Modeling tips for Chimneys in ArchiCAD Redux
In response to my earlier video on modeling tips for chimneys in ArchiCAD, some readers pointed out that the Morph Tool also offers a great way to do these types of chimneys (or similarly complex forms). I completely agree. Therefor
Modeling tips for Chimneys in ArchiCAD
When doing remodels, I often come across some weird chimneys. Likewise when doing new construction, certain architectural styles suggest less than plain chimneys. Here's a video sharing some tips on how to make good looking chimneys in ArchiCAD. Of course
The Basics of making a Movie from ArchiCAD
I'd been meaning to record a video on the basics of making a movie from ArchiCAD for a long time. Yesterday a former colleague and friend was asking where she could find such a video to teach her how to
ArchiCAD Template Basics: View Map and Layout Book
Templates are a big deal. Your template can determine whether you make or lose money with BIM. A strong template can make you efficient. A poor template can win you a gold medal for Wheel Reinvention. I'm not being hyperbolic.
Anything You can Do, I can Do Better: taking materials from SketchUp to ArchiCAD
I expect to have dozens of people argue against that title. But I sure bet it caught your attention. The real point is that most architectural software has something to teach us about our own preferred program. The examples are
Bonus Point about the Organizer in ARCHICAD
Are you following Patrick May's Tumblr blog yet? Great ArchiCAD advice over there too. He reminded me of another nice feature of the Publisher that I thought warranted a quick bonus post. You can open the View Map or Layout
The Organizer… aka the Navigator’s Big Brother
I actually mean both Big Brother as in your wise male sibling who was born before you AND that all seeing eye of some over arching organization. The Organizer is pretty awesome and powerful like that. I cover a lot
The Return of Work Environments: The Basics of setting Work Environments plus importing and exporting them
It's been way too long since I talked about Work Environments in ArchiCAD. We had a good run last spring and summer with close to 10 posts on this subject. Read them all here. I still have a bunch more
Picking a Subtype for an ArchiCAD Object (and some other important tips)
One of the greatest improvements in ArchiCAD 16 is how much easier it is to make objects. Not that it was particularly hard before, but along with the Morph Tool there have been some tweaks that mean there's no excuse
Creating keyboard shortcuts in ArchiCAD, a quick and helpful video
I regularly get questions about keyboard shortcuts. Probably the top two questions are "Is there a keyboard shortcut for Function A?" or "How do I make a keyboard shortcut for Function A?". Well to answer both those questions and some
Cutting a hole in a 2D Morph
Over on BIM Engine (the Graphisoft North America Blog which I also write for), someone had a question about how to cut a hole in a 2D Morph. Well the easiest way to explain that was to do a quick
Quick and Pretty Renderings From ArchiCAD
The above rendering is fairly typical of what I show clients these days. It's not the most complex image, but it's fast and easy. And you could imagine that with a little more effort scalies, trees, etc. could be easily
ArchiCAD Tutorial Videos on YouTube
Fun Fact: YouTube was officially launched in November 2005. I first learned ArchiCAD in January 2006. While writing my post on ArchiCAD heroes, I realized I was defining them very narrowly. I wanted to focus that post on those shining lights that
Tips, Tricks, and Cheats… ArchiCAD Dimensions
Dimensions in ArchiCAD are super basic, right? Well here's a video on some tips, tricks, and cheats regarding this essential tool. I cover about 15 to 20 different aspects of ArchiCAD's Dimension Tool. So clearly not an exhaustive or comprehensive
Morph Pet Palette Madness
While doing some experimentation on an ArchiCAD 15 file that I'd opened in ArchiCAD 16, I came across a weird quark with the Morph Tool. The pet palette for the Morph Tool wasn't showing me all the options. I was
Two Morph Videos that aren’t flashy, but that’s the whole point
The Morph Tool Allows pleasant Surprises There are a lot of great examples of what the Morph Tool in ArchiCAD 16 can do. If you want to see some crazy shapes and amazing forms, the videos in this post will disappoint
BIM for Small Projects II: Case Studies in Innovative BIM Use by Small Firms
In early March 2012, I was one of three panelists for the BIM for Small Projects II AIA-TAP webinar. If you missed it, or just want to watch it again, it's now up on YouTube. Here's a link to the
Moving Windows and Doors Between Walls – I bet you didn’t know this trick worked
Glitch Or Hidden Magic? When exploring ArchiCAD, I often find things and need to ask myself "Glitch or Hidden Magic?" Sadly this post about Conditional Operators is an example of a great glitch. Hopefully Graphisoft will either remove it so I
Work Environments in ArchiCAD – part 1
Thought about your ArchiCAD Work Environment recently? This week I'm trying something different (no real surprise, right?). In honor of setting up my new home office, I'm going to talk about my ArchiCAD Work Environment. I'm not going to cover everything
This Week’s post is coming, once Youtube stops being a jerk
So this week's post is written. The video is recorded. Everything is good to go. But I'm having issues with uploading anything to my Youtube channel. Hopefully I can resolve it tonight or try uploading from my wife's computer. I've
Shoegnome Youtube Channel Updates
So far I've gotten a lot of very positive responses from my Shoegnome Youtube Channel video tutorials. And it's definitely helped increase traffic to the blog. 7 of my 10 best traffic weeks have been since I started doing the
Fun with Slabs – AKA Archi-treeStump and Slab ramps. Yes. Slab ramps.
Did you know you can make a ramp using just a slab and nothing else? Recently I've had opportunities to model quite a few schematic designs and imaginary buildings for the creation of renderings and walk-through movies. I love working on
Modify Wall – a video exploration of a great function
It's time to demystify walls AND make your coworkers think you have magical ArchiCAD powers
TWO videos on Complex Profiles
Tonight I recorded two videos. Making these videos reminds me of how I first learned ArchiCAD. I spent a fair amount of time sitting behind one of my coworkers, just watching him work. It was very enlightening. And as I rewatch
THREE graphic shortcuts for Sections and Interior Elevations
Over the past year and a half of blogging I've had many small ArchiCAD tips and tricks that I wanted to share, but could never find the proper way to write about them. The aggregate of these tricks help me