Zoom Actual Size in Archicad 13

[Halixman]

I am using Archicad13 64 in Windows7 64 and when I zoom my drawing to ACTUAL SIZE it looks little than the actual size. I compare this placing an engineer's scale over my LCD monitor and it looks small.

If I run Archicad13 32 bits over "Xp mode 32 bits " in windows 64 the same drawing looks perfert in actual size, even placing an engineer's scale.

Look the CAPS:

[Halixman]

My drawing in Archicad13 32 running in "Xp mode" in windows 7 64.

[Anonymous]

This is a bit strange. Generally "actual size" (or 100%) in most programs appears smaller these days because screen resolutions have increased. Actual size is generally based on 72ppi. This can also be influenced by the operating system, though your experience is the reverse of what I would expect (no accounting for Windows I suppose). Mac OS is supposedly on track to fix this eventually (maybe in the next release).

[Karl Ottenstein]

I guess I never thought that the actual size /100% corresponded to anything "real"... any more than doing 100% for Word or Excel will match my paper.

I thought that the history of 100% was back when AC use bitmap fills, and it then mapped each dot of a bitmap fill to a screen pixel. But, don't know. Never really seemed to matter...

Cheers,
Karl

[Halixman]

Mmm.... My monitor is a Samsung T220 22" set @ 1680x1050.

When I zoom to Actual size in Archicad 12 and Archicad 13 (Windows Xp 32 bits) it match in size with my engineer's scale (ruler). I don't know why is not the same with Archicad 13 x64 and Windows 7 x64.

[Anonymous]

I had to check this myself. In XP, 100% on plan is *almost* to scale if you measure the screen. For me it is 1/16 out over a length of 12 inches.

In the graphics card settings it says the desktop is at 96 dpi, but measuring a 96 pixel wide image in photoshop is definitely not quite 1 inch wide. A 101 pixel wide image is much closer.

If I physically measure the width of my monitor, 2560 pixels measures 25 3/16 inches or 25.1875 inches decimal. 2560/25.1875 = 101.64 dpi which confirms the above. A 19inch diag monitor at 1280 wide would give approx 86 pixels per inch. Does ArchiCAD still measure to scale on a 19" monitor?

I estimate a 22" diag monitor at 1680 wide is still approx 86dpi so I'm not sure what is happening! ArchiCAD seems to be reading the dpi level and compensating.

ArchiCAD under XP seems to assume that my screen is at 100dpi and so displays more or less to scale at 100%. It is unlikely it will be completely correct as I doubt many monitors have exactly 100 pixels per inch. Mine certainly isn't.

I'm not sure why ArchiCAD in Win7 is different. Perhaps AC is simply reading the dpi level incorrectly and so displays not to scale. Whatever the reason, it was an interesting exercise anyway!

[Halixman]

The Actual size zoom was very useful to me. Because some text size looks great in the computer but... after print them they looks too big/little and I need to resize them and plot again. Most common when I need to change the drawing scale (to make detail drawings).

[Anonymous]

Halixman wrote:
The Actual size zoom was very useful to me. Because some text size looks great in the computer but... after print them they looks too big/little and I need to resize them and plot again. Most common when I need to change the drawing scale (to make detail drawings).

Most of us just pick standard font sizes and leave it at that. Getting good output always takes a bit of trial and error which is why standardizing on what works for you is best.

[Anonymous]

Matthew wrote:

Halixman wrote:
The Actual size zoom was very useful to me. Because some text size looks great in the computer but... after print them they looks too big/little and I need to resize them and plot again. Most common when I need to change the drawing scale (to make detail drawings).

Most of us just pick standard font sizes and leave it at that. Getting good output always takes a bit of trial and error which is why standardizing on what works for you is best.

25 years experience helps too.

[Eric Bobrow]

I suggest you do a little trial and error to figure out what percentage zoom (other than 100%) matches actual size. Let's say you figure out that 137% is a pretty good match. Then you can save that zoom using the little popup next to the zoom percentages, and name it "Actual Size".

Later, you can reactivate that zoom at any time you want to see how things look. You'll have to pan over to the area in question, but you'll easily see everything at printing size.