topic Welcome in Archicad C++ API

Welcome

Karl Ottenstein — Tue, 17 Sep 2024 11:57:55 GMT

I may not be the proper person to say "welcome", but I'm here first! 😉

I very much appreciate that GS has created this private forum to discuss API wishes with respect to future product design specifications. Thank you Akos and all concerned.

I am assuming that anything posted to this forum is intended to be Graphisoft Confidential unless someone from HQ advises us otherwise. Any standard wishes and comments on the API should IMHO still go to the public Developer Forum. Akos or someone else will perhaps lay out more specific ground rules. I of course have no authority and am just a guest here! 😉

I have only vague thoughts at the moment as the Nautilus requirements and specifications are only now being firmed up and what was once a clear vision there has become a bit cloudy for me.

There are so many new features planned for Nautilus, that I thought we might have a discussion here of the priority of usefulness of certain data items and automation items to API developers since symmetric access to all features is unlikely given that we don't have such access today to the features and data of 9.

My thought is that we might help prioritize those things planned for 10 that would be of most use to API developers ... and of course include in that ordered list things from 9 as well that we would like access to. This list may not match with that of GS themselves, since they use the API to develop many standard add-ons, but the feedback might be useful to them.

I'm reluctant to begin mentioning specific features since I'm not sure if all of us are covered under a Graphisoft NDA. I'll wait for someone from GSHQ to say if we can talk freely.

Best regards to all, and thanks again to Akos and others for giving us the opportunity to provide input.

Karl

Re: Welcome

Djordje — Fri, 11 Feb 2005 06:58:21 GMT

I am second - not that my expertise in API extends beyond nagging that this and that does not work 😉

What is primary for me as a user for Nautilus is to get the existing APIs that have been known to be buggy, and are mostly living under the Extras menu, work properly and fully.

Should I mention Interior elevations?

Also, what is the planned implementation of API in the PlotMaker module - or Layout space, or whatever it will be called now - for Nautilus, if any?

Many questions ...

Now, for the moderating: I feel that the discussion here should be under the Nautilus NDA, meaning that no information goes to the rest of the Talk.

Hm?

Re: Welcome

Karl Ottenstein — Fri, 11 Feb 2005 15:56:29 GMT

Djordje wrote:
Now, for the moderating: I feel that the discussion here should be under the Nautilus NDA, meaning that no information goes to the rest of the Talk.

Hm?

Exactly my question... and hence whether every non-GS person here (and to be invited) is covered by the Nautilus (or more general GS) NDA? I am reluctant to mention Nautilus themes ... including layout mode ... until this is clarified for us by someone from GS. 😉

Karl

Re: Welcome

Oleg — Fri, 11 Feb 2005 16:43:43 GMT

I did not sign the GS NDA and I nothing know about Nautilus.
Probably a righ person should remove me from this discussion if it is an issue or violates GS policy.

Re: Welcome

Fabrizio Diodati — Fri, 11 Feb 2005 18:52:05 GMT

Hi friends,

sorry but I have the same bad feeling of Oleg and, sorry for this, what is worst is that I am one of the older GS Distributor (last year we was the FIRST GS Distributors in the Distributor prize) and with our 28000 add-ons sold all over the world maybe not the first but at least on of the main Third Party Developers.
So when yesterday night I checked my e-mail and I found the kind e-mail from Karl I’ve been in the same time very happy for Karl friendship and esteem and quite angry for the GS behaviour that is and has been the same in these last years… I have to say thanks to Karl to be there (!).

I “officially” don’t know anything about Nautilus or not so much to make questions or to say something of enough smart…

Just a bit sadder…

Friendly
Fabrizio

Re: Welcome

Karl Ottenstein — Sat, 12 Feb 2005 03:19:55 GMT

Dear friends,

I would like Oleg to be able to stay (and for a few others to join), and I sympathize with Fabrizio's comments!

We will have to wait for a GSHQ response, and perhaps I should write offline in case our friends there are not reading this forum yet. But, I think the active 3rd party developers should be informed of the future AC plans now, prior to alpha or beta testing.

Let's see how this plays out ... hopefully the requirements and specifications, when ready, can be available with a non-disclosure agreement. Tom, Djordje and I (as well as the GS team) could describe some of the plans as we see that they may relate to API development.

The 3rd party developers are a valuable asset to Graphisoft and enhance the appeal of the product by providing additional functionality. Partnering along with forward-looking plans allows 3rd parties to not just update existing plug-ins for 10 and later versions, but to provide new solutions in a timely manner after the release date (and release of final API).

By having 3rd parties participate here, presented with knowlege of Nautilus, wishes can be made for API functionality to support anticipated future plug-ins (or proper functionality of old ones in the new work environment), thus helping the development department to prioritize what is included in the API and to schedule their workload.

This provides gratitude, respect and opportunity to the 3rd parties who have helped to build the AC customer base, and provides valuable feedback and direction to GS product development and marketing.

Of course, if resources were unlimited, the API would provide symmetric access to every feature in AC and to all standard plug-ins and we would not need this discussion. But, we live in reality! 😉

So, please stay, Fabrizio and Oleg, until we sort this out. (In fact, you can't really leave anyway! ... the forum-master would have to remove you.)

Best regards,
Karl

Re: Welcome

Fabrizio Diodati — Sat, 12 Feb 2005 13:41:44 GMT

Thanks Karl,

you know that I'm not so "bad"... so I will stay, at least for you.
But once again, your kind words (that really make sense from my point of view and sound like some statements made by myself several time in Budapest) should be GS words (not because you are not important or smart but just because you are not GS)... But ok, as you said, we live in reality!

Friendly
Fabrizio

Re: Welcome

Fabrizio Diodati — Wed, 16 Feb 2005 22:54:03 GMT

Maybe I misunderstood this forum but... is it alive?

sadder and sadder
friendly
Fabrizio

Re: Welcome

Djordje — Fri, 18 Feb 2005 10:05:41 GMT

Fabrizio wrote:
Maybe I misunderstood this forum but... is it alive?

It is; however, there is STILL no response from the powers that be.

So, either me and Karl breach the NDA by discussing things here with you guys who know more about APIs than I (of course!) or GS chimes in?

HELOOOO????

Re: Welcome

Fabrizio Diodati — Fri, 18 Feb 2005 10:12:31 GMT

Following Kark's kind suggestion, I already accepted to sign any existent NDA (also if probably I already signed it somewhere...) and I sent GS this request... but I'm still waiting for an answer!

I still continue to don't understand....

Friendly,
Fabrizio

Re: Welcome

Akos Pfemeter — Fri, 18 Feb 2005 10:43:10 GMT

Dear All,

Naturally also GS wants Fabrizio and Oleg to stay. Oleg will be sent an NDA in the coming days, which he will need to sign and send back. Otherwise I don't want to invite too many developers here. They can express their wishes on the public forum, which then this closed group can discuss having more insight about the topic. By the way in proper time we will provide you with sufficient information on the next main version of ArchiCAD.
Thanks for all of you for your time and commitment.

Re: Welcome

Fabrizio Diodati — Fri, 18 Feb 2005 14:47:37 GMT

Thanks Akos,

once again the final answer (or at least an answer!) comes from you...
Let me say you are very precious for us: when you are involved on a matter for sure all the communication (and solution) speed up!

Friendly
Fabrizio

Re: Welcome

Karl Ottenstein — Sat, 19 Feb 2005 04:41:52 GMT

I quite agree, Fabrizio: Akos is our master of making things happen. 😉

Djordje's and Akos' comments are my understanding, too: we are waiting for the NDA thing to be resolved and then will start talking! 😉

I'm traveling until next Thursday and happen to be in a hotel with internet at the moment, but will be off-line after tonight. Look forward to being able to talk about things when I get back if the NDA is in place then.

Sorry for any confusion! I am nevertheless very impressed and grateful at how quickly Akos and company set up this infrastructure for us to talk!! 🙂

Karl

Re: Welcome

Oleg — Mon, 21 Feb 2005 08:21:37 GMT

Akos wrote:
Dear All,
Naturally also GS wants Fabrizio and Oleg to stay. Oleg will be sent an NDA in the coming days, which he will need to sign and send back.

I think there is an easy solution. As others already have signed NDA, just remove me from this discussion for while, so you can to start. When (or if) I will sign the NDA I can to read threads.

Re: Welcome

Fabrizio Diodati — Mon, 21 Feb 2005 08:39:05 GMT

Oleg,

I really think, and suggest, that we can wait for you!
Don't worry, starting without a valuable member like you should be a pity!

Friendly,
Fabrizio

Re: Welcome

Djordje — Sun, 27 Feb 2005 16:43:12 GMT

So?

The silence is deafening!

Re: Welcome

Karl Ottenstein — Sun, 27 Feb 2005 21:39:53 GMT

Djordje wrote:
The silence is deafening!

Yes, I thought this NDA thing would be resolved while I was traveling. But, I suppose we all have lots of real work, so can wait for our friends at GSHQ to resolve the legal issues. 😉

Karl