alex.fitch

Was this a taboo question to ask? I'm surprised no one has had any input yet. I know that I mentioned looking for medical objects, but I'm finding it difficult to find objects in general for Vectorworks. If I need to convert files from other programs, that is okay, but that does mean a lot of work for the firm. We are still trying to see how viable Vectorworks will be for us as a program and if we have to make our own objects on top of developing a new template, then the firm should take into consideration the hours that will be put into that. often you don't need an object until, well, you need the object, so it can be difficult to invest time into creating objects you don't know how often you will use.

Genie, Boh, Thank you for clarifying. you're not implying that I would reference the symbol, but that I should be importing it from a master file so that it is a unique instance in the new project file. From there it could be edited independently. This makes sense to me, its very similar to how we handle our standard details in ArchiCAD. I had initially thought that it could be done this way but reached out looking for the "best practice" regarding this topic. It seems like the way to go then is to create one or multiple Masterfile's for details were we could grab standard details to import/copy into project models as needed. I was making this a lot more complicated than it had to be.

Boh, Its the editing of the detail that I don't understand. In my experience with other programs, you often have limitations when it comes to editing linked files, especially DWGs. Often times you are limited to hiding layers, but my team would need to edit: lines, lineweight, line type, splines, fills, patterns, etc. Do you have the option to edit linked details to this extreme? In my experience, normally, in order to edit a link you would need to edit its source file directly.

Thank you everyone who has responded. I feel like I have a better idea of the options that are available for detail management. I feel that it may still be best to follow Don Wards advice and contact Vectorworks training to walk through the options in more detail, especially regarding the pros and cons for each option. After I reach out and we find a solution for my firm I will let you all know the route that we decided to go and why. As it stands right now, before I've had any detailed conversation with VW training, it is more appealing for me to have each detail loaded in as a symbol in the resource manager. Though I am still concerned about that bogging the model down, and In both cased I don't know how the editing process will go once a standard detail needs to have its site specific information incorporated. I have this feeling that I would need to update the master file and then save it as a unique detail in order to achieve the site specific detail, which would in turn make our template even larger and bog down our models even more. I've I'm wrong in my assumptions, please correct me!

I was able to download the files by copying the link and pasting it into my web browser. I'm not sure why this would have fixed the issue, but I have my files now and I'm happy. I hope this comment helps someone in the future too. thank you!

I am unable to download the project files. I click on the link but a download isn't prompted.

Hi all, My firm is new to Vectorworks. Our main clientele is the Veterans Association Medical hospitals, so we are always on the lookout for quality medical supply objects for our models. I am wondering where you all go to download objects that cant be found in the Resource manager for download. With other programs such as Revit, objects can be readily downloaded from a plethora of websites, but I've not had the same kind of luck with Vectorworks so far. I've also had very poor luck with the BIMObject Tool for Vectorworks 2020, three objects of the four I downloaded had no 3D or 2D geometry and the fourth locked up the program for 45 minutes while I downloaded and afterwards I couldn't find the object at all in my resource manager. Also, is there a way to convert objects from Revit, ArchiCAD and Sketchup and bring them into Vectorworks? Would they will be schedulable? Any information or advice you all can give is greatly appreciated. Thank you!

Hi all, My architectural firm wants to start using Vectorworks and I'm heading off our efforts to learn the program and develop a template. I have gone through the core concepts and intermediate concepts courses on Vectorworks university. I've also searched the Forum for similar posts, but I could still use some additional information so I've decided to reach out to you all. How are your firms handing the management of their detail libraries? I've seen two schools of thought while browsing the forums, but I'm not sure what the pros and cons are for each and being so new to the program its difficult to make an educated decision and spend hours converting our details for Vectorworks only to find that I made a less than efficient choice for our firm. In other posts I've read that people have saved each detail as a symbol and then loaded them into the resource manager. The other method I've seen is to have a master file containing every detail on its own design layer, then each detail needed is referenced into the project. To frame my concerns, I'd like to explain my firms philosophy on detailing. We believe that every project is unique and 99% of the time our standard details need minor adjustments to tailor them to project specific requirements. Our standard details are designed to be generic, but still get us about 90% of the way towards the finished product. My concern regarding the Masterfile method is that we wont be able to edit the referenced detail without going into the detail Masterfile. Regarding the Resource manager method, I have a similar concern. Can The resource manager details be edited once placed on a sheet and when edited, will the original source detail be overwritten? I suppose you could make the edits and then save them as a new symbol in a project specific folder. I've also heard people say that the Resource manager method can start to bog down their models, I'm not sure if that's true though. Please let me know your thoughts, I appreciate any and all advice in advance!