BruceKC

Is there a good video explaining the tools/layout/referenced plan files system? It seems to do ok I think, but it's very confusing. Example: Once I reference the new plan file, the layout does what I think it's supposed to do. However, the project browser continues to show the original plan and files as well as the new referenced plan and files. If I highlight an elevation for example in the layout view and open it, it shows the correct plan file name which was newly referenced. However if I double-click the elevation in layout view, the old, original plan name is referenced. This is VERY confusing and I don't see any videos helping me to understand what is going on. The last thing I want is for the layout to somehow show the incorrect plan or elevation. Anyone know of a video that would help ?

Is anyone else having a problem with x15 room highlight or item highlight? Every few days, a room will highlight as usual, but then the highlight won't go away and I have to close Chief and reopen. Now it's happening on occasion if I highlight a door or window schedule.

Does anyone know if there is a way to get renderings like this from Chief? Some of my builders don't want 3D, and want this type of rendering only. Not sure it's possible, but thought I'd give it a try. Hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season.

K-Bird, thanks so much..I'm not sure how that happened as I have never even ventured into that tab under defaults. I think the file got corrupted when we began a new template, but that's just a guess. Again, thanks so much!!!!

Here is the plan, but I think there's something corrupt about permissions...checking into it. CHARLESTON.plan

Hi all. All of the rooms are labeled roof over this room, auto-rebuild roofs is on, each room defines itself when you click inside it. I'm totally baffled. Using a revised template, maybe it's messed up.

Never had this happen before, but when i do "build" Roof, nothing happens.

Thanks Chopsaw.

Is there a way to create a block of notes which includes text and 3D symbols?

I have a stucco wall with a stone wainscoting (pony wall). I've added a wall cap to the lower wall. Is there way to make that a "wall type" so that I don't have to add the wall cap to every wall?

Where do I set the edge line defaults? Or, is there a way to have the Section View Layer set used instead of that?

Sorry for the lengthy post, I also put this on Facebook Chief Architect Users. We typically do a "master plan" for one of our builders, and then three or four versions. Each version is exactly the same for 99% of the plan, but the fronts are different as are the roof plans. So, basically, front walls/doors/windows and roof will change, but nothing else. Rather than have four separate plans, is there a way to put the different front walls etc. and roof plans on a separate layer and turn those layers on and off to get the different versions? That would be awesome if we could, but so far, I've had no luck trying that. Any help would be wonderful...thanks.

Thanks Rob, I'll try to give your method a shot!!! Have a great weekend.

Is it possible to do a full orthographic overview (top view) and display the labels? Seems like a no-brainer, but I'm thinking it's not possible?

Thanks Steve, I appreciate your help and everyone elses. I think we're getting this sorted out with all the help..frankly I was beginning to regret moving away from Autocad, but I'm feeling better about it at the moment. I'm probably just too damned old to be learning new software, but it's a done deal right now and I think we made the right choice.

Thanks Steve, I'm looking over all of this right now. I suspect a lot has to do with faulty room definitions. Let me take a look at what you did. I did rebuild the foundation as you suggested and that lined up the footings, but some of top of foundations were different. I'm investigating. I know a lot of this is due to my relative newness to Chief and my reliance on Autocad experience, Just getting too old for this I think, but I do love the program.

Wow! You are all so wonderful and helpful, I can't tell you how grateful I am. Long time Autocad User, I love Chief, but I've never been more frustrated and I'm sure all of this is going to help and fix my issues. Thanks again everyone.

Thanks everyone, we do have a new template that we spent a lot of time on with help from Dan Bauman, but that was before these plans were in the works. I'm guessing that importing this plan into a new template won't work?

I'm not sure what you mean. How would that affect the footing heights? I have the room in the basement, back right, which has the footing on the side at one height, and at a different height on the back of the room.....Am I missing something?

Here is the plan which is not finished at all, but the basics are there. Beyond frustrated. Builder.TEST PLAN.zip

Thanks for the help, but this is a problem that recurs on every plan. I really like Chief a lot, but my frustration level is about to blow. Is there a reason that the footings on the basement are not uniform height? Seems like an easy thing, but if it is, I'm not finding it. I drew a test plan with one living space, one porch and one garage and got everything to work perfectly, but those room numbers in the structure tab don't work on other plans.....I think my blood pressure is about 500/400 right now. I don't think I've ever been this frustrated with a program. It would seem that if you set your foundation height in floor heights, then ALL of the footings should be identical in elevation, but they're not.

Going crazy trying to get the footings in this basement to be the same level, and having no luck. The rooms in the back are all the same structure numbers, but Chief is raising the footings on a wall that is part of the same room. Raising it on the back corner and not on the side. What am I missing?

Thanks for all the help, I really appreciate it. It was a very difficult issue to express, and I'm afraid I did a very poor job. I was familiar with the "break tool", but only as a symbol and really never used it. But now I realize that it will allow me to show the stairs below at some point and that was the issue I was trying to figure out. Again, Thanks to everyone.

Not that this helps at all, but I haven't noticed any slowdown of the new version yet.

I can't figure out how to do stairs so that they show correctly on each floor. The basement is no problem, but when I get to the main floor, the stairs will actually widen to sit in the proper spot (see pictures). I can do that, and in 3D it's just fine, but in plan view if I do that, the main floor shows the stair going to the 2nd floor as wide and not showing the actual stairs on the main floor descending between walls to the basement. It's driving me crazy trying to figure this out (that's a short drive for me.). I'm sure this isn't very well put and maybe not explaining the situation correctly.