BIMx
About BIMx (mobile, web and desktop), connection to BIMcloud, and related technical questions.

Why Bimx in Windows System don't have 3D cutplane

Anonymous
Not applicable
In android mobile/tablet, the model could be viewed with 3D cutplane. It's so strange this function could not be found in Bimx for windows system.
10 REPLIES 10
ryancjw
Newcomer
i think the cut-plane function is on BIMx tablet only.
Perhaps you could include this function in the wishlist for desktop version.
Ryan Wu
Desktop: DELL Vostro 460, Intel i7-2600 8GB RAM
AMD Radeon HD6670
Windows 7 Professional 64 SP1
Laptop: ASUS 56V, Intel i7 3610QM 8GB
NVIDIA GeForce GT 650M
Windows 7 Home Premium 64 SP1
Anonymous
Not applicable
I am very disappointed that there is no BIMx app for the Windows 8 tablets.
Running the BIMx viewer in windows does not compare to running the App as on Ipad or Android.
I want to be able to run ArchiCAD from my Windows 8 tablet (which I can) and then be able to show a client the BIMx model on the same tablet device.

Using the BIMx viewer is nowhere near as user-friendly as the App version and has limitations e.g 3D cutplane
Now with the release of the new BIMx Docs version, this is awesome but only available for Mac.

Graphisoft please make a Windows 8 BIMx app.
Laszlo Nagy
Community Admin
Community Admin
Toward the bottom of this page it says that Android version is coming in 2014:

http://www.graphisoft.com/bimx/
Loving Archicad since 1995 - Find Archicad Tips at x.com/laszlonagy
AMD Ryzen9 5900X CPU, 64 GB RAM 3600 MHz, Nvidia GTX 1060 6GB, 500 GB NVMe SSD
2x28" (2560x1440), Windows 10 PRO ENG, Ac20-Ac27
laszlonagy wrote:
Toward the bottom of this page it says that Android version is coming in 2014:

http://www.graphisoft.com/bimx/
Again, I could be wrong, but I believe his concern wouldn't be addressed with an Android version anyway.
Android is a separate OS platform from Windows 8 RT or Pro. Windows have their own OS from for tablets, which, I'm not sure if it's capable of opening regular Android Apps and files.
I know the desktop version (of Windows) doesn't open them (.APK's or .BIMX).

Which goes back to the point of why there would be no capability of using Hypermodels on the desktop viewer because Windows 8 Pro (for Surface Pro Tablets - which is what I believe he uses) opens regular Windows programs and files just fine on the Surface Pro Tablet.

But with no desktop version for the BIMx Hypermodel viewer, Windows Surface (RT or Pro) tablet users are stuck in a no-man's land as far as using or viewing BIMx Hypermodels regardless of Android availability.
Despite the fact that they will be able to generate and produce those same models from within ArchiCAD (also running on those same Surface Pro tablets.)
Anonymous
Not applicable
Thanks Clarence, you are right my problem is not related to the Android version.
What we need is an App version that would run on a touch screen Windows 8 tablet device such as a Surface Pro or Sony Vaio (there are many on the market these days).

The desktop BIMx version works on my Windows 8 tablet device but does not have the touch screen interactivity such as the BIMx App version on an Ipad, making it very cumbersome to use. Also I cannot run a BIMx Docs version on the desktop version.

Graphisoft please put this on your wishlist as it affects our business and probably others.
I am sure you are thinking why now just buy an Ipad. We did look at this originally but we need a mobile tablet device that can run all our applications on our windows network and the Ipad cannot achieve this. The Windows 8 tablet ticks all the box's except a suitable BIMx solution.
Wokka
Contributor
Wow! I can't believe you can't run BimX on a Windows 8 tablet! Thats really ridiculous. Currently notebook pc with touchscreen has approx. 10% and is expected to grow to about 40% by 2017. I just purchased a Vaio for remote work and Bimx for clients. Is there no way to run a Bimx file?

refer (http://betanews.com/2013/11/27/touchscreen-notebooks-increase-in-popularity-but-why-why-why/)
Warwick Lloyd-Martin
3 D E N V I R O N M E N T
http://www.3de.com.au
Windows 11 Pro 64bit
ArchiCad 4.55>27 AUS
Lumion 12.5/2023
D5 Render
Wokka wrote:
Wow! I can't believe you can't run BimX on a Windows 8 tablet! Thats really ridiculous. Currently notebook pc with touchscreen has approx. 10% and is expected to grow to about 40% by 2017. I just purchased a Vaio for remote work and Bimx for clients. Is there no way to run a Bimx file?

refer (http://betanews.com/2013/11/27/touchscreen-notebooks-increase-in-popularity-but-why-why-why/)

Theoretically one should be able to run BIMx (The Desktop version) on an Surface Pro or a Tablet that runs Windows 8 Pro (not the table version which I believe they discontinued).

But I suspect you wouldn't be able to control it with the same ease as with the Android version or on the iPad, since Graphisoft haven't customized or re-purposed it for touch control.
I've always been curious about it since I think my next tablet might in fact be a Windows 8 tablet, and given the fact that a lot of notebooks and ultrabooks these days are coming with either Touchscreen functionality or are transformable into tablets.

Yes, it's a little ridiculous that there's no dedicated Windows 8 tablet version for BIMx, (much less BIMx Docs which isn't coming at all), but what are you going to do?
Wokka
Contributor
Bricklyne wrote:
Wokka wrote:
Wow! I can't believe you can't run BimX on a Windows 8 tablet! Thats really ridiculous. Currently notebook pc with touchscreen has approx. 10% and is expected to grow to about 40% by 2017. I just purchased a Vaio for remote work and Bimx for clients. Is there no way to run a Bimx file?

refer (http://betanews.com/2013/11/27/touchscreen-notebooks-increase-in-popularity-but-why-why-why/)

Theoretically one should be able to run BIMx (The Desktop version) on an Surface Pro or a Tablet that runs Windows 8 Pro (not the table version which I believe they discontinued).

But I suspect you wouldn't be able to control it with the same ease as with the Android version or on the iPad, since Graphisoft haven't customized or re-purposed it for touch control.
I've always been curious about it since I think my next tablet might in fact be a Windows 8 tablet, and given the fact that a lot of notebooks and ultrabooks these days are coming with either Touchscreen functionality or are transformable into tablets.

Yes, it's a little ridiculous that there's no dedicated Windows 8 tablet version for BIMx, (much less BIMx Docs which isn't coming at all), but what are you going to do?
Further to this, though I'll be doing some more experiments this weekend, if I plug in another monitor, BimX will play, but only on the attached monitor, not the touch screen... I wouldn't mind even just displaying on the notebooks screen if I need to use a mouse and disable the touch screen functionality...
More to follow I'm sure.....
Warwick Lloyd-Martin
3 D E N V I R O N M E N T
http://www.3de.com.au
Windows 11 Pro 64bit
ArchiCad 4.55>27 AUS
Lumion 12.5/2023
D5 Render
Anonymous
Not applicable
For anyone finding this thread looking for how to run the BIMx Desktop Viewer on a Microsoft Surface Pro:

We tried to run the BIMx viewer on a Microsoft Surface Pro 3. The viewer software installed without problem, but would not run. The cursor would change to indicate activity but the viewer nor the model ever appeared on screen. Graphisoft Tech Support provided the following solution of putting BIMx Viewer in Windowed mode which fixed the problem for us, and allowed us to bring up the model and navigate it normally, with a mouse and keyboard. The model is not setup for the Surface touch screen, and while it responds, it's impossible to navigate effectively.

To put BIMx in Windowed Mode:
  • * Please start regedit.exe (you can search for that http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-8/search-apps-files-settings) and inside the registry editor please follow the settings in the attachment.

    * HKEY Current User > Software > Graphisoft > BIMx

    * Edit the Windowed entry Value, and change from 0 to 1.

    * Close regedit. Restart BIMx viewer or open an BIMx model. The viewer should come up in a window which can be full screened or minimized just like any other windowed application.
Hope this helps someone else with this problem.
BIMx windowed mode.png