I’m going to share another ArchiCAD vs Revit video. But keep reading because I am also going to use ArchiCAD to teach you about your preferred BIM tool.

Last week I talked about comparing BIM platforms and shared some comparisons I’d collected over the past few months. Well there’s one more I need to share. Last week’s video was interesting, but it also raised many concerns among plenty of viewers. Some of the issues with the video were mentioned in the post, others were pointed out in the comments, and on Twitter. Everything pretty much boils down to this: an ArchiCAD expert shouldn’t be doing a video on how Revit doesn’t compare. They don’t have the knowledge to do the Revit side justice. I agree. And it seems that the BIMEquity team that created the original video realized this too. To rectify this, they have recorded a second video and took a different approach. They did the ArchiCAD half and are asking for Revit responses.

The above video points to the real goal: not a definitive answer, but education. It comes the closest to the concept I proposed in my post about the Ideal BIM Software. I’ll show you mine. You show me yours. Who’s up for it? Is there someone who wants to record a video that covers the same topics? Maybe you could finish the video by showing something else and asking a question back to ArchiCAD users. And if your blood is boiling because this video (in a simplistic view) is just about 3D, answer the video and then ask a question that is only about linked data. Or scheduling. Or data transfer. Or 12D.

This is the same concept as what I am trying to do with my series of guest bloggers talking about Object Making in various BIM software. (FYI: Revit Approach and ArchiCAD Approach) We all know each program has its strengths and weaknesses. We all know that comparing ArchiCAD to Revit is like comparing apples to oranges. But come on. Any of us can explain why apples and oranges are hard to compare, but seriously who can explain why ArchiCAD and Revit are hard to compare? Who can give some examples of the ineffable? Let’s make simple videos that help explain both programs. The good and the bad of each program will come out. And who knows? Maybe the developers will watch the videos and learn something about what they need to improve.

Let me Explain this Another Way

I’ve said this over and over again. Learning about other programs will teach you about the software you use. And more importantly about BIM in general, which of course is really about the future of the construction industry. And that is what truly matters.

If you don’t want to record a response to the video above, here’s something else you should do. Over on the Graphisoft North America blog I’ve been writing about ArchiCAD 17 and there are three posts in particular that I feel have a lot of value to all BIM users. Part of me wishes they were generic enough to go viral around the entire BIM community; but I also realize that they wouldn’t be as good if they weren’t specific. Each post covers some big issues:

Global vs Local: Macro Solutions vs Micro Solutions.

Parameter vs Attribute: the data in your elements.

Two Ways to View Global Data: an introduction to the split between graphic data, metadata, and digital approximations.

Are these posts very ArchiCAD-centric? Yes. But they cover some universal issues and hopefully the ArchiCAD lens will allow you to see their analogs in Allplan or Bentley Systems, etc. Because your tools might be slightly different, but viewing your data as global or local and graphic, metadata, or digital approximations is going to revolutionize how you think about your day to day work. These divisions get to the heart of what BIM is. And I need you to read these posts so that we can all explore these topics together.

So jump over to the Graphisoft North America blog and read some of the above posts (especially the last one). And then comment on how you view, pars, and utilize this data. Whether you use ArchiCAD, Revit, or some BIM program you invented. I want to hear about it. Because I bet there’s some way Revit wants you to handle these topics which is going to give me clarity on how I can better use, explain, and share ArchiCAD.

UPDATE January 29th, 2016: So often ARCHICAD vs Revit debates devolve into name calling. The aim of the BIM Challenge discussed above was to show how we do the same things in different software. Clearly we were all too busy to tackle that challenge. That’s okay. Fortunately students exist and have more time than us professionals. Here’s a link to the thesis of Vincent Marynissen and Bart Moons. Their thesis was modeling an Alvar Aalto building in ARCHICAD 18 and Revit 2016. At the beginning of the project they knew neither software. There are no definitive answers because there will never be definitive answers. But their research and experience is super interesting. And exactly what I was hoping to see happen with the BIM Challenge: the same work done in different software so that we could learn something.

Help everyone learn about BIM by teaching us about Revit and ArchiCAD in short videos. Share the analog of the video above in Revit (or Bentley Systems or Vectorworks). And then ask a question back. Follow Shoegnome on Facebook and Twitter for more of that AND thoughts on being an Architect in the 21st Century. Trying to make a decision about which BIM software to use. I have the ultimate answer for you. Seriously, here’s BIM software you should use.