ArchiCAD Training (Best Practices Lesson 1-2)

This 20 minute segment is the second part of the 7 Keys to Best Practices for ArchiCAD.

It covers keys 1 through 5:

Get Organized
Do It Once
Save Your Settings
Work from the General to the Specific
Use ArchiCAD’s Structure

Please add your comments below.

Eric

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Video Playback and Download Notes

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Audio Version

ArchiCAD Training: In Depth: Keys 1 through 5

Add your comments and questions here.

Let us know how you feel... (11 comments so far)

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Christine
13 years ago

I am having the same problem. The lesson keeps starting and stopping – when I watch it online or download it and watch it on quicktime on my computer.
- Eric Bobrow
  13 years ago
  
  Christine –
  
  Is the problem specific to this video?
  Or do you have these issues with other course videos?
  
  Sometimes these issues are due to temporary issues with your computer memory, and a restart may help. Please try that and let us know if it helps, or not.
  
  If the problem is only with this video, perhaps I may try to create a version that is slightly lower quality that requires less bandwidth or memory to play. Let me know how it goes.
  
  Eric
Theresa Hatton
14 years ago

Hi Eric,

I have been trying to watch the lesson, it keeps stopping and starting. As the file is so big, does it need to be downloaded or can I just watch it on the screen. Having problems..
- Eric
  14 years ago
  
  Theresa –
  
  I’m sorry to hear about your challenges while trying to watch the lesson. The video files are being delivered via Amazon S3, the state-of-the-art system that has worldwide distribution for media files.
  
  If playback stops and starts, it is likely that your internet connection isn’t fast enough to keep up with the playback speed. You may wait until the file is completely downloaded to play it in your browser, or right-click on the Download button link and save the file to your disk for permanent access.
  
  It is also possible that the situation was temporary, due to internet congestion, and that if you try it at another time it will play back more smoothly.
  
  Please keep me posted on how it goes.
  
  Eric
Diane Waingrow
14 years ago

Hi Eric,
I have watched the first 2 sections and they are very informative. However, I have an important suggestion for those of us who are visual learners (which I think is probably most of your clients!). Stay on the Archicad window as much as possible. When I am hearing only the words, I am not nearly as engaged as when I am seeing the concept illustrated on the Archicad window, even if you are just pointing to the items you are discussing. For example, the section on avoiding custom layer combinations on saved views, a concept which I have recently come to understand. It would have been so much better if you had been pointing to the saved views windows while describing that idea so I could get a visual instruction as well as a verbal one.
I look forward to continuing to learn from your videos.
Best,
Diane Waingrow
- Eric
  14 years ago
  
  Diane –
  Thanks for your comments and feedback. You’ll find that much of the course is actually screen capture of me demonstrating inside ArchiCAD – there’s not too much of my face after the first week of videos. Also, the first week is a very conceptual and high level overview, while the rest of the lessons are very practical and direct. There are some modules that use PowerPoint or Mind Maps, but these are the exception. I hope you like the rest of the course!
  Eric
David R Olufs
14 years ago

Just a small comment about schedules… and settings being exported to EXCEL. It may work in AC14 but I had no luck in 12 and 13. GraphiSoft and their forum said it was a Mac thing.

But if, in fact, they can be exported to EXCEL, can they be exported back to AC?
- Eric
  14 years ago
  
  Dave –
  I believe that this Mac issue was fixed in ArchiCAD 14. However, even in earlier versions, you can save as a text file (I think it’s either comma separated or tab separated) and import that into Excel yourself.
  There is no direct import mechanism for filling in a schedule inside ArchiCAD from an Excel spreadsheet. It is technically possible with API (Application Programming Interface) tools which third party developers can handle, but not ordinary end users. Cadimage provides an add-on for Excel to create an XML file that can then be imported into their Keynote tool for ArchiCAD – which isn’t exactly what you were asking, but is an example of what’s possible.
  Eric
Cliff Gilmore
14 years ago

When you replace your face with Archicad windows, I find the pace is too fast to absorb the flow of input made.
Cliff
- Eric
  14 years ago
  
  Cliff –
  Thanks for your feedback. This presentation is the introduction to the course, and as such it has to move quickly through these topics and ideas. The balance of the course materials are much more deliberate, and explain things in depth.
  Eric
Chris Sinkinson
14 years ago

Extremely interesting, concepts. A lot of these things we know about and have thought we need to put them in place, but have not got round t it yet.
Now is the time to get organised !! 🙂