Model Text Question

[pashley]

I have model text in the attached family. Some problems are occuring.

The model text aligns and flexes correctly with the front of the awning bacd it sits on the family file. However, when I insert in in a wall in a project, it sits several inches away from the band.

Another problem - when I change the model text content (its linked to a text parameter) it is not center justified - can you center justify model text?

I've attached the file if someone wants to take a crack at finding out what's wrong.

[christopher.zoog51272]

Is it possible to link model text to a instance based text parameter so that you can change the text in the inserted family?

OR...

Do you have to make a different family for each text version?

And another question...

The model text aligns and flexes correctly with the front of the awning bacd it sits on the family file. However, when I insert in in a wall in a project, it sits several inches away from the band. I've attached the file if someone wants to ltake a crack at finding out what's wrong.

Here is the fixed file. The text is now properly constrained and will change if you change the "text content" parameter. It will also keep the text centered relative to the width of the awning band. That was a bit tricky as model text does not like to be constrained to referance planes for some reason. The way around that is to make a "half width" length parameter and drive that with the formula: (width/2). Then assign half with to a dim at the center of the model text to either the right or left referance plane.


You were very close on a lot of things, just a few misplaced dimension ect. For example you had the depth parameter driving the front ref plane and the model text itself, this causes the family to break. Aligning/lock the model test to the front referance does work. I know sounds screwy right? Anyway check it out to see what I did. Keep going, the family editor is a tough thing to master!!!

-Z

[pashley]

Thanks for the help. Actually, just before you uploaded this, I figured out what I did wrong with the link to the text content parameter - I clicked the drop-down button rather than the ... in the properties dialog so I didn't get the option to select from the list of parameters. So I was closer than I thought.

There seem to still be some problems, though. I can't get the text to center justify. I tried flexing it in the model and it wouldn't work. I didn't see either, where the model text had been constrained to anything.

Concerning reference planes - I'm confused about when to use them and when to use labels. Is there a rule of thumb?

[christopher.zoog51272]

Thanks for the help. Actually, just before you uploaded this, I figured out what I did wrong with the link to the text content parameter - I clicked the drop-down button rather than the ... in the properties dialog so I didn't get the option to select from the list of parameters. So I was closer than I thought.

There seem to still be some problems, though. I can't get the text to center justify. I tried flexing it in the model and it wouldn't work. I didn't see either, where the model text had been constrained to anything.

Concerning reference planes - I'm confused about when to use them and when to use labels. Is there a rule of thumb?

hmmm. you're right, I though I had the justify thing licked, but I guess not. I'll take a closer look in the morning. It should be possible....

The model text is aligned to the fromt ref plane so that it moves with the depth parameter which also is drving that ref plan. then, in elevation, I constrained the bottom of the text to the banner sweep.

Rule of thumb? Well, If you need to flex somthing, use a ref plane then constrain geometry to it. In general I always lay out a family's working frame work with ref planes and parameters. Once I've got it flexing nicely, then I starting building geometry, then I finsih up with object styles, materials, visability, detail level, and family types, etc.

like I said I'll try to get the "justify" thing going in the morning

cheers,
-z

[Steve_Stafford]

I was "fixing" it when I noticed your post Z so I bailed...but I did manage to get the text to behave by making sure the Half width parameter dimension was to the side reference plane and to the mid reference in the Model Text itself. Only using the center reference plane to constrain the bracket.

[pashley]

Steve,

Hmmm - I thought I tried that yesterday (text midpoint reference to side reference plane) and it didn't work for me - will have to try again.

Chris

When you mention contsraining geometry - is it your preactice then to drive flexing by labeled dimensions on reference planes? Then by what means is the geometry constrained to the reference planes - aligning? locking? other methods?

[pashley]

Guess this is an unsolvable problem, huh? I'll just have to put in a wish-list item for Revit, asking for a way to set the justification of model text.

[Steve_Stafford]

Okay, so I was wrong, it breaks the text parameter ability to change if you lock it...so I felt bad and thought I'd better figure another way around the problem.

First create a generic family
Add model text to it, center justify it and put it at the origin
Add a parameter for the text value and assign the model text value to it
Nest that family into your sign family
Assign the text to the text parameter in the host
Lock the nested model text to the center reference plane

It WORKS!

I've attached the working family and the nested model text family...hope it works for YOU!

Oh...I coined a new term while fumbling with words a little while ago...Family and Formula are now;

FAMULA

[christopher.zoog51272]

Sorry I was in meetings all day... but it looks like stevo solved it.

[pashley]

You guys are the greatest!

Just before I logged onto the Forum I was just about to try one more thing, basing everything off of the centerline of the text with no reference planes. The drawback of that, if it worked, would be that the ends of the band would shift with the width of the text so that you would have to re-position the band each time the text changed.

This solution is much better.

Thanks a bunch.