Wishes
Post your wishes about Graphisoft products: Archicad, BIMx, BIMcloud, and DDScad.

Window and Door Tool

4hotshoes
Advisor
The ability to combine different windows type (fixed, awning, casement, or even a door) in any configuration we can think of. And the ability to change a type with type. This would be identified as a single unit.

Also more grid/mullion options, such as a grid at the top of a window not the full sash.

Arched/round topped window can be created for any window /door or grouping of windows and doors.
Todd Oeftger
AC27 Mac MacBook Pro 15", 2019, 2.3 GHz i9, 32GB, Radeon Pro 560X 4GB, 500GB SSD, 32" Samsung Display (2560x1440)
23 REPLIES 23
Anonymous
Not applicable
Ok. I see.
Anyway... It would be nice to have some feedback from actual users of this tool.
Cheers,
Paulo
Jesse Davidson
Contributor
I used to use the CI tools all the time. Cancelled my subscription to their tools last fall mostly because I was fed up with all the subscription fees that have been piling up and tried to just tough it out only use what ArchiCAD gives us.

Now, I'm about to renew my subscription because I'm so fed up with ArchiCADs limits with the windows and doors. Honestly, how has ArchiCAD neglected these tools for so long?? It seems like all most every project I have to figure out a way to mimic what I want, where as in CI's tools you just use it and create what you want.

If we could at least Gang our windows & doors together to show up as 1 unit on schedules it would probably be good enough
ArchiCAD 24 Full
15" Macbook Pro (2018), OSX 10.15.7
2.6 GHz Intel Core I7, 32GB DDR4
Radeon Pro 560X 4096 MB[/size]
Karl Ottenstein
Moderator
I have not seen anyone here mention Graphisoft's free "Library Part Maker" here. Available for 23 and back to 20 or 19 or so I think. This is a free (had to say it twice) tool to ArchiPLUS subscribers, and I believe is available worldwide, but it seems to have gotten very little discussion here on the forums overall in spite of its power.

Windows/Doors (and other objects) built with this tool have level of detail (LOD) display responsiveness and automatically include a number of system parameters/features. Custom opening lines are saved as part of the object in order to obtain whatever operation you want. Additional features - quoting from the User Guide include:
Door and Window Standard Fixtures and Fittings
The following standard ARCHICAD library door or window parametric elements and
functionality will be added to each door or window automatically:
Windows
– Wall Opening – Reveal
– Wall Opening – Wall Closure
– Wall Opening – Wall Inset
– Wall Opening – Masonry Arch
– Wall Opening – Attributes
– Fixtures & Fittings – Sill
– Fixtures & Fittings – Board
– Fixtures & Fittings – Casing Inside/outside
– Fixtures & Fittings – Sunshade
– Fixtures & Fittings – Custom Corner
– Fixtures & Fittings – Attributes
Door
– Wall Opening – Reveal
– Wall Opening – Wall Closure
– Wall Opening – Masonry Arch
– Fixtures & Fittings – Threshold
– Fixtures & Fittings – Casing Inside/outside
– Fixtures & Fittings – Sunshade
– Fixtures & Fittings – Attributes
System predefined parameters for Doors and Windows
– Width – width of Door/Window set
– Height – height of Door/Window set
– Nominal Frame Thickness – frame thickness of Door/Window set
– Orientation Displaying – If set to ‘Automatic’, Label Default Position and Label Reversed
Position values will be used for Door/Window labels and in Interactive Schedules. If set
to ‘Custom’, the value of Custom Orientation parameter will be used instead.
– Custom Orientation – used in conjunction with Orientation Displaying parameter
– Label Default Position – (set to ‘L’ for ‘Left’ by default) used in conjunction with
Orientation Displaying parameter
– Label Reversed Position – (set to ‘R’ for ‘Right’ by default) used in conjunction with
Orientation Displaying parameter
– IFC Operation – IFC operation definition
– Surfaces > Door/Window Tolerance Outer Surface – outer surface of tolerance infill
– Surfaces > Door/Window Tolerance Inner Surface – inner surface of tolerance infill
– Surfaces > Door/Window Handle Surface – surface of Door/Window handle(s)
– Pens > Opening Line Pen – pen of Door/Window opening lines
One of the forum moderators
AC 27 USA and earlier   •   macOS Ventura 13.6.6, MacBook Pro M2 Max 12CPU/30GPU cores, 32GB
Brett Brown
Advocate
I thought your guys might be interested in an excerpt from a frank conversation I had with a senior Graphisoft Product Manager about most things in Archicad, surprised and enlightened on his replies to all my questions about the future, this was his answer on the Doors and Windows.

I asked, Why on earth you haven't integrated Cadimages Door and Window builder is beyond me as every time some asks about Archicad's door and windows on Arch-Talk, someone always pipes up and says, Cadimage tool can do that easily.

His answer, Door / Window/ Skylight are subject to a complete renewal based on assembly-like (e.g Stair, Curtain Wall, and from AC23 Beam and Column tools). The first step was introducing the Void tool which will be developed further and integrated into Openings. A massive project already under its way.

So from this, it is underway, it is not in AC 24, so who knows when it will be introduced. These sorts of answers would do a lot for the faith of users for the future and for some strange reason they aren't made public. Right or Wrong? or protecting 3rd party addon makers. Of course, it's not only Cadimage that make these types of Addons as most Australian users know. Not talking CI here.
As a user of Cadimage Door and Window builder from the start, admittedly it was free to us NZ users, I probably wouldn't be using Archicad if it wasn't for there tools, Coverings, Cabinet Maker, Keynote tool. All these tools save hours and hours of time per project and to see people saying they are too expensive, obviously they don't value their time very much, let alone their ease of use.
Imac, Big Sur AC 20 NZ, AC 25 Solo UKI,
Jp1138
Expert
Very interesting indeed. I assume current window/door types could be some kind of predefined configurations you can later modify as you can with curtain walls, for example... It must be difficult to maintain all we have now inserted in the assembly-like interface
ARCHICAD 27 SPA
Windows 10
Brad Elliott
Booster
Karl,
Have you used this? Has anyone? Does it work? Is there any information on how to actually use it?
I have not seen anyone here mention Graphisoft's free "Library Part Maker" here. Available for 23 and back to 21 or so I think. This is a free (had to say it twice) tool to ArchiPLUS subscribers, and I believe is available worldwide, but it seems to have gotten very little discussion here on the forums overall in spite of its power.
Mac OS12.6 AC26 USA Silicon
M1 Macbook Pro
Karl Ottenstein
Moderator
Brad wrote:
Karl,
Have you used this? Has anyone? Does it work? Is there any information on how to actually use it?
I used it in beta and was really impressed then. So much more powerful than simply 'save as' library part.

The download includes a detailed user guide and a template for doing the library part creation.

But, yours is/was my question: I'm not sure why nobody has discussed this here, as it has been an ArchiPLUS feature for some years now and I'm surprised that it doesn't seem to be on anyone's radar.
One of the forum moderators
AC 27 USA and earlier   •   macOS Ventura 13.6.6, MacBook Pro M2 Max 12CPU/30GPU cores, 32GB
Karl,

I think it's not on people's radar because superficially, it looks a whole lot more complicated than a quick "Save As" and the benefits aren't obvious without studying it in more depth. GS has done virtually no advertising of this, and I believe hasn't even done a quick video of it in action. However, based on your enthusiasm, I've had another look at it and it indeed looks interesting. So, why so little air-time from GS?
Richard
--------------------------
Richard Morrison, Architect-Interior Designer
AC26 (since AC6.0), Win10
Anonymous
Not applicable
If I well remember, LPM started as a Graphisoft UK initiative specifically to address UK users requests.
Indeed it is a huge evolution to the "Save as" command.
But I have seen many users here (including me) finding the tool with too much complexity for low parametricity.
Besides this, and by what Brett Brown said, I think GS must be working on a huge Door/Window revamp for a long time. And that is why LPM is being kept under the radar by GS.
This LPM phenomenon reminds me of Ralph Wessel´s Modular Joinery Door/Window Object. It also was an amazing tool, requested by local users to resemble Velfac products. Then Ralph entered the late Cadimage team and MJO completely disappeared.
Karl Ottenstein
Moderator
Apologies for the side-track/semi-hijack of the original wish... although LPM does offer a solution...

Yes, Paulo, it originated in the UK and was (and is?) managed by Rob Kalocay there, but that initial effort branched out to support all users. The INT version is freely available from the GRAPHISOFT web site - where the user guide can be easily viewed:

https://www.graphisoft.com/downloads/addons/LPM/INT.html

This page provides links to the various language versions from version 19 to present:
https://www.graphisoft.com/downloads/addons/LPM/library-part-maker-product.html

I found no meaningful tutorial videos from Graphisoft. Searching in YouTube shows several user tutorial videos. For example, just last month Heimo Mooslechner posted this video in German for creating custom windows:



My German isn't good enough to follow in detail - but watching his steps is helpful in seeing how things work. Note that in the initial screens, where you see three elevation symbols (with opening lines) and plan symbols - those are the three Level of Detail (LOD) representations that would be saved as part of the object and displayed based on Model View Options. He uses Profile Manager to create very detailed window component sections.

Yes, would be helpful if Graphisoft themselves produced some simple English language tutorials for LPM 🙂
One of the forum moderators
AC 27 USA and earlier   •   macOS Ventura 13.6.6, MacBook Pro M2 Max 12CPU/30GPU cores, 32GB