Revit® Extensions for Revit® Architecture 2009

Something new to play with!!  Log into the Autodesk Subscription Center and go to the Architecture, Engineering & Construction (AEC): Product Modules & Add-Ons section to get to the page to download the tools.  They don't exactly put new things on the top, so you have to navigate in the list to find it...here's the screen shot of what I saw.  Note: Your list may be different than the image below.

Revit® Extensions are a series of easy-to-use applications that extend the capabilities of Revit® Architecture 2009 software in key areas, including modeling, coordination, and documentation. Specifically, the extensions provided in this executable file are: Grid Generator, Freeze Drawings, Compare Models, Text Generator, Elements Positioning, and Microsoft Excel®-based Model Generation.

As I have time (which hasn't been a lot lately), I will report back on some of the extensions.  Enjoy!!

New Service Pack for Revit Suite Products

I saw this title - Autodesk Releases Service Pack 1 for Revit Architecture - on TenLinks Daily yesterday and thought I would clarify what it meant.  This is NOT a service pack for Revit...it is a service pack for the AutoCAD portion of Revit Suite (Architecture and Structure).  There are 4 separate downloads for the AutoCAD 2009 Service Pack 1...AutoCAD LT, AutoCAD, AutoCAD Revit Architecture Suite and AutoCAD Revit Structure Suite.

Please make sure you download the correct service pack for the version of AutoCAD you are using.  And remember, Revit uses Web Updates not Service Packs for the updating process.

Structural Link Showing Blue Dots at Columns

I get this question every once in a while when some of the Architectural firms start working with Structural firms that are using Revit Structure...what are these blue dots at the columns and how do I get rid of them??

Well, these blue dots are really the analytical representation of the structural column from the link.  They may not always show up, it really depends on how the structural view were created and/or how the Visibility Graphics are set in the Architectural file.  Here's how to get rid of them if they do show up...

• Go to Visibility Graphics for the view
• Click on the Revit Links tab
• Under the Display Settings (next to the Structural Link) click By Host View to get to the RVT Link Display Settings 
• Under the Basics tab, select Custom and then go to the Model Categories tab
• Under Model Categories, change <by host view> to <Custom>
• Under the All and None buttons, make sure to check "Show categories from all disciplines"
• Scroll down to Structural Columns and expand to see the Analytical Model sub-category
• Uncheck the Analytical Model sub-category and OK out of the dialogs.

 

Now the analytical representation, or blue circles, are gone from the columns.

Basically, if you see any blue circles on the Structural Link regardless of the View your looking at, it's displaying the Analytical representation.  Use Visibility Graphics to get rid of them...because they will print if you leave them turned on.

BUG - Sweeps using Pick Path Option

This one comes courtesy of fellow AUGI member patricks.  He posted that he "discovered that sweeps with picked paths instead of sketched paths will not display a surface pattern when a material is applied. This occurs in both in-place families and regular families."

I was able to confirm this (with and without Web Update 1) and submitted a SR (Support Request) to Autodesk.  Here's their response...

Thank you for contacting Autodesk Support. I have submitted this issue to our development team and will let you know their findings/recommendations as quickly as possible.

So for now, if you are creating a family with a sweep and want a material with a surface pattern, do not use the Pick Path option until we get a fix.

I'll post an update as soon as I receive one.

Linked File Cannot Be Saved Error Message

I've had a few clients get this message in the past and seen a few posts on AUGI as well.  Many have said that it's a meaningless message and that is can be ignored, but it's an annoyance and usually messages in Revit mean something.

This past week I had a client get it again and the linked Revit file hadn't been touched in quite some time, so it was really puzzling.  Usually, you can just open the linked file, save it, close it, then reload the link and be go to go...but this time that didn't work.  So I sent the message to Autodesk and here's the response I received...(I added the bold and underline to point out a few things)

Thank you for contacting Autodesk Support.  I apologize this issue is occurring as I know it must be frustrating.  Our development team is working to correct this on a future release.

If a linked RVT file contains a linked DWG (or other "CAD format") file, and the DWG file has changed on disk since the last time the linked RVT file was saved, then when the linked RVT file is loaded (as a link)  the DWG file is reloaded which Revit interprets as a modification.

As long as your client is not trying to make any changes related to shared coordinates, the message is harmless and can be ignored.  But if they are trying to do something related to shared coordinates (including moving an RVT link that uses shared coordinates), the message will prevent those changes from being saved. 

A workaround is to open the linked RVT file that the message complains about, save it, and close it.  That should save the RVT link with the latest version of the DWG links inside it, so that when it is later opened as a link the message will not appear.  Of course, the message will reappear when a DWG file is modified again, until the RVT link is re-saved.

So it appears that it is a harmless message as long as you are not doing anything with shared coordinates.  This message has been coming up in a few releases of the software now, so hopefully the development team can come up with a solution.  And if they do, hopefully it's not like the Wall Sweep fix that wasn't documented.

And yes, once everyone STC and closed local files, they were able to open the link, save, close and the message went away.