topic Re: Archicad 21 Template Conversion Issue in Project data & BIM

Archicad 21 Template Conversion Issue

Anonymous — Wed, 28 Jun 2017 12:20:57 GMT

Have some questions/issues with converting from Archicad 20 to 21.
What is the best way to transfer my working template/favorites from 20 to 21.
When I import the template to 21 and open the file, there some icons/items missing, i.e. the stair tool doesn't show up. when I open a file with the standard built in 21 template all the icons show up. Not sure if this is an issue anyone else is having?

Re: Archicad 21 Template Conversion Issue

Barry Kelly — Thu, 29 Jun 2017 01:11:10 GMT

The old stair tool from 20 and before is no more.
There is a new stair tool and railing tool.
You will have to add them to your tool bar and/or tool palette (and menus)by editing your Work Environment settings if you are not using the standard 21 work environments - i.e. you have your own custom Work Environment.

Also you must make sure that you load the 21 Graphisoft library as the stair and railing tools will not work properly without this library (or at least the macros part of it) loaded.

Barry.

Re: Archicad 21 Template Conversion Issue

Dave Jochum — Thu, 29 Jun 2017 05:00:34 GMT

It would be helpful if Graphisoft identified all the new tools, menu items, etc. in a simple list for each annual release so we could easily update our Work Environment. It's not that tough for us to figure out, but it would be very easy for them to provide.

Re: Archicad 21 Template Conversion Issue

David Maudlin — Thu, 29 Jun 2017 12:19:06 GMT

Dave:

It is sort of there: Work Environment > Command Layout Schemes > Toolbars and Menus > List: All new commands in alphabetic order.

David

Re: Archicad 21 Template Conversion Issue

Dave Jochum — Thu, 29 Jun 2017 15:54:29 GMT

David wrote:
Dave:

It is sort of there: Work Environment > Command Layout Schemes > Toolbars and Menus > List: All new commands in alphabetic order.

David

Excellent--thanks, David. I've never noticed that. Right in the WE ready for revision. Much better than a list.

Re: Archicad 21 Template Conversion Issue

Anonymous — Sun, 02 Jul 2017 23:26:36 GMT

Hi,
You may also want to check the short cut keys

Work Environment > Shortcut Schemes > Keyboard Shortcuts> List: All new commands in alphabetic order.
same list, but in the "Keyboard Shortcut Preview" at the bottom, with "Show Shortcut List in Browser"

I copy that from the browser into an excel spread sheet to identify any changes or added shortcut keys that may affect our company standards.

P.S.

I always build a new work environment in the new version of Archicad, adding the features that are standard to our workflow.
It is hard to identify the changes that might effect new tool usage until the software has been used for a while in the company,
so I always start from the Graphisoft base, and build a company specific tool bar that allows us to do our work faster, rather than trying to add in all the new features to an existing work environment.
also, changing the work environment too much makes it hard for someone to look something up in the Archicad Reference Guide, or to ask question online because i may not know about every feature that was available.
(I know the manual is now only 3380 pages now, but I may not get a chance to read it all before releasing a new template, lol)

Re: Archicad 21 Template Conversion Issue

Dave Jochum — Mon, 03 Jul 2017 16:37:53 GMT

allanp wrote:
Hi,
You may also want to check the short cut keys

Work Environment > Shortcut Schemes > Keyboard Shortcuts> List: All new commands in alphabetic order.
same list, but in the "Keyboard Shortcut Preview" at the bottom, with "Show Shortcut List in Browser"

I copy that from the browser into an excel spread sheet to identify any changes or added shortcut keys that may affect our company standards.

P.S.

I always build a new work environment in the new version of Archicad, adding the features that are standard to our workflow.
It is hard to identify the changes that might effect new tool usage until the software has been used for a while in the company,
so I always start from the Graphisoft base, and build a company specific tool bar that allows us to do our work faster, rather than trying to add in all the new features to an existing work environment.
also, changing the work environment too much makes it hard for someone to look something up in the Archicad Reference Guide, or to ask question online because i may not know about every feature that was available.
(I know the manual is now only 3380 pages now, but I may not get a chance to read it all before releasing a new template, lol)

Yes, I do the same--not just with the WE, but our entire project template. It's tedious. Just looking for a simpler, less time consuming solution.

Re: Archicad 21 Template Conversion Issue

Richard Morrison — Mon, 03 Jul 2017 16:59:18 GMT

Dave wrote:
Yes, I do the same--not just with the WE, but our entire project template. It's tedious. Just looking for a simpler, less time consuming solution.

1. Open your AC20 template in AC21.
2. Overwrite the AC20 Tool Schemes and Command Layout Schemes with the new AC21 Tool Schemes and Command Layout Schemes.
3. Modify WE as desired. Done.

Re: Archicad 21 Template Conversion Issue

Dave Jochum — Mon, 03 Jul 2017 17:06:14 GMT

Richard wrote:
Dave wrote:
Yes, I do the same--not just with the WE, but our entire project template. It's tedious. Just looking for a simpler, less time consuming solution.
1. Open your AC20 template in AC21.
2. Overwrite the AC20 Tool Schemes and Command Layout Schemes with the new AC21 Tool Schemes and Command Layout Schemes.
3. Modify WE as desired. Done.

Yes, Richard, correct. My "tedious" comment really related to the entire template revision process from version to version, of which WE update is a small part--and one of the simplest at that.

Re: Archicad 21 Template Conversion Issue

Richard Morrison — Mon, 03 Jul 2017 19:00:08 GMT

Dave,
So, unless you are trying to recreate the whole template from scratch (and why would you do that?), what are you finding to be so tedious?

Re: Archicad 21 Template Conversion Issue

Anonymous — Mon, 03 Jul 2017 22:49:20 GMT

Richard wrote:
Dave,
So, unless you are trying to recreate the whole template from scratch (and why would you do that?), what are you finding to be so tedious?

When you take over from people that don't know what they are doing you get...
Materials...
100 % 275581186
100 % 275581351
100 % 321500486
Empty 275581207
Empty 275581186
Empty 268702604
MISSING FILL 275581186
MISSING FILL 328060487
MISSING FILL 328060487 (1)
MISSING FILL 328060487 (2)
....
and Archicad 70 library parts all over,
(current work place)

or

somebody who believes that you should only use the first 8 pens and all the rest should be White, and then complains that the built in Archicad library doesn't work.
(previous work place)

or

a person believes that pen 91 should be grey, that you should not have fill ID 64 or 65 (they were deleted from the template) and then complains that you have to change the default background for all library parts, and the stair tool doesn't work.
(work place before that, way back in 2008)

Sometimes you need to sit down and rethink a template due to the changes.
Sometimes there are break points in templates, introduction of renovation filter broke our favorites for doors/windows.
Building materials made a mess of our wall priorities for composite walls due to the funny numbers being chosen...

Incremental changes are better, but with 80 level towers with 4/5 year life cycles, you cant change/upgrade jobs half way through documentation...and its difficult to get efficient work flow when you have too many different templates or ways of doing things...

I am currently rewriting an entire template from scratch for a building company, getting rid of as much legacy library parts as possible, picking real building products for materials and surfaces (real paints, not fake colors, real stones from suppliers etc...), getting rid of the 80 extra lines that have crept into the template over time, making it so they can use the standard Archicad library, as the pen set they were using was based on the Archicad 7 version,(or no new Stair and Rail Tool)...
Note...
Archicad 21 uses line ID-25 "Small Dashed" for overhead lines in the stair tool in the INT template... is that the same for other templates?
I see that its default in Stair Library Part Macros.

and with AC21 "SET BUILDING_MATERIAL" for library parts

Profile - request options
Request options have been added or enhanced to support profile data. See the the section called “Profile Requests” for more.
• Request("Name_of_Profile"): returns the profile name identified by index.
• Request("Profile_components"): returns number and component type of the profile identified by index.
• Request("Profile_default_boundingbox"): returns the 2 defining coordinate point of the original bounding rectangle.
• Request("Profile_default_geometry"): returns the original geometric data of the profile.
• Request{4}("Profile_component_info"): returns a requested attribute value of a dedicated component.

With work environments, my master EXCEL spreadsheet contains the list of tools i need to add to a work environment, it makes that bit fast after i have checked for conflicts.

now back to my fun job... 😉

Re: Archicad 21 Template Conversion Issue

Laura Yanoviak — Mon, 10 Jul 2017 18:46:16 GMT

Richard wrote:
1. Open your AC20 template in AC21.
2. Overwrite the AC20 Tool Schemes and Command Layout Schemes with the new AC21 Tool Schemes and Command Layout Schemes.
3. Modify WE as desired. Done.

I wish it was that simple -- that's the gist of it, unless you have Favorites, MVOs, Library Objects, etc. that have been affected by new features.

It was really fun last year when certain variables could no longer be used in Parameter Scripts -- a couple dozen of my custom Objects were broken. And they removed the User Defined parameters from the Door Objects and my door schedules were broken.

Re: Archicad 21 Template Conversion Issue

Dave Jochum — Mon, 10 Jul 2017 20:22:06 GMT

Laura wrote:
Richard wrote:
1. Open your AC20 template in AC21.
2. Overwrite the AC20 Tool Schemes and Command Layout Schemes with the new AC21 Tool Schemes and Command Layout Schemes.
3. Modify WE as desired. Done.
I wish it was that simple -- that's the gist of it, unless you have Favorites, MVOs, Library Objects, etc. that have been affected by new features.

It was really fun last year when certain variables could no longer be used in Parameter Scripts -- a couple dozen of my custom Objects were broken. And they removed the User Defined parameters from the Door Objects and my door schedules were broken.

Yes--exactly. How about when building material identification was changed? I've only just recovered from that one.