Hardware Guide for X3

[Tommy Blair]

hello,im new member in this forum.

I reported this as probable spam.

[lbuttery]

I have reported the post by CherryPink27 as SPAM

Lew

[lbuttery]

I have reporeted the post by XYZ... as SPAM

Lew

[lbuttery]

I have reporeted the post by shapypink27 .. as SPAM

Lew

[alissonkatelim]

hello,im newbie here and its nice to be here.

[lbuttery]

I have reporeted the post by alisonlatelim as SPAM

Lew

[Bradley Boltz]

Hey Lew,
are you the new Spam Cop on the Block?

You know, the only thing I hate more than spam are walls that jump position because the program decides to align an existing wall to a new one. Sure wish we had a wall lock option. Actually, I would prefer that the walls would default to locking (including a 90 degree ortho lock for walls and cad lines) and would individually have an unlock radio button.

While I'm at it, how about an alignment feature that would allow us to align any walls outer, inner, main layer etc to any outer, inner, or main layer of walls above or below. The current setup is inadequate.-Brad

PS, please don't bust me as spam!

[lbuttery]

Brad:

I got my eye on you ....


If you want locks you must be subversive

Lew

[Glenn Woodward]

While I'm at it, how about an alignment feature that would allow us to align any walls outer, inner, main layer etc to any outer, inner, or main layer of walls above or below. The current setup is inadequate.-Brad

PS, please don't bust me as spam!

Bradley,

You can already align walls by the following methods:
Outer surface
Mainlayer outside
Wall center
Main layer inside
Inside surface

to another wall above or below.
These settings also work with colinear walls (end to end).

Do you need more than those choices?

[Bradley Boltz]

Glenn,
you can't align an upper walls main layer with a lower walls outer layer and if you temporarily change a walls layers to try and accomodate such a feat, your dimensions will jump and sometimes move your walls (a serious reason to have walls locking as a default).

If I'm trying to align my exterior sheathing layer of a 1st flr wall with my basement walls when creating a plain cmu or concrete wall, I have to name the osb sheathing layer as the main layer and of course there is only one layer as the main for my basement walls. Then if I change the 1st flr wall's main layer back to the stud layer, the dimensions for the 1st floor get messed up and the walls jump (At least on all versions up thru x2).
Because of the limited alignment and the way dimensions don't snap to the correct locations sometimes, I would typically only use two wall layers, stud & sheathing (name sheathing with a siding material and studs with a drywall material designation so that my 3d views and elevations would look correct).
Many times I've been working on a drawing where I had a 3/4" siding layer and found that a dimension had inadvertantly snapped to the siding instead of the sheathing-that **** can ruin my day. I've been asking Chief for separate radio buttons that can be individually activated for each wall, as well as each wall type so that I can turn off any possibility of a manual dimension line trying to snap to a vinyl siding layer. This would make life a lot easier on all of us.

Finally, before version 10, Chief used to have to different dimensioning priorites, one for when you were in cad mode which gave priority to temp dimensions and manual dimensions only snapping to cad lines and objects and the architectural mode which gave priority to snapping dims to walls etc. Now, it's a god**** crapshoot! Also, stairs, which have always been goofy act like cad lines when you're in cad mode and select before cad lines but act as an object in other instances. Currently, I think the boys at Chief are struggling with all the complex interelational problems they've caused with mixing 2d and 3d cad (they should have kept the 2d cad as a separate overlay like it was in earlier versions). They should have created separate 2d and 3d cad tools as well as creating separate default text tools (not just the ability to change a text item from default text to demo text etc).

Let me know how far off base you think I am here because maybe I'm missing or missusing some of these features. I just did my first project in x3 and liked some of the extra controls but some of the extra depth of info required for floors and ceilings was a bit obtuse from an intuitive point of view. thanks for your last reply. -Brad

Ps, I feel like someone's watching me (is that you, Lew?).

[Allen Brown]

Brad, My suggestion would be to change the layers of your foundation wall. If you have an 8" poured wall, but want your outside of sheathing to align with outside of concrete, just make your 8" concrete wall 2-layers, one 1/2" & one 7-1'2", with the bigger one being the main layer. If you make the line between the two layers white, it won't show. Then just make sure when dimensioning the foundation that it's set to locate surface not main layer. I do this all the time.

[lbuttery]

Ps, I feel like someone's watching me (is that you, Lew?).


Brad:

yep, I'm here....


The Shadow knows all


Lew

[Bradley Boltz]

Yes Allen,
that's a reasonably good "work-a-round" (Chief's Mantra and answer to everything lacking) but that extra layer creates another snapping point for an errant manual dimensioning error and Chief always seems to like to dimension to points when I'm not paying attention. Something for me to consider though and I thank you for that.
Regards, Brad

[Bradley Boltz]

The Shadow knows? I usually don't use shadows as my redraws take too long!-BB

[Tommy Blair]

What does all this have to do with "hardware"? Hopefully some of this will get moved.