Revit "Gotchas"

[ron.sanpedro]

I am finally running into the issue of new hires, who are freshly minted Revit users, going on to teams of grizzled veterans. I know we can't teach them the whole gamut of what TO do right off the bat, if nothing else every team and every project has come up with their own solutions to things. But it does seem like there are some global DON'Ts that can be taught before a newb gets thrown in the crucible. So I have started a list of Gotchas. Anyone have some other universal things to be thinking about?

Thanks,
Gordon




Revit Gotchas
• Remember, you share the model with everyone. In general, change the organization or visibility of things where you are working. Do NOT delete things because they are in your way.
• Select All Instances is Model wide, NOT view wide. Be careful, you could be grabbing a lot more than you think.
• Model Lines and Drafting Lines behave differently, but to Revit they are the same thing. This can be a huge issue relative to the item above.
• Don’t name views as you want them seen in the Drawing Name on the sheet. Keep them simple.
• Don’t start building families without having a meeting with me on the specific family types you are needing. There are a number of
• Make sure you REALLY need an in place family. Don’t make them your first choice when modeling.

[ford347]

Good advice. the key to a good model with more than one person on it is to treat everything like an 'issue' that needs to be defined before moving forward.


Select All Instances is Model wide, NOT view wide
That's a good one to have on the list. I made the mistake when I first started using Revit. I thought it was a nifty little view specific picker and after perfroming a lot of work in one view I realized I had deleted all of my dimensions in the project prior to all that work!

Thanks for the advice.

Josh

[Teresa.Martin]

Dear Gordon;
In addition to the list you have started, I would also add:
1) Do not model everything. Just because you can does not mean you should...for instance, 3d light switches and outlet receptacles!
2) Make working (sketch views) and final views. Final views are set correctly, pretty and placed on sheets. Working view are just for working in, but have VG set to do the task at hand, etc.
3) If you are going to make a family, choose Generic Model instead of using Mass. You will be happy that you did!
4) When you run into a road block in Revit and you find yourself saying "Well in Autocad we did it this way..." STOP! Think of a new approach! This is not Autocad!

Best regards,

[dbaldacchino]

Window-select with GREAT care. It's preferable to pick individual objects because you might otherwise select other elements in the background that you don't want to move.

DO NOT work in the central file (yes, it has happened to me).

Each view you work on is within the same file. Each sheet is also within the same file. Don't go looking for them in the netwrok drive!

Objects that are not visible can be a) Temporarily hidden; b) On a workset that is turned off in the view or unloaded; c) The object's category/sub-category might be turned off in the view; d) A filter with visibility turned off might be the reason the object is not visible; e) Phasing and Phase filters might be set in such a way that the object is not displayed in your current view.

[twiceroadsfool]

DO NOT click Edit/New unless you are sure thats the right move. Clicking Edit/New because you cant get something to work divorces your verson from everyone elses, and it kills the potential for global changes later. Toilet Partition-yourinitialshere does NOT equal a good solution.

Do not spend hours fixing something thats out of whack all over the entire model, before you havea conversation with your team. its probably a global setting that got emssed up, and if you adjust for the "out-of-whack," when someone picks u on a setting thats wrong (wall thickness?) and changes it back, all of the "corrections" you did will have to be corrected again.

Do not hide the model and draft over it in section because you dont know how to fix it. Ask. Do not take the time to trace a cut profile with a filled region. If its not displaying the information properly, lets find the proper solution.

Do not draft repetitive details out of individual lines copied everywhere. When the client changes the stone pier detail, this will be a pain in the behind. Learn to detail in the family, or at least in a detail component.

Worksets. You dont need them all opened. Enough said, LOL.

Worksets. You DO want them all visible. Enough said, LOL. (I know some offices work differently, but here using them for Visib. control is a no no...)

In place families: Dont use them. If you think you have to ask. Then ill tell you not to use them, lol.

If you cant tell if its modeled or drafted, hover on it. If its workset is a view, its drafted. If its an actual workset, its not.

****NOT SAVING for 3 hours because youre afraid to mess up the model, is NOT a good idea.

Demo is not a phase.

If you have a deadline, and have to draft, draft in the appropriate family to leverage as much pwoer as you can down the road. Drafting in a view is a last resort.

Over-communicate everything. It may seem trivial now, but whatever youre touching is probably affecting someone else.

Have a meeting about it (whatever it is). You may think you dont have time for a quick sit down before you start working, but it will save you time. Guaranteed.

PRESS AND DRAG. Turn it off. Youre going to try window selecting, and youre going to grab a sutrctural grid in the background. Just uncheck the Press and Drag. Please. :)

Working Views - Keep your own, for changing Visibility / view range. Dont change the settings for drawings in the Doc. Set.

Text notes: Dont put unintelligent text notes directly calling out drawings by name/number. It eliminates our capabilities of renumbering later on.

EDIT: DO NOT mad-escape (hit the key three times) over Warning and Error dialogues. Learn what the message means, and if you dont understand it, ask. While the language may be daunting, its important to know what the options presented mean, and not simply click okay. OKAY is not always the proper choice.

EDIT 2: When creating objects, if it doesnt show up, do NOT create it again. Ask for help. You successfully created it, you just dont know where it went.

EDIT3: (may not be a beginner issue, so much as a PM issue) Decide if the issue you face is what information to display, or how to display it. "Thats how ive always done it," is not a justifiable reason to do something, when its going to invalidate all of the intelligence weve got in a 3d model. Ive seen a lot of model intelligent data unraveled because people wanted it displayed EXACTLY like it was when it was drawn by hand, or in AutoCAD. Look forward, dont look back.

[Scott D Davis]

Save-as is not a solution to creating options. Learn how to use....Options! <gasp!> :)

I can't stand opening a folder and finding:

filename-1.rvt
filename-2.rvt
filename-3.rvt

when you "save as" just to 'test" a design, you are recreating EVERYTHING! This isn't autocad.....

[twiceroadsfool]

Save-as is not a solution to creating options. Learn how to use....Options! <gasp!> :)

I can't stand opening a folder and finding:

filename-1.rvt
filename-2.rvt
filename-3.rvt

when you "save as" just to 'test" a design, you are recreating EVERYTHING! This isn't autocad.....

Agreed. And to reiterate someone elses post about opening the central file:

No, it doesnt matter that "youre not doing any modeling." Even if you need to just look at drawings to gather information, get yourself a local copy, lol...

[cphubb]

Never IMPORT an autocad drawing. Always link. If you import you can spend your saturday removing the extra object styles.

We have a rule about who can open the central file except for the save as local. If you need a copy of the file for a meeting offsite or such, the PM or PA is the only person able to open the CF and create another.

If you get your local file out of synch that is a YP not an MP. Fix it next saturday

All unmaned views reference planes etc. are valid for deletion by the PM

[dhurtubise]

When selecting objects for major modification, use filter to validate your selection.

[jcoe]

Do not use the linework tool to control the representation of your model objects. If the representation is not to your liking, address the issue with whoever is in charge of the content library and have it fixed in the family.

We had an issue on a recent project where someone did not ask and changed the representation of all structural members on a framing plan using the linework tool. It took a while to realize what they did and undo.

[HawkeyNut]

When naming things in Revit (views, etc.), do not assume the abbreviations or names you think are logical, are logical to everyone. Assume that whoever is going to work on the file when you're not around knows nothing when they open it for the first time. Name things logically!

[jond]

1) Whenever I modify/create something in revit like a material or object style I always type it in CAPS. It helps distinguish your changes from the factory stuff thats all in lower case.

[whittendesigns]

If I am yelling and banging my keyboard, do NOT open the door!

[rjcrowther]

For a sole practitioner who doesn't share Revit drawings with others, this makes some great reading. I particularly like the do not open the door rule.

Rob

[radu.grosu]

For a sole practitioner who doesn't share Revit drawings with others, this makes some great reading. I particularly like the do not open the door rule.


Hehe. Same here.

Radu

[comhasse]

Thanks for all the information. Could you elaborate on this one:
Worksets. You DO want them all visible. Enough said, LOL. (I know some offices work differently, but here using them for Visib. control is a no no...)
When i started using worksets (working alone) i thought this was the answer to my need for a global (as opposed to per view) visibility setting (not through VG, but by turning them on/off in the worksharing dialog). Not so?

[Paul P.]

"Well in Autocad we did it this way..." STOP! Think of a new approach! This is not Autocad!

I wish Revit was shipped with a large boss/colleague sized stick to beat the very notion of Autocad out of them because thats all I hear.

[twiceroadsfool]

Thanks for all the information. Could you elaborate on this one:
When i started using worksets (working alone) i thought this was the answer to my need for a global (as opposed to per view) visibility setting (not through VG, but by turning them on/off in the worksharing dialog). Not so?

Turning them on and off in the worksharing dialogue is (imho) great for keeping the load light when your working, and great for working without interfering with other people.

Ive worked with people using worksets like layers, to divide up pieces they dont want to see, and then going in to the VG controls, and shutting off workset visibility. It was a band aid on a broken leg, in my opinion. Then when something isnt showing up, and it should be, not only do you have to check object styles/view ranges/etc, but now you have to wonder what workset it got put on, is that workset visible, etc.

I guess i can see what youre saying about using it as a global visibility tool, but i dont know what id use it for.

It could very well just be my person preference, but as far as im concerned Workset /= visibility tool.

[s.messing]

I love you guys! I am at my desk and trying not to burst out laughing. I have a house rule that Revit can only eat your lunch once a week and steal your lunch money once a month. If you blame Revit more than the allotted 5 times per month you will be publicly flogged!

[brd]

I love you guys! I am at my desk and trying not to burst out laughing. I have a house rule that Revit can only eat your lunch once a week and steal your lunch money once a month. If you blame Revit more than the allotted 5 times per month you will be publicly flogged!

I particularly like this one, I can't count the number of times I hear this each day. I also like the idea of a "Revit whoopin' stick" so I can publically flog those who keep working in the central file, and keep editing families instead of duplicating.

My only contribution to the "Gotcha" list is to always remember that Easy Buttons only exist in the commercials. People think that because this is a high tech software that no task should take more than 7.5 seconds to complete. Some things just take a while, suck it up and do the work.

A bonus suggestion, always pay attention of the options bar just above the project browser. If you choose a basic command such as a line, or a wall, or detail component, symbol, etc... pay attention to the options bar just to the right of the family type pull down menu, more times than not it has plenty of modifying options that come in handy. (It took me about 6 months to discover the arrow selection for lines and walls instead of sketching)

[twiceroadsfool]

My only contribution to the "Gotcha" list is to always remember that Easy Buttons only exist in the commercials. People think that because this is a high tech software that no task should take more than 7.5 seconds to complete. Some things just take a while, suck it up and do the work.
While i completely agree with, ill add one more in that completely contradicts both you, and me agreeing with you, LOL.

"If something is taking you all day in Revit, youre doing it wrong." While there ARE tasks that seem to just take a while in revit, a lot of our team members devise ways to accomplish their goals, that are reinventing the wheel, and defeating the model. (Drafting stone patterns instead of model patterns, doing energy calcs and occupancy calcs by hand, etc, typing in Schedule Information manually...)

For instance, some people in the office who arent versed in Schedule Keys, will get with the PM about completing the door schedule, and will turn it in to an 8 hour type-a-thon, entering the information as they would in Excel. Granted, if every single door is different, there arent many ways around that. But if 150 of 200 are the same, that should tell you something.

Ill also add in (per my other thread, lol...)

Know where the origin is. Dont be 19.2 miles away. LOL.

[cphubb]

As a follow up to the last two posts.

We have users who get frustrated when a sketch takes 15-20 minutes to complete. They forget that a sketch is really the essence of the software and they should take the time to do the sketch RIGHT and not come back later and fix it. The sketch always seems a little underrated

[Steve_Stafford]

...Know where the origin is. Dont be 19.2 miles away. LOL... or 2.6 million feet away from 0,0 :smile: Why is it so many files are soooo far from origin, could it be because so many users don't even really know that it is there? Or that it matters?

[ron.sanpedro]

or 2.6 million feet away from 0,0 :smile: Why is it so many files are soooo far from origin, could it be because so many users don't even really know that it is there? Or that it matters?

I have heard plenty of Revit "experts" say it does not. I suspect it doesn't matter as long as you are close to it, and it matters a lot if you are far from it.
And Revit makes it very hard to know where it is, what with needing to use a DWG to point it out. Given that it is indeed important, it would be nice to see a native Revit origin marker or something.

Gordon

[twiceroadsfool]

or 2.6 million feet away from 0,0 :smile: Why is it so many files are soooo far from origin, could it be because so many users don't even really know that it is there? Or that it matters?

Ive heard both: That it exists, and that it doesnt, from the experts here as well. Now, obviously, everyone is in agreement that it exists and is important, but that wasnt the case when i was learning it.

I also agree with the above, that there needs to be an actual origin marker in Revit. Not only that, but (IMHO) i think it needs to be visible in plans, elevations, and 3D, unless a user shuts it off.

Im also not entirely sure how the origin behaves, but ive had some weird anomolies with it:

We import lease lines from our client Origin to Origin, and they import perfectly. Every now and again, someone will do something to a grid, that lakes the extents of it go out in to space. (Suddenly Zoom Extents makes the drawing sheet TINY)... When they do that, important the lease lines OTO doesnt work, and it defaults to CTC. Not sure why, but it does. I restore the grids extents to their proper location... Problem solved.

But yes, the origin needs to be taught to newbs, LOL...

[comhasse]

I guess i can see what youre saying about using it as a global visibility tool...
I guess what i mean by changing global visibility is actually quite the same as what you're describing. I use this to turn of stuff that i don't need/that gets in the way while I'm modeling in my working views (e.g. planting), so i don't have to turn it on and off in each view. Then before i print, i have to make sure all work sets are on. The visibility of presentation views I set per category in the VG dialog.

The problem with work sets is the same as with autocad-layers: you can very easily accidentally draw something into the wrong workset.

, but i dont know what id use it for.
On the other hand I'm sure the factory people were thinking something when they did offer a workset visibility setting in VG. E.g. i may have split up a site with two buildings into to work sets. I can then have one workset for each half, turn them both on in my site plan, but in my floor plans that cover only half the project I turn of the other half's workset in VG and vice versa.

[twiceroadsfool]

On the other hand I'm sure the factory people were thinking something when they did offer a workset visibility setting in VG. E.g. i may have split up a site with two buildings into to work sets. I can then have one workset for each half, turn them both on in my site plan, but in my floor plans that cover only half the project I turn of the other half's workset in VG and vice versa.

Understood, and i could see using it for that reason if there was a particular reason that a crop region wouldnt work. We tend to split ours up by building as well, so that different people on different buildings dont run in to clashes.

I can see the VG workset thing working for extenuating circumstances, like wanting to see only one of the buildings you described, but wanting to see the whole site, and so on... Just, in my experience, its opened up the door for more harm than good, to solve problems and desires that i can accomdate with other tools.

BUT, ive also not worked on a large scale VERTICAL building, and from what i hear they divide up worksets differently than we do, on isntances like high rise towers. Im sure then, id be able to see many more uses for it, where the workset divisions arent so geographically separated. I hadnt even thought of that until now...