CharlesVolz

If you want production now in CA, hire someone who can produce now in CA. Videos from CA and others are great. But . . . I do think that if you let them do the easier parts (walls, windows, doors) and you do (or hire out) the harder parts (set up a template, roofs, foundations), that you will get there quicker. Here is how I think about it and how I train others: I train by organizing the curriculum so that the easy and fun items are learned first and the harder and less fun items are learned later, regardless of their importance. My goal is to avoid getting students caught up in the minutia of settings, defaults and other complicated tasks which are better left for a later time in their training. This makes the entire process more fun and the program easier to learn. From the start, I like to set the student up for success by building their comprehension, understanding and confidence. I guide them down the "yellow brick road" and keep them from detouring into the "countryside" of complicated settings, defaults and details until they are more ready to learn about them . . . when those things will be less complicated to them. In fact, most of the settings, defaults and details can be done for the trainee by creating template plans (the 3D models) and template layouts (the 2D printable sheets). That way they be productive sooner, which boosts their interest, enjoyment and confidence. They do not need to learn to build the plane, just fly it! In addition, the best path to learn the program is different from the path an experienced user would pursue to begin a design project. Just like student pilots do not learn take offs first . . . even though experienced pilots start their trips that way. To get started, I want students to focus on the main controls and not all of those many buttons/tools. Distinguishing between an established design process and a favorable training process is the biggest shortcoming of most trainers.

Just design it any way you want it...then roof it.

Yessir, you are the man! Best, Charles

Get this right if you want an exterior door on the schedule/material list. Interior vs exterior door thicknesses, cores, thresholds, seals, etc. are different.

I thought I posted how I do it before, but I do not see it. So here are my notes. Base Baseboard Molding Shadow Gap Reveals or Reglets. The easiest way that I have found is to use room moldings. Easy to apply to a whole floor, a room and/or eliminate on walls as desired with CA's room molding control. I used the air gap material at first but prefer the look of just black color. Use moldings set 1/32 to 1/16 proud to inside of wall face to avoid 3D "Z-fighting". I suggest using a room molding polyline (one polyline with multiple stacked rectangular-shaped moldings) to keep the molding(s) out of the way while working. See Trim-Tex Z Shadow Bead tear away shadow bead.

Search for stone. Use any you like. Give it the thickness you want by adjusting the thickness of whatever you are applying it to or using it for.

I would try rebooting computer ...

You really should use Default Sets. The layer set is included, but you also have all of your annotations set up correctly (style, text style, color, layer, etc.) If you are not using Default Sets (at a minimum), you are wasting a lot of time and creating a lot of errors on plans.

I like them separate so that my plumbing schedule accounts for them properly. You can block separate items and add them to your user library. When you place them in another plan from the user library they will populate the schedule as separate items in the same way if they were unblocked.

ChiefTutor (link) is a great source of symbols and training. Very affordable! Also, there is a lot of free stuff.

Gotta get a button on your toolbar:

This just happened again in X16...

Howdy Tina, I am an active longtime CA user and somewhat sociable. Count me in! Tommy Blair in Houston was hosting a UG meeting about 10 years ago. David Potter is a longtime user and trainer in northwest Austin. Best, Charles

Yes. And you can Edit All Roof Planes> General tab> Mark as edited.

Howdy Howard, Turn off auto roofs. Set the defaults for the second floor. Add a blank second floor. Draw an interior wall where you want the perimeter of the second floor. Define the space as some type of living area. Turn on the ceiling break lines layer. Check things out in via framing cross section views. Best, Charles