Thank you for visiting the Best Practices Course website. The video lessons are available for members only. If you are an active member and would like to watch the ArchiCAD training video on this page, please login to the website. If you are not currently a member, please visit the following pages for more information and to sign up for the Best Practices Course, the QuickStart Course or for the Best Practices ArchiCAD Coaching Program. Eric Bobrow, Creator of the Best Practices Course

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ArchiCAD Training Session Notes

QUESTION	ANSWER SUMMARY AND NOTES	START TIME
How to create a lightwell in a hip roof. This explanation is for use with ArchiCAD 15 and above. Below ArchiCAD 15 there isn’t the same opportunities for roof selection so this doesn’t apply.	When the lady caller selected her newly created hip roof and cut a hole in it to create a lightwell (using the minus operation), she found that the roof shape was modifying itself into a strange shape. Eric explains that the lady caller was selecting the hip roof by the pivot line, instead she should have been selecting the roof by the contour line. Basically a pivot line selection will make the hole form at the height of the pivot line on an horizontal plane (dragging the sloped roof surrounding it down to meet it), and a contour line selction will create a hole in the slope of the roof plane (like a rooflight).	0:01:20
The slightly revised dialog box in ArhciCAD 16		0:07:40
Dormers	Eric first takes a look at built-in ArchiCAD dormers found under skylights. He briefly goes through the settings.	0:09:25
	Eric then shows how to create your own dormer using the wall and roof tools. He then cuts it to the roof shape using solid element operations – design>solid element operations. If you have ArchiCAD 15 or above you can cut the roof by selecting all the walls that you want trimming to the roof and then right click and select connect>trim elements to roof/shell>select the roof that you are trimming to>and finally the side that is being trimmed (inside or outside the roof)	0:10:54
How does a dormer show up in the plan view	How the roof is shown in plan is determined by the “floor plan and section settings”, this includes what you actually want to see and the linetype e.g. overhead lines (Eric demonstrates this). A point to note is when you want to show the overhead line type (in plan view) make sure the dormer wall heights are set to the correct level/height. In this tutorial Eric had accidentally set the dormer walls to go down to the ground/first floor (before he used solid element operations), and thus this was stopping the overhead line type from showing in the plan view.	0:14:16
Walls of different thicknesses that form the walls of a dormer roof are joined together vertically and are not cleaning up properly	Eric puts the walls of different thicknesses on different layers and changes the wall priority intersection number on one of the walls. A point to note is that you have to make this change in every layer combination if you want the walls to clean up properly everywhere in your project. Eric then went to a section view of the newly created dormer walls and did a solid element operation to make the walls clean up together perfectly. Eric demonstrates everything so don’t worry if this explanation is confusing.	0:21:00
3d hotspot placement tool	Eric has created and uploaded (see link to right) to the web a 3d hotspot placement tool. This tool enables objects created by you to have snap points at specific corners (in 3d window) and this enables easy and accurate placement.	0:28:34
Caller wants to know where to get ArchiCAD bim objects from	If you have ArchiCAD 16 it is actually possible to download some objects that are based online directly from the ArchiCAD software (Eric demonstrates what to do). This site that the objects are coming from is call bimcomponents.com (see link on the right) and you can also search the site itself (so you can still get the objects if you don’t have ArchiCAD 16).	0:35:00
The curtain wall tool for front-store facades	YouTube has lots of videos on this topic and I have put a link on the right to Graphisoft’s tutorials that are on YouTube. Because the caller didn’t have a specific question on the huge topic of curtain walls, Eric pointed him towards the ArchiCAD reference manual to familiarize himself on the topic area, so he could then come back to Eric on anything he was struggling on.	0:42:11
Does a hotspot work with gravity on a mesh	The caller needed to show the heights of particular points along a mesh. Eric tells the caller he can use the “level dimension” tool (instead of a hotspot) which is found in the document toolbar. You then set the gravity tool to “gravitate to mesh” and you now have the ability to find out any height on any position on the mesh.	0:48:25
	The caller says if you want to schedule these points to produce where the xyz points go – then follow this procedure – linked libraries>general>drawing symbols>coordinate dimension (this was in the American library, and in the international version it is object>2d elements>graphic symbols>coordinate dimension). The caller also needed the positions to show up in section, and Eric said that by placing one of his 3d hotspots (placement tool mentioned earlier in this tutorial) on the correct position on top of a “level dimension” position you can then go to a section view and find the 3d hotspot marking where the level dimension is.	0:52:20
How to reset an origin of a material	design>align 3d textures>set origin. This is particulary useful when you want to change the position where a brick wall (the joints) starts. When you have adjusted the material in the 3d window it will also automatically adjust the same material in an elevation view.	0:57:50
How to make Zones update and how to calculate the volume of Zones	If you change the plan of a building and you want to update Zones then go to – Design>update zones. The reason zones don’t update automatically is because you can get a report on the changes/differences that have taken place i.e. the amount of area that has been lost or gained (this is done when you go to – design>update zones>click the right hand arrow on the dialog box header and choose your option).	1:04:31
	If you have an open plan layout and you want to split the open plan into Zones, then you can use the line tool ( make sure that you first open the line selection settings and check zone boundary.) to split the open plan into separate Zone sections.	1:12:55
	Eric demonstrates how to put zone data in schedule tables	1:14:12
	How to set a zones height	1:15:27
	How to show zones in 3d	1:18:50
	Note: you can trim a zone to other elements using solid element operations and the connect functions
How to fix the link with a modular file when it’s been moved around to two locations		1:31:07
Caller who was working with both pln and mod files in his project wanted to know the best practice for controling where his saves occur	The caller was finding that when he saved his mod file it wasn’t going to the correct location, and thus when he needed it he didn’t know where to look to find it.	1:39:00

ArchiCAD Training – Coaching Call – January 15, 2013

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MamadyCamara
12 years ago

HI ERIC

PLEASE CAN YOU TELL ME WHY CAN’T WATCH ANY COACHING CALL VIDEOS?
I THINK SINCE I AM THE BEST PRACTICES MEMBER I SHOULD BE ABLE TO WATCH IT.

THANK YOU,
MAMADY
- Eric Bobrow
  12 years ago
  
  Mamady –
  I have checked your account and you should be able to watch the coaching calls. Please make sure you are fully logged in to the website member area, and try it again. Let me know how it goes.
  Eric
LuisBarrios
12 years ago

Hi Eric, I was very impressed with my first Coaching Call and amazed about the knowledge of the software. I appreciate the resources recommended and look forward to the Best Practices Course. I can’t wait for the next “Call” and I’m sure to be hooked!

Many thanks,

Luis B.
Architect