Master the Family Editor Series

Today at noon Central time, the Mastering the Family Editor Series begins. There is still room, so if you would like to spend the next five Tursdays learning the "ins" and "outs" of the Family Editor over your lunch hour, please visit the registration page and sign up!

The class will be conducted using GoToMeeting software. They are LIVE classes, not recorded and will be conducted by Paul F. Aubin using advance materials from the latest edition of Mastering Revit Architecture (available August 7, 2009).

Class Information:
Classes will be taught in a series of five 50 minute segments one per week for the next five weeks starting today. All attendees will be given access to an exclusive 44-page workshop manual and an accompanying dataset with the files required to perform several hands-on lessons. Topics Include:

• Family Editor Concepts
• Family Editor Strategies
• Create Annotation Families
• Create basic Model Families
• Add Constraints and Parameters
• Add Material Parameters
• Build Parametric Arrays
• Work with Visibility and Cut Plane issues
• Add Formula Parameters
• Tips and Tricks

Visit the registration page for complete details including, schedule, class size, pricing, registration information and secure checkout via PayPal.

Class Size:
The class size is limited to 15 participants only. Attendance will be first-come, first-served. PayPal will automatically stop taking registrations after 15 participants have registered. If a class is sold out, please visit my contact page to request being placed on the waiting list. Additional sessions will be scheduled based upon demand. If you have suggestions for future topics in both Revit and AutoCAD Architecture, please let me know.

If you are interested in seeing the new release of Revit Architecture first-hand without having to leave your desk, sign up today for one or more of these information packed sessions. I Look forward to "seeing" you there!

Mastering Revit Architecture Available August 7!

Hello folks, I just got word from the publisher that Mastering Revit Architecture should be available for shipments starting August 7, 2009. That is next week! I am very excited. I always hate the wait for a new title to ship. The longest period of time on my annual calendar is the period from when I hand off te last chapters to when the book hits the streets. It always seems longer than it should...

I will post back here as soon as I receive my author copies, but in the meantime, you can learn more about the book here.

If you place a pre-order, Thanks!

Mastering AutoCAD Architecture

I am happy to report that the latest update to Mastering AutoCAD Architecture is well under way. The 2010 edition shoudl be available later this Fall. You can see the table of contents and ordering information on the newly posted book page.

I have several chapters "in the can" already. The Quick Start (Chapter 0) through Chapter 5 are complete through copy edit. I will post my comments on these first six chapters back to the editor on Monday. Chapters 6 through 9 are finished through technical edit and I await the copy edit on those. Chapters 11 through 15 and Chapter 17 are completed manuscript and in the hands of the tech editor. The manuscript for Chapters 10, 16 and 18 are in progress. Several of the appendices are underway as well. So, even though I have not posted here on this book earlier, as you can see the project is well underway and we are hoping to have a bound book in a few months. Maybe October or November.

I would like to thank David Koch. David has been assisting me in getting the new manuscript ready for publication. You may know David from the Autodesk News Groups. He is a very active member of the AutoCAD Architecture forum and a registered Architect practicing at the firm Ewing Cole in Philadelphia. Thanks David. I could not have gotten this far or even had hoped to get this update done without your assistance.

Please post comments here if you have any questions.

AutoCAD MEP 2010 Book in Progress

Being the glutton for punishment that I am, I have signed on to write my third book this year!

I have teamed up with three industry experts to write Mastering AutoCAD MEP! The first edition of this book should be published this fall. We expect to have it available in time for Autodesk University and hopefully several weeks before. As many of you may know, by background and experience is in architecture.

Therefore I have teamed up with three top-notch professionals in the MEP space for this project:


Darryl McClelland has 19 years of practical design in MEP engineering. Although his primary focus was the design of mechanical systems, he spent 11 of those 19 years designing electrical and plumbing systems’ as well. He also ran his own engineering business for 8 years. His design experience ranges from complex research laboratories and institutional facilities to medical and professional office buildings, and everything in between. He is a graduate of Purdue University and an active member of ASHRAE and ASPE.

Martin J. Schmid, P.E. has worked with Autodesk for the past four years working on site with customers to implement best practices using AutoCAD MEP and Revit MEP. Prior to joining Autodesk, Martin worked in a variety of roles in a variety of architecture and engineering firms, including electrical designer, engineering coordinator, and application developer. Martin has a Master's Degree in Architectural Engineering from Kansas State University, and a Masters in Business Management of Technology from the University of Texas in San Antonio. Martin has used AutoCAD since version 10, and has developed custom applications built on top of AutoCAD MEP extending the capability to suit the specific niche needs of customer applications. Martin has a beautiful wife and two lovely daughters, and works from his home in San Antonio, TX.

Gregg Stanley has over 22 years experience in Mechanical Process Design focused on Water Wastewater treatment systems using AutoCAD based solutions since Release 1.1. Gregg has also been in the position as a CAD Manager responsible for developing and instituting company specific customized applications, CAD standards and training. He has written and presented several training classes on AutoCAD and AutoCAD MEP both internally to coworkers, as a independent consultant and at Autodesk University. Gregg's current position is at Autodesk as a Quality Assurance Analyst and with Product design as a Piping Subject Matter Expert for AutoCAD MEP focused on the Piping application. Gregg is responsible for working with the larger development team and a Usability / Interaction Designer to redesign the 3D piping application and for quality assurance and quality control of several AutoCAD MEP features.

I am very excited to be working with this fine group of experts and look forward to having the book available soon.

Here is a quick look at the (preliminary - i.e. subject to change) table of contents:

Preface

Section I Introduction and Methodology
Quick Start General Overview
Chapter 1 User Interface
Chapter 2 Conceptual Underpinnings of AutoCAD MEP
Chapter 3 Project Navigator

Section II Working with MEP Objects
Chapter 4 Energy Analysis
Chapter 5 Mechanical Systems
Chapter 6 Piping Systems
Chapter 7 Electrical Systems

Section III Content and Display
Chapter 8 Content Creation - Styles
Chapter 9 Content Creation - Equipment
Chapter 10 Content Creation - Fittings
Chapter 11 Display Control (Advanced)

Section IV Drawing Documentation and Coordination
Chapter 12 Sections
Chapter 13 Managing Updates and Interference Detection
Chapter 14 Annotation, Property Sets and Schedules
Chapter 15 Plotting and Publishing

Section IV Appendices
Appendix A Online Resources
Appendix B Tips and Tricks
Appendix C Network issues, WAN

New Edition of Mastering AutoCAD Architecture

Having skipped the 2009 release, there has been a bit of a hiatus, but I am happy to say that the new edition of Mastering AutoCAD Architecture is well underway. The book remains 18 chapters plus appendices. This new completely revised edition will cover all of the topics of previous editions and is fully updated to utilize the new 2010 interface and ribbon. Chapter 1 through 6 have already been completed through tech edit. The manuscript for Chapters 7 through 9 and 13 through 15 are currently finished and in the hands of the tech editor. Those should be flowing through to the copy editor soon. Chapters 10 and 17 are currently in manuscript edit. For this edition, I have enlisted the services of David Koch to assist with manuscript edit. David is a long time member of the ACA user community and helps moderate the Autodesk ACA discussion forum. David has provided invaluable assistance to me in helping get these chapters updated quickly. At the current rate, we hope to finish the remaining manuscript by the end of the month and hopefully tech and copy edit shortly after that. That puts us well on track for a late summer, early fall release. I will post back here with more details as they become available.

Thumbnails!

So maybe you noticed all the blogs reporting of the new Web update for Revit 2010 products. Well if you somehow missed it, here is a link to page.

So I download and install the update figuring that it is probably a good idea and hoping maybe it would solve the PDF problem one of my clients is reporting. (Well, no word on that yet), but hey... bonus... as long as I have been on Windows Vista, Revit has shown no preview images. All I get is a big 'ol "R" icon. Not very impressive. I have asked all around and no one had a solution. Well, what do you know, the WU1 solved the problem! I now have previews! That was worth the update right there for me.

I can't wait to install it on my Windows 7 setup. Stay tuned.

Windows 7 Update:

It works here too! Awesome!

Special Pricing on Mastering Series

The Paul F. Aubin Mastering Series is off an running and the sessions conducted so far have gone very well. On July 7th, the next session: Revit Architecture 2010 Tips and Tricks will be conducted at 12noon Central time. Beginning July 30, the Master the Family Editor Series kicks off. There are still seats available for this unique training experience.

Independence Day Special Bundle:
For a limited time, sign up for both and save 10% off the price of each one individually. Use the registration button here to sign up for the bundle. Don't miss out on this special price!

• Revit Architecture 2010 Tips and Tricks
• Master the Family Editor Series

$166.95 per registrant

Visit the registration page or complete details and to register.