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Revit Tips

posted 9 March 2009

I’ve been working with Revit Architecture 2008 for a little while now, so I’ve decided to begin compiling some tips here.

Font sizes

For some reason that is absolutely beyond comprehension, Revit measures text in actual millimetres or inches instead of points (like every other computer program in existence, except maybe AutoCAD, which probably explains it). Clever folks will note that since there are 72 points in one inch, 8pt text could be entered as 8/72”. Unfortunately, even that doesn’t work, and you’ll find text larger than it’s equivalent output from another program.

I’ve found through trial and error that somewhere between about 0.269 and 0.275, with a sweet spot around 0.27mm/pt. So for 10pt text, you can enter 2.7mm.

  • DINOT-Regular
  • 8pt: 2.15mm (0.26875mm/pt)
  • 10pt: 2.75mm (0.275mm/pt)
  • 24pt: 6.48 (0.27mm/pt)
OpenType Fonts

OpenType fonts are cross-platform fonts that generally work equally well across Windows and Mac computers. Except in Autodesk programs. Both AutoCAD and Revit cannot use OpenType fonts if they use PostScript outline definitions or a code page other than ANSI. The font must actually be installed in Windows, not just copied to the Fonts folder. (On Windows XP, go to “Start > Control Panel > Fonts” and then “File > Install New Font…”) If you double-click an OpenType font in the Fonts folder, it will tell you if it uses PostScript outlines.

If you need to convert a OpenType font from PostScript outlines to TrueType outlines, I recommend Type 2.2 light

File archiving

Dealing with Revit central files can be a headache. In order to make a backup of your current central file with minimal trouble, do this:

  1. Open the central file using the “File” menu in Revit.
  2. Check off both “Audit” and “Detach from Central”.
  3. Once open, do “File > Save as…” with a dated file name into a “_SUPERSEDED” or “_ARCHIVE” folder that you keep with the central file.
  4. Back in Windows, right-click on the file and select “Properties”
  5. Check “Read-only” to ensure that no one can accidentally save work to the archived central file.

The benefits of this approach are that it maintains links between any local files and the current central file (since the actual central file never actually changes) and no one should accidentally work on the archived file since it is read-only and it would require someone to actively make a copy of an archived file.

When working with a local Revit file, using the “File > Save to Central…” menu option allows you to check off the “Compact Central File (slow)” option. It’s a good idea to do this occasionally as it keeps the central file lean and will reduce errors and corruption. Unfortunately, there’s no such option for your local file, so it’s also a good idea to archive your local file now and then (after having saved to central and doing a “File > Relinquish All Mine”), and grab a fresh copy of the nicely compacted central file.

Project-specific families, hatches

Generally, unless families have been thoroughly tested and remain basically static (i.e. virtually “read only”), they should not be shared among projects. You never know when someone has edited a family you had earlier inserted into your project and now need to update. Their changes may have not been for the better.

Consider including a folder called “_RESOURCES” along with your central Revit file to store families and hatches that are specific to the project.

 

 

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