Make the idea readable before it leaves your desk

A measured drawing gives an idea a shared language: an outline, a distance, a note and a sheet that another person can follow. XiCAD is the planned XiKey™ edition of CADCraft, aimed at people who want to explore 2D drafting with a familiar command-driven workflow and a developing Arabic interface.

XiCAD is planned, with an Alpha stage in the product registry. Alpha is free when available. The capabilities below belong to the reviewed CADCraft foundation, not to a verified shipped XiCAD installer. The upstream itself labels its stage pre-alpha. These distinctions matter when choosing a tool for a real project. XiKey release status. Upstream stage.

Who it is for

Try this direction if you teach drafting, prepare concept plans, make workshop details or prefer typing coordinates to estimating them by eye. The foundation combines lines and curves, editing commands, object snaps and layers with annotation and sheet preparation. It is an invitation to evaluate a new tool using representative copies of your work. Its current scope does not include 3D modeling. Checked drafting features, known gaps.

Three ideas worth putting on a drawing

An architecture firm's accessible site concept

Show the relationship between an entrance, a proposed path and a gathering area. Separate existing boundaries, route options and annotations into layers. Use polylines for the route, dimensions for widths and a scaled viewport for a review sheet. The result is a discussion drawing; accessibility compliance still requires the project's normal review. The underlying layer, dimension and viewport tools are documented in the upstream feature list.

A theatre crew's stage rigging layout

Lay out proposed equipment positions in plan view, with repeated symbols as static blocks and labels for identification. A polar or rectangular array can place a repeated series; a leader can connect a note to the intended object. Export a PDF for the planning meeting. This example concerns positions and communication, not rigging load calculations. Blocks, arrays and annotation, layouts and plotting.

A furniture maker's joinery detail

Draw a cabinet corner at useful working dimensions, mirror a repeated feature and hatch a section so solid material reads clearly. Associate dimensions with geometry, then revise the draft without manually rebuilding every annotation. Check fit and tolerances through the workshop's own process. Modify, dimensions and hatch capabilities.

From first line to review sheet

Establish the geometry. Start with units and coordinates. Draw the outline using lines, polylines, circles or arcs, and use endpoint, midpoint, intersection and tangent snaps to connect the intended points. Orthogonal and polar guidance help constrain input. Command workflow.

Organize and explain. Put distinct elements on layers, assign lineweights and isolate a layer when the view becomes crowded. Static blocks reuse details; attributes keep identifying information with a block. Add dimensions, leaders and TEXT or MTEXT. Installed TrueType/OpenType fonts support drawing text, and upstream documents Arabic shaping and bidirectional text layout. This text-engine support is separate from XiKey's forthcoming interface work. Features, fonts and right-to-left text.

Revise relationships, then present. Offset, trim, mirror or arrange geometry. Geometric and dimensional constraints can retain intended relationships as the drawing changes. Prepare paper-space layouts, set a viewport scale and plot PDF, or export SVG/PNG for review. Command-line and MCP interfaces offer an upstream path for repeated drawing tasks; compatibility with existing automation must be checked. Layouts and constraints, automation.

What XiKey is adding

The XiKey layer is under development. For XiCAD, the Arabic interface and one-click EN ⇄ ع switch are in progress; XiPhoto is the verified pilot for that integration. Upstream CADCraft already documents an Arabic language choice, but that does not establish a finished XiCAD experience. A font dialog organized by Arabic writing style, XiKey splash/About/message dialogs and signed updates through XiLauncher are also in progress. Classic/Modern layout presets, XiKey Retina scaling refinements and sandboxed add-ons installed through XiLauncher are planned. XiKey integration state, XiKey roadmap, upstream localization.

Alpha: know what you are evaluating

DXF and DWG support should not be read as a promise of lossless interchange. The current DWG bridge can drop unsupported custom objects and foreign data; upstream documents incomplete real-file validation. SVG/SVGZ import also omits text, fills and embedded images. PDF output exists, while PDF import and underlays do not. The reviewed foundation has no 3D modeling or dynamic-block authoring. Keep originals and compare trial exports in the receiving tool. File-format evidence, remaining gaps.

Windows x64/ARM64, macOS and Linux are target platforms; available XiCAD packages and hardware minima await release validation. No XiCAD installer, build or runtime test was performed for this page. Alpha is free; the store's future Beta list price is USD 39/year or USD 4.99/month before tax. Platform evidence, XiKey release status, store policy.

Source snapshot and credit

Reviewed on 2026-10-14: CADCraft 0.6.2, main commit e707ab4d7cc10102e550ad4c5bcecef1084a9baa. The v0.6.2 release notes were also reviewed; that release targets the earlier commit 00c7613f1af3c73f7157fa91d9fe2635c6f23c06. Feature links above pin the main snapshot, which includes later changes. Version declaration, format implementation.

XiCAD is based on CADCraft by the ArtCraft team (MIT OR Apache-2.0).

XiKey is a trademark of Pioneer Local Development Co. Ltd.