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Contact Dan Meriwether DM@Delux.com
Oakland, CA, (March 1, 2011)
Move over hammer and tape measure, the iPhone finds it's way onto the toolbelt
Contractors are pulling out their iPhones to calculate staircase blueprints with the entry of just the staircase height. Delux's new iPhone App, Delux Stairs, makes the process of calculating and building stairs quick, easy, and intuitive. Delux Stairs was created specifically for the iPhone due to it's power and portability.
"We wanted to create a tool that is easy to use, but that provides access to the detail and subtle fine tuning that distinguishes a professionally installed staircase from an amateur one. The iPhone is a perfect platform since it provides the processing power to draw the plans real time as well as the portability to take it onto the job site." Says Dan Meriwether, Principal and User Interface developer for Delux. "We designed the interface expressly around how to best design stairs rather than trying to emulate legacy analog calculators. The colors are high contrast so you can see them in bright daylight at the job site and the controls are intuitive and allow the builder to see the results of their work real-time."
The app begins by asking for the total rise or height, including finished flooring. Using just that single measurement, the app calculates an entire staircase complete with number of treads and individual riser heights, and total run or length of the stair. From there the builder can quickly modify the design to conform exactly to the space available just by clicking "+" and "-" buttons. Once the user is satisfied that the stair will fit, the next screen allows them to fine-tune the stairs, adding details such as the tread thickness, flooring thickness, tread nosing, etc. The subtle interactions of these measurements and how they affect the stair structure are shown clearly with a live-update diagram.
"The interplay of all the design elements is what separates comfortable, safe, professional-quality stairs from amateur stairs with uneven, potentially hazardous steps. We built that interplay into the workflow." Meriwether adds.
Delux Stairs is available for $4.99 from the App Store on iPhone or iTunes or at http://www.delux.com/stairs/
About Delux
Delux was founded in 1995, just after Dan Meriwether's publication of "Macintosh Web Browser Kit" with John Wiley & Sons made it clear that a business was needed to handle the growing commercial interest in the web and the demand for Mr. Meriwether's expertise. In the ensuing 16 years, Delux has developed applications for, among others, Wells Fargo, CNET, WebMD, Palm Inc, Tibco and the County of Santa Barbara. For more information please visit: http://stairs.delux.com or email Stairs@delux.com