DavidJPotter

This may be what is happening (see attached image): when you draw a room inside of a room, the software is pre-programmed to connect the inner room with an exterior wall by default. The dialog I am showing you is from Home Designer Pro 2018 under Edit-Preferences-Architectural but this is rather standard through out Home Designer titles presently. I know it is annoying when you do not know why the software does something of an automatic nature. Just take the time to find out before becoming too annoyed, OK? DJP

If you have not already done so, I recommend that you read the "User's Guide" found under the "Help Menu" when the program is running. That document will help orient you to how the software is to work. The learning process takes you from unknown to known a little bit at a time. Do not just start guessing how to use the tools, rather study a part of the Reference Manual (also found under the "Help" menu) and then open the software and practice what you just studied so it then becomes greater certainty and competence for your use. It took me a year of intensive self-study and practice to really learn the software. It was worth the effort. DJP

You might take a look at the Mosa Tile website and find there a texture you can download and import as a custom material.How to import a custom material is covered in your Reference Manual. DJP

Here are the settings you are looking for:(see attached image) DJP

Since you still have not disclosed what software you are using, anyone who might wish to help you can only guess as to what software title and version you have. That said I did take a look and videoed the results: DJP

What you are seeing is just the way this software is preprogrammed to work. So if you want a particular outcome you have to make it manually appear the way you wish: 1. You can overlay the unwanted brick reveal with a custom slab that has the stone as its material making it thick enough to cover up the unwanted brick. 2. You can use a custom sized soffit object for the same purpose (I prefer custom slabs for this kind of thing) 3. You might try the custom backsplash tool to see if you can overlay the unwanted brick with stone (never tried this myself, so that is why it is "#3"). DJP

Architectural has severe limitations relative to custom roofs and direct editing of roof planes. Chief Premier and Home Designer Pro have the necessary tools to emulate what you are showing, Architectural, Suite, Interiors and Essentials do not have that capability, sorry. DJP

A template is just that a blank, preset plan or layout file. You can customize or edit these templates to suit your personalized desires and settings but that is all. You really should read the "Users Guide" (found under the Help Menu dropdown) to orient yourself to actually how the software is designed to work. Then study the intro videos for tools, using the Help Files and Reference Manual for additional help. DJP

I looked at the plan file one more times to see how you drew the CAD parts (Using Roads). I did not see any "drawing errors" so the weakness must be resident in the extensive use of road objects itself. I am sorry but you may consider redrawing the road objects with simple 2D CAD polylines and thus "solve" the printing problem (only a guess) or just wait until you get a report from Tech Support. DJP

Here is a You Tube video of me working on you plan and layout. My advice is to share copies of those files with Tech Support. The problem seems to be in drawing errors within your plan file causing it to crash when printed. A vexing situation but one which I cannot solve for you. DJP

What does the "error message" state when you try to print That means that you have NOT yet successfully set up "Print - Page Set up" within HD Pro. Print settings are rather simple and straight forward but they are also completely unforgiving when setting errors are entered. Once you fully understand the print set up and page set up procedure you will get what you are after but NOT until you get it right. Your own statement proves that the settings are incorrect, if need be open the Reference Manual to the section on Printing and carefully study that material until you find out what was misunderstood by you. Only then will all be well. DJP

After reading your post, all I can say is that the exact architectural effect has not been communicated by you ( I have NO IDEA what you are trying to do in detail). That being the case others can also only guess as to advice to solve an unexpressed, in terms of detail problem. Is this stair underground? Is it inside or outside a structure? Does it connect two floors in a clerestory area? I have no idea and so useful help is uncertain. Post a picture that communicates the exact situation please. DJP

You picked a lulu of a "first project". This design requires advanced skills which take time to develop as a facility. I agree with Eric, take it slow, study-practice in simple test plans. Quit guessing as to what settings to make, open the reference manual and FIND OUT first (guessing just wastes time and makes success harder to come by). DJP

Text labels. DJP

Another method is to just use the Windows keyboard command: "Control Key-Print Screen" (CTRL-PSCR), Which places whatever is on your desktop on the Windows Clipboard as an image which you can then open in Windows Paint or an image editor on your PC if you have one as an image. DJP

Professionals who do estimations for construction projects commonly use specialized software designed for that purpose. I never did do estimation work professionally except as a remodeling contractor and always did so manually using a calculator only. When I started using Chief Premier I used the materials list to some degree to gain raw data but keep in mind that whether using Chief Premier or Home Designer the materials list is only as accurate as the quality and detail of your plan file. I would be surprised if any users here actually do professional estimating (most of the pros I know of use Chief like me for raw data and use a second program to do the estimating work. You might post at Chief Talk and get some actual suggestions as to what software to look into or just do a "Google Search" for construction estimating software. DJP

You can place custom shaped soffits and place them in the wall-floor platform gaps, setting their material to match the wall. That is the most straight forward way to patch such imperfections up. I would first check all room dialog box-structure tab settings and default settings-Current floor settings to see if I had any wrong settings that might be causing the gaps as well. DJP

For complicated roof systems, Pro is your best choice, none of the other Home Designer titles have Manual Roof Tools, only Pro. Still, you might be able to do your roof in Architectural but the wall and Room Specification Dialog box settings would have to be PERFECT in order to do so as that is the only way you have of guiding the roof generator to a result (through settings alone). Upgrading to Pro is no free ride in that manually editing and creating roof planes has its own skills which must be learned and mastered to really perform and that is up to you, not the software. DJP

Since you have Architectural you will have to make the arches in Sketch Up and then import into Architectural as symbols. Only Chief Premier can do those arches natively. DJP

The video above is by Dan Baumann of Minnesota but I thought it so good it should be shared, thank you! DJP

Did you make a single change and then inspect that change before making more changes? Since I do not know exactly what you are trying to do in detail, I cannot further comment. Other than to suggest you share your terrain plan (.plan file) along with a copy of your terrain map. Without that data, no one can do anything but guess. DJP

If you have Home Designer Pro you could draw a closed polyline around anything and then open the polyline's dialog and see how much it encloses in terms of square feet. Those titles that have the enclosed polyline tool should also work, if what you have does not then your only solution is to upgrade to Pro or Premier. DJP

You can select a wall and then move it with your keyboard arrow keys, setting the increment of move in General Plan Defaults, you can simply drag wall objects inside or out but the best method is using dimensions to make precise object moves and edits. It just requires some Reference Manual study and then practice to get the hand-eye coordination down. DJP

I have NEVER successfully used "Points" to generate 3D terrain, They are too difficult to edit (one wrong point value ruins the whole terrain object and they are HARD to find often times anyway) after being placed and do not generate useful terrain. I never use them anymore. What I do is to import and then scale a terrain map with graphic contour lines and then trace over those graphic contours with elevation splines and input the contour values per spline (get the data from the graphic document until I have the major ones. It is unnecessary to draw every contour shown in a terrain document, surveyors use dedicated, VERY expensive GPS software to produce such maps and the data that software they use would overwhelm most average PC's like yours or mine, keep it simple and when changing terrain objects, it wise to check with camera views the veracity of such changes as you make them (DO NOT PLACE LOTS OF POINTS OR OTHER TERRAIN OBJECTS FIRST AND ONLY THEN CHECK THE RESULTS). Once the terrain is created and edited only then do you set the terrain plane TO the house or structure 3D model again using elevation camera views. You vary the value in the "Building Pad" input, unchecking using the automatically set value the software sets (the software rarely gets that value right). DJP PS: Terrain Points effect terrain changes concentrically and do not, cannot emulate actual terrain. I use lines, mainly splines and also terrain regions and occasionally a terrain break object