich said, you might want to call during our normal business hours on Monday to speak directly with a sales representative. Thank you Dermot, Actually I've been using my Chief version 9.5 right along and even now still (yes I managed to get my Chief 9.5 to work on Vista), but my Windows Vista is no longer supported by Firefox and other software and I must now upgrade. This means that I'll also have to upgrade my Chief software . You can see I'm not big on change. I checked out that pdf, it was very helpful although it did raise some questions. While it appears that some functions are an improvement it also appears others might not still be available to me. I'll have to download the trial to my laptop I think to try it first. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coffcons Posted April 4, 2021 Author Share Posted April 4, 2021 9 hours ago, lbuttery said: If you are in business then I recommend getting Premier using PRO is feasible - but remember layout is ONE page at a time that alone can be a hassle Lew Thanks Lew, I'm going to try to download the Home Designer Pro to my laptop to see about that layout issue. I sure wouldn't want to make a new layout page for every page (if that's what you meant). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChiefArchitect Posted April 5, 2021 Share Posted April 5, 2021 Please let us know if you have any questions about features, pricing or purchase options. You can contact us in sales at 208-292-3400 or email sales@chiefarchitect.com. Kind regards, Derek Pedersen Chief Architect Software Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ricatic Posted April 5, 2021 Share Posted April 5, 2021 22 hours ago, coffcons said: Thanks Lew, I'm going to try to download the Home Designer Pro to my laptop to see about that layout issue. I sure wouldn't want to make a new layout page for every page (if that's what you meant). That is true...one page at a time...I just took the plunge and upgraded to Premiere from HD Pro 2021...huge difference as it should be for the cost...but...the additional tools and increased productivity are IMO worth the cost...YMMV... Here is my take on my experience...I used HD PRO for just over a year...it does a lot...but the differences in things like layouts and plan views are large...I believe that I developed some habits using HD Pro that were counterproductive when using Premiere...it took some time to learn that there were significantly easier ways to do tasks with the expanded tool sets...I am still struggling with using saved plan views and all the various layers and interactions...but I am progressing...JMO...and again...YMMV... Regards Rick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coffcons Posted April 5, 2021 Author Share Posted April 5, 2021 1 hour ago, ricatic said: That is true...one page at a time...I just took the plunge and upgraded to Premiere from HD Pro 2021...huge difference as it should be for the cost...but...the additional tools and increased productivity are IMO worth the cost...YMMV... Regards Rick Thanks Rick, I downloaded HD Pro but wasn't able to access the layout feature because you can't save files with the trial version. I'm still not sure what you mean by "one page at a time". On my Chief 9.5 I can make a template page 0 which duplicates onto all other pages. You're saying this isn't available in HD Pro? The thing that really jumps out at me so far is the apparent absence of polyline solids. I use them all the time and I'm not sure how I'd design without them. It also appears difficult (impossible?) to apply moldings to slabs. No molding polyline tool? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lbuttery Posted April 5, 2021 Share Posted April 5, 2021 HD PRO can only open and edit one layout page at a time You can create as many pages as needed but only one can be open at a time there is also a size limit of 12 x 18 (I think that is the size) the trick is to save as 1/8 scale and then the print shop can double to 24 x 36 for 1/4 scale or same for other sizes Lew Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dermot Posted April 6, 2021 Share Posted April 6, 2021 HD Pro 2021 has no print size limitation. Prior versions did. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ricatic Posted April 6, 2021 Share Posted April 6, 2021 2 hours ago, coffcons said: Thanks Rick, I downloaded HD Pro but wasn't able to access the layout feature because you can't save files with the trial version. I'm still not sure what you mean by "one page at a time". On my Chief 9.5 I can make a template page 0 which duplicates onto all other pages. You're saying this isn't available in HD Pro? The thing that really jumps out at me so far is the apparent absence of polyline solids. I use them all the time and I'm not sure how I'd design without them. It also appears difficult (impossible?) to apply moldings to slabs. No molding polyline tool? That is correct...I never knew about the "page 0" option until I upgraded to Premiere...so I just reopened a HD Pro 2021 file and a new layout page...no option for page 0 or any other page...also...no poly line abilities in HD Pro... Until I upgraded to Premiere, I was unaware of the depth of the shortfalls in the layout limitations...I can't imagine having the layout tools available in your current version not being available to you in HD Pro... and that is just that tool...I predict you would be very disappointed in HD Pro...JMO...YMMV...In fact, until I opened HD Pro today to check out the layout tool for you, I had not opened it since I upgraded... Regards Rick H. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coffcons Posted April 6, 2021 Author Share Posted April 6, 2021 22 hours ago, ricatic said: .no poly line abilities in HD Pro... Thanks Rick, I suspect you meant "polyline solids" in your post? Do you recall having a molding polyline tool in HD Pro? I can't find it. I see that the soffit tool is available in HD Pro. I know you can apply moldings to that although I always found soffits to be harder to work with. I appreciate your help. Dan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coffcons Posted April 6, 2021 Author Share Posted April 6, 2021 On 4/5/2021 at 6:47 PM, lbuttery said: HD PRO can only open and edit one layout page at a time Lew, Are you saying that you need to open, number and save a new layout file for every page of layout in HD Pro? Now, that would just be cruel, no? Dan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ricatic Posted April 7, 2021 Share Posted April 7, 2021 Not Lew but that is correct...and I did mean "poly line solids"...and they do not exist in HDPro...Soffits, custom countertops and custom back splashes are your only friends in HD Pro ... Rick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coffcons Posted April 11, 2021 Author Share Posted April 11, 2021 It occurs to me that my version of Chief 9.5 MIGHT just work on Windows 10 in compatibility mode. Has anyone here known anyone who got a version of Chief 9.5 to run on Windows 10? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lbuttery Posted April 12, 2021 Share Posted April 12, 2021 I believe David Potter has had success best to contact him to discuss Lew Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coffcons Posted April 12, 2021 Author Share Posted April 12, 2021 1 hour ago, lbuttery said: I believe David Potter has had success best to contact him to discuss Lew Thanks Lew, Dan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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