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Wednesday, August 31, 2011

What Revit ARCHITECTURE Wants - Save Selection!

I am going to help Luke over at What Revit Wants with this one. I, too, have always wondered why us Revit Architecture users do not get the "Save Selection" feature the Revit Structure has...  Luke is asking his readers to leave feedback about it with Autodesk.  Together, I think we can make some noise.

Click here to see his post and what you can do about it...

Also, if you have been frustrated with the Room Phasing post I published then leave some feedback about that too!

It may not seem like it but Autodesk does read and listen to our blogs and your feedback.

Room Phasing Frustrations!

How many of you have used Revit and Phasing?  Specifically, Demolition plans...  How many of you have pondered this very question:

"Why would New Construction room names want to been seen on a Demolition Plan?!?!?!"

Recently, I was working on a project that has over nine part plans...  The only work around for getting your Existing Room names (that I have found useful) is to create an Existing Room Names view that only shows Existing Room names. Then, place the demolition view on the sheet and overlay the existing room names over it.  This worked out fine on most of the projects.  Unfortunately, creating nine part plan views of existing room names for four levels and then overlaying them on top of their respective views on sheets drove me absolutely crazy!

Example of New Rooms showing in "Previous + New" Phase filter.  Why!?

Why can we not phase rooms?!  Autodesk, this does not seem like a very difficult fix.  No one wants to see New Construction room names on a "Previous + Demo" filter...

Has anyone experienced this?  What is your workaround?  Comment below!

Tuesday, August 30, 2011

Autodesk Project Storm - To the Cloud!

Project Neon, Vasari, and now Project Storm... All utilizing "the cloud" to manage major computing tasks...  Project Storm takes the process of performing Structural calculations in Revit Structure to the cloud!
I am loving the direction Autodesk is taking with the cloud.  I hope these previews can make their way into major releases (bug free) and on the cloud!

Autodesk Project Spark

Unfortunately, I was about 20 minutes late to the blogger webcast today about the new Autodesk technology called Project Spark.

When I joined the webcast David Light's voice was the first thing I heard asking some questions about the technology preview... Of course, he wrote up a fantastic post about it.

OVERVIEW

Project Spark is a technology preview of a simplified 3D building information modeling (BIM) solution. Using Project Spark, building professionals can create designs efficiently with real-world building objects, produce more reliable documentation faster, and share files with consultants using Revit or AutoCAD-based products.
Project Spark is not intended to support conceptual design, analysis, rendering, advanced collaboration, and API.

Autodesk Sustainable Design and BIM Workshop

There are a few awesome new web sites launched by Autodesk and within Autodesk's Education Community.  I would also like to point out that when I first started this blog in 2009 the Education Community  had about 800,000 members... Now, it has almost 3 million!  I think that is a testimony to all the great things Autodesk is doing and has been doing in the Education Community.  If you are a student and not a member, sign up now! It is worth it.  Here is a little snippet about it:

Gain BIM and Sustainable Design Expertise--and Get Ahead!

To remain competitive in today's job market, you must be able to incorporate BIM and sustainability strategies into your designs. Autodesk® has two new great online resources available to students that can help you learn how.

The Autodesk Sustainability Workshop has informative videos and tutorials designed to get you up to speed on concepts like passive heating and cooling, efficient HVAC design, lighting and daylighting, and more. This site demonstrates how to apply sustainability principles to solve real-world environmental challenges. Learn the principles of designing a net-zero energy building and create a more sustainable world.

Looking for more BIM learning resources? Check out the great new curriculum and other learning tools in the new Autodesk BIM Workshop. This online experience was created to prepare the next generation of architecture, engineering, and construction management students for professional practice. The site has an abundance of learning material, videos, and exercises designed to educate on BIM and sustainable design practices along with IPD concepts.

I have been searching around the websites and links above and there looks to be a lot of cool stuff.  So go check it out now!  Also, there were a few new additions to the BIM Curriculum and an awesome Net Zero Building video floating around the Education Community... (See below)


Videos on net-zero energy building from the Sustainability Workshop

Two new Units added to the BIM Curriculum
o   Unit 6 – Performance-Based Conceptual Design (featuring Project Vasari)
o   Unit 7 - Extending BIM Beyond Design: Modeling for Construction, Fabrication, and FM







Monday, August 29, 2011

Revit Tutorial - Custom Materials on Multiple Computers


Being in school and in work can sometimes restrict you from copying and pasting custom materials into the Revit materials library.  Then, you go to render and get that lovely error stating you are missing the textures...  And you render a black shadowy object.  Well, here is a tip that will allow you to keep your materials in your project folder or a "materials" folder... Then you can keep them on a flash drive and point Revit to it anywhere you are!

It is very simple...
  1. Create a folder to place all your custom materials in (on a cloud drive, flash drive, desktop... where ever).
  2. Place all of your images and bump files there.
  3. Open Revit and hit the big Revit button on the top left.

  4. Open the Options menu.
  5. Click the Rendering tab.

  6. Click the large green "+" sign.
  7. Browse for your folder and click okay.








Saturday, August 27, 2011

Screencast Videos are Back Up! Revit Tutorials live again!

If you had any trouble viewing Revit tutorials through Screencast the past few days go back and try again. They are back up and running!

Wednesday, August 24, 2011

Revit Tip - Retaining Footing Do Not Join (Revit Rocks)

Nice little tip to look out for when you are making footing in Revit.  Basically, your footings do not join because you might have accidentally been using retaining footings instead of bearing...

See Daryl's post here for more details...

Monday, August 22, 2011

Screencast Tutorials Down.

On a positive note...  you guys have watched my videos on Screencast well over a million times!  That is right... Over ONE MILLION views of Revit tutorials....  That does not include those of you who have downloaded the videos and it does not include the 100,000+ YouTube views.  Very cool.

On a more negative note...  The ScreenCast account has run out of Bandwidth for this month (and I have the highest account and bandwidth they allow!).  For now, if your Screencast video does not work you know why.  If there is a YouTube version of the video please watch it there.  I will be working on getting the Screencast account back up as soon as possible.

I will keep you posted!

Wednesday, August 17, 2011

Content Download - Existing Casework

I have been working on a lot of schools lately at the office and many of the projects are additions/renovations.  This requires us to build an existing model.  Most often than not we have to show the existing casework and then demolish it.  Well, this can be a very tedious and annoying task using the default Revit casework because it is in a bunch of pieces (Counter top, 4 base cabinets, and 4 wall cabinets).  I decided to make a simple little family for this purpose.  Simply place the family in your rooms... Then demoing and managing the one family becomes a lot easier.

Click here to download the family.  

The family features an instance parameter for the length (so you can put it in any room and simply pull it to the length you need).  Type parameters for the width and heights of any necessary masses.  It also has a visibility parameter enabling the user to turn on and off the wall cabinets.

Feel free to add more detail, parameters, or materials...

Thursday, August 11, 2011

Revit Tutorials - Creating a Pepple / Rock (buildz)

A long long time a go.... during a time when conceptual modeling was non-existent in the Revit platform, I was asked about how to make a "stone" with Revit.  Well, Zach, over at buildz, has a nice tutorial about making a simply smooth pebble.  Use these techniques and you can easily make stones and rocks...  Thanks Zach!

Image Courtesy of Buildz.blogspot.com


Tuesday, August 9, 2011

Revit TIp - Save In-Place Families As New Families

Great tip from Luke over at What Revit Wants....

Save an In-Place Family as an RFA for use in another project

Do you have some awesome in-place families that you would like to convert to normal Component families, so that you can load them into other projects?

Here's how:
  1. Open the Project containing the In-Place family
  2. Edit the In-Place family
  3. Select all of the elements in the family
  4. Group all of these elements using the Create Group tool.  Give the Group a name.

Monday, August 8, 2011

Thursday, August 4, 2011

Most Valuable Blogger - Connecticut

Please take a minute of your time and nominate The Revit Kid.com!  for Connecticut's most valuable blog! Let's put Revit and BIM on the map here in my home state!  If I get nominated I will randomly draw from my list of email/RSS subscribers (So sign up now on the right --->) and they will get a free copy of SAuBIM - Code Calculations for Revit.

Click here to nominate The Revit Kid.com!

Monday, August 1, 2011

SAuBIM - Code Calculations for Revit Back to School Sale!

The SAuBIM Summer Sale was so successful that we decided to have an "end of summer"/back to school sale for the month of August.  Again, SAuBIM will be offered at 40% off.

TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THIS OFFER NOW!!!

The sale will end on the last day or August.