Tip of the month! March: New in Palette CAD 9, pt.1

Of course with the arrival of version 9 comes a number of improvements and new features. This time the number is so large that we have had to split the post into two parts.

Completely made up studies have shown that it took some readers so long to read the entire post, their laptop batteries could not hold up.

Walls

• In addition to the previous walls, there are now also the wall types “interior wall” and “installation wall”

• Interior walls and installation walls can be loaded using the "Insert" menu

• Interior walls and installation walls can contain recesses and openings

• The front sides of interior walls and recesses can be given a front and a wall covering automatically

• Installation walls can generate an isle in the floor covering automatically as well as in the wall covering behind them

• An installation wall can adapt itself to a pitched roof located behind it

• When an installation wall or an interior wall is moved or modified, the floor covering and the wall covering are adapted accordingly

• The creation of a free wall contour has been simplified: The walls are always set working either from the inside or the outside

• Fronts and walls are no longer designated as “left/right” but as “internal/external” or “A/B”

• The input for a free wall contour with an internal angle has been revised and is now much more intuitive

• A free wall contour can create cameras in the corners automatically just like an intelligent room

• The intelligent base board has been removed from the “Insert” ribbon and can now be loaded as an object from the catalogues

Exposé

• The preview images show the image size, the name of the view and the selected display mode
• There are arrows, lines and geometric shapes, such as rectangles, triangles and circles to supplement the display on a sheet
• The views, bitmaps, texts and geometric shapes can align themselves with each other automatically on the sheet
• In addition, there is a grid for alignment purposes on the sheet
• Views can also be aligned using Align, 2 Points
• This is useful, for example, when a front view needs to be aligned with a plan view
• Default settings are managed centrally in one dialog box
• The quality (resolution) of the rendered views is now also taken from the default settings and no longer from the printer used
• The layout of a page can be saved as a template
• Drawing frames can be drawn and saved
• However, drawing frames that have been drawn only fit on the sheet for which they were drawn
• The previous parametric drawing frames which adapt themselves to the sheet are still available
• Bitmaps can contain transparent and semi-transparent areas (e.g. for watermarks)
• The Exposé can be output as a PDF
• During output as a PDF, it is possible to select the pages which are to be included in the output
• All of the views defined in the scene (plan views, front views, cameras) can be selected from a menu and inserted into the Exposé
• Front views can be joined to produce unfolded wall views either automatically or manually
• The general quality of the graphic display in the Exposé has been improved
• The settings in the context menu have been rearranged for a clearer overview

Catalogue management

• When catalogues are installed on several different drives (e.g. locally and on a server), the drives are now shown individually in the object browser (as was previously already the case in the materials browser)
• There are material and object catalogues which contain an Internet link
• This makes it possible to load and install catalogues via this link that are not included in delivery with Palette CAD but must instead be downloaded from a manufacturer

Catalogue updates via the Cloud

• Object catalogues and material catalogues can be updated via the Internet automatically on a regular basis
• There is an update manager for this purpose which runs in the background and checks the Palette web server for new catalogues that are licensed by the user and downloads these
• The update manager can be enabled and configured via File / Updates as well as via the Windows taskbar
• Of course, catalogues can still be installed and updated as previously using a DVD and an installation program

Doors

• For doors, the insertion point that is appropriate for the selected dimension input type (outer dimensions, rough dimensions or door leaf width) is now used as a matter of course
• With automatic door dimensioning, the dimensioning is adapted to match the selected type of dimension input

Dimensioning

• Dimensioning has been completely reworked and the feature is now much more powerful, faster and easier to use
• There is a management area for dimensioning styles
• Dimensioning styles can be changed globally for an entire drawing
• A scale can be defined for dimensioning so that the size of the dimensions can be set in page coordinates that are standards compliant
• Automatic dimensioning for drawings is now easier and faster
• You can assign a dimensioning type to objects intended for automatic dimensioning (e.g. outer dimension or centred)

Measuring

• The Measuring function has been revised and can now be operated significantly faster with fewer mouse clicks
• It is now possible to measure lengths and angles on faces in the room in the axonometric view

Drawing

• There is a new menu called "Draw"
• The “Draw” menu must be licensed as a separate function module. The previous licence for “Palette CAD 2D” automatically licenses the “Draw” feature
• “Draw” replaces many functions from the previous “Palette CAD 2D” add-on program and is integrated seamlessly into Plan 3D
• The truly unique feature of “Draw” is that you can draw and design right in the scene just as you would on a sheet of paper
• As is customary for 2D programs, the sequence for operations is the reverse of that for 3D objects: You must first select a function, such as trimming, and then use it on the drawing element
• Line thicknesses can be set in mm
• However, the line thickness is only used for output formats (Exposé, printouts). In the scene itself, lines are always displayed uniformly thin
• There are 2D elements, such as lines, freehand lines, splines, polylines, rectangles, circles, arcs, ellipses and elliptical arcs with an array of useful means for constructing them
• 2D can be trimmed, extended, divided, edited and joined to form polylines
• There are 2D guide lines
• Corners can be chamfered, rounded and filleted
• Line contours created in “Draw” can be converted into these 3D objects: extrusion, board and wood technology board
• There is very useful function in the axonometric view called “Align axonometric view”
• When you click on a face in the axonometric view, this function rotates the axonometric in the view so that the face lies exactly in the drawing plane
• This allows you to do design work on this face. This means that Align works like a user coordinate system for 2D designs
• 2D elements can be derived from the edges of 3D objects so that these elements can be used for 2D designs, for example
• The display of a scene in the plan view and in the front view can also be converted in its entirety to a 2D drawing, allowing the drawing and the line styles to be edited
• A display with perspective and an axonometric view can be converted to a 2D drawing so that the individual lines can be edited
• There are new display modes for 2D elements in the “edge view" and "wire frame model” display modes
• There is a new display mode in which 3D objects are greyed out and cannot be selected
• There is a display mode in which only 2D elements are shown
• Drawing is possible in the plan view, front view and axonometric view display windows. Drawing is not possible in the perspective view
• A new snap function is called “Point of contact” and it can be used to snap tangents on 2D curves
• The lines used in Palette CAD up until now are 3D lines because they can be placed freely in space and are not limited to placement on a flat surface
• This means there are now two line types in Palette CAD: 2D lines and 3D lines

Hatch

• Hatches can be used in the “Draw” ribbon
• A scale can be defined for hatches so that the size of the hatching can be set in page coordinates that are standards compliant
• There is now a management area for professional hatch styles
• Hatch styles can be line patterns, free patterns and bitmaps
• Hatches can be aligned and scaled in the scene
• You can create your own hatch styles
• In the axonometric view, hatches can also be placed on faces in the room

Import and export

• The import of DXF and DWG has been completely revised and can now include complete 2D working drawings with dimensioning and hatches
• The formats DWF (Design Web Format) and DGN (Microstation) can be imported
• 3D export has been expanded to include the DXF and Collada formats
• The output for 3D printers in the STL format has been improved
• There is a PDF export
• The 2D export filters double lines
• The 2D DXF export can be linked to external 2D programs in such a way that the program is opened automatically with the imported DXF file
• The import of architectural plans in the BIM format (ifc) from BIM-capable architecture programs has been expanded and improved to include additional elements

Primitives

• The cuboid can now also be loaded as a rectangular canal

The Bool Subtraction operation

• Bool subtraction for objects has been improved and now works in many instances in which it was previously not possible 

Palette Cloud

• The available memory and the maximum storage period depend on the Palette CAD service agreement that is held
• Proxy servers are also supported

That's it for part one. Make sure to check back next month for the rest of the list. Enjoy!

Greeting from Stuttgart,

Your Palette CAD Blog Team

Tip of the month! February: Ribbons

With the new year and the imminent release of version 9 of Palette CAD, we have decided to go back to the basics and provide a little more insight into the structure of our software. This month we will look into Ribbons. Ribbons (menus) are a fast and intuitive option for working with Palette CAD.

Properties

• Ribbons show the Palette CAD commands clearly
• Ribbons are displayed permanently
• Screen-tips, or explanatory texts, appear when the mouse is moved over a command
• The graphic arrangement of the commands makes orientation easier and enhances learning
• The ribbons are also simply referred to as menus

 

The menus

• Design: Basic operations which are used frequently during designing are found here
• Most of these operations can also be executed quickly via the context menu, the right mouse button, or via shortcuts
• Insert: Here, architectural elements, base bodies and drawing elements can be loaded, and objects from other formats can be imported
• The catalogues featuring objects and materials can be opened in the Design menu
• Editing: The editing functions for objects can be found here
• Draw: This menu is only available when Palette CAD 2D is active, and it contains the tools for drawing using 2D elements
• Lay: This menu is only available when Tiling Technology is active, and it contains special tools for tile laying
• Extras: This contains important commands such as Save Object and Bill of Materials
• View: In addition to settings for the display mode windows, this area also contains the settings for rendering (the photo realistic and artistic display modes), and for switching between several open projects
• Exposé: This is an area for results in which images from the scene can be assembled on pages for a customer presentation

 

Quick access to settings

• Some menu items contain a quick access feature for configuration options
• The settings can be accessed via the slightly hidden small arrow located below the buttons
• There are configuration options in the menu for catalogues, editing, tools, cameras, Exposé and for the snap functions

Hiding ribbons

• The ribbons can be hidden to create more space for the scene
• When the ribbons are hidden, only the titles of the menus are displayed
• The menus can be displayed and hidden again simply by double-clicking on them
• As an alternative, you can click on the ribbon with the right mouse button and a context menu will appear
• “Minimize ribbon” hides the ribbon 
• Hiding the ribbons is not recommended, however, because when snapping, not all of the snap options are displayed and the display jumps 

Quick access

• The bar for quick access is located above the menus
• Any commands that you wish to have constantly available can be added to this bar  

Transferring a command to the quick access area directly from the menus

• Select a button in the ribbon
• Open the context menu of the right mouse button
• Click on: Add to quick access toolbar
• Now this command is present in the quick access bar

 

Shortcuts for ribbons

• There are very convenient, special shortcuts for switching between menus and for quickly accessing commands
• These shortcuts are displayed as soon as the Alt key is pressed
• When a shortcut is pressed, the shortcuts for the commands in the ribbon it belongs to are displayed immediately
• This means that most of the commands in the ribbons can be executed with Alt and two shortcut keystrokes
• The commands in the quick access bar are given numbers as shortcuts  

That's ribbons all cleared up and next month we will look at some of the new updates and features in Palette CAD 9.

Greeting from Stuttgart,

Your Palette CAD Blog Team

Tip of the month! January: Pitched roof

Seeing as there has been a lot of questions going around regarding pitched roofs, we decided to put the issue to bed. Yes, pitched roofs can be created automatically in Palette CAD, and below you can find out just how easy it is to do.

 

Creating pitched roofs automatically

• Activate the wall's Intelligence dialog box by double-clicking on the wall
• Or select “Wall and interior fittings” in the object controller
• This opens the “Wall and interior fittings” dialog box
• You can create a pitched roof in the "Pitched roof" tab
• A pitched roof is an additional (inclined) wall which you can edit just like you would a “normal” wall
• The height of the original wall will be reduced to the height of the knee wall

• The pitched roof has the same name as the original wall, except that the suffix "Roof" is added to it

 

 

Pitched roof settings

• Knee wall height: Height of vertical wall
• Angle: Angle from the horizontal
• Distance: Indicates how far into the room the pitched roof reaches (i.e., the distance from the vertical wall)
• 200 cm distance: Distance from the wall at a height of 200 cm
• Right/Left: Pitched roofs are generated inwards by default However, since the result is not always correct because the inward direction might not be clear, the direction can be changed
• In the Plan View window, an arrow indicates the direction in which the pitched roof is being generated
• Remove connection: The connection to neighbouring walls is removed automatically with this option
• The removal of the connection causes the angled mitre cut between the walls to be omitted
• Cut walls: With this option, the two walls adjacent to the pitched roof on the left and the right are cut off at the outside edge of the pitched roof - the connection to the adjacent walls is not removed with this option
• If further walls are to be adapted to the pitched roof, they must be cut off manually
• This cut causes a small, empty “gusset” to be created outside in the corners of the walls

 

 

Editing pitched roofs

• If a pitched roof needs to be wider than the knee wall (because the neighbouring walls are inclined, for instance), activate the pitched roof's Intelligence dialog box and change the length accordingly
• Deleting a pitched roof: Activate the knee wall's (the vertical wall's) Intelligence dialog box and disable the "Pitched roof" field in the Pitched roof tab.

 

Placing roof windows

• Windows are set in a pitched roof exactly the same way they are set in a vertical wall
• Place the window in the Plan View or the Axonometric View above the pitched roof
• The position of the window is indicated by the dimension arrows
• Once the window is set, it will be automatically installed into the pitched roof
• Positioning a window in the pitched roof: The easiest way is by using the object controller for the wall
• Select the pitched roof
• Select the skylight window in the object controller
• The object controller will show input fields for the distance from the left and right and from the bottom edge

• As an alternative, you can also use the “Interior fittings” tab in the wall’s intelligence (“Wall and interior fittings” dialog box)

 

There it is, doesn't get much simpler than that.

Here a little treat from Joceline, one of our user who sheared this gem in our Facebook group. Check it out for inspiration or tips from other users to get you on your way to designer super-stardom in 2016. Have fun with it!

Greeting from Stuttgart,

Your Palette CAD Blog Team

Tip of the month! December: License extension

End of the year is upon us which means it's time to start think of resolutions for 2016. I almost  always fulfill mine, and am willing to share my successful technique with you. The trick is, not to rush in making them straight away at the begin of January. Instead, take your time and make sure that you are able to actually do what you set out for yourself. Then, towards the end of December, make a commitment, and keep to it for the remainder of the year. You're welcome.

Now, back to our subject, here another useful tip on how to request your license extension. You should get a reminder from the software towards the license expiration date. Of course, to start off with, you must have purchased the license extension beforehand, or be a Palette CAD update customer in order to qualify.

Next go to the file tab and select program settings. On this screen you can also find the license expiration date, should it have one that is. Next select configure hardware lock.

A new window will appear. From here there are a couple of possible ways to proceed.

If your email client allows it, simply click on request by email option. This will generate an automatic email for you which then just needs to be sent off. Otherwise you may copy the code, paste into an email and send it to us.

Apply your new code once you get it back from us and you are ready to get back to the real fun, designing dream projects with Palette CAD.

Wishing you all a phenomenal 2016,

Your Palette CAD Blog Team