13 and library handling question

[Anonymous]

Hi all

I just picked a little bit out of comment Fabrizio made in another thread regarding 13 and the way it handles libraries! I was just wondering if anyone involved in Beta testing or anyone using it already can tell me if this is going to cause any dramas?
Even if it is as minute as reselecting the library path at load up!

[Ben Cohen]

Kristian wrote:
Even if it is as minute as reselecting the library path at load up!

Hi Kristian

The new library manager is a definite step backwards. As stated by someone, there is now no history tab, so your users will have to fish around the file system with many clicks to load your new ArchiCAD 13 libraries. You can (on the Mac) now drag and drop the library folder on to the new library manager, but it will not work with a shortcut/alias which means the user will have to navigate to the libraries on the server and then again on their machine to relink your 12 projects to the new 13 libraries.
Then if you are opening a library part from the file system there are additional clicks needed to go to the currently linked libraries. If you are doing a lot of GDL this is a pain.
There are now linked and embedded library parts. For larger offices like ours that will never use embedded library parts because all objects are made by the CAD manager, the whole thing is a pain.

[Anonymous]

Ahhh sh*t! That really isn't what I wanted to hear mate!!
I kind of had a feeling with the talk of history being nixed that there would be issues! I knew it wouldn't be an all positive upgrade!!
Oh well I guess I'll just have to wait a couple weeks then test it and see how bad it really is!

Thanks for the heads up though Ben!

[Piotr Dobrowolski]

Ben wrote:
You can (on the Mac) now drag and drop the library folder on to the new library manager, but it will not work with a shortcut/alias which means....

On PC it works too (it was working with the old lib manager).
And shortcuts work too - but they have to be inside the folder that is loaded as a library.

Best Regards,
Piotr

[Greg Kmethy]

Dear talkers,

Just wanted to share this link with you:
http://archicadwiki.com/Teamwork/ManageLibrary

This is where we collect all the Library-related questions in AC 13 Teamwork.
One important note: If you work in Teamwork, you must embed objects created by Add-ons, like stairs and trusses. Otherwise you will not be able to edit these.

[Ben Cohen]

thanks for the link Greg, very interesting reading.... a whole new methodology

So it seems we should be now looking at using BIM Server libraries instead of loading libraries direct from the server. This should reduce our network traffic considerably, as well as speed up ArchiCAD. I will do some testing and post the results.

but please bring back the library manager history

[Laszlo Nagy]

Ben wrote:
but please bring back the library manager history

Ben,
Make a wish, I will vote essential!

[Ben Cohen]

OK, first impressions are very positive. A bit of background.... we have about 25 licenses scattered over 3 connected networks, all run from a massive network rack running Exchange Server, VMware and Netbox. We currently keep our libraries on the server and they are loaded directly, which means everytime a user opens ArchiCAD the libraries are loaded from the server. I know that loading the libraries on the c: drive of each machine will result in better performance but I much prefer the convenience of everyone loading the exact same library. (I have looked into sync software but nothing seemed suitable) I also use a Mac and I have the only Mac among 100+ machines, currently my only problem has been opening projects, the libraries look for a PC file path but ArchiCAD on the Mac wants a Mac file path and I need to point to the correct library everytime I load a project. (I often boot windows for template and other serious work)

1. Installation of BIM server. Easy
2. Discovery of BIM Server from AC 13 was problematic, I eventually needed to reboot the server box. Bridging the networks was the problem I think
3. BIM manager is very nice, works the same for Mac and PC.
4. Loaded the company library on to the BIM server. Local machines then sync the library with server. Everything works as expected.

Conclusion.
Pros. I originally thought the BIM server was only required for teamwork projects. But on closer inspection it will benefit those in large companies, doing small projects. Two issues have been resolved for us. A - The benefits of keeping company libraries on the local machine can be realized but without the synchronization issues B - Mac and PC File path issues for the libraries are now removed. (I haven't looked into hotlinks but I think they remain the same.)
Cons. No library manager history. When you have literally hundreds of models to manage, the laborious job of relinking libraries from one version of ArchiCAD to another was somewhat relieved by the library manager history. It will be nice to see it come back (I think libraries can be loaded through the API - seems that maybe another option but above my current API skill level)

[Erika Epstein]

Ben wrote:
Cons. No library manager history. When you have literally hundreds of models to manage, the laborious job of relinking libraries from one version of ArchiCAD to another was somewhat relieved by the library manager history. It will be nice to see it come back (I think libraries can be loaded through the API - seems that maybe another option but above my current API skill level)

We asked for this in the beta.

[Dennis Lee]

I have the company library uploaded to the bim server, and everything is fine. Until I had to make a 2D custom object, and save it to the company library.

I opened the bim server library manager, and clicked refresh, and it will not refresh, even though there is a new object.

I tried the RELOCATE button and click the folder (which didn't move), and it refreshes.

Is this a bug?

[Steve Jepson]

I am having all sorts of trouble trying to get my MEP library in to a TeamWork file. I have tried more ways than I care to list here and I can't do it. No wonder libraries won't load properly. These are not library file types.




The .lcf files I am trying to load don't show up even though the file is located here on the desktop.