Kbird1

If you have an interested in VideoCard performance ie you are considering buying a new one , you may like to check this post I made on Chieftalk comparing some ... https://chieftalk.chiefarchitect.com/topic/17455-x10-windows-7-video-card/?do=findComment&comment=146497

With Exterior Walls it has always been best to Open the Wall DBX and Change it there , due to these weird Issues , especially if for example you do want a different material on the Gable than the main part of the house , ie Shingles vs Siding. M.

https://www.homedesignersoftware.com/support/article/KB-00358/automatically-building-a-one-and-a-half-story-roof.html the Tutorial above is the basics...... it will depend on whether you House is built with the Roof coming off the 1st floor wall plates ( see tutorial) which it probably is if a Converted one or two storey Home Originally. If they sit on the Floor of the Attic, you will need to Raise the Height so it frames correctly like this..... Make the Second Floor 1 1/2" ( wall plate thickness) high when you create it not 24" in the Tutorial above , in the Roof Build DBX (dialog box) - check ignore Top Floor - make the raise birdsmouth setting about 10 1/2" , so the Rafter will sit on the Wall Plate ( created above) on top of the Floor. ( assuming Std HD Floor thickness) The Stair should now go up and you can create a Stairwell

After you hit Build new Floor>etc........try this .... Minimize Suite and see if the Dialog Box (DBX) is hiding behind the Main Window , which can happen if you click the main window making it the "Focus" for Windows. You can also check the taskbar and see if there is a second Icon (which maybe Flashing it needs attention)

you can also make a base cabinet the width of the range ( 30"?) and make it Dept the same as the Backsplash tile (1/4") and make the countertop overhang 0" on all sides (uniform) and slide it in against the Wall. Then slide the Range in against it ... Since you have Pro, Eric's idea of the Custom Backsplash works well too. M.

Chief x10 / HD 2019 has an all new Lighting Engine, which is causing Issues for many , especially with Older hardware / Drivers. Older AMD cards also have an issue with AO which produces Rings in the Image if set High, so they advise to turn it Off. Also if the Videocard memory is low ie <4GB, I think there maybe slowness too, cards with 1GB and 2GB will still Run it but the Settings will be lower as the card then has to use system Ram too , and if that is also low well...... I personally think the new Engine was "brought to market" early and we are currently all Beta Testers , even with the new Released Versions , as evidenced by their mad rush to remake all the Chief Core Libraries and their Materials , something that should of been done Sooner since those of us on the Beta team have been reporting issues for a number of Months especially with Reflections , all clear glass is a particularly bad one and is hard to see in most views for items like WineGlasses or Light Fittings etc.. Can I get shadows yes , (with E.L. On as noted).... playing with the Sun Angles helps.... see pics below.... one anomaly I just experienced while making this Kitchen for the Pics was I made a Monolithic slab 1st and it was like a moonlit night in the Kitchen , deleted the mono-slab and built a standard basement and the kitchen lights "came back on" . You can also see the subtle shadows in AppleWalkers Pic above , ie from the Island (?) or the rings from the pendant light...

I meant for Testing only ...you are correct with it OFF you don't get Shadows or Reflections , in the new Version I have found that Shadows and reflections are more subdued, ( reflections aren't good as noted above anyway) but playing with the Sun Angle and Tilt in an Exterior View helps , the Default Sun doesn't make great Shadows inside , and of course Shadows change once you start adding lighting. If you don't add lighting in Interiors then HD will add a single Light in the Centre of the Room , since it needs at least one light to produce the View. The advice on ChiefTalk is also to always built a Foundation and Roof to Control the Lighting as well, even if you Model doesn't need one eg a kitchen or Bathroom Reno and is even more important for PBR and Raytrace views to stop light "Bleed" M.

Hi Jo. yes something is amiss I agree.... Reflections are another Issue and poor in ALL versions of Chief Products I have seen ,due to the new Lighting Technique and Shadows used, Chief is working on all new Materials for the Core Catalogs and is putting Updates online about once a week ( Use the Update Catalogs Menu Item ) they have stated , they are having to change all the material definitions due to the new Technique (PBR) and now Materials don't have reflective properties , not even in Raytrace in Chief which is an issue for many. Do you have Hardware lines on High? it is set low by default I think ? to allow for poorer Video Cards initially , then like the Old "Final View" edge smooth while Idle will enhance once the Camera is not moving. I do not have any of the HD 2018 titles and only use the Pro Trial ( 2019) to test for here and see what it is capable of, so i am not sure what Settings you have or don't have to play with, so perhaps I can't help much?

Of course I read it ....would I of have answered if not ? Just trying to help and add some Ideas to try.... I already stated there are known Issues with AMD Cards and that C.A. is working on it....can they fix it ? your guess is as good as mine. You are not the only one with the Issue unfortunately , and it may mean a new VideoCard or sticking with an older Version of the Programs. As AppleWalker pointed out you could try unchecking " use enhanced lighting " , this should ALWAYS be ON , Chief has stated on Chieftalk and only turned off if Tech Supports suggests it for Trouble Shooting. If you have a reasonable VideoCard then set Hardware lines to High too. M.

Turning Off Ambient Occlusion is a fix for AMD Cards and the new PBR Views in Chief , it is a known issue ... it does not help with Standard View AFAIAA , personally I don't like AO anyway so only have it at 15-20% and I think Bloom "softens" the View too much as well..., but the 2019 Titles and X10 seem to need way more "Light" in STD View to make them look good ...about double, so add plenty or turn the one's you have Up....way Up... at least that whatI had to do to the Images below that looked good in X9. The new Sun lux setting seems to have little effect in STD View but in PBR (x10 only 500-2000 works) it is hugely different. I would say you need to play with your Lighting....and if you haven't added any ? then that is the issue perhaps , you can no longer rely on HD to provide "automatic" lighting and get away with it as even with the Interior Ambient at 50-60% it is not enough on it's own. , then again perhaps the AMD Cards have other Issues too? I use a Nvidia 1070ti now... Another post on AMD and AO issues.... https://chieftalk.chiefarchitect.com/topic/17322-chief-x10-lousy-camera-views/ Post Your Plan and let Eric or I or DJP have a look at it..... Also, it's good to have your Forum Signature filled in, especially with the Software Version, and of course a Name is nice too ..............see mine below in Blue for how to do that. If you don't see my Signature then you have them turned off for the Forum Toggle it on in UserName>Account >Signatures...... go to the Upper RH Corner of Forum Window. M.

As far as I know the Paints are free to ALL versions of Home Designer and Chief Titles : https://3dlibrary.chiefarchitect.com/index.php?r=site/detail/716 https://3dlibrary.chiefarchitect.com/index.php?r=site/detail/715 https://3dlibrary.chiefarchitect.com/index.php?r=site/detail/718 https://3dlibrary.chiefarchitect.com/index.php?r=site/detail/717 and I thought some libraries HD Users could buy now? M.

your other thread.... https://chieftalk.chiefarchitect.com/topic/17205-need-help-with-roof-newbie-here/?do=findComment&comment=144470

you need to know the pitch of the front and back roofs, then change the roof pitch in the Front (bottom) and Rear (Top) Wall's DBX on the Roof Tab. If you don't know the pitch use your Cellphone with a Level App to get it..... this KBA should help https://www.homedesignersoftware.com/support/article/KB-00871/changing-the-pitch-of-a-single-roof-plane.html Ps DBX is forum shorthand for dialog box

Select the text in the DBX before changing the size in the dropdown menu or it defaults back to the original size when you close the DBX

Sounds like it might be an Activation Server Error , if you tried to reinstall without deactivating 1st , it maybe confused , so likely Tech Support or CS are the only ones who can help. During biz hours there is usually a Chat Rep on the Product Page and they also use Skype too. https://www.homedesignersoftware.com/company/contact.html This KBA may give you some more info: https://www.homedesignersoftware.com/support/article/KB-01028/installing-home-designer-on-multiple-computers.html M.