Mental Calculation Slow Downs

[Anonymous]

Fellow AC users before I make a request, I would like to ask how do you minimise the number of mental calculations when moving elements into position without an interactive temporary pop up dimension marker showing up when you click an element?

In simple terms most CAD programs have this method but we don't have it yet or will probably never get it either?

for example I have a room dividing wall with an AC interactive dimension showing 2735 and I want to move it to lets say 3020, In my head I go 3020 minus 2735 is 285 after my brain ticks over I drag the wall 285mm into place. There must be a better way to do this as it wastes allot of time for me when you can just click a temporary dimension and feed the 3020 value in???

What do you do?

[Anonymous]

laszlonagy wrote:
You original issue was not solved by this. The tips others have provided in this thread are the way to go when modifying element locations relative to a given point.

However, when placing certain elements (e.g Doors/Windows in Walls), there is something new.
In ARCHICAD 19 it will be possible to place a Snap Reference at the corner of a Wall. Then when you place your cursor along the edge of the Wall, the Tracker will display the distance from the Snap Reference. You can then simply type the value you want the element to be placed from the Snap Reference along the edge and press ENTER, done.

So, to place a Window 1000 millimeters from a Wall corner:
1. Hover the cursor over the corner, press Q, the corner is immediately marked as Snap Reference.
2. Hover your cursor along the Wall edge, type "1000", then ENTER on your keyboard (no TAB needed to enter the Tracker, no repositioning of the User Origin is needed).
3. Click to define Window direction.

No, my original problem was with elements as a whole and walls were used as an example.
Are you saying that this technique will not work with walls?
What about the blue reference line along a wall?
One video explained what these reference guides will not work with and walls were not among them. Am I mistaken?

[Laszlo Nagy]

Your original question, if I am not mistaken, was about moving elements.
When you move elements distances in the Tracker are measured from the Edit Origin, which is at the point from which you drag when you move the element. This is the case in ARCHICAD 19 as well, even if you have marked Snap References. So you would have to reposition the Edit Origin with ALT+SHIFT to the point from which you wish to measure the distance and then enter the new distance in the Tracker. This is why I said that you would have to do the same others suggested in AC19 as well.
Of course any construction type element node or edge can be marked as a Snap Reference. Only 2D Annotation type element (Markers, Dimensions, Texts, Labels) nodes and edges cannot be.

[Barry Kelly]

As Laszlo says this doesn't work when you are moving an existing element (even doors and windows) - you still have to reset the origin if you don't want it based on the original drag from point.

But it does work when placing any NEW element - windows, doors, walls, slabs, etc.

Barry.

[Anonymous]

Barry wrote:
As Laszlo says this doesn't work when you are moving an existing element (even doors and windows) - you still have to reset the origin if you don't want it based on the original drag from point.

But it does work when placing any NEW element - windows, doors, walls, slabs, etc.

Barry.

Barry I think I saw that at the end of the last video in that section?

How does this new system of reference point now differ from placing a user point of origin when moving an existing element?

[Barry Kelly]

mthd wrote:
How does this new system of reference point now differ from placing a user point of origin when moving an existing element?

It doesn't.
To move an existing element you either use the initial drag origin or set a new one with the ALT+SHIFT shortcut.
It is exactly the same as it was before unless I am misunderstanding what you want.

The new snap reference just means you do not have to set the origin when placing new elements.

Barry.

[Anonymous]

Barry wrote:

mthd wrote:
How does this new system of reference point now differ from placing a user point of origin when moving an existing element?

It doe n't.
To move an existing element you either use the initial drag origin or set a new one with the ALT+SHIFT shortcut.
It is exactly the same as it was before unless I am misunderstanding what you want.

The new snap reference just means you do not have to set tmhe origin when placing new elements.

Barry.

The video man grabs the window and door together and chooses drag then takes his cursor to the reference point and it shows it is 1750 away from the corner and then enters 600 from what I can tell it is job done edit completed?

You still have to click the corner to set it as a reference point as I understand in the reference mode. And that point or any other points or guide lines you create stay active till you delete them? So regardless if it is a new element or you are editing and existing element it should still work right?

I think there are less steps now involved with this new method of placing and editing existing elements as I see it. I will give it a test run when I get my upgrade.

[Barry Kelly]

mthd wrote:
The video man grabs the window and door together and chooses drag then takes his cursor to the reference point and it shows it is 1750 away from the corner and then enters 600 from what I can tell it is job done edit completed?

Which video were you watching - maybe I should watch it too.
Can you post a link please?

Barry.

[Laszlo Nagy]

It is this video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UaxOUutgn0g

from about 1:05

This clip is not about numeric input. It demonstrates only that when you have a Snap Reference it will disappear after the element editing step is finished.
However, to your specific question: in the clip, at 1:12 the Wall Corner is marker as Snap Reference. Then at 1:15 "600" is typed in the Tracker. But also at 1:16 you can see for a moment that the value in the Tracker changes to "1150". This is because the "-" (minus) character was then typed. So the mouse was hovered at the corner, Tracker displays "1750". Then "600" is typed, Tracker displays "600". Then "-" character is pressed, 600 is deducted from 1750, Tracker displays "1150".
So it is not measured from the Snap Reference point (in that case it would display "600", but not "1150" after that). It works the same way as in previous versions.

You are right is suggesting that this may be confusing because the fact the the Snap reference is created just before typing the value and measuring relative to the corner that was just marked as Snap Reference, can give this impression.
So I will suggest this clip to be revised to make it less ambiguous.

[Anonymous]

OK I will wait till I get AC 19 before I get too specific about this supposed speed up?

I believe this should be even faster in AC 20, how?

1) set your reference points and dotted lines.
2) be able to get a reading in the tracker called DNPR "Distance to Nearest Point of Reference" for example a corner.
3) Left Click the element to select it, the tracker comes up with DPNR enter your new value and you are done.

Note this will work with placement of new elements as well as editing existing.

Laszlo its more important to ask Graphisoft to consider this so we can be as fast as Revit once and for all on speed issues in all areas of the program including element creation and editing.

[Laszlo Nagy]

I was thinking about this a bit more and I realized that you could do it even current ARCHICAD versions.
You have to switch off the Relative Coordinates in Tracker toggle (so the Tracker will display absolute coordinates - absolute coordinates are measured from the User Origin).
Then place the User Origin at the Wall Corner. Then start dragging the Door/Window in the Wall and simply type "600 ENTER" if you want it 600 from the Wall Corner.
But this whole thing is still slower than simply hovering the cursor on the Wall Corner and typing "600- ENTER".