What is CA BEEF with drawing a simple Porch?!?

[dshall]

..........

• I only build the footings or foundation.
  I BUILD THE FOOTINGS AND STEM WALLS ON LEVEL ZERO
• From there, the slab and masonry is done with poly-line solids (on the first floor).
  THIS IS THE METHOD I USE, THE PORCH SLAB BEING A "CONC CAP" ON THE FOOTINGS/STEM WALL
• The porch lintel is a 3D molding. The roof is done manually.
  I SUPPOSE A 3D MOLDING WOULD WORK, I TEND TO USE PSOLIDS OR ROOF BEAMS FOR THE LINTEL..... I ASSUME I AS REFERRING TO WHAT VAL IS TALKING ABOUT... and yes, the porch roof is a manual build for me too

........ but the manual method is equally fast and allows one to tweak the the way a deck or stoop wraps the outside wall.
TOTALLY AGREE WITH THIS COMMENT
The only drawback for some in doing a manual build is that the material list won't register what you've drawn. For some, that's a key feature. Especially for teh contractors who like to keep tabs on the lumber etc.
NOT SURE ABOUT THIS BUT WILL DEFER TO VAL

I find the real key is to not be afraid to manually build, in other words there is no magic to building it perfectly the first time, you must learn that you can always modify anything ON THE FLY to get what you need. You have had the program such a short time. It will take more time to get to a point where you OWN THE PROGRAM and can make it do what you want.

[Chief T]

I appreciate all the feedback from different views, just gives me more ammo or faith in being ok to break the rules to achieve a look one desires.

Hall... If I keep watching your videos I may one day "Own the Program"..... I'm just waiting for the "f"bombs to drop in one of these tutorial videos... I feel your pain... LoL

[perryh]

He just has turrets syndrome, it automatic.

[dshall]

..... I'm just waiting for the "f"bombs to drop in one of these tutorial videos... I feel your pain... LoL

You must be watching older vids, the newer vids have fewer f bombs....... but they still show up once in awhile.....

[VHampton]

Profanity use decreases as one's Chief skills increase.

Agreed with your comments Scott. I have yet to make a lumber or material list which is why I mentioned that the manual method might miss a few ingredients. Some contractors really like the material list ability of the program and they are quite diligent in making the excel results work very precisely.

Again, if the model looks great, the sections and camera views require very little graphic corrections.

BTW...I usually use polylines for porch headers as well. The only advantage to a 3D molding is that the lintel can have a crown or whatever else you want to add to it. All it means that I have to go back to plan view and draw in two dashed lines in lieu of the 3D molding line (which I turn off for plan views anyway).

[Joe Carrick]

Some things that most of you might not realize:

1. Most if not all "Manual Constructs" such as Polyline Solids, Molding Polylines, Slabs, etc. are created at a particular location in 3D Space but are not referenced to a Floor Level. This is different from things like Walls, Doors, Windows, Cabinets, Fixtures, etc which are referenced to the Floor Level on which they were originally placed.

2. If you use the Tools to Insert, Move Up/Down, Delete a Floor it will take care of the Walls, Doors, Cabinets & Fixtures but it will not have any effect on the vertical location of all those "Manual Constructs". This can make a real mess out of your model.

3. OTOH, if you try to move everything up or down in the "Z" direction using the "Edit Area" tool it will move only the "Manual Constructs" but not the Floor Levels themselves.

It is for the above reasons that I resist at almost all cost using "Manual Constructs" and try very hard to stick with Chief's model. It's best to learn what actually works within Chief and use those tools.

Sure, you could build a "Model" using just PSolids - but you might as well draw the Plans and Elevations and Sections using a simple 2D Cad Program. I will use the various "Manual Construct" tools - but almost exclusively to create 3D Symbols which when placed in a Project actually have some intelligence associated with them which can show up in Schedules. In addition, those Symbols are referenced to the Floor Level and maintain their relation to that Level. That means that if you insert a new Floor that all those items move with the Floor they were placed on.

Basically I look at all the "Manual Constructs" as simply 3D CAD Graphics - not much different than 2D CAD Graphics. Instead of having just x/y coordinate values they have x/y/z coordinate values and instead of being lines they are surfaces - but otherwise they are nothing more than Graphics.

Once those "3D Graphics" have been converted to a Symbol you have an "Object". The two things look the same but one is just geometry while the other is a fixture, a piece of furniture, etc......IOW, a representation of a real world object with associated data.

[Curtis Johnson]

Chief T:

When I see Chief "thinking", I know trouble has arrived. When I see Chief "working", I am happy. When I am "thinking" too hard about how to make something work in Chief, I know trouble is just around the corner. I might as well go drink another cup of coffee or do something else for awhile. Sometimes rebooting the computer cures all sorts of grief with Chief ... just happened to me the other day as a matter of fact.

All that aside, welcome to ChiefTalk. This is a great place to get excellent advice and some of the best are responding to your thread. You are doing your homework ... that will get you quickly down Chief's learning curve as compared to some new users, who start using the program without a clue as to some of the most basic operations you can do with Chief.

I would love to know who to call you if you wouldn't mind revealing that to us and possibly even updating your signature to include your name. You've likely read that suggestion many times before, nevertheless, unless you're running from the law, I don't see any reason for you (or anyone else) to keep your identity to yourself on ChiefTalk. But, if you prefer to leave it as Chief T, that is fine too.