"What you draw is what you get. The true horror is not the gap in representation, but the inexorable drift of our world toward it." - Reiser + Umemoto, Atlas of Novel Tectonics
As designers face a challenge of evolving tools, choices between software packages inundate the workplace. Some embrace the new possibilities, while others remain skeptical of the benefits to come with new, expensive programs. If control is what we're looking for, we might be on the correct path. CATIA differs from other CAD packages in its embedded logic, and it arguably grants a tighter grasp of control. Like all tools, it has the potential to empower a select few (keepers of the geo) and inadvertently drive design decisions that all participants may not be aware of. Software, not just CATIA, is inflected by tendencies of capitalism, and the drift toward a mono-software might be inevitable. Accordingly, I would suggest a cautious step into these deep (read: really deep) domains of control.
As our leverage over the building industry increases through new tools, we should be imaginative and critical in our awareness of embedded design decisions. Cogent use of software and the ability to adapt to alternative design methodology is an important skill for designers today. As architectural practice becomes increasingly involved in ultra-paced production streams made possible by emerging software, the discipline must make every effort to understand the breadth and scope of the problems it confronts.
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