VectorGeek

Hi Jim, The only way is to make them into a plug-in menu command, and then add each plug-in to your workspace. Then you can assign hot keys as you would for any other menu command. I believe there is a description of the steps required somewhere in the forums if you search. Or perhaps someone can direct you there if they have it bookmarked. It's not difficult - just takes a few minutes to follow the steps. V-G Member of the Knights Who Say "Ni!!"

Thanks Mike & Matt, My fears have been confirmed. In our case it's happening with custom made PIOs. I'll write a script to nuke all those to groups before exporting. Thanks for the input. V-G.

It's not in VW that the problem exists. The text in our drawings displays properly as we have "Adjust Flipped Text" checked. The problem is in the DWG exports. VG

Hey AutoCAD gurus, We typically export DWG files for consultants to use as backgrounds. Since switching to VW2011, I've noticed that when they print their drawings, our imported text is backwards, only if it was inside a flipped symbol. Is there a setting (like the one that used to be in VectorWorks) to always "reverse flipped text"? Thanks in advance!! ------------------------------------------------------------------------ VectorGeek Proud supporter of Bill the Cat 2016. VW2011, SP5 Mac OS X 10.7.4

That's the point though. Many of us do need to and it's where VW is proving more of an "artist's" application. Christiaan, Out of curiosity, what type of projects are you typically working on? And who is driving the need for 3D (BIM or otherwise)? V-G.

Sell scripts? Not me. And I wouldn't use a "hate forum" as a good litmus test of anything. That would be like making Reddit part of the elementary school curriculum. VG.

Although we do produce working 3D models for most projects, this is done as a parallel process and ends once the project transitions from design development into contract docs. Unlike what you may see in your practice, our principal client base is developers. They simply can't wait for 3D models with every last element worked out. They need site yield analyses and suite layouts long before the project gets revved up. To have to think about the 3-dimensional picture at this early stage would cripple our turn-around time, no matter what software package or methodology we used. Been at this a LONG time mate, and this is the truth - for us anyways. VG

Speaking of cracking moments, I just had one. With respect, your comments are unfounded, uneducated, and frankly ridiculous. As a small to mid-sized architectural firm using VW2011, we currently have over $80 million worth of projects in various phases on the go. Our drawings are often lauded by clients as some of the clearest and most complete they see, and consultants (be they on AutoCAD or whatever) have zero problems communicating with us. We do this work on time, well within the budgeted fees, and with a relatively small staff who enjoy using VW on a daily basis. Is VW perfect? Of course not. However in the right hands, it's a powerful tool that you underestimate. Sure, but try achieving all that with a 3D workflow in Vectorworks. Don't need to Christiaan. Drawings get done, buildings get built, clients are happy, bills get paid, firm is profitable. Why on earth would we try and mess with that formula? VG

Tom, Try grouping the viewports and then cutting/pasting them into the new file. You may have to re-ferkle the layer/class settings, but you are still way ahead versus any other methods. This works in VW2011. Have not tested in 2013. V-G.

Speaking of cracking moments, I just had one. With respect, your comments are unfounded, uneducated, and frankly ridiculous. As a small to mid-sized architectural firm using VW2011, we currently have over $80 million worth of projects in various phases on the go. Our drawings are often lauded by clients as some of the clearest and most complete they see, and consultants (be they on AutoCAD or whatever) have zero problems communicating with us. We do this work on time, well within the budgeted fees, and with a relatively small staff who enjoy using VW on a daily basis. Is VW perfect? Of course not. However in the right hands, it's a powerful tool that you underestimate. So before you make blanket statements, please do some research. Sincerely, -- VectorGeek Purveyor of Cracking Moments since 1993.

Hi Lyndsey, I have debated switching to a tablet for many of the reasons that Diamond notes above. I think the problem is that there is no information available on how the Tablet feature works within Vectorworks. If one doesn't have a tablet, the settings can't be reviewed. For example, does the tablet's driver control the settings exclusively, or are there some settings in VW that can be made to customize input? There is limited info in the VW Help, but it's not too helpful. It would be great to see a demo of some kind (perhaps a quick movie that demonstrates how Tablet integration is currently handled in VW, and what features may be on the horizon). I think that would go along way toward helping users understand the benefits. Thanks. V-G.

We run 27" iMacs (2560x1440) with 23" Cinema Displays (1920x1200) as second monitors. Sweet setup for Vectorworks with all palettes on the second monitor, and room in the bottom right corner for the TV window to watch soccer while drawing. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- V-G 27" iMac with 23" Cinema Display, with room for TV for watching soccer

I agree Dybowski, One of the things that irks me about Select Service and other annual subscription models is that the software developer already has our money. There is less onus to have a stable release out of the gate, because many users have already upgraded (fiscally speaking). Although our transition from VW12.5.3 to VW2011 was pretty seamless on the software side, our staff had to learn a lot of new features in transitioning to the new version. In future, I'd like to minimize that by implementing the latest version within a few months after release, and port projects over once we're sure the feature set we rely on is bug-free. After 20+ years of doing this (all in MC/VW), I am convinced this is the best way to go. VG --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "A government that robs Peter to pay Paul can always depend on the support of Paul." ~George Bernard Shaw

That's not good news Christiaan, and has put the brakes on us converting anything to 2013 until SP1 at the earliest. We strongly rely on referencing for our projects. As for keeping projects in the "current" version, that's always a tough one from my point of view. Most of our jobs are 2-3 years in process (from jump-up to occupancy). Based on NV's yearly release cycle, this doesn't work that well, as users would have to be working on 3 versions of the software based on which project they were assigned to. We had excellent success porting all projects from VW12.5.3 to VW2011. I'd like to stay on version now, but as I say, not until the first service pack is released. V-G.

This still works in 2013. It does. When I tested yesterday it was not working. Restarted VW and works like a peach, and exactly as before. VG.

Wait a minute....... Before 2013:: 1) Type "FF" (or whatever the tool shortcut was, but twice to open the dialog) 2) Type in the value 3) Press "Return" In 2013: 1) Type "F" (or whatever the tool shortcut is, but just once) 2) Type "I" (or whatever the second mode shortcut is) 3) Type in the value So in essence, we're talking about using "FI" instead of "FF", with no more need to press "Return" to dismiss a modal dialog box. And this change is "more complicated" and takes "loads more time"? Yikes.

Jonathan is right...however: What is missing is a long-standing feature that allowed you to double-click an object with the Fillet Tool. The result was that all corners were filleted at once. This was handy and is now gone, unless I am missing something. V-G ------------------------------------- "Bill The Cat 2012"

Hey James, Did you try: VectorWorks Preferences > Session > Reset Saved Settings? Make sure the checkbox "Always do the selected action" choices is selected. Try that. -- V-G.

Tom, We found the same thing, once the number got up over 50 or so. It's too bad, because having crossing referenced DLVPs (elevations -> plans, and plans -> elevations) is a huge time save on the large projects we work on. Vijay.

I think that depends on the license type. With "E" licenses, you can. I have 2011 and 2013 (same license number) open concurrently as I type this. Working in 2011 and testing our custom plug-ins in 2013. I'm finding for basic 2D operations (panning, zooming, and especially getting in and out of symbols), VW2013 is considerably faster. Our files vary between 75MB and 100MB each, and in some cases have upwards of 60 DLVPs. The files were bogging down in 2011 but seem great in 2013. This is a good thing. VectorGeek -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- VW2011 (SP5) VW2013 (Build 169810) Mac OS X Lion (10.7.4) iMac 27", 2.93 GHz i7, 8GB RAM, Radeon HD 5750, 1 GB VRAM 1972 Datsun 510, pretty much entirely held together with duct tape.

Hey Kevin, I don't believe this would be a problem. We have eliminated the default content from all our staff's application folders and used the Workgroup Folder feature in VW2011 (server side) to create our own default content, shared amongst everyone. What's great, is that I can make a change and it's echoed around the office. We do the same for plug-ins as well. I can fix a bug in one of our many customized plug-ins, and users just have to regen to get the fix. It's sweet. Hope this is helpful, and things are well in sunny Vancouver. V-G.

Hi Doug, It's a preference now. In the "Edit" tab of the Vectorworks Preferences dialog, there's a check-box to enable/disable the feature. HTH, V-G.

Epic.

Surely its not news that this is their business model? So true Christiaan. Theirs and pretty much everyone's. I always chuckle when I see people ask for the existing features to be improved and for NVW to stop adding all this new stuff. While that may indeed be the best thing for us, it's surely not for the software developer. There's a simple reason NVW and other companies continuously add new features in every revision - they need NEW customers, not just upgraders. It's one of the sad things about the industry, and for us, the main reason why we upgrade (better word: implement) only every few versions. -- V-G in Rebecca Black's famous words... "it's Friday, Friday".

Jaded as I am, every time we get to September and the buzz about the new features of VW starts up, I can't help but think of images like this one.