We are a small architecture company working in Italy. We have mac computers, so to have a BIM software, we have to use AC.
I have to say, I like the software (I have about 10 years experience with Autocad and I'd never go back), but I cannot accept that GS doesn't address the serious problems that this program has:
Do we want to talk about the Stairmaker??? Really, Graphisoft??? Do you call it a professional tool? Do you expect people to work with it???
Now, before trying to export the BIM model to any consultant software on the planet, WHY DONT YOU FIX THE OLD RIDICULOUS PROBLEMS OF ARCHICAD?
...in other words: why does anyone from GS read this forum? Maybe not the CEO. Maybe just the GS mailman. He could read this, and in the morning, taking the mail to the CEO, he could say funny...
Just try and imagine them:
- "Mr Jack", CEO of Graphisoft, 45 years old, from somewhere around the world, somewhere more expensive than you think. Tall, handsome guy. Elegant. Black five degrees at Harvard, could not get the sixth one because of a witty joke he made about the Dean. Loves dogs too.
- "Joe", GS mailman. 64 years old, from Budapest. Job: picks up the mail, takes it to your desk. The mailman. He also happens to read this forum, from time to time.
I'd expect them to be something like:
---- IMAGINARY CONVERSATION BETWEEN GS CEO AND HIS MAILMAN: ----
Mailman Joe: "good morning Mr Jack"
Mr Jack "hey, Joe, it was about time ! Anything good in the news?"
Mailman Joe "not much Mr Jack. They're trying to drop some concrete to stuff up that damn oil leak down in the Mexican gulf"
Mr Jack "Ah, those silly ones! They really cannot do their jobs! What idiots they must be..."
Mailman Joe " Well I guess you're right, Mr Jack: they say, they tried to stop that leak for the last month or so"
Mr Jack " you're right, Joe. They had no clue how to stop that! They were even taking suggestions about what to do from some random people on the internet!"
Mailman Joe "And were they right?"
Mr Jack "who was right?"
Mailman Joe "I mean, the people on the internet?"
Mr Jack "Oh, Joe, Joe... You know you cannot take suggestion from people from the internet! How silly would that be? Can You imagine? Can you imagine if we at Graphisoft had an email address or something like that, and anyone could write to us all the time?"
Mailman Joe "Well, I don't know"
Mr Jack "Can you imagine that? Who would write to us? You, Joe? Would you write to us?"
Mailman Joe "I don't know, Mr Jack"
Mr Jack "Come on, Joe. Just imagine: what use would that be? What would you write to us? That the pizza guy is at the door? That the weather in Budapest sucks?"
Mailman Joe "I guess not. I would not write that"
Mr Jack "Then what would you write us? What could someone write to GS? We don't do love matchings or other housewife stuff"
Mailman Joe "I know you don't, Mr Jack"
Mr Jack "Do you even know what we do here at Graphisoft, Joe"
Mailman Joe "Yes I do know what you do here at GS, Mr Jack"
Mr Jack "And what do we do, Joe?"
Mailman Joe " Ehm, maybe you're right, Mr Jack, maybe I don't know what you do here at GS... But I know your Stairmaker sucks!"
Mr Jack "EXCUSE ME, JOE???"
Mailman Joe "I don't know. I'm sorry, Mr Jack, I didn't mean to say that. It's just..."
Mr Jack "It's just what, Joe?? Speak!"
Mailman Joe "It's just... I don't know... All those posts! All those people speaking about it. For years now... And a lot of bad words with it too, Mr Jack!"
Mr Jack "What are you talking about?"
Mailman Joe "Well, you know, on the forum. And it's been like that since years! Since I started to read it. I mean, they say a lot of things in that forum of yours, but the Stairmaker one I remember, I'm sure!"
Mr Jack "A forum? What forum?"
Mailman Joe "But Mr Jack... YOUR GRAPHISOFT FORUM"
Mr Jack "...a Graphisoft Forum???"
Mailman Joe "Yes! And they talk about the stuff that you do. They use it every day, you know? Some of them have been using it since the very beginning. Since the time when the GS CEO was Mr Pong, who passed away... Poor guy that Mr Pong..."
Mr Jack "He didn't pass away. Anyway, what do these people say???"
Mailman Joe "A lot of things, Mr Jack, a LOT of things. Even about you and GS..."
Mr Jack "How can they? They don't know me!"
Mailman Joe "They know you and GS, Mr Jack. It's you and GS: you just have no idea who they are!"
Mr Jack "But what do they say??? What do they think of our next new release? What about AC14???"
Mailman Joe "well, Mr Jack, I don't know what to say... They've been talking about it since some of your guy around here published some videos on youtube... They were not very happy with that. And now you published the official presentation movies on your website, and there's a lot of people pissed off about it!"
Mr Jack "What?? Why?"
Mailman Joe "Well, you know, it's just people on the internet... What do they know, after all! They just use your thing, AC or whatever it is, they use it every day. Since years"
Mr Jack "They've been using it since years! they must love it!"
Mailman Joe "I can say, most of them like it. But you never fix the old problems, Mr Jack! Do you know how many times I heard that your Stairmaker sucks?"
Mr Jack "Oh what do you know! What do they say about AC14???"
Mailman Joe "Well, a lot of them say it's useless, Mr Jack"
Mr Jack "What??? We dedicated the last 9 months of our work to it!"
Mailman Joe "But why did you not fix the Stairmaker problem? Do you know how many people have to use it every day? Why did you have to do all that mess about MEP, HVAC, WHAT T FKK, all those acronims! Do people really use all that? Don't you know that small design companies exchange data with small engineering practices, and small engineering practices only use Autocad in 2D???"
Mr Jack "since when do you talk like that, Joe???"
Mailman Joe "Since I've been reading you mail, Mr Jack. Don't you know that the world was designed in Autocad 2D, and most consultants still use it?? Do you think you're going to make small companies happy, with this AC14 release?? And what are you waiting for to release a 64bit version for Mac? Is this just one more trick to force people into updating to AC15 in 6 months time? Will the Stairmaker be fixed by then? Will you have issued a calculate menu for the 21st century to replace this one, that works with Roman numbers??? What about the Mac user interface??"
Mr Jack "People aren't forced to use macs. If they want to use macs, they have to accept little issues"
Mailman Joe "Maybe so, Mr Jack, but you also have to accept that as soon as another BIM software is issued for mac, you'll lose a lot of users. You're going down, Mr Jack!"
Mr Jack "How do you dare, mailman!"
Mailman Joe "Oh, shut up! You're going down and you know it! If you were interested in improving AC, you'd be reading your own forum! Instead, you play all IFC-friendly, god knows what that means! You think you're better than me because I'm a simple mailman. Let me tell you, Mr Jack: how many engineers do you need to fix that Stairmaker? How many years of knowledge, resources, investment are you putting into solving this ridiculous problem?
Mr Jack "You're fired, Joe, get the hell out of here!"
Mailman Joe "Oh, I'm going, Mr Jack: I'll leave you right here with your rotting company going down the drain. I know I'll find you still here in ten years, maybe with some minor features in yor ArchiCAD 24, like "customizable cursor shape" or a "complete GDL gallery of 3D vegetable garden plants" and other brilliant ideas like that, but with the same old software, the ancient problems, and with the same old feces version of Stairmaker that won't allow people to put two steps together!!!
