Samuel Derenboim

I'm not sure if this is possible in Vectorworks yet, but there are times when I need to count a number of objects/symbols inside the geometrical boundary of another object such as a rectangle or square. My question is - Is something like this possible to do ? Count the number of fixtures inside a geometrical figure and post it into a 'tag' and / or worksheet?

Hi everyone, Anyone know if it's possible to call out story elevations or story level type elevations in worksheets? In VW 2019, Z coordinate throws out an error, but still i'm not sure if that is what i'm looking for. Appreciate any guidance in advance! thanks!

Hi Everyone, quick question, have a VS script here, taken from a script that calculated occupancy load calculations from a space object using custom fields in the space plugin object. After VW has now transferred alot of the space objects capabilities into regular, geoemetry, I was curious if anyone can help me port a similar functioning script for polygons / rectangle objects. Script (and original author name is below) I attached a VW that shows some of the information I use in my documents. What I wanted to do is integrate occupancy in these areas, and some building code information. Note - The script operates without any errors, but, for some reason it doesn't actually change the record. Maybe someone can be pointed in the right direction from some of the VSwizards out there? (This is a duplicate post from the architectural forum, but I deleted that post, and reposted in here, since I thought it could be more relevant) Thanks in advance!!! Modified Script (Original Script at the bottom) Procedure MaxOccupancy; {Badly scripted by Michael Klaers modified to General Object Areas} {November, 2015} {© 2015, Small Group, Inc - Michael Klaers michaelk@verysmallgroup.com} {Licensed under the GNU Lesser General Public License} VAR recordhand, WSResource, WSImgHand : HANDLE; StringOccRating : STRING; xArea, OccRating : REAL; TruncOccSpace, SqrFeetPerPerson : LONGINT; PROCEDURE HowManyPeople(recordhand:HANDLE); BEGIN {How Many People} SqrFeetPerPerson :=Str2Num(GetRField(recordhand,'!Zoning_Area','BC_persons/sf')); xArea := AreaN((INSYMBOL & INOBJECT & INVIEWPORT & (R IN ['!Zoning_Area']))); OccRating := xArea/SqrFeetPerPerson; TruncOccSpace := Trunc(OccRating); StringOccRating := Num2Str(0,TruncOccSpace); SetRField(recordhand,'!Zoning_Area','BC_#ofpersons',StringOccRating); ResetObject(recordhand); END; BEGIN ForEachObject(HowManyPeople, ((INSYMBOL & INOBJECT & INVIEWPORT & (R IN ['!Zoning_Area'])))); WSResource := GetObject('Zoning Area Summations_Poly'); WSImgHand :=GetWSImage(WSResource); RecalculateWS(WSResource); ResetObject(WSImgHand); END; RUN(MaxOccupancy); Original Script Below Procedure MaxOccupancy; {Badly scripted by Michael Klaers} {November, 2015} {© 2015, Small Group, Inc - Michael Klaers michaelk@verysmallgroup.com} {Licensed under the GNU Lesser General Public License} VAR SpaceHand, WSResource, WSImgHand : HANDLE; StringOccRating : STRING; xArea, OccRating : REAL; TruncOccSpace, SqrFeetPerPerson : LONGINT; PROCEDURE HowManyPeople(SpaceHand:HANDLE); BEGIN {How Many People} SqrFeetPerPerson :=Str2Num(GetRField(SpaceHand,'Space','11_User-Def Info 2')); xArea := Str2Num(GetRField(SpaceHand,'Space','Area')); OccRating := xArea/SqrFeetPerPerson; TruncOccSpace := Trunc(OccRating); StringOccRating := Num2Str(0,TruncOccSpace); SetRField( SpaceHand ,'Space','11_User-Def Info 1',StringOccRating); ResetObject(SpaceHand); END; BEGIN ForEachObject(HowManyPeople, ((PON='Space'))); WSResource := GetObject('Space Occupancy Schedule'); WSImgHand :=GetWSImage(WSResource); RecalculateWS(WSResource); ResetObject(WSImgHand); END; RUN(MaxOccupancy); Area Test_Poly v2020.vwx

Does anyone have experience in using the sql lite database? is it possible to populate custom fields if another is filled out? in other words - lets say i want to autopopulate the number 100 when i select from a popup drop down - business occupancy. Is something like this possible?

Rob and Wes, thank you very much for the tip. You're right, Unified view is something i didn't know about, unfortunately. It was probably switched off because of what you mentioned Wes, which was the saved views. I remember switching the save different view for each design layer, and that could've been the cause. Thank you again.

More weird behavior The same file - cannot display a layer based reflected ceiling plan and a BIM plan model at the same time. It is like the BIM plan freezes in place, while the reflected ceiling plan is rotated, panned, zoomed. This isn't a plane based issue because all objects on the reflected ceiling plan are layer based. This also isn't a scale issue either, given that both layers are at 1:48.... Not sure how to react to this. Can anybody offer some assistance?

Not sure if it was an update, or something else, but graphics seem very glitchy / not smooth when panning and rotating a bim model. Specs : Win10 Pro Intel Core i7 5820k @ 3.3 ghz 32 GB ram - DDR4 2400, 16-16-16-39 CAS Graphics - Nvidia GeForce GTX 1070 Ti Is there a possibility VW might be using CPU for opengl? Although, I thought that this chip didn't have an on-board graphics module. Either way, maybe something I'm doing wrong? I attached DXdiag Output. UPDATE: As a test, I referenced the same file in a freshly made document, and the 3d animation is almost flawless. I now understand it's probably the file itself. Are there preferences that might be causing glitchy behavior? Thanks in advance! DxDiag.txt

Is it me, or are textured hatches not appearing on curtain wall objects? They seem to appear on other wall objects / geometry, but not on curtain walls. Could anyone please confirm? *Edit, Yea, thought maybe it was a file, but copied an element from the file for a test and it seems to me that it's a bug. Cwall Hatch Test.vwx

Thank you Pat! I noticed that the digital terrain site model can do that as well, just wasn't sure how to eliminate the topographical 2 dimensional elements. With your help, I was able to do it. 🙂

Hi everyone, just curious, is there a reason why 3d locus's cannot be seen in opengl? and second question is - can a series of locus points be used to create a 3d surface ? does such a tool exist? or would something like that be possible through Marrionette?

Not sure why, but when I publish a fairly large amount of pdf files using the publish command, vectorworks 2020 crashes. This was never an issue before. Also, texture / hatches are not properly appearing on screen. Perhaps a scaling issue? Can anyone confirm these findings? or is it just me?

Quick question, network speed, is it gigabit? or 100mbps? and second - to what degree of a difference would it make loading up the files on both connections? Orso, the command manager looks quite useful. Do you sell your plugins?

Can someone please confirm - when editing the railing tool - the position feature, when you enter a number into the offset position dialog, it enters the numbers backwards (i.e. when you enter 24, it puts the 4 in front of the 2 making it 42 instead of 24) Also, if you enter the offset position and then modify the length of the railing, it resets the entire tool. Could anyone confirm this please?

Hi everyone, So I'm creating a new database for our firm, specifically a model database with proprietary and IFC record formats. I'm using a combination of methods in order to import revit, however, so far the operation seems very successful. There are a few snags however, which is why i'm posting on here. With different manufacturers, the record formats are also proprietary, and are often different formats. merging them into one can be a hassle. I know that there is a merge record function. However, it is on a one by one basis, which makes it a bit difficult. The problem is this, when i import revit, it makes duplicate record formats for every model that I import into a file. So let's say for the sake of arguement, I import 15-20 GE light fixtures. Out of those light fixtures I will probably get 8-12 separate record formats that are duplicates for every model. Is there a way to mass merge record formats? The reason being - if i delete them, it will ask me to either replace them or delete them outright. Some fields in some fixtures are added, and can be slightly different from record to record - so my question is - Is there a function to mass merge record formats? rather than mass delete? Thank you in advance everyone!

the annotation tool can't pull out custom record information as far as i'm aware of. The idea is to infuse record information into a symbol libary, and pull out the information at will when constructing new details, or perhaps calling out component names in detail cross sections. There is a function I believe that can take notes out from a central database, but that's not the same thing unfortunately. one is centrally located in a database, thats not exactly associated with a symbol, and the other is simply a symbol having record information. But I think youll understand my meaning. adding this function to the annotation tool would be great, the only problem is that you can mass appropriate it to all the symbols like you can with the tag tool. When i discovered that feature, i was like....😍 Also, regarding tag tool parameters : 1. is there a way to call out wall length? Only wall thickness and wall height can be called out, but not length. I was preparing on using the two parameters so that i can run a script to compute the surface area (wall length x wall height) into a separate record - perhaps that can be called out by the tag tool. 2. The second, not as straight forward idea is that you can have conditional statements in a tag. Lets say you need the area of a window, door, window wall or wall in one tag. Normally under these circumstances you can't pull the information out in one tag, but rather three separate tags, which would kinda make it a little less convenient in using it under varied circumstances. What if in one tag you can specifically call out areas in all three, having different parameters. i.e. if object is wall -> use #Wall outer surface area# (if it exists) or custom record that calculates wall length x wall height if object is a window -> use #Window#.#OverallArea# if object is a door -> use #Door#.#ClearArea# you wouldn't believe how conditional statements have saved my life on severe deadlines regarding energy calculations needed for the department of buildings, or tabulations for zoning, building area, gross area, etc... I can send you some samples on how i used conditional statements in worksheets that ultimately saves me a week of work in a matter of minutes. Again, the second one isn't as important as the first. some basic functions are needed to at least tabulate dimensions, areas, etc... of walls, windows, doors, geometry etc... So far, I've been using the annotation layer in viewports to draw out 2 dimensional geometry specifically for that purpose. For rectangles or polylines, its much easier to pull out length, width, area and height parameters. The only problem is that it defeats the purposes of building information modeling, or at least adds another layer to get the information i need not readily available. i actually want to use the new data visualization manager this way, the lack of some of these functions are making it a little difficult. This would be a game changer for take-offs too. Again, thank you for considering these things in your next iterations. I would never expect something like this from Autodesk. This is one of the main reasons why I remain, and will remain with Vectorworks. Thank you very much for your help in the matter!

Thank you for responding TDimov. That's right. It would work like an annotation tool, but with record information. This would be very useful in details, and specification consolidation when coordinating with clients, contractors, reps, and shop drawing techs.

Guys, you hit it out of the park 🙂 Just a few questions : 1. Will we see any way tags can call out levels (not just stories)? 2. Is there any way to call out the surface area of a wall without calculating all 4 sides? (the longest surface side only is what interests me the most), or surfaces based on the component? For me, I would use this for the purposes of calculating fenestration vs. solid walls for energy code requirements in NYC, and calculating wall area take-offs / costs. 3. Will we be able to modify text positioning in a tag without editing it - in terms of text. Let's say you need to resize the text field in just one tag, rather than resizing all tags, would we be able to look forward to something like this in the future? or is this something the asymmetric scaling can take care of? Combining data looks very promising! Finally i can combine custom records with VW records and IFC based records without having to modify each one! Still playing around. Thank you for your hard work!

Ah, alas, can't have everything. Im trying to create a consolidated library of information, i do have alot of 3ds and obj files to import. Hoping i would be able to conserve time by mass importing 3ds, but seems i might have to convert to obj or skp before i can do that. Keep you updated 😉 Thank you Marissa!

hi everyone, Trying to figure out procedure callout in python for 3ds import. For OBJ for example it is : vs.importOBJ(filename, True) for sketchup vs.Importsketchup(filename, True) i have tried vs.import3ds(filename, True) and vs.import3d(filename, True) I'm trying to create another import node for 3ds import based on DOMC's import sketchup script. So far it worked for OBJ, but can't seem to be able to get 3ds to work. Maybe someone can help me please? :)

Any suggestions on mass importing sketchup files? while we're on the topic? 😀

OK. Mind.Blown.com! Thank you Vasil!

I don't know if the team is aware of this issue yet, but.... If tags are used in worksheets and the id or a record is modified inside the worksheet, the tags (that display the custom id or record) don't auto update the custom ID in the viewport unless they are moved or edited directly. In other words, it appears that the tags 'know' they are updated, they just don't update their appearance until they are moved. This is specific to custom records only i believe. Could anyone try something similar to see if I'm not unique in this department?

we need to be able to scale the data tag tool, and / or provide text styles to them (text styles can be different sizes depending on how they are used as well). I'm trying to integrate them everywhere for annotation. Other than that, I have no issues with the data tag tool, it fixes so many issues! speaking of which, i think i just found a bug ) Ill post it on another post, but if tags are used in worksheets and the id or a record is modified in the worksheet, the tags (that display the custom id or record) don't auto update the custom ID in the viewport unless they are moved or edited directly. In otherwords, the tags know they are updated, they just don't update their appearance. This is specific to custom records only i believe.

Hi everyone, I've been trying to create a standard catalog of wall types with UL, R and STC values in VW. In light of saving time, i was wondering if it was possible to import standard library types that are provided by manufacturers like USG or similar? They only provide RTE file types for some reason, and i cannot get them to be imported into VW. Any ideas ? (Other than getting a trial of Revit, importing the wall types into there and then saving it as an RVT file...lol) Thanks!

Also, is it possible to make hidden columns? (For calculation purposes, or referencing information that shouldn't appear in the worksheet for modification purposes)