Getting Better and Faster at Revit – Part 2 – Project Browser

Luke Johnson

The second post in this series is focused on the Project Browser. The first post in the series described how to get your user interface and lab environment ready…

Note:

Please open Revit, and open the rac_advanced_sample_project.rvt

Please download and import the supplied KeyboardShortcuts.xml

KeyboardShortcuts

You can download the rac_advanced_sample_project here

 

Let’s learn about the Revit Project Browser…

If we use the Project Browser effectively, we will be better and faster at Revit.

 

Search:

  • Use Project Browser Search – always

 

Search Exercise:

  • Switch to Site view
  • Search for “shrub” in the Project Browser (right-click to start the search command)
  • Place some more Planting around the carpark

 

Keyboard shortcut tip: try pressing Q for Move

 

Type Properties:

Type Properties Exercise:

  • Right-click on a Type in the PB to get to Type Properties…
  • Try it for a shrub type
  • Edit the Height
  • Remember: we can double-click on the shrub to jump to type properties

 

Family Preview:

Notice the Preview for supported types!

Click Preview button next to a Shrub type to try it

Surprising how many families are supported with this preview feature…

 

Type Deletion:

Right-click on multiple Types to Delete them all at once:

Type Deletion Exercise:

  • Try selecting Roof – Steel Bar Joist – Steel Deck – EPDM Membrane
  • And
  • Stair – Carriage – Carriage – Paint – 50 mm Width
  • And deleting both types at once

 

Browser Organisation for Sheets:

You can Filter Sheets in the Project Browser by the “Print Set” – that is, by saved sheet selection.

Sheet Browser Exercise:

  • Type BO to start Browser Organisation without mouse
  • Change Sheets to By Set
  • Check how that works
  • Click OK
  • Change back to All

 

Right-click for multiple ‘new’ commands

Sheet:

Legends:

Schedules:

New Schedule Exercise:

  • Make a new Wall Schedule with this method
  • While you are it, add a calculated value for Average Wall Ht like this:
  • Then pick one of the Walls and Highlight in Model
  • Then immediately pick the Section Box tool from the QAT
  • The Set Workplane to the wall (QAT)
  • Add dimension (QAT), to verify the schedule results

 

Right-click in the Project Browser:

Right-click Families node to Save All Families:

Right-click Revit Links for New Link and Manage Links:

Right-click a Sheet to Add a view:

Right-click sheet exercise:

  • Make a new A1 sheet with right-click in the PB
  • Add View
  • Add newly created Wall Schedule – will be too big

 

Revit Links:

You can Unload for yourself or everyone from the Project Browser:

 

Family Management:

Did you know that the Project Browser Families node provides access to more than just traditional component families?

For example, you can use the Project Browser to quickly select different types of Filled Regions:

System Family Management and RevitLookup Exercise:

  • Select All Instances of Concrete filled region
  • There should be 1
  • But where is it? In a workshared project we would see the view workset.
  • Go to Add-ins
  • Revit Lookup – snoop current selection
  • Find the OwnerViewId
  • Copy the Name
  • Use Search in Project Browser
  • Found it!

 

In Part 3, we will have a closer look at Revit Keyboard Shortcuts.

Revizto 4.4 Now Released – Batteries Included!

Luke Johnson

I’m excited to share this release with you, because it has some amazing improvements. Here are my top 3 new features:

  1. Visibility control of Linked Models. Basically, you can now turn individual models on and off like you would in Glue or Navisworks, and you can override colours! Those colour overrides can be saved into a viewpoint or issue. This is a massive enhancement.
  2. Phases Support like Revit. There are some really nice visual effects possible, now that Revizto can show you Existing and subsequent phases, along with various phase filters. This opens up a range of new possibilities for sharing and discussing work in and around existing buildings. You can now ‘markup’ a demolition phase directly in the model, and assign issues to get items resolved quicker.
  3. Clickable Links on Sheets. For sheets you export from Revit, you can now immediately jump to the related views by using the view symbol hyperlink, just like you would in Revit.

As you can see, the integration with Revit is getting tighter. This means Revizto is now even stronger for fully in-house review workflows, like model review and drawing markup within an Architectural firm. Of course, Revizto remains my favourite way to handle coordination for large multi-discipline teams, whether that be design coordination or services coordination tasks.

This image shows how you use the new Objects dialog to select ‘Links’ and then override the colours and visibility of each linked model:

What’s new in Revizto 4.4 release:
– Ability to color code links, categories and levels. New “Objects” dialog.
– Visibility control of linked models and individual objects.
– Phases support from Revit.
– Tag management system for the Issue Tracker.
– Clickable links on sheets.
– Console app for getting XLS reports from the Issue Tracker.
– Ability to attach new file formats to issues. The complete list of supported formats: pdf, txt, csv, xls, xlsx, doc, docx, jpg, png.
– Interface improvement. 3D tab: reconfigured toolbar.
– Brand new installer. Minor updates will come through as patches, containing only the differences and therefore being much less in size.
– Rhino support (direct plugin in Rhino).

Here is a direct link to the release build, or you can download from here:

https://storage.googleapis.com/builds.revizto.com/MSI/Revizto(x64)-4.4.39337.msi

Here is the release video, which goes over the new features:

While I’m at it, here are the resources from my BILT session on Revizto, which included a preview of 4.4:

BILTANZ2017 Revizto Handout

BILTANZ2017 Revizto Presentation

BILTANZ2017 Keynote Presentation

Real-time VR and 3ds Max Interactive

Luke Johnson

This recent announcement revealed some new features coming to 3dsMax 2018.1, primarily a real-time VR engine in Max based on Stingray. This page has the steps to install it. Basically, you install update 2018.1, then install Max Interactive:

Here are some ‘facts at a glance’ coming from Autodesk:

What’s the news with 3ds Max 2018.1?

Autodesk 3ds Max 2018.1 now includes 3ds Max Interactive, a real-time engine based on Autodesk Stingray. This new 3D to VR workflow is designed to provide 3ds Max users with a new way to create interactive and virtual reality (VR) experiences. It is included with the 3ds Max 2018.1 update.

 

Who is 3ds Max Interactive designed for?

3ds Max Interactive is a real-time engine for design visualization specialists based on Autodesk Stingray. It can be used in a number of different contexts but its focus is on helping to simplify the process of turning animations, such as architectural visualizations, into stunning virtual reality experiences.

 

How does this relate to Autodesk Revit Live?

Autodesk is committed to creating VR solutions for the widest spectrum of users.  Last year we rolled out Autodesk Revit Live, the powerful, easy-to-use cloud-based visualization service for architects that transforms Autodesk Revit models into VR experiences in one click. Autodesk Revit Live is designed for architects who require a solution to quickly explore, understand, and share Autodesk Revit designs on their desktop or in virtual reality.  The new VR tools in 3ds Max 2018.1 we are announcing today are aimed at design visualization specialists working to produce high-end, photoreal experiences. With the new 3ds Max to VR workflow, we’re shoring-up data drudgery with capabilities like support for translating materials from the popular V-Ray renderer in 3ds Max to VR – freeing visualization artists to focus on the part they care most about: creating stunning imagery.

 

How much does 3ds Max Interactive cost?

3ds Max Interactive is available to all current 3ds Max subscribers – either as a standalone product, or as part of an Autodesk industry collection – at no additional cost. It cannot be purchased separately.

Links:

Process Explorer Download and How to Find Out What is Locking Your Files

Luke Johnson

Process Explorer is a free and very powerful task manager that let’s you really see what is going on with your system… One of those things every IT person should have in their toolkit. You can get it here:

 Download Process Explorer (1.8 MB)

from this page

and here’s how to find out which process or program is locking a file or directory in Windows:

Go to Find > Find Handle or DLL. In the “Handle or DLL substring:” text box, type the path to the file (e.g. “C:\path\to\file.txt”) and click “Search”. All processes which have an open handle to that file should be listed.

Content Management Webinar Tomorrow including Batch Management and Multi-Format

Luke Johnson

Good Revit Content management does not come immediately or without forethought. Unifi are giving you another chance to review some best-practice content management principles at an upcoming webinar. It should be very interesting to hear about some of the productivity and functionality improvements that are becoming available to allow you to manage your BIM content more effectively.

Update:

Register at this link

Here are some of the things that will be discussed:

  • Hidden power of saved searches
  • Batch tag editing
  • Batch Inserting
  • Schedule / Details / System families support
  • “Clone” wars – Cloning or copying content from 3rd parties
  • Multi-format support sneak peek!
  • Customize your UNIFI experience
  • Stump the pros – trying to do something unique with UNIFI? ask away and they will answer your questions live…

You can send in a suggestion at support@unifilabs.com

More about Unifi at this link

Creating Flat Surfaces in Revit to Make 3D Grids or Datums

Luke Johnson

The form creation engine in Revit does not really know about flat vertical zero thickness surfaces. However, with DirectShape, we can make almost any type of mesh geometry. One interesting idea coming out of the RTC ANZ event this year was creating these flat surfaces to display grids in 3D. This lets us do things like dimension easily in Navisworks or Revizto. I wanted to use them to add some flat datum lines to a construction setout point family.

Here is the Dynamo Script that I used (Download Make Flat DirectShape From Line):

Basically, you select a Detail (Symbolic) Line and run the script. In action:

Playing around with the lines a bit, I built this geometry for use in the project:

Color Fill Legend in a 3D View and See Rooms in 3D in Revit

Luke Johnson

Wow.

This is one of the best workarounds I have seen for years in Revit! Did you know that you can rotate a Revit Floor Plan view in 3 dimensions?

Try it now:

  1. Go to a Floor Plan view and make sure the Crop Region is turned on
  2. Now open a Section or Elevation View
  3. Tile the windows in Revit so you can see both views
  4. Select the Crop Region in the Floor Plan view
  5. Switch to the Section or Elevation view (the Crop Region is still selected)
  6. Start the Rotate command in the Section or Elevation view
  7. Rotate the Floor Plan away from the horizontal plane. Try 20 degrees.
  8. Experiment with the above process until you have created a sort of forced orthographic view… but Revit thinks it is a Floor Plan! You may have to switch between some sections running perpendicular to each other and keep rotating the Floor Plan crop region until you capture the view you want.

This means you can have Rooms showing. Which means you can have a Room Color Scheme showing up in a ‘kind of’ 3D view in Revit. This is awesome!

It is also a nice way to see how View Range works. As you experiment with the View Range of this special Floor Plan, you will see more or less of the elements (a bit like a 3D section box).

Not sure of the limitations or problems yet, but I had to share 🙂

Thanks to pepar for sharing on slack, and cadconsulting for making the video.