topic Re: TURN ON AND OFF LAYERS when plans are in layout book already in Documentation

TURN ON AND OFF LAYERS when plans are in layout book already

cocoloco — Wed, 27 Mar 2024 18:18:20 GMT

Like everyone else we have different layer set up for plumbing/electric/appliances etc... So we are placing into layouts the floor plan like 6x time. But first we have to turn on and off the layers and then place and make sure not to click side ways otherwise the view we saved previously will be removed ... It would be perfect if we can just import the view into layout, and then if we have to change the layers, we can do it there... and not going back and forward. Another thing that would save extreme time and be user-friendly...

Re: TURN ON AND OFF LAYERS when plans are in layout book already

Karl Ottenstein — Wed, 27 Mar 2024 22:03:59 GMT

I'm not following the way you explained the situation... it sounds like you are not using Views the way they are intended. It should never be necessary to turn layers on and off to see what you want to see... that is what Layer Combinations are for. Set them up once, and you're done. For each of these plans that you want - plumbing, electric, etc - you would have different Views saved in the View Map, each using the Layer Combination needed to show what you want. Finally, those Views are dragged onto the appropriate Layout sheets to create drawings.

If you discover something is not showing or is hidde, you would edit the Layer Combination that the View/Drawing is based on and all views and drawings using that combination would update. Being able to update the layer visibility of an individual drawing contents (view) would change the associated layer combination of the View to "Custom" which is never really guarantees what will be displayed (it might be consistent, it might not be). The settings for each View (again - every placed Drawing comes from a View) must "never" have "Missing" or "Custom" anywhere for reliable operation and output.

Re: TURN ON AND OFF LAYERS when plans are in layout book already

cocoloco — Wed, 27 Mar 2024 22:34:09 GMT

I do have layer combinations. My wish is I can switch them in layouts.

Re: TURN ON AND OFF LAYERS when plans are in layout book already

Karl Ottenstein — Wed, 27 Mar 2024 23:23:50 GMT

You can right click the placed drawing and select "Modify source View Settings" to change the layer combination. So, I'm not sure what more you would want to be able to do?

Re: TURN ON AND OFF LAYERS when plans are in layout book already

cocoloco — Thu, 28 Mar 2024 00:10:18 GMT

Let me try this again tomorrow. The thing is I have floor plan on 7 pages. The same angle of floor plan but want to use different layers set up view on each . So I placed the view on page 1. Then used copy paste for each page and at that time I was not able to adjust the layers setting on each page . I will try again tomorrow again and confirm.

Re: TURN ON AND OFF LAYERS when plans are in layout book already

rm — Thu, 28 Mar 2024 00:18:24 GMT

Karl explained it exactly as I would have in his first reply, which is the most efficient way to do what you are seeking to do. However, if you want to do it in a less effecient way, but still get the results you are requesting in the layout book, again Karl offers the correct procedure again.

Not surprising, he usually offers very practical solutions to questions asked, this is no acceptation.

You really are doing yourself a favor in saving view-sets prior to placing your desired drawings into a layout sheet.

Re: TURN ON AND OFF LAYERS when plans are in layout book already

Barry Kelly — Thu, 28 Mar 2024 00:43:44 GMT

To explain what Karl has told you a little more...

In the Navigator you have a 'Project map'.

In the project Map you have 'View Points' - only one for each storey (plan), elevation, section etc.

You can manually change the layer combination, scale, pen set, Graphic Override, etc. for these view points, but they will never remember the settings.

Then you have the "View Map' which is where you save 'Views' of the view points.

You can have multiple Views for each vie point, and they do remember the settings for the layer combination, scale, pen set, Graphic Override, etc.

So you can have a view for the floor plan, site plane, electrical plan, as many different views as you want.

You now place these Views on the Layouts as Drawings and they will remember the settings as stored in the Views.

If you need to update say the layers in a layer combination, you do that in the layer settings and all views using that combination will update automatically, and hence the layouts will update as well.

If you need to change the layer combination a view uses, then do that in the View Settings and again you layouts will update automatically to suit.

Barry.

Re: TURN ON AND OFF LAYERS when plans are in layout book already

Karl Ottenstein — Thu, 28 Mar 2024 01:27:08 GMT

@cocoloco wrote:

Let me try this again tomorrow. The thing is I have floor plan on 7 pages. The same angle of floor plan but want to use different layers set up view on each . So I placed the view on page 1. Then used copy paste for each page and at that time I was not able to adjust the layers setting on each page . I will try again tomorrow again and confirm.

The copy/paste is the problem ... if you work through what Barry, Robert and I have been saying... by copying and pasting a drawing on multiple sheets, that drawing will always be the same because each drawing is linked to the same source view. If you change the source view for the drawing, it will change all 7 placed drawings.

What you want (wanted) to do is to create 7 different views of the floor plan ... where each view has a different layer combination, model view options etc etc... and then place each of those 7 views on the layouts (or relink placed drawings back to the proper views).

This is the most fundamental aspect of using Archicad to produce documentation and I encourage you to read more, and ask more questions until you understand view point -> view -> drawing completely with no doubts, no mystery. Any less than 100% understanding will lead to problems in your documents.

Re: TURN ON AND OFF LAYERS when plans are in layout book already

cocoloco — Thu, 28 Mar 2024 02:55:06 GMT

I am aware and Berry is right. But my wish is to make it less time consuming and be able to do it in layouts if I make any mistake and also to maintain easily THE SAME angle because otherwise I have to redo and make sure to capture the same angle (again loosing time). I don’t know why I get so much backlash for wanting this feature. All I wished is to ask for this not sure why I get so much backlash with “workarounds”. Not everyone wants workarounds but wants flexibility.

Re: TURN ON AND OFF LAYERS when plans are in layout book already

cocoloco — Thu, 28 Mar 2024 03:02:05 GMT

Ok will do tomorrow once I work in archicad again baby steps. Thank you.

Re: TURN ON AND OFF LAYERS when plans are in layout book already

rm — Thu, 28 Mar 2024 03:37:46 GMT

Both Karl and Barry did not offer "workarounds", they offered the correct technique for placing drawing views into layouts. Not saying your intended way is necessarily wrong. But you are actually trying to do something that I believe you think is a more efficient way to work, but 3 different experienced AC users are pointing you the correct technique. I don't read anyone giving you backlash on this, rather they took time to help you work smarter.

I hope that helps you understand the reasoning for the replies offered.

Re: TURN ON AND OFF LAYERS when plans are in layout book already

Barry Kelly — Thu, 28 Mar 2024 03:49:19 GMT

It is not backlash.

We are just explaining how you should be doing it.

You do not place a view and then copy it to different layout pages and then try to change the view settings.

You create different views and each view has its own settings.

You then place each view once on each layout - a different view on each layout.

If you want it in exactly the same position, use the trace and reference feature to line them up.

Or place a hotspot on a layout and copy and paste that to the other layouts.

I am not sure what you mean by the 'same angle' or 'capturing the same angle'.

You were talking about floor plans (electrical, plumbing, etc.).

Or are you talking about 3D views?

Barry.

Re: TURN ON AND OFF LAYERS when plans are in layout book already

cocoloco — Thu, 28 Mar 2024 16:46:58 GMT

Yes, sorry, floor plan.

Let me back up. Before you place floor plan on layout through "Save view & place on layout". Is there a way to specifically choose part of floor plan that will be saved on the layout? For example, I thought (and hope) originally that the "marquee" tool would be for it, but I tested it and does not work. When I click on save view & place on layout, archicad just take whatever is on my screen and then I have to crop it, and that I guess is the bottom of my issue - if I am using 5 different layouts for same floor plan (different layer settings), why do I have to crop it 5 times for each layout (hence my test with copy paste) just to make a same look.

Do you save your floor plans just by "save view & place on layout" or do you have any tool to pre-select what you want on the layout exactly (like marquee but the marquee aparently isn't for this)?

Would the hotspot on a layout + copy paste be a solution ?

Re: TURN ON AND OFF LAYERS when plans are in layout book already

Barry Kelly — Tue, 02 Apr 2024 02:33:27 GMT

I rarely use 'save view and place on layout' because my template has most of the views already set up.

If you have an existing view, you can just drag it to a layout.

Generally if I need to save a new view I will do just that by dragging from the Project Map to View Map with the settings I want in the Organiser.

Then I drag from the View Map to the layout I want it on.

Save view and place on layout works just fine, but you may want to move the view in the view map and I am pretty sure it will just go o the last layout page you have open, so you may need to move it there as well.

As for cropping, yes you have to do that manually for each view you want to place.

Placing a marquee, then save and place on layout will not work, but would be nice if it did.

You can copy and paste the views and then re-link them from one view to another and they will remember the cropping.

Another way to control it is to create worksheets for specific areas of your plan.

Then save those as views and place on the layout.

They will show what you have set up in the worksheet.

I don't like worksheets as they are not live views of the plan.

Barry.