RobiNZ CAD Blog

Revit OpEd sorts Project Browser Sorting

Thanks to Steve for this tip! I have been mucking about with templates, with browser sorting using shared parameters, and had exactly the same problem.

Revit OpEd: Dept. of Subtle - Can't Get Rid of Parameter Value - Project Browser Sorting

”When I was asked about it my answer was, "A view is assigned/using it." The response was, "No we've fixed all the views already but it won't go away!". We checked again using a view list and sure enough the rogue value wasn't being used.

That's when it occurred to me…”

On the topic of Browser Views/Sorting here are some of my wishes;

• Schedules could be sorted/display in the same way as views?
• Database characteristics could be included in item names (where the [] terms were fields from the database) for things like;
  • [Option Set] [Option] View
  • [Option Set] [Option] Schedule Name
  • [Project No] Sheet No - Sheet Name
  • [Option Set] Sheet Name
• Consistent between Arch & MEP. Some things still differ in 2009/2010 view properties out of the box.
• Easier to change in 2010 (bring back the browser filter dropdown).
• Easier filtering, application and graphic indication of filters with item icons (per user too). MindManager is excellent at this (right) and it would be nice to see something like it’s power filters in the Revit browser.

These are just a few wishes, in fact I hope some of this is there already and I haven’t found it!

Revit Subscription Advantage Packs coming soon

UPDATE 2009-10-22: The Advantage Packs are available now via your Autodesk Subscription login

I just finished a web meeting previewing some upcoming Revit Advantage Packs for Revit Architecture, MEP and Structure Subscription Customers. There are a bunch of refinements and some significant new features;

Refinements:

• Keyboard Shortcut Management UI – Edit, export, import
• View Cube Functions Enhanced
• Conditional Format In Schedules (from MEP)
• DWG Import/Export Refinement
• Text Formatting Shortcuts - CTRL+B, CTRL+I, CTRL+U
• Text Find & Replace
• Model/Detail Lines Convert
• API Improvements

Some of the new functionality highlights include;

Architecture Timber Framing module:

Model Standards Review:

Validate and repair Revit Project Files and Families against external and your own modelling standards

Temporary Dimensions in MEP:

Revit Structure Beam Features ported to Architecture:

 

Use imported geometry for 3D snapping and component conversion:

If you’re in Auckland come along to tonight’s Revit User Group meeting to hear more. I’ll be posting more detail when I get my hands on the software and more time, as it’s time to go to work!

A surprising omission from the Revit Dictionary?

An out of the box Revit MEP 2010 install on a new machine and look what is missing?

Simon’s BIM BS…

I’m kind of embarrassed I hadn’t blogged about this before, so here ‘tis now. Simon is a local Revit Guru, who will be speaking at AU currently devoted to getting the Building Services world to stop drawing lines. This recent post on Revit 2010s network license timeout foibles is worth reading if you have encountered that problem.

BIM BS (Building Services of course!) - bim-bs.blogspot.com

A blog free weekend, thanks to Revit MEP 2010 and a slow connection

I had a "computing light" weekend thanks to starting a Revit MEP 2010 install at 09:45 on Friday. It was on my own machine but I spent the day working on email and a presentation on another one. At times I wondered if the install had died but the progress bar was adding a "blob" every 20-30 minutes! I gave up waiting for the install, first from a deployment with SP1 added, to finish at 18:30 and went home leaving it running.

I hadn't sync'd RSS Bandit since Wednesday night so I skipped my normal weekend blog feed reading and finished a couple of books that had been "in progress" for a while. Perhaps I should take advantage of Bandit's Google Reader Sync- something I've trialed - but I'm not really a fan of on-line feed reading as find it's too slow. I found the sync worked well but the folder structure I use in Bandit creates a "mass of tags" in Google Reader and I never got around to making them more manageable.

This morning I found the install had completed and worked fine. A second install from the same deployment took the usual 20-30 minutes. I can only assume there was some content download/extraction going on and I got a really really slow connection at work!

New Zealand Autodesk Solutions Day 2009 (2010 Product Launch)

I'll be at the Auckland June 4th event, see you there! Here's the blurb:

The Autodesk Solutions Day 2009 is aimed at professionals' involved in the design, construction and management of government and commercial projects within the Building, Civil, Geospatial and Manufacturing market place. This all day event will showcase the latest products, services and technology.

They are happening in Christchurch late May, Auckland early June.

Contact your New Zealand Autodesk reseller for details and to register!

Max and the Revits arrive, it's 2010 for real

Today's delivery completed my set of "Twenty Tens". The arrival of Max (last week) and the Revit Architecture/MEP Series (today) mean it's time to think about building new deployments. As that will also mean moving to Vista 64 it should be fun

 

 

I LOVE "THE RIBBON", do you?

I'm going to be writing about some "recently ribboned" applications in the next few weeks, some better than others. Before that I have decided to set out how I feel about a variety of "already ribboned" applications and how I arrived at this conclusion: I love the ribbon!

There you go, I said it, but before you respond please read this:

These parameters will apply to my future discussions of "ribbon'ification". Hopefully they will also fend off some inevitable, but irrelevant, responses to any discussion of a graphic user experience:

• Keyboard shortcuts have no relevance; When you are talking about interaction with a Graphic User Interface other command access modes are not a factor. Yes keyboard shortcuts are faster and I use literally thousands.* If you only work in a few applications nothing will beat them. However like many users I use many applications in a day and only the basic keyboard shortcuts are common across them all.
• Loving the Ribbon doesn't mean loving all Ribbons: It's nothing more than a tabbed device to present tools and objects in a User Interface. Some applications do a better job than others but that's not a criticism of the concept, just it's implementation.
• It's not just the ribbon: The Fluent User interface includes: The Application Button, Status Bar Controls, Ribbon Components and Floating Cursor Toolbars. However, like most people, I'll mostly just refer to it all as "the ribbon".
• It's not the only User Interface, but it's the one that matters: It is the one most Windows users, lets face it most computer users, will face over the next few years especially as Windows 7 rolls out. For me Mac O/S option is not on the horizon so that debate is irrelevant too. For the majority of corporate computer users there is no choice even if you think it's better. That may change but I'm not holding my breath.

The Ribbon OR how Microsoft Office 2007 changed the [Windows] world:

The Ribbon, more accurately the "Fluent UI", arrived with Microsoft Office 2007. Ribbon shock ensued as the familiar File, Edit...Help array of menus and toolbars disappeared to be replaced with the Ribbon, Application Button and associated User Experience refinements. Most were lost at first when a familiar, if often illogical, layout of commands and tools was totally changed.

The first Fluent UI application I used was the one that started it all. Microsoft Office 2007 arrived and, yes, at times I got lost and cursed the new User Interface. It's strange but the disappearance of the File menu and replacement with the Application Button seemed to be more of a struggle than the ribbon. Yes, I spent some time getting used to a new work-flow based arrangement of tools but once over that hump I have found it becomes more natural.

MindManager, the best Ribbon so far:

Not long after Office MindManager 7 arrived. Another familiar UI was replaced by something totally new. Trigger another round of "ribbfusion" (confusion induced by a ribbon changes) while you abandon old habits and adapt to the new. I grew to like it and think Mindjet's MindManager Ribbon is the best I've encountered to date, even better than Microsoft's! I suspect this is because MindManager is a visual product and the ribbon presents visual controls far better than menu/toolbars ever could. Add to that MindManager's use of colour and nice tab layout and you have a dramatic improvement over it's toolbar'ed predecessors.

Snagit: Their Ribbon becomes Fluent:

Snagit 9 arrived with half of the Fluent UI. Snagit 9.0 was ribboned but the full experience arrived when 9.1 added context sensitive cursor toolbars and live preview for visual effects. It showed what a difference these, non-ribbon, items make to the Fluent UI.

AutoCAD 2009: Autodesk's first Ribbon rocks the AutoCAD world 

The AutoCAD Ribbon was as controversial as any but came with an out clause. Unlike Microsoft Office, MindManager and Snagit you had a choice between the old & new User Interface. Indeed many AutoCAD verticals imposed this choice by largely ignoring the ribbon and loading traditional toolbars. For those that chose to use it the AutoCAD Ribbon offered many features familiar from other Fluent Applications with one major addition: Customisation.

It's long been a strength, to some a curse, that AutoCAD allowed extensive customisation of it's User Interface. Unlike many other applications AutoCAD users often took advantage of this so the ribbon had to accommodate it. Unlike other ribbon applications AutoCAD 2009 also echoed the legacy menu structure within it's application button hosted Menu Browser. A mixture of old and new User Interface was probably a technical and commercial requirement for Autodesk but I suspect created more problems than it solved. A clean break does inflict more migration pain, but in the end it's an easier process.

 

What I like about the Ribbon:

I own Office 2007 but still use Office 2003 at work. This means, sadly, I have a direct daily comparison between old & new. As "ribbon shock" has abated I've grown to hate the old Menu/Toolbar UI as much as I love the Ribbon. Here are some of the reasons why:

It attempts to be task based and coordinated: Admittedly there is endless potential for debate in that line. I do find some applications do a better job of arranging the tools to suit work-flow,or maybe my work-flow just happens to match them better?

Before you howl about the old applications being better consider the task not the tools. Say you are In Word and want to change the page orientation. In the old Office it seems logical that it might be on the Format menu, but it's not there. You'll actually find it on File > Page Set-up which seems odd when page orientation is per section/page, not per file. In 2007 it's on the Page Layout" tab along with other page set-up controls which makes more sense. In that case the work-flow is better as the ribbon allows access to different controls for the task at hand. In other cases tool relationships could make the ribbon less efficient but that's down to tab arrangement and tool placement.

Cursor Tools: The hover toolbars in Office, and Snagit, place context sensitive tools at the work-face. This removes the need to trek to the ribbon for minor changes. It becomes the tool-box for major tasks with the cursor toolbars acting as your tool-belt, bringing the essentials to the work but not getting in the way.

Right Click > for comfort. If the hover annoys a right click brings up the same object toolbar options along with the traditional task oriented menu. The Fluent UI doesn't abandon these menu/toolbar elements but does relegate them to short task specific applications. That 20 item menu, 15 with flyout sub-menus is history!

Live Preview: This is one part of Fluent that is often not even thought of as a User Interface function. However it does significantly enhance the User Experience. Applying changes only to undo them when the implications are realised is eliminated. This could be done pre-ribbon but the integration of style galleries and tools along with preview is a significant advantage of the ribbon.

It's constrained but at least it behaves: Most ribbons are constrained into the top section of the application window. Their stable nature avoids weird start-up conditions like the toolbar scramble. The example shows PowerPoint but I have several applications from multple vendors which occasionally don't retain previous layout settings. With the Ribbon, and no toolbars, at least there is no random scramble.

In summary:

• Not all ribbons are created equal, some do a better job than others
• Often it's not about the ribbon, it's the choices made in the placement and design of tools
• The combinations of tools, galleries and other controls allow much more flexiblity in design.
• Task based UI have the potential to be more engaging if done well, more enraging if they are wrong.

Overall I think the Fluent UI represents a significant step forward in User Experience design. To sum it up in a line:

I love a good ribbon!

Also See:

ChiefTech: Office Suite lock-in: The same today as it was yesterday
I've always thought the interface changes for Office 2007 was a stroke of genius by Microsoft...

The Microsoft Office Fluent user interface overview - Microsoft Office Online
Taking into account extensive usability data and recent advancements in hardware and software, the team has delivered the most significant update to the Microsoft Office user interface in more than a decade...

The blue monster - gapingvoid: "cartoons drawn on the back of business cards"
As a marketing blogger, I get asked a lot, "What is the future of marketing?"
I always answer the same: "The Blue Monster".
What's The Blue Monster?
A Blue Monster is a Social Object that articulates a Purpose-Idea.
What's a Social Object? What's a Purpose-Idea?
Sit yourself down, pour yourself another glass of whisky. This might take a while to explain...

* From 5/24/2005 to 2/19/2009 (1367 days) keyboard shortcuts were responsible for manupulating/creating about 1/2 the content typed on this machine!

Total user Keystrokes typed including ActiveWords: 409,825
Total Keystrokes substituted by ActiveWords less ActiveWords typed: 404,019  
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 
Total Content Entered: 813,844  
Percent of Total Content saved by ActiveWords that substitute and transform text: 49.64%

The Revit 2010 Ribbon Development Process

Kudos to the Revit Factory for sharing the process which went into a, much needed, overhaul of the Revit User Interface for 2010. Overall I think the ribbon is a huge step forward and working across several Autodesk platforms I do find the shared UX makes life easier. I also think there is room for improvement in the new Revit UX but will leave commenting on that for future posts. AutoCAD Architecture users should also watch this as a similar ribbon'lution is coming to ACA 2010.

Inside the Factory: The Ribbon Process in Four Minutes

While the Revit video focuses on the Ribbon it's only one component of what Microsoft term the "Fluent User Interface". Jensen Harris shared their development process back when Office 2007 was released. It's well worth viewing as backgrounds the rational for abandoning the traditional Menu/Toolbar interface and shows many prototypes on the road to the ribbon.

RobiNZ CAD Blog: The Story of the a Ribbon

It’s the year of the Ribbon, but why?

Jensen Harris, of the Microsoft Office User Experience Team, has posted a recording (and PowerPoint) of his awesome presentation at MIX. He tells the story of the Office UI development from version 1.0 to 2007. It’s a compelling explanation of why Microsoft ditched Menus & Toolbars for the task based “Fluent interface” with it’s Ribbon, Contextual Tabs, the Mini Toolbar, and Galleries.

Inside the Revit Factory

Welcome to a new Autodesk blog about what, will probably be, the most talked about change in Revit 2010:

Inside the Factory
Welcome to Inside the Factory – a blog about designing the Revit user experience

"First, we want to provide a window into how the Revit user experience is designed (a bit more on that later). Second, we want to establish a conversation with our users to improve the Revit user experience."

What does a grey tick mean in a Revit MEP Schedule?

I found a strange behaviour in a Revit MEP* Space Schedule today. When I miss-clicked in the column "Occupiable", didn't hit the tick-box, subsequent edits showed a "grey out" state and the change was not applied. I can't find any reference to this in the documentation, which doesn't mean it isn't there, so wonder if anyone out there knows what it means?

E.G. (see the animation below in the extended post): Click on a ticked item & it shows a grey tick, and stays as "Yes" in the schedule, rather than clearing to become No.

Announcing the best Revit API Blog in Whitianga!*

A Whitianga Reviteer has launched a new blog exploring the Revit API and other topics. I've subscribed & look forward to future posts if he can drag himself away from the beach (featured in the first post "It's Time") over summer. Welcome to the world of Revit blogging!

BOLT OUT OF THE RED | Programming or not

A blog by a .NET software Developer providing custom applications and commands for architecture firms exclusively working with Autodesk Revit and integration with any associated applications. All from a little place north of Whitianga, New Zealand.

* I've done no research but suspect it's also the only Revit API Blog in Whitianga, New Zealand.

The MEP CAD Engineer blogs

Beth introduced me to a new'ish MEP blog by David Butts. The first few posts cover the long history of Autodesk BIM/MEP and one has the best explanation of the convoluted marketing used for ADT/ACA/AMEP over the years that I've seen. A more recent post covers Revit MEP content with some great tips. We only use a few aspects of MEP but I'm always keen to learn more, I've subscribed.

The MEP CAD Engineer - mep-cad.blogspot.com

Revit MEP 2009 Required Reading & Viewing

I've been working with Revit MEP recently getting my head around the new linked room/space/zone work-flow process and energy analysis. Part of that is for MEP use, as intended, but also to see how well it fits with the retail design work-flow. Retail space analysis involves carving up, but not altering, rooms provided by the architect. The space work-flows in MEP seem closer to our requirements than previous methods of creating new rooms/area analysis in a project with a linked architectural file. Maybe Revit MEP will be a better Retail Design Platform than Revit Architecture....

Anyway, before you can evaluate a tool you have to understand how to use it and I found a series of videos posted on Kyle Bernhardt's MEP blog to be a valuable resource. They are a brilliant introduction to the new process as demonstrate it in action. It's far preferable to just plowing through the written help/tutorial files. I'm doing that too but a short time spent watching the videos made the rational and process a whole lot clearer. Unfortunately they were spread out over several months, with other posts between, so I've gathered them into the list of links below. If you're new to Revit MEP I can recommend them!

Kyle's Guide to Space Import and Analysis - From "Inside the System" - Autodesk MEP Blog

1. A Volume for Engineers
2. Space Creation - Part 1
3. Spaces and Rooms...Good Friends
4. Space Creation - Part 2
5. Making the Cut
6. Gettin' Fancy
7. Let There Be Zones!
8. Zoning it Up
9. Building Performance Analysis - Project Info
10. Building Performance Analysis - Spaces & Zones
11. Heating & Cooling Load Analysis in Revit MEP 2009

 This white-paper is also compulsory reading; 

Inside the System: Required Reading

For the second day in a row I have an exciting announcement. We have just released our Revit Platform 2009 Technical Note as a Subscription benefit for all customers with entitlements to a Revit 2009 product. What is this technical note you say?

Well, it is a comprehensive paper that discusses best practices for optimal performance and productivity within the Revit 2009 family of products. It is required reading for all Revit users interested to know this information straight from the Product Teams themselves. It is the result of a comprehensive effort among the Designers, Developers, Quality Assurance, Consulting, Customer Success Engineers, and Product Managers, and we are excited to get this information straight to users.

Some major topics that are discussed:

• Project Structuring
• Worksharing
• Linked Files
• Hardware Optimization
• Large Model Performance

The Revit Clinic - The doctor is in, but can he help?

A new Autodesk blog - The Revit Clinic - promises to help cure, or prevent, sick BIMs. I look forward to following Harlan's blog but wonder what he'd make of some of my Revit problems. Most are not Revit's fault as relate to flip-flopping between different, but similar, applications expecting things to work the same. Usually I realise the real problem is the nut in front of the keyboard before anyone else does but the first case escalated to a "Stupid question of the day" call to our dealer support* before resolution!

1) Thickness that isn't thick enough results in "thickness"...

When adding a finish layer to a wall I tap in 1 (mm) and hit OK. The cryptic "Face layers must have a thickness" message pops up. The nut in front of the keyboard thinks; "1 is a thickness, I'm sure I've done finish layers that thickness before? Is this new in 2009? What's going on? Is there some other thickness, other than operator thickness?". I had a look in the help, the Discussion Groups and my own notes but ended up making the call.

The answer (thanks Nik!) was that 1mm is under Revit's "1/8" limitation as the Help clearly states. It's in the topic "Layer Assignment Rules" which is on "display" in the "bottom of a locked filing cabinet stuck in a disused lavatory with a sign on the door saying Beware of the Leopard." Additionally, this lavatory is in a dark basement that happens not to be equipped with stairs. Oops, strayed into a bit of Hitchhiker's Guide there!

Anyway, it's odd that the help mentions "1/8" or 4 mm" minimum yet the dialog seems to accept values down to about 1.6 mm before complaining. Why can't the resulting error message just say "1/8" or 4 mm" minimum thickness required" instead of "must have thickness" then you, I, wouldn't need to find the help?

It's been a while since I'd made this sort of content but was sure had not encountered it. The reason, last time was in AutoCAD Architecture which will accept any Thickness value for a component...

2) Clicking Copy results in a Copy, but not in Revit....

Put this down to old habits, dual screens and a brain dead operator. I want to copy something in Revit, so hit the copy tool. However I picked the one on the AutoCAD Architecture Dashboard** which resulted in a copy, but not the result I required! Sometimes it's disabling the old code in the head that's the problem!

3) Formulas, the hard way;

I struggle creating Formulas, entering parameter names, in Revit. It's not how they work but rather the tedious interface for creating them. I just noticed Revit MEP allows you to pick a formula name where as Revit Architecture still forces you to type them. Then I go back to AutoCAD Architecture which has this dialog where you can build and test formulas before committing to them. Maybe something for Revit to consider next year?

Old habits die hard, is there a Psychologist in The Revit Clinic?

The Revit Clinic - http://revitclinic.typepad.com

"Welcome to the Revit Clinic.  My Name is Harlan Brumm and I am the Global Technical Lead – Revit for Autodesk Product Support and I will be the primary contributor to this blog"

"Where do you go when you have a physical problem?, A Doctor.  Where do you go when you have a BIM problem?  Well, I’m not a doctor, but I hope that you will start to come here.   I will be focusing this blog on the Autodesk Revit platform of Products, Revit Architecture, Structure, and MEP and trying to prevent BIM problems and provide you rehab if they happen" 

* Stupid questions of the day are not daily, but are stupid!

** Yes that does mean we are still using AutoCAD Architecture 2008. I was waiting till 2009 Update 1 before switching over, now I'm trying to find the time to deploy it!

You say AutoCAD Product Update, I say AutoCAD Bug Fix...

Autodesk’s AutoCAD 2009 based service packs, the “big” between release bug fixes, are out. This time they have been re-branded from Service Packs to Product Updates. 

What’s in a name, apart from confusion?

To me a Service Pack fixes things while Product Update implies some sort of new/improved/updated functionality. From the read-me it appears these Product Updates just fix things. However for AutoCAD subscription users there are also some new, I’m having a pre-subscription VIP program déjà vu moment here, “Bonus Packs” which do add new & improved functionality.

It’s kind of amusing that the file-naming hasn’t matched the marketing change as I’m currently down-loading aca2009sp1.exe, autocad2009lockedsp1.exe, ars2009sp1.exe (amep). SP1 for Service Pack 1 by any chance?

Adding to the confusion over in Revit’ville there are no Service Packs or Product Updates as they have Web Update Enhancements. In spite of that name they only update Revit not the entire interweb.

Autodesk, couldn’t you just settle on one name for these things? I’d suggest; “Bug Fix”.

What’s in an Update?

U’mm, I’ll get back to you on that. I couldn’t try the AutoCAD update (only run verticals) and didn’t even know the ACA/MEP ones were coming so can’t offer much advice. Whatever they are called it’s best to test them before inflicting on your production world in case a fix for one thing breaks another. Also be sure to really read the read-me, especially for AutoCAD partial CUI/Ribbon junkies.

You can get updates via the Subscription Site, or the Services & Support>Data & Download>Updates & Service Packs section of the respective product pages;

• http://www.autodesk.com/autocad
• http://www.autodesk.com/autocadarchitecture
• http://www.autodesk.com/revit
• http://www.autodesk.com/revitmep
• http://www.autodesk.com/revitstructure

UPDATE 2008–07–26: I just found similar comment on this thread on the AutoCAD Discussion Group

Autodesk Ecotect?!

The Green Building Studio announcement was expected but I was surprised to see* news of the Ecotect acquisition. Apart from a couple of sessions at AU2007 I haven’t seen much of Ecotect. I haven’t used it but those I know who have are struck by it’s impressive visualisation.

To date my role in building energy studies has been as a modeller (using Revit MEP) with the analysis left to those best qualified to interpret the data. However the audience for all this was a building owner/operator. With the sophisticated modelling available communicating the results seemed more of a challenge than generating them.

Since the whole business of building performance modelling is new to many anything that helps create better solutions AND communicate them is welcomed. It will be interesting to see these develop as they are merged into the Autodesk BIM family. A “green post” to match my current, coincidental, green banner image.

Autodesk Enhances Sustainable Design Capabilities With Acquisitions of Ecotect and Green Building Studio Analysis Tools - Autodesk - Press Releases

SAN RAFAEL, Calif., June 26 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- As part of its on-going commitment to support the practice of sustainable design and green building in the architecture, engineering and construction (AEC) industries, Autodesk, Inc. (NASDAQ: ADSK) today announced two acquisitions to improve building performance analysis in the building information modeling (BIM) process.

Autodesk announced that it has completed the acquisition of substantially all the assets related to the Ecotect software tools for conceptual building performance analysis from both Square One Research Ltd. and Dr. Andrew Marsh. Autodesk also announced that it has completed the acquisition of substantially all the assets of Green Building Studio, Inc., a provider of web-based whole building energy, water and carbon-emission analysis software…

Related Links: 

• Sid Thoo’s introduction to Ecotect at AECbytes
• Autodesk Green Building Studio - www.autodesk.com/greenbuildingstudio
• Autodesk Ecotect is currently at www.squ1.com
• GreenBuild New Zealand – www.greenbuild.co.nz/

* I read this first at TenLinks.com

Tags: ecotect

Revit Technology Conference 2008 - Revit User Group Sydney

The Revit Technology Conference is happening in Sydney, late June. I attended the NZ event last year & it was a great Revit focused “Mini Autodesk University”. It’s a chance to hear about the latest in BIM technology, see how others are applying it (in real projects), learn new techniques and meet fellow Revit users. I know several from the Revit User Group of New Zealand are attending. See the link below for more information on the event & registration:

Revit User Group Sydney :: RTC 2008 - www.rugsyd.com.au/rtc2008
Following the success of our Roadshow in 2007 (Sydney, Brisbane, Auckland, Melbourne, and Perth), the RTC Committee have pleasure in inviting you and your team to attend the Annual Conference to be held in Brighton Beach, Sydney. The Conference aims to draw attendees from throughout Australia and New Zealand, as well as other Asia Pacific regions.
The 2008 Annual Conference is to be held Thursday 26 June – Saturday 28 June at the Novotel Brighton Beach, Sydney.

Tags: rugsyd

Breaking barriers with Salesoft CAD Solutions - Autodesk 2009 Launch

UPDATE 2008–04–2: Picture added

Salesoft CAD Solutions had their “Autodesk 2009” launch today and the theme was “Breaking the Barriers”.

After a brief introduction from Rich Sales, yes it’s really his name, there were sessions which focused on a tour of the new features in Revit Architecture, Revit MEP, Revit Structure, AutoCAD and Max. Although this was handled by splitting into application focused groups there was a lot of material to cover in the time available.

For his AutoCAD session Gary adopted the cunning plan (which I’ve also used) of using Camtasia recordings rather than live demos. This allows you to see the software in action - as if live - but lets the presenter concentrate on presentation, rather than operation. It was great for showing the extensive user interface changes in AutoCAD 2009.

Then after a lunch break there was an impressive customer presentation by Auckland’s Morrison Architects. This showcased their use of Revit it all kinds of projects from a small bathroom renovation to large commercial building fit-outs and everything in between. You can see some of the work shown in their web gallery.

Guest Speaker Brian Wilson, from the School of Philosophy, followed with a great talk on breaking mental barriers. He mentioned a lecture by Andy Pausch whose lessons on life were delivered in “His last Lecture” (see video summary below or full transcript). I first stumbled upon this last September but it’s such a powerful message it deserves a repeat showing here.

We were then split into two groups for some barrier breaking activities;

Downstairs, Segway NZ had a variety of machines to test drive. Luckily this was inside the hotel convention space, avoiding a torrential downpour, but there was plenty of room to zoom around and the columns were ideal for those wanting a slalom. Riding a Segway for the first time is strange, especially if used to a bicycle. You have to learn not to balance and trust the Segway will do it for you, which it does!

Upstairs, everyone attending got to literally “break a barrier” after a quick Karate lesson. We were issued with a plank to break, which everyone did, with Rich delivering the final chop (below) *.

It was an interesting format, breaking the barriers of the typical software launch. Thanks to the Salesoft team for an enjoyable event but maybe, for 2010, I’d consider having slightly longer product sessions.

UPDATE 2008–04–2: Julia sent me this image today with the line “A reminder that you too have strong powers of focus and intent!” to which I’d add “and a sore hand!” **

* The YouTube video above is by me. Eboss were recording the sessions, with better cameras than my old 300 pixel movie Canon Ixus, to be posted mid-April.
** Just kidding, no CAD Bloggers were harmed in the making of this post!

Tags: Salesoft+CAD+Solutions, Autodesk, Hilton

Revit and AutoCAD's Visual Styles - A SketchUp alternative?

I heard of Revit users experimenting with Google SketchUp for presentations in an attempt to get a more natural “conceptual look” than Revit allows. Many Revit users also have AutoCAD available so I though it’s conceptual visual styles were worth trying. This sample is just a play Revit model but has a mix of default Revit walls, curtain wall and site elements.

The screenshot below shows that Revit model imported into AutoCAD (Click on the thumbnail for a larger view).

1. Viewport 1 shows the raw import. The rather garish colours are from the default Revit layer settings but the concept styles ignore these colours so there is no need to change them..
2. Viewport 2 has a conceptual style applied with a “Gooch” face style.  The visual styles allow slider adjustment of edge weights, line overhang, “roughness” and outline thickness. These can be combined to get many looks within a style setting.
3. Viewport 3 has a sepia face style with the transparency button enabled. It allows some vision through even solid objects to see the form.
4. Viewport 4 is a plan view with no face style and heavy use of the line effects. It’s a reasonable look to simulate a pen drawing.

AutoCAD Visual styles, like Revit shaded views, are quick and easy to edit. They can be output directly to paper, DWF or image formats using the normal AutoCAD Plot Command. It’s a pity Revit doesn’t have this sort of display effect built in but, until it does, give AutoCAD a go.

"Inside the System" with perfect timing - The Revit MEP Blog

I’ve spent today, and tomorrow, sitting in with our “Energy Team”  who are training on Revit MEP Series. We currently use AutoCAD MEP but there is interest in the building analysis aspects of Revit MEP. I got home and while catching up with email and feeds found The Mistress’ post: “Woohoo! A new Revit MEP blog!”

Woohoo indeed! The Revit MEP community in New Zealand is rather tiny but by the end of tomorrow there will be another three users! We are all at the beginning of a very steep learning curve so it’s great to have a shiny new Revit MEP blog to help answer the questions. I’ve seen “Kyle B” all over the MEP Discussion Groups and it’s great to see him blogging.

Part of the challenge we have is learning a system while creating the content & standards needed to use it. New Zealand can use some of the U.K. resources/standards but lots has to be generated from scratch. We faced a similar challenge with Autodesk Building Systems years ago but it’s proved to be worthwhile.

For me it’s been interesting to watch a mix of CAD users and Engineers learning BIM. Some are picking up totally new concepts from scratch while others struggle to forget old ones. I’m supporting them with the added challenge of not being a Building Services person. I can now generate a room analysis, apply the results to a ducted system, resize it and document it all but have no idea what that really means. But it’s all good fun!

One bit of good news is someone will be able to learn from best, by doing Revit MEP sessions at Autodesk University 2007!

Inside the System - The Revit MEP Blog

“It’s been a long time coming, and after much planning and effort I am launching my Autodesk Blog, Inside the System. This blog will focus on the MEP industry, Sustainability, Building Information Modeling (BIM), and how new technologies help to meet the demands of today’s MEP projects.”

“Many of you already know me as Kyle B on both the Autodesk and AUGI discussion forums, where I frequently post. You can find me there helping customers with technical issues, discussing larger industry issues, and soliciting customer feedback.”

“As a Product Manager for Revit MEP, I am tasked with setting the year-to-year direction of Revit MEP, and working with others at Autodesk and our Reseller channel; ultimately making sure that our customers succeed with our MEP solutions. A critical component of that success is having the right information to succeed.

With that in mind, I set out on this journey through the blogosphere.”

PS: Where are the rest of the Revit Team blogs?

Trigonometry, Revit Parameters and Lynn [last name withheld]

Aaron's post on math, trig and Revit reminded me of a recent conversation. I’d been working with Parameter formulas which meant stretching the memory back to fundamental math like trigonometry. It’s been a long time since I’ve been there…

I warned a friend, who’s a math teacher, she may get a phone call one day if things got too complex for my mathematical abilities*. Lynn [last name withheld] read Aaron’s post in preparation for that call. You may have to earn the next load of Butterfingers!**

Malleristic Revitation: Trigonometry, Revit Parameters, and Scheduling...
I couldn't wrap my head around how i multiplied degrees and Length, to come up with a mathematical unit (besides degree-inch, lol). So i called in a favour:

My good friend Brian (last name withheld) is a Math Specialist at a local school district….

* I liked Math but always did far better at Physics, which often required the same math. This frustrated my Math & Physics tutors. I think it was because Math was abstract while Physics just made sense!

** For reasons only Nestlé can explain Butterfingers are not sold in New Zealand. Guess who has to bring them from the US to satisfy Lynn [last name withheld]’s addiction to peanut buttery junk food. Last time I forgot and saying it was for her own good wasn’t appreciated! She’ll thank me for it on the hills of the ‘Round Taupo.***

*** The Lake Taupo Cycle Challenge (Round Taupo) is New Zealand's largest cycle event. It covers a scenic course on 160 km (100 miles) of sealed road around beautiful Lake Taupo. The official website omits mentioning that for a ride around a lake it has lots of hills. This includes a long cruel one towards the end, right where you don’t want it. It’s held at the same time as AU and I have been accused of attending AU just to avoid it. There is some truth to this…

Autodesk Patch Wednesday?

Microsoft have their “Patch Tuesday” but seems this Wednesday it was Autodesk’s turn.

Guess who was about to build a new master CAD deployment but got distracted and ran out of time. Then he arrived at work the next day to find nearly every CAD product had been patched overnight! Procrastination is sometimes a good thing.

Keep up to date with Autodesk Product Support, Updates & Service Packs via RSS Feed at:

http://rss-support.autodesk.com/subscription

Tick the products you want to watch and add the feed created to your reader. Revit MEP isn’t listed but the AutoCAD MEP selection seems to get it as well.

 

See you at the Auckland Revit Technology Conference 2007?

The Revit Technology Conference is coming to Auckland on Monday (27/08). If any readers are attending say hello to the fellow in the Warehouse (blue store development) shirt!

Revit Technology Conference 2007
The Revit Technology Conference is an annual event designed to cater to the needs of the Revit-based CAD community. Founded and run by users of the software, RTC is the pre-eminent educational and networking event for users throughout the region.

This year the team is coming to you!

We are embarking on a series of one day seminars designed to entice, enrich, and enliven your worklife (FDA approval pending...)

HOK Blog!

HOK have a couple of new(ish) blogs looking at buildingSMART (Building Information Model) and Green design. It’s great to see companies sharing their experience & knowledge!

HOK CAD Solutions - Welcome to this HOK CAD Support blog
“This is the idea: let’s use this blog as a communication track to gather knowledge and share; we hope that you will be willing to author posts and share opinions to make this work. Postings will be by HOK and invited guests, viewing is by anybody inside and outside HOK….”

http://hokcadsolutions.blogspot.com/

HOK GREEN BIM - Welcome to my new Green Blog - Miles Walker
I plan to capture my path into green design in architecture…

http://greenbim.blogspot.com/

Also check out Miles' other website on BIM:

4BIM – A web site exclusively for Building Information Modelling

http://www.4bim.com/

Via autodesk-revit.blogspot.com

Tags: HOK, buildingSMART, BIM

A Tablet PC for CAD/BIM?

As it’s an evolution from “the drawing board” combining CAD/BIM software and Tablet PC seems natural. I wonder why it hasn’t been done by the major market players? In the early days hardware was a real limitation but newer tablets like the Lenovo X61 or Toshiba M400 have reasonable performance for portable use. I don’t see them as workstation replacements, rather an ideal way to take your design on-site or to a meeting where using a mouse isn’t practical.

I’ve tried mark-up with Autodesk Design Review (ADR) on a Tablet and liked it in-spite of the application’s User Interface (UI) not being very Tablet friendly. That was with ADR 2007 but, sadly, the newer free ADR 2008 makes more use of fly-out tools for mark-up formatting which are harder to use on a tablet. Even with the current UI the speed & ease of pen input for non-precision sketch/mark-up leaves a mouse/keyboard combo for dead, especially in the field where you can’t use them at all.

I’ve also played with AutoCAD, AutoCAD Architecture and Revit on a Tablet PC and all were usable, if not really viable full-time. There’s no perfect UI but for many environments & tasks the pen/tablet is far more natural, dare I say fluent, than the mouse & keyboard. I was surprised to find AutoCAD’s UI and command “logic” (selection/command sequence) worked better than the smarter object based applications.

Revit’s dialog heavy UI was the least accommodating which is a pity given the power of it’s engine to assist design. I’d love to see that Building Information Model manipulated with a Tablet friendly UI as a conceptual design tool. You wouldn’t want to do detail design work – lots of text or precision dimension entry – but for knocking around a concept the tablet & pen is the most natural human interface, at least until those surface displays with direct manipulation become affordable.

Thanks to “GottabeMobile” I found an application from Evodia which shows what “concept sketches” become with some smart software and a tablet. It’s software for Electrical Schematic design and looks brilliant. I can only say “looks” because the website is in French (my ignorance prevents me reading that) and I don’t have a machine to try it on as the Tablet PC’s I’ve used were loan machines. Donations to the “Tablet for Robin” fund accepted in the tip-jar  

I’ve seen all sorts of software used for this – Excel, Visio, AutoCAD/Revit MEP – but none an Electrical Engineer, who can drive a pen faster than a mouse, could use so fluently. You get the speed of a scribble with the power of software assisted design & layout. Imagine that with a conceptual Building Information Model. The pen may not be the ultimate design tool but it’s mightier than the… mouse.

Via GottaBeMobile.com - Using a Tablet PC for Electrical Sketching
“When you see how quickly someone can sketch out the schematics for a house, you have to wonder why electricians would ever choose to go back to paper.”

Tags: Evodia, GottabeMobile

Real world tales of Revit BIM’plementation

These articles share tips from the front line where BIM theory meets production reality: 

BIM Do's and Don'ts – Cadalyst
Beau Turner* & Joe Eichenseer (Avatech Solutions) offer some real-world insights for success implementing BIM…

As I’ve recently been investigating Revit Architecture/MEP collaboration this AECBytes article was brilliantly timed. Thanks Lachmi & Bill!

Multi-Disciplinary Collaboration in Revit - AECbytes "Tips and Tricks"
Bill Knittle’ s (Synergis Design) tutorial on “Collaborating in an all-Revit environment” has recommendations & techniques for sharing Architectural, Structural & MEP models using Revit’s linking, collaboration & monitor tools.

* Just this week I was reminded of Beau zooming around on a Segway at Autodesk University 2004 as I had another “CAD + Segway” close encounter. More on that in a future post…

Building Solutions 2008 Launch - AEC Systems New Zealand

Just got home from the AEC Systems NZ Building Solutions 2008 Launch. I’d not seen any 2008 Revit in action, got the disc not yet installed it(!), so was good to get an overview of what is new this year.

After an introduction from Marcel van Oosterom (AEC Systems Regional Manager), Michael Beer (Autodesk Australia) talked about the shift to BIM – “Experience it Before it is Real" – and how it’s changing the industry. He mentioned that NZ/AU was well ahead of the USA in terms of Revit adoption. I suspect this is because of our generally smaller offices makes adoption easier plus a genuine interest in the technology.

Then it was on to the product specific demos. It’s interesting to see some AutoCAD Architecture (ACA) style functionality appearing in “Revitised” form in addition to new and refined Revit features. Some highlights for me:

• Revit Architecture 2008 – Wesley Benn:
• Updated Groups with object override to hide objects in an instance of a group. Big change is that groups can now be edited in-place within the project with other objects “greying out” while the edit is in progress. You can add/remove objects from the group while in edit mode (similar to ACA Refedit a block).
• Better object visibility and UI feedback. The display viewport gains a coloured outline to warn of hidden/isolated object overrides.
• View Specific Object Display Settings: Override visibility per view. Example might be to make a wall transparent in a 3D view but have it appear solid in another. (Similar to ACA Object Display Override).
• Improved presentation: masking regions, dimensions and colour fill legends refined. New “dependent views” for splitting a large view across several sheets.
• Improved Linked Projects;
• Show in Project Browser
• Nested Linked Projects (ACA nested Xref)
• In-place edit linked projects (ACA Refedit Xref)
• Refined API – More potential for 3rd party developers to extend Revit.
• Revit MEP 2008 – Simon Whitbread:
• Showed system auto-routing and clash detection for ducting & circuit tools for electrical.
• Mentioned IES (Integrated Environmental Solutions) Link
• Revit Structure 2008 – Damien Legrand:
• Export/Import & coordination with external analysis tools (Robobat)
• Curved Splined Elements (beams etc)
• Integrated Parametric Truss Tool
• Better re-bar tools

It was great to meet Aussie “Revit guru” Wesley Benn. I’d seen him at AU several times, speaking about Revit and at the Revit Mixers, but was the first opportunity I’ve had to speak to him. It was also good to meet the Neil Allen, the new Autodesk NZ Territory Manager. I also caught up with a few industry colleagues from closer to home, one I’d only ever previously met in Las Vegas!

That’s a quick overview, because now it’s time for me to pack!

PS: Some of The Warehouse Group team will be at the Autodesk/Salesoft CAD Solutions 2008 Launch tomorrow (24–04–2007), say hello if you see them!

Category Management for new 2008 names

Using product names on your blog means re-branding presents some challenges. Do you change to the new name or keep the one most people know. Luckily it doesn’t impact my Blog title or URL but I’ve revised some blog categories (indexes) to reflect recent name changes:

• Architectural Desktop changes to AutoCAD Architecture
• Revit changes to Revit Architecture
• Building Systems changes to AutoCAD MEP
• Auckland AutoCAD User Group now Auckland Autodesk User Group
• I’ve added Revit Structure and Revit MEP but will need to re-index some posts into these categories.

It won’t alter post permalinks and TypePad retains the old category URL. It might say AutoCAD Architecture but TypePad will always know it as ../architectural_desktop/index.html. Seems like some names will never die  

These changes shouldn't break anything but if you have any problems let me know.