Addenda to Chapter 6 in Mastering AutoCAD MEP

Thanks to the readers that email us with questions, we are able to keep you all up to date on the latest corrections we find in the text of my/our books. So thank you in advance to everyone who contacts us.

In this update, some of our readers are experiencing issues with the MAMEP piping catalog(s) that is used in Chapter 6 of Mastering AutoCAD MEP. The issue is that the Catalog and Part ID's may be the same as the default Catalogs from AutoCAD MEP 2010. If you are experiencing a problem selecting the fittings indicated in the Create a Routing Preference exercise, please download the MAMEP Pipes.zip file and replace the MAMEP Pipes.apc and the MAMEP Steel Pipes.apc file in C:\MasterMEP 2010\MAMEP Pipe with the ones provided in the zip file.

Thank you.

MEP Book Discussion at Autodesk Discussion Forums

Good discussion going on in the Autodesk Discussion Groups regarding Mastering AutoCAD MEP. Check it out here.

Why not join in on the conversation?

Mastering MEP Dataset omission

Hello all. A reader recently sent me this in an email:

"Page 239 Step 13 refers to a folder and file that is not included on the CD included with the book."


Upon inspection, the reader is correct, the file is indeed missing, as is the folder that it should be in. We consolidated the dataset late in the process and looks like we missed a few references in the text. I believe that the file is now located at:

C:\MasterMEP 2010\MAMEP Commercial\constructs\Mechanical

However, to be certain, we are uploading it here as well. The file should be placed in MasterMEP 2010 directory under the Chapter04 sub-directory if that does not already exist. 

Hotfix for AutoCAD MEP

On page 445 of Mastering AutoCAD MEP, step 36 doesn't work right because of a problem with Service Pack 1. There is a Hotfix for this available at:


http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/ps/dl/item?siteID=123112&id=14298012&linkID=9240938

Happy New Year all!

Another MEP typo

Another typo spotted by a reader in Mastering AutoCAD MEP:

Page: 59

There is a reference to locating the Options dialog: "(Access the Options dialog from the Application menu as shown in Figure 1.14 above.)" However, the referenced image of the Application menu is actually found in Figure 1.4 on page 50.

Thanks and Happy New Year.

Minor correction in Mastering AutoCAD MEP

In the Quick Start chapter, there is a typographical error at the beginning. The book mentions finding Quick Start files in the: C:\MasterMEP 2010\Quick Start folder (see Page 2 item 4).

The folder is actually located at C:\MasterMEP 2010\Chapter00\Quick Start.

Our appologies for any confusion. Thank you.

Time to start again

believe it or not, it is already time to start the new editions... (I am not sure I am ready...)

I just got "extracted Word docs" from the publisher. After we submit our files, they go through several hands and changes before becoming printed pages. There is a compositor who does the paste-up of the final pages. The artwork must be processed into the required format. There is a proofreading pass, the index is compiled, the table of contents finalized and built and probably a few other steps I forgot. Much of this work is performed in Microsoft Word, but the final steps occur outside Word. So, when it comes time to repeat the entire process and start over again for the new release, we need to get Word documents back. So they "extract" them from the page layout files. This is not completely automated from what I understand and someone must manually check each document before making them available to us.

This year we get a new Word template, so style names are changing and some other subtleties. (Never a dull moment). Our task now, as the authors, is to:

1. Decide WHEN to start writing. Factors influencing this are the current state of the beta release of the software, how likely that whatever we want to start writing about will change in the next build and of course our own schedules.
2. Setup folders, files, SnagIt profiles, schedule time, and plan tasks with co-authors.
3. And most important, become familiar with the new version of the software.

Every year it is the same. This time a year comes around and we say:
"this year we will get the manuscript out earlier..."

"Hey Paul, how's that working out for ya?"

Let's see how that goes this year... Stay tuned.

Hot off the presses

I am here at AU and preparing for today's sessions. I teach five classes here this year and the first one is this afternoon. Every year, my publisher generously provides copies of my latest books for me to give away at the conference. This year I have three new books including the first edition of Mastering AutoCAD MEP hot off the presses! I have not even received my author copies yet, but I have one copy in  my hands that was drop-shipped from the publisher. One lucky winner in my Mastering AutoCAD MEP: Ask the Experts class today will go home with it! (sorry for the poor photo, my cell phone does not do a nice picture...). I will be teaching the class today with my three co-authors: Darryl McClelland, Martin Schmid and Gregg Stanley. We will also have some copies of MEP Course|Notes to give away. Hope to see you there.

Soooo glad we caught that one...

You know the old saying: "two heads are better than one" or the notion that it is always good to get a "second set of eyes" on something? Well both of those clichés were proven to be valid big time in our final proofing stages of Mastering MEP. Page proofs is the final stage of the process for me as the author of a book. The composition team works up the pages as they will look in the final layout in the actual printed book. They prepare a series of PDF proofs and send them to me for review. When I get them, I have the opportunity to review them, point out any errors and make last minute changes. Usually in the proofing phase, we try to avoid any serious editing as it would delay the schedule. However, the proofing phase gives us the opportunity to take one last look at the pages before they go to press. And if necessary, make any critical corrections of anything discovered. Well, thank goodness I decided to share the proofs with my co-authors this time. While I was busy focusing on the overall look of the pages and looking for problems with the artwork (which is usually where I focus most of my efforts in proof review), my co-author Gregg discovered that the header on all left-hand pages had a “tiny” error.

The title of the book is listed as: Mastering AutoCAD Architecture 2010 Manufacturing, Engineering, and Plumbing.

Ouch.

Way to enhance your credibility with your readers. Sure, we know what MEP stands for… Needless to say I fired off a “stop the presses” email to team.

What a great catch Gregg. Saved me a flood of emails, that’s for sure… 

Final Stages of Book Production

When I first started this Blog, I began with a discussion of the print publishing process as it pertains to CAD books. (I suspect that my experiences with CAD books are similar to those had by publishers of other kinds of books, but lacking first-hand experience, I cannot be sure).

I have written three books this year. Two updates to existing titles and one new title. In addition, I authored three Course|Notes Reference Cards which have a similar (but abbreviated) process. This is quite a bit of work; especially given the annual release cycle of Autodesk products. It looks like we will make Autodesk University however (refer to this post where this crucial deadline is discussed), so I consider that worth it.

At this stage of the process, I still have a few proofs to review, but the projects are mostly out of my hands. I now must shift my attention to the next phase of the process... selling books! In the end, we all want a best seller right? So, I am now polishing up my "online image". Got to log in to sites I haven't updated in a while and update profiles, edit information, spruce things up. First stop, Amazon.com. Most of my book sales come from places like Amazon. So it is important to make sure that the listings are correct and easy to find. We had a few issues there recently with the new MEP book. Seems they were missing one of my co-authors and the pre-order link was not working. Note to Amazon: if someone wants to buy something early, let them! Apologies to Gregg for the initial omission of his name, we got it squared away now.

Once we have correct information, we need to get those five-star ratings! Ideally, they just happen by themselves. If I do my job correctly, and write a top-notch book, people will be so thrilled with what they learned that they will be compelled to write a glowing review. This is my preference. I must admit in the interest of full disclosure, that I sometimes encourage people to review my books on Amazon. I NEVER tell them what to say, or how many stars to give.

But here's a hint, if the author asks you, "hey, if you get a minute and don't mind, please visit Amazon and post a review of my book", they are really saying "Hey, please go up to Amazon and post a five-star review full of heavy praise for the book."

I don't know too many authors that would say: "Hey, if you get a minute, please post a review trashing my book and oh, two or three stars is fine." Heck, we don't even want four stars. People make purchasing decisions on those stars. Five-stars all the way man! That's what we want.

Oh, and don't shoot the messenger. You are reviewing the product (the book in this case), not Amazon. If you have an issue with Amazon, or delivery, click the Help link on the Amazon home page and send them a note. Amazon is excellent about returns and replying to customer issues. I have contacted them myself several times and they have always done everything they can to make whatever I was calling about right. So please, if you think my book is five stars and Amazon's delivery was one star, don't round off to three stars. The next guy that browses for a book may not bother to read the review where you said the book was great, but Amazon was the issue, they might just move on. Every three star review means fewer pennies in the kid's college kitty.

OK, so there you have it. That is the complete process:

Idea
Contract
Manuscript
Tech Edit
Copy Edit
Proofing
Proofs
Send to Press
 
Real book available to purchase and Shamless plugging and fishing for good reviews on the part of the author.