<p>While helping my daughter search for design software at the most reasonable prices, I ran across this site. (if the link doesn't work, search on Autodesk Student Community)</p>
<p>Here college students can register and download free a student version of Revit. There are also tutorials for all of the downloadable products.</p>
<p>This may be common knowledge to all of you, but it was the first we knew of this. I am curious. Are there other such products available to students for free? If so, could someone share what they are and how to access them? I know my daughter is interested in accessing and learning as much as possible and I am sure there may be other aspiring Architecture students interested in doing the same.</p>
<p>you can also download google sketchup for free. other than that, architecture software is very expensive..so most people aren't that legal about it. i don't think anyone in my studio has actually bought their own software...</p>
<p>professors at my arch school discourage the use of software until 2nd year. my school has a very hands-on approach where they believe that you should learn how to design using your hands and that software inhibits your design potential and ability.</p>
<p>Alot of the programs that many programs ask the students to get is pricey even though they offer a discount to students, but it's very very low. And sometimes, the student versions is a water-down version of the paid version.</p>
<p>So many of us dont have legal copies of it. They are very very expensive.</p>
<p>Thanks for the comments. I guess we will be shelling out some money to get some of the basics like Autocad. She is starting her junior year (BA in Arch, not BArch) and up until now there has not been any need for the software. But she wants to get up to speed in the software because many of the other students already have training in it. </p>
<p>It is too bad that these programs aren't made more accessible to students.</p>
<p>your D should check out if the school provide you the software..it will save you a ton of money (autocad is expensive). if not, autocad does have a student version that is at a much better price and there is not much of a difference between the real autocad and the student version. but getting to know the software is good and important, since a lot of arch schools expect students to learn these programs themselves and these software skills are pretty important in the working field.</p>
<p>Yeah, everyone has the software but no one has legal versions. The student version of Autocad ($250) is pretty limiting, so most people avoid it. With so much demand, though, it's not hard to find the free versions online, if you know how to look. Or just go to China and buy a copy off the street.</p>
<p>Definitely get them, though. The more computer knowledge an archie student has, the better. Yeah, a lot of schools discourage use of computers until 2nd or 3rd year. If you try and get a summer internship, though, that becomes a serious handicap, so in reality you have to learn them on your own earlier...plus, practice makes perfect.</p>
<p>I knew of the Autodesk Student Community, which is an awesome resource, though you'll notice they don't have AutoCad on there. AutoCad Electrical will do in a pinch, however, and it's on there. 3dsMax is not on there, but Viz is essentially the same thing. The creation of that community, I think, is a first attempt by Autodesk to bring the students back into their fold and a part-acknowledgement that their current pricing-out of students isn't working for them...hopefully it will expand. If only Adobe had a Student Community.</p>