AU Unplugged!!!

Going to AU??? (you can still vote (for my sessions) even if you're not going!!!)

It seems that all 3 possible AU Unplugged sessions that I submitted are on the final list (YAAY) that has opened up for all to vote on; the results of which culminate with their inclusion into an exciting part of this December's AU!!!: AU Unplugged.

Please review my submissions (re-posted below) (ok... go to the website and vote for everyone else's submissions too (if you must)) then vote for one or all of mine if you find that they could be interesting or useful. WOW, am I modest, or what?

The link for AU Unplugged Voting is here: NOW OPEN and I encourage you to share this link with anyone you know that will be at AU (or not). Voting is limited to one entry per IP address. (so use your friends computers and home also!!! :-))

Voting will be open until November 7^th – The selected sessions will be posted to the AU website by November 12^th.

See you at AU!!!,

-J

Revit: What If??? – Jay B Zallan, VDC / Revit Leader
What if we could remake Revit from scratch? What would that look like? From a 10,000 foot view to an "on the ground" end user we can have what we want. If you have ever dreamed of transforming Revit and BIM into a truly holistic project delivery vehicle, then join us and we will work to shape the future.

The Promise of BIM – Jay B Zallan, VDC / Revit Leader
Integrated project delivery (IPD) and BIM is what the industry is moving towards. If we act now we can make the promise of a real integrated profession a reality. Calling all AEC futurists, forward thinkers and those who turn their own dreams into realities to a forum to not only be heard but to guide the future of BIM and all the tools we use. Have you ever thought how fantastically (profitably too) our practices would work if the central model was just that, a real Central Database; then no matter what tool was used it would work with the data in that one database...Revit, Maya, Photoshop, anything and everything would use the same data (well, just the parts it needs) and there would always be informational fidelity and harmony... How??? Come on by and we'll see!!!

Transition & Transformation: From CAD Users to Revit Superstars. – Jay B Zallan, VDC / Revit Leader
The transition from CAD to Revit is so much more than even the last transition we went through, which was moving from hand drawing to CAD. I believe moving to Revit is more like going from the horse-drawn carriage to flying a rocket to the moon!!! Many of us have and are still in the midst of transitioning users into Revit and BIM, and to share our insights and to gain more perspective will forward the adoption and success rates of those responsible for transitioning users, as well as the users themselves.

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Filter This!!! Selectively Selecting in Revit.

Here we go with 9MB of Filtering goodness. (You may want to click the "Play" button!!!)

Can't be easier than that, huh??? I hope it was worth the wait!!!

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I Know The Blog's Lapsed

But I will get something new in a day or two...vacation, you know.
In the mean time, check out one (or all) of these mixes from j77 If that's your musical bag.

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Revit Users and You (Sirs?)

An excerpt from an Evite for the Los Angeles Revit Users Group meeting for July: (yes, click the link if you'd like to be invited...just use the "CLICK HERE IF YOU ARE NOT:" button if you want to show up or reply, etc.)...


Tom Weir (Brandow & Johnston's own) will present "Ain't it the Pits" -a how to build an elevator pit presentation; as well as a special review of a 100% Revit Project under construction (Shhh, it's a secret Hollywood studio). Then, we will be holding a "Coordination" panel discussion with all 3 current Revit disciplines: Structure, MEP & Architecture. Bring all of your questions and comments to add to the topics we will outline. The final list of industry participants is growing but as of now Tom and I will join Jonathan West from Mazzetti & Associates and David Wilmans & Nik Muir from Gensler; we will keep you posted on others as they are confirmed. This is shaping up to be a great session that will help us all move forward in a more collaborative AEC world. See you there

Jarrod Baumann and Joel Londenberg of Design West Engineering have also been added to the panel, so we are even more excited about this meeting.

Also in the list of attendees someone (Thanks Henry!!!) asked a question so I'll answer that here since it doesn't fit the theme of the RUG but is a common question:
Q: How to host cars on ramps? A: Use a floor!!!

Ramps don't allow that. You could get into elaborate faking but I'd just say use a floor. BTW: all of my "Parking Ramps" are floor objects anyways...We want to get the areas counted with all the other slabs, right?

Ramps really should be called "Handicap Ramps" or "I'd-Rather-Have-A-Smooth-Transitional-Device-To-Get-Up & Down-Rather-Than-Having-A-Stair-Ramp-not-to-be-used-as-parking-ramps-or-roads-Ramp"" -That is their as-designed function (in Revit), everything else is just a workaround!!!

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Voting: Poll shows .026% turnout last week

It's good practice for November to vote here (look at the right of this page!!!) As of this past week the turnout is that .026%. Perhaps the candidates are not so good...

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MoreBiDirectionalistically

In regards to the previous post I want to answer a comment left by Chris (and thank him for asking!)...So here 'goes.

Chris said...Do you know what advantages this offers, compared to Autodesk's now-recommended FBX workflow? -Tuesday, July 08, 2008

Well as I said, I will be looking at this and posting some results in the near future but from discussions with visualization colleagues (who I trust) and from what research I have already done, the possibilities to round trip objects back and forth without polygon loss is in itself a step above straight FBX-to-MAX (until (if) ADSK allows this directly in their products)!!! I suggest you hit the discussion groups (use the Google machine) and see what you can see as to what other people are experiencing with Revit's FBX to MAX... As to Npower's solution here is what they say on this page:

"...The 3ds Max nPower advanced visualization environment provides your Revit model with infinite resolution surfaces producing stunning photo-real surfaces that you can easily cut away and reveal without rendering artifacts. Easily create close-up renderings without conventional polygon faceting by easily controlling the level of detail on any selected Revit object. Compress your Revit model data structures to the absolute smallest memory footprint with our Power Cache technology giving you the extra space you need to render hi resolution large format images. Organize your Revit model in Max with our advanced Revit Material support by layer and an easy to browse instanced multi-sub object material. Collaborate with other CAD applications like Inventor and Rhino to produce highly accurate complex design and planning visualizations. Conceptualize freeform volumes, structures and shapes from furniture to light fixtures with the industry's most flexible solid modeler and then export them directly to Revit for dimensioning and construction. If you’re looking for a Revit to Max and back solution that will give you the edge in the world of architectural visualization then..."

I find it interesting (or #@*^!) that ADSK says that "interoperability" is a main concern and push for them (see any keynote speach from the recent past...AU, etc...) since it seems that other companies write code to get more interoperability out of ADSK products than they do themselves. Behemoths move so slow and ultimately go the way of the dinosaur if they don't learn to adapt and respond faster. But perhaps my view is a bit harsh since Npower is part of ADSK's ADN (advanced developer network). I comment because I love.

With that rant over (for now) here are a few more assets I found while bouncing around the Web... Autodesk has some FBX and other videos at: This Site!!! that are worth a look.

Oh and BTFW: I just nearly soiled my armour when I came across this tidbit: Click This if you dare!!! ADSK and who are going to become interoperable? Bentley?... Seems so... Has Robert Aish put something up ADSK's sleeve??? I can only hope. Perhaps ADSK stock is a good thing; it is up nearly a dollar per share today; Now if they'd only get their own products interoperable with each other...

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BiDirectional isn't a dirty word!!! (except in my mind)

All I can say is *#@^! (AKA: OMFG) I am very excited about this one. Reality may never be the same after this hits home (and production)!!!

Sarcasm alert...Sarcasm alert...

I suggest that nobody else looks into nPower's bi-directional translation solution!!! Yes it's a link!!! I don't think anyone would benefit from real interoperability between Revit and 3DMAX; or any other software for that matter. I think softwares that Designers use should be rigid and inflexible, continuing to allow limited Design & creativity options, nor do I feel that they should allow for exponential growth of ideas...Uhh...Hmmm...Perhaps that's what the sarcasm alert was for...???

BiDirectional!!! Can it be??? Can we actually round trip objects to and from 3dMAX and Revit!!! I think we can!!! Tune in again soon to see some results...

In the mean time, click the image below for the video... I mean DON'T click the image below, you'll just be wasting your time with the possibilities...

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