Mastering Autodesk Revit Architecture 2016. Krygiel Eddy

available from the Properties palette. Scale, Detail Level, Crop View, and Show/Hide Crop Region are found in both the view control bar and the Properties palette. The Visual Style button allows you to select from a short list of graphic display modes that can be customized in detail with the Graphic Display Options in the Properties palette.

      Other buttons in the view control bar are unique commands. One example is the Temporary Hide/Isolate command. When you select an object in a view window, use this button to select from various tools to hide or isolate either the selected objects or the entire category of objects. Temporary visibility states do not affect printing, and the view window will display with a turquoise border until the temporary visibility is reset. Next to the Hide/Isolate button is the Reveal Hidden Elements button. Use this tool to highlight any elements that are hidden in the current view, either temporarily or through other methods.

      The Worksharing Display button is available only on projects where worksharing is enabled. Worksharing Display can be enabled and configured in any view to illustrate Owners, Checkout Status, Model Updates, and Worksets. Refer to Chapter 5 for a detailed explanation of these visibility features.

      The Show/Hide Analytical Model button allows you to quickly display analytical graphics that are commonly used by the Structural or MEP tools in Revit. Finally, the Reveal Constraints button temporarily displays all of the model-based constraints visible in the current view. This is useful for troubleshooting model elements that might not be behaving as expected.

TEMPORARY VIEW PROPERTIES

You may also temporarily modify view properties or apply a view template. When you click the Temporary View Properties icon in the view control bar, you will have a choice of Enable Temporary View Properties or Temporarily Apply Template Properties, as shown in Figure 2.16. Because these applied properties are only temporary, they will not affect printing and they will not be saved with the project.

Figure 2.16 Temporary View Properties command

If you select Temporarily Apply Template Properties, you can select from any view template established in your project. Once a view template is applied to the view with this tool, the view will be highlighted with a purple boundary, as shown in Figure 2.17. Refer to Chapter 4 for a detailed review of view templates.

Figure 2.17 Active view with Temporary View Properties applied

      Referring to Figure 2.16, you will notice that any recently applied view templates will appear in the Temporary View Properties menu. This allows for rapid application of templates to increase your productivity when manipulating views for various working scenarios.

      The other command selection is to Enable Temporary View Properties. This mode allows you to change any view properties manually. The result is the same as temporarily applying a view template, but you can tweak any setting to your needs. For example, you might want to temporarily hide all the furniture in a view.

      To remove the temporary settings, you can simply wait until you close the project file because the temporary settings are not saved. Otherwise, click the Temporary View Properties icon again and select Restore View Properties.

GRAPHIC DISPLAY OPTIONS

The Graphic Display Options dialog box gives you access to some of the same settings you can select in the view control bar; however, more refinement options are available. From the Properties palette, click Edit in the Graphic Display Options property field, and explore the graphic settings you can customize for the current view (Figure 2.18). As an alternative, you can click the Visual Style icon (the small box) in the view control bar and choose Graphic Display Options from the pop-up menu.

Figure 2.18 Graphic Display Options dialog box

      Many graphic options are available, including customized backgrounds, photographic exposure, and a transparency slider. Experiment with a variety of the settings to see which ones meet your presentation and documentation needs. You’ll learn much more about graphic styles in Chapter 11, “Visualization.”

WORK PLANE VIEWER

      Most modeling tools and commands require an active work plane on which to place geometry. When you are working in a plan view, the work plane is usually set to the current level associated with the view. In a 3D, section, or elevation view, the definition of an active work plane may be a bit more confusing. In addition to levels, work planes can be defined as reference planes, a structural grid, or a surface of another object. To help you visualize an active work plane, a work plane viewer is available in Revit.

The Viewer option is located on the Work Plane panel of the Architecture tab. This viewer is available from all model views when you’re in the project environment. By default, the work plane is based on the active work plane of the last active view. But when you enter Sketch mode (for example, when you are creating a floor or a roof), the active work plane is that of the sketch (Figure 2.19). So even if the project window shows a 3D view, the viewer shows the plane of the sketch – and you can sketch directly in the work plane viewer! This is useful for working on sloped surfaces such as roofs.

Figure 2.19 Sketch mode with active work plane

Navigation Methods

      One of the challenges in any 3D modeling software is to create methods of navigation that are as intuitive as possible. If you have used more than one modeling application, such as Rhino or SketchUp or Digital Project, you will know that there is no standard 3D navigation functionality. Autodesk has created consistency across most of their industry-based applications such as AutoCAD,^® 3ds Max,^® Navisworks,^® and Revit software. In addition to the consistency within the Autodesk applications, you have a variety of navigation methods to meet your personal preference, including the ViewCube^® tool, the SteeringWheels^® tool, and basic mouse controls.

VIEWCUBE

      A 3D navigation tool known as the ViewCube is available in most Autodesk design software. This tool will appear by default in the upper-right corner of any 3D view. Click any face of the cube to orient the view to that face, or click a corner of the cube to orient to an axonometric angle. Press and hold the left mouse button while moving the mouse pointer over the ViewCube to orbit the view freely. Press and hold the left mouse button while hovering over the compass, and the view will rotate as if it were on a turntable.

Hovering over the ViewCube with your mouse pointer reveals the Home option (the little house above the ViewCube) that you click to return to your home view. Right-clicking the ViewCube opens a menu that allows you to set, save, and orient your view (see Figure 2.20). Selecting Options from the context menu takes you directly to the ViewCube options in the Options dialog box, which you can also access from the Application menu. The ViewCube options allow you to customize the placement, transparency, and functional behavior of the tool.

Figure 2.20 ViewCube context menu

STEERINGWHEELS

      Another method of navigation that is unique to Autodesk software is the SteeringWheels tool. This tool can be activated by pressing the F8 key, by pressing Shift+W, or from the Navigation bar. The SteeringWheels will follow your mouse pointer as you move about a view and will stop when the mouse movement slows, allowing you to hover the mouse pointer over one of the command areas on the wheel. As you hover the mouse pointer over a navigation command, press and hold the left