AutoDesk Dragonfly becomes Homestyler, does easy 3D home design for free

AutoDesk has been working on their free online 3D home design tool for quite some time. Last year, Project Dragonfly debuted and I was impressed with the early effort. Now the easy-to-use web app has been relabeled AutoDesk Homestyler, and it's better than ever.

What's new in Homestyler? The biggest change is that you can now do landscape design as well -- something I was hoping they would add when I first reviewed Dragonfly last May. Drag and drop trees, shrubs, and water features onto your plans to spiff things up outside. Loads of decking, rock and mulch, and grass options are provided, too.

In addition to improvements to the design program itself, AutoDesk has added more login options so you don't have to create yet another web account. Now you can sign in using your Google, Facebook, Windows Live, or Yahoo! credentials -- nice!

Creating great-looking designs is still as easy as it was in the early days of Drgaonfly. Drag and drop rooms, resize them, insert furnishings, choose your finishes -- and then switch to a 3D view to get a real-life look at your handiwork.

Homestyler is free to use, and no download is required: simply open it in your favorite web browser and start creating your home designs! Since it's web-based, that means everyone can use it, whether you're using a Windows, Mac, or Linux-powered computer.

[via Lifehacker]

Tags: 3d, architecture, autodesk, design, floor, home, house, interior, landscape, plan, web