MarkMc

Trying to have a cabinet schedule read dimensions in decimal. Is that possible? How? Can't find a solution.

Please don't misunderstand, I don't think it's worth doing this with cabinets. It's not how I'd order or build it in the first place and cabinets have no real advantage as a symbol here. OTOH the other methods suggested are easy and effective to accomplish this in both 3D and for docs. I might lean toward using psolids to control the reveals. So long as you are painting and not using wood then there are no grain direction issues so those are pretty quick. Did this over coffee this morning bit of copying and used concentric behavior to get the frame. As with many things in Chief there are several ways to get where you're going, just need to see how the program thinks and learn the tools.

I don't know if it is worth the effort but here is a plan with one cabinet done and the parts used. I didn't take the time to make a framed door for this-just a proof of concept really. I started with a CAD detail from view then locked it to have a guide for angles and such. Draw the overall cabinet as a psolid then copy and past in place and resize elements as you go. At some point some have to me moved out of the way to work. Then copy and paste them into another plan to create door symbols. Open the included door symbols to get an idea of what needs to be done to the stretch areas to make this all work. NOTE-Either Chief or I am dyslexic-the symbols will insert backwards into a cabinet from the way they view when you make them OR when they are in the library.?? . Final parts for each front would need to be made specifically but saving the plan(s) with psolid used to generate them allows faster alteration. Had some trouble getting the grain on the top angled rail to cooperated so that may need to be exploded into faces first (see Alaskan Son's post back a ways on doing that to fix grain directions. I included a door symbol used for the sides that is placed into the back of the cabinet. I'd also likely place rollouts and such that way-into the back. But didn't here, just specified the shelves. Stair cabinet.plan

PDF2CAD - I found out about that here on the forum and can't in my current state remember who-in any case it's not free but my trial version has been running forever? Alternate-here is your pdf converted to a PNG. Once imported you can use point to point resize on it. You can't snap to it the way you could to a DWG but it uses less resources than PDF so behaves better. I converted this in Bluebeam PDF Revu. (oo Think it was Rod Cole? for that program?)

Make your own door symbol and adjust the origin. Attached plan has a couple of options to point you in the right direction. Open plan, open cabinet DBXs, open door symbol dbx (not object) and read up on symbols in reference manual. These don't operate. To do that with just cabinets you'd need to have two cabinets-one open, one closed, on top of each other on different layers. You could make some wall definitions, build the cabinet from walls, room with shelf ceiling. You will need to mess with the door symbol quite a bit. In the long run not worth the trouble IMO but a start is included. BTW this kind of question belongs in the Q& A section. Also please add version you are using and computer information to your signature. SLiders.plan

Specify a different door style for any that are another color Attached Curved colors.zip

This was in recent newsletter-

select the wall you want to move THEN click the dimension.

Files do not share between the two. You can export a 2D floor plan which can be imported and traced otherwise 2020 can't import much worth anything except from Envisioneer. IF you know the correct cabinet codes for the brand AND have that set up for the labels then a cabinet schedule can be useful. If you also know the codes for accessories and modifications even better, those can go into one of the cabinet OIP fields. (I use "Code"). I have copied and pasted a good cabinet schedule from CA to a spreadsheet and then used that to copy and paste into 2020 to get individual cabinets. They still have to be placed into the floor plan (or alternately into an "Item List" in 2020 and just use Chief drawings. It can be extremely fast once you get the hang of it in 2020 BUT the 2020 operator needs to be capable. Last I knew 2020 could not import any sort of cabinet list on it's own. Forgot just in case- as far as getting 2020 files into Chief-it can export 3D dwg but that comes in a a single object-really don't want to go there IMO.

No but the Chief Architect Viewer would at least allow you to open the file and see the changes, just not edit it there. I don't know if you need to be on support to request it though?

Curved cabinet- make door panels-the attached has 0" overlay and 0" separation and 1/16" counter with 0" overhang. Then every area you want to have a different texture needs to use a different door or drawer style. Slabs are easy since there are so many. This has 3 stiles.

I'm assuming the reason the OP asked is the "S" shaped cabinet on the end which is where there can be door/drawer trouble OR if you want it to appear as a single cabinet plan/elevation. Otherwise curved cabinets are cake.

That's a tough one- here's what I came up with in between watching putts it-depends on how many variables you have and/or how fussy you want to be about extra lines in vector view (have to be cleaned up in layout)-getting a good plan view and getting a decent counter. 1)- just using bow front cabinets- the counters are difficult and the side of the drawers are also difficult to control. 2) Making a door symbol solves a few of the problems on the side and is easier to have a set back section for the pull area. The plan view is awful. 3-export as DAE, import as Millwork symbol gives a clean plan view and allows some resizing getting into the schedule is another issue. Curious how you make out. NOTE that Chief reverses the door symbol once you place it into a cabinet-very annoying, have run into this before and I really don't know how to change it. CUrved cabinets.plan

I usually float them in one way or another-one that is easier to control is a cabinet that is 1/16 taller than the toe, with feet, cabinet material "opening no material", other cabinets are raised off the floor without toe kick. This allows the feet to get into the schedule but requires using an OIP field for the other cabinet height (depending on how it has to be ordered)

Singndance asked how to make these. Turns out they were a bit more of a challenge than I first expected. Attached plan file with cabinets and parts used, another that was used to make the channel door symbols. In general-draw molding profile for each channel, in blank plan draw a molding line and add profile (I also added stretchers to it) convert that to a door symbol. You will use the door symbol as "side panel inset" in the cabinet. You have to mess with the origin and stretch areas-open the included symbols and study those things carefully. Turns out that I also had to mess with the cabinet construction quite a bit. The sides are openings, there are panels (door symbols I had) inserted into the back, and the box construction is unusual to say the least. The left, right and center cabinets are each slightly different. You can go from here. Channel Doors.zip Channels Caibinets w doors.zip

I'd make it a symbol. Easier to resize in any direction, can then use replace from library all identical on floor. You can replace arch blocks with a symbol but not psolids.

Don't know if it helps since I don't have as extensive needs as some and it is another work around but ... I've taken to keeping some text in word processor docs and spreadsheets (depending on need which) -that can be copied and pasted directly into Chief. Word processor pastes as Rich Text, spreadsheet as text- paste special gives you a choice. IF you open a blank Rich Text box or Text Box you can drag and drop into it from an open sheet or doc. OIP fields also allow drag and drop in the DBX. I have a little program called ClipMate that lets me store things in "collections" in a kind of looks like a file explorer. It will copy-text boxes (can include arrow and have macro in it), callouts, schedules (which have a few quirks), cabinets (and likely other symbols), Arch blocks, Cad Blocks. All that is needed is to add Chief to the ClipMate application profile first. Then any of those things can be pasted into Chief as needed (can use hold position as it saves the coordinates) Text can be edited within Clipmate and manipulated in several ways often handy when grabbing from somewhere else prior to using. (been handy for Ruby snippets while I learn that) The only problem with items that are not text that the "Title" needs to be edited in Clipmate to keep track of what they are. They are listed as DataObject and you can't really see what they are, the automatic title is "Other: date/time" I hadn't used it in a while, then started trying it for use with the OIP as I sort out what is best for what I need. Also been playing with keeping some cabinets there to see if that works better than replace from library. Still not all sorted out for me. YMMV

Not sure if this helps .. The biggest use of space by Chief on mine is the archives which is currently 32GB (haven't cleaned it up in a year). Libraries for both X8 and X9 combined are about 20GB. My drive is bigger but currently use 120 GB with both X8 and 9 along with 90 folders in the program files and program files (x86) folder. Only the Chief data folders and TurboCad folders are in the C documents-all other documents point to D. Cleaning up the archives my total would be well below 100GB. I don't use hibernate which saves a little.

I've been using BB as my default printer for everything. Only began occasionally using CA pdf printer occasionally in X9. Only use reduce size if needed.

Dug up a 20 page 24 x 36 bid doc I had on the machine -B & W, no images just drawings and text, no embedded fonts. Looks to have been printed in Adobe on a Mac, original file in ACAD- can't access the DPI setting. File size 17.9 mb Reduce file size in BB came to 11.8 mb

FWIW Took the Modern Bungalow plan Blue Beam 10 mb, reduce file siz went to 3.33 mb Chief pdf-3.69 mb, rduce file size 2.55 mb Images degrade a good bit but lines are just fine. Also ran a test on my one of my own printed at 600 dpi of a 15 page 11 x 17, color, assorted fills some with transparency, half a dozen images in standard render; layout file is only 2.8 mb; references two plan files 39mb and 43 mb. The images I have in it are higher DPI than the bungalow plan so show don't show nearly as much degradation as that does in images. Again lines are just fine Chief pdf file-2.74 mb BB file-5.35 No noticeable quality difference when zoomed in. Used reduce file size on both in BB. Chief file-1.06 MB BB file- 1.29 MB I've got no idea what would happen to your giant files but might download a trial version and seee. Modern Bungalow CA.pdf Modern Bungalow CA reduced2.pdf

Been too long since I used Adobe (back when it was Distiller- maybe 20 years?) to comment on differences. I do a lot more with PDFs than just print so get my moneys worth out of BB - my second favorite program next to Chief. I have used every free pdf anything out there and owned 3 other paid versions besides Distiller before BB. I bought Standard Version in 2010 ($150 then), upgraded once ($90) added a 2nd license with a newer version in 2015 ($250). I see it's gone up even since then ($350). The CAD version only makes sense with ACAD, Revit, Solid Works, and SU-maybe one or two other programs and even then I'm not so sure I would care about integration. (unless it could do layers but I think that has more to do with the program export than integration)

That's odd. I use BB a lot for printing and get larger files from it than I do from Chief's pdf printer? Never had a quality issue either. I may have some setting inside BB higher though since I often have to convert something to an image format and set what I could for high quality. I also use the reduce file size feature a lot.

Polyline fit to the inside, convert to pline solid 1/16" thick top to match floor of cabinet, set fill to match cabinet, move to front group, change to layer base cabinet. While your at it copy and paste in place the pline solid, select it change thickness to match your toe kick, set some ugly color for fill so you can see it, adjust to make to depth you need. You can leave the existing toe in place or not and adjust cabinet. Change fill back to match cabinets and then block the whole thing.

I think in all the time I've worked with Chief I've used them on only one job otherwise just when someone asks one of these questions ;-> In any case I just use the required dimensions. The angle on these are actually off by a whisper at the front.