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Then don't forget to turn it off again....

Sorry Larry, no intent to be dramatic, just recall all my business classes and recall those case studies. No ill will intended.

You must have provided that information when you first downloaded the program?? That is curious.

Larry, wow, I really could see some of the CEO's of these very companies saying the very things you wrote above. Who would have argued, at the time, that anyone would be competition for IBM in computers? Xerox for copiers or Blackberry when they were the only game in town for business smart (ish) phones? That type complacency sinks companies. I don't think any company can or should ever utter those words. History has a way of repeating and it's not gentle.

Kevin and Jon, to your collective comments, and others as well, there are many, many examples of industry leaders left in the dust when they refused to innovate and adapt. Just a few: IBM when they were the only people making computers, but have managed to do well in other markets, and Blackberry (formerly BIM) down to less than 4% of the market share. Yes, they are all still around, but with far lower market share in what their core was. The real story is Xerox pretty much was the only game in town for copy machines, as most of us know. But also Xerox, the people who invented GUI, PC, mouse, laser printers and several other real innovations. They owned it, and failed to do anything with it. Where would they be today had they gone forward with what they invented and owned? Look where Apple is, primarily by adopting and perfecting the GUI. PC? That will go nowhere and who would ever need a mouse? Laser printer? No, ink is just fine.

Jon, there's a bridge ???!! Jeez, that knowledge would have made things WAY easier. That's funny as it's a joke with an architect I work with down there and ALL my clients. Whenever I talk to them about a trip to N. Virginia, for example to look at something at Smoot, they look at me like I asked for them to take a trip to Antarctica........ by canoe. It's like, "yes, there is dry land over there....seriously" If it were me living in NW, I'd way rather have the moat on the "other" side.

OK, that's not going to happen based on the last sentence of his first post. But thanks for asking....

Just add a sidewalk or whatever you like directly where you want it. Change material to whatever you want, change height to slightly different than the road. If you use road again, just select no curbs, but really a sidewalk or driveway works too.

Neither show as used in plan? (Red +) If they are not in plan, than they will not display, correct.

Larry, I agree 100% with this. This is the one area that I wished I'd spent more time earlier. It is my weak suit for sure.

Bob, The I read a post from the Bridge Troll once that said learn to do roofs manually and I took that to heart. I watched countless videos until I could successfully do, and understand how they work/worked. It makes all the difference in the world.

Lew, In large part, that is what I did. Helped me a lot. Unlike many of the folks on this forum, I'm not a full time designer, more part time in support of my work as a contractor. I know the trades very well, but translating into this program was a bit of a curve.

Larry, I suspect you are right for the large majority of people, and defaults were one of the things I set out to do early, with templates. I quickly learned though that these were nearly useless for where I work, with a few exceptions. The average home I work on in NW DC is about 100 years old and they are completely different in every single one. Virtually nothing the same. From the terracotta brick foundations, to the actual dimensional lumber (when it was actually a 2x4) I've seen every variation in height, structure and materials imaginable. Even within a single house where it may have been added to several times over the years. So I still have defaults, but know full well that they will and are going to change on every single house I'm on. For new or newer contruction, this would help a lot, and a good idea to do, and learn, regardless.

I wasn't doing a job while doing this, that was simply my way of introducing myself to the program and what was where. Then progressed through the more complex tasks required. I can't even imagine starting with annosets first as this program would still be in the box. Knowing how to do a set of plans, and knowing this program, although related, are really quite different. If, all you do is plans, that might be the right tact, but I was and remain a contractor first, and this is more of a side line for me. A useful one, but not primary. Terry's books are really quite well written, and for those that learn best via a book, a great resource. I found that the videos by far were the best resource, followed by this forum for specific questions and problems. That remains the case still today.

Curious, music in which video? I can't recall any that had that, but may have been.

Diane, I can tell you that my first experience with Chief was painful. I could not make anything work, it was all pretty alien to me. To say I was frustrated is the understatement of the year. First, in direct answer to you question: Yes, Terry Munson produces some very good books for all the versions and more specific detailed ones as well. http://www.chiefapprentice.com/Downloads.html I bought one for X5 I think and frankly never really used it much. I simply started by drawing houses and adding things, learning how to manually do roofs, then added a "skill" one by one. Before long it became pretty second nature and I could see the results. That being said, as part time guy at this, there is still a lot I don't know. This forum is amazing with lots of folks, very skilled and talented folks, willing and able to help, and answer your questions. I see this as the number one resource. I read these forums and see others having problems and learn from the solutions offered. I'll go try it out myself and see how it works. Next, I watched a LOT of videos. LOTS. They were a great resource too. With SSA, Chief has their own series, but that is just the start. Another very good resource is Chief Tutors. Completely free. http://www.chieftutors.com/chiefx1.html Many, many videos there on everything. Yet others on You Tube to include a Bridge Troll member here Scott(also on Chief Tutor) but he has his own You Tube channel too. Google searches with the problem and add "chief architect" will find lots of answers. It's like anything, it does take a little time, but it will come. Best of luck Diane, and welcome to the forum.

You can modify any window to what you want for size, place next to door and check in elevation for alignment. If within about 4" of the door either side a mull button will be on bottom. Select door and both windows (side lites) then mull them. Only vertical together or horizontal at a time. If both do one, then select mulled unit and next piece and mull again. Really easy and works well. Here's the CA topic, but is really simple to do. http://www.chiefarchitect.com/support/article/KB-00525/

Thank you Scott !! I enjoyed that, despite being nobody important. :0 I appreciate you doing that video. By the way, for Jan. 10, we should call that the Jon and Jintu (J & J) workshop, as both will be presenting which is frankly awesome. I'm more excited about that then X-mas.

Scott, What, no video? Not sure I understand your method?? Eric's I get and the doorway makes sense, but trying to understand how you did yours?

I see this all the time too. Despite the chairs being lower than the table/counter, in plan they show above the table/counter. This, regardless of where you place either in the group. They look right in 3D, but wrong in plan.

Eric, and Scott, headed toward that way as nothing I can do, so far makes this look right in the actual conditions. I have the "advantage" of having the original CAD blueprints (as-builts), but in some cases they have proved wrong. I'm down there next month to go over a few changes and additions that will be added, but mostly to dive and fish. This is actually one of my folks homes on the beach near David. We built it in 2007. Just want to get as accurate a model as possible with what I have to make changes there, as needed. Eric, you probably are right with plan I uploaded as I was floundering around with different ways to get this right. Still am... One thing I think I figured out, is that the CAD elevation shows that arch height at 3000 mm (3 meter) but the ceiling heights are 2750 (2.750 meters). That is among the discrepancies I'm finding. Also, the column in the CAD shows a .3 meter diameter (almost 12") but they are wider than that. I'm trying to adjust via the photos (I have hundreds) to at least get it close. I can't get the column centered under that arch wall without half of it hanging off the lanai (porch).

OK, looking at what John sent, I think I see what I was missing. In the doorway DBX, under "Arch" "Height" I was mistakenly using the actual top of arch at the height. Clearly, seeing that Jon used 12" I think it is from top of the column (in my case 2450 mm) to the top of the arch (3000 mm) or a "height" of 550 MM (3000-2450) . I think that is right?

That looks great Jon. I must be missing something here???

Alan, Been trying that but still can't get it to look right. I know the actual dimensions, and arch radius exactly. Eric, that looks right, will need to try that, as all other ways have proven unsuccessful. Undoubtedly due to my inability to manipulate the program to what I need. I'll attach plan, if that helps anyone. (note that it is metric) Column in backyard is already exactly correct. Arch radius is 3 meters and top of arch is 3 meters. Panama As-Built post.plan