Tutorial - Grid Guide Revit 2011 (Revit Clinic)

A little tip/tutorial of the new grid line feature in Revit 2011 by The Revit Clinic:

• Click here to view the post.
  
• Click here to view a little video.
  

Troubleshooting Revit 2011 - Video Tutorials

Very cool collection of Autodesk Videos put together by Alan over at Revit Structure Learning Curve:





Click here to view the rest of the selections....

More, more, more! Revit 2011

Just some more videos and a full list of Revit Architecture, Structure, and MEP new features:

• Click here to view the full lists over at Revit Structure Learning Curve.

Great video below from Greg over at Revit3D.com

More Revit 2011 Info!!

The Revit blogosphere is going to be buzzing for the next few weeks about this release. David Light posted some great information along with pictures and videos:

Ribbon and UI

So let me start with the interface, as this has been a constantly debated, argued, discussed subject amongst many a Revit user on the AUGI forums. So these are the headliners for UI improvements.

• Contextual Tab display
• Contextual Tab display behaviour
• Modeless Properties Palette
• Modify Tab is both static and contextual
• Modify Tools improvements
• Quick Access Toolbar customization
• Resizable Dialogs
• Worksets and Design Options

The most obvious improvement and a complaint I personally had with 2010, was actually getting access to modification tools. 2011 allows rapid access to modification tools, no more clicking backwards and forwards between Ribbon tabs. When you select a tool and start to work with it, the modify tools are constantly at hand. The Ribbon also seems to be a lot faster and there is icon clarity with other Autodesk solutions. The other obvious change is the disappearance of the Type selector from the Ribbon. This is not going to be to everybody's taste; as it now resides in a modeless Properties Palette.

Continue to post for more information, pictures, and videos....

I have to say... This looks like it will be quite the release. It appears that wishlist items have finally been taken into consideration.... I cannot wait to use it!

I will also do my best to cater to my fellow students and finding out when the Autodesk Student Community will get the new releases...

Revit 2011 - New Features and Screenshots

It's that time of the year again... The new version of Revit is a couple weeks away (April 8th is the official release date) and Autodesk is allowing the bloggers to start blogging! Of course, my pal Greg at Revit3D.com has a great detailed post full of screen shots and descriptions:

Head over to Greg's blog and thank him for always being the first to post this kind of stuff.

Tutorial - Room Size Label (Revit Rocks)

Genious idea from Daryl over at Revit Rocks:


Parametric Room Label




This family tutorial will teach you some cool stuff about nested families and parameters and also save you a ton of time if you ever need to label room sizes.
We teach you how to nest an annotative family in a model family, link it up the local parameters and tie it all together with reference planes that result in downstrean shape handles at the project level.

Once the family is loaded into the project you can 'align and / or lock' the nested / controlling reference planes to walls or parallel edges and the room size label updates . Use the 'align tool' or select the family and use the shape handles.
* The lessons learned here on nesting an annotation family within a model family and being able to nudge or move 'the annotation' part of the model family at the project level is NOT widespread knowledge.
Below is an embedded playlist with 1 CADclip demonstrating the family in action and 3 more CADclips showing you how to build the family yourself from scratch.

Click here to view the post and Video Tutorial....

Tutorial - Vinyl Siding (CAD Notes)

I am not sure how I feel about this tutorial. The idea and information is great, but creating walls with physical reveals to show siding does not sound like a good idea to me. Imagine a massive house and all the intricate details. Now imagine dealing with reveals and clean ups on that house. Personally, I think the best practice is to use surface patterns and make some really nice rendering materials with bump maps for your siding. Nonetheless, the actual technique of using reveals in this tutorial is worth noting:

Creating Vinyl Siding

We have discussed how we can define wall structure horizontally.

Now the problem is, how can we define the structure vertically? We have discussed how we can add reveals and sweeps to do this. In this article, let us discuss how we can create a vinyl siding wall as example. The common way (and probably most suggested) to do this is simply using horizontal lines pattern, not actually creating real 3D forms. And later, we can use drafting tools to add details for the vinyl siding wall.

The reason why we do this is creating many horizontal sweeps/reveals can take much of your computerresources. When you are modeling a large building, this can be a problem. Of course, there are a downside: you have to take care the details later, manually.

Now, vinyl siding wall commonly used for simple houses, not multi story building. So I guess it is save if we create a real 3D vinyl siding, it would be acceptable.

Creating Reveal Profile

Create a new profile. Use Metric Profile-Reveal.rft (or Profile-Reveal.rft for imperial).

You need to define how your vinyl siding layer will be cut by this profile. Create reveal like below. Pay attention to the wall location. I use 250×80 as the outline. Remember this value, we are going to need it when defining our wall.

Save this file, and load it to your project.

Now why are we using reveal instead of sweep? You will see the difference later in the comparison section.

Applying the Wall Reveal

In your project, choose one of the wall type you want to modify. In this example I use generic 200mm. Duplicate, and add one more layer as your vinyl siding layer. Change the height to match your sweep profile.

To enable us adding reveal, change the view to section. Change it from drop down selection below the preview area.

In the modify vertical structure group, click reveal.

This will open another dialog box. Click add below this dialog to add a reveal definition. Select the reveal profile you created previously in the profile column. If you haven’t loaded it, click load profile.

Define the distance from base. Do it several times until it reach the highest wall in your design.

We are done. Click OK and close all the dialogs.

Now try to create walls and see how it looks like. I think this is quite nice :)

Continue to the rest of the post....

Tutorial - Moving Views Around (Revitize)

Moving a set of views from one sheet to another

Revit does not allow the same DWG view to be placed in more than one sheet. For this reason, when we want to move a set of views from one sheet to another, it does not let copy or cut and paste. It gives a “multiple instances of the same view in sheets not supported!”

One way to move the views, is to open the sheets category in the project browser

and just drag and drop the views to another sheet in the project browser or in the DWG area.

Tip - Plan Regions Wall Cleanup (Revit Clinic)

Great tip from the Revit Clinic... I run into this problem all the time and used the same basic tip to fix it:

Plan Regions Wall Cleanups and Large Coordinates

The symptom of this condition are wall cleanups which vary from view to view. For example a primary view and a dependent view. If you come across walls not cleaning up as expected in one view let's look at the following scenario:

Let's take a Revit plan view which contained an object well over the 2 mile origin at some point. When this object was present, the cut line for the view range extended to include this object.

At some point several plan regions were added to this view. Each plan region was set to a different cut plane dimension.

The plan regions captured the large coordinates and this could potentially disrupt wall cleanups. You may also notice that some rooms and room tags are not visible in the view exhibiting this behavior.

Should you come across this, you can resolve it using the following process:

Click here to view the steps as well as a video....

Revit Sweeper : Worth While in 10 years?

I have been getting some encouraging comments on the previous Revit Sweeper posts:

From Dave:

Just for fun and to add a deeper level of explanation-
Starting back in the good old days of DOS and perhaps earlier, the wild card character "*" meant search for any number of characters. The wild card character "?" meant search for any single character. So the search string "*.0*.r??" should be interpreted as "any number of characters, period (dot), zero, any number of characters, dot, the letter "r", any single character, any single character. This may very well find Revit backup files, but it has the potential to find other files as well. Also, should it happen that your Revit file has been edited more than 999 times, the first number in the 4-digit revision number would not be a zero, so “.0*.” would not find them. Perhaps your revit sweeper program has greater value than you think.

From David:

To extend what Dave was saying. That search string would also find any other files whose extension (3 letter) started with .R__, see this link for a listing.

So will Revit Sweeper be more valuable in the future? What happens ten years from now and you still have that Revit Families folder and you have managed to edit that same cabinet over 1000 times, and maybe that same window 2500 times?! You will have to do a seperate search for: *.0*.rvt, *.1*.rvt... etc... Also, if you are using a simple program such as Winrar to zip or unzip files... The *.0*.r?? could easily pick up a file called "TestFolder.01.rar" or something along those lines.

It is safe to say that Revit Sweeper does have a place on this earth... As of now, it is for free to download until the bandwith of my free hosting service is full... Once it is full, I might think about charging for the software in order to cover the hosting costs of the file.

So go to Revit Sweeper.com and get your free copy now before it's too late!!

Revit Tip - Delete Backup Files

Well, after months of tweaking a program that I was using as a personal tool to improve productivity and workflow, a wonderful reader of mine decided to crush my every ambition of being a programmer... Haha, okay, that was a little dramatic. I am an honest and ethical man and I felt I needed to post this after being informed.

If you are running Vista or Windows 7, this is a very easy solution (XP can be a bit tedious because of the awful search process involved). Simply search your hard drive for the following terms:

• *.0*.rvt
• *.0*.rfa

*Edit* I have now also been informed that you can type: *.0*.r??

This will bring up your back up files in which you can select all and then delete them. Granted, my program eliminates the need to type this every time and to empty your recycling bin every time (although Sal informed me that pressing "Shift" an then hitting "Delete" will not send the item to the recycling ben. Just when I thought I knew windows!)... But this will allow you to eliminate every single backup file no matter where it is located.

So, anonymous reader, thank you for killing my hopes and dreams. Being an optimist, I will take the good away from this; I am now very knowledgeable about computer programming.

For those of you who do not want to type the aforementioned search filters every time and you have very specific folders to clean Revit Sweeper is now free. Those of you who have purchased it I will grant a full refund at your request.

• Click here to enter the Revit Sweeper mini-site.

Oh, and no, the filter you type into windows explorer is not the method Revit Sweeper uses...

Tutorial - Formula Driven Curves (Buildz)

Another cool little tutorial very similar to my Revit Calculus experiment:

Formula Driven Curves and Surfaces

Shiny New Toys!

Short description: Like the helix family from a couple weeks ago, these files allow you to load either a curve or a surface and manipulate them purely by math. Look Ma, No API! These are 100% good old fashion parameter driven loaded families.

I don't have the time now to really describe them, but I thought I would put them up for your dissection and inspection. I'll try and do an update with simplified interface. At the moment, you have to do a lot of correction for units, which is sort of a drag. Also, if you want to do something really complex, you will need to add more points.

General how-to operate these files: the formula driven spline, you can open up loaded family "formulaPoint" for edit, and change the formula that drives the parameter "y". Reload and presto: a new curve. For the formula driven surface, open "formula3dPoint" for edit and change the formula for parameter "z". I have included a couple other formulas in dummy parameters in the family for you to play with, just cut and paste into the y or z parameter

Download from HERE.

More to come

Click here to go to post and blog...

The Revit Kid.com's - Revit Sweeper

While researching Revit API I picked up on some programming languages. Well, it turns out I am enjoying programming quite a bit. I wrote this program in the begninning of the semester. I got so much use out of it that I figured I would share it with the world with the launch of The Revit Kid.com's mini-site: Revit Sweeper.com:

The Revit Kid.com presents:
Revit Sweeper!

Initially, Revit Sweeper was a practice program that I developed in order to hone my programming skills. It turns out that I have found it very useful. I have decided to release it to the public in hopes of making my fellow Revit user's lives a bit more easy.

What is it?

How many Revit projects are you working on? How large are they? How many families are in your "Revit Family" Directory? Now, take the size and multiply it by 4... That is how much space Revit Backup files are using on your hard drive.

Revit Sweeper is a very simple little Windows program that searches a specified directory for Revit backup files. Then, per the users request, deletes them.

Features:

• Search by directory.
• Removes the hassle of control clicking in every directory and deleting Revit backup files.
• Frees up precious hard drive space.
• Works with backup files from all versions of Revit.

Don't I need the backup files?

The short answer, no. If you worked on a family 3 months ago, saved it, and havn't touched it since. You clearly do not need the backup files. The backup files are more of a temporary solution for crashes, power outages, etc... How many times have you deleted those obnoxious "*.0001.rvt" files?

How does it work?

Well, the programmers secret is all he has. I will tell you it uses an algorithm that searches for the backup files.

Known Issues?

I have been using the software quite a bit and these are the two issues I have ran into:

• Right now, Revit Sweeper will only delete files in the Selected Directory and on level of sub Directories. The reason for this was simply performance related. Not to mention a typically Revit Family Directory consists of a root folder, "Revit Families", and one level of sub-directories; "Doors", Windows", etc...

If users run into any issues they must contact me. I will resolve them and release a patch, or new version, as soon as possible. This revised version will be free to all existing costumers.

Click here to see screenshots and videos...

Click here to buy "The Revit Kid.com's - Revit Sweeper v1.0" Now!!

Tutorial - Wall Colors

Here is a simple tutorial about a topic that I have recieved numerous emails on.

Tutorial Covers:

• Creating new Materials
• Editing wall materials.
• Painting Surfaces
• Coordinating painted surfaces.
• Managing mulitiple wall colors.

Click here to view the video....

Spring Break! ... I think?

I am officially on spring break. What does that mean? Well, to some people it means lounging out and maybe going on vacation. For me, it means working on all the homework and Design Studio work that I have due when I return. Fortunately, I will have tad bit more free time and will be recording some tutorials for you all to learn and enjoy. I am also planning on releasing a secret little project I have been working on... Stay tuned for that one...

I wanted to inform you all of a service I have been using for about 3 months now. It is called "Jungle Disk". Before I get into the info on their web pages I would like to share my experience. Basically, Jungle Disk is a cloud drive that can be used to automatically back up your files or manually. It can also be set as a mapped network drive. What is the importance of that? Well, it can hold a Revit Central file. That's right. For 3 dollars a month you can have a cloud drive that can be accessed on any machine with the internet.

Therefore, I have a single drive that holds my Revit files, photos, and miscellaneous Design Studio files that I can access on my Macbook Pro Mac Partition, Windows Partition, my Desktop, and any machine in school. There is also a great feature where you can plug in your flash drive to an machine and it will load your Jungle Disk... I am telling you all it has been great.

Click here to try out the personal edition. I promise you it is worth every penny.

Quick Tip - Reference Lines and Massing

Another tip from The Revit Clinic....

Conceptual Mass Forms & Reference Lines

Here’s a quick tip regarding reference lines and forms in the conceptual mass interface:

When a form is created the original lines will be deleted when you delete the form. If you created the form with reference lines however they do remain when the form is deleted. This tip was posted a while back in this post.

But let’s say you created a form with lines and you need to both delete the form and maintain the original lines.

You can trace the original form with reference lines, or pick points with reference lines. Also you can enable 3D Snapping to trace any points on the form if you needed a particular portion of it.

If snapping to 3D points to create reference lines, you will need to cut the points to the clipboard prior to deleting the form. After the form is deleted you can paste > same place and create a new form as needed from the reference lines.

Here’s a quick video [no sound] displaying an example of these 2 options:

Video Example

Hope this helps!

Tutorial/Tip - Render Images Missing

Great little tip that parallels my Custom Material Tutorial, from The Revit Clinic:

The following render appearance images are missing

Common scenario when rendering is to have some materials use custom image files. I have included the 3 most common areas to check should you receive the “The following render appearance images are missing:” warning when rendering below:

1. As a best practice try to store all custom image files in one location. Wherever these image files are located, ensure that the path is specified under Options > Rendering > Additional Render Appearance Paths.

Add the path[s] where the images are stored here, and then re-render the scene to see if the warning persists.

2. If the materials are stored on a network location, verify the location appears in the list above as an additional render appearance path. Also make sure all users have access to this folder.

3. Depending on the application which created or saved the image file the material uses, Revit may not be able to load the image file for rendering. In most cases this may occur with certain JPEG compression modes and will generate the same warning message at render.

One easy test is to open the image file and save it as .PNG format instead. Edit the Revit material to point to the .PNG format image to see if this eliminates the warning when rendering.

Tutorial - 10 Family Tips (Revit Clinic)

Some more cool little tips (some of which I have in video form on this site) from The Revit Clinic:
Click here to see the post and tips...

Click here to see a tip about Wall Cut Patterns...

Revit.biz - Forums!!!

Promising website from Ian... It will only succeed if you all join and converse in the Forums:

Revit.biz

A very warm welcome to revit.biz!

My name is Ian. I’m an architect living and working in the UK. Oh, by the way I absolutely adore Autodesk Revit! So much so in fact that in June 2007 I started a website dedicated to the discussion of all things Revit. That website was Revit Zone.

I first got introduced to Revit in 2004. Within a matter of weeks I was a Revit Convert! And since that time, I have become more enthused by Revit every day. It quickly became apparent to me that BIM (Building Information Modelling) was the way forward- a huge leap on from the “dumb” 2D CAD systems I was used to using. But it was also apparent that for a lot of people the change in mindset was not an easy one. So I decided to write about my experiences with Revit and produce a series of articles that (hopefully) eased the transition to BIM from 2D CAD.

In January 2010 I decided to take what I had learnt from Revit Zone and start a new website, revit.biz. The content and informal writing style remains the same, while improvements have been made to the navigation and usability- particularly with respect to the Forums.

revit.biz is simply divided into the following areas:-

News

The Home Page is where you can find all the latest news from the world of Revit. New articles (both on revit.biz and other Revit websites) are posted here.

Articles

Split into seven categories, the database of articles cover various aspects of Revit and will help you get the most out of the software

Links

Here you will find the most comprehensive collection of Revit, BIM, CAD and AEC links on the internet. I personally review each submission and produce a respective summary of the linked site .

Forums

A great place to discuss any aspect of Revit. We have home for every flavour of Revit – Architecture, Structure and MEP. We cover 3D modeling, detailing, plug-ins, Worksharing and lots more. The forum community is both friendly and extremely helpful. We have some very talented Revit users- which can be seen from the submissions they make to the Gallery Forum. If you have a specific Revit query you would like help with or just want to improve your Revit knowledge generally, our Forums are there for you. Registration is very easy and you can be making your first post within minutes.

Feedback

Revit.biz is all about learning. It’s about debate and discussion. It’s also about feedback. I love feedback because I can use it to better steer the site’s development to people’s needs. So if you have anything at all to say about the site (good or bad), please let me know. You can use either the Contact Form or the Suggestions and Feedback Forum.

And finally! I must stress that revit.biz is in no way officially linked to or affiliated with Autodesk Inc. The terms Autodesk, AutoCAD, Revit, Ecotect Analysis, Green Building Studio, and 3ds Max are registered trademarks or trademarks of Autodesk, Inc., and/or its subsidiaries and/or affiliates in the USA and/or other countries. All other brand names, product names, or trademarks belong to their respective holders.

Many thanks for your interest in revit.biz. I sincerely hope you find the information here both interesting and informative. I look forward to discussing Revit with you on our forums!

Kind regards,

Ian

Tutorial - Operable Overhead Door (Revit Rocks)

Great little videot tutorial from Daryl: