The Drawing Board

The Computer

Relatively inexpensive.

More expensive and can be a major investment.

Virtually maintenance free.

Requires regular maintenance from specialized technicians, which can also be expensive.

Requires no special working conditions.

May require temperature and humidity control.

No special operating costs.

Requires constant electric power.

"Drawing Boards will always be useful!"

Hardware and software continually becomes outdated and requires regular updating.

No on-the-job training necessary.

Even for the experienced user, continual updating of computer software and hardware requires on-going, time-consuming and often costly training.

Simple and uncomplicated.

Can be daunting and very complicated for the uninitiated.

The drawing board and sketches offer a flexible design method that is traditionally accepted and understood.

Cannot design and sketch in the manner in which architects are accustomed to.

Hand drawn renderings typically have a more attractive appearance or ‘style’.

Computer drawn renderings typically lack the appeal of a good pencil or watercolor rendering.

The drawing board is typically slower than a computer.

Typically, provides a gain in productivity; particularly when dealing with amendments and revisions.

Hand worked drawings are often ragged and damaged due to on-going amendments.

Computer printouts are more accurate; have better quality line work and produce a clean, un-marked original.

Hand drawn perspectives often require a specialist renderer.

Can generate three dimensional perspective layouts quickly and easily.

Drawing Board methods could be improved a small amount. More expensive and can be a major investment.

Offers enormous potential. For example, client presentations can be enhanced through the production of ‘walk-through’ views.

This list is a collection of thoughts and ideas taken from numerous conversations with Architects and from numerous magazine articles that discuss computer use in architecture.

Accuracy

I now invite you to consider how accurate this comparison is for you on a scale of one to ten. Is this a realistic comparison of the usefulness of computers relative to the drawing board?

Consider one as being not very accurate and ten as being very accurate. There are no right answers here. This is simply a guide for you to monitor where your thinking is at.

Next Article: A Comparison? (Part 2)
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