Donald Wardlaw

JPA, congrats on getting the new version out! Saw your video. Seriously? This is the architect board and the tool you showed was a landmark tool. Parking along path is nice, but does it draw parking space dimensions correctly? Has the tool in architect been corrected? And for that matter, architects in my 30 years of experience are the ones that lay out parking lots, not landscape architects so why is it a landmark tool and not an architect tool? Regards, Donald

AM, Thanks for info. The tool is not providing the right depth for angled parking. In the one instance of 90? parking it is providing the right depth. Regards, Donald

I see the problem. Well there may be two problems. 1. Tool was designed by someone who never had to lay out parking spaces. 2. The stall depth is incorrectly figured. If someone can tell me how to insert a pdf here, I'll post it, but meanwhile I'll have to do it narratively. In 90? parking the distance from the centerline (where the headlights are) of two adjoining lines of parking is also the depth of the stall. So if your spaces are 9'x18', and you have 5 spaces in each line, then the overall group is 45'x36'. OK? And the centerline of the group is 18' from the entry of the space. The tool handles 90? parking fine. With angled parking the situation is different. If I have a group of 10 parking spaces, 5 in each line, and say the angle is 60?, the tool figures the stall depth based on the centerline of the group, to the outside edge of the group (the ends of the stripes at the entry). Parking space depth is not measured that way. The parking space dimension is a rectangle that can be fitted within the angled lines (the stall width and depth) and the stripes only contain the rectangle, they go no further than needed. That means that if you are sitting in the car, the right hand stripe goes from the corner by the right front headlight to the corner by the right rear taillight and that stripe distance is the stall depth. The tool is measuring instead from the front of the stall BETWEEN the headlights to the corner by the right rear taillight. What this means is that for any angle less than 90?, the tool is always making the parking stall too long and the further away you get from 90? the greater the error. Also, the narrower the stall the greater the error. In all cases the stall width is correct. Here are the dimensions it gives: 60? 9'x18'. Tool gives 18'-2 1/4" 60? 8'-6" x 18'. Tool gives 18'-4" 60? 7'-6" x 16'. Tool gives 16'-3 3/4" 45? 9'x18'. Tool gives 20'-11 1/2" 45? 8'-6" x 18'. Tool gives 21'-2 1/2" 45? 7'-6" x 16'. Tool gives 18'-10 1/2" The moral hazard of parametric tools is evident here. Regards, Donald

I just for the first time tried to use the parking spaces tool, both in 12.5 and 2009. For angled parking spaces (well I tried 60?) it does not give the correct parking stall length. If I set the space dimensions to 8'-6" x 18', then the actual space dimension is 8'-6" x 18'-4". If I set the space dimension to 9'-0" x 18', then the actual space dimension is 9'-0" x 18'-2 1/4". I'm afraid this makes the tool pretty useless for parking layout design. I also can't figure out how this was the case in 12.5 and is still the case in 2009. Regards, Donald

I need to learn more about Rhino and Revit. I do know a bit about formz, though, and I can tell you simply why I prefer to model with that. Points, segments, surfaces and holes of any solid or polygon object are easily editable. Want to move a segment on a cube? You can do it graphically or by coordinate input with a move command. The object adjusts to its new geometry quickly and automatically. There is a lot more to that program, but that is the one thing that makes modeling so fluid and stress free. Donald

Mr. Green, I thank you, profusely. I have been looking for a way out of groups from the keyboard because the workspace editor no longer includes enter group and exit group menu commands---so I can't assign the key commands to it like I could for the last 10 years. Regards, Donald

2.33 and 2 gig. Pan and zoom are fine. Only objection is nudging. A single nudge works fine but doesn't go far. Multiple nudges go more but take a long time. Continuous nudging is uncontrollable (was very controllable in 12.5). A little movement, then no movement then a jump, maybe beyond where you wanted to go. Donald

Hello Guy, Good call on the lengths. I seem to be able to adjust that now. Thanks. At the top left there is a button that brings up bolt and nut properties. I see, though, that the problem is that I am using the "Bolt and Nut" tool (which is on the default "detailing" palette). There is also a "nut" tool on the "fasteners" palette. Ahem. Thanks again! Donald

Ok. Symbol to group for line weight. Can get bolt head that way too. d.

Don't know if this is an architect only tool, but I think this forum gets everyone anyhow. In 09 there is a nut and bolt tool. A while back there was a nut tool. I have a couple questions. 1. How to I arrange to have only a nut? 2. How do I show the shaft dotted and the nut and bolt head solid as would be the case if the shaft is inside some material? 3. How do I change the size of a bolt after it is created? Some of the parameters in the OI palette work on created bolts but length doesn't seem to. Regards, Donald

It looks like Snow Leopard release will be near the same time as VW2010. I understand that Snow Leopard is well into testing. My question is this: Will NNA ensure that VW2009 is compatible with Snow Leopard? Regards, Donald

Hi Tim, I found this bug in a design layer keynote legend. Thanks for assistance. Donald

Greetings, I have found a nasty bug when exporting from 2009 to 12.5 or 11 (only ones I checked). Everything looks fine until you double click on a keynote legend. If you click cancel no problem. If you click ok, when you leave the dialogue all the callouts get huge and unreadable and they are all selected. In exporting to 11, they callouts are messed up on opening the file. With 12.5 you have to double click on the legend as above. This makes for a real problem when working with others who are still using 12.5 as once the file is an 09 form, there is no way to make it usable again for the others. I have example files. Where should I send them? Regards, Donald Mac OS 10.5.7 vw 14.0.4 (106846)

Well, I'm not alone. 2.33 intel mbp. I can believe video hardware got pushed over the edge. Is a bit of a disappointment since I'm used to drawing at a bang bang pace. The hesitancy and latency does disrupt the flow a bit. Even things like deleting an object are happening after the beat. Usable but a it less efficient. Donald Wish there were some options for restoring snappiness (no pun intended). I'm not sure that all the cursor feedback I'm getting is absolutely essential. I might prefer less info for restored responsiveness.

The same thing happens to me only the preference that goes off the reservation is opaque smart cursor. I usually don't use that but every once in a while the screen hints get the yellow box. I have to go into preferences and turn ON opaque smart cursor, leave preferences (it is still on), then enter preferences again and turn it off. Not a big deal but it's been happening all through version 12, or about a couple years here. Donald

Hi Chad and Jim, Been away. Thanks for thoughts. No solution yet to fit to page issue. I long ago developed my own workspace standards. Don't mean to sound totally negative, there are some real improvements in current version over what I had been using (12.5). But I do think that having commands available in the pre-made workspaces which are not available in workspace editor is a boo boo. It is true I could, knowing what I now know, duplicate and edit one of the standards, but to get one command functionality it is a lot of work because my workspace is so different from the standard. Years of workflow optimization are reflected in my particular workspace. The workaround that is working here for the lack of exit group command (which I can put a short cut on) is to use the drop down menu to go right back to the layer. Not as fast but ok. REgards, Donald

Greetings, I'm up to date with current 09. I'm having two problems. 1. There's no Edit Symbol command in the workspace list of commands. I know it is possible. There is also no Exit Symbol command which is what I really want because it is easier to have the old command-] key stroke to get out of symbols than to go for the button which is always right under a couple palletes. The user manual says there is a Edit symbol command, and it is in the Architect workspace but it cannot be added to other workspaces. If I switch to the architect workspace choose edit symbol (which can be command-[) then I can use the usual key command to get out. That's why I'd like the Edit Symbol command to be in the workspace list of commands like it used to be. 2. There seems to be a bug in the Fit to Page Area command. If I choose the command from the menu it works as it should. If I assign a key equivalent to it (command-1 in my case) it does not work with the key command. Or rather, it zooms IN rather than fit to page. Regards, Donald

I guess that is the only way. The "Architect" workspace has the various import and export commands in sub menus. I can add or delete individual elements so I can reduce the list to the commands I need. (Don't need export PICT anymore). But in workspace editor, when creating my own workspace I cannot create the grouping commands (Export, Import) and then put the individual commands in those groups. My recollection is that in earlier versions of VW Export and Import commands were the group commands, much like "Export Previous Versions" are now. I can't imagine why that functionality would be removed. Regards, Donald

VW now has dozens of import and export options. There doesn't seem to be any group containing them all in the workspace editor. If that is so, then I have to list all the ones I want in a list. A LONG LIST. This is awkward. It means that if there is any command below the export items I have to do a lot of scrolling to get to it. Is there a way (there should be) to create create a group of commands that nests within a single command? So under a menu, say File, I would have a command called "Export" which if selected reveals a sub menu with all the various choices. Export used to have a sub menu group in 12.5 and that worked well. Donald

Greetings, My apologies if this is an old issue, but I am thinking to upgrade to Leopard but still live on 12.5, which is where I prefer to be for a while longer. I am unsure whether 12.53 and Leopard are working ok or not. Any insight into this? Thanks, Donald

Amy, Same experience here. Donald

<> With respect to loss of user name and serial number, here is what I believe. Sometimes on a crash, say something else, Finder or some application, crashes and you take the step of forcing a restart without properly closing applications, or if for some reason you force quit VW, something happens, maybe the VW preferences file gets corrupted. Maybe it completely goes away, I don't know. On relaunch it asks for serial number and user name. It is an inconvenience but for me a very minor one. 10.4.10/12.5.3 Regards, Donald

Petri, Thanks for the kind offer. I will need to give some thought to the inherent liability of being able to read and print the first work I did! All the best, Donald

When I got my first job in 1970 there was no such thing as a computer in regular architectural offices. But we had a large file systems of drawings for all the projects the firm had done. It was sometimes almost impossible to find things, but they were all there and they could all be printed. Nothing was ever really lost unless, heaven forbid, you had a fire. One key feature of the computer revolution was the ability to find things via searches. Another was the compactness of the stored material. I quit my day job and went out on my own about the time personal computers were becoming pretty usefull and we all could see they were going to relentlessly transform architectural practice. It was an exciting time to start out on my own. I intended to shape a practice without all the operational failures of the old way. So here I sit 18 years later. My office is different even than a year ago. I have thrown out all our product binders. I stopped renting an office. My office equipment consists of a recent model powerbook, a wacom tablet, two printers a telephone and a wireless router. All the drawings I've done on my own (except a few renderings) are sitting inside this laptop, along with all the other files related to customers and running a business. I think what I can do has grown while my office infrastructure has shrunk. I am pretty well backed up. That is, there are multiple copies, all equally good, of the product I've made. Yet still I have effectively lost some things, unlike the old way offices. I have lost big chunks of email to drive failures and inadequate backup. Some email lives in software that no longer runs here. I have CAD files in Minicad 6, 5, 4 and 3. They are not only unreadable, but since 250mb was a really big hard drive in those days, most of these files are compressed with disk doubler, a program that no longer exists. None of these old programs will run on my current computer. Some of them even require floppy disks to install. So, much to my chagrin I find that 18 years into my own modern practice, which I love, the first 6 or 7 years of my work is unreadable. It's like some one locked the plan files and threw away the key. So I've gone from a paradigm where everything was there, but you could never find it but you could look at and print what you found, to one where everything is here, I can show you exactly where, but I can't look at some of it and I can't print it. I realize now that I have to do a better job of protecting what I can still read. But , the pencil gods are smiling. Regards, Donald

I'm with those who advocate that the architect lead on layout. Even though engineers are in my view very amazing and special creatures, their natural focus is on a subset of the project objectives. So they can't be expected work with an understanding of how their efforts affect matters outside of their realm. Someone, though, must do that and of the available choices I think the architect is the only one with sufficient vocabulary and knowledge of all the different languages in the project team to do it. In my work, which is small scale but usually requires serious engineering, I take this even further. I do the structural drawings and I integrate structural features and architectural features in my details. I think separating architectural and structural drawings is not ideal and really only necessary on relatively large projects. Regards, Donald