AvoyeDesign

On 11/29/2022 at 6:31 PM, Kiwideziner said:

at $1995 per year that makes CA dearer than Revit LT bundled with acad LT.

I just yesterday paid US$424 for a yearly licence of the above. I am yet to make a judgement as to which is better.

Right.

At $1995 per year, we better see much more regular improvements to the software than we are seeing now at $595 per year for SSA.

On 8/25/2017 at 3:52 PM, Alaskan_Son said:

As many of you already know, energy heels do not automatically generate properly for some of the most standard truss configurations.  Here's something I would definitely consider a workaround but its a lot quicker than what I think most of us have been doing...

 

• Build all your trusses as usual setting the appropriate trusses to be Energy Heels...

• Group select at least all the energy heel trusses, change top and bottom chords to a very small dimension (1" should probably do it), check Force Truss Rebuild, and click Okay...

• With the trusses still selected, open them right back up, check Lock Truss Envelope, change your top and bottom chord back to what they should be, and click Okay...

 

Again, it would be nice if energy heels behaved properly on their own, but until they do, I think this is the best we can do.  If anyone knows of a more effective solution I'd love to know it.

Well this is gonna be faster than manually editing the truss polyline in a section view.  Thanks!

On 8/31/2022 at 5:49 PM, SHCanada2 said:

almost looks like it is a bug

I'm not so sure of that.  The leader is attached to a specific point along the boundary of the text object, and when you mirror the text like that it remains attached to the same point.  This is how text leaders work. so that they stay properly attached no matter where you move the text.

Video explains it best.  This would only work if the text body was an even number of lines.  But I think if you flip it with two lines of text and then stretch it to 3 lines, the leader line will underscore the top line. Nope.  This messes up the leader line.

Nice!

Say you want a dimension default for a task you do repeatedly where a dimension requires the same exact trailing text.

Go into Preferences>Units.  Create a custom unit as follows:  [unit] [trailing text]

Where Unit is the actual unit of measure you want displayed ( '  "  '-"  m  mm) and Trailing Text is the common text you would use in this application.

This only works for trailing text as units only trail dimensions, not lead them.

On 8/26/2022 at 9:06 PM, jasonn1234 said:

this is interesting. I've been playing around, and if you turn off the terrain perimeter layer and just leave the terrain feature layer, you can compensate for undesired/wild contours near buildings, or anywhere actually, as long as there is "somewhere" you can cut a line through where you have the desired elevations

 

And if you make the material glass, you can make below grade a little bit translucent, not quite the dashed line for foundation that everyone would like, but not too bad.

 

too bad one cannot copy and paste the terrain feature polyline, and then apply the white fill line to get the dashes. ... CAD detail from view..I suppose would be the answer there

 

 

or the ugly case. instead of trying to fix the contours one can turn:

 

into

 

nice technique @AvoyeDesign

 

Wow, you just improved on what I've done, kudos!  Never even occurred to met to turn off terrain.  That looks super clean!

On 8/10/2022 at 9:52 AM, DRAWZILLA said:

for me, I just move the camera outside of the terrain, and add a dirt material to the skirt. unless the terrain is all over the place

So I explained in my video that there are cases where doing this isn't practical.  In my case, one of the elevations would have a second building obstructing the 1st.  In another example, the curvature of the terrain hides part of the building and I need to show the conditions where the grade meets the foundation wall.

Details in the video

I just use an "ALL ON" layer set and go to the floor where the zoom extends is furthest out.  From there I send to layout, and chief centers the layout box on the drawing sheet.  I then do this for every floor and default set without changing my zoom level.  Works for me anyway.

On 5/9/2022 at 1:00 AM, Rich_Winsor said:

When you're done using a tool, return it to it's proper place.

 

Why can't these clowns grasp the concept that it is far more

efficient to take a few seconds or a minute or two to put the

damn thing back where it belongs than to have to whole crew

standing around looking at each other when the guy who used

it last didn't come in today and no one knows where he put it.

 

Sorry, I just had to get that off my chest. 

Don't look in my garage.

I've built 2 computers so far, my latest is starting to show its age.  Rule of thumb; do your research and then do it again.  Watch videos like Linus Tech Tips to get a comprehensive understanding of all the parts, what works well together, and how to assemble it trouble free.

You need to know things like the differences between memory generations:  DDR3, DDR4, and DDR5(not yet out) are NOT compatable with a board that doesn't support that EXACT generation.  PCIe on the other hand is backwards compatable.  The CPU you choose has to be matched with a board that has the correct socket and chipset.

My tips for sourcing the components are to start with the CPU, ALWAYS.  Start with the minimum specs and look for one that has higher core counts and higher clock speeds that is within your budget.  And remember that the motherboard's price could be impacted by a pricier CPU.

Motherboard:  Unless you plan to overclock your CPU, don't pay top dollar.  Get a well reviewed board that has the socket/chipset combo for your CPU, and enough memory capacity and PCIe slots for the memory sticks, video cards you need to add.  If you are adding 2 video cards ($$$$) make sure the board has two PCIe x16 slots where the 2nd slot runs in x8 mode minimum.  Also be aware that running two video cards may obstruct one or more PCIe x1 slot for plugging in WIFI cards, USB cards, etc.  Ideally you want a board with as much of that built in as possible, but price point will dictate that.  You should aslo make sure the board has a NVMe M.2 connector for your hard drive, and get a 2tb NVMe drive to run the OS and programs including chief.  This option is all about speed.  I would not buy any SATA SSDs.  For bulk storage that you don't need to access on the fly go with SATA HDD drives.  They are pretty cheap these days.  If you need storage that is quicker than the HDD's but you don't have room on the M.2, go ahead and get a SATA SSD.

Video cards; I don't know enough about them to recommend one or the other, but stay away from bleeding edge cards if you don't have the $$$.  A decent floor model 3080 or 3070 should do fine.  

Power supply:  Use a power supply calculator to determine your needs.  If you plan to add a 2nd video card or more memory in the future, calculate that now.  And it never hurts to go up one level just to be sure you have the headroom.  If it says you need a 750 watt, get a 900 watt.  Get a modular power supply.  Routing cables is a PITA and if the ones you don't need are not detachable you are going to be frustrated by the 3rd hour of getting everything in order.  Cable management is important as it keeps airflow from being restricted, cuts down on dust and just looks better.

Cooling:  Don't use the stock cooler that comes with your CPU.  Invest in a good tower air cooler or a closed system liquid cooling loop, at least for the CPU.  Water cooling a GPU is not for the amateur, and custom water cooling systems are for the extreme enthusiest who wants his PC to be the equivalant of a muscle car.

Assembly:

Use a shock grounding collar.  Learn how to install your specific CPU type by watching a youtube video.  Learn about LGA and PGA sockets and CPUs, and how to handle them with care.  Learn how to troubleshoot and about common mistakes.  Be prepared to be at it for most of the day.

On 5/3/2022 at 9:47 AM, robdyck said:

I've had no issues with pdf file sizes. I've also been printing at 144 DPI in order to reduce file sizes. 

At 144 DPI the clarity is more than satisfactory (in my experience).

In 15 years using Chief I have never actually considered lowering the DPI.  I'll actually give this a try, thanks for commenting.

On 3/31/2022 at 9:52 AM, AndrewSopher said:

Did you ever get an answer on how to do a reverse ledge for the foundation? I am trying to do this, and have not been successful thus far. Thanks. 

If you want help with your specific problem, you should post in the General Q&A forum.  The Tips & Tricks forum is for offering solutions you have found that you want to share with others.

17 hours ago, Renerabbitt said:

I would ignore the layout time tracker as time is often redundant, unless you export to CSV and write a comparator for both for overlapping times.
Timeout is based on idle, meaning triggerable actions in plan. Doesnt matter that you change to a layout window

Interestingly, I would often use the layout time tracker as the only tracker.  I would create a layout file immediately when starting the design, and as I work would populated it with cross sections.  I often times would end up saving a backup of a design so that I could branch off on another idea that would massively alter the buliding, but later abandon it and return to the first one.  How do I easily account for this when some time entrys are redundant and some are not?  Use the layout time tracker only.

Now I am using BQE core for time tracking as it automatically creates time entries that go straight to invoicing.  BQE is quite a bloated and cumbersome package so I don't recommend it for small firms especially with no payroll, but there are others out there that are just as good if not better.

19 hours ago, Bob-Roraback said:

Just a word of caution. When I upgraded to X13 I too thought that real time ray tracing was something I could do without but learned quickly that I could not even do a cross section or see library previews with the video card that I had. The only thing that would function was floor plans. No 3d views of any kind, perspective or orthographic. I would download the trial before upgrading to see if you have the same results.

I have been toying with the trial for almost a year.  No problems with camera views thanks.

On 2/27/2022 at 8:38 PM, Kbird1 said:

 

So do I but currently the cost of a GPU can be almost the same as a whole Prebuilt, certainly no GPUs are MSRP these days,

and since you are still on a 4-5yr old ? Z170 it maybe time anyway...... was just a thought.

 

M.

Thanks.  Not ready for full upgrade yet.

On 2/26/2022 at 11:06 AM, builtright3 said:

Going from 10 to 13 is a pretty serious upgrade. There are definatley features that would help you but if it were me I never make a change just before I go into a big project if I'm on time restraint. You will need time to adjust to the new upgrade.
On the other hand, Im a slow learner and need the time and you may not if your a quick study.

For whatever its worth, thats my thought

That's not going to be a problem.  I'm only going to be leaning on X13 for one or two features that will be critical for time saving, and I already have a good handle on how they work from using the demo version.

I also taught myself to use X1 back in the day, and was putting out permit drawings within the 1st week.  I've beta tested a few releases in the years past.  I think I can handle it.

On 2/26/2022 at 10:49 AM, Kbird1 said:

 

Probably be better to invest in a Pre-built with 12th gen CPU etc and a RTX 3000 Series Video Card and perhaps a PCIE 4.0 NVME SSD at this point,

and take the whole old system Home....

 

M.

I build my own PC's.  And I'm not ready right now to spend money on a new system.  I could get a video card now and later use it in a new build.  I tend to roll my PC's over in parts that way.

Thanks  RT Raytracing isn't a critical thing for me, but a new video card certainly is on my wish list.  That 1060 is a champ but it might be retired to my home PC.

I am going to be upgrading from X10 to X13 within the next week.  I have a project starting that will feature 3 single family homes, 5-6 vacation cottages and a shop all on one lot being subdivided 3 ways.  The property is owned by a holding company with private owners, and they are hiring me for all the design work.  The biggest feature I will need for this is the ability to use reference sets from other plans.  My plan is to have one chief file for each building and one for the overall site.  There are many other performance features I want as well, not to mention the X14 upgrade that is due soon.

So my question is this:  On a scale from 1-10, my current workstation performs at about an 8 running X10.  It's good enough for now, but I'm wondering if I will see much of a slowdown with a newer release?  I've played around a bit in the trial version with a fairly complex plan, and it seems no worse for wear.  I just don't have time to put in hours doing nothing productive to get a better feel for how my system handles it.

My current setup:

i7 7700K, Z170, GTX 1060 6GB, 32GB, Samsung 512GB M.2, 500GB SATA SSD, LG 32" & 2x 24"

Thanks!

On 12/10/2021 at 2:52 PM, JacobB said:

Any opening can cause this problem when it's center is closer to the end of the wall than the actual corner window. Some objects, like rooms and beams, can create an opening to help cut out some of the wall surfaces.

 

We have it logged, but it's currently pretty low on the priority list.

 

List of openings (what can cause this issue):

- Window

- Door

- Wall niche

- Bump out window (bow/bay/box window)

- Pier/pad

- Wall hatching

- Wall cutout (helper opening)

Thanks Jacob.

Were you able to reproduce how this is caused by a beam intersecting the wall where normally the casing will generate properly?

1 hour ago, rgardner said:

Looks more like its the railing than the beam.  Did you try pulling the railing back an inch from the wall with a room divider ?

 

I went back to another plan that had this issue and in that case it WAS the railing, but only because I had a short railing wall that returned 90 degrees into the corner.  I did that because the railing was 6" past the corner (as was the wall below) and the railing wall type was only 3" thick.

On the plan that I took that screenshot from, the railing wall is 6" thick and is only 6" beyond the corner, and cheif manages to close the deck room without the need for that short railing return or stretching the exterior wall past the corner.

So it appears that both CAN be a culprit, but in my case for the plan I'm working on today it was the beam.

4 minutes ago, JacobB said:

Did you close the plan before zipping it? The file is empty.

Thanks, I missed that.  I've re uploaded and will do so as well in the tech support case file.

MX Master 2X.  Fits the hand well and has a thumb scroll wheel that I use for volume control.  Easier than reaching for a knob on the speakers.