DavidJPotter

Dimension tools function in elevation-cross section camera views but often times one must place CAD objects there for dimension strings to measure to and from (Not all Architectural 3D objects dimension easily in such camera views but can be done, easily once you see what works and what does not). Dimensioning does not function in isometric views though some isometric views can be sent to layout or printed at a predefined scale (not the same things as dimension strings). What exactly have you done or tried that did not work? DJP

HD Pro 8 was deisgned to run properly within Windows XP and perhaps Vista & Windows 7. If you are trying to run it in Windows 8 that is probably the problem. What is the operating system you are now trying to use it in? I run older legacy versions of Chief Premier and Home Designer but I do so on a separate hard drive that runs on Windows XP and if you do not want to get versions of the latest release then you need to run Home Designer Pro 8 within an environment created for and by Windows XP.. It is not surprising that you are having trouble with legacy software if you are trying to use it in a way it was not designed to be used. DJP

Here is another video with window and doors installed with framing: http://youtu.be/0jH_rNVXQyY DJP

You might consider suggesting that as an additional symbol here or directly to Chief Inc, they have several employees who all they do is make new symbols for download (sqeeky wheel gets the oil). DJP

In your posted image the landing is the floor for that space. It may be that you cannot see the floor surface due to the material being set to "zero" thickness in the room specification dialog - Structure Tab. As Mick said whether you place your room on the first or second floor is your choice. Past that decision you use the resulting Room Specification Dialog to then define the other attributes of the room. It is not always crystal clear what a poster means when they make statements here so any additional data you can provide up to and or including a copy of the plan file really helps to clarify matters. You cannot define two floor structures for a room (only one per floor) and even if you have so defined a floor structure it will not appear in camera views unless those layers are turned on (check marked) in "Display Options" for that camera view or plan view. In Home Designer Pro you can emulate many things but manually but to comment further I need a more clear understanding of what you consider is "missing". DJP

In Architectural you zoom into the area you want to halo or show on your desktop plan view window and then "Print" . I suggest you also do a preview so you can cancel if the preview is not quite to your liking (you then make another or others until you do like the preview and then let that print). Printing at a specific scale is another issue and is fully covered in your Reference Manual under the "Print" heading. This Knowledge Base article deals with "Scaled Printing" :http://www.homedesignersoftware.com/support/article/KB-00116/ DJP

By the way, I figured out how to get You Tube to display higher resolution videos just now, so I reposted the video I made earlier in this thread but you can now select HD view settings for it while watching it on line, here is the new instance of the same video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6kNnwondfDk&feature=youtu.be DJP

He sent an e mail to me directly that contained those references. DJP

Mick, since I found a workable solution there is no reason to further bother Tech Support when a useful route already exists. I had thought (wrongly) that we had found a bug when in fact, it turned out to be another lesson learned. DJP

This (I think) woiuld be accomplished by drawing the walls on either side of the stair object and then manually editing the wall-poly-lines of those walls in a cross section camera view to pull up part of the bottom of those walls. When people post, it is not always quite clear exactly what you need and want but that is what I think you want to do and how I would go about it. DJP

I haven't been able to bring to a full understanding within Tech Support as to the specific problem as yet (I am still tying). They referred me to an article about double walls which works fine in X6 IF the two walls touch each other (which is not what the OP originally wanted to do). What I should clarify is that the way the OP tried to solve his problem does not work in Pro or Premier but what does work and does follow the way the softwre is programmed to work is shown in the following video. In any case I figured out a workable solution to this unique problem (see the You Tube video I made of my solution: http://youtu.be/ImvwGsY8OFU DJP

I looked up Conistoga cabinets and got a deffinition of RTA (Ready To Assemble), at a glance it appears that their styles are about the same as other, main line cabinet firms (I just quickly looked and not in depth) but as Derek points out or infers above, the more you spend on the software package the more choices and functionality your will recieve and it is hard to predict what may or may not be sufficient for your purposes. In any case I wish you well and success. DJP

The answer to your query depends upon which Home Designer software title you purchased. (they are not all created equal) Say what you have and then someone can then answer your question with certainty. DJP

Any Home Designer software title allows adjustment of cabinets in whatever measure units you assign to it in "Edit - Default Settings - Cabinet". I have been being in the construction field for forty years but "RTA cabinets" is not a term I am familiar with nor am I familiar with "Conestoga Cabinets" so those words are merely not understood by me. There are countless firms that make cabinets and one cannot know them all. I suggest that you download a free trial version of Home Designer Pro and see for yourself how the software is laid out and how it functions. If I were you I would not waste my time and money on the cheapest software they make expecting it to be the "Sun, Moon and Stars". The main limitations of whatever you do purchase will be self imposed by you. Whether you spend $50.00 or $500.00 for software, it must be carefully studied and practiced with to be of ANY use to anyone. The most common thing I observe by new users is that they buy an application, install and use it without ever studying it or spending time to learn how to use it and then place blame at its makers for not being "intuitive" enough. There is no way for me to know beforehand what you mean by "Industry Standard" . I cannot guarentee your satisfaction any more than Chief Architect Inc can. They do have a money back guarentee if you are not satisfied (speak to their Sales Department to verify this first please). I have used their software since 1994 with total satisfaction as a user and teacher-tutor specializing in residential and light commercial projects and applications. Only you can insure your own satisfaction in the end, by careful study and practice of your tools, whatever you actually do buy.

If your software does full exterior cross section camera views then Eric's solution with work. (Eric has Home Designer Pro 2015 which does have that ability but not all titles do have that ability).Home Designer Pro allows you to open a roof planes' dialog like Eric suggests but this is not a choice in Suite. Suite does have an exterior elevation camera and while in such a view you can use the "Tape Measure" dimension tool to get your elevation height data. DJP

Another built-in method to finish installing downloaded library files is to be found under the "Library" menu, the command is called "Import LIbrary" when left-clicked upon a browse window dialog opens, that you use to navigate to your "Downloads" folder (where it actually is depends upon what browser you are using), select your intended calib or calibz file and then it will install provided it is intended for use in Architectural (some library files are just for Home Designer Pro,but you have to look and download the ones that are programmed just for Architectural). DJP

Contact Sales tomorrow is my advice, nothing here but opinions. DJP

BTW I could not get it to work in Chief Premier X6 either and have submitted it to Tech Support as a "Bug". You should be able to designate two "Main Layers" and have framing build properly (I have done this successfully in past versions). We will see what they say in due time. DJP

I couldn't get the framing to work either, it seems to be a limitation (bug) in that you cannot actually assign two "Main Layers" to a custom wall type as you would need for this particular wall type. It seems to only want to build framing in only one structural or main layer per custom wall type. DJP

"True" is a subjective comodity relative to color in digital displays. Your video card has adjustments you can make, nothing is "perfct" out of the box except in terms of opinion or perhaps well calibrated measureing devices. They install adjustments for the reason that people sense color differently. My advice is to use the adjustments available to you or your technition and when it is adjusted to your opinion of "good" then that is it. An image such as you posted looks blue to be and it will probably be seen as blue, generally to others but only your opinion matters on your computer. Another variable is from color images made elsewhere, some variations of hue and other properties will be found to display even on the same image on different machine displays. DJP

You download and install the software (if it is free then beware of bloat-ware that usually comes with "FREE" software ie.DO NOT SELECT "EXPRESS INSTALL" EVER, EVER, EVER!!! What you do, DO is to "Custom Install" such applications so you can carefully read and uncheck the unwanted "free" applications (bloatware-malware-annoyance-ware) that "pays" for it being "free". You just wnat the useful part so make sure you just allow the useful part to install. Then, once installed you set it up as if it were a physical printer (paper size, orientation, color or b&w etc) and make sure you properly set up Home Designer Page Set Up to match the intended PDF paper size (very important) and then, only after you have checked and double-checked your PDF printer settings and Print-Page Set Up Settings do you then "print" a PDF document. Happy hunting. DJP

Thank you for your patience, all I ever intend is to help. I am sensitive to the learning curve of others. I hope it is merely a procedural error only and if so, you will have it figured out and it is a worth while effort. DJP

I am not sure what you mean by "...it did not support the files in HD pro.", I mean what you do is to install the PDF printer software, set up its drivers for the intended paper size and then select it as your "printer" of choice and then "print" (create) your PDF document. Then you create your layout pages and one by one print them to PDF format. You can print to PDF (create a PDF document) directly from a plan view but I prefer doing so from a layout file since this tends to look more professional and organized. What did you actually do instead of the above, I wonder? DJP

Since I do not have your PC or your specific conditions, I do not know. I have been being a user of Chief Architect Inc software since 1994 and cannot recall having any such behavior at all, what so ever so I assume it must be specific to your PC at that specific time perhaps agrivated by your newness to its tools and behavior. DJP

I share plans and plan views using "Cute PDF" (there are other free and paid PDF conversion tools, I just prefer Cute PDF). You print your PDF views from your "Layout File" so you can professionally arrange and scale your views, in color and black and white (most my remodeling contractor clients prefer black and white views unless I know rather exactly what materials are intended). High quality color render views take time and skill so I recommend that you stick to b & w until you learn how to manipulate materials and lighting to get nice looking render views. Attached is a simple kitchen remodel PDF I made for a recent project DJP Grazing Deer-letter-09242014.pdf