Does Anyone Use "framing Back Clip"

[ChiefArmstrong]

There is a box in the 3D View Defaults labeled "Framing Back Clip".  At Chief our impression is that this feature is mostly unused.  If anyone is currently using this feature can you describe what you use it for?

 

thanks!

 

 

[kMoquin]

Mine is set to zero and I've never fiddled with it until now.

I think if I wanted the effect that setting provides I would just use a back clipped section. Though, now that I know it's thee, who knows...

[Joe_Carrick]

Since I didn't know it was there, I hadn't used it.

 

Thanks for pointing this out to me - now I will definitely use it.  It's a great way to eliminate a lot of annoying detail in Cross Sections.  I like a setting of about 24 so that I pick up just 1 set of framing members from the Camera location.

 

Now that I know about it - don't you dare take it away. 

[Joe_Carrick]

Mine is set to zero and I've never fiddled with it until now.

I think if I wanted the effect that setting provides I would just use a back clipped section. Though, now that I know it's thee, who knows...

Kevin,

 

It's a little different - it only clips thraming members so you still get all the architectural stuff beyond but no framing members beyond the clip distance.

[GerryT]

Still somewhat useful -- I never knew was there. I do a lot of wall detail editing in "wall detail" and usually wind up using the surface delete to see the final. -- PITA.

 

At least someone at Chief is "thinking" about framing? This tool should come in handy when trying to view lintels and corner blocks.

 

BTW -- Chief's framing tools are still the best and easiest to use -- too bad yous guys don't take advantage of the opportunities to expand.

[Kbird1]

As mentioned It is not well documented , had seen the checkbox but hadn't played with it.

 

perhaps a KB Article or Video is in order ?      be good to use it effectively as others mentioned.

 

only thing I found in over 1200pgs of the Manual was :

 

Framing Back Clip defines the back clip

for framing members in cross section

views. Framing must be set to display to

see the effects of this value. A zero value

does not back clip at all.

[lbuttery]

Never knew about this

 

would have been handy to use it

 

Lew

[DRAWZILLA]

Hay, I could use it for those times when a hip rafter slips below the ceiling line ( always happens) instead of turning the roof framing off, which I don't like to do b/c I like seeing the rafter tails through the windows. I'll give it a try and see if this thing works

[Joe_Carrick]

OK Chief Armstrong.................

 

You opened this up and now several of us want to use it. 

[dshall]

Never knew it was there.

[Doggies1954]

Surprise, surprise everyone. You all now have an early Xmas present.   

[Bill_Emery]

I had not seen this option before.  It's great for eliminating the forest of truss webbing in cross sections.

I'll use this tool on almost any job that has trusses.

[HumbleChief]

Never knew it was there either. I hate to be the only one to ask - How do you use it? Elevations? Cross sections? Can't seem to see any effect when set to different values.

[DRAWZILLA]

I don't think it works, tried it and nothing. Works only in vector view, if it worked at all. Not a good tool if you ask me.

[Doug_Park]

So based on this thread I conclude that

 

1) few if any people are using this feature.

2) It apparently doesn't work as expected.

 

Which is consistent with what we had discussed internally. Don't be surprised if this feature disappears in X7. It is getting in the way of implementing an X7 feature that we are confident people will use.

[rlackore]

Might be useful if it could be implemented on a per-view basis, eg I want to use a framing back-clip in cross-section, but not in elevation. We had a suggestion thread about more control over section clip planes, so maybe this kind of setting (or at least concept) shouldn't be abandoned entirely.

[Joe_Carrick]

So based on this thread I conclude that

 

1) few if any people are using this feature.

2) It apparently doesn't work as expected.

 

Which is consistent with what we had discussed internally. Don't be surprised if this feature disappears in X7. It is getting in the way of implementing an X7 feature that we are confident people will use.

The only reason it wasn't used previously is that it was so poorly documented that we didn't know it existed.  Maybe you should explain what proposed feature would be in X7 that would require this to be eliminated.  Also, since so few of the Chief users post on these forums it might not be valid to assume that it isn't used by many more than have responded.

[Bill_Emery]

Doug,

I never knew this feature existed; but I've always had to use time consuming work arounds to eliminate unwanted framing in section views.  This feature allows me to control display framing display without a lot of extra work.

In my opinion it's a feature worth keeping.

It's only been a day, but I am already relying on this tool to get a good clean cross section with trussed roofs.

I'd always been envious of how users of other programs were able to easily get a clean cross section with a single truss showing.

[rlackore]

Doug,

I never knew this feature existed; but I've always had to use time consuming work arounds to eliminate unwanted framing in section views.  This feature allows me to control display framing display without a lot of extra work.

In my opinion it's a feature worth keeping.

It's only been a day, but I am already relying on this tool to get a good clean cross section with trussed roofs.

I'd always been envious of how users of other programs were able to easily get a clean cross section with a single truss showing.

 

Problem is, it's a default. Lets say you set the default to 12" to eliminate clutter in your section; well, in elevation, you will lose your exterior framing members, such as deck framing, posts, etc. This default has potential, but it is poorly implemented.

[GerryT]

So based on this thread I conclude that

 

1) few if any people are using this feature.

2) It apparently doesn't work as expected.

 

Which is consistent with what we had discussed internally. Don't be surprised if this feature disappears in X7. It is getting in the way of implementing an X7 feature that we are confident people will use.

Hmmmm -

 

I suppose by that reasoning that features such as:

 

Material Lists, Ruby Macros or Symbol creation will also be supplanted in X7?

 

Perhaps a better explanation would be that the features of this tool will be incorporated into a more versatile one?

 

Lets improve not remove :)

[Bill_Emery]

In the past I've used attic walls to keep the view clean, put trusses on separate layers, and have sometimes resorted to filled polylines; but this feature is doing what I need without all that extra work.

[LevisL]

I had not seen this option before.  It's great for eliminating the forest of truss webbing in cross sections.

I'll use this tool on almost any job that has trusses.

 

I use trusses on 95% of my projects... and here I was putting trusses on all sorts of different layers to get rid of the clutter of webbing! If only I would've known about this feature...

 

Might be useful if it could be implemented on a per-view basis, eg I want to use a framing back-clip in cross-section, but not in elevation. We had a suggestion thread about more control over section clip planes, so maybe this kind of setting (or at least concept) shouldn't be abandoned entirely.

 

I second that!

[Joe_Carrick]

Maybe Doug is hinting that we may be getting Cross Sections that can be offset.  IOW, not just on a single plane across the width of the structure( stepped or even at 2 different angles.  Something that we've been asking for since.....................

 

I can understand how the "Framing Clip" could interfere with such an implementation.

 

Maybe while they're at it they can figure a way to limit a cross section to a single floor and a way to make interior elevations span more that one floor and more than one room - other than using a cross section.

 

I seem to recall that there's supposed to be a way to make "Room Dividers" not end a room elevation - but I can't find that setting so maybe it's a figment of my imagination.

[CJSpud]

Like most everyone else, I had never paid any attention to this feature.  I have mostly monkeyed around with the backclipping tool to get what I want.  Now that I am aware of it, I plan to use it.  I would hate to see this tool go away unless whatever the Chief programmers are considering for X7 provides similar results.

 

It always amazes me the amount of stuff that is there for our use that we don't take advantage of. 

[ChiefArmstrong]

Thank you for you feedback.  I recommend caution in using this feature.  I suspect that it does not entirely work as expected.  I'm not even sure that it was originally intended for the use cases that have been described in this thread.  Features that get little use get little maintenance and can become unpredictable.  Virtually all of what we have heard from users that have tried this feature in recent history has been negative.

 

Doug,

I never knew this feature existed; but I've always had to use time consuming work arounds to eliminate unwanted framing in section views.  This feature allows me to control display framing display without a lot of extra work.

In my opinion it's a feature worth keeping.

It's only been a day, but I am already relying on this tool to get a good clean cross section with trussed roofs.

I'd always been envious of how users of other programs were able to easily get a clean cross section with a single truss showing.

 

Bill, you describe a compelling use case.  Can you describe the work arounds that you were using?  Why not just use a back clipped cross section?