Customize Revit 2009 Recent Files page.

[brethomp]

Does anyone know if it is possible to customize the new "Recent Files" page in Revit 2009? I would like to add a couple more links to the black area of the page, for some of our custom content. Can this be done?

[TroyGates]

I looked around briefly in the Revit files and couldn't find any kind of source file. I was thinking there would be an html file that they were using. I am now thinking they are creating the start page on the fly when Revit starts.

I also want to customize it so I can move the New / Browse buttons to the top. Its painful to scroll paste several projects to get to the New / Browse buttons. I suppose I will end up using the ones on the regular toolbar instead.

[mmason.65315]

They are creating it on the fly when Revit starts - I also could not find any kind of source file. Even the images appear to be extracted/generated rather than just copied.

You can actually see the created content - it's created in your temp directory, with a GUID directory - for example:

C:\Documents and Settings\matt.mason\Local Settings\Temp\{2C1BF51C-1665-4688-B1C6-2C9EF5099633}

This is deleted after you close Revit (presuming that Revit closes "normally").

It certainly would be cool to be able to customize it.

-Matt

[TroyGates]

Good find.

Looks like Revit pulls the thumbnail from the files in the revit.ini recent files list. Then creates the left.html file on the fly. The right.html file is the one that contains the links in the black area.

In theory you could create an addon that finds the newest version of the files created and modifies the html files to show the info you want. The only thing to figure out, is how to have Revit refresh the page to show the changes you made to it.

[mmason.65315]

Troy,

Good thought - the other thing that will make it tricky however, is the sequence of events. External Applications are initialized and called long before these HTML files are created during the startup of Revit.

Not impossible to overcome, I think - but it certainly makes it a bit less easy.

-Matt Mason
Avatech Solutions
http://cadappdev.blogspot.com