X15 - issue w/ camera views saved to layout

[VHampton]

Working with an X14 file brought into X15.

Clicking on the saved camera "viewport" causes the program to freeze.

 

• Camera views in layout are saved as images.
• Camera view itself is saved on layout sheet (outside of the layout boundary) for ease of access. 

 

Unusual behavior. The work-around appears to be that cameras have to be opened in plan view. Otherwise program locks up.  

Have turned off everything which would be deemed an 'auto-rebuild' likes deck framing etc etc. 

 

Auto-saves set to 0 to be sure that memory isn't an issue. (Posting here for CA tech to look into along w/ submitted ticket)

 

 

[Michael_Gia]

38 minutes ago, VHampton said:

Clicking on the saved camera "viewport" causes the program to freeze.

Is that a grass area?
 

I bet it has something to do with that. 
 

 

[VHampton]

Thanks Michael. It never occurred that the new grass may have a setting which could be causing this.

 

What the rendering is showing is the standard terrain perimeter. 

 

For example... usually once something is framed, the auto-framing gets turned off since it turns into a memory hog. 

 

I'm going to explore the grass option. Much appreciated. 

 

 

 

 

[SHCanada2]

2 hours ago, VHampton said:

Clicking on the saved camera "viewport" causes the program to freeze.

 

• Camera views in layout are saved as images.

I havent seen this and I have moved to using the viewport in the layout for the most part (instead of images)

 

If I understand the scenario: you have the layout opened and it has a camera layout box on it as well as the image, and you have the related plan open, but not the actual camera, and double clicking on the layout camera box, causes the program to freeze? or is it just singe clicking on it? is it live or update on demand?

 

A couple things maybe, is this a pbr camera? are the max export samples set, and to a low number (<500)

 

[VHampton]

Thanks Jason.

 

Problem figured out...

 

It appears that the program is looking for missing texture files when the viewport is clicked on. Probably not an X15 issue so much as bringing in an X14 plan into a new version.

 

I also noted that more than several library files did not import when the initial X15 download had completed.

 

Others have been reporting this as well.

 

That said, a copy and paste of the X14 Library into the X15 Chief Architect Premier Data folder solved it. 

But the X15 Library was removed prior to this exchange. 

 

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To answer your question (and thanks very much for jumping in here by the way)...

 

When live viewports are saved to layout, the PDF files get extremely large as a result. Which is why the camera view is sent to layout as an image. 

 

So in other words, I save the "Standard" camera views outside of the layout sheet - but save the static image view within the confines of the layout sheet.  

 

It's a relatively fast way way to update one's drawing package by having direct access to the saved camera. 

 

Meaning that you can click on the viewport for the updated camera view, and send back to layout as an image once more. The alternative is to go back to the plan and open the camera from there - which has been working. 

 

 

[SHCanada2]

1 hour ago, VHampton said:

When live viewports are saved to layout, the PDF files get extremely large as a result. Which is why the camera view is sent to layout as an image. 

that was the case but appearently if one uses 600 dpi, you will get a smaller file size.

 

with a full page PBR view, and the rest of the layout being plan and elevation views, at 600 DPI (11x17) my file is 7MB

 

1 hour ago, VHampton said:

I save the "Standard" camera views outside of the layout sheet - but save the static image view within the confines of the layout sheet.  It's a relatively fast way way to update one's drawing package by having direct access to the saved camera. 

wish I thought of that 2 years ago

 

[VHampton]

Thanks again Jason. 

 

Yep... back in X1, the 1st time I sent a full viewport to a 24" x 36" sheet along with a handful of other view, the Chief Architect printer made the PDF to something way over 50MgB.  I couldn't even email it. So this method of saving the camera "image" views on a layout is great, because the when the project is printed, the size is significantly reduced. 

 

Anyway.. .should anyone be reading this thread in the future, they may pick up on a good tip, ...aside from learning that the X15 download may not introduce all of your older X14 data.  That's why the program had a breakdown. Me too.  lol 

 

Thanks to fellow forum-ites, there's always good camaraderie and support!

Much appreciated. -Val 

[Joe_Carrick]

Val,

I try not to ever send a PDF to Layout if I can help it.  My preferred (in order) image formats are:

• png
• jpg
• bmp
• pdf

PDFs are notorious memory hogs.

[VHampton]

On 3/1/2023 at 2:42 PM, Joe_Carrick said:

Val,

I try not to ever send a PDF to Layout if I can help it.  My preferred (in order) image formats are:

• png
• jpg
• bmp
• pdf

PDFs are notorious memory hogs.

 

Thanks Joe. I never send PDF's to layout either. They never even get saved to my plan files. But you are 100% correct. (I think you may not have completely understood what we were going back and forth over). 

 

What I was doing is sending a 'static' camera view to the layout page only (and keeping the live viewport out of the layout boundaries).  Along the lines of what you are saying, the "live" camera view should never be saved in layout. Just the image file. Otherwise, when going to print, the PDF becomes enormous. 

 

Static views and jpegs will hold the Chief Architect PDF print as low as 10megabytes or less on average. 

 

Thanks again Joe.

 

I remember you from the old days, and from the original forum from when Tim was one of the original Jedi's. Your words of wisdom are always appreciated. 

 

All the best ~ Val

 

 

 

 

[SHCanada2]

1 hour ago, VHampton said:

Example... this 24 x 36 camera view below would be huuuuge after being printed by Chief as a PDF (if it were a live camera). But it's not. It's simply in a jpeg-like format which is the direct result of the camera being sent to layout as an image.

 

I am accustomed to making presentation sets (within the typical 24 x 36 format) which are chock full of full page renderings. If a dozen or so pages were  "live" cameras, the aggregate Pdf size could easily get into the 60-70plus megabyte range.

 

CA just clarified that live cameras in layout are capped at 300DPI,

 

so  if you want to  to reduce size, save at 144 or less.

 

Below is tabloid and 24x36 with one full page PBR camera in layout at the different DPIs

 

 

 

[VHampton]

Yes... the dots per inch reduction is a huge help, even if the reduction won't necessarily blur the PDF print. 

 

I have an old trick... Since a PDF (printed by Chief) can be customized.  I made a custom 4" x 6" email size many years ago.

 

This way, the resolution can be in the 600 dpi range, and if a client or whomever is looking from an iPad, the results are super crisp. This also knocks the digital print down to a range where even a 40 or 50 pages set can be mailed.

 

This is with the full understanding that the receiving party won't be printing! Just viewing.   With the cost of prints these days at over $3.00 for a colored 24 x 36, most GC's and their subs just share via email, and use BlueRay to do take-offs. Even the 11 x 17 colored client prints are pricey. 

 

The paperless method also keeps Greta Thunberg happy. Thanks for the extra info... It's always a pleasure to keep gaining more perspective. I've been using Chief since 2000, but you can never learn enough. Thank you! 

[SHCanada2]

4 hours ago, VHampton said:

Even the 11 x 17 colored client prints are pricey. 

I picked up a used 11x17 xerox "phaser" printer for $200 after watching the used plotter market for awhile. The cartridges are a few hundred bucks, but at something like 6 000 pages per cartridge, I'm hoping I'll never actually have to buy  a cartridge. maybe by that time, I'll just buy another used printer