Autodesk SketchBook Pro 4.1
July 9th, 2009
SketchBook Pro is a very nice little application which feels like it sits somewhere in between paper and the digital world. The tool is probably more geared toward people who are equipped with a pen and tablet that makes it a lot easier to draw with than with a mouse. After playing around with it for a few minutes, one advantage became apparent over traditional paper based sketching techniques. Sketching on an electronic canvas along with the power of layers and undos at your disposal, offers the ability to refine and change more flexibly than on paper. Sure, there are those people out there who will argue that all sketches should be kept and not erased so that the process is made visible. Nevertheless, sometimes little corrections still have to be made and software such as this makes it a breeze.
I’ve noticed a couple of other great features with SketchBook Pro. There is a ruler tool that allows you to draw straighter lines when required. Then there is the marker which looks great and has a similar effect to the water colour style of real world makers.
Grab the 15 day free trial here (and click to “software trials” item).
7 Responses to “Autodesk SketchBook Pro 4.1”
July 10th, 2009 at 5:24 am
Totally agree with Andrew. Recently bought a Bamboo pen tablet for my 5.5 year old and she is having a great time drawing using Sketchbook. She has already saved over 300 drawings that range from bizarre to some very intriguing stuff…!
July 10th, 2009 at 12:57 pm
Nice to see others liking this tool as well. I guess it is a little hidden gem.
July 10th, 2009 at 1:05 pm
Hi Jakub, IMHO, Sketchbook Pro may be one of the finest pieces of software ever designed (really!). I've used it on/off for years and it is a UX five-star. It is most viable for people who have an illustration, cartooning, artwork or similar background (and in conjunction with a pen tablet, such as a Wacom), but can also be used by those who can't draw a straight line or a stick figure, to save their life . . . and are just using a mouse. Ultimately, it is one of those magical applications that is neither too small or too large, yet can grow to one's level of expertise per meeting the interaction design, information architecture, user interface (etc.) demand. It is one of the few pieces of software (plus my tablet) that I get homesick for if I've not used it for a week. Glad you included in it your blog. – Andrew Schechterman (<a href="http://www.LinkedIn.com/in/andrewschechterman)” target=”_blank”>www.LinkedIn.com/in/andrewschechterman)
July 15th, 2009 at 3:57 pm
the trial page doesn't work.
July 15th, 2009 at 4:04 pm
Thanks for pointing that out. Sorry, I think their trial link expired. You can still go to http://area.autodesk.com/sketchbook and click on the software trials. Cheers.
July 18th, 2009 at 4:12 am
doesn't work
http://www.ly2l.com/vb