Mastering RA 2008 book

[ws]

Mastering RA 2008 book finally dropped on the mat a few minutes ago.
http://www.amazon.com/Mastering-Revi.../dp/0470144831

I pre-ordered it months ago and maybe it is already out in the US.

I did wonder if it would be worth the wait... but I needn't have done..

It looks fantastic for the 'beyond beginner' Revit user - open at any page and it draws you in with really useful information and well illustrated.

IMHO Sets a new standard in books on Revit.

Well done, and thanks to the authors

[arqt49]

Hi William
I pre-ordered it too, but I am still waiting for the delivery.
All books I have seen (and bought) waist most of the pages explaining thing like what is BIM, the user interface and all the basic issues.
I hope it is worth the waiting - as you said.

[david.kingham]

I received it last week, I ordered it for my users not myself but I've been browsing through it and I must say I wish I had this book when I started learning Revit, all the little tricks that I had to learn on my own or from augi are in this book, I would HIGHLY recommended this book for anyone that wants to really dive into revit and fully take advantage of it. Best book on Revit yet!

[tc3dcad60731]

Great, I was wondering if this would be worth it and so I was holding back. As previously stated most books on the subject are not worth it.

[steve922542]

It is poorly edited with almost a dozen mistakes I've noted so far, but only two that really interfere with content or meaning. Most are minor such as using the word how instead of now. It is a decent book, but more polite and 'reverent' than I would have liked. I want a book that puts the limitations of the software right out there and gives the work-arounds.

Two of the three authors are product designers for Revit which may explain the bias. Insiders, by definition, are not objective. Perhaps it is the curse of expertise as well.

Some parts of the book are fully developed with sample files and step by step exercises. Other parts are more like outlines or first drafts that appear to be little more than lists of every item on a menu with a paraphrasing of the information from the help menu. One specific example of a weakness is their coverage of lights and lighting families. The index indicates 4 pages dealing with 'lighting' and 'lighting fixtures.' There is brief talk of some rendering settings, but less information than is found in Revit's help menu. What I expected to find under lighting were the ins and outs of creating and using the lighting families. Particularly weak is the discussion of where one vertical ends and another begins. In the lighting example, an honest appraisal with a caveat such as 'but if you need to do X or Y, you will need Revit MEP' would be helpful. Ditto for RS. I wish that I could have been the voice of the 'regular users' in reviewing the book before it was published because some small changes would add a lot of value.

One other example of something that concerns me is an example in chapter 11 of a gambrel roof with a completely jacked intersection between the two slopes. The lower roof was created with pickwalls, then cutoff and a second roof added for the other slope. Why this would not be an extrusion was not covered, but would have avoided the problem.

That being said, it is the best book on Revit currently available IMHO, and later additions will no-doubt fix the basic issues I've pointed out. Too bad I couldn't buy the book on subscription, then I wouldn't have to upgrade next year.