DavidJPotter

I do not see a "second floor" rather I see a first floor with a vaulted ceiling in your "A"frame home. DJP

Please, with Home Designer turned off, attach a copy of your plan along with your intended ceiling heights for the first and second floors, then someone can advise you as to what to do. Wrong settings always obtain wrong results. DJP

using the CAD tools - closed poly line tool, you shape it manually around the perimeter of your plan footrpint then open the resulting poly line's dialog box and view the "Poly line area" read out to find out the square footage of the manually drawn poly line from its dialog box. DJP

I do not believe that any version of Suite can do a gable roof over a bay window using the "bay window tool", sorry. I can do it for you and return but you MUST not auto-rebuild roofs thereafter due to the limitations of Suite's roof building/editing abilities. Let me know please, the front porch gable with ceiling needs to be a "room" with a specification dialog, the walls need to be "Railing Walls" set to no ballusters (open) and the "Newels" set to look like posts (Rail Style - Post to Beam). Once you have a room designated as a "Porch" make sure that the "Flat Ceiling" is turned on in the Structure Tab of the Porch's Room specification dialog - Structure tab. Like Eric showed you can do the bay window manually (drawing three manual walls). DJP

Take a look here please. DJP

For roof planes you can change the default material-layer settings to not display the default OSB sheathing but just assign your soffit material as the underlayment of the roof layer. This can work as a work around for roof plane unsightliness. Without your plan file to inspect, no further suggestions or guesses are really possible. DJP

Not that I know of, when imported a PDF or image file should default to the "Back" of the Drawing Group placing it under all other visible layers. You can check this by opening the PDF or image file's dialog box - Line Style Tab to check if, in fact it is set to the rear but transparency is not an option in Home Designer. I think one would have to have Adobe Photoshop etc. for that kind of action to be done. DJP

Post a copy of your plan file please, without it all people can do is to guess. DJP

No such problems with my PC so far. DJP

Pro has manual framing and roof system tools to do as and what you wish. Like all Home Designer and Chief Premier seats, they are all programmed to do traditional framing but what you wish to do would be done mostly manually, I think. DJP

Sketch Up no longer offers for download .skp files that are compatible with your 2017 software, newer versions are supported. It is the way the software world works, sorry. DJP

Plate height is directly determined, space by space , Number one: in Edit Default Settings - Floors and Rooms -Floor - Finished Ceiling height and Number two: You can manually move any roof plane up or down by way of your "Transform-Replicate - Move" dialog or directly in a roof specification dialog by manipulating the values in the input boxes. This short video on my website may be of help:http://djpdesigns.com/roof-basellne.html DJP

Here is a link to a search page at the Home Designer website where you can obtain true data from the makers of the software: https://www.homedesignersoftware.com/search/?default_tab=all&q=minimum+requirements DJP

Window Specification Dialog - Casings Tab & Sill & Lintel tabs to alter and change/edit those objects. DJP

Look these HELP ARTICLES at the Home Designer Website for help first and here second is my advice. DJP

The autoroof builder tool is a pre-programmed mechanical device with limited ability to"figure" some things out, that is where YOU have to step in and manually manipulate what the autoroof tool has produced and guide it to an acceptable result. It is a harsh truth but it also THE TRUTH. Now is the time for you to start learning your manual roof tools and take it beyond what a mechanical device can do. DJP

Angie, I downloaded your file, turned on "Auto Rebuild Foundation" and like you, it did not work in Pro. In Chief Premier it does work like Eric said but you also have brick ledge settings in the Wall Specification dialog that you do not nave in Pro. So My advice is to just turn on the "Reference Display" while on the foundation level, turn OFF "Auto Rebuild Foundation" and then manually align your foundation wall's outer surface with the first floor walls. DJP

DJP

Use a Base Cabinet for the base of the column. Turn off the toe kick and make the front a blank area. Change the counter top thickness to about 3". Then assign a regular running brick course to the base cabinet and assign a soldier course brick that matches the running bond brick below. In Pro the brick material choices can be found in the Library Browser-Materials-Masonry & Brick - Brick. DJP

On the Home Designer website it also states that to gain full benefits of visual acuity possible requires specific hardware support to attain the best results. DJP

I think you need ti clarify EACTLY what you are trying to do. Eric and I have tried to answer your "question" but I do not believe you have stated yet clearly exactly what you need and want leaving us to guess what you need and want. DJP

This forum is for Home Designer software users (not Chief Architect Premier and Interiors users), what software ARE you using please? Different titles contain differing abilities and tools. DJP

You are welcome to download a free trial version of any of the three new versions of Home Designer software and see for yourself. I downloaded Home Designer Pro trial and saw that they added "Physically Based Rendering" render type that was not present in earlier versions. It has been present for years in Chief Premier and Interiors as well as photo realistic "Ray Tracing" but these have never been available to Home Designer software titles. The other complaints you listed are solved mainly in Chief Architect Premier and Interiors software or are merely shortfalls of competence with end users. No software anywhere delivers a perfect product without a lot of competence applied by its end users. DJP

DJP

By direct manipulation of a wall poly line (Home Designer Pro Only or Chief Premier, not Suite or Architectural). By programming a wall to be a "Solid Railing" then you control its height by the Newels and Baluster Height input box (Chief Premier, Home Designer Pro, Suite and Architectural.) You mainly control wall height via a Room Specification Dialog - Finished Ceiling Height input box (the ceiling height controls the height of the ceiling and secondarily the height of the walls that form a room. This is all explained in your Reference Manual in detail. DJP