switching from revit to archicad

[Anonymous]

hi, i'm new to archicad... kinda. i used version 6 ages ago but have been using revit since 2006. i thought it would be a piece of cake getting back into archicad but find i'm mistaken. i've done the basic interactive training but have difficulty doing the exercises on my own. could be because i'm trying the same approach as in revit, which doesn't work, obviously.

anyone here made the switch? any tips on how to un-revit my thinking?

[Thomas Holm]

greenfin wrote:
all these combination clicks are so confusing but there's no other way around it i suppose.

There are (if you're using the default work environment). These commands are in the Edit menu. And also, most of them in the various pet palettes, or in the contextual (right-click) menu, or in command tool bars etc. You don't have to remember any keyboard shortcuts if you don't want to. But they do save time.

how do i edit in plan view one of the walls in a chain of walls?

Suspend Groups. (alt-G if you want one more of those keyboard shortcuts ) This toggle lets you edit part of a group without ungrouping it.

[Djordje]

greenfin wrote:
(how do you pronounce 'Djordje', btw? the Js like Y?)

Yep. Like Giorgio (the Italian version), only with e at the end, instead of o

greenfin wrote:
how do i edit in plan view one of the walls in a chain of walls? i can't seem to isolate it from the others. when i click on it, the whole chain gets selected. i've tried all the combination clicks, shift-, space-, ctr-, even tried F5. must i explode or ungroup them first?

Suspend groups. CTRL G, or turn the COntrol box on, and use it from there (see, another reason for the Control box!)

And ... Archicad does not have relationships in the Revit sense, so don't try to find them. However, graphically you can align anything to anything else, and the smart use of marquee does wonders.

Try to work in 3D as much as you can. Opens your eyes ... and makes you think around the corner.

[Anonymous]

can anyone point me to where i can find an archicad libary if such exists? i checked out the graphisoft site first thing but can't find anything. googling just led me back to the archicad talk forum from where i found the announcement that an ACE library is available for download but only for macs. the depository, which is a great idea does not really serve my purpose. i was thinking more of a comprehensive library like that at revit (see attached).

[Anonymous]

Djordje wrote:

greenfin wrote:
(how do you pronounce 'Djordje', btw? the Js like Y?)

Yep. Like Giorgio (the Italian version), only with e at the end, instead of o

so it's a variant of george but in what language do you spell it like that (djordje)? let me guess... scandinavian perhaps?

Djordje wrote:
Suspend groups. CTRL G, or turn the COntrol box on, and use it from there (see, another reason for the Control box!).

i tried that but discovered that what i really wanted was the marquee tool.

Djordje wrote:
And ... Archicad does not have relationships in the Revit sense, so don't try to find them. However, graphically you can align anything to anything else, and the smart use of marquee does wonders.

i'll try to remember that.

Djordje wrote:
Try to work in 3D as much as you can. Opens your eyes ... and makes you think around the corner.

yes, you never know what you'll find there.

[vistasp]

greenfin wrote:
...i found the announcement that an ACE library is available for download but only for macs...

There is a PC version also. You can get a link to the torrent from http://www.archicad.ca

[Thomas Holm]

greenfin wrote:
i was thinking more of a comprehensive library like that at revit (see attached).

Greenfin, the comprehensive Archicad 11 library is supposed to be installed with your default installation of Archicad. Is it loaded? Check your library manager.

Use the Object tool (Double-click Chair icon) to find objects and modify their parameters. (Doors and windows, also in the library, are accessed by their respective tools. Check the help file too.

If you want more, search this forum and Google for GDL objects.

[TMA_80]

Hello!

You could also check this link

[Anonymous]

Thomas wrote:
Greenfin, the comprehensive Archicad 11 library is supposed to be installed with your default installation of Archicad. Is it loaded? Check your library manager.

yes, it is.

Thomas wrote:
Use the Object tool (Double-click Chair icon) to find objects and modify their parameters. (Doors and windows, also in the library, are accessed by their respective tools. Check the help file too.

i did that, edited the parameters but i didn't see the 'style' part.

i was looking for a wooden panel door with an arched transom. in revit what you see is pretty much what you get. the parameters you can change are limited compared to archicad. but it's relatively easy to create your own door, or any component (object) for that matter, which leads me to my next question:

how do you create an object in archicad?

going back to the door, i could change the material of the door itself but not the transom (see attached). in the materials parameters, transom is not in the list and under the transom parameter, no material.

one other thing (see door elevation on right), because the transom is transparent you can see through it. i don't mind this in 3D but i don't want to see what's behind the facade in elevation view. can you specify the depth of the elevation or what you want to be visible?

[Laura Yanoviak]

greenfin wrote:
...can you specify the depth of the elevation or what you want to be visible?

Make sure Transparency is off (not checked) under the Model Display panel (Uncut Elements) of your Section/Elevation Marker.

[Laura Yanoviak]

greenfin wrote:
how do you create an object in archicad?

Download "Introduction to Object Making" from here, under ArchiCAD-related.

[Anonymous]

Laura wrote:

greenfin wrote:
...can you specify the depth of the elevation or what you want to be visible?

Make sure Transparency is off (not checked) under the Model Display panel (Uncut Elements) of your Section/Elevation Marker.

thanks, laura. i'll try that.

i took a look at the 'introduction to object making'. a bit overwhelming for me at this point. maybe when i've mastered the basics of archicad but thanks anyway.

[Anonymous]

anyone know how i can change the material of the transom (see previous attachment)?

[Laura Yanoviak]

greenfin wrote:
anyone know how i can change the material of the transom (see previous attachment)?

Assuming you are referring to "D1 Segmented Transom_OSL", the material of the perimeter of the transom seems to be controlled by the "Panel Material 1 Outside/Inside" and the intermediates by "Grill Material Outside/Inside".

[Djordje]

greenfin wrote:
so it's a variant of george but in what language do you spell it like that (djordje)? let me guess... scandinavian perhaps?

No, Serbian.

greenfin wrote:
yes, you never know what you'll find there.

There is always something else around the corner ...

[Anonymous]

the attached is a screenshot of two perspective views of the same project file (chapter 1 of basic e-guide). in the picture above notice that the walls are not connected but below they are. (the inset _from the navigator view map_ shows the two views.) why is this?

[Anonymous]

how do you make curtain walls in archicad? do you just change the wall settings, like the material to glass? how about adding mullions? these questions might sound odd to you but as a revit user, i've always just picked 'curtain wall' from the type selector and added the curtain grid and mullions graphically or picked 'storefront' with preset (editable) grid and mullions.

i did search for 'curtain wall' in archicad help but there was nothing there of any help to me. nothing on curtain walls in the reference guide either.

[Laura Yanoviak]

greenfin wrote:
how do you make curtain walls in archicad? do you just change the wall settings, like the material to glass? how about adding mullions? these questions might sound odd to you but as a revit user, i've always just picked 'curtain wall' from the type selector and added the curtain grid and mullions graphically or picked 'storefront' with preset (editable) grid and mullions.

i did search for 'curtain wall' in archicad help but there was nothing there of any help to me. nothing on curtain walls in the reference guide either.

AC12 has a new Curtain Wall Tool. In prior versions, we have used Storefront Windows. There are Curtain Wall Objects in the Library as well. For irregular shapes, we have resorted to "slabified" GDL Objects.

[Anonymous]

Laura wrote:
AC12 has a new Curtain Wall Tool. In prior versions, we have used Storefront Windows. There are Curtain Wall Objects in the Library as well. For irregular shapes, we have resorted to "slabified" GDL Objects.

good to know so i don't go looking for something that's not there. thanks again, laura.

i didn't find 'storefront windows' but i suppose any fixed window would do but being windows they'd require a host, in this case, a wall, no?

i did find the curtain wall objects but it seems you can only place them horizontally (or along the x-axis in plan view). i know you can rotate them but i find that extremely cumbersome. there must be another way of doing it.

[Anonymous]

Υou will not find storefront windows in international version of Archicad, only in the US.

[Anonymous]

oreopoulos wrote:
Υou will not find storefront windows in international version of Archicad, only in the US.

oh. that's very strange indeed. curtain walls have been around for decades and we (europeans, as well as the rest of the world) have been designing buildings with curtain walls all the time so how do archicad users get around this limitation?

[Anonymous]

practically till v12 is a fact, for complex configurations there was no solution. Probably the Wall Accessories Addon from cadimage would help but not a permanent solution