builtright3

Check if you set your time zone in your profile.

Ok, not feeling too smart right now.

Thank you I fixed it

I actually use 4" for 1/4" text and 3 1/2 for labels, tell them to get glasses.

What are you doing for call outs?

I was wondering why the post times are so far off? When I post to the forum the time is never the time that I'm posting.

Can anyone explain how the post time work?

This post is 5:45pm and it is currently 9:40am in CA

Todd, if you make the framing  sub- fascia's gable and eave  1/16",  the exterior surface will go to the top of the beams

Perry,

Do you use sub fascia's or do you take those out? We don't typically frame that way here in CA. Just curious?

I agree with Perry. His style is very similar to mine.

But you could also check all your font and callout sizes. For example chief out of the box it set up for 6" text for a 1/4" scale and 12" text for 1/8" scale. I reduced mine to 5" for 1/4", 10" for 1/8" and 2.5" for 1/2" for sections and details. Also you can reduce your labels such as window, door, roof..... Also layout plan notes can be 1/8"

This has really helped me a lot.

Thank you I had to call dell support and reload the driver.

It not working on any plan

check your 3d layer set

 

jon

I went thru all the layers and checked them

I opened an existing plan from an earlier version of CA and saved it in X7 but when I open the floor plan and then go to 3D view nothing is showing in 3D.

Floor plan is there but 3D is not? I'm baffled!

Checked out "Movavi" and I like it also. Now its not so easy to make a decision!

Now that I think of it. I start several plans off the original house layout I draw and name them 101,102, 103....... Because I have several different floor plan ideas I present for the initial design but when they choose one I delete the others and then of course I'm just back to the existing and new layout.

If you are talking about elevation views, X7 now has a staggered section feature. You can break the section line and move in or out to wherever you need to.

Yes I love that!!!

But this is for 3D

Thanks guys. I think I will give it a try.

I'm assuming some of you are using Jing for your video's. I made a couple of video's and the file size is pretty big. Does anyone know if it can be sized smaller? Also I have the free version. Is there a paid version that is better to have?

I draw the entire house and site plan as is and I call that plan file "Original Plan" and I will use that one of course for my demo plan.

Then off of the original I start a plan file called "New Plan" and I start to draw my addition off of that.

So I have in every customer file folder:

• Original Plan
• New Plan
• Layout Plan

and I will now be adding one plan for all my details and custom work that will most likely be duplicated to every job file from a template file.

Thanks Joey and Alan.  That will help me put together a demo that will cover your type of work. 

 

BTW Alan,  the "Building Coverage %" in your example doesn't appear to be correct.  That's one thing that I want to prevent.

I was going to put all the different variations into a spread sheet as a template (similar to Allan's) and when I was done inputting all the information I would just delete the rows I don't need. I then cut and paste it into the drawings. That's how I do roof and floor venting right now and it works well. Of course it would be much better built into the program. But I have to do those kind of things a I learn.

Here are some more items. It varies from job to job.

This is the longer list:

1^st Floor Existing Living Area

2nd Floor Existing Living Area

Existing Garage, Storage Buildings, Patio Covers

Demo existing living area, Garage, Storage Buildings, Patio Covers

Proposed living area, Garage, Storage Buildings, Patio Covers

Total Living Area

Lot Size

Total Building Area

Lot Coverage Ratio

I agree. Very easy to make a copy and work off of it. Very wise! I do that when ever I'm doing something new to make sure I have it right before I change the plan.

This one is pretty simple but it is what the city always wants from me. Simple small room addition project.

Sorry Joey, I don't video.  However,

 

My method is purely for the aesthetic.  Think of what photographers do when they come to shoot a house; moving furniture around so the shot looks good, but highly impractical for living.  Well the same holds true with what I do for many camera shots; the output looks good, but may barely resemble the "plan."

 

1. Make a copy of the plan file and rename it something like: 200150415_MyHouse_005_Bedroom_03_v01.plan
2. Place my rough camera views
3. Rip out everything in the plan not visible in the camera view(s)
4. Purge all unused materials/textures
5. Place movable backdrops outside any windows (I use large curved panels with cutout tree lines, etc.)
6. Add objet and other detail refinements.
7. Place sunlight either for effect or accuracy
8. Turn off all lights then re-add starting with sun, ray trace; UDL, ray trace, fixture ray trace; etc., etc., etc.  (I do three-pass ray traces to determine if light placement/intensity is correct)
9. Refine final camera views.
10. Recheck and recheck.
11. Ray trace.

One added benefit, at least for my purposes, is that if CA isn't getting the output I'm after, the my model is pretty much ready-set-go for export to 3rd-party ray trace.

 

I hope that gives you some clarity re: my process.

 

Have fun, stay crazy,

 

jon

Thank you Jon! That makes perfect sense.

I think both you and Larry came up with great solutions and I think both are good depending on the task at hand. At this point I just wanted to get the garage out of the way so Larry's solution works best at this time. However you opened another door in my way of thinking for more elaborate and/or just simple designs. So I'm very happy you shared with me and I will print out your instruction and learn more about ray trace, sun angle,......... I'm in the process of learning those things now so this all helps me.

Thank You, Thank You, Thank You!

HC's method works great, but Jon's method has some added benefits. You simply save "temporary" copies of the plan, SPECIFICALLY for your 3D views and nothing more. Deleting all the excess can make renderings much faster.

Yes but I don't totally understand what he is doing. I think I would need more instruction (video perhaps). Suggestions are great but without good instruction I can waist hours setting something up and also take the risk of messing up my plan files. It doesn't sound simple enough for my experience level.

Doe's that make sense?

Here's another method.

 

http://www.screencast.com/t/va99ndSLsn

That's is a perfect solution! Very simple

Thank you!

What Michael said.  My regular methodology is to cut up plan files by floor and/or room before my final camera views.  I can then add detail and any custom lighting for the shot.

 

jon

So then you have several plan sets for one job? Not sure I get that because what about when you need it as a whole and what about when you make a change? how does it change on the other sets?

Removing garage so I can view house without it being in the way:

Ok, I found that if I shut off the ceiling surfaces that it went away. So I put all the walls and roof on its own layer and shut off the ceiling surfaces and now I don't see the garage except for the slab and footing and that's ok. If there is another easier way to do this though I would be open to hearing other ideas.

The garage is in the way of me getting a good 3D view of the house. Is there am easy way of removing the gage so I can get the view without deleting it? I tried to put all the garage commponants on a garage layer but I got hung up with the room layer.