reem

That is the very same problem I had. I must keep checking the plant list for mis-filed items and go back into the plant reference database to correct the problematic plants.So you can't rely on the plant lists to be accurate, although the plant list does count the plants accuratley. I hope that VectorWorks will solve this in their next version of Landmarks.

Ha...Ha....Ha....verrrrrry funny EJ! Who should I sell the house to? Santa Claus?

THANKS!

I want to create a sheet that has several rendered views of my 3D model. I want each viewport to have the sun in a different angle so that I can have a sheet that illustrates the lighting on the building at different times of the day. But when I change the sun position, then all of the viewports automatically update. Is there a way to lock a viewport that it doesn't update automatically?

Is there a way to display the plant ID tag in the center of the plant? I don't want to have a leader for each plant tag, I just want to show the plant symbol with the plant ID written in the center. Thanks!

I am using the plant catalog to create a plant list for the first time. I created a plant catalog, inputting the information for my plant list. I have created seperate plant list worksheets for each catagory: trees, shrubs, perennials, vines, ect. I've encountered a problem: The first time I recalulate my plant list and each time I add a new plant, the plant size doesn't show up in the chart. I have to go to the plant catalog and click in the entry field for the plant size. Then I go to the plant list and recalculate and the plant size shows up but the plant category changes. Next I go into the plant catalog and click on the scroll down menu that defines the plant category. Next, I go to the plant list and recalculate. Finally everything turns out right. This doesn't happen every time, but most of the time. I had to take these steps in the order I described for about 80% of the plants in the plant catalog. And It's only the plant size and plant category fields that don't display accuratley. It's really time consuming. What's going on? Why doesn't the interface between the plant list and plant catalog work more smoothly?

Thanks for all of your suggestions! You guys saved me a lot of time and headache!

I have been struggling with creating this site model trying to figure out what's wrong with my data. I am creating a DTM using 2D to 3D Polygons. I checked and rechecked my data to assure no polygons are crossing and that everyting is set to the correct height. I tried importing it into a fresh new file. I ran the filter to simplify the vertices on the poly. Finally I had the idea to look at the "Mod-Site-DTMData" layer in 3D view and I saw some polygons that were't flat. They were zig-zagging back and forth along the z axis. In other words, several of my 3D polygons were undulating up and down from vertix to vertix, even though the object as a whole is set to the right z-value in the objects attributes. What happened? How do I fix it without having to re-draw these poly's? How do I prevent this from happening in the future?

That didn't work for me but what did work was opening the symbol, selecting the 3D object within the symbol and putting it on the correct class. Some how, the site moel was originally created with the 3D symbol on the a different class, even though the 2D symbol was on the correct DTM class(es). Thanks for your help!

Thanks!

I'd like a clue at how to use the 3D Reshape Tool. It seems to work differently for different types of objects and as a beginner, I'm struggling trying to figure it out. Sometimes you can grab editable points, sometimes you have to ungroup an object and edit it plane by plane which is really cumbersome. Am I doing this correctly? Is there a better way? I don't know. It's very mysterious.

Architectural drawings dimension to the top of a floor or slab / never to the bottom. Make the Floor command uder the AEC menu, and the Object info pallete for Floors display the delta Z height at the top of the floor. The way it's set up now, I have to subtract the slab / floor depth every time I set a floor. It's a waste of time and brain power. And if you change the slab thickness for some reason everything has to be adjusted, like wall and window heights, all your layer heights too. Say for example, in Schematic Design you worked with a 6" slab, and then later the Structural Engineering calc's tell you the slab needs to be 8" of concrete. Building it into the program so that you can do this seemlessly makes sense. Set it up so it's more intuitive, based on how architects draw and design the building; not an arbitrary number that must be calculated each time.

I came up with a solution: I used the create Roof Face tool and made a sloped surface to represent my wall. The I can insert skylights in it to represent windows. It works except the top of the roof / wall has a funny mitre that I can't get rid of. Thanks agian for everyone's help!

I was struggling same problem: I solved it by creating a roof face to represent my wall and inserting a skylight. It's a little confusing to do it that way, but it worked. The only problem is, the top of the wall is mitered and I couldn't figure out how to make it square on the top. I for one think creating a sloped or battered wall would be a very useful feature to add to VW. I know of other 3D modeling programs that have solutions for creating battered or sloped walls the capablility of inserting parametric objects. So if they did it, it is possible. In modern architecture, sloped walls with windows are becomeing used more often. I see them frequently and battered walls are even more frequently used. If it's being built, than architects are going to be modeling it. If it's being modeled than VectorWorks should address the issue. The thing is, as an architect I tend to invest my client's resources in 3D computer models most often when the design of the structure is complex. 3D computer programs must be able to handle modeling complex architectural objects in a way that is condusive with the logic of how buildings are constructed in real life.

I am a new user creating a multi-story building in 3D, using VW 11. I created a layer (called "Linked Layer") that is layer linked to all of my design layers, to view the whole model at once. The user's manual says that the Linked Layer should update when you add or edit objects on the Design Layers. This isn't working consistently. If I add a 3D object on one of the design layers and view the object using the Linked Layer, the new object doesn't always show up. I'm not sure what's wrong. Any ideas? Here is my method for working in 3D: I use the Linked Layer to view the whole building in 3D. Then if I want to edit something, I make the Design Layer I want to edit active, set it to the same view and use the Align Layer Views command to orient all of the other layers. Sometimes I use the Linked Layer to view the whole building I get a different configuration of objects than if I use the Align Layer Views command. This is another problem. I have all of my layers set to the Z value of 0'-0" because it is a split level building. It was getting to confusing to know where objects were set in relation to the layer Z values, so setting them all to zero means that I can place all of the objects in my model relative to the same zero plane. Is this the most efficient way to work in 3D? I find it very slow and time consuming. Does anyone know of any tips that would make the system more efficient?.......

Thanks for all of your suggestions I will give them a try.

I'm trying to create a wall that is slanted, as is it doesn't run vertically. So the whole wall plane is slanted or sloped approximatley 70 degrees to the ground plane ( 20 degrees from the y-y axis). The problem I am having is it doesn't seem possible to rotate a wall object about the y-y axis. An error message reads: "Hybrid objects can only be rotated about the perpendicular to the ground plane." Would you like the working plane set to the ground plane?" However, it is possible to create a simple extruded 3d rectangle that represents the wall and rotate it. I don't want to do that because I need to insert window objects into this slanted wall. I can't insert a windows in a 3d poly.

I want to create a slanted wall. What's the best way to do this? Also how can I create a battered wall?

I wish there was a way to use the trim or extend tool to trim a line to a wall or vice versa...

Is it possible to set an object or class to have a fill color in 3D view but no fill color in 2D view?

thanks!

I tried all of your suggestions from the previous post. They didn't work for 3D contours.

I am having the same problem with my site model. I created my site model sucessfully, and I'd like to display it using the 3D Contour display mode. The model looks white on the screen, and prints a blank page. I tried changing the class color with no success. In the Attributes pallette, the fill color is grayed out. I double click on the site model to open the group and change the color of the object there, Nothing happens. The model displays the color in the 3D Triangle mode, but not the 3D Contour mode. is this some kind of bug? Is there a work around?

I am a new VectorWorks user creating a 3D model. Can someone explain the logic of how Design Layers work in 3D View. I have my 3D model separated into layers (Mod-Slab-1, Mod-Floor-1, Mod-Roof, ect.) per the VW User's Manual. I can't figure out how to view the model as a whole entity. When I go to View>Standard View>Right Isometric, for example, the 3d view is displayed for the active layer. How do I look at a 3d view of the whole building? Also, what is the best way to set-up layers when working in 3D? Does anyone have a layering system that is different from the one in the book?