I guess one of the most common causes of projects getting out of control or ending with disappointing results, is a bad design. I ignore bad management and bad craftsmanship here because they are avoidable . And with a bad design I mean a description of the intended goal which in the end when constructed does not bring a happy client.  Usually the number of change requests and rework during the construction gets overwhelming and sometimes the complete process has to start all over again.

One of the solutions coming from the engineering of physical goods like cars, houses, bridges and furniture is (3D) Design Visualization. With CAD system the product is drawn mathematically and the result is an on screen very realistic image. You can look at the product from all sides, even the inside like you walk in a real house or through a new designed neighborhood, and sometimes you can even test it by placing the product into a larger environment like furniture or a car in a windtunnel.

It's not difficult to project this idea to software design and development. In fact, prototyping an application is already a very old idea and practice but the difference in here is the use of specific software to simulate the future application with in contradiction to the habit of creating a  "cut down to the bone" application (often smartened up to the real thing in a later stage). Rapid Design Visualization (RDV) is a very good idea to reduce overall costs and risk of dissatisfaction at the expense of some addition time and money spend in the design phase.

But the best example of Design Visualization lately, and not only for prototyping purposes, is 3D-printing. For only about 350 Euro on parts, you can create your own open source 3D-printer, the REPRAP. With this printer you can really produce physical goods of a couple of inches in either side (8'' * 8'' * 5.5'') with colored plastic as raw material, including some parts you'll need to finish the printer. In fact, the ultimate goal of this project is to create a 3D-printer which can print itself .

So hey, you could create your own souvenir-shop with models of the Eiffeltower or the Golden Gate bridge or you might want to create some LEGO parts not even on the market . By-the-way, if you don't want to have the hassle of building the printer yourself, you can always buy a semi-professional one for a reasonable price. Nevertheless, the REPRAP is a good start and a great promise. Imagine the possibilities of being able to print not only in plastic but in metals and ceramics as well. You could print your own mobile phone including all the electronics !.  

Well, it will take a while to get there but not that long. I predict that in a few years a lot of people have their own 3D-printer. In the first few years i guess you can better run to the shop to buy the goods cheaper, faster and better but that will change rapidly. And hey, who wants stuff everybody already has anyway ?

Have fun prototyping .

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