Alaskan_Son

A few quick tips for importing and inspecting problematic DWG and DXF files... It can be a very good idea to switch to a layer set where all layers are displayed and unlocked. Sometimes the layers are imported otherwise. If layers are locked or hidden, you'll be chasing your tail. Select All and Fill Window are your friend. This will help you to get a feel for where everything is. However... Chief has a difficult time dealing with VERY LARGE and VERY SMALL things so Fill Window won't always work and also, Fill Window only works to a certain extent before it needs to be reset. If you're having issues, try to de-select, Select All again, and then Fill Window again. If this still doesn't work then your selection is probably too large for Chief to deal with...usually because there are some objects in the file that are super big or drawn way out in space. To help deal with this... Select All, Block that selection, and then open that CAD Block. Inspect the size of that CAD Block, check Retain Aspect Ratio, and then downsize it (maybe by something like .001). Try to Select All and then Fill window again. As soon as Select All and Fill Window are obviously working and manageable, inspect the extents of that selection by zooming in. You'll almost always find your desired information in one of the 4 outside corners (almost always in the upper right or lower left in my experience). Once you find what you're looking for, you should be able to inspect the other extents and delete unnecessary/rogue objects. You may find that you need to explode CAD blocks to make all the above more manageable. One easy way to explode all the CAD blocks is to select one and then use the Match Properties tool by using Object Type to select all the rest. If you can't seem to select any of the CAD blocks to start with (perhaps because they're too large), then just create one for yourself from scratch and then select that as your starting point for using the Match Properties tool. You may or may not need to repeat the exploding CAD Blocks step to explode nested CAD blocks. Throughout this whole process, remember that Select All and Fill Window are your friend. You may need to use them multiple times while cleaning things up. Once you have things down to a manageable point, size the plan back up by the inverse of what you downsized it by(1/.001 or x1,000) using Select All and Transform/Replicate. Inspect for proper scale and adjust as necessary. It may be that you discover you just imported the plan at the wrong scale. If this is the case, you may or may not want to re-import at the correct scale. Hope that helps some of you.

Its all in a CAD Detail

Yep. There are a few things in Chief that are like this. Stairs are even trickier to size down below the seeming minimum.

First things first, it's important to understand the hierarchy... Floor and Ceiling Platform Defaults are the king default. Every other Default checkbox while in your default settings can refer back to this setting Floor Level Defaults can refer to the Floor and Ceiling Platform Defaults or they can be set independently. This can be useful when you have multiple floors that are using the same floor structure and one or more that are using a unique floor structure. Room Type Defaults can refer to the Floor Level Defaults or they can be set independently. This is the reason we can have a Patio room type that will always produce a 4" slab. This is also useful because it is the reason why any other room type can be set to obey the floor structure as set for the current floor (which may obviously vary from one floor to the next). Rooms themselves can refer to the Room Type Defaults or they can be set independently in plan. The benefits of this should go without saying (i.e. we need to be able to set any given room differently than the rest). I would argue that there is no logical default setting to get rid of. Once you fully understand the chain of command, I think you'll probably conclude as I have that every level of control makes a lot of sense and if you use the defaults properly, it can make for very quick and efficient modeling and more specifically...future changes to that model.

Don't forget that if you want to share the layout file as well, Backup Entire Project from the layout file will do the same thing except that the resulting zip folder will include not only the layout file, but any and all referenced plan files, referenced PDF files, etc.

I didn't see the exact numbers you're referring to, but those walls have been manipulated in 3D...some along the top, some along the bottom, and some along both. That basically throws all bets right out the window. The fireplace room definition also doesn't match the others which could be affecting some things like this... One side is measuring the basement slab and the other side is measuring the fireplace foundation room slab.

Polyline Distribution Path with a CAD Block assigned...

You'll probably want to create another hardware symbol for those instances that need to be mounted to the panel. The symbol just needs to have a negative Y Origin Offset... Quick Example plan with before and after of both the cabinet and the hardware... Example plan.plan

It's snapping to your wall surface rather than your backsplash like the others. WHY its doing that, I'm not sure and don't have time to test, but simply adjust the Distance From Wall or origin offset if you want to fix it for now.

Its gonna happen on everybody’s system because of the fill you used on that polyline. Chief is having to draw an absolutely bonkers number of vector lines (somewhere in the neighborhood of 65 million lines).

Super commonly I just do this kind of stuff using manually placed components, multiple copy, and then one of the Align/Distribute tools. There are a lot of productivity tools in Chief that make very quick work of manually modeling a lot of scenarios rather than having to force an automated tool to do what you want. The automated tools are great and can make quicker work of making changes, but they also only get you so far, sometimes take longer to coerce, and often only end up with an end result that's kinda right. I just prefer to skip the guesswork and experimenting a lot of the time, just do what I KNOW will work, and end up with an end result that IS right.

I hadn't been speaking to the performance degradation issue, only to the fact that there are some reasons Chief doesn't just convert the PDF to an image. They're really not the same (Imported PDF's and Picture files) and have some different capabilities...multiple pages being one of them.

Actually no. I'm referring to the fact that multi-page PDF's are imported with all pages. When we import a PDF, we're not importing a snapshot, but rather the whole document. In other words, we can display any page that we wish at any time. The whole entire file is imported and can optionally be stored with the plan.

The plan view shape can be manipulated but not the shape in elevation. For that I typically just use primitives.

Multi page capability for starters maybe?

True. If anyone is using this thread to help make a decision as to where to invest there money though, I would still definitely advise using Chief’s published guidelines (they know better than you or I what the average user is doing with the software as well as what their development plans are) AND considering not the average use case, but the worst case...It may be that the video card almost never sees any use, but if you chintz on it and then decide to upgrade to a couple big 4K monitors and/or decide to spend an hour PBRing that 100KB model with 2,000,000 faces then you’re gonna be pretty disappointed when it either doesn’t work at all or worse...Chief crashes on you. In my experience, even the most basic, inexperienced, DIY user can easily push the limits...I’d say they’re actually the user most likely to create an overly complex model loaded with symbols and then spend a bunch of time inadvertently pushing the limits of the video card toying around with the various rendering techniques. Anyway, what you’ve posted is all good info...I’m just advising people take it all with a grain of salt. The average forum user can be pretty quickly and easily influenced in my experience and super commonly doesn’t take the time to fully read and comprehend all that’s being shared and communicated. Just wouldn’t want them skimming through and recklessly deciding the video card doesn’t really matter.

I don't personally have the time or inclination to test these things myself, but just a few notes based on my own personal experience. I would suggest not downplaying the library access issue as some of us spend a lot of time sorting though and just generally accessing the libraries. In addition, a lot of people's workflow's (mine included) involve A LOT of multitasking, opening and closing lots of plans, opening and closing layouts, etc. I'm constantly opening and closing plan and layout files, searching the library, copying files from one location to another, etc. I can tell you that upgrading my disk to an SSD was the single most noticeable change I've ever made. No question about it. Also, I'm curious about a few operations that your test didn't seem to make much mention of...the things that I personally find to be amongst the slowest and most taxing operations in Chief... Importing, displaying, and editing heavy amounts of line work (CAD) Creating CAD Details From View Generating complex terrains Using imported PDF and/or image files in plan and/or elevation views Using boolean operations on large or complex groups of solids NOT using Live Views but rather using Plot Lines. I personally basically only ever use Plot Lines and typically with shadows. I'm also a little curious how much time you spent in some of the "other" rendering techniques. I personally spend most of my time in Vector View and also make a fair amount of use of some of the other rendering techniques as well. The Watercolor with Line Drawing mode is one my favorites and it also tends to be the slowest. Also, just a side note, but for whatever its worth, its really not too uncommon for me to deal with house plans that have double or even triple the number of faces you had in your "house" plan. Not sure if the effectual differences would be linear or compound.

f you want to check the AutoCAD version of any given DWG file, simply right click and Open With>Notepad. Once the file opens up, check the first few characters... ...and then reference the chart below to find the AutoCAD version. Code Version AC1032 AutoCAD 2018 AC1027 AutoCAD 2013/2014/2015/2016/2017 AC1024 AutoCAD 2010/2011/2012 AC1021 AutoCAD 2007/2008/2009 AC1018 AutoCAD 2004/2005/2006 AC1015 AutoCAD 2000/2000i/2002 AC1014 AutoCAD Release 14 AC1012 AutoCAD Release 13 I'm not sure what the AutoCAD 2019 code is, but that might be your problem. Not sure X11 was being developed in time to deal with the latest AutoCAD version or not. You could also try to post the DWG file here to see if someone can help you sort it out.

Most likely the best method would be 2 attic walls set to roof cuts wall at bottom (may or may not require adding an extra floor). A plan file woukd certainly help though.

This is correct. Insertion points don't carry over when used as the 2D Block for a symbol. Also, just a quick tip for you guys... I found a better way to offset CAD Blocks than the one I used in the video above. Use an empty text box instead. The text box can be 0"x0" even if you want, but it's really not necessary usually. The results will not print the little dot that my other method did. Used for this particular GFCI example (the CAD Block itself is the one on the upper right)...

You're welcome! And yes, I would definitely be interested and do this type of thing for a number of users. Shoot me over an email to alaskansons@gmail.com and we can discuss further. Thanks!

I really think you need to clarify what you're after. Do the shed roofs start at eve of the existing roof? At the wall? Somewhere higher up the pitch? Below the eves? Doer the gable section have a higher ceiling? Higher pitch? Lower pitch? Same pitch? Does the shed roof have a lower pitch? Does the gable section bump forward? Is there actually a gable end wall? Is the gable built on top of the shed roof or are the shed roofs truly separated? The list could go on, and the details matter because it may change the approach taken.

My day had cleared up a little bit so I figured I'd donate a little time and get some practice in. I didn't notice that you had found one till I was already finished. Oh well, some of those symbols can easily have 50,000 faces or more anyway, so if you just need a basic iteration that's not going to bog down your model so much, try this one (1,300 faces)... Carved Island Leg.calibz Either way, it was a kinda fun little exercise for the day. NOTE: This was made in X11 so if you want it in X10 someone will have to convert for you. I gotta get back to work now.

It might not exist and you may just have to make it yourself or find someone else who can. You would have to make a decision as to how accurate it needs to be though.

There is no Break Terrain tool. You can break an Elevation line, and you can use a Terrain Break. Probably best to clarify which one you're talking about or if you're talking about something else entirely. Your original post said you tried the "Break Line" tool which is a tool, but it could have been used on your Elevation Line or on your Elevation Region (closed elevation polyline). Then your last post referred to a "Break Terrain" tool which isn't a thing at all. There is a Terrain Break, but you didn't have one of those in your plan. What you did have however were some Terrain Retaining walls which have a sort of built in Terrain Break functionality.