Diamond
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Posts posted by Diamond
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Hi Rob,
I have had this question myself. Shouldn't the walls and slabs containing components be exported out correctly, and be able to be qualified in the IFC model? Do you know how the IFC file binds together objects containing separate classes?
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Backing up Gester (and the link), I think most of these are based on the proprietary system/equipment that is used by the surveyor.
For the projects I have had this available, the system was by Leica, and had no Mac (or Vw) plugins to be able to view the survey. Leica has a PC app to view the overall point cloud accompanied by a panorama photo of each survey scan location, which is helpful (if you are PC based).
The surveyor had a draftsperson modelling the existing geometry from the generated point cloud on AutoCAD, I believe via a Leica plugin. The only reason this was feasible in our case, was due to the remoteness of the site, the terrain angle being at 52?, and negating the surveyor having to revisit the site.
Back to the point could file, maybe if NV partnered with Leica, we might be able to get around this in Vw. Is there an open standard for this kind of data?
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Hi Jim,
I believe the 3D artist have an issue editing the 3D model that is produced. Creating too much triangulation, even on the least settings in Vw. Also possibly the issue is that the textures are a challenge to apply the geometry created in VW? Thirdly, the issue could also be the issue I commonly have with issuing DWG files, where the third party is inexperienced, or lazy, to properly work through the files issued to them. In fact, in my experience, this is the more likely scenario. Unfortunately I know little of 3DS Max to be able to work through any challenges.
I have sent you an email with the 3DS file we sent to them (For this project we ended up sending them the DWG files as well so they could recreate the model).
PS Could it be that the FBX file seems to keep all of the texture data contained within the file, where as 3DS keeps the textures externally?
Thanks.
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Hi Jim,
This is a follow over from this post.
https://techboard.vectorworks.net/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=200550Post200550
I couldn't see a wish list item for this, and so here it is.
For section Viewports, not having a saved viewport cache makes the flattened VP setting almost useless. When it was announced, I thought it would solve so many issues. Especially for those that are not 3D literate?to be able to trace over a pre-setup flattened VP sounded great. Ideally it would be used as an outline trace tool for details and sections. But without the option to have a rendered hidden line version and is able to be saved in a consistent render state, it doesn't solve the issue it should have addressed.
Is there a way that if the flattened section VP tick box is selected, and if Saved VP Cache is selected in the Document Prefs, then the section automatically is saved as a hidden line render, separate from the render setting for that layer?
Thanks.
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Hi,
Yes, not having a saved viewport cache saving it's render state is really annoying. If I do use it, I tend to convert a copy of the Viewport to linework.
When it was announced, I thought it would solve so many issues. Especially for those that are not 3D literate?to be able to trace over a pre-setup flattened VP sounded great. But without the option to have a rendered hidden line version and is able to be saved in a consistent render state, it doesn't solve the issue it should have addressed.
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Hi Pat,
Thanks for that. I use that process regularly for 3D SLVPs. Is there a way to do that with SLVPs in Top/Plan view? Thanks.
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Hi Jim,
Importing
I have stopped importing our in house Sketchup files as the results were so bad. A guide to achieving good results would be great.
Exporting
We have reverted to exporting out FBX files, which only seem to need tweaking to textures. Whenever we export out 3DS files, our 3rd party visualisation artists end up redrawing the whole model.
Thanks.
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Hi Jim,
I want a Sheet Layer and it's viewports to be converted into lines and hatches when exported?not the whole design layer. And not contained within a cropped reference as they do now.
The why;
-We have to issue drawings of airport tenancy fitouts to consultants that contain only a single tenancy (out of hundreds). As you can imagine, the base airport plans are massive, and confuse the daylights out of the consultants when they explode the base plan in AutoCAD. All they have then is a massive plan and no idea where there base drawings have gone to.
-This issue is the same for plans and section detail SLVP's, that when exploded are a mess of linework over all of the other SLVPs (now in Model Space) that were part of the original Sheet Layer.
-Also, when we issue these files, we have literally hundreds of drawings to issue in a set.
https://techboard.vectorworks.net/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=59874
This is a related post, but the work around only seems to work for rendered VP's.
Thanks.
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Crickets...
The resounded silence is deafening! I guess that is because it doesn't work the way I want it to. A wish list request then.
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Ha! Good one. I crack me up! Confounded auto correct on the iPad. I am sure I meant parts.
But if you did want a travelling circus with any announcement, I think you need to look into the competition.
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Hi Jim,
I seem to remember watching parrots of an Apple WWDC 2014 session regarding how the GPUs are broken up "Harnessing the Power of the Mac Pro with OpenGL and OpenCL". It started to put me to sleep, but I had thought it did matter what port a screen is plugged into, depending on the software requirements. I will go back and watch as a reminder.
Having been almost exclusively a PowerBook/Macbook Pro user, am keen for the possibility of moving to a serious workstation. Am commonly modelling huge sites in Vw, and getting into C4D/After Effects. Obviously more processors are generally more important for these apps, than multiple GPU's, but an iMac seems like a short term fix. iMac hardware (generally higher end laptop spec) is simply not the server grade stuff that the Mac Pro is. Also seems wrong to throw out a monitor (as part of the iMac) every three years or so.
Maybe the speed jumps we all desire, just aren't there at the moment. We have the top of the line iMac in our studio, and besides very large OpenGL and Renderworks renders, it doesn't seem much faster than my 3 year old MacBook Pro. Maybe that is because the i7 in my MBP is very capable. But the biggest issue I out of memory challenges, and they happen equally on both machines. Looks like I will be waiting until Vw can use all the memory it can, and until then my MBP will do just fine.
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Hi Jim,
When Vw couples screen redraw with the graphics card, I imagine the second GPU would still be helpful in driving a 4k display? One card for the display, one card for Vw? Or is the second card unnecessary for that as well?
Thanks.
PS Are retina graphics coming any time soon?
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Good stuff. Our studio thanks you in anticipation.
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Hi,
I wondered if anyone can assist. I had thought in older versions of Vw, when Vw used to export a DWG into Model Space that all of the contents of the SLVP was converted into a truncated group of line work. It appears now that the SLVP creates a reference with a crop object that, when exploded, shows the whole contents of a the referenced design layer. When we issue DWG's, third parties explode these VP's and get a mess of line work instead of being able to edit a single detail in isolation.
Has anyone found a way around this? Thanks.
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Hi Nicole,
This is an old post, but I will weigh in again...
Regarding the renaming of files, we often receive DWG files named in Chinese characters. Vw English doesn't like to import these files, we we just rename them in the Finder (on Mac) and they import fine.
Once we import them, we find many of the Chinese characters come out as question marks. This is because the AutoCAD end are using SHX fonts which are not a font at all--they are a linetype that Vw can't read. If text has been written using a SHX font, as far as I am aware, there are no work arounds to get text into Vw (I would imagine it would be the same for both Vw English & Chinese).
For Chinese characters that have been written in a TrueType font, these need to be substituted on import for Arial Unicode MS, as this will give the highest probability of being able to render the Chinese text. (You can choose others, but I have gone for a K.I.S.S. approach). Unfortunately, this font does not render bold or italics, so if you want to display English in bold or italics you would have to use a combination of Arial Unicode MS, and Arial, or any other normal English font of your choice.
Anyone else have any thoughts? Thanks.
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Hi Jim,
I was going to write this in the Organisation Palette thread and realised it was better said here. Regarding my thoughts of the popups ideas, and how an element like that plays out a on the whole app:
I am hoping that the whole interface will be refreshed soon to deal with retina screens. Also I think that the there needs to be a light and dark version, similar to what Yosemite is doing. I would prefer a dark, as it is easier on the eyes, but those that are change adverse, would probably want to stay with the light grey.
I also I realise, UI design is hard, and one great idea can be cancelled out by another required element. Distilling any design down to its most essential ingredients is a tough challenge, but it is what all great designers / artists / storytellers / cooks do.
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Hi Jim,
That is where implementation needs direction by NV. I know that when some snap settings are left on (esp with sound on), the amount of high-lit objects (and noise) can be overwhelming. I think it needs be to understated yet obvious in any place it is used.
Yes, I see it more as a tool tip type pop-up. Given the right implementation, it could possibly completely replace the OIP. But if it was a tool tip pop-up, I suggest that it needs to be refreshed to a (black/dark grey?) transparent overlay instead of the current yellow.
Thanks.
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Hi AEB,
Love the hover over the class idea. Very useful for checking in the fly. Tool tips already do something similar, so should be possible.
On a slight tangent. Feel like this is an element that could be used in many areas across the app. What if the object info palette went down this path? Attributes palette? Could be a translucent grey hovering pull down menu. Or maybe there could a list of icon, and the necessary palettes pop out as a selected object is selected.
Even though many use large screens these days, many also are on laptops. Would be a great way to get some desktop real estate back.
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Hi Jim,
A couple of requests for the Slab tool.
1. When adding and subtracting components, can we please have Select/Deselect All boxes.
2. And in the Component creation window, can we please have a Duplicate Component box.
To give you an idea, I am often using this object as a mass modelling tool for medium rise buildings. This means I can have 40+ components that take some time to create.
Thanks.
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Hi Vincent,
This is part of what I was alluding to in my request for Mac OS X Yosemite Handoff integration for use when we are at our desks or heading out to the field. Also of use is to be able to add photos of site conditions for comment when we get back in the studio. I think the most interesting apps in this space are BIMx by Graphisoft, Avatron Air Stylus (www.avatron.com/applications/air-stylus/), and one that I have seen this morning reviewed by Architosh called Orthograph Architect (www.orthograph.net). All of this is going to come down to a decent interface implementation (If you have read any of my other posts, you will be able to tell that I am obsessed with UI design?!!).
Can't wait to see what NV comes up with. What I do know is that this an 'area of intense interest' to NV (not that I can will quote my sources).
Exciting times.PS Reflecting on this post, it might seem I know more than I really do. To clarify, the only thing I do know is that a key senior person at NV is interested in ideas of this nature, which is what Jim seems to be insinuating.
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Hi Jim,
Personal opinion: Unfortunately this more than doubles overhead and required employees. Massive companies are able to pull this kind of industry-wide handbrake turn... but without the capital of Apple or AutoDesk behind it, I would say it is unlikely this is an option for us as a much smaller company.Contrary to logic for such a wealthy company, Apple runs very similarly to a small company, with staffing challenges similar to what you and I deal with every day. That said, they do have a huge cushion to keep them going for at least decade or more.
Yep, what I am talking about is not easy. It is hard to gauge how serious these issues are. And I freely admit that the possibility of doing what I am saying could destroy NV. I hope there is a wise middle ground, that is able to get rid of the detritus added over the last 20 years, and be courageous and innovative to make tough decisions. Status quo is a dangerous place to be, and can end at the same place if not careful.
Although I do not take a lot of note of what Bill Gates says, when referring to technology and it's impact on the world at large, one quote stands out;
"Usually people overestimate what will happen over two years, and underestimate what will happen over 10". Interesting times.
PS While I can make suggestions with challenges such as these, it is better for NV to sell us on the merits on their vision, as most of the technical challenges are unknown to me. Maybe based on the quote above, the dynamic app Vw needs to be can come as a series of clever and innovative moves over a period of years. I think this is what NV are attempting to achieve, but the noticeable jankiness of the aged detritus continues to concern?especially when compared to the likes of C4D, that will use every last ounce of power thrown at it.
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I can't speak for Archicad or Revit, but multiple views in C4D are fantastic.
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Hi,
I spoke to Sean, Biplab and Stewart about this topic when they were down in Sydney earlier in the year. Once again, I thought it would be good to request this to both ends of NV., and further clarify my thoughts.
I have probably said this somewhere else on the Techboard, but I think a similar relationship should be made to what Apple has done with Final Cut Pro. Vw is similar in many ways to FCP. It is the cheaper cousin to its BIM rivals. It is generally friendlier for first timers. And for the money, gives a huge bang for buck.
But NV needs to radically update the interface, and the underlying technology, to where the industry is headed. At what point does NV send more time trying to re-write old code than what could be done to move the whole platform to a fresh code base. Allow the old version to be sold (not making the same mistake Apple made with FCP) and updates issued for latest OS releases for a few years after the new version is released. When users are skilled up, and the new Vw achieves a beyond parity feature set, then have everyone migrate over. If the new version is good, people will want to move.
The key thing to remember, this space is going to be disrupted. With what is happening with the likes of; Autodesk's mobile apps; Sketchup and Rhino from below; and ArchiCAD and Microstation from above, it only makes me more certain of this. New doesn't always mean better, but since the release of the iPhone, interfaces (and industries) have changed significantly for the better, and so I think we are in a time when new does mean better. For NV to carry this out, timing and management of the rollout will be everything. It can be NV, or it can be another group, but disruption will happen. I hope the disruption comes from within NV.
Thanks.
PS My thinking here is informed by many sources, but by far the best is Horace Dediu on his podcast is at http://5by5.tv/criticalpath. He can also be found at at www.asymco.com. For a great rundown on what disruption is look here: http://www.asymco.com/2014/06/25/the-disruption-faq/. Enjoy.
Wrap geometry to surface
in Wishlist - Feature and Content Requests
Posted
Hi,
I don't believe it is possible to wrap (as opposed to projecting a flat surface) onto another 3D surface. We can do something similar with the "Text Along Path". Time we had it in our 3D toolset as well.
Thanks.