mthd97

You still kicking around Lew ? BIM and 3D model interoperability was something we talked about allot. Have they made much progress in that direction yet ?

Yes, it can be confusing, setting and moving roof heights and we just have to accept that for now. It is not the logical way to do things in real life, as we usually build from the ground up. Lew, I agree about room height or wall locks too. This thread got side tracked to wall stud heights for a while. So what is the next step? Explode all the room module control's then regroup them after we make changes. Maybe we could have a room rebuild hierarchy? Have a lock the room height tab for each room then mark the room to move up or down or stay put after a rebuild? So these can control how the room modules move and have any adjoing stairs follow the room they are connected to? Hey, I am no computer programmer but there should be a more effective way and that's why we have SSA and upgrades.

Thanks for veryfying that for us in Chief X10, Richard. You only know how good it works when you test a project inside the program, like you have done. I can honestly say that I was hoping that was the case in X10, giving room stability like you have found. I am glad I upgraded to X10 and I feel more motivated to do full timber frame split level home inside CA again now. 3d room module blocks is one way CA achieves speed but the accuracy used to drop with these room module blocks jumping around when changes are made. I don't think CA will change this system but I do think there are many more ways to gain even more stability and uniformity.

Busy beta testers, I look forward to your comments on X10 when the non-disclosure period is over. Also look forward to the X10 complete upgrade list of features and improvements too!

Get the X9 public beta and give a test drive have fun.

Depends on the level of customization you are aiming for ? You will never get a perfect take off system but you will get close if your houses are not too complicated. All software has limitations. Learning work arounds take time with a higher level of complications. Do your research on this site first before choosing.

Hi Glenn, that was a question, that is where that came from. Thanks now I can see what you prefer to use to build your framing. CA is not going to create metal soldiers for us automatically. I am not going to waste hours fighting the program or prove that I can come up with a work around to get my framing close as possible to what I deem is standard practice for Carpenters in my area. If I have a Builder client breathing down my neck to give him the timber framing quantity so he can put in his price I would hold him up and he may miss the job. Besides I am not well enough to work overtime as a slave and not get paid for CA testing. Every person who uses CA has the right like you to choose how they use it and what extra time it takes to do their job. If you are good at using the program to produce framing, then get a job with CA producing Videos for us to save time. Thanks and I respect that you are a proficient user. I like CA to produce an unframed close to perfect model first then have it produce the framing close to what I want then edit the framing manually. Then manipulate the model so the cross section is as close as possible to perfect. Thanks mate all the best.

Looks like Ceiling Plane tool is best used to define the dropped Ceiling Height ? When it comes to framing it out, it is a different ball game to get the right joist direction and build type. I was thinking that you should get double floor joists over a top plate external wall with a platform floor frame ? The programming logic needs to be more simple and straight forward when it comes to dbx settings and this is how CA becomes confusing. You guys here understand timber framing like most of us do. Most Architects tend to think spatially without the framing in mind. Maybe if we could separate the dbx to have a tab, that just shows the spaces of the rooms and separate tab for controling the structure and framing spaces and how it builds including joist direction etc.? I would rather manually edit the framing than mess with the dbx setting to get framing to build right every time for every method under the sun.

There you have it, I am hoping for an SSA renewal discount as our dollar has been quite low for a nuber of years now. 72 cents so if SSA $495.00 US we have to pay around the $700.00 AU mark.

I think X9 sneak peek information shows that more important things have been added to make our 3d modeling easier. I like the niche tool, cupboard counter top overhangs to all sides, cupboard doors and draws shown open. The short room ceiling etc are all good for the product for interior design. When you look at the categories CA caters for, everyone gets a specific improvement they need. For structure the sill plate set down is good too. I could go on but waiting on XX and future versions we all have to wiegh up the resources we spend on CAD product's too see if we are investing wisely. There are a few things I like about Revit a some things I don't like about it. In the end we all have limited time to make an analysis of the software we will choose and we can't know all the positives and negatives before we buy and try it out.

Hey Jonnoxx you are entitled to your opinions and I would like you just specify the problems with Chief Architect you are having. There are legitimate things that can be fixed in CA we just have to be more patient till they get addressed. In the meantime don't get upset with us Aussies as we are notorious for making fun of each other, it is actually a compliment but it can get out of hand if not correctly understood. Take care all the best with whatever CAD software you choose.

ShaneK, I started working for Contractor's like you but I was paid by them to do the design concept, design development, construction drawings and documentation. This worked well for me. Edit: I trusted these employers as they dealt fairly with me and I with them but they are getting harder to find these days.

I was thinking of the slang word for it in the Sea Shanty songs ? Funny stuff anyway we are only kidding.

I was in a very similar situation to you before going out on my own. I would not recommend you do this as there are many sharks in the water who will try to use you for free design work. Never ever work for free. Get paid in advace with a deposit to cover all the work for your design concepts and design development. Outline the costs clearly as you progress thru the job. All the best if you take the plunge.

Blind Trust ? Or seeing specific requests applied ? 1) Curved Roofs 2) Mono Slab types 3) Subscription (SSA) 4) Ridge Capping 5) Room Devider line 6) Niche tool 7) Stair tool Improvements What else have others seen ? What do they call the punishment of throwing someone overboard and dragging them over the barnacles under the ship ?

MM we have our own elevation display standards for cupboards and so does the NKBA in the US. We are left to make our own templates as you know in Australia with line styles and layers etc. We all expect our software to work properly too. When we had our Australian dealer, things were a bit better for us then with the template supplied. All the best.

I like to search the Videos and manual first then search the forum. Then ask the big guns, old gun slingers and young guns and if that fails put in a suggestion or get another app than can do the job with minimal fuss.

Ironing out problems, is my illustration of fixing them, the small ones take one pass, the bigger ones, take several or more passes to iron them out. As to rewriting parts of the program CA have done that in the past and will do it again if necessary. We need to show the team trust and the more we show the more response we get.

Jonnoxx, I have had many of my specific requests applied in latter versions of CA and that is why I am still here. If you could specify clearly the problems you have with using Chief in the right section of the forum, and if they are legitimate they will get listened to and applied. I think you need to have more respect for the CEO and the work the programmer's put into Chief with the resources they have. Perfection is not possible in this world but we all aim to do our best with what we have. I don't regret having Chief in my tool box for my work since V6.0 1999. No problems no upgrades.

Get the full version demo for free off the website and try it out first. I use ArchiCAD as well but CA is a very fast modeling solution for all American style houses. If you want slanted walls and the like and a very high level of customisation then look elsewhere. If your main customer base is contemporary American style houses then having a license of Chief is worth it if you got time to learn it. Those main problems with the program will be ironed out eventually in time but Chief will not be used for extreme homes anytime soon.

Archicad made this easier with Cinarender.

Thanks Chopsaw for doing this video for us in CA. It shows what we can do in a 3d view as I don't use the 3d window for drawing walls in CA. It is nice to know the the scaffolding is there to improve it with dimensions and a 3d grid etc. I wasn't challenging you, I was asking you to show us. I also looked for a video first but couldn't find one. Here is a challenge, who knows from what version we were able to extrude a wall in a 3d view like Chopsaw just did ?

Yes true, some things are overly complicated in CA and every CAD app has it's long winded way's of doing things too. I think we could show that SP does have some very good things about it that we can improve in CA. I agree with the parkwest list, especially the ML point but CA is better for Designers and SP is better for Builder quantity surveyors IMO. A merger or takeover would be worth it for me. I really like SP SL add on.

http://softplan.com/?page_id=1284 Chopsaw can you show me your video of you drawing walls from scratch in the 3d window with Chief Architect please ?

We might not be moving as fast a the big BIMs but we are more advanced than SP in many ways. I do like how you can draw and edit walls in a 3d overview with SP once we get this along with a few more features we will have fully surpassed them. It's good to have healthy competition in the same league as it helps advance the residential apps we use.