Beside the Cursor...

Photoshop Tips and Tricks Book - Free Download

2008-05-15T14:01:00.002-04:00

Kudos to the folks at Sitepoint for offering up their Photoshop Anthology in full pdf format and for free to boot. The books from sitepoint are usually a very good purchase and enable the reader to quickly get up to speed on the chosen subject.

Get a copy now before their servers blow up!

Direct Links: (protect your email)
High-res: http://photoshop.s3.sitepoint.com/photoshopLG.zip
Low-res: http://photoshop.s3.sitepoint.com/photoshopSM.zip

STL Exporter from Revit available at autodesk labs

2008-05-13T13:49:00.002-04:00

Are you using Revit and tired of exporting to DWG, only to open the file and export to STL for 3D Printing? Now you can download the latest tool to hit autodesk labs, the Revit STL Exporter.
Read Scott Shepherd's blog post from yesterday to find out more...
Direct link to lab project.

Autodesk Seek Web Service is Live

2008-05-07T09:03:00.006-04:00

I stumbled across the Autodesk Seek web service as I was investigating the changes to Revit 2009 user interface. When I saw the ubiquitous search tool that had appeared on the options bar, I clicked it to see what it did. Autodesk Seek is a search engine that aggregates available content from various sources on the web and brings the results back in a filtered, intelligent interface. Using the tool is easy and straightforward. You can either browse to the site and perform your search directly or launch it from within the Revit 2009 interface by entering a search term in the content search box and clicking the magnifying glass icon as shown in the image shown to the left.

Once you click you are taken to the main page which performs the search displaying a loading progress indicator.

After completing the search, the results are displayed in the main window located to the lower right of your browser. If you wish to further filter the results by manufacturer, filetype, category, etc. you can perform these refinements by clicking on the filters available in the filter column located on the left of the browser window.

You can also refine your search by filetype by clicking on the filetype selector located at the top of the browser and choosing what file type you are interested in.

The entire online catalog of Revit Families are available through this new mechanism. Other content types include Sketchup (*.skp), AutoCAD (*.dwg), word (*.doc), and adobe (*.pdf) documents. Hopefully, manufacturers and the rest of the industry will find this tool useful and open up their collections to be "discovered" by this new web service.

Personalize the BIM Talk widget...its easy!

2008-05-01T23:57:00.003-04:00

Got a quick question or suggestion for me when you're visiting this blog? Why not personalize the BIM Talk widget when you find me online? I would like to know who you are...although its not necessary, it is rather easy! You can click on the nickname displayed on the Meebo me widget and edit it to display your actual name or a nickname of your own choosing. Take a look at the the following screen grabs for more info.

VSTA for Revit Architecture Install - (Think VBA's replacement!)

2008-04-30T11:09:00.013-04:00

I installed the recently received Autodesk Revit Architecture 2009 application on my laptop the other day. In browsing the DVD, I noticed a folder titled VSTA. If you want to install the Visual Studio for Applications for use with Revit, pick the bottom installer option for tools and utilities as shown below.

I didn't see any mention of this in the documentation, readme, or the installer for the basic product. I did see reference and tutorials in the SDK install, but one has to know to look for these. I found a cryptic mention of this in the New Features Workshop. If you look in the Revit Architecture Help file, you'll find mention of "Creating Macros with Revit VSTA"...grab Gregory Arkin's pdf version using the link below.

Install Steps:

Install the Revit Product First
Go back to first page of installer and then install the VSTA tools.

The install is much improved in this release...much faster too!

Now lets see how it runs.....

Note: The product install forces an install of Design Review 2009. This may impact those of you running the BIM Smart Library by Reed Construction Data. If you create a deployment, you can potentially modify the installation.

Links: Looks like other sites have more info on this.
Check out

Detecting XP64 versus XP32 - Autolisp Function

2008-04-10T17:28:00.002-04:00

Do you need a function that detects whether AutoCAD is running under XP32 or XP64? I had the need today. This is what I came up with:

;;; Begin code

;;; =========================================================================
;;; Function: RLB:XP64Detector
;;; Purpose : Function to detect running under 64 or 32bit XP
;;; Author : Richard Binning
;;; Date : 4/10/2008
;;; Call : (RLB:XP64Detector "Wow6432Node")
;;; Example : (if (= 0 (RLB:XP64Detector "Wow6432Node"))
;;; (alert "32 Bit Detected")
;;; (alert "64 Bit Detected")
;;; )
;;; Params : subKey: Name of XP64 Registry Key for installing 32bit apps
;;;
;;; Local : keyVal: Value of key sought
;;; : profileStr
;;; Returns : a number greater than 0 if running under XP64
;;; Notes : Placed in use to load correct version
;;; ================================================================================
(defun RLB:XP64Detector (subKey / keyVal retVal profilesStr)
(setq keyVal nil)
(setq profilesStr (strcat "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\\SOFTWARE\\" subKey))
(setq keyVal (reverse (vl-registry-descendents profilesStr)))
(vl-list-length keyVal); return value
)

;;; end code

Anyone like to test this under vista?

Fixing Non Planar Walls in AutoCAD Architecture - VBA Powered

2008-03-26T00:04:00.006-04:00

Ever get a file in AutoCAD Architecture (ACA), aka the software formerly known as Architectural Desktop (ADT), that just had more wall cleanup problems than you knew what to do with? It happens frequently when walls are converted from existing linework or traced from other files. One problem is that the walls can have different end point elevations...and this is really bad for ADT. Rather than fixing each wall one at a time or fixing them within the properties dialog, wouldn't it be easier if you could simply run a quick macro to fix every wall in the current drawing? I thought so. Thats why I wrote the routines you can download below.

Want to learn how to load the file you can download for your version of ADT?
Then watch this video:

Want to see that video in full size? Try this link:

ADT2005_Walls2_CommonPlane.dvb

ADT2006_Walls2_CommonPlane.dvb

ADT2007_Walls2_CommonPlane.dvb

ADT2008_Walls2_CommonPlane.dvb

Want to learn more about how this routine was written? You'll get the code and all the backgrounder info by reading my AUGI HotNews article from the July 2006 issue. When you are done reading, head back here to download the version specific routines.

Thanks to creative commons and Derek Audette for the background music.

Be Aware - Amazon Context Links Could be Dangerous - Video

2008-03-11T12:37:00.012-04:00

As I alluded to in my comments on last weeks "Sneak" Preview post, watch out how you configure Amazon's Contextual Links widget on your website or blog. I added contextual links long ago and found out recently how out of context they can be! Watch the video below to see what I went through and how I resolved it.

Apparently, Amazon isn't the only one who has not properly provided oversight for their "context links". I understand, via Mike Perry, that other ad generators have a similar problem.

BesideTheCursor - Reloaded...coming soon

2008-03-04T23:23:00.004-05:00

When this year started I promised to blog on a regular basis. Unfortunately, life sometimes gets in the way...nevertheless, I have been busy when I am not blogging. One of the things I've been working on is a new and improved vehicle for presenting BesideTheCursor to the world. Here is a preview.

I expect WordPress to be easier to manage, easier to Search, easier to read and use. Coming soon....
Thank you Blogger for the memories!...

Take the Zune off the list - Arch Design with Maya, and Inventor

2008-02-28T09:42:00.004-05:00

I just removed the Zune from my wishlist. This morning I was greeted with an unexpected package of tools from Autodesk (Thanks Carl!). I was planning to integr-8 some new tools into my workflow. I have just been motivated to explore Maya and Inventor. But today, I will watch the videos pre-loaded on my new Apple Ipod Touch.

Would you like to explore new design capabilities utilizing advanced tools?
Sign up at Autodesk

Scripting a REVIT 2009 Local Copy Startup Routine

2008-02-27T00:40:00.003-05:00

For those of you curious about how the new "starting page" might impact your scripted copy/startup routine you can rest assured that they should continue to work as before. The video shown below will provide an example of a vbscript based local copy startup that works with Revit 2009. FWIW, it took all of 10 minutes to modify the hta based code to get it work with all three Revit 2009 products. (Architecture, MEP, Structure)

This routine shows a Revit best practice of launching a local copy of a central model that is completely automated. The html application (hta) file provides a gui front end on a vbscripted solution to allow the user to choose a revit flavor and then choose a project to work on. The routine transparently, copies the central model to the local harddrive, renaming the file by appending the logged in users name to the file name.

Revit 2009 Enables Selection Feedback

2008-02-26T22:26:00.002-05:00

One of the things that was always difficult for Ex-AutoCAD users when migrating to Revit was the inability to know exactly what had been selected. In AutoCAD it was easy, simply go to the properties dialog box or watch your command line and you received meaningful feedback as you made selections. This was not the case in Revit until the latest release, 2009!

If you look at the lower right corner of your interface, you will see the familiar "filter" icon (see image below) on the status bar with a number displayed next to it. This is your "NEW" selection indicator providing heads up display information you can use while working.

So what is even better than than? The fact that they have now added the number of elements selected to list box available in the standard filter dialog box as shown in the image below. Love it!

BIM Management Article - BIM as a C-Level Position...

2008-02-21T15:56:00.003-05:00

Have you read AECbytes Viewpoint #35 yet? BIM is going big time with the suggestion that there should be a CBO or Chief BIM Officer in place at Design firms and a BCO or BIM Construction Officer as the natural counterpart in a construction firm. It is a very interesting time to be involved in BIM.

Love the new Revit 2009 "Review Warnings Export" button.

2008-02-21T15:56:00.000-05:00

Now, built into Revit 2009 is the ability to export an html report of the warnings generated by Revit. As seen in this image below.

I clicked the export option when this warning was displayed when I was first opening a file created in a previous release. Notice the name of file is not displayed in the html report or in the filename itself...

Once the file is saved, the exported report is correctly named...apparently this behavior only occurs when opening an older file (requiring an upgrade) as once the file is saved in the current release, it correctly exports even on initial file open. Do you notice any different behavior? Leave a comment below.

CityGML standard hopes to improve BIM interoperability

2008-02-20T10:18:00.003-05:00

Click the title (above) to download and comment on the proposed CityGML standard.

Press release copied below:
Wayland, Mass., February 19, 2008 - The Open Geospatial Consortium, Inc. (OGC) is requesting public comment on the candidate CityGMLEncoding Standard. CityGML [http://www.citygml.org/] is a GeographyMarkup Language 3 (GML3) application schema for the storage and exchange of virtual 3D city models.

CityGML is a common information model for the representation of 3D urban objects. It defines the classes and relations for the most relevant topographic objects in cities and regional models with respect to their geometrical, topological, semantical and appearance properties. Included are generalization hierarchies between thematic classes, aggregations, relations between objects, and spatial properties. This thematic information goes beyond graphic exchange formats and allows users to employ virtual 3D city models for sophisticated analysis tasks in different application domains such as simulations, urban data mining, facility management, and thematic inquiries.

Activities that would benefit from the richness of CityGML data include city planning, real estate, insurance, architectural design, environmental simulation, mobile telecommunication, disaster management, homeland security, facilities management, vehicle and pedestrian navigation, training simulators and others. CityGML will play an important role in the use of Building Information Models (BIM) to improve interoperability among the information systems used in the many domains of activity that involve design, construction, ownership and operation of buildings and capital projects.

The RFC can be downloaded fromhttp://www.opengeospatial.org/standards/requests/47. Comments are due by March 20, 2008.

The OGC® is an international consortium of more than 345 companies, government agencies, research organizations, and universities participating in a consensus process to develop publicly available geospatial standards. OpenGIS® Standards support interoperable solutions that "geo-enable" the Web, wireless and location-based services, and mainstream IT. OGC Standards empower technology developers to make geospatial information and services accessible and useful with any application that needs to be geospatially enabled. Visit the OGC website at http://www.opengeospatial.org/.

Revit 2009 Interface Changes - Web Content Library

2008-02-20T08:22:00.002-05:00

Dwane Lindsey correctly identified the new location for the Revit Web Content Library as seen in the graphic below.

Dwayne commented on a previous post, "Yes, the Web Library button has been removed. There is now a link on the new Start-up Page for Revit." Check out Dwayne's blog by clicking on his name in the above post.

Revit Build Checker Updated for 2009 Products

2008-02-15T11:29:00.002-05:00

Revit Build Checker has been updated to support Revit 2009 products when they are available.
No need to launch Revit and search for the build number...just launch my script query the system and report on installed versions of Revit from Release 9.1 through 2009.

Also works with 64 bit Windows XP.
Also works with Revit MEP and Revit Structures.

Get a copy here.
I welcome your feedback on this tool.
Please leave a comment below.

Feed Fixed...Links to missing posts since October

2008-02-15T01:09:00.002-05:00

While my rss feed was completely hosed some of you (who only participate via RSS) might have missed some of my posts...I'll provide links below:

Revit 2009 Interface Changes - Open

2008-02-14T22:30:00.002-05:00

Autodesk Revit 2009 changes the equation from the start...

Accessing the "Open" dialog reflects some changes in the interface beyond the "landing page" look of the drawing window on first launch. As seen in the image below, the option toggles have been relocated from the right side to the bottom below the file type selector. Also relocated are the "workset" initial open selections from a combo box on the right to an option button immediately adjacent to the "Open" button.

A nice feature of the new open dialog is the ability to add the current folder to the list of "places". Need to restore the standard folders? That option is also available in the "tools" command button.

Of course, the default has not changed from "Last Viewed" and although this ensures consistency, it sure would be nice to store that setting and recall it per user rather than a global "he who saves last knows best" setting.

Did you notice something missing? Post a comment with your answer.

Revit 2009...let the sharing begin!

2008-02-14T17:29:00.002-05:00

You should soon be seeing alot more information on Revit Architecture 2009 both here at besidethecursor , at AUGI, and elsewhere on the web. You will also soon be seeing more information at Autodesk.

Over the next few weeks the Revit Architecture web site will be updated with Revit Architecture 2009 information and the public discussion groups will be launched at http://www.autodesk.com/revitarchitecture.

First up, the image shown above. That's right, the desktop icons are all going to change. It'll definitely make it easier to find on our cluttered desktops.
More to come...

Attempting to fix feed...stay tuned.

2008-02-14T09:59:00.001-05:00

The rss feed has apparently been broken since early October last year. I am working on this issue and hope to have the feed fixed shortly.

~Richard

AUGI Meetup in Larkspur California

2008-02-04T17:15:00.000-05:00

Hello All,

Sorry for the short notice, but hopefully people will be able to attend. Please join us for a Larkspur meetup this Wednesday evening at the Marin Brewery. The AUGI Board is in the San Francisco Area working on issues. Come by and meet your AUGI Board of Directors, share your concerns, share your thoughts, or just buy a beer and some good food with your fellow AUGI members.

When:

Wednesday 2/6/2008
7:00 pm til?

Where:

Marin Brewing Company
1809 Larkspur Landing Cir
Larkspur, CA 94939
Get Directions
(415) 461-4677

What to Underdogs, Lynn Allen, and the Board of Directors have in common?

2008-02-04T13:42:00.001-05:00

Thank you to Lynn and Craig for welcoming the AUGI Board of Directors into your home last evening for the greatest super bowl party of all time. Thanks for all the hospitality and camaraderie. Here is a photo taken after celebrating the underdog's win!

Beside the Cursor is back on line

2008-02-03T17:21:00.001-05:00

The domain parking issue has been resolved with IPower.
...the blogging shall resume.

Maintain FontMap - Multiple Revit Flavor Version

2008-01-23T00:04:00.000-05:00

If you read my Maintain Revit Font Map post, you'll like this one too. I modified the original code to provide for multiple versions of Revit. It is, after all, a much bigger BIM world when you include Revit Architecture, Revit Structure, and Revit MEP into the mix. So with that in mind, I rewrote the original code. Now you can update any of the Revit version FontMap files.

Hope you find that useful!