Jetway Explained

This will only help those with this family but that number is growing (here at work, at least). For those who need it here are the parameters explained... Yes, click the images to see enlarged views!!!
Family Parameters: Airside_LoadingBridge.rfa



Plan View related parameters illustrated:

Elevation related parameters illustrated:

How's that?

Old to New: Upgrading oddities 1 (of more??? )

Have you tried to upgrade a file (or files) to Revit 2009 and found that it or they won't upgrade (yet)? Well, we have and although Autodesk Support is one possibility for a solution, that can take weeks + to get a result and even though I am the person that emails them most every day asking if they are done, it can take a while (understandably...they have a lot of clients!!!).

So what am I talking about? OK, I will tell you:

Yesterday I got a message from a colleague who wants to be referred to herein as Sasquatch (Actually he corrected me, saying: "Quasimodo would have described me a little better! Ha Ha") so, thanks Quasimodo...(AKA John C Raiten).

So anyways, John asked if I had any ideas as to how he could upgrade a 140MB project file to Revit 2009, since I recently had a problem file that needed ADSK's help in upgrading. I got in touch with him this morning to suggest he try a parsing of the file, since there seems to be no other options beyond this or ADSK Support... Well I found that he finally had success (Yaay!!!) and here is the synopsis:

"If at first you don't..."

1) Detached and 'saveas-ed' (lol) a new Central file, so as to not destroy the original file.
...tried to upgrade the entire project file with no luck...

2) Purged Unused, Audited, removed errors. (always a good set of ideas).
...tried to upgrade the entire project file with no luck...

3) Removed all links.
...tried to upgrade the entire project file with no luck...

Now here it gets fun...remember I said parse? well Sasquatch tried that after the obvious ways it "SHOULD" have worked all failed...

4) Grouped logically related bits of geometry (did I mention this project is approximately 5,000,000 sf?) why do I add that? Well, when I say bits I mean a Shit-load: He then saved the groups out as Links.
(Hmmm, perhaps you are beginning to see now?) ...wait for it...

5) He repeated this a handful of times; until only Levels, Grids and Annotations, Views, Sheets realistically everything shy of the actual building, existed in the original file.
...tried to upgrade the now building-less project file with luck... (Yes I said WITH luck, now we are getting somewhere). This point of time is also known as the dénouement...

6) Upgraded each of the linked group files, one-by-one.
...I can sense the end...

7) Linked them all in to the new 2009 main file, Bound them (oooh kinky) and ungrouped them and...

It Fucking worked!!!

-Fade-to-Black-

Smart Geometry Dumb Geometry

I see this (Smart Geometry type of thing) being widespread (on the horizon) and in Revit... do you AutoDesk? If not then I will include herein excerpts from an interesting article (and a link to the original); so perhaps we can get some groundswell for these capabilities to be built into Revit.

-My editorialization is in maroon.

"Robert Aish leaves Bentley" Yes, it's a link.
by Lars Hesselgren - 01 November 2007

"...Most people's reaction to the news that Robert Aish has resigned from Bentley and
is joining Autodesk is "Well what happens to GC now?". As you may imagine this was indeed the reaction of myself and the members of the SmartGeometry Group... (I say what happens to Revit now!!!???)

...We have to acknowledge the enormous role Robert played in creating Generative Components.
It was very much ‘his baby’...Robert Aish from YRM and Intergraph Master Architect days had joined Bentleys and was testing his first iteration of GC, so he joined the group. Our first outing with an incredibly rough Alpha was in Cambridge (2003); Robert did a new build every day...

...And of course at the end of the day Autodesk’s move underlines the acceptance into the marketplace of tools designed for the new design age where computers are used as active design participants. It is a fundamentally different concept from BIM which is a wonderful data storage method, but which leaves design out of the equation..." Yeah, Design is back into our tool box and perhaps one day it'll really be available and flexible in Revit too. -Or will that idea just be killed off?

Now, I know that there are methods for creating "approximations" or "visualizations" of complex designs, based on relatiotional formulas (I refer you to Phil Read's AU class that he gives each year) but those massing studies are a bit limited and don't generate building components, that are adequately quantifiable or "real", etc. they mainly look like objects... We need real objects to be controlled in any manner we dream.

I have one humble request: ADSK please get this type of geometry creation into Revit ASAP, I suggest you ask Mr. Aish; I'd bet he can show you how...he is on payroll, no???!!! ...or is this already happening (insert sly smile here) ...Hmmm...

...That ends this transmission...

Tags Tagging The "Right" Thing

A new Revit user came in with this question... "Why doesn't my Curtain Panel Tag show the number?" ...Breath just breath...since I have heard this type of thing a lot I didn't burst out into a cynical laughing fit... ((WTF is the Parameter "Number"? I know it's being picky but if we would all call things what they actually are then life may be a much better place... It's not misremembering, it's telling a lie Mr. Clemons!!! Well anyways, back to my first tangent: I think they mean to call into play the parameter "Mark"). See it's just my cynical streak running wild... Oh well, on with the solution.

Select the Tag in question and choose EDIT FAMILY, from the Options Bar; then in the family editor, select the original parameter label and click the "SELECT PARAMETER" button from the Options Bar; you should see something similar to the following:

Since there was no value input for Type Mark in the object; and since we want to see the Mark (AKA: Number) we need to change the label to look at the parameter "Mark": (popular guy)

Then simply load (the modified family) into your project (saving the family is probably suggested...just remember to change the name :-)).

Now, when the Mark value is input in the object(s) Properties' (similar to the next image)...

the panels in question will go from this:

To this:
Now just apply this to every possible tag (And more???!!!) you have and you could have 1 to over 100 problems solved with this one posting!!!