Tracing Images In Revit

Tracing images is a pretty common task in AutoCAD and it is also a common task in Revit. Unfortunately, Revit does not have as many tools for manipulating images as AutoCAD does, but there are some ways to work around these setbacks. You can currently attach BMP, TIF, JPG, and PNG. files to a Revit file. I haven't really seen any real advantage of using one format over another except file size between TIF and JPG. PNG might possibly allow you to have transparent areas. 

Fading Images Back
There is no fading images back in Revit. You will have to darken up the image in Photoshop by adjusting the brightness and contrast of the image before placing the image into Revit. If you change the image while the file is attached you will have to close and reopen the project because there is no reload command.

Locking An Image
There is currently no direct way to lock an image in place in Revit so that it is not accidentally selected. The closest you might be able to get is attaching an image into an AutoCAD drawing and then pinning the AutoCAD drawing in place. I have not tested this method yet. Otherwise, be careful what you select.

There is another trick to selecting objects without selecting the image.  A lot of commands in Revit assume you select the object first and then run the command. If you start the command first, Revit will allow you to use a selection window.

First start the selected command like offset, copy, or mirror.
Second select your objects using a selection window (not crossing).
Third, click on the same command that you started with to activate the command for the selected objects.

Turning An Image On And Off
You might not be able to lock an image in place, nor can you load and unload an image like an xref,  but you can turn an image on and off like a layer.

Go to your visibility graphics (VG) and under the "Model Categories" uncheck the "Raster Image". Keep in mind that visibility graphics are only good for the view you are working in. So they still may show up in other views.

From Drop Box

Difference Between Decal And Image
A Decal is an image that you apply to the surface of an object. You will have to attach an image to the object at insert. An example would be putting an image on a TV set component to make it look like the TV is on.

An Image works like a lot like you think an image should in AutoCAD.

You cannot currently apply an image to topography, because topography is not considered a component.

10 Things Not To Do In Revit

The Autodesk Revit family of products (Architecture, MEP and Structure) presents new opportunities and challenges to designers. Revit concentrates all information in one central model database rather than several drawing files. Because every designer uses and shares the same central Revit file, problems created by one user will often affect all users. Revit models also contain far more information than just geometry; hence the term Building Information Modeling. Revit, of course, is not simply an AutoCAD upgrade and we are learning how different it is every day.

1.) Never leave inserted AutoCAD DWGs in a Revit model. Although you can insert a block or drawing into Revit it can cause severe performance and stability issues. DWG files bloat the model by using far more memory than pure Revit entities. Also, AutoCAD DWG files can corrupt the file, causing internal errors, excessive warnings, and language barriers, which slow down the performance of the model. We recommend that you recreate your favorite blocks as Revit Families. If you must insert a DWG file for tracing or reference, purge it as soon as possible. Regularly check the model for blocks and DWG files to make sure it stays lean. Never explode DWG files that have been imported into Revit as this makes the problem worse and more difficult to resolve. It also, can make the issue a permanent one as some elements, once exploded, can never be removed. If the AutoCAD file is necessary as a background, linking the file in rather than importing it can prevent and reduce some of these issues.

2.) Don’t let unresolved Revit warnings languish. Large numbers of unresolved warnings can seriously degrade model performance and stability. Resolve warnings as they occur to keep them from building up in the model. Periodically check the “Warnings” tool on the “Modify” ribbon to see what warnings (if any) have built up in the model.

3.) Don’t use Revit Families from Manufacturers without checking them first. Building Product Manufacturers are responding to your requests for Revit content by having families of their products created in Revit. These families may look great when viewed, but if they contain too much detail they can quickly bloat your model. One unnecessarily detailed door family could add dozens of megabytes to your Revit model and slow you down. Additionally, we have found some manufacturer-provided families include imported DWG files (see number 2 above).

4.) Don’t over-model. One of the most common mistakes among new users of Revit is to put too much detail in the model. Determine how much detail is really necessary to convey your design intent, and then monitor your team to prevent over-modeling.

5.) Don’t use in-place families too often. While it is inevitable that you will have to use in-place families in a typical project, be selective in their use. If you create an in-place family and later decide that it should be a component family, there is absolutely no way to convert it. If you must use an in place family, do not duplicate it. For example, if you have to use in-place families to create light coves in several rooms, create them all in one in-place family; don’t create a different in-place family for each room.

6.) Don’t over-constrain model geometry in a project file. Dimension and alignment constraints add overhead to the file and increase the potential for the dreaded “constraints not satisfied” error message. If you’re not absolutely sure that you should constrain something, then you probably shouldn’t.

7.) Don’t lose control of your views. Exercise good view management. Don’t create unnecessary views and don’t leave views unnamed. During the course of a project, the project browser can become populated with a large number of views. Bad naming practices or unnecessary views can make the view list even more unwieldy. Also, utilize the browser organization tools to your advantage to sort views in ways that make them easy to navigate.

8.) Don’t over-use Groups and Design Options. An inordinate number of groups in a project can impact performance and bloat the model. Make sure to purge unused groups from the model regularly and turn off the “Group and Associate” option when using the Array tool. Likewise, be careful not to get carried away with Design Options which are meant to allow for multiple possibilities for minor changes in the model. Improper use of Design Options can duplicate many entities and increase model size significantly.

9.) Don’t use Worksets to control visibility. The workset of an object can change at any time and since there are no rules that say a tree can’t be on a “Roof” workset, for example, it can cause unexpected issues with object visibility and printing down the road. Grouping can also affect the workset assignment of objects, causing further problems with this method of visibility control.

10.) Don’t create a “Demolition” phase. Demolition is an action and not a phase. While phasing will still work if you create a “Demolition” phase, it adds one more phase that you have to manage and is completely unnecessary and redundant.

These 10 nuggets should prove very helpful in your transition into the world of BIM through Revit.

Posted by, DC CADD

Keyboard Shortcuts for Revit

Revit Keyboard Shortcuts:

Modelling menu

File menu

"ER" menu:"File-Editing Requests"
"RL" menu:"File-Reload Latest""RW" menu:"File-Reload Latest"

Edit menu

"DE" menu:"Edit-Delete"
"MD" menu:"Edit-Modify"
"SA" menu:"Edit-Select All Instances"
"MV" menu:"Edit-Move"
"CO" menu:"Edit-Copy"
"RO" menu:"Edit-Rotate"
"AR" menu:"Edit-Array"
"MM" menu:"Edit-Mirror"
"RE" menu:"Edit-Resize"
"GP" menu:"Edit-Group-Create Group"
"EG" menu:"Edit-Group-Edit Group"
"UG" menu:"Edit-Group-Ungroup"
"LG" menu:"Edit-Group-Link Group"
"EX" menu:"Edit-Group-Exclude Member"
"MP" menu:"Edit-Group-Move Member to Project"
"RB" menu:"Edit-Group-Restore Excluded Member"
"RA" menu:"Edit-Group-Restore All"
"AP" menu:"Edit-Group-Add to Group"
"RG" menu:"Edit-Group-Remove from Group"
"AD" menu:"Edit-Group-Attach Detail"
"PG" menu:"Edit-Group-Group Properties"
"FG" menu:"Edit-Group-Finish Group"
"CG" menu:"Edit-Group-Cancel Group"
"PP" menu:"Edit-Pin Position"
"UP" menu:"Edit-Unpin Position"
"CS" menu:"Edit-Create Similar""PR" menu:"Edit-Properties"

View menu

"ZR" menu:"View-Zoom-Zoom In Region"
"ZO" menu:"View-Zoom-Zoom Out (2x)"
"ZF" menu:"View-Zoom-Zoom To Fit"
"ZE" menu:"View-Zoom-Zoom To Fit"
"ZA" menu:"View-Zoom-Zoom All To Fit"
"ZS" menu:"View-Zoom-Sheet Size"
"ZP" menu:"View-Zoom-Previous Scroll/Zoom"
"VP" menu:"View-View Properties"F8 menu:"View-Dynamically Modify View
"VG" menu:"View-Visibility/Graphics"
"HH" menu:"View-Temporary Hide/Isolate-Hide Element"
"HI" menu:"View-Temporary Hide/Isolate-Isolate Element"
"HC" menu:"View-Temporary Hide/Isolate-Hide Category"
"IC" menu:"View-Temporary Hide/Isolate-Isolate Category"
"HR" menu:"View-Temporary Hide/Isolate-Reset Temporary Hide/Isolate"
"EH" menu:"View-Hide in view-Elements"
"VH" menu:"View-Hide in view-Category"
"EU" menu:"View-Unhide in view-Elements"
"VU" menu:"View-Unhide in view-Category"
"WF" menu:"View-Wireframe"
"HL" menu:"View-Hidden Line""SD" menu:"View-Shading with Edges"
"AG" menu:"View-Advanced Model Graphics""TL" menu:"View-Thin Lines"
"RR" menu:"View-Rendering-Raytrace"
F5 menu:"View-Refresh"

Modelling menu

"DR" menu:"Modelling-Door"
"WN" menu:"Modelling-Window""CM" menu:"Modelling-Component"
"LI" menu:"Modelling-Lines"
"RP" menu:"Modelling-Ref Plane"

Drafting menu

"DI" menu:"Drafting-Dimension"
"EL" menu:"Drafting-Spot Dimension-Spot Elevation"
"TX" menu:"Drafting-Text"
"GR" menu:"Drafting-Grid"
"LL" menu:"Drafting-Level"
"TG" menu:"Drafting-Tag-By Category"
"RM" menu:"Drafting-Room"
"RT" menu:"Drafting-Room Tag"
"DL" menu:"Drafting-Detail Lines"

Site menu

Tools menu

F7 menu:"Tools-Spelling"
"MA" menu:"Tools-Match"
"LW" menu:"Tools-Linework"
"PT" menu:"Tools-Paint"
"SF" menu:"Tools-Split Face"
"AL" menu:"Tools-Align"
"SL" menu:"Tools-Split Walls and Lines"
"TR" menu:"Tools-Trim/Extend"
"OF" menu:"Tools-Offset"

Settings menu

"SU" menu:"Settings-Sun and Shadows Settings"
"UN" menu:"Settings-Project Units"

Window menu

"WC" menu:"Window-Cascade"
"WT" menu:"Window-Tile"

Help menu

Snap overrides

"SI" snapcode:"Intersections"
"SE" snapcode:"Endpoints"
"SM" snapcode:"Midpoints"
"SC" snapcode:"Centers"
"SN" snapcode:"Nearest"
"SP" snapcode:"Perpendicular"
"ST" snapcode:"Tangents"
"SW" snapcode:"Work Plane Grid"
"SQ" snapcode:"Quadrants"
"SX" snapcode:"Points"
"SR" snapcode:"Snap to Remote Objects"
"SO" snapcode:"Snaps Off"
"SS" snapcode:"Turn Override Off"

Alternates with closer key spacing

"ZZ" menu:"View-Zoom-Zoom In Region"
"ZX" menu:"View-Zoom-Zoom To Fit"
"ZC" menu:"View-Zoom-Previous Scroll/Zoom"
"ZV" menu:"View-Zoom-Zoom Out (2x)"
"VV" menu:"View-Visibility/Graphics"
"CC" menu:"Edit-Copy"