Revit Tutorial: Revit 2014 – New Rebar Tools

Great little write-up on the new rebar enhancements for Revit 2014.

http://revitstructureblog.wordpress.com/2013/05/24/revit-2014-new-rebar-tools/

There was also a video linked in the post worth checking out...

New Dynamo Plugin Released for Revit and Vasari

I was first introduced to the Dyaomo plugin at last years Revit Technology Conference.  Since then, I have dabbled with other forms of visual programming (such as in CryEngine and one could argue the material editor in 3DS Max).  If you are not familiar with dynamo or visual programming I suggest you check out it.  You may never use it in your life but it is really cool to see and fool around with.

Click here to view Zach's post for some information....
Click here to download and view more information....

More Information:

Matt Jezyk's page on Vasari's website...
Some videos...

New Design

I am working on upgrading the site layout today/tomorrow.  If you experience any issues they will be resolved by tomorrow.

Feel free to comment on the new layout/design/look....

Revit 2014 Cloud Rendering and Custom Materials

Revit 2014 was released near the end of my semester this year (much later than normal).  Being extremely anxious to install and use it,  and extremely frustrated with Revit 2013's material editor, I installed Revit 2014 a few weeks before my final.

Everything was running smooth and the new/old material editor was a great pleasure.... Until I sent some renderings to the cloud.  

Take a good look at this test rendering.... Notice anything funny?  

That's right... the brick, stone, and wood materials are HUGE!  Those are pyramids of Giza size bricks...  When this exact scene is rendered locally (or in realistic) the brick, wood, and stone look perfect....

It looks to me like the Revit 2014 exporter/cloud has something funny going on with custom materials.  These maps and bump maps are all custom and look great locally... The second I send them to the cloud this is the result...  This did not happen with Revit 2013 and the cloud.

I remember some major improvements when Revit 2013 was released with the cloud exporter from the Revit 2012 exporter... Looks to me like they improved the cloud but not the exporter for the 2014 release...

Revit Tutorial - Export to Linked HTML File

Jared, over at Shoegnome, published a thought provoking post about utilizing the internet and BIM.  The one thing I really like about this idea is that a simple HTML based solution allows anyone with even the most basic computer/device to view a building information model in some fashion.

Jared's post reminded me of Revit's "Export to Views to a Linked HTML File" option.  Because it is such an unknown little feature I figured it was worth sharing.  (The following can be found in the Autodesk Revit Wiki page, see here for more information...)

To export project views to HTML

1. Click ExportImages and Animations (Image).
2. In the Export Image dialog, under Export Range, select Selected Views/Sheets.
3. Click Select.
4. In the View/Sheet Set dialog, select the views and sheets to export, and click OK.
5. Under Output:
   • For Name, specify the desired path and a prefix for resulting file names.
   • Select Create Browsable Web Site with a Linked HTML Page for Each View.
6. Specify Image Size, Options, and Format settings as desired.
   For details about these settings, see Exporting a View to an Image File.
7. Click OK.

To show you how cool this could be I took the Revit sample project and made a little website out of it.

Click here to view the Revit Sample File...

If you have a constant link to an FTP for your domain/website you could easily keep a projects web page up to date with a simple export.  Even better, maybe you can write something into the API to have it automatically export every time you save to central!  Who knows!  Awesome possibilities... Thanks for the thought provocation Jared!

The Revit Kid Project - Master's Thesis - Cycle Design/reBuild

I'M BACK!!

I would like to thank you all for being so patient the last few months while I completed my semester.  I am happy to announce that I am finally finished!  I am also happy to announce that you guys continued to check out the blog and content while I was away... In fact, the blog rolled over 2,000,000 hits during my hiatus.

As many of you have been contacting me letting me know how much you enjoy seeing some of my personal work (beyond this blog) here are some goodies from my final thesis presentation.... (you can full screen and click through the presentation)....

If you are having issues viewing the Prezi full screen follow this link...

I will eventually be posting my final thesis book for you all to view when it is completed and that will have all of the information about the presentation above.  Furthermore, below are the high resolution renderings from the presentation for your viewing pleasure.


Some of these renderings are Revit > 3DS Max > VRay > Photoshop (click to enlarge):

  

The following rendering is simply Revit and Photoshop:

Also, don't forget to follow my on twitter @TheRevitKid ... I was posting there quite a bit during my hiatus. 

Revit Tip - Pay Attention to Your Relative Base

When creating reflected ceiling plans or spot elevations... pay attention to your relative base... especially if you have a floor that changes in elevation...  Make sure you and your users understand and denote what and where those elevations are coming from.

If you don't know what I am talking about click here and read..


Holy change-order Batman!

Thesis Sabbatical ... Sort of...

For those of you who regularly follow my blog you may have noticed in the past couple months a decline in new posts.  First, I want to thank you for continuing to follow the blog and checking back daily. Second, I promise that the posting will be back sooner rather than later.

I have been completing my Master of Architecture thesis project over the past 6 months and it has taken up lots of time.  The good news is that my final presentation will be this Monday! 

So, if you continue being so patient for just one more week I promise to return to my regular posting schedule!  

Additionally, with my schooling finally coming to an end I can focus much more time and energy on this blog and what it contains.  I am also planning on a possible overhaul of the template of the blog and hope to add features that will make it easier to find the hundreds (700+) tutorials and tips that have posted over the past 4 years.

Hold tight young Revit Kids... I'll be back!

P.S. - I may still be tweeting during all of this so follow me there too @TheRevitKid