OldCKD

Thank you so much for putting that together. I need to get myself better organized and this is a big help.

Not sure how hard it is to replicate - it happens to me every time I forget to make 'Invisible Walls' invisible in layout.

Thanks guys, will try the second floor fix and see how it comes out. I will still have to deal with the sloped ceiling that is partially over the two little rooms, however. Mark - that's so obvious a solution I can't believe I didn't figure that out myself. D'oh!

IMHO there are quite a few items that are miscategorized and cause a bit of extra work to deal with. I've run into the same thing you have, Mark, and usually end up numbering manually. Somewhere on here a while back I asked if there was a way to group-select items to simply change their layer - but no can do. It's another pet peeve of mine, maybe they'll improve it some day.

Try this one. MasterBathDilemmaAsBuilt.zip

OK, so now I seem to be having problems zipping the file on top of everything else. I'm also getting the 0 KB file :-/ Let me attempt to see what's going on and try again. ETA - WinZip does not appear to be working properly. My apologies; no idea what's wrong or how to fix it.

Howdy y'all. I'm attempting to draft an as-built of a master bath which has a high cathedral ceiling, and within the same room there are two smaller 'rooms', one is a shower room and the other is a water closet, each with an entry door. Both of these smaller rooms have their own, lower ceilings. So it's basically 2 small shorter rooms within a larger, taller room. When I attempt to draft the smaller rooms I am having a couple issues. If I use standard walls they are auto connecting all the way up to the cathdral even though set not to in the DBX. If I use half walls I can of course control the wall height but then when I insert a door - there's no header, and the roof above disappears I'm missing something quite simple and basic, I am sure, but what? I'm not looking to draft the entire house, but do need to have this interior be accurate for the purpose of renderings so when I make the changes to the interior layout as requested by the client, it is a true representation. I've attached my plan, and have left the two shorter 'rooms' the two different ways I've tried so far, neither of which seems to accomplish what I am looking to do. It's pretty much a hot mess. Suggestions on how to accomplish? Please be kind, I am completely self-taught PS - while we're at it, I am annoyed by the fact the the 2 short walls under the overhang where the vanities are do not extend completely flush with the overhang as they do IRL. Another little quibble. [ETA - see new zipped file, below]

What exactly is your question? I use Chief for kitchen design every day, it is fully capable of showing detailed floor plans and elevations with complete dimensions and nomenclature. I also do sections, trim details, etc. It will do whatever you require it to do as long as you input it correctly. What it does NOT do is auto-price anything for you (ala 20-20).

Damn, not having any luck opening the PL2 file. I suspect I need the original PL1 file that it was attached to/part of, in order to be able to open it. Sounds like a reasonable guess, and it's a bit disheartening because I've done quite a bit of revision to the first floor in X6, that I suspect I will have to re-do if I have to go back to the one I was originally sent. Any further ideas, guys?

Hi Mike <waves across internet> - small world I was actually wondering if maybe the second floor derives from the first somehow in the old version. When I first open the (above) file in X6 I get an error message that says "second floor missing" - like it knows it should be there but it's not able to find it. I'm interested to see what happens when I get the PL2 file - will 6 merge the files together? Mike my offer stands if you'd like to come by and test-drive...great to hear you're upgrading, then I can email the revised plans right back to you instead of it being a one-way trip.

I've been working with a new builder who I discovered uses Chief and I thought great! He can just email me files and I can import and work with them easily. It's a pretty old version of Chief - 9.5, I think. So I received the plan file and opened and worked on the first floor, no problem, easy peasy. Then the client decided to hire me to re-design their master suite on the second floor, and here's where the problem comes in. There is no second floor. When I try to open it and go to the 2nd floor all I get is disconnected attic walls. Yet according to them on their end the file is complete, and in fact I have a printed set showing it all correctly, including exterior elevations, that they printed off the (supposedly) same file they sent me. I have zero clue how the old versions work, are they not sending me some piece that I need? I've attached the original plan they sent me, unmodified by me. What's missing? Plan J 4-7-14 for Amy.zip

Victor do you think the way you are doing it is easier/faster than just having your data read right into Chief? I understand that a tablet is smaller/easier to tote, but it seems you are doing a couple of extra steps by doing it that way. And Lew does have a good point about running back and forth from computer (laptop, tablet) to the area(s) you are measuring.

Ooops, never mind - Mr. Alaska beat me to it. So far it sounds like no one here has used it. I'm surprised.

Don't know when it was added, but you can read about it here: http://www.chiefarchitect.com/support/article/KB-01846/

The high-end Leica Disto has a Bluetooth feature whereby you can import dimensions right into your CA drawing(s). Has anyone here tried using it? It seems like it would be fun, but accuracy is kind of important to me so I'd love to hear feedback on how well it works. I believe it means you have to tote your laptop around with you on measures but if it's a time saver then it just might be worth it. I've been using a Disto for a few years now, it's not the right model (not BT enabled) but I would want to know if the process is buggy etc. before springing for the (much) more expensive Bluetooth model. TIA

Here's the simple plan you requested, sweet cheeks - I am sure you will love it! I'm not sure why this needs a reinvention of the wheel but I suspect some people thrive on finding workarounds to every little thing. Setting 3 cabinets side by side accomplishes it quickly and easily, and if you block it you can move it around as needed. BTW the only reason I would even bother to block the 3 is so they will show up as one cabinet in the schedule. Which I presume might be handy for some people, perhaps not for you.

no idea what you mean by 2 vanities in 3 cabinets.

Why wouldn't you just make 3 vanities, inserts sinks where you want and then block the whole thing?

I noticed that too. It affects me when I want to re-size a window in order to set up a raytrace. I used to be able to drag and re-size the window until I got it just the right size. Now it appears there is no way to do that. I'll be interested to hear the answers. It's probably so simple I'm going to hit myself in the head and go D'OH! On the other hand I do love the tabbed window feature. Way easier to navigate when I have 6-7 windows open.

Ok at my request he just sent me a new file with a different file extension that X6 did open. I think he sent me the wrong thing previously. And yes, it appears each floor, elevation etc are all separate files - what a pain! It's so much better now. It looks weird and primitive but I've dragged a few things around and I can makes changes. Now if I can only get it to *look* like X6 I'm a happy camper Thanks everybody!

I'm on X6, how do I get this file to work for me so I don't have to re-draft the whole darned thing? Local builder I'm working with is still using that version, I've never tried to import an ancient Chief file before It says it can't be opened, now what? Also, I was sent multiple files, all with different extensions - j.pB0, 1 etc. Not sure what to make of that. I entered Chief World at X3, this is all greek to me!

Hi, Sorry, I do mean ray trace, and yes I've set the sun angle and all that. I have not, however, checked or changed the glass default properties because, you know, I assumed they would auto-default to transparent - being glass...I will look to see what my settings are there and try again. The thumbnail you posted is not mine, I am not the OP. I was just commenting on the shiny spots - I have already eradicated that pest

I'm sorry, but if someone needs to get their jollies by being a troll on a drafting software message board, then they have larger problems than being downrated, for sure.

Larry, you can't make something that specialized within Chief (ie - barnboard with random rough patches or areas of different color) you would have to do something like that in Photoshop or simply grab and adjust a photo like the first one I attached. The second one was gray barnboard that I tinted red, that's why it's got an overall more homogenous look and color, and that is totally doable with the material painter. Sorry for any confusion.

Yeah, those shiny spots used to annoy me as well and I just learned to change the material setting from 'reflective' to 'matte' and problem was solved. Now if someone can tell me why, no matter how hard I try, how many times I read the help directions/watch the training videos/check my settings, I can NOT get sunlight to come in through the windows to cast sunbeams. I mean, I can never get it to work. It makes my renders look so flat. Could it be something in my hardware?