The Building Coder

Preparing a Revit Add-in for Design Automation

Today I discuss the next step in my IfcSpaceZoneBoundaries project, how to prepare a Revit add-in for use in the DA4R or Design Automation for Revit environment and figuring out how to best handle it in the VS solution – Context, add-in functionality and history – Preparing the add-in for DA4R – Local testing versus live deployment – User defined input arguments for DA4R – Logging of results... Read more →

Design Automation for Revit in Public Beta

The long-awaited public beta phase for Design Automation for Revit (aka Revit IO and DA4R) has finally arrived! Design Automation for Revit makes the power of the Revit API available as a Forge-based service... Read more →

Face Methods and Custom Command Line Arguments

Inundated with interesting topics, let's skim a few topmost ones off – Passing an add-in custom command line parameters – Useful methods help verify a Face is rectangular – Automate complex family creation – C++ code extracts 3D line segments from point cloud – Big data visualisation and storytelling... Read more →

pyRevit Keynote Manager and Becker Forge Blog

Today, I discuss a simple Revit API getting started question from StackOverflow, a new Forge blog and a request for feedback on the keynote manager beta – Retrieving a wall type for creating a wall – CAD Becker Forge blog – pyRevit keynote manager beta... Read more →

Room Boundaries to CSV and WPF Template

Happy New Year! I spent some time during the winter break working on CSV export of room boundaries for a Forge BIM surface classification tool. Ali Asad presented a new Visual Studio WPF MVVM Revit add-in template – Export room boundaries to CSV for Forge surface classification – Visual Studio WPF MVVM Revit add-in template... Read more →

Python Rotate Picked Around Bounding Box Centre

Let's highlight a nice interactive didactical Python-based Revit API learning challenge on how to get the bounding box from a Revit element and determine its centre – Cyril's Python HVAC blog – Rotating elements around their centre in Python – Retrieve element and bounding box from picked reference – Use location point instead of bounding box centre – Final working solution... Read more →

Dynamo, Symbol vs Type and Exporter Exception

Today we discuss a couple of Dynamo considerations, Revit family and element fundamental concepts, and an exception handler required for a custom exporter – Revit API versus Dynamo for Revit – Dynamo 2.0.X versus 1.3.3 – Difference between FamilySymbol and ElementType – Custom exporter Execute may throw – Turned on Git LFS... Read more →

Revit Add-In Locations and BIM360 EU

I am just getting ready to leave for Darmstadt, for the Forge DevCon and German Autodesk University. Here are some quick recent topics I want to share before jumping on the train – BIM 360 Docs API change for European data centre access – Revit add-in locations – Autodesk AppStore bundle format – Juli Zeh über das Turbo-Ich – YouTube video subtitles and auto-translation... Read more →

Floor Area Above Room and Mysterious Hide

Today, we focus on two pure programming questions from the Revit API discussion forum – Area of an exterior floor above a room – Mysterious element hiding activity... Read more →

That BIM Girl and AskNow

I arrived in Rome Sunday afternoon and am now happy to be here at the Forge accelerator together with my Autodesk colleagues and the other attending companies. Before diving in further into the accelerator, I would like to point out the new inspiring AEC resources shared by That Bim Girl, and also post some notes to self on Q4R4 – That BIM Girl – Notes to Self on AskNow for Q4R4... Read more →

Five Secrets of Revit API Coding

Joshua Lumley pointed out the recording he made for his BILT submission on five secrets of Revit API C# coding. Before getting to that, here are a couple of pictures from this last weekend's mountain tour – Ruessigrat, Brotmesser and Matthorn – Five secrets of Revit API Coding... Read more →

Revit 2019 Visual Studio .NET Add-in Wizards

I updated the Visual Studio Revit C# and VB add-in templates for Revit 2019. They enable you to create a new C# or VB Revit add-in in Visual Studio with one single click on File > New > Project... > Visual Basic/Visual C# > Revit 2019 Addin and define a complete skeleton Revit add-in, ready to immediately compile and run, including an add-in manifest file, external application and external command. Just hit F5 to start debugging; the add-in manifest is installed, Revit launched and the command is immediately available... Read more →

Vacation and Multi-Version Revit Add-In Template

As I already mentioned, I am taking lots of time off in July. This is just a note to let you know I am alive, well and happy, currently in Brassac in Occitanie in southern France, on my way to practice awareness, care and attentiveness in the Buddhist monastery Plum Village near Bordeaux. On the road, I'll just share this quick note from a comment by Zhmayev Yaroslav on multi-targeting Revit versions using TargetFrameworks – Multi-Version Revit Add-In Template... Read more →

Add-In Registration – VendorId and Signature

I am taking lots of time off in July, so this may be my last post for a while. Before leaving, I will share my answers to a list of pertinent questions on add-in registration, especially how to populate the add-in manifest VendorId tag and handle the trusted digital DLL signature – Add-in registration – VendorId – Add-in registration – trusted digital add-in signature – Vacation in July... Read more →

BAM Digital Construction and Drawing a Model Line

I am attending the BAM Digital Construction Live event in the UK and presenting on Forge for that domain. Today, I'll share my slide deck from this event and welcome my colleague Xiaodong answering his first Revit API cases – Forge for Digital Construction – Welcome Xiaodong and invoking the Draw Model Line command... Read more →

Extensible Storage and Renaming Family in Project

An interesting question was raised on renaming a family after it has been loaded into a project, which throws some light on the underlying relationship between the family name and the RFA filename. Before that, we revisit the eternal topic of getting started with the Revit API, and what to do to prepare for it before actually touching Revit at all. Afterwards, and similarly, we pick up a good suggestion or two on planning and preparing your extensible storage schema for future version handling – Before getting started – Renaming a family in a project – Extensible storage – versioning best practices... Read more →

Revit 2019 SDK and My First Plugin Update

Slowly but surely and one by one, the Revit 2019 updates are percolating through to the Revit Developer Centre – Revit 2019 SDK published – My First Revit Plugin update... Read more →

Forge Tutorials and Filtering for a Parameter Value

Today, let's revisit the topic of filtering for a parameter value, and mention the updated Forge tutorials – Learning Forge tutorials – Filtering for a specific parameter value – Filtered element collector optimisation... Read more →

Installing the Revit 2019 SDK April Update

After the significant struggle I had to compile the initial release of the Revit 2019 SDK samples and set up RvtSamples 2019, I am happy to report that installing and compiling the Revit 2019 SDK April 27 update is a lot easier – Downloading the April 27 SDK update – Initial compilation – 41 warnings – Processor architecture mismatch suppressed – 5 warnings – Update reference to RevitAPISteel.dll – 3 warnings – Setting up RvtSamples – Updated RvtSamples download... Read more →

What’s New Webinar and Forge vs. A360

Following up on yesterday's discussion of What's New in the Revit 2019 API, here is a webinar invitation to walk through the results live from the product point of view. I also share a high-level comparison of some aspects of Forge versus A360 for a total newbie thinking about building a solution for a client to manage 3D models and collaborate on them with sub-contractors – Webinar on What’s New in Revit 2019 – Forge versus A360... Read more →

Forge RVT to IFC, ADN Xtra, TBC, AdnRme Updates

I already described how I installed Revit 2019, compiled the Revit 2019 SDK samples and migrated RevitLookup to the new version. I now migrated some of the other basic samples and utilities and have some Forge news to share – The Building Coder samples for Revit 2019 – The AdnRme MEP HVAC and electrical samples for Revit 2019 – AdnRevitApiLabsXtra for Revit 2019 – Convert RVT to IFC via Forge – Forge accelerators – Forge webinars – Open position for an infrastructure BIM implementation consultant... Read more →

Compiling the Revit 2019 SDK Samples

I installed Revit 2019 and compiled the Revit 2019 SDK. That was quite a struggle – Installing Revit 2019 – Installing the Revit 2019 SDK – Installing the .NET Framework 4.7 – Compiling the Revit 2019 SDK samples – Processor architecture mismatch warnings – DimensionLeaderEnd OutputPath missing – Numerous Revit API assembly reference conflicts – SampleCommandsSteelElements lacks components – AppearanceAssetEditing using deprecated API... Read more →

Updated ADN Web Site, Revit API Labs, Tag Creation

Here are a couple of Revit API related updates to take note of – Autodesk Developer Network ADN web site update – Revit Developer Centre update – ADN Revit API Training Labs update – Revit API Training Labs Xtra update – New top solution author record score... Read more →

DevDays, Keynote Manager and REX Extensions

Let's highlight a few recent threads from the Revit API discussion forum. Before getting to those, a quick pointer to the DevDays Online recording from last week – DevDays online presentations on Revit API updates – External command with ribbon button sample – RevitAddinKeyNoteSystem keynote manager – REX extensions versus Revit add-ins – Reloading Revit links from user selected folder – Converting all parameter values to metric... Read more →

Autodesk University Past and Future

Quick notes on the best speakers at the last event in Las Vegas, and your chance to become one of them at the next in London – Best AU Speakers in Las Vegas 2017 – CFP for Autodesk University London 2018... Read more →

AreaLoad Force Direction, CMake and SDK Access

Here are some of the topics I dealt with in the last couple of days – CMake and YoAudio – AutoCAD and Revit SDK Access and Content – Determining AreaLoad direction and value from its force vectors – ExportCncFab 2018... Read more →

Transform Utils, DirectShape Builder and DevDays Online Webinars

Revitalizer shared two important hints: a performance issue using ElementTransformUtils and a problem reporting mechanism built into the TessellatedShapeBuilderResult method GetIssuesForFaceSet. First, though, let's highlight an even more important upcoming event, the series of DevDays online webinars – Register now for Autodesk DevDays online webinars – Avoid using ElementTransformUtils for batches – Finding cause of DirectShape generation problem... Read more →

Pipe Fitting K Factor, Archi+Lab and Installer

Two recent Revit MEP related cases brought up some new information on the pipe K factor table and custom calculations for pipe fittings, the Forge DevCon class recordings are now available, and I discovered Konrad Sobon's wonderful archi+lab Revit API blog, which helps resolve an installation and setup issue – Pipe K factor table – Custom K factor calculation for pipe fittings – Dynamo code to change loss coefficient – Forge DevCon 2017 class recordings – Archi+Lab – Revit add-in installer and buttons... Read more →

What's New in the Revit 2018.2 API

Let's discuss the Revit API enhancements added since the initial release of Revit 2018 – Revit 2018.2 Product Update and Resolved API Issues – Revit 2018.2 SDK Update – Major Additions to the Revit 2018.1 API – Material API additions – Geometry API additions – BrowserOrganization API additions – IFC additions – Rebar API additions – Major Additions to the Revit 2018.2 API – Fabrication API additions... Read more →

Migrating PlaceInstances to Revit 2018

Migrating a Revit add-in to a new release of the Revit API is generally very easy. The API features slight changes from version to version. Modifications are announced a year or two in advance, and signalled during compilation by deprecated API usage warnings. If you clean up your code every year or two and remove all API usage that causes warning messages, you will normally have very little to do to migrate it later on... Read more →

Forge DevCon Highlights

A "don't miss" list of the main highlights and a heads-up on some of the biggest happenings – See into the future of Forge with partner and executive keynotes – Choose from over 50 AU classes on ways to take advantage of cloud solutions – Visit the Village, an exclusive exhibit open only to Forge DevCon attendees – Demo and witness first hand the new AR/VR Toolkit – Get to know Amazon Web Services through these classes and exhibits... Read more →

Forge DevCon in Las Vegas

My plans changed and I will not be visiting Las Vegas this year after all. The most important participants in the Revit API session that I was preparing to host are the members of the Revit development team, anyway. I very strongly urge you to not miss the chance to attend both AU and the preceding Forge developer conference, though – Forge DevCon highlights and reasons to join your peers – Sneak peek at the Forge DevCon keynotes – Visit the exclusive Forge DevCon village on Monday – Get one on one with Amazon Web Services – Decide now... Read more →

Do Not Reuse an Existing GUID

Several Revit API objects make use of a GUID to uniquely identify themselves. When you copy and paste source code including any such GUID, you need to take care to replace the original GUID by your own one... Read more →

My First Revit Plugin Enhancements

Today, let's return to the recurring topic of getting started with the Revit API, its SDK samples, and programming in general – My First Revit Plugin enhancements – Getting started with web programming – FreeCodeCamp – ModelessForm_ExternalEvent initialisation... Read more →

Forge DevCon at AU in Darmstadt and Las Vegas

I'll be attending the two Autodesk University conferences in Darmstadt, Germany, October 17-18, and Las Vegas, USA, November 14-16. Both of these are preceded by a Forge DevCon developer conference. You may be interested only in Revit and its API or other desktop oriented programming and asking yourself why you should care about Forge and all that cloud stuff. If so, you might want to expand your horizon and take a look at Stephen Preston's analysis and explanation in his article on 'developing for Autodesk desktop software? Here's why you should care about Forge DevCon (and Autodesk University)'... Read more →

Birthday Post on the XYZ Class

Today is The Building Coder's ninth birthday. We'll celebrate by discussing the pretty fundamental issue of XYZ points versus vectors, and how to distinguish different points – XYZ point versus vector – How to distinguish XYZ points... Read more →

Hatch Line Dimensioning Voodoo

Reporting on a very exciting topic from the Revit API discussion forum from the Forge accelerator in Barcelona – Barcelona Forge accelerator – Retain the Add-In GUID – Dimension on hatch pattern... Read more →

Revit 2018 Visual Studio .NET Add-in Wizards

I updated the Visual Studio Revit C# and VB add-in templates for Revit 2018. They enable you to create a new C# or VB Revit add-in in Visual Studio with one single click on File > New > Project... > Visual Basic/Visual C# > Revit 2018 Addin and define a complete skeleton Revit add-in, ready to immediately compile and run, including an add-in manifest file, external application and external command. Just hit F5 to start debugging; the add-in manifest is installed, Revit launched and the command is immediately available... Read more →

RevitLookup 2018 and Forge DevCon CFP

Revit 2018 has been released. The Revit 2018 SDK is available from the Revit Developer Centre. I migrated RevitLookup and The Building Coder samples. Finally, the call for proposals has opened for the Forge DevCon at Autodesk University in Las Vegas – Revit 2018 Software Developers Kit – RevitLookup 2018 – The Building Coder samples 2018 – Forge DevCon call for proposals... Read more →

Adding Custom Geometry to the Forge Viewer

I am in Gothenburg supporting the Forge accelerator. My project here is ForgeFader, implementing the same end user functionality as the RvtFader Revit C# .NET API add-in that I implemented last week. I have not quite finished it yet, but the existing functionality looks as if it already ought to be very useful indeed to anyone working with geometry in the Forge viewer – Working in Visual Studio Code – ForgeFader – Implementation – Adding custom geometry to the Forge Viewer – Next steps... Read more →

RevitLookup and DevDays Online API News

Unprecedented exciting information to share with you today! DevDays Online recordings are available right now, before the product launch! Furthermore, we are proud to present another little update of the revamped version of RevitLookup – Forward-looking DevDays Online API news – Revit API news for the next major release – Revit API news slide deck contents – Must do – New functionality – Revit roadmap – RevitLookup enhancements... Read more →

RVT Properties to XLS and Forge Accelerators

Are you interested in easy access to your Revit model properties? Well, you can have that even without a need to install Revit. The Forge Model Derivative API extracts a streamlined copy of all geometry, BIM element hierarchy and properties from over fifty file formats, and Revit RVT files are just one of them. Augusto Goncalves implemented a Forge sample to read all the properties on all BIM elements in an RVT file and export them to an XLSX spreadsheet – Test run it yourself – Source code on GitHub... Read more →

Revit API Docs 2.0 Beta

Gui Talarico created an extremely useful online version of the contents of the Revit API help file RevitAPI.chm. It sports significant advantages over the locally hosted Windows help file – Online access from anywhere, any platform, OS, device – Share links to specific topics for discussion with peers – Covers and compares between multiple versions of the Revit API; During the expansion cover Revit 2017.1, Gui implemented a number of other significant enhancements... Read more →

Add-In Templates Supporting Edit and Continue

Last week, I presented Andrey Bushman's new Visual Studio templates for Revit add-ins. Furthermore, we discussed many aspects of edit and continue in the past, including the solution to use the Add-in Manager. These two topics have now met and united, because Andrey added support for that and a bunch of other new functionality in his commit... Read more →

New Visual Studio Templates for Revit Add-Ins

I have been maintaining a simple Visual Studio Revit add-in wizard for a number of years. Now Andrey Bushman implemented a set of more advanced and convenient Visual Studio templates for creation of Revit add-ins for his own use. The discussion of those led us to once more revisit the topic of the Visual Studio settings for debugging Revit add-ins – New Visual Studio 2015 templates for Revit add-ins – Use Managed Compatibility Mode or Enable Native Code Debugging? – Machine learning software engineer job in Switzerland – FreeCodeCamp... Read more →

Virtuous Reproduction, Research, Settings, Ontology

I have probably asked developers for reproducible cases a couple of thousand times by now. Let's discuss that and also return to the topic of how to research a Revit API problem in general. Finally, I'll point out a Revit 2017 API MEP electrical feature. Oh, and I continued my research into deep learning for a Revit API question answering system – Creating a reproducible case may well solve the issue at hand – How to research to find a Revit API solution – Access to cable tray and conduit settings – Getting started implementing a question answering system – First impression from IBM Bluemix – Open source QAS options – Building a Revit API ontology... Read more →

Distances, Switches, Kiss-ing and a Dino

I continued my activity in the Revit API discussion forum and had lots of interesting discussions there. One recent thread caused me to bring up a favourite topic of mine, on keeping things simple. I'll also mention two other less recent recurring questions – Distance between two points in a specific direction – Revit command-line switches – Keeping things simple with the Revit API – Dino pondering lengthening days... Read more →

NuGet Revit API Package

Most of the work of the year has been done, and it is time to settle down and clear out for the new. Tomorrow is the winter solstice, followed by Christmas and Yuletide, ending with the Twelfth Night. For me, this is a time of retreat, calm, reflection, and renewal of energy. Today brings a nice gift from Andrey Bushman – NuGet Revit API package – RevitLookup using the NuGet Revit API package – Creating a NuGet package from assembly DLLs – More NuGet packages... Read more →

Viewport Bring to Front and C++ Revit Add-In

Two topics today, on reordering viewports to determine their respective occlusion, and setting up a C++ Revit add-in project – Bringing a viewport to the front – Change the draw order of a viewport (bring to front) for cases when you need to use simplified duplicate of the same view for background, e.g., ceiling grid for example – Code clean-up – Setting up a Visual Studio C++ Revit add-in project... Read more →

Parameter Definition Overview

I am happy to present a pretty comprehensive overview and explanation of the process of defining a shared parameter by Scott Conover. Question: What do I need to do to programmatically create a shared parameter? I would like to set the SetAllowVaryBetweenGroups flag on it. Answer: You create the details needed to define a shared parameter from ExternalDefinition. Existing shared parameter file entries can be read to become an ExternalDefinition in your code, or you can create a new entry in the current shared parameter file using the DefinitionGroup.Create method... Read more →