Overlay with new zones on old?

[Thomas Holm]

Just now, my head seems full of gravel...

I'm trying to overlay zones, that is I have covered a plan with zones that I want to keep, but now I'm trying a different plan design, and I want a fresh and different zone set in the same pln. Seems like hiding the first zone layer and creating the new set on a new layer doesn't cut it - the old zones are still active and Archicad protests and won't comply. ("A zone was detected outside the current" something - that's pure BS because I'm clicking in an area within an old zone- but this topic wasn't about f-d up error messages, so shut my mouth)

I can measure areas with the fill tool, but that¨s rather limited. Is there a way to non-permanently disable zones without deleting them?

[James Murray]

Thomas,

I just tried it, two sets of zones on different layers, based on two sets of walls, and I had no trouble. I got the areas in Interactive Schedule by changing the Layer criteria. Not really helpful...

[Thomas Holm]

I'm not sure, but I'm using partly the same set of walls. (I'm dividing a floor space into partitions) Typically, just one or two dividing walls change between sets. These are of course placed on diffferent layers. The client is advertising all sets, and when he finds a potential tenant for one or the other combination, I need to be able to recall it to finalize construction. So I need to have all options up-to-date all the time.

I don't know exactly how Archicad stores its zone data, but your answer gave me the idea that it may be permanently tied to the currently used zone boundary walls in some way that blocks additional zones. That would mean that you can't re-use an already used boundary wall for a second zone (at least not on the same side of the boundary) and that would explain why it doesn't work for me. (maybe it's just my too predictable brain that tries to find some logic).

If there was a way to sort of completely turn off some layers, that would be a solution. Now, some hidden layers are still active, like SEO operatiors, and certainly, these zones. Maybe we should have an OFF switch in addition to the HIDDEN?

Or an I completely off track here? I'm not yet too comfortable with zones, after all.

[Rakela Raul]

thomas, nothing to do with your problem, but sounds like you also need
a zone where you can just type the sf required by the new tenant and the zone stretch by itself to a direccion set also by you...also good for lot subdivisions.

[James Murray]

Thomas wrote:
your answer gave me the idea that it may be permanently tied to the currently used zone boundary walls in some way that blocks additional zones. That would mean that you can't re-use an already used boundary wall for a second zone (at least not on the same side of the boundary) and that would explain why it doesn't work for me. (maybe it's just my too predictable brain that tries to find some logic).

Ah, well actually I did reuse the exterior walls, just moved the interior. Sounds like what you did.

Weird.

[Thomas Holm]

Rakela wrote:
thomas, nothing to do with your problem, but sounds like you also need
a zone where you can just type the sf required by the new tenant and the zone stretch by itself to a direccion set also by you...also good for lot subdivisions.

Well, no computer could ever guess how I want my subdivisions...

But some 15 years ago, I had a Norwegian CAD package called Jonathan. (Slow as mud, no wonder it never took off, we used it on the original MacII...) It had one feature I've actually never seen since then. You could draw a shape (a fill), have it display the area, and then move a corner or a boundary while the area figure updated itself continously in real-time on screen! Extremely efficient for ... damn! I don't know what it's called in English! Well, early area lay-outs, we call it program sketches literally translated.
Nothing to do with this problem, your idea just made me digress.

Back to the issue in question: I think it's unfair that James Murray's Archicad lets him place new zones within old, while mine doesn't. I think we Graphisoft customers deserve equal treatment! All ye customers unite! We have a struggle before us! Equality!

[Anonymous]

Thomas wrote:
But some 15 years ago, I had a Norwegian CAD package called Jonathan. (Slow as mud, no wonder it never took off, we used it on the original MacII...) It had one feature I've actually never seen since then. You could draw a shape (a fill), have it display the area, and then move a corner or a boundary while the area figure updated itself continously in real-time on screen!

Auto updating area calcs are possible within the zone stamp GDL by using the ROOM_AREA parameter instead of the usual ROOM_CALC_AREA parameter which require the "Update Zones" command. The update isn't live as you stretch but it is instantly updated.

It is possible to make a library part that does the balloon squeeze/ equal area trick. This would be fairly simple for rectangular shapes, a little more complex for general quadrilaterals, and very difficult to impracticable for general polygons.

[Thomas Holm]

Matthew,

thanks for your tip. I'm not very familiar with the calculation tools and zone parameters, sothis is an area where I haev work ahead of me.

But back to the subject. What do you think about the equality issue? Why does my Archicad refuse to place a zone within an existing one, while James' doesn't? What am i doing wrong?

[Djordje]

Thomas wrote:
Matthew,

thanks for your tip. I'm not very familiar with the calculation tools and zone parameters, sothis is an area where I haev work ahead of me.

But back to the subject. What do you think about the equality issue? Why does my Archicad refuse to place a zone within an existing one, while James' doesn't? What am i doing wrong?

It should warn you that you are placing a zone within an existing one, and ask you whether you want to do so.

[Erika Epstein]

Djordje wrote:


It should warn you that you are placing a zone within an existing one, and ask you whether you want to do so.

Hmm. I have never received that message and every project has overlapping zones. I just tried it again and did not get any warning message.