over-modeling?

[victoria]

I have someone who is forcing me to completely decorate the inside of a house in Revit, exactly the way she want's it to look when built. Seriously, she calls me complaining about the color of bedspreads and wood grain.(That's not all). I have tried to explain to her several times that this is not what Revit was made to do, and that there is not a large selection of furniture to choose from. I don't want to spend the time making 1000 little details when I have other things I need to do, like design houses.
Does anyone know if you can take furniture, pictures, linens, etc. from other programs and import it into Revit and have it be editable?
I have 3ds Max, Architectural Desktop, AutoCAD, and my coworker has 2020.
PLEASE HELP!

[gwnelson]

You can bring in stuff from SketchUp. I haven't tried to render with any of it but it serves my needs on occasion.

[victoria]

I don't have SketchUp, but I have heard that there will be a free version of it coming with the 2009 Revit subscription. I am wondering if these will look realistic though, when rendered.

[aaronrumple]

SketchUp doesn't come for Autodesk. The program you are thinking of is Impressions. It is a 2D paint like program. SketchUp is 3D and comes from Google. There is a free version.

For your entourage, you are pretty well limited to DWG for importing 3D objects. Howeevr you'll find that there quite a few 3D models available for download from varrious sites.

SketchUp has a dwg export function, but this is limited to the "Pro" or paid version.

Sounds like your client wants 3D renderings from 3D Studio. Most archiects exclude renderings from the base contract and charge on an additional service basis. If that's the way your set up, then sounds like you really need to give here a price to cover your time and costs.

[victoria]

Thanks for the advice, but this difficult client is my boss.

[aaronrumple]

Oh ya. Those are the worst. Good luck.

[cipa11]

I have experience in many softwares! But, lot more important in our profession is the experience to find a normal BOSS and/or a normal CLIENT! This, to help you for long term. To help you in short term, try to use some free libraries from on line sites like:

http://www.archibase.net/gdl?category=541

and put them in the exported model from Revit to 3d studio or the best/cheapest/easyest in Artlantis Render (via DWF export-not dwg)

[Scott D Davis]

I don't have SketchUp, but I have heard that there will be a free version of it coming with the 2009 Revit subscription. I am wondering if these will look realistic though, when rendered.

No no no :lol: Not Sketchup! You will get afree copy of Impression with Revit on subscription. Impression can make artistically styled drawings like sketchy lines, watercolors, or pastels. Think the opposite of Mental Ray, which is photoreal.

[Les Therrien]

I have someone who is forcing me to completely decorate the inside of a house in Revit, exactly the way she want's it to look when built. Seriously, she calls me complaining about the color of bedspreads and wood grain.......
PLEASE HELP!

Sounds like some of my clients.
That gets killed quickly after I tell them I can do all that for an extra $5000-10000

[victoria]

What about Punch! software. I don't use Revit as intended anyway. We really have no use for all the schedules, and stuff, so Revit is strictly a modeling tool for me. (waste of money)

[Andre Carvalho]

What about Punch! software. I don't use Revit as intended anyway. We really have no use for all the schedules, and stuff, so Revit is strictly a modeling tool for me. (waste of money)

Revit is a LOT more than a modeler with schedule and stuff. Maybe you don't realize what you are missing...

If you think differently and are thinking about Punch, stay with SketchUP then. At least you can access the Google 3D warehouse (http://sketchup.google.com/3dwarehouse/) and download on the fly all components you client is asking you, for free...

Andre Carvalho

[victoria]

Yeah, I know. I took a couple Revit classes, and there's a million things I could do. The problem is, that our houses are so custom, and that many times, doors, windows, etc. aren't even chosen until the house is half built, and all the doors and windows are custom. It makes it very difficult, and I am the only drafter, designer, BIM manager(sort of), etc.

[Steve_Stafford]

Punch certainly seems pretty powerful for the money. From their support page this text is one Q&A. If just for concept and presentation it might be a worthy adversary for just homes. I have no idea how easily you can reflect the highly custom work you say you do though. But then for the money you could afford to be wrong :smile:



Question: Can I create a floorplan using Punch!?
http://punch.custhelp.com/rnt/rnw/img/trnsp.gif

Answer:
Punch! Software - Helping Contractors to Prepare for Construction
A basic floor plan is a 2D line drawing showing rooms as if seen from above. Walls, doorways, and windows are often drawn to scale.
A complete set of construction-quality floor plans will also contain many other types of diagrams, such as: cross-section drawings, electrical plans, and elevation drawings.

Punch! Software products provide detailed floor plans that are very close to construction-quality. This functionality will allow you to show an Architect or Contractor exactly what you are looking to accomplish, but it is not a replacement for code-approved floor plans that are necessary for your home construction.

[guy.messick825831]

Interesting, I come from the world of high end residential, now working primarily in Higher Ed. I have had many clients that, upon learning that I used models, wanted a lot more than the standard of care dictated. You could well model everything in Revit, I've even created families by importing Sketchup models into the family editor with some success. The bottom line is, are they giving you enought time and money ot do the work requested? If not, it will be painful regardless of what software package you use.

[trombe]

No no no :lol: Not Sketchup! You will get afree copy of Impression with Revit on subscription. Impression can make artistically styled drawings like sketchy lines, watercolors, or pastels. Think the opposite of Mental Ray, which is photoreal.

Hi Scott, what is wrong with Sketch Up anyway ?

And as much to the point, what is good enough about Impression, that you would suddenly pass it off with such a comment ? It has been helping Revit users for a lot longer than reasonable, parallel, aligned support has been forthcoming from Revit - and actually, Revit is still some way off from providing wide industry support in terms of other program import export......Revit is still focussed on AD products, while many other competing programs provide a much wider range of options.
The Impression gallery is small on examples and I only saw one image that looked good and that was of a part, of a construction detail, while the bulk of the other examples there were 2d coloured / colored site plan / space plan images.......
In terms of what we are said to be getting on subscription, (and not being a beta tester), I think the world jury is well out on whether SU is to be avoided in the manner you suggest, in favour / favor of a Impression.

Actually, AutoDesk, and the "reseller" I bought Revit from, have not even had the temerity to advise me, when Revit is due to me, what is going to be on the factory disk, and what this might or might not mean to me, as a subscriber, as a designer.

I have to find out from blogs and co-incidental news articles on the web anything at all, to do with my annual subscription, and the thing I earn my living from - which I think, is pretty well not customer service oriented.
So when I see comments like yours about a program I am said to be getting on my sub disk that I am not even really aware of or care about and have to go to some web site to even learn about it 3rd of 4th hand, it bugs me. It is not a helpful comment.

trombe

[Scott D Davis]

Hi Scott, what is wrong with Sketch Up anyway ?

I think you may have read my response out of context. The OP had stated that Revit was going to come with Sketchup. My "no no no" response was said with a laughing smilie face for a reason! I thought it was funny that it was implied Revit was going to ship with a non-Autodesk product. Instead, I was trying to make a correcton, assuming that the OP had heard the Revit would come with Impression, and somehow confused this with Sketchup.

Thats all...nothing more...nothing against Sketchup 8)

[dbaldacchino]

No no no Scott, all this is a conspiracy! :lol: