Parameter Name Including minus sign

[drewj]

I have some parameters that use a - symbol as a seperator, for example:

VAV - Max Airflow
VAV - Min Airflow

I cant use these for calculations as the software reads this as "VAV" minus "Max Airflow".

Anyway that I can get the software to read the whole name correctly? or do I have to change all of my shared parameters that were setup with the - symbol?

[Steve_Stafford]

Sorry, long standing quirk. The minus symbol is reserved for "math" and Revit still sees it as subtraction in the name. Seems like the software could deal with that somehow but it doesn't. You'll need to learn to live without the dash in the name, it hasn't been too hard for me but I can relate to the frustration.

Same goes for + / * (addition, division and multiplication if that wasn't obvious)

Might want to visit the Revit Model Style Guide as Autodesk is attempting to cull the pile of parameters people are using and setting up a "standard", not sure that's the best word for it.

[cdatechguy]

Ah yes, I had to modify 40 doors and windows because I created parameters such as door-material...etc... It was not fun...

[moliva]

Might want to visit the Revit Model Style Guide as Autodesk is attempting to cull the pile of parameters people are using and setting up a "standard", not sure that's the best word for it.

speaking of, I'm curious to see how much this is being implemented by users....and anyone's thoughts on it (useful y/n, comprehensive?). I'm to a point where I'd like to really develop more of our office standards and put in place a lot of this work and had thought about working off of the RMCSG.

[Steve_Stafford]

...speaking of, I'm curious to see how much this is being implemented by users...

Aah, anybody who is anybody is using it! Are you "anybody"

I do try to refer to it before making up my own. When what is needed isn't there then I'll make "my own". Each firm needs to sort this out. It is particular hard for the MEP discipline because ya'll schedule a lot of Mechanical Equipment that all falls in one Category but is scheduled as individual kinds of equipment (preaching to the choir). Horsepower for a pump, burner fan, blower fan...all the "same" but not necessarily the same shared parameter or even shared. This disparity is what Autodesk's Seek and the Revit Model Style Guide's (RSMG) loftier goals are meant to address. It's not a simple thing, or if it is my mind is too simple to appreciate it.

The trickiest part is how to get our "cool parameters" that we've decided we need to work with "theirs" if they already exist. How to get ours in/added to the RMSG.

[david.vanslyke]

Actually, I ***think*** you can use a symbol such as a hyphen in a parameter name and still have it resolve correctly in the equation parser as long as there are no spaces on either side of the symbol.

E.g.: VAV-Max Airflow

(UPDATE: No, that doesn't work...just tried it in Revit 2010. Maybe that worked in Revit 2008?)

However, I'd definitely recommend never using any symbols of any kind in your parameter names, other than the space character. It's just not worth the potential rework later if something else in Revit doesn't like that symbol, or interprets it incorrectly.

This is particularly true, of course, for shared parameters.

Even if today's version of Revit interprets it correctly, tomorrow's version may have a new feature that causes problems.