The dsh Terrain Building Test

[dshall]

Wow, this has been great and I appreciate the participation. I do not need help in building the model, remember I posted a picture of the model with the first post. I think I can build any terrain with the best of them, I have done so many videos on terrains that I know how to build them, but I do use different nomenclature and methods.

I admit my initial post was not clear enough, I wanted to know at what elevation you would set the TERRAIN PERIMETER/TERRAIN ELEVATION/BUILDING PAD, the answer is 20', thanks Glenn. I also wanted to point out that Doug's AVERAGE ELEVATION input (http://www.chieftalk.com/showthread....799#post423799) was a non starter, thanks Lew.

This post also proved a point that terrain building is confusing, or should I say that many of us can reach the same solution but with different methods or thought processes.

The point of this thread was to get the terrain building process more user friendly.

I think it was Bill Layman who in a prior thread eluded to a missing function, the ability to, with a flip of a button, have the contours either read out as relative to sea level or relative to the house finished floor of 0.0, thanks Bill.

Now I will explain how I work and how most of you probably work, so read the following several times to see if you agree.

When I build a house, typically an as built, I build a terrain perimeter/building pad and set contours relative to the house f.f. of 0.0. Being able to create a BUILDING PAD gives me the ability to put in driveways, sidewalks etc. It is not until later that a topo map is provided, if provided at all.

FOR ME THIS IS THE KEY, AT WHAT POINT IN THE DESIGN PROCESS DO I GET AN ACTUAL TOPO MAP? TYPICALLY AFTER THE PLAN AND BUILDING PAD HAS BEEN BUILT.

If this is the way we work, which initially has all topo info relative to house f.f., and we later get a topo that says everything needs to be adjusted by 20', why can't we have an input that would increase or decrease the TOPO LINE DATA , adjusted by 20'.

There, that is what we need, the ability to have the site elevations relative to the house or relative to sea level with the flip of a button.