TheoryDesign

Forte is a free app by Weyerhaeuser that will do this for you. My contractors use it themselves with ease, often in conjunction with SketchUp. There don't seem to be any recent youtube videos on it but perhaps it just hasn't changed much in the past few years. Does the job. Give it a whirl. https://www.weyerhaeuser.com/woodproducts/software-learning/forte-software/

Thanks Eric & DBCooper - I see how I can manipulate those other tools you mentioned (material regions & custom backsplashes) in the same ways now. Very helpful. I'm just not exactly sure when it's best to use each one. Are these assumptions correct? 1) Always start with wall or floor "Material" specification dialog. If that isn't customizable enough (e.g. not the entire wall gets same finish) 2) Apply a Material Region to specific areas requiring it 3) Can alternately build a custom backsplash but only do this when millwork is part of the equation It seems like material regions & custom backsplashes are in effect the same thing, being layers on top of the wall. When would you use one over the other?

Thanks, that solved it. On this same topic (and assuming this is now the best way for me to manipulate tile patterns on walls) how might you solve this part of it? The wall finish changes part way. I.e. the shower tile does not extend all the way out to the corner so I'm trying to show drywall on the rest. When I break the wall into 2 walls it just wants to merge back into one wall, keeping the same surface treatment on both.

When I try to show tile layouts on walls or floors I often find I cannot shift the origin of it. Reference guide & search terms I've tried here are not turning anything up. The tools I've tried to show these layouts accurately include Material Regions, Custom Backsplash, Hatching & changing the wall/floor types Material. I do not want to apply 2D Cad fill patterns in elevations & floor plans for this purpose--seems archaic to do it that way with the many advanced & integrated solutions Chief offers? Thanks for a few suggestions.

Thanks Mick & apologies All for posting in the wrong area.

I often have difficulty with line visibility in Chief. My elevations/cross sections often appear to be cut off on one side or the other, or just the top, or just the bottom. It happens in both plan file & layout files (so not just at the tail end on the drawing sheet). This doesn't seem to be a clip line issue in the plan file, or a boundary box problem in layout file. I've tried adjusting all of the clip settings in the specification box. Any ideas?

Thanks Eric, DBCooper & richoffan--I burned time searching every possible term & still would not have landed on Edit Area (Help sections & videos & ChiefTalk archives are only useful if one knows the correct combination of words, it seems). I appreciate your responses.

Is this a possibility in v13 or 14? I'm aware of similar software having a function that can show & select all stacked levels of a building at one time, making it easy to move, rotate, mirror or cut & paste entire buildings. It's not foolproof, but it gets it 95% there, saving a ton of time. I'm about to start designing an addition to a house plan that I've modeled once before in the same neighborhood, except this one is the mirror version of it. I'm hoping I won't have to start from scratch? If so any shortcuts others may have discovered in doing this?

Thank you. Your first suggestion (color toggle) worked best for what I needed right away. I didn't realize its status on my layout coversheet. It looks to be all or nothing throughout the entire set, however. The other option (turning a jpeg into a cad block) was a great idea but it won't override whatever decision was made with the above toggle button. Ideally I'd find a way to isolate elements on a sheet for color purposes. While most things will always be b&w/grayscale, I do prefer the project photo/rendering on my coversheet to be in color, as well as my titleblock logo on all sheets to be in color. Hmmm.

Occasionally I'll drag & drop a color image (jpeg or screen snip) into Chief. They're usually photos or map screenshots that need to be shown in color but change to black and white. It's happening in both plan files & on layout sheets. I think I've gone through all of the image settings once pasted into Chief, as well as misc file default settings and system preferences, and have also searched the reference guide with no luck. This seems like it should be a quick toggle of something. Any ideas?

Thanks Charles. It was great chatting by phone today. I look forward to working with you next week.

I sent an email last week for services but have not heard back. I need training assistance soon, so if any others out there train beginners as well please contact me. Many thanks. Kristen Hoeflinger, RA Theory Home Design www.theoryhomedesign.com Alexandria, VA | Washington DC

Is there a way to see the length of a line or polyline while it is still being drawn without having to hit the "tab" bar to pop up a separate window (in which to manually enter a dimension every time)? It seems like an automatic feature in most other CAD/BIM programs, which eliminates a lot of extra clicks. I'm guessing it is simply a visibility setting but I can't find a reference or answer to this anywhere. My purpose is to outline properties & lots, in case there is a dedicated tool for that which I'm also missing. "Property line" searches don't turn anything up on this. Either way answers to both items greatly appreciated.