Tamsin Slatter

Hi Your data with photos can only be viewed using the Vectorworks Plant Database, which is separate application within Filemaker. When you create a text list from the Vectorworks Plant Database, Vectorworks Landmark can read that text file and use it to attach the data to your plant symbols. But not the images you have stored in the database. The text files hold just that - text. Hope that helps.

It is true of 3D Polys, NURBS Curves and NURBS Surfaces.

Well, you need to convert those 2D shapes into 3D, but you want to retain the 2D. I would suggest you use Landmark > Objects from Polyline to convert your 2D shapes to Hardscapes, Landscape Areas and Walls. Each of these will have a 2D and 3D component and can be set at any Z value relative to the design layer. To create a mesh, you need levels measured on site, in a 3D format, which you can import and then create a site model. I hope that this will help you get started, but what you have asked is really quite a huge question and not something that can be answered in a quick forum post... But I do hope it helps you to get started.

Any 3D object placed into the Site-DTM-Modifier class will become a site modifier... So, you can extract geometry using the Extract tool, place it into this class and then it becomes a modifier.

Hi Chris THanks for your email earlier. I've been training today, but the office team will come back to you with some ideas on training for your team. To answer your question... the road tools indeed are a little quirky, and the fact that they can only joint at right angles is a limitation too. Without Landmark, you are missing the option to create a roadway from a polyline and have easy adjustment of the elevations along the length of the road. But other than that, the roadway tools are the same and just as quirky. THe trick is to combine 3D modelling with a site model - you can get raw 3D geometry to work with a site model too, so sometimes it's just a question of building your own modifiers. Christiaan - glad you like the tutorial. The most recent one covers harscapes and also how to get a roadway to incline steadily from one elevation to another. But it does use Landmark features mainly. In terms of bringing in site detail and extruding, you could look at Shapefiles. These have data attached to the 2D Objects. Using the Modify by Record command, you can do things like Extrude and set colours based on the information attached to each shape. This may be useful to you. Also, the Shapefiles retain their georeferencing.

Hi Christiaan Do you have VSS? There is a tutorial on Roadways in the portal there... But you can use the different roadway tools Roadway (Tee) and Roadway (Curved) to join segments. Yes - Roadways can be a site modifier - just check Create Pad for Site Model and optionally Create Boundary on the Object Info palette. Then you can Send to Surface and the points will automatically use the surface of the model. Or, you can Align Stations Vertically to develop a constant slope from A to B. And, on the Object Info palette, you can change Move to Vertex only and use the Forward and Back keys to move between the vertices and change the Z elevation of each. It's all on the Object Info palette. Hope that helps. In haste...

As I said, press Alt while you click.

Yes - press and hold Alt while you click. If you have pulled away from the original object, it will created a solid addition.

No problem!

DOuble-click the worksheet, open the menu at the top left of the worksheet and choose Database Headers to reveal the row that contains the selection criteria. Right-click on the Row heading. Choose Edit Criteria. Uncheck the box that looks Design Layer Viewports. Hope that helps.

Why thanks Ozzie. Very kind words about my book. We also offer online training if that's any help to you, which can include site modeling. Site Modeling can save you a lot of time in the long run. Hope that helps.

Ahem... well, how about my Landmark book? It's 2D and 3D right from the start and will get you using the hybrid tools (those that are 2D and 3D automatically) and modeling your own objects from scratch. It also covers exterior lighting and rendering. You can find more information here but as you are the US you can order directly from Nemetschek Vectorworks, Inc. http://www.vectorworks-training.co.uk/Learn_Vectorworks/Vectorworks_2010_Garden_Design_Book.aspx The book was updated for 2012 last autumn. For the 3D part, do you have Renderworks - that's the bit that's going to make it look great in 3D. Hope that helps.

Yes - significant changes "under the hood" since 2010 which all help with accuracy in calculation, but as I said in my earlier post, quantity and quality of source data for the model will also affect the results when compared to the real world site. In terms of Existing and Proposed, once you have created the model from the "source" data from the survey, this becomes the existing site. If you need to add any further information to the site, you can right-click it and choose Edit Source Data, which enables you to add source data. You then no longer need to have modifiers for the existing site in your design layers. So, there is no need for a method of distinguishing between existing and proposed. Existing is embedded within the model. Other modifiers relate to proposed changes. I will use different design layers for different types of modification, and set the model to visible layers only, so I can a) review the effect of certain modifiers in isolation and b) explore different design options, simply by making design layers visible and invisible. I don't have an answer on the number of points I'm afraid. I've had issues with large sites that are created from very curvy 3D polygons, where there are an unnecessary number of points along the curve. This can cause things to slow down. But you can run Simplify 3D Polygons to reduce the number of points along the poly before making the model. I prefer to use point data from the surveyor instead of existing contours because they are the accurate measurements that were read on location and have not been pre-interpolated. Hope that helps

Cameramatch is the one.

Hi Yasin2ray If you want to send me a small file, with a sample of the problematic plants, we'll take a look at it. tamsin@vectorworks-training.co.uk All the best

OK Marc to answer your questions: Here's an overview of the process: 1) Prepare your source data (the existing site). This can be 3D Loci, 3D Polys or Stakes. 2) Select the source data and choose Create Site Model. This is the existing site. 3) Use the Site Modifier tool to create a Boundary - this limits how much of the site should be updated when you make changes. 4) Now, add further site modifiers. Pads will create flat areas or new contours. 3D Polys or 3D Loci can be added to the Site-DTM-Modifier class and they will become modifiers. So, any modifiers that are not the source data (that we prepared in 1 above) will be seen as the "proposed" site. 5) Select the Site Model and click Update. Change the options on the Object Info palette to see existing site or the proposed site. 6) Click Update Cut and Fill Calculations to see the cut and fill. However, Building Design Consultant makes a good point about cut and fill calcs. There were significant changes made from Vectorworks 2010 to Vectorworks 2011 in the triangulator engine within the site model. I have done tests by building a known and constant slope and then created cut and fill that is easy to calculate outside of Vectorworks, and I get extremely similar results in this simple model. However, it will also be affected by the quantity of source data. Vectorworks will connect up the source data points and create triangles from it. If you don't have enough source data, remember that a lot can happen across the site in reality so there will always be small inaccuracies. In Marc's case, he is using Contours for both source data and proposed changes. Contours are "interpolated" data, and, depending on the circumstances, you may also need to include specific spots heights if you are protecting certain features on site. I hope that helps explain the process a little better.

Marc The "triangulator" within Vectorworks's site model changed significantly between versions 2010 and 2011, so you will see a difference. My screenshots are from 2012. I will explain the process in more detail later... in a meeting right now.

I would normally offer to take a look at the file for you but I am just heading off to a trade show for a few days and know I won't have time to look at it - but if you can wait til the weekend, I'll happily take a look then. All the best

Hah - thanks Peter - no resentment in me - apart from toward my grumpy husband from time to time!!!

Hi Marc I just resent it all...

HI Brooke Any field that's present in the Plant Record can be included in a report. Try running Tools > Reports > Create Report. Choose to create a report from the Plant Record and then you will see all the fields listed to choose from. Move the fields you want to include to the list on the right. The only thing you won't be able to include I'm afraid is an image from the plant database. The worksheet you create will be good for any drawing - it will read any plants that are present in the project so you will not need to recreate it for each project. Hope that helps

Hi Brooke Did you make your own plant symbols? If so, my guess is that you had opacity lower than 100% as the default when you ran Create New Plant. This causes this issue, but I'm afraid there is no way to fix it I'm afraid other than to create new plant symbols and delete the faint ones. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but I have seen this a few times before with my students, and that's usually what has happened. Hope that helps

Did you get teh file I sent back to you this morning? ANd the screenshots I sent back to you?

OK I had a look at the file. I had forgotten to explain that your model also needed a Boundary (created with the Site Modifier tool). However, I couldn't get the model to work and when I copied the source data into a fresh file, it wouldn't make a model at all. So, here's what I did: 1 Take the source data (original contour) 3D Polygons and ran the Simplify 3d Polygons command to reduce the number of points on the polys a little. 2 Ran 3D Polys to 3D Loci to convert the Polygons to 3D Loci. 3 With these Loci selected, created a new site model. 4 Copied your 3D Polygons representing proposed contours from your file and pasted them in place in the new file. 5 I then made sure they were in the Site-DTM-Modifier class. 6 Then, on the Site Model, I made sure 2D Display was set to Proposed. 7 I clicked Update on the Site Model and it updated beautifully. 8 I clicked Update Cut and Fill Calculations and it worked. Hope that helps! Good luck with the rest of the project.

Hi Terry Have a look at the Space tool in Vectorworks Architect.