Friday, October 30, 2009
An interesting fact to keep in mind is the following: when you create a dimension line and turn on the constraint ("lock" the lock) that constraint will remain in place, even if you delete the dimension line. So when you move one end of the constraint, the other moves as well.
This happened to me with two levels that one of my colleagues locked together. A bit frustrating if you ask me.
But the easy way out is: simply create a new dimension line! When you select it, the lock will appear and be locked, showing that there is a restrained relationship between levels. Simply open the lock and things are back the way they should be.
Friday, October 23, 2009
Working together on a project can really speed up the drafting process.
To avoid complications, Revit has some built in safety-features, like forbidding other users to edit objects that you are working on. To keep track of this, I (and everyone else here) uses the Worksharing Monitor from Autodesk:
It'll tell you whenever someone is saving to central, needs to edit something borrowed by you, and a lot of other things, by popping up a small info-screen on the bottom right. Informative and unobstrusive.
Friday, October 16, 2009
I'll go and work my way through these tips during the weekend, as I'll have unrestricted access to the central file then. I'll report my findings in the next post.1.Confirm you are on the latest build/update: Check the communications center of Revit to see if you are on the latest build. In 2010 it looks like the little satellite in the upper right area. It's in the lower right in 2009.
2.Purge the File: In Revit 2009: File => Purge Unused, in Revit 2010: Manage tab => Project Settings panel => Purge Unused
3.Audit the File: You can only audit the file when you open it. When opening the file there is a checkbox for Audit.
4.Compact the File: In Revit 2009: File => Save to Central => check the box at the top of the Save to Central dialog for Compact Central File, In Revit 2010: Collaborate tab => Synchronize panel => Synchronize with Central => check the box for Compact Central File)
5.Create a new Central File: If you are working in a work shared file, try opening your local file "detached from central". This gives you a new, unnamed central file. Save that to your network and have everyone on the project make new local files from that new central file. Note: before you do this make sure everyone has saved all their changes to the central file and that they are not actively working on the project as their local files will not be able to be synchronized with the new central file you are creating. This is best done on the weekend or when no one is in the office or working on the file.
6.Create a new Local File: My recommendation is to make a new local file every single day. If you are not currently do that we would recommend that you do so.
7.Hard Drive Space: Check available free space on your hard drive. To do this simply right click on your C:\ drive and go to Properties and see how much free space you have. If you are nearly out of hard drive space you'll have to delete files to free up more space.
8.Review Errors/Warning in the File: Your goal should be to have 0 errors/warnings in your Revit file. You may not be able to get the errors/warnings down to 0 but you essentially want as few as possible. In Revit 2009: Tools => Review Warnings, in Revit 2010: Modify tab => Inquiry panel => Warnings.
9.Defrag Your Hard Drives: XP computers: Start => Programs => System Tools => Defrag. Vista computers: Start => All Programs => Accessories => System Tools => Defrag
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
I have been trying to create a ramp for cars, leading from the ground floor to the parking level and I have come across yet another cool feature.
This is what I was going for:
Now, since I knew the length of the ramp and the height I would normally dredge up my high-school math and find that in a triangle with a right angle I get the angle I need by taking the invertet tangent from the result of dividing the height by the length.
Or, and that's the nice part, I can simply divide the height by the length and type in the percentage I get!
Thursday, October 8, 2009
While (almost) everyone was complaining about the new GUI in Revit 2010 in the beginning, acceptance seems to have set in.
If, however, you still don't like it and want you old 2009 GUI back, read this article from Autodesk. There you can donwload a workaround to get the 2009 GUI back for your new Revit.
But be careful, there will be no support for this or any other guarantee, that it will even work. So, try at your own risk!
Monday, October 5, 2009
Importing large dwg-files can be problematic:
But what about large masterplans that you want to use to place your project? Apart from opening them in AutoCAD, deleting everything around the site and resaving it?
Well, here's one way:
Instead of letting Revit choose the Import Units, select Custom and give it a manual number. In this case I am telling Revit that one unit in the dwg is one unit in Revit.
I then go ahead and resize the dwg to the size I need, using the Ribbon > Modify dwg > Scale command after selecting the dwg. Even though the project is now bigger than 2 miles, I get no error.
There has been another update published for Revit. Please follow this link:
Autodesk Revit Architecture Update 2
It looks like it's mainly a stability improvement, but for me, that's an important issue (see my post from a few days ago.)
Anyway, go forth and install.
Friday, October 2, 2009
As you can see, I have changed the look of my blog into something a bit more "architecture". Or whatever.
Let's see how long this one lasts, as I think that it's waaaaay too easy to change the layout. I just can't stop myself.
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