A system of computer assisted design for instructional materials (CADI) would increase the productivity of instructional designers of software, and keep costs from escalating as rapidly as they are at present. At Wayne State University, some steps toward CADI have been taken, with the result that personnel time has been reduced for some activities, and the product improved in others. A PLATO lesson that was designed involved the use of a questionnaire employing a 2-level sort--one by the courses the respondent had taken, and one by the design and development functions performed by the respondent. This simplified data gathering and improved the quality of the data collected. CADI also uses online documentation and interaction where appropriate. While the system can be used for preparing text materials, the greatest potential is probably for lesson development. The Instructional Quality Inventory developed by David Merrill provides a set of guidelines that may be useful in designing such lessons. The evaluation of CADI materials, while not completely precise, can be accomplished by reviewing their accuracy and conformity to accepted practice, but only the test of a prototype will tell if the instructional package works. (BK)