David Bertrand
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Posts posted by David Bertrand
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quote:Now: can anyone trump that with ..........a Slate perhaps? :-D
Does this count? When I was in school, we used real slate black boards and white or colored chalk and felt erasers.
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Hi Charles1,
quote:it would be great if I could simply export a Saved Sheet because if one of us is looking at hardcopy and another at a VW or AutoCAD file?
Can you not send a pdf file of your sheet? This would make it easy for people at both ends to see the same drawing.
If the the people at the other end must work on the drawing, then a good approach might be to make Vectorworks mimic AutoCad. That is, do everything on one layer, and use classes to differentiate drawing parts.
If you want to have different scales on the same drawing, use workgroup refs and then ship all the parts as separate drawings and let the guy on the other end reassemble them into one drawing using AutoCad's XREFs. He can use a pdf print to see how the sheet should be assembled.
Once he's assembled a sheet, he shouldn't have to do it again. Just send him the revised workgroup refs and he can swap them with his XREFs.
This will require pre-planning and some time spent on the phone or in a meeting with the AutoCad person. After that, it should run smoothly.
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In case it hasn't been mentioned here before, there's an interesting article on Cadalyst web site about a New England Architectural firm that switched from AutoCAD to Vectorworks. They find the 3D very useful in visualizing their designs as they go.
http://aec.cadalyst.com/aec/article/articleDetail.jsp?id=170626
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When I received a troublesome file, I would purge it thoroughly before trying to work with it.
If that didn't work, I would use the "recover" command to call up the file. That would often eliminate damaged elements which were causing the problems.
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Hi JimL,
Are you sending an AutoCad drawing and then are expecting it back as you sent it?
If so, my advice is don't bother. Just send the files individually along with a PDF showing how the sheet is arranged.
Then have him send the files back individually so that you can reassemble it the way you want it. How difficult can that be? And you avoid the frustration of dealing with software incompatibilities.
Dave
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What is the intended purpose of workgroup references?
The manual says that they are for creating "standard elements" or just "standards" including layers, classes, and resources. What does that mean?
There are no examples of how to use them or what to use them for.
I am using them to reference details inside viewports on a detail sheet. They work well for that purpose.
But, if I change the name or spelling of a layer within the detail, that layer doesn't show up on the target drawing. I have to go to the "workgroup" dialogue box and check the renamed layer. Then I have to go to the "object info" palette for the viewport and check the layer again. Am I doing this right? It's fairly simple once I got the routine down.
Also, any "sheet layers" in a referenced detail are not accessible.
AutoCad's "xrefs" were much more straightforward, but not as much fun. I couldn't exclude any layers.
Thanks,
Dave
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Katie,
quote:Playing with the different sketch options can help get the scruffy look to the lines.I have the bare bones VectorWorks; I don't believe that it sketches. If someone would pay me to make scruffy drawings, I might upgrade.
Dave
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quote:You could scan in a few fingerprints to put faintly on the edges and get your old tom cat to contribute to that "lovely" ammonia smell my old copy shop had to complete that genuine retro feel. ;~)
Wonderful, funny suggestions. Now how do I get the linework to look scruffy and worn? I can supply the ammonia smell without the cat, thank you.
It's these silly little exercises that help me to understand the complexities of VectorWorks. Now I have to master workgroup references. Then its off to 3D.
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quote:have it on a Design Layer and then bring in this Layer as a separate Viewport on each of your Sheet Layers
Great idea. I didn't think of that. Then I still use viewports.
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quote:David - could you not edit your sheet border so that is made up from 'blue' linework.
That gives me a message saying that the colors don't show unless I turn off "use layer colors" in the preferences.
I placed the sheet border in a separate "design layer" and then was able to change its colors. But then I couldn't use viewports.
It's still an interesting possibility. I could also use it to achieve antique sepia colors, or any desired effect.
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Here's a bit of perfectly useless information.
To achieve the blueprint look, I set "use layer colors" in document preferences. Then I go to the design layer in the "layer setup" menu and set the foreground pen color to blue. This gives me a blue plot on my color laserjet. Neat.
Problem is that the sheet border which is located in the sheet layer is not affected and prints in black. I guess the only solution would be to place the border in the design layer.
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quote:Funnily enough it's been my impression from reading this forum that it's the opposite of what you have found. Slowness of response to commands, memory leakage, printer drivers etc. all seem to be an issue for Mac users of Vectorworks. Some saying that they notice Vectorworks working faster and snappier in Windows.
I haven't had any of those problems that I'm aware of on my Mac. I wouldn't doubt that it's slower than a Windows machine however. I thought I read about problems unique to the Windows version of 11.5.
Another reason I'm looking forward to the Intel switch is that more software might be available for the Mac -- if it becomes an easy port from the PC. Also, I expect that the dual G5s will be dropping in price soon.
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Personally, I'm happy that Apple is switching to Intel. Now they won't be always lagging behind in processors.
The general rule in buying computers is to get the one that runs the software that you want to use. In the case of VectorWorks, it doesn't matter because it will run on either system.
I purchased a Mac because of the superior interface and because Mac is the DTP computer of choice.
In retrospect, I have complaints about the interface, mainly in the way the finder works, but I'm used to it. Also, the terminal (command line) interface is all but useless unless you're into UNIX.
On my old Amiga, the CLI was interchangeable with the desktop interface. Nearly all software could be opened either from the desktop or the CLI. Also, it had layered, independent screens. It was the perfect OS.
My Powerbook is slow and gets very hot. On the positive side, I never worry about viruses. The interface is pleasant and well designed; most software is a joy to use. The Mac is very stable, but then so was NT4 on the PC.
I always found Windows to be awkward, depressing and to be avoided (personal opinion). I did most of my file and directory work with a utility called "Total Commander" because it was much faster to work with, especially across the network.
One last dig at Windows. From reading this board, I get the impression that the Mac version of VectorWorks is less troublesome that the Windows version.
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quote:As an alternate way of doing that, you can use the numeric keypad, hitting the keypad-Enter key to get you into the X-cell of the Data Display Bar, then typing the distance (or just leave the value that's already there), then keypad-Enter again to lock in that value and move on to the Y-cell, and so on...... as God intended (as shown by the fact that he put the numeric keypad on the right).
In my short career as an AutoCAD abuser, I never once used the rectangle command except to enclose blocks of text. If my employer had known of my incompetence, I'm sure he'd have fired me. But I led him to believe that I was a CAD genius and he never suspected otherwise.
I found it easier on the brain to draw in one direction at a time, hence the use of offsets and trims. That freed up my mind to contemplate the cute lady who worked in the next office.
I've learned a lot from Jan15 who gives excellent instructions about VectorWorks, without all the braggadocio that many of us take part in. Now if I could only learn how to do that two-fisted drafting.
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Back then, VW was lightning fast, and AC users were always trying to decide whether it would be better to keep working zoomed out so far that you can't see anything, or wait an eternity for a forced regeneration when you zoom in.
With AC (ver. 14), I used to zoom out to extents, save that as a view, and then zoom back in. Then when I wanted to zoom out later, I would restore the view rather than zoom extents. That eliminated the regen problem.
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If the imported drawing has a dimension that measures, say, 3" but is supposed to be 3 feet, then scale the drawing up by 12.
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Travis,
We do a similar thing with our details. We Work Group Reference the desired details (we keep all our details in Detail files, by type) and then reference the WGR layers from Viewports.
Great, I didn't know WGR worked that way. Now I'll have a reason to try it out.
Dave
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I'd be interested to know how viewports work with autocad. I've seen people use them, and like you they tell me that nothing really goes into the viewport, it's just a cropping and arranging tool.
Viewports in AutoCAD are similar to those in VectorWorks. You can notate and dimension on them. Some people use them exclusively for notations. The viewports can be arranged to fit any part of the drawing in model space, and in any scale.
Remember that in AutoCAD there are "xrefs" which allow you to reference an external drawing into your current drawing, so viewports aren't as important as with VectorWorks.
For example a typical sheet can have a floor plan along with a few xref'd details arranged on the same sheet. You just have to get the scale right when you xref the detail--divide the scale of the xref into the scale of the plan sheet and insert it at that resultant number. Confusing at first.
Dave
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I have a 15" PB and find it adequate, but would go for the 17" if I were doing just drafting.
The 17" is more difficult to carry around, because of its size.
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Islandmon,
Black screen programming sucks. It's a relic long past it's utility. When was the last time you printed or plotted on Black Paper with magenta ink ?
Do you mean, drawing on a black screen? I use a black screen on my Powerbook because some of the lighter colors are hard to see on a white screen.
When using AutoCAD, I like to stick to a strictly "by layer" for color and line type. Then when I look at the screen, I can tell instantly if everything is in the right layer.
Dave
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I've been playing around with the trim tool and found that if I pause a long time over the segment to be trimmed, it usually works ok. If it doesn't, I undo and try again. I have to pause longer over a circle or arc.
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Alan,
Also I think you'll find Autodesk market Autocad Lt as a "professional " product.
I think you're right. It was Autosketch. However, those of us who used AutoCad had no interest in AutoCad LT. We saw it as a far less capable program.
VectorWorks is not in that category. One advantage that I can see with it is that the basic version of VectorWorks can edit 3D drawings made with Architect. That wasn't the case with AutoCad. The "Architectural Desktop" extension caused real problems for those of us who didn't have it.
Text handling is far better with VectorWorks than AutoCad.
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Whilst we talk of the similiar priced Autocad Lt does this have even half the capabilities of VW for the similiar asking price, a list of features side by side I'm sure would reveal a much greater feature set in Vectorworks including 3D for the same money.
I would prefer to compare VectorWorks with the full AutoCad, which has a command line interface and can understand Autolisp routines. AutoCad LT lacks these features.
I believe that AutoCad LT was intended for casual users, such as home owners doing simple remodeling, or architects and engineers who want to make quick sketches to pass on to the drafters for completion.
VectorWorks is intended as professional software and should stand or fall in comparison with other professional CAD software.
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Chris,
You have left one very important component out of the equation-The client-Now In the real world your closed out of the deal, unless you become more cost effective, efficient and collaborate with the Consultants & clients on their level, Thats one file with the intregration of 2D,3D and data
I stand corrected. I was not aware that you could keep a running construction cost estimate with a VectorWorks 3D model. And from some of the other comments I've read, I guess it is necessary to use the 3D model to create plans, elevations and sections. Otherwise, nothing would tie together and you'd have to keep reinventing the wheel for each drawing.
Now, my clumsy attempts to draw everything in 2D shapes seem insignificant.
How to organize classes / Ten Commands
in General Discussion
Posted
Where do I find this "Modify Layers and Classes" command?
This is an interesting subject and people can get really worked up over it.
One good thing about classes is that you can always rename them later.
Changing classes is awkward and time consuming in Vectorworks, so what I like to do is draw everything in one class and then go back at the end of the session and move everything into its proper class.
As for naming classes, I'd opt for whatever is quickest to pick from the drop down menu. Nesting them (placing a "-" in the name) seems to be faster than just listing them in a column.
I've never liked the AIA standards either; they seem rather silly. But if you must exchange drawings with other firms, then that might be the way to go.
My system is totally unorthodox and everyone hates it except me:
As a hand drafter, I always drew by line type and weight. So when I changed to CAD, I continued working the same way: light, medium, heavy weight; continuous, dashed, hidden, or center lines. For example, "lin01" class is a continuous blue (light weight) line; "lin25" class is a hidden red (medium-heavy weight) line. The system is actually from an old AutoCad overlay called AutoPE.
When I look at my screen, I know exactly how it's going to plot; I don't have to run any test plots. A blue line is always thin. A green line is always medium. A red line is always heavy.