FREE!ship (formerly Freeship)

FREE!ship is an open source application that allows you to create a ship model by using a technique called surface modeling. If you have ever dreamed of designing your own boat you can start by creating the model with this program.

The program features a four panel interface that allows you to view the boat model from different directions and to change the surface by editing the points that define the boat's hull. You can add as many points as you need in order to clearly define the surface.

You can work with information imported from other design programs or from other projects that have been exported to text files. Moreover, data can be exported from the project straight to AutoCAD or other programs specialized in boat design.

Although designing a boat is a complex task that requires knowledge in many areas, the interface of the program is rather simple. All the actions are organized into separate menus and the documentation that can be loaded from the developer's website explains clearly how the application should be used.

Plenty of the details of a model need to be adjusted and many modifications are made before the final result emerges. As such, the program remembers the last changes, thus allowing you to view the exact changes and apply the desired alterations. This enables you to undo actions and to return to a previous state with just a few clicks.

A very useful function of the program checks the model for leak points and displays the exact coordinates. This allows you to go beyond visually checking the boat design and to prevent big mistakes from slipping into the final product.

FREE!ship is a handy program that can help any sailing enthusiast to create a boat design regardless of the experience with other design tools.