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Does anybody know how to delete custom file names from the predefined list at the export option in Publish. See attachment. I seem to be able to add but not delete. Any help appreciated. Another question I have is if its possible to add the revision date to the file name at publish. Again, any help appreciated. cheers, Francois The Netherlands.

I found out that putting the viewport in top plan mode the hatch shows up foor doors. But then I loose the hatch for all solid walls and elements that are not drawn as walls. Is there a way to combine top plan view with a section cut at about 1 meter above the finished floor for example. tx Francois

Hi, I have a problem with duplicated doors that are set in walls. Hatched doors loose their hatch in a clip cube viewport on a sheetlayer. When I just click one door in a wall then all is fine. But as soon as I duplicate the door using the duplicate symbol tool the hatch dissapears. Am I right to understand you can only duplicate doors clipped in walls as symbols ? Hope anyone can help. Modeling in 3D is fine but the process of getting proper 2D floorplans and sections drives me mad. I often spend hours going through all the overriding texture & attribute settings. Often I just give up and edit the annotation to get what I need.I wonder really if this all is part of BIM or me or Vectorworks. Is it really necessary to have so many options without any clue which one sets the actual atribute or texture at your sheet. Francois

http://sketchucation.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=15&t=61560 I had to do some elevations in a hurry. I had a detailled SU model. Imported it into Layout. Set the scale to 1:100 Exported a pdf from Layout. Imported the pdf of several pages as a reference into Vectorworks (2014) on several designlayers and put them into vieuwports set up as A1 elevations drawings with dimensions and all. This is a housing units project devided over 3 blocks. 12 elevations. Now when I edit the SU model all I have to do is update the Layout file and reexport the pdf. Then open the Vectoworksfile which automatically updates all pdf references. And all my 12 elevations are updated at once. Since this link is by pdf you can actually snap to lines in the pdf in Vectorworks. Conclusion: With a few simple clicks I have a perfect (layout) link between SU and Vectorworks. Francois

found it, I had to very carefully position the mouse to the topleft of the panel to just pull them back into the window. So, problem solved.

and I am on OSX using VW2009

Stupid question maybe but there must be a way to add visabilty or active columns in the navigation palette. I know how to delete them but I can't expose them again. Francois

Tx Bohdan. That fixes the idea most have SU is simplistic, but its off topic slightly. I hope this thread is not about how SU works but how to work in perspective mode rendered or not with VW. I would like to thank all that answered my question on this issue. Francois

Ariel, tx for the fix. Are you sure there are 3 commands, I can do it with M and V in Sketchup. In VW that equals to tab, tab, tab...etc.... But to your credit, I like the VW method better the first round, after that SU takes over. So for me these kind of test are a bit trivial compared to working with a client on screen in ortogonal mode or perpective. Christiaan, you are right of course. Its rather frustrating. But its just natural that at the front things are louder and more risky and also more advanced. VW is no longer at the front and moving just slowly ahead to keep its userbase happy. Sketchup also has this problem now. But you don't need to hang around, and its smart to always be on the market to look for fresh products. We test new stuff all the time and our work has changed considerably because of it. Without Modo these days we would not have had some of our clients. Progress is hard if you push it onto those who are happy and content. You have to learn to let go, even if it means many years of experience with a certain app. Francois

Ariel, the only way to do that accurately is with a compass of course... I tested this though on VW and SU and its either 1 or 2 clicks more with SU. But in SU you can, if you do this action more than only once just activite the geometry and move it along any other geometry with that specific angle. Nice about it is that you don't need to type the numbers. The cursor does not need to be at the moving geometry but could be anywere in space along the same route. One of those brilliant SU UI features. And if you move an object like that you can just type / and a number and you got the desired duplicates diveded along the same route, and if you like to see a few more you just retype the number of duplicates. If those were components you can just rescale one to have a unique component that still remains the same component for edit. VW has this feature just now at 2011. But in SU you can make components unique for a specified group etc. I know Ariel its a bit of a struggle to you still figuring out how to do a single move. Once you have seriously gone beyond simplistic modeling in SU you will see the seemingly simple UI of SU has deep waters to dive into. Christiaan, there is no holding up of progress really. Progress goes on at different places all the time. Where there is progress now it will stall some years later. When it does a small group will move on were the progress happens. That's how I came to MiniCad and later Vectorworks but moved on to Sketchup and now to Modo. We rendered first with MiniCad, later with Stratavision, then to Sketchup and now to Maxwell and Modo. Vectorworks stayed around for 2D since nothing else compares to it, even today. In 3D its no longer an option for our design work. Maybe in a few years all is different again. But in the world of 3D archviz VW plays no role. And actually in 3D modeling in general VW isn't present. With the current UI in 3D, which is for most the first look and feel of VW I doubt many new users will be attracted. Its a bit of a pity since VW is really a powerful package that could do much better. BIM advantages might draw some to VW also because of its more attractive price and being the only BIM capable package on Mac. But most who want BIM still look at it as using an application that is the same as used by the other parties involved and most likely that is and will be either AutoCad (with BIM module !?) and Revit. Francois

Imagine Rembrand using a pencil that takes a few hours to show its effect, or the accelerator of your car taking a few minutes to have any effect. It would not be acceptable. Since there are recent modelers and renderapp's that render in photorealism in perspective view in real time while modeling, things have changed for designers. Now you can shape and edit designs endlessly faster than before. That's why even Sketchup with its sketchy rendermode has become so popular, far more popular than Revit and VW together (in the world of design). This has nothing to do with BIM or not. Its about the absolute fact that modeling will become sooner or later a process that alows you to see what you are doing in real time and in the way your model, as its develops, is probably going to look like in the real world, even at the real location on the exact moment in time you want it to see it. Obviously the design will develop over time as well so it will start out in a more or less abstract form without doors and windows but the effects of mass and colors and shades will already be visable. Also Vectorworks will, one day work like this, or it will no longer exist in the near future. The same can be said about Revit or any other app. I am interested to see what will happen, VW slowly become obsolete, move towards the new 3D or will it catch up in time. Shaun, I think you also are totally right on this issue, tx. Francois

Tx Christiaan. Indeed the app by itself is not at stake here but how it is to model in perspective view in a (semi) rendered mode. VW misses out on a major development of the past years. Most recent developments even provide us with real time unbiased render modes making us see what is happening while we are modeling. That means that the impact of light can be seen the same moment you add a beam, daylight opening or wall to your design, change a color or material. On the other end of the scale we have VW's perspective and orthogonal mode which was outdated even 10 years ago. I have a designers point of view. It would just be great if VW could be more of a design tool than it is today. Then I don't need to export SU or Modo models. I can of course learn to model in VW again just for the sake of better use of the data. But I am going the other way, improving on the quality of designs, trying to get others involved including clients. Not after the modeling is done but when I am at it. That is only possible if you can properly see what you are doing on the screen. Well, I am sure VW will go that way to but why so slowly, its not about pretty pictures at all. Francois

Hi Jeffrey, I hear you but you are wrong. Not in the sense that I think you don't know what you write but that you , and probably Nemetchek as well underestimate the power of simple 3D modeling with a highly intelligent and sophisticated UI that SU has. Many thousands of users, many more than Vectorworks has, are actually doing construction simulation, virtual prototyping and all sorts of engineering and exchanging data to other parties concerned, with SU. The reason for it is that with SU generating 3D data is fast, easy, accurate, controled, and visually pleasing. Pretty 3D sculpturing is actually a rather sophisticated and complex hobby of people who are willing to invest in unbiased renderengines and app's like Modo, Rhino, or for example Zbrush. To be honest, 3D sculpturing is probably an area were SU does not shine, unless you like shapes in more or less rectangular forms. SU shines in architectural modeling, and Vectorworks does not even though its decade long head start. I think its time to find out why. Vectorworks is not going to get big as a wireframe modeler in orthogonal view with Renderworks or its weird simplistic perspective viewport. Francois

Jeffrey, @Last was a visionary company, with certainly very different ideas about Sketchup than what Google had planned for it. Sadly that's how it is.

I agree 100 % with this. Although the improvements show the enormous task at hand as well, to catch up with these days big names like among others Sketchup, Modo, Rhino and Revit. I also wonder why it has taken Nemetchek so many years to move on. Francois

Thanks Jeffrey, I am mostly afraid that VW is actually the 17th century sloop though with a nucluar power engine. SU is huge compared to VW, its userbase must be tenfold that of VW. Its about ease of use. That's were 3D Vectorworks is behind SU. To show my point, these are modeled in SU and rendered in Maxwell by me for clients. To model this in VW is not all that difficult but it takes twice the time. And its no fun at all. http://www.architektenkombinatie.nl/index.php?id=18&user_reference_pi1[project]=40 http://www.architektenkombinatie.nl/index.php?id=18&user_reference_pi1[project]=52 I am afraid you need to copy paste these addresses into your browser to see the images. There is more here, all but the typcial organic shapes are modeled in SU. http://web.me.com/fillieverhoeven/architektuur/1_-_kolumba_01.html Francois

SU will never become a BIM modeler. But when it comes to sharing building information, in the real world, I see that exchanging SU models is already done a lot and with the desired effect. While a model made in VW, or even Revit can hardly be exchanged with anyone. When you use a modeler that is used by only a few, you need to generate the data yourself to pass along. That can not be the idea behind data exchange or BIM. VW, by itself is obviously a far better BIM modeler since it has elegant ways to organize the data. But usually though, your organizing your own island. Compare that with SU, were most are able to at least get a fair bit of info out of even a messy model. I don't see any further developments though for SU but that's only because Google has a different strategy for SU. All of this is getting very off topic. I was just hoping that I had missed something about modeling in VW. But it seems its going back to good old orhogonal no fun wireframe modeling as it was ten years ago. Francois

Sketchup is just incredible well concieved for architectural modeling. I think its time to handout a huge price for the programmers of Sketchup, and I mean @Last. Google should be given a warning for abusing a masterpiece and neglect. Nemetchek should give even more attention to what has been achieved by @Last. I am seeing some hopeful signs they are on it. But I have a feeling they don't truly get the genius behind Sketchup. You need to be a designer or use it daily to fully understand how well @Last understood the mental proces and workflow a 3D modeler in architecture goes through. I can compare VW and SU very well since I have used both programs practically from the beginning. I would easily dare to say that a two story single family house of about 150 m2 can be modeled for photorealic rendering in less than 1/3 of the time you need in VW. Mostly because in SU you constantly see what you are doing and that in only one easy to adjust view or window. Its true that VW is BIM and the data generated is used in many more ways. But in reality my SU models can be read and used by contracters, architects, clients and all other advisors making any SU model more BIM than Revit and VW together. BIM is about sharing and since Revit and VW are not exactly mainstream its not working. SU on the other hand is the best BIM tool I have ever used. If it wasn't for Google's lack of interest, SU would have completely taken over CAD in architecture.

Hi Jeffrey, I am using 2009. I always modeled in VW until Skechup came to the market. And after maybe 5 years I have completely forgotten how to model in VW. Although I did professional presentations for years. Sketchup is such a fast way of modeling in rendered perspective view that I no longer can go back to orthogonal view, or wireframe modeling. We now also work with Modo and Maxwell. Perspective view has many advantages apart from being able to see what you get. I can draw a beam from wall to wall inside a room snapping perfectly acurate in perspective rendered view. Try to do that in orthogonal view. I am afraid VW is not yet up to date yet on how fast modeling these days is really. We get very little time to model and we also model while designing, often with the client at the screen. Things have changed seriously and VW should really get into it. VW2011 is a great improvement again but it needs a serious UI overhaul as far as the modeling proces is done. There are some ideas taken from Sketchup but it looks like the programmers of VW have not a clue what Sketchup is really about. Sketchup is actually bigger than Revit, and just slightly behind AutoCad on recent statistics were VW is not even mentioned. SU came to the market 10 years after VW. VW should have been doing much better looking at what great ideas are there, especially in 2D. Nemetchek should really focus more on how designers model these days. Its not all engineering anymore. Modeling is the new CAD. Francois If you like to see our work, all done in Sketchup, Modo and Maxwell, here you can www.fillieverhoeven.nl All our 2D engineering is done in Vectorworks. We are evaluating VW 2011 but as far as 3D is concerned we already lost interest. We can still model a lot more efficient in SU. Renderworks is no competition for Maxwell either.

Ok, thanks, When you model in 3D and then afterwords create the 2D drawings I wonder what the best way is to set your workview. I hate to jump around from view to view and rather just flyover my model depending were I need to be, preferable in somekind of simple rendered view. Is that actually possible in VW, more or less like Sketchup ? Francois

What I mean to say, is there a way to just draw in a normal window in perspective view or is the only way to set up the silly little perspective view window you have to stretch to see something. I find the best way ever to model for achitectural work is the way Sketchup is set up. Not with multiple windows for top or front view but just in a moderate perspective view of your model, were the model never needs to be in wireframe mode . I think wireframe modeling in othorgonal view is no longer an option in the year 2011. Those days have long gone by and nobody still does that. I am hoping there is a way to model in Vectorworks almost the same way you do in Sketchup, Modo, Revit or practically any other modern 3D app. I am afraid VW simply does not have a proper model view to work with. That was number 1 reason to move over to other 3D CAD app's. I am beginning to think its also number 1 reason to keep staying away from VW in 3D still. I hope someone can explain to me I am mistaken. We love to use VW for 2D work, but in 3D, VW seems to be very very outdated, even version 2011. Francois

I have worked in 3D in Vectorworks for years but the past 5 years have been all Sketchup for 3D. Now with version 2011 I might model again in Vectorworks. Gettting started with the demo version of 2011 I was a bit surprised to see the "narrow" and other perspective modes still present. It seems so clumsy to work like that, in a weird perspective window. Sketchup is so much easier to work with I can hardly expect anyone these days still working with Vectorworks way of working in perspective view. But maybe I am no longer up to date on how its best to work in 3D in Vectorworks 2011, maybe there is a good way to work in 3D, either in perspective or orthogonal. And maybe even in some kind of shaded mode that is fast enough to model in. Any help is very appreciated. Francois

We used to model everything in VW but once we got into Sketchup we never got anything done in VW anymore. Sketchup is more intuitive, much and much faster, and easier to edit and to use in the communication with customers. Then to render photorealisticly Sketchup models are easier as well, many options available from free to super highend commercialized render app's. We have also started to model in Modo lately. We still make all our engeneering drawings and layouts for drawings in VW though. Francois

I sent Next Limit a request by email. Did not yet get any reply. I did a search on this board on Maxwell and it looks like C4D is fixed to Nemetchek. Little chance to see Nemetchek being interested in helping the competition.

I used the mighty mouse by Apple for as long as its on the market. Never had a problem with it and use VW daily. Scroll functionality is perfect. I also bought the magic mouse and it seems indeed good as well. Although I wonder if I want to move a mouse around that has the weight of two batteries in it. I used a bluetooth mouse before and did away with it because I always felt response lag time however little.