Check Markers Palette

[Laura Yanoviak]

Has anyone used this new function much? I'm totally confused by the Reference Guide (as well as the ArchicadWiki article). According to the manual, "The palette lists all the markers in the project which the user has automatically or manually linked a viewpoint, drawing or view, but whose referred viewpoint/drawing/view has since been deleted from this project."

First of all, if a Viewpoint has been deleted, there is no Marker.
Secondly, if a Marker is not associated with a Viewpoint, then it references a Drawing (be it "The selected drawing" or "The first placed drawing of..."). So, if a Marker is indeed "defined", it still shows up in the list if it is not associated with a placed Drawing.

So, as I understand it, the palette checks to see if Markers are referencing placed Drawings -- "Viewpoints" and "Views" are irrelevant.

[__archiben]

Laura wrote:
First of all, if a Viewpoint has been deleted, there is no Marker.

not really - a marker can exist independently to viewpoints, views or drawings: it's "undefined".

the check marker palette helps find all of those undefined markers so that you can either delete them or link them to something . . .

it doesn't help that the whole marker system is a confusing mess to begin with.

b

[Link]

Laura wrote:
Has anyone used this new function much?

Yes - I use it to check my templates as they near completion.

Laura wrote:
First of all, if a Viewpoint has been deleted, there is no Marker.

True, but as Ben said, a marker can exist without a viewpoint. You may be being too literal here...

Laura wrote:
Secondly, if a Marker is not associated with a Viewpoint, then it references a Drawing (be it "The selected drawing" or "The first placed drawing of..."). So, if a Marker is indeed "defined", it still shows up in the list if it is not associated with a placed Drawing.

So, as I understand it, the palette checks to see if Markers are referencing placed Drawings -- "Viewpoints" and "Views" are irrelevant.

That is also true, but a marker can be linked to the view or the viewpoint that the drawing is derived from, not directly to the drawing itself.

For example let's say you have 'A Section' as a viewpoint and you make a view from it called 'SECTION AA'. Then you place this section view in your schematic subset and in your CD subset of the layout book. If you set the marker to reference the first placed drawing of the selected view, it would reference the 'SECTION AA' in the schematic set (assuming that comes first in your layout book). However you can now delete that view and the drawings will remain. Check Markers will list that marker as N/A since it can no longer find the view.

Next try this. Drag a new viewpoint directly to your layout book. ArchiCAD will automatically create a view for you. If you link the marker to the first placed drawing of the viewpoint, then deleted that automatically-created view, Check Markers would list that marker having an undefined reference.

These two methods are what I believe GS is referring to in the reference manual as "automatically or manually linked ". So as obscure as GS have made it, viewpoints and views are actually relevant in this process.

In any case, I typically link the marker directly to the selected drawing and bypass all that other nonsense. Hope that helps clear it up a little.

Cheers,
Link.

[Laura Yanoviak]

Thanks for the responses, guys. My main point of frustration is the wording of the Reference Manual, and trying to decipher what it's trying to say. I've used Source/Linked/Unlinked Markers for the past 8 months with success, but I'm confused by the Check Markers function.

In my investigations, if a Viewpoint is deleted, the Source Marker and all associated Linked Markers are deleted.

I also find it odd that, even if the Marker is valid (i.e., it's referencing an existing Viewpoint or View), it shows up on "the list" if a Drawing hasn't been placed -- or maybe that's a part of the functionality?

Anyway, I tell my users to assign Source Markers to "The viewpoint" (initially, anyway), and Linked Markers to "The selected drawing".