Classroom Training – Open Classes

Know It. Ideate Training.

Position yourself to land dream projects. Tap the full potential of your software solutions. Increase your facility, fluidity and capability to maximize the value of your precision software tools.

Here are a few of the training opportunities Ideate has to offer in the coming weeks:

1.14-16::Sacramento
Revit MEP Mechanical and Plumbing Fundamentals
1.16-18::Seattle
Civil 3D Fundamentals
1.23-25::San Francisco
Revit MEP Electrical Fundamentals
1.23-25::San Francisco
Revit Architecture Fundamentals

Know your software. Sign up now!

eLearning – Upcoming Revit Classes

Join the Ideate Tech Experts for eLearning – live online classes that provide your entire organization with easy access to premium education. 

Upcoming classes include: 

1.15.13::Revit 201:Rapid Detailing

Each class is designed to give you specific, improved results in a particular topic. You can interact with the instructor right from your own office, while eliminating travel time. Because the class schedule rotates, you can easily select your topics of interest and choose the day which best meets your schedule.

Click here for class descriptions, times and registration link. Questions? Contact education@ideateinc.com

Get It. Know It. Use It.

Classroom Training – Open Classes

Know It. Ideate Training.

Position yourself to land dream projects. Tap the full potential of your software solutions. Increase your facility, fluidity and capability to maximize the value of your precision software tools.

Here are a few of the training opportunities Ideate has to offer in the coming weeks:

12.26-28::San Francisco
Revit MEP Mechanical and Plumbing Fundamentals
1.7-9::Sacramento
Revit Architecture Fundamentals
1.14-16::Sacramento
Revit MEP Mechanical and Plumbing Fundamentals
1.14-16::San Francisco
AutoCAD Fundamentals
1.16-18::Portland
Revit Architecture Fundamentals
1.16-18::Seattle
Civil 3D Fundamentals

Know your software. Sign up now!

eLearning – Upcoming Revit Classes

Join the Ideate Tech Experts for eLearning – live online classes that provide your entire organization with easy access to premium education. 

Upcoming classes include: 

1.15.13::Revit 201:Rapid Detailing

Each class is designed to give you specific, improved results in a particular topic. You can interact with the instructor right from your own office, while eliminating travel time. Because the class schedule rotates, you can easily select your topics of interest and choose the day which best meets your schedule.

Click here for class descriptions, times and registration link. Questions? Contact education@ideateinc.com

Get It. Know It. Use It.

Too Many Layers…

As a Consulting Services Provider for Autodesk Products, we often receive requests for tips from our customers making the transition to current versions of software. 
 
As a Civil 3D Application Specialist, one of the questions I hear the most is “How do I get rid of all the extra Layers in the Civil 3D template?” If you’re a current Civil 3D user, you may understand where this question comes from. If you’re new to the program, here’s a bit of an explanation.
 
Civil 3D uses a drawing template file (.DWT) to create all of the necessary layers, styles, settings and so forth in the same way the AutoCAD does. With Civil 3D drawings, these template files also include Object Styles, Label Styles, and numerous additional styles and settings associated with the dynamic functionality of the program. Along with these styles come the Layers that the objects are placed on. The Civil 3D 2013 out-of-box template contains 201 pre-defined Layers that automatically show up in a new drawing file.
 
In most cases, the recommendation would be to simply delete the layers you don’t need. Unfortunately, Civil 3D (and AutoCAD) doesn’t quite work that way.  Civil 3D will automatically prevent users from deleting any styles or layers that are being used and/or referenced by other objects in the drawing file. In this case, the default Styles included in the template are referencing the Layers created in the drawing, thus preventing them from being deleted.
 
So what can we do?
 
Well, there’s a handy little command that’s been around for quite a while now called LAYDEL, short for Layer Delete. The LAYDEL command will allow users to override the automatic block that the program has on deleting layers assigned to objects. When you use the LAYDEL command, you are allowed to delete all layers except for Layer 0, which is pre-programmed into the drawing and has its own special properties.
 
The added benefit to using the LAYDEL command is that it does not delete or remove any of the pre-defined Styles from the Civil 3D template; only the pre-defined Layers that fill the Layer Properties Manager. The Civil 3D styles remain in the drawing file and save their pre-defined layer designation. The layer itself is only created if and when it is needed (when an object assigned to it is created in the drawing). If the command is never used, the layer never gets added to the drawing file.
 
Here’s a quick example of how it works:
 
When the initial blank Civil 3D 2013 drawing file is opened (from the default _AutoCAD Civil 3D (Imperial) NCS.dwt file) it contains 201 Layers.

Figure 1: Out-Of-Box Template with 201 Layers

These layers are created automatically, based on the pre-defined Styles and Settings that assign Layers to Civil 3D Objects. A list of these layers can be found in the Edit Drawing Settings Dialog box, under the Object Layers tab.

Figure 2: Civil 3d Object Layers Tab

Because the Objects are assigned to these specific layers by the template file, Civil 3D will try to prevent these layers from being deleted.

Using the LAYDEL command, along with the NAME option, we can override this action so that all layers except for Layer 0 can be deleted from the drawing. When the Delete Layers dialog appears, use the Shift+left-click method to select all layers on the list and click OK to delete them from the drawing.

Figure 3: Delete Layers Dialog

Figure 4: Layer Delete Warning

A warning also appears asking you to confirm that you want to delete the layers, and telling you that all objects referencing these layers will also be deleted.

Once the process is complete, the Layer Properties Manager will be empty, except for Layer 0. From that point on, additional layers can be added as needed by the user. If a Civil 3D object is created, the Object Layer assigned to it will be automatically added as well.

So if you’re starting out with Civil 3D, or if you’re just looking for a way to get rid of some unwanted Layers that are cluttering your Layer Properties Manager, try the LAYDEL command.

---

Matt Miyamoto, P.E.
Ideate AEC Application Specialist
Matt is a licensed Civil Engineer in the state of Hawaii. Matt obtained a BS in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Hawaii at Manoa, and has 7 years of private sector design experience which he applies in his role as an application specialist with Ideate, Inc. His project experience includes residential and commercial site development, private and public sewer, water and drainage systems, harbors improvements, and roadway improvements. While in Hawaii, Matt was involved in multidisciplinary projects for City and County agencies, State Departments, the Army COE and private developers. @MattM_PE

Get it. Know it. Use it.

Classroom Training – Open Classes

Know It. Ideate Training.

Position yourself to land dream projects. Tap the full potential of your software solutions. Increase your facility, fluidity and capability to maximize the value of your precision software tools.

Here are a few of the training opportunities Ideate has to offer in the coming weeks:

12.26-28::San Francisco
Revit MEP Mechanical and Plumbing Fundamentals
1.7-9::Sacramento
Revit Architecture Fundamentals
1.14-16::Sacramento
Revit MEP Mechanical and Plumbing Fundamentals
1.14-16::San Francisco
AutoCAD Fundamentals
1.16-18::Seattle
Civil 3D Fundamentals

Know your software. Sign up now!

The Infamous FILEDIA System Variable

Here at Ideate, one of the common issues we hear about while on tech support is that a customer is not able to use a dialog box to select files for opening. In these cases, rather than seeing the dialog box, they are prompted to manually enter the full file path and name of the drawing or file they want to open at the command line.
 
The solution for this is almost always the same, and is relatively easy. Set the FILEDIA system variable to “1” instead of “0.” This system variable controls whether or not the application uses the dialog box function for file selection. 

What do “0” and “1” mean?
(Courtesy of AutoCAD Help file)
0 - Does not display dialog boxes. You can still request a file dialog box to appear by entering a tilde (~) in response to the Command prompt.

1 - Displays dialog boxes. However, if a script is active, an ordinary prompt is displayed. Prompts are also displayed if an AutoLISP or ObjectARX™ program is active. (Not applicable to AutoCAD LT.)

So what causes the value to change to 0? 
In most cases, we’ve noticed that the system variable tends to reset when a file crashes during closing, or when the application runs into an error during shut down or saving. When that happens, FILEDIA changes back to “0,” and the next time you try to open a file, you’re prompted to enter a file name and path rather than select. To fix the problem, either launch a new drawing, or double click on an existing drawing to get to the command line and type in FILEDIA to set it back to “1.” 
 
Why do we need a “0” option?
Some of you may be asking why do we even need a “0” option to begin with? Well, most of the time, you really don’t need to use the “0” option. But there are instances where you may want to be able to manually specify a file name and path rather than select it from a dialog box. Take for example, a SCRIPT file that automatically loads and add-on or resource file that you need to use in AutoCAD. To fully automate the process, the script would need to be able to locate and open a file from a specified location without any user input. Otherwise, it would pause and wait for the user to navigate to and select the file before completing the process. In that case, FILEDIA would be set to “0” as part of the script so that the author can include the full file path for the resource file in the script. 
 
So there you have it, if you ever encounter a problem where your file dialog box is missing and you’re prompted to enter the file path at the command line, change your FILEDIA system variable to “1” instead of “0” and everything should be back to normal.

---

Matt Miyamoto, P.E.
Ideate AEC Application Specialist
Matt is a licensed Civil Engineer in the state of Hawaii. Matt obtained a BS in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Hawaii at Manoa, and has 7 years of private sector design experience which he applies in his role as an application specialist with Ideate, Inc. His project experience includes residential and commercial site development, private and public sewer, water and drainage systems, harbors improvements, and roadway improvements. While in Hawaii, Matt was involved in multidisciplinary projects for City and County agencies, State Departments, the Army COE and private developers. @MattM_PE

Get it. Know it. Use it.

eLearning – Upcoming Revit Classes

Join the Ideate Tech Experts for eLearning – live online classes that provide your entire organization with easy access to premium education. 

Upcoming classes include: 

12.18.12::Revit 201:Revit + Light Meter
1.15.13::Revit 201:Rapid Detailing

Each class is designed to give you specific, improved results in a particular topic. You can interact with the instructor right from your own office, while eliminating travel time. Because the class schedule rotates, you can easily select your topics of interest and choose the day which best meets your schedule.

Click here for class descriptions, times and registration link. Questions? Contact education@ideateinc.com

Get It. Know It. Use It.

Classroom Training – Open Classes

Know It. Ideate Training.

Position yourself to land dream projects. Tap the full potential of your software solutions. Increase your facility, fluidity and capability to maximize the value of your precision software tools.

Here are a few of the training opportunities Ideate has to offer in the coming weeks:

12.26-28::San Francisco
Revit MEP Mechanical and Plumbing Fundamentals
1.14-16::Sacramento
Revit MEP Mechanical and Plumbing Fundamentals
1.14-16::San Francisco
AutoCAD Fundamentals
1.16-18::Seattle
Civil 3D Fundamentals

Know your software. Sign up now!

eLearning – Upcoming Revit Classes

Join the Ideate Tech Experts for eLearning – live online classes that provide your entire organization with easy access to premium education. 

Upcoming classes include: 

12.18.12::Revit 201:Revit + Light Meter

Each class is designed to give you specific, improved results in a particular topic. You can interact with the instructor right from your own office, while eliminating travel time. Because the class schedule rotates, you can easily select your topics of interest and choose the day which best meets your schedule.

Click here for class descriptions, times and registration link. Questions? Contact education@ideateinc.com

Get It. Know It. Use It.

Ideate Explorer for Revit 2013 User Survey Winners

Congratulations to our Ideate Explorer for Revit Survey Winners:

• Anders Alverfeldt of Yellow AB in Sweden
• Jeremy McMartin of Kirkor Architects
  and Planners in Canada
• Shawn Harriman of Roebbelen Construction
  in the United States
• Clark Morgan of WG Clark Construction
  in the United States

The above winners received a $50 Apple gift card for completing our 2012 Ideate Explorer for Revit user survey. Each person who completed the survey was entered into a random drawing to win.

We take your input very seriously - You ask, we listen. Our newest release of Ideate BIMLink will ship soon and contains all three of our top user survey requests from the 2012 Ideate BIMLink survey. See the Sneak Peek before it ships!

Classroom Training – Open Revit Classes

Know It. Ideate Training.

Position yourself to land dream projects. Tap the full potential of your software solutions. Increase your facility, fluidity and capability to maximize the value of your precision software tools.

Here are a few of the training opportunities Ideate has to offer in the coming weeks:

12.11-13::Seattle
Revit Architecture Fundamentals
12.17-19::San Francisco
Revit Architecture Fundamentals
12.26-28::San Francisco
Revit MEP Mechanical and Plumbing Fundamentals

Know your software. Sign up now!

Ideate, Inc. Exhibits New Ideate Software Enhancements at Autodesk University 2012

SAN FRANCISCO, California – 12/4/2012 - Ideate, Inc., a leading Autodesk® Authorized Developer and Autodesk solutions provider offering quality software, training, support and custom consulting services to the AEC industry, returned as an exhibitor to Autodesk University 2012, with increased emphasis on its recently enhanced Ideate-developed software solutions, Ideate BIMLink and Ideate Explorer for Revit.

At the AU annual conference and exhibition in Las Vegas, design professionals from around the world attend classes, keynotes, product demonstrations, exhibits and networking events.

Bob Palioca, President, Ideate, Inc. said of AU 2012, “The shared energy and the concentration of knowledge at AU make it a truly rewarding technology event. We get in-person feedback from professionals who use the software we develop. That is invaluable for our ongoing updates. Plus, we have an opportunity to introduce the new features and enhancements of our software solutions. At AU in all the ways we participate, we get to help people within our industry become more productive and connected, and help them keep learning.”

Ideate BIMLink lets users access, analyze, control, edit, extract, and manage BIM data with speed, ease and accuracy within a reliable and stable platform. It lets users pull data from an Autodesk Revit file into user-friendly Microsoft Excel and push Excel data into Revit with equal ease. www.ideatebimlink.com

Ideate Explorer for Revit is a simple, powerful Autodesk Revit add-on to explore, quantify and manage the 100,000+ building elements in a Revit model. www.ideateexplorer.com

To coincide with AU 2012, Ideate, Inc. is offering worldwide an Autodesk University 2012 bundle until December 31, 2012. The combination is available via easy web download. It is limited to one offer per company. Included are single, stand-alone, full, upgradeable licenses of Ideate BIMLink 2013 and Ideate Explorer for Revit 2013 at US$599. The promotion offers a savings of more than 50 percent from US$1249. Network pricing is also available. For details, visit http://www.ideatebimlink.com/index.php/buy-now/or contact: ideatesoftware@ideateinc.com

About Ideate, Inc.
Ideate, Inc. is a leading Autodesk Authorized Developer with 25+ years’ experience in software development and specific focus on Building Information Modeling (BIM) and is a leading Autodesk solutions provider offering quality software, training, support and custom consulting services to the AEC industry since 1992. Headquartered in San Francisco, California and operating five Autodesk Authorized Training Centers (ATCs) in the northwestern U.S., Ideate is recognized as an Autodesk Gold Partner for Architecture, Engineering and Construction, one of Autodesk’s highest levels of authorization.

Autodesk, ATC, and Autodesk Revit, are registered trademarks or trademarks of Autodesk, Inc., and/or its subsidiaries and/or affiliates in the USA and/or other countries. All other brand names, product names or trademarks belong to their respective holders.  

###