Xrev API Tools: Increase Productivity!

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Thursday, November 15, 2007

Requests for Posts

Hi everyone!

Please post your comments on this thread as to any particular items you would like me to touch on.

I've finished uni now and have the internet on at home again so should be able to start posting more frequently...

I'll then try to add posts based on peoples requests...

Cheers!

23 comments:

Anonymous said...

Would you prefer to model residential fireplace sections or draft them and why?

Anonymous said...

What unique Quality Control methods have you discovered in using Revit?

Anonymous said...

What do you typically use in-place families for?

Anonymous said...

If you had to write 5 Golden Rules for Revit what would they be?

Unknown said...

Hey Chris,
I was hoping you could possibly show how to change the appearance of the brace symbol in plan. I've tried to alter ours with little success. Our office uses an "x" parralel to the bracing, spaning the length between the two columns.
(I hope that makes sense)

Thanks,
Justin
(Long-time reader)

Chris said...

Okay thanks for the start. I'll get onto answering those for you all.

A few notes:

I don't do much residential and even less residential that would require a fireplace (tropical climate and all). But that said, it would depend on the actual detail of the fireplace... Do you do a lot of them? Are they are all similar in detail? If so then I would most definitely model them. If you find they are all quite different and it would take too long to model each type then I would model the generic parts of it and draft the rest....

Regarding Justin's post. I'll have to do some research as I'm not a big user of Revit Structure. But I'll find out for you and post back.

These rest I'll answer in a blog entry.

HTH.

Anonymous said...

I think you're site is great and I've listed you as a Revit blog link on my site. I'd love it if you'd list my site on yours. It's www.revit3d.com

Thanks and keep up the great posts.

Chris said...

Greg,

Site now added. There are so many blogs and content sites these days its hard to keep track of them all.

Your going to have to show me how those Lookup fields work in families... :)

Gregory Arkin - BIM Builder - ACAI Associates, Inc. said...

My tech Joe did that. It's pretty amazing what my staff is doing with the content.
I'll ask him about the specifics of how he did it. I believe there's a tutorial in Revit MEP on it.
I uploaded the data that he used.
http://www.bimwit.com/files/rfa/CustomFlangeDocRFAandLookupTable.zip

Chris said...

I really need to try out Revit Structural and MEP...

As for the lookup parameter; It looks to me like its a way of having parameter values stored in a central location and used in multiple families to make it easier to change things?

Similar to a shared parameter, but gives you the added benefit of setting a value.

Then basically depending on the piece of geometry the flange connects to its parameters adjust to suit...

Am i correct?

These consultants get all the fun tools... :P

Gregory Arkin - BIM Builder - ACAI Associates, Inc. said...

It's way over my head what he was doing with it. The lookup tables add an external flexible way to adjust all of the sizing. I'll ask Joe to record a tutorial on it. The world must know!

Anonymous said...

I would like to know the best way to model an embed plate used in tilt-wall panels. We use several standard size that would be perfect for a Revit family. The plates are either square or rectangular with an array of headed concrete studs on the back. I would like to control the width, height, and thickness of the plate. Modeling of the headed studs is not that critical an I'd be willing to model just the square or rectangular plates.

I am so fed up with all the intricate details and locks that Revit uses, I can't even see straight. I can create a set of reference lines that behave exactly the way I want. I can then lock the solid to the reference lines. But I might as well be sticking paper clips in the outlet. The solid will stretch symmetrically about the origin in only one axis. And never the same axis. Why? Oh god why?

Chris said...

Please send me an email with your family attached along with how you use it and what you want it to do and I'll compile a tutorial that I'll post on the site.

c price at cadway dot com dot au

obviously without the spaces and the appropriate symbols.

Unknown said...

I know you said you don't do much residential, but how would you describe to a new revit user how to set up a revit project for multi-family? We currently use ACAD with heavy use of xref's where in a project there may be multiple buildings, with mutiple different unit plans, and the unit plans may share kitchen, bath, decks, or other components.

Chris said...

I'm not sure what you mean by multi-family?

We have done a lot of projects of a similar type.

Generally we do it all via linked files.

That is, Unit Plans linked into the buildings, linked into a site file.

As for the rooms, I would either do these as custom families or perhaps another level of linking.

We currently have projects where we have Unit Type, linked into Building Type, Linked into Large Building Type, LInked into a site file. So it can work exactly as you do your xref's.

You also always have the option to bind the link to a group at a later stage.

Unknown said...

Multi-family meaning apartments, condos, etc.
Using the linked files make sense as long as I can have shared schedules of objects (doors and windows) and they can share wall types (i.e. all units can "reference" the wall types so I can edit a wall type and all the units are updated.
I looks like that may be possible in Revit 2009

Chris said...

Cool.

I've been using 2009 for a month or so and it is very cool. Links are working great. You can certainly have schedules that include all the linked file information. Regarding the wall types, you may have to update these in each file, as such I'd strongly recommend you set all these up in your template before starting the project and creating all the files.

Lallan Ji said...

We have read lot of Door family tutorials but did not find a Window tutorial which can guide step by step. I think only you can explain it beter. So Asume a multy bay window with ventilators at head . All the bays have shutters in exterior & interior face of the wooden frame as well as M.S. Iron Grill fixed in frame between exterior glazed shutter and interior shutter with S.S.mosqueto net pannel. How can a mosqueto net be made in the place of 6mm thick glass panel. One or two ventilators may have glass louvers instead of shutter, but grill is required in all the bays. This is a typical Indian Residential window used all over India, Pakistan & Bangladesh & no one ever attemp to make it in Revit. Now my last hope is up to you.

Chris said...

Hi Lallan Ji,

You've actually caught me on a really bad week. Its a 4 day week here and I'm trying to fit 6 days worth of work into 4... Remind me next week if its not too late and I'll take a look.

FYI, my email address is posted already posted in these comments.

Lallan Ji said...

Hi Chris
I could not find your mail ID so that I may post message with attached files
Reagrds
Lallan Ji

Chris said...

13th comment from the top.

Lallan Ji said...

Hi Chris
I have send the detais with attached files on your mail Id on 28th march.

Lallanji

Anonymous said...

What are best practices for a situation where the base architecture and the interiors are being created by separate firms? We have tried to use the architects model and link it into our own Central file then copy monitor walls and floors into our model. We can then assign interior finish materials to these copy/monitored objects, but we haven't been able to get them to tag (although they do show up in material take-offs). There has to be a better way, but worksets isn't an option since we don't share a network (and therefore a Central file) with the architecture firm. Thoughts???