Version Manager

[Anonymous]

The Requirements:

When we make a project for our client, their are a lot of steps ( sketch, execution,etc.. ) and so on, a lot of versions of the plans. For all this plans, we make a lot of files that take a lot of memory in the computer.
And we can't delete thoses files cause sometimes we have to go back to an old version, cause we find a problem with the current version, or the administration refuse the permission,

Most of the time, their is not a lot of differences between the two versions ( just a room is bigger, or a windows is added on the south frontage, or we reverse the kitchen and the dining room )... so this is a lot of memory took for nothing..

Their is not a good way on ArchiCAD to manage the versions of a project:
- we can use differents files but it took memory, and it's difficult to find the good file when we need to go back
- we can duplicate the model on one file, but it took memory to, and we need to make again the layout at each new versions
- we can use module, but it's to complicated to use if the entire project is composed by differents modules
- we can use layers, but their is a lot of problemes with walls intersections.


What we need:

1- Assign schetch version to elements of archiCAD
So we need a tool like the renovation tool, that allow us to assign a version for each element of a project.
By default, the element is assign to all versions.

2- Maybe an automatic assignation when we modified the project
We could have a "automatic version mode", that automaticaly assign the version to the element.
For exemple: i just have finished a sketch and i click a button that save all the element as the "root version". All this element will be present in the futur versions until i modifie or delete them.
In a second version, i want to invert a bathroom with the bedroom. I do the symetric, and then i click my magic button to say "this is the version 2". All the elements modified are automaticly assigned by the version 2 status.

3- Hierarchical version
It would be nice that this "version manager" can target the project at differents scales..
We should have the general building version 1 and the general building version 2, then in the general building vs 1 whe have 3 versions of the bathroom, and in the general building version 2 we have 5 version of the bathroom and two version of the kitchen.
And when the client ask us: "can you put the shower vs 3 of the bathroom vs 2 of the 2nd general building in the bathroom vs 3 od the 1st general building ?" we just have two answer : "it's allready done !"

4- Versions on parameters
If we just need to change the width of a windows, it would be better to that just the change of parameters is saved on the new version instead of the entire windows...

5- Versions on layout
When we make a lot of versions, it take times to make the layouts... so it would be nice to make the layout for 1 version, and this layout is automaticly duplicated for all versions.

6- Herited parameters
Sometimes we have somes change in the project that impact all the versions... for exemple, the thermicien told us that the thickness of insulation was not adequat, and we need 10cm more. In this case we need a way to tell archicad to modifie this parameter on all the versions.

[Erwin Edel]

I don't know about the scope of your projects, but a typical archive of a completed project with .PLA file + PDF files and sometimes DWG export for most of our projects rarely goes over 1 GB in storage, which nowadays is not a whole lot in terms of space used on storage.

Anything that gets sent out (published) gets a PDF backup and .PLA backup of the prokect. The .PLA is rarely more than 60-70 MB.

There are some things that can make your filesize quite a lot bigger though. I think one of the big culprits are external referenced files that are 'included' in the project (PDF, JPG, etc). I do periodically clean up these (old scans placed on hidden layers etc) to keep filesize down.

It is also possibly for your embedded library to pick up parts from other projects when copying elements over.

We use linked project libraries and avoid embedded library as much as possible, keeps it easy to keep this tidy too.

Until your wish gets developed (if it does!), maybe some of these things will keep the filesize manageable for you.