White Text

[al]

Our title block has white text on top of black regions. It look great and plots just fine in Revit. When translated to Autocad, the tile block text and regions are on the same layer. The text will obviously not be visible because it is on the same layer as the region. We really don't want to have to go back into autocad to separate it out. I'd also like to avoid having to change the design of our title block. I really don't want to use an image attachement either.

I've tried a number of different things. (1) Our existing title block in autocad is made up of hatches -- not text. This didn't come over into Revit because the 'lines are too small' or something like that. (2) If the text is imported from autocad it displays properly inside Revit. It actually translates fine too because it show up under Imports in Families in the layer table in the translation options. This allows me to split it out on its own layer. But when the sheet is loaded into a project the AutoCAD import is behind the black regions -- its almost as if there is a draw order problem through nested families. There doesn't seem to be any way for me to control this sorting. (3) I tried creating a new annotation family then loading into the sheet -- the annotation family is simply the text notes on top of the regions. This works inside revit well and translates under the Generic Annotation category in the export layers table, which is separate from everything else on the sheet. The problem with this is that a lot of other generic annotation information is translated through the same category. Most of this information needs to be a different color on its own layer.

Does anyone have any ideas?

[jamie.casile80054]

hi al,

i'm not sure if i'm understanding the issue correctly, but would changing the white text to a really light gray instead help?

aloha,
jamie

[Dimitri Harvalias]

Is it your titleblock block or just your logo graphic that is white on black?

[al]

The text color doesn't matter. I cannot control throught the translation into which layer the text is placed. So the text and regions go to the same layer. And the color for all entities is bylayer.

There is also text on black regions for items such as; drawn by, date, drawing, general notes, etc. More than just the logo.

[RobG]

personally, our firm keeps a fully functional DWG border/titleblock so that we don't have conversion problems with revit... you might want to look into that.

[jamie.casile80054]

al,

have you tried setting the text and region to different categories? and then set their colors and layers in the export settings?

aloha,
jamie

[Dimitri Harvalias]

My first thought too Jamie but it doesn't work.

Al,

Create your black background as a simple jpeg rectangle image and insert it into your titleblock family. You can copy and resize as required. Place your text on top of the jpeg with a transparent background and it will export to dwg and should display properly. It won't be two independant objects but it should print as you want it to.

[jarod.tulanowski]

We have the same problem here. it sucks the reason is that the title block exports out on the same layer. they should add more export out layers to the border then just the one.


P.S. we have a acad hacker here that made a script routine that automatically changes ours once exported. takes about 20 seconds to convert them through a 60 sheet set.

[al]

We may have alter the data post translation like you did. This is driving me absolutely crazy -- something that should be so simple is so impossibile. I am really upset! Using an image is not a solution in my book.

[Dimitri Harvalias]

Al, why the reluctance to use an image in the titleblock family? You would need to do it once and then forget about it.

<enter please don't bite my head off mode>
Although I agree that it would be nice if Revit did everything the same way we used to do it with the 'other' program(s) the fact is, it may require some slight adjustments in the way we approach certain aspects of our workflow. I am endlessly bemused at the tendency of users, new and established, to get all worked up over seemingly minor workarounds and changes in procedure that should be expected as we transition from one piece of software to another.
Your titleblock is a prime example. Do you recall when you first created the titleblock why you used a hatched region instead of white text on a black background? Probably because that's the only way ACAD would let you do it to suit the problem at hand.
Over time we willingly accept the limitations and quirks of most of the programs we use but get annoyed when we make the change to something different and it no longer works the same way.
As noted, I'm not being critical of the desire to get added functionality into Revit I'm just making an observation.
<exit please don't bite my head off mode>

[al]

I know you are right -- it probably isn't that big a deal. I was telling myself the same thing yesterday. Although, it is taking a lot of un-necessary time to work out. We are just getting started here at our firm and I expect to have quite a few issues like this one. I can just hear some of the skeptics saying -- "it can't even reproduce our title block, there's now way it's ready for prime time. I'll use it when it's more mature." Its a lot of perception and how it is presented too.

The image is simply an additional file that will have to be sent along with the .dwg's. We are now working on a post translation routine in AutoCAD. The team should be opening the translated files back in AutoCAD anyway for checking purposes before sending -- so clicking on a menu item that changes the text shouldn't be a big deal.

[jarod.tulanowski]

al

you hit that one on the head our skeptics said the same thing. what you mean it cant use our title block. the problem we ran into is in trying to use multiple disciplines. we are a full service firm and as of yet Revits MEP part is still in Beta. In order to use our plans from Revit we set up the MEP sheets in Revit and export them out to cad for the engineers to mess with. Hence the border issue. and as for adding in an image, well you know how reliable image files are in Acad.

[ford347]

not to change the subject entirely, but going back to the fact you have black regions with white text. this is what I would like to do in our titleblock, but I cannot get the text to show up. I have tried opaque text, trans text, opaque filled region, trans filled, etc., all with a solid fill region. How do you get white text to show up white over a black region. It seems like I did it a long time ago in another old experimental titleblock, but no luck with this one.

[al]

Our original sheets were simply white opaque text on opaque filled regions. The sheets are a little more complicated now in that the white text is added in a generic annotation family and then placed into the sheet so they are in a different category for translation. This allows the white text to be translated to a separate dwg layer. Even so, the text in the family is still white and opaque. I don't know why it wouldn't be displaying. Have you tried changing the color to red or something to see if it is showing up. Could you post it?

[ford347]

I found that old titleblock and copied the filled region and the text from that into my titleblock and got it to work. After messing with it a little, I noticed that with the text I copied from the other file I had used a color just under white, 253-253-253 I believe, to get it to show up white. If I use just plain white, it shows black. Anyway, I got it. Thanks.