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3ds Max 2011 – New Features
Mar 10, 2010 3DS MAX Leave a comment
Hey everyone. Interested in learning about some of the new features of 3ds Max 2011? Check out these videos:
http://area.autodesk.com/3dsmax2011
- Scott
Recent Entries
Change #1 Has Come…
Feb 24, 2010 BIM, Commentary, Revit Leave a comment
Hey All. I wanted to let you all know of the first change that has happened, and now I shall. As of this past Monday, February 22nd, I am the Regional Revit Specialist for the North-East region at Gensler. I’m responsible for helping the offices of this region (as well as the firm as a whole) further their integration and implementation of Revit and build a library of resources that includes content, learning, support and more. I’m very excited to get started and hope, as I go, to continue learning.
Change number two is…coming soon…
“A Change is Gonna Come…”
Feb 15, 2010 Commentary Leave a comment
Hey All. While I can’t give you details just yet, there are some changes in the works, one of which I can tell you about next week and the other in three to four weeks. Stay tuned!
3ds Max 2010: Viewing a Background Image When Using a Daylight System and a Mental Ray Physical Sky
Jan 8, 2010 3DS MAX, Rendering, latest 1 Comment
Hey All. My Pratt class ended a few weeks ago and there was one thing that I couldn’t quite get to work in the last class. We were using a daylight system and mental ray physical sky, but wanted to use our own, custom, background image. I promised the students I would research the problem and let them know how to do it. I immediately did some research and found, ironically on a the blog of a friend of mine, the solution. His name is Roger Liucci and his website is Revit Zen at http://revitzen.blogspot.com. Roger gave me permission to write-up his posting so I thank him for that.
First of all, I’m going to assume that you have already added a daylight system and have therefore had 3ds Max automatically insert an mr Physical Sky into the environment map. Once you do this, if you hit render (after adding a plane and box with basic, light-gray materials, and set the time of day to 2pm), it would look like this:
That looks pretty good. If I change the time of day, month, year, geographic location, etc., that background would change accordingly. To change that background to an image of our choice, we need to modify the mr Physical Sky that was placed into the environment map. Here’s how:
1. Click the Rendering pull-down menu and click Environment (you could also have tapped the 8 key on your keyboard).
2. Next, click the Material Editor icon 
(you could also have tapped the m key on your keyboard).
3. Within the Environment and Effects dialog box, left-click and hold on the ( mr Physical Sky ) button and drag and drop it onto an empty slot within the Material Editor:
4. When the Instance (Copy)… dialog box appears, select Instance and click OK. You select Instance because you want all settings that you change in the Material Editor to have the same settings as the mr Physical Sky within the Environment Map.
5. Select the map you just added to the Material Editor and, when the settings appear below, select the box to the left of the Use Custom Background Map option and then click the None button.
6. When the Material/Map Browser appears, double-click Bitmap.
7. Locate the image file you’d like to use as a background and double-click it.
Roger now writes, “One would think this is all that’s necessary, but it still won’t show up correctly.” He’s absolutely right. If we render it right now, it looks like this:
The next step that Roger wrote was exactly what I had left out when I taught my students (so pay attention):
8. Back within the Environment and Effects dialog box, within the mr Photographic Exposure Control group, underneath where it says Physical Scale, select Unitless and set the value to 100000. If we render it now, it looks like this:
This looks better, but you probably notice that the original horizon is cutting through the image. To get rid of this, follow these steps:
9. Reselect the daylight system and, on the Command Panel, switch to the Modify tab.
10. Scroll down and, within the mr Sky Advanced Paramters group, remove the check next to Aerial Perspective:
This is what it’ll look like if we render it now:
If you find that your image is too large, needs to be cropped or needs to be shifted, return to the bitmap settings within the Material Editor and edit any of the settings highlighted within the following image:
Again, thanks VERY much to Roger Liucci of RevitZen (and by the way, here’s the direct link to his post: http://revitzen.blogspot.com/2009/01/visualization-in-max-takes-practice.html). I hope this was helpful to you all and especially to my four students from the Fall ‘09 semester.
Thinking About Removing My “CAD” Blogs Category
Dec 31, 2009 AutoCAD, BIM, Commentary, latest 4 Comments
It’s New Years Eve day and I’m sitting in front of my laptop about to scan through the 214 new articles in the 321 blogs that I subscribe to. As you can see off to the right, if you scroll down a bit, I have my blogs categorized by topics. When I go through the new articles each day I find that I scroll through the CAD-based blogs to mark them all off as “read,” almost without even reading their headlines. I simply no longer have any interest in reading about the latest developments, issues, plug-ins, etc. within the world of AutoCAD (and this is coming from the guy who runs CADuzer.com). Now that I’m back on a Revit-based project (and it is a full-fledged, no exceptions Revit-based project), I can’t imagine going back to AutoCAD. To be clear, I have no problem continuing to use AutoCAD for tasks here and there, but I’m just simply not interested in reading about the solutions people have come up with for it, the latest service packs or updates or new beta programs and versions of it. I think the software should be put out to pasture. I think any further development for it should be finished and then discontinued. Again, to be clear, AutoCAD has been a wonderful program for many years and has suited the architecture industry very well. This reminds me of what many people these days say when they talk about how the Internet is killing newspapers. You know what? It is! That’s called progress! With all of the advances that have come in recent versions of AutoCAD, such as parametric objects, it is inching closer and closer to Revit. Well, we’ve got Revit…it’s called Revit. Anyway, that’s a long way of saying, I’m thinking about removing my “CAD” blogs category.
Revit – Things to Consider When Starting a Project
Dec 23, 2009 BIM, Commentary, Revit Leave a comment
Hey All. I want to go through a few key things you should think about when starting a Revit-based project. I have to say, first of all, let’s start referring to these projects as a “Revit-based Project” as opposed to a “Revit Project”. I think it takes the emphasis off of what type of software is being used and puts it, more appropriately, on the fact that it’s an architectural project. Anyway, here are five things that you should consider, and document, when starting a project:
- Software Version and Build (internally and externally) – It’s important to make sure that not only are all of your internal Revit users using the same version (and build) of Revit, but also that all consultants are using the same version. This will ensure that there is no loss of data when sending your model to a consultant. It’s also import to note that even if your consultant is not working on the architectural aspects of the project (ie. they’re using Revit Structure or Revit MEP), they still must be using the same release of Revit (in this case, the build version can be ignored).
- Working with Consultants – Be aware of what software (and versions of those applications) that your consultants are using. Once this data is compiled, document the process by which your Revit model is exported to each piece of software. For example, if a consultant is using AutoCAD, make sure that the text file which describes how Revit objects are translated into layers has been updated to conform to your office standards and that all team members are aware of its location.
- Single or Multiple RVT Model Files – The process of sending data to a consultant differs when your project uses a single model file or multiple model files. Therefore, document the names of the model files contained within the project as well as a description of what each model file contains. Taking a step back from that, decide whether or not you actually want to use multiple model files. If so, make sure all team members know how the project is organized, within which file they should be working (and modeling) and, more specifically, which model file should be printed from.
- Worksets – On the same topic of organization, document the worksets being used in your project and what types of objects should be put on them. It’s important to keep this list shorter rather than longer because, as similar as worksets might seem to layers in AutoCAD, they are not interchangeable and users should be able to keep the idea of them in the background. Also, the Revit leaders on the team should have a process by which they can check to see if objects are on the correct workset and, if they’re not, how to correct the error.
- Level of Detail Based on Project Phase – As I have mentioned in previous posts, the level of detail applied to a model should be based on the phase of the project. For example, in earlier phases, such as Schematic Design, the detailed structure of walls should be left out and the types should be set to generic. Material-wise, the walls should have the basic grey material or transparent blue material. Be sure to document exactly how detailed object-types should be brought to. For clarification purposes, document the levels of detail for objects for the upcoming phases. This will allow users to keep in mind how the model will be developed over time.
While these are just five things to consider, there are many others as well. At its heart, however, this is both a preparation-based as well as a future planning-based process. Considering these things will eliminate confusion and will provide a road-map for working on a Revit-based project.
Revit 2010 – Great Parametric Forms Tutorial at HOK BIM Solutions
Dec 11, 2009 BIM, Revit 2 Comments
Hey All. I just went through this tutorial over at the HOK BIM Solutions blog on how to create parametric forms within the conceptual mass environment of Revit Architecture 2010. Take a look:
http://hokbimsolutions.blogspot.com/2009/07/creating-parametric-forms-using-revit.html
New Forums!
Nov 20, 2009 Commentary Leave a comment
Hey all. If you look just above, you’ll notice that there is a new section called Forums. Please join and make your voice heard. Hopefully we can get some good conversations started and make it a useful place for seeking and answering questions. I’ve created some basic categories but would be happy to add some more. Send me an email with your suggestions.
Thanks!
The Way Forward? The Way Forward!
Nov 15, 2009 BIM, Commentary, Revit 3 Comments
Hey All. I know it’s been a while but, as I’m sure most of you can relate, things happen, one gets distracted, and suddenly it’s two or so months later. I read a post on James Vandezande’s website (a co-worker of mine), All Things BIM, on October 2nd called, “BIM Manager or Architect,” and this crossroads that he has come across has most certainly been one I have thought about myself. First of all, I have enjoyed my transition back to architect from Digital Design Manager, as it has allowed me to put a face to the name. I am now within the environment of those who would ask for my help and I now better understand where their questions are coming from. Additionally, I can now wholeheartedly say that going through a book (or five) or taking a class (or five) does not sufficiently prepare you for how any piece of software works in a real, live project environment.
When I was officially assigned to a project, I thought to myself, “OK, now you’re an architect again, put the digital design manager hat away.” It didn’t take long for me to realize that that hat has been stapled to my head many years before. That’s fine. If anything, it’s the way I prefer it. Here’s the thing, and there really is no way of getting around it, whatever strategies we employ, methods we put into practice, or seminars we give, people are going to do what they want. I’ve realized that the diminished amount of time I have to spend on spreading the digital design gospel (which, in the case, is Revit-centric) is really no excuse. No one cares. This work is not necessarily tied to just the firm I, or you, work for. It must be industry-wide.
Do you want to know what finally lead me to this conclusion? I found that the encounters I would have with people changed from me presenting the benefits of BIM, to me defending BIM, to me battling a die hard resistance who fought the change simply for the sake of not wanting to learn something new. But then something else happened, those fighting me turned, and left. I started to ask myself, “Where did everybody go?” The answer was right in front of my face. The answer was the same reason that my title was now, “architect,” and not, “digital design manager.” The recession. The recession has put everyone in an understandable panic that they have become so used to being in, they don’t know how to get out. They’re in a mode best described as, “get the project, do the project, send the project out the door, get the project…” Certainly, I don’t ascribe this to every single architect, but what it has caused is a slowing of progress in the use of digital design tools within an industry that was slow to adapt already. The question comes back, however, to this, “how do you fight an enemy that has decided not to show up?” And then it hits you, “why are you fighting?” and, “why is there an enemy?”
As a huge Yankee fan, after they won the World Series, I went with several friends to the ticker-tape parade down (or more accurately, up) the Canyon of Heroes in lower Manhattan. Afterwords, one of my friends and I, an architect and urban designer, walked to get some lunch. He said to me, “If you want to make Revit more appealing, make it easy to use and make everything that comes out of it look like something that we’re all used to.”
Here is my suggestion to everyone, let us take a page out of the history of what we learned from 25+ years of AutoCAD. Let’s design a framework for the use of Revit within the architecture industry. I know many of you will tell me that this already exists but the way I see it is that it is too fragmented. Bits and pieces are strewn all over the Internet. We need to organize it in a single document or database. One thing I’ve learned from being on a project teetering between Revit and AutoCAD is that there are still many areas that we haven’t quite developed usable, and easily explainable, procedural standards for. I don’t mean to say that my firm, or your firm or any other single firm has this problem alone. Nor do I mean to say that it is the responsibility of one single organization to solve it.
To be clear, I’m not looking for a How-To guide that will explain how to create walls or add keynotes. I’m looking for a Revit-Based Project Procedures database. I’m looking for a Revit-Based Project Best Practices guide. Certainly at this point in the history of AutoCAD, no two firms use it the same way, but that’s because we didn’t have the methods of sharing knowledge and methods back then. We do now and should take advantage of it.
Here are some suggestions that I would give for some of the top-level topics that should be included (these are in no particular order and are simply being typed as they come into my head):
- Project Folder Structure
- Staff and Task Assignment
- Project Phase-based Level of Detail
- Naming Conventions for:
- Worksets
- Groups
- Materials
- Object Types
- Object Instances
- Revit-AutoCAD Integration
- Revit-Rhino Integration
- Revit-3ds Max Integration
As I said, these are just some topics that have come to my mind. I’ve created a Google form where I would encourage you to add your ideas for topics and, once we have a good list, we can each take one or two of them and begin to break them down into sub-topics and descriptions.
If those who will use this, and other, software on a daily basis are looking for a framework for the use of Revit on projects within the Architectural industry, let’s gather as a global community, create it and give it to them. Please let me know what you think and feel free to add your topics using the link below:
http://spreadsheets.google.com/viewform?formkey=dDVuMjZUbFd0VFBIeElhazN3Sl93Z0E6MA
Check out CadVids.com!
Nov 9, 2009 Commentary Leave a comment
Hey All. I hope to have some more posts soon, but I wanted to direct you all over to CadVids.com. To quote its creator, Jason Soles, CadVids.com is, “A free community driven youtube style website where people can watch, share, upload, and save, online video tutorials for all CAD based software.” Check it out and let the learning begin!
