Architosh Staff ([email protected])

22 Nov 00

MacCAD News: ArchiCAD 'Carbonized' to run native on OS X

In what can be called some of the best and most promising news for the continued good fortunes of Apple Computer, world architectural CAD star and reigning heavy weight champ of the now famous CAD Shoot-out at AEC Systems 2000, ArchiCAD will be fully 'Carbonized' to run native and take full advantage of the advanced processing in Apple's upcoming Mac OS X.

According to a press release this week, Graphisoft, of Budapest, Hungary, announced that "it will support MacOS X, Apple's next generation operating system. ArchiCAD will run native in the Carbon environment, meaning it will take full advantage of all new system services, and optionally run on MacOS 9 with no loss in performance."

Graphisoft - Longtime Committed Apple Macintosh Developer

In a statement of faith and commitment to their longtime Macintosh users and Apple, Graphisoft stated:

"Graphisoft began developing for the Apple Lisa, and has been committed to staying current with all MacOS version upgrades since the Macintosh debuted in 1984, including being one of the first to develop a native application for the PowerPC chip," reports Graphisoft's Chief Technology Officer L�szl� Sparing. "We have a very strong and loyal Macintosh user base. With the carbonization of ArchiCAD, they will receive tremendous performance gains thanks to a stable multitasking environment and true memory protection."

Major Mac OS X Features and their Affects on ArchiCAD:

• Pre-emptive multitasking. When ArchiCAD is running in the background, all other open applications and the system software will remain responsive, and vice versa.
• Protected memory. Application or system bugs that previously lead to a crash of the entire system will no longer affect other applications or the system. This represents a significant improvement in overall system stability.
• Dynamic virtual memory allocation. Applications that require a lot of memory are assigned resources as needed; no more "Memory Full" messages.
• Aqua look & feel. Combines superior ease of use with spectacular and cheerful semi-transparent and animated graphical user interface components. All ArchiCAD dialog boxes and palettes have been revised and modified to accommodate the different sizes of the Aqua interface elements (pop-up menus, buttons etc.).
• Quartz display engine. The Quartz 2D graphics engine is a background technology to serve the Aqua graphical user interface. It will be apparent in graphical user interface components, but not within the ArchiCAD window. Apple does not recommend this for applications running on both MacOS 9 and X.

To read the entire press release click here.

About Graphisoft

ArchiCAD�, Graphisoft's flagship product, is an object-oriented and fully integrated 2D/3D CAD solution for architecture and the building industry. Available on Windows and Macintosh operating systems, ArchiCAD is sold in 80 countries and in 25 language versions through its independent distributor partners and wholly owned subsidiaries.