4ndrew Posted January 23, 2015 Share Posted January 23, 2015 Suddenly (and I mean since last night) I'm finding I can't paint interior walls... Just to see if it was the file, I created a new file with roughly a 20x20 space with exterior walls; inside, I put a single 4' wall and found I cannot paint it. What am I missing? thanks, Andrew Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DavidJPotter Posted January 23, 2015 Share Posted January 23, 2015 Each object (including Walls) has a "Specification Dialog" that has a "Materials Tab" which unerringly allows one to apply custom materials to the object. If you are using the "Material Painter" or "Materials Eye Dropper" tools without having studied followed by practice using the four differing "Modes" those tools are capable of then all sorts of nonsense and chaos can then ensue. I do not know what you did, I am guessing since you did not explain, in detail exactly what you did that apparently did not work. Not knowing how the software works or what to expect is something that takes time to see for yourself, that is how mystery then becomes useful knowledge. DJP Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4ndrew Posted January 23, 2015 Author Share Posted January 23, 2015 Hi David, I'm not at the computer with the demo, but here's what I did: 1) Create a space (about 30x30) using exterior walls. A roof appears. 2) Create an interior wall about 5' wide in the center of the space. 3) Grab the "spray paint can" and attempt to apply any finish. For me, this doesn't do anything; if I try to apply a finish to the wall of the room, however, or the floor, it works. There is little ambiguity about what I expected here... While experimenting, I put a pass-through opening in the wall, and found I could select a finish via a dialog box. However, the finish only applied to a horizontal strip about 1' high and 3' from the floor, across one surface of the freestanding wall. HUH? Further, as I understand it, even if I were able to be able to paint the wall, if I wanted to paint a single wall within a room, I'd have to open a dialog box, drill down, and select a finish? In other words, there's no keyboard-mouse combo that lets me apply a texture to a single wall? I find it hard to believe that would actually be true, as it seems to be one of the very fundamental things people want to do when exploring design options. cheers, Andrew Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kbird1 Posted January 23, 2015 Share Posted January 23, 2015 Cant try it right now but have a look at these too , if you ever have an issue it is a good place to start, lots of good info. http://www.homedesignersoftware.com/support/article/KB-00071/49/Home-Designer/Materials/Changing-the-Color-or-Material-of-a-Single-Wall.html http://www.homedesignersoftware.com/support/article/KB-00305/147/Home-Designer/Rooms/Changing-a-Rooms-Materials.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4ndrew Posted January 23, 2015 Author Share Posted January 23, 2015 Hi Mick- thanks for the note! Yes - saw that. (Hence the note regarding having to open a dialog to paint a single wall... awful!) I'll look into it more over the weekend & post back with any issues... regards, Andrew Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DavidJPotter Posted January 23, 2015 Share Posted January 23, 2015 Andrew, thank you for the reply. It is as I at first thought in that you are guessing what is to happen instead of finding out what to do and then practicing with that new knowledge. It is not a crime, we all did it (do it) as new users but I am just saying it is mostly a waste of your valuable time to merely guess how things work and then become miffed if your guess is wrong. The purpose of the Reference Manual, Knowledge Base Help Articles, Help Files and video tutorials is to find out with certainty what to do, when and why. It may seem old fashioned and conservative but learning how to do something before attempting to do that thing has worked out to be a positive thing for centuries. The battlefield is covered with the broken, dying and injured persons who "already know all about it". Find out how and then do by way of study followed by applied practice is my advice. DJP Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kbird1 Posted January 23, 2015 Share Posted January 23, 2015 I agree dialog boxes (DBX) and having to close them to apply settings are the bain of all Chief/HD Software Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4ndrew Posted January 23, 2015 Author Share Posted January 23, 2015 "The purpose of the Reference Manual, Knowledge Base Help Articles, Help Files and video tutorials is to find out with certainty what to do, when and why. It may seem old fashioned and conservative but learning how to do something before attempting to do that thing has worked out to be a positive thing for centuries." DJP True, but only in some cases, and only to an extent. Because this thread isn't about usability, I'll keep the noise to a minimum: There's no reason to believe I should not be able to paint an interior wall by clicking on it. Period. Further, I'm not sure why you'd suggest I'm guessing; there's a big difference between remembering and guessing. I tried it at least 5 times to see if I could figure out "what I was doing wrong". I did look through the online guide, but not exhaustively. If exhaustive research is needed to do something as basic as painting a wall... Or, I could ask this way: How do I paint a freestanding interior wall? If it's the case that I have to, for some reason, take extra steps to apply a surface treatment to an interior wall where I don't have to do the same to the room side of an exterior wall, something's wrong - either in the way the interface/application is designed, or it's a bug. For example, I pour orange juice the same way whether it's into a juice glass or a coffee mug - I don't need to pour it from a special container based on the target vessel. (For the record, I don't usually drink OJ from a coffee cup. But I have.) So... my guess is that it's a bug, as I can't find any reference that seems to indicate I'm making such a fundamental oversight. If I'm wrong, I'd greatly appreciate it if you would please point me in the right direction to the user guide. thanks, Andrew Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kbird1 Posted January 23, 2015 Share Posted January 23, 2015 I "think" the Painter works on a ROOM/FLOOR/PLAN basis .....for single walls I always use the Wall DBX to change the interior Walls Material type , in fact I rarely if ever use the Painter Tool at all. ( not an I.D. so not trying dozens of Colours to see what they look like) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kbird1 Posted January 23, 2015 Share Posted January 23, 2015 I should of looked in the KB earlier to clarify this , looks like I'm right abovehttp://www.homedesignersoftware.com/support/article/KB-00851/49/Home-Designer/Materials/How-to-Use-the-Material-Painter-Modes.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4ndrew Posted January 24, 2015 Author Share Posted January 24, 2015 Hey again Mick. FWIW I tried this on my Mac, too - same result. In fact, I notice now that an interior wall, when connected to an outside wall, seems to work properly; however, when it's not connected to another wall, it doesn't get molding, either... and when deleted, a "regular" interior wall disappears as it should. When a standalone wall is deleted, it leaves a hole in the ceiling and the floor.... hmmm... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kbird1 Posted January 24, 2015 Share Posted January 24, 2015 Hi feel free to post your plan and pics of the issue or send it to tech support if you think it is a Bug but I am not sure you are getting the fact, that to change one wall only you must use the Wall DBX and the materials Tab , not the Painter Tools , per the KB Article. I am not sure the Program works the way you think it should , maybe I misunderstand the issue since you have not posted any examples or a plan ? M. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4ndrew Posted January 24, 2015 Author Share Posted January 24, 2015 I made a video - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gsxi04vy4Ss&feature=youtu.be Let me know if that helps... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kbird1 Posted January 24, 2015 Share Posted January 24, 2015 Yes I got what you meant , but you have run into a limitation of the Chief/HD software in that it cant do what you want, the way you want .......without knowing a HD Trick or two anyway, or what we here love to Call a "workaround" . You only get moldings in Rooms , and for whatever reason HD doesn't consider a free standing wall to be part of the Room ( it could be a piece of furniture for all HD knows) so the trick in this case is to use the Room Divider Tool (was called Invisible Wall till 2015) and join your free standing wall(s) to the exterior walls of the room and it will get molding and be able to be "painted" with the Painter Tool as well. However to put that strip on one wall it is far easier and faster just to spec that material on the Wall's material tab for either the interior or exterior side of the wall. If you select a wall in HD in Plan view the exterior side as HD "sees" it has an edit handle on it , in 2015 the new preview window in the DBX will also show you and you can spin it the wall if needed , make sure Standard view is on as vector view wont show the stripe. from the manual about the Painter Tool Material Painter Modes Component Mode By default, when you first activate the Material Painter, Component Mode is selected. This mode applies materials to the component of an object, when you click on that particular component. Example: To paint the door of a cabinet a different color, select Component Mode if it is not already selected by default, then use the Material Painter to change only the door. Exception: If you use component mode to apply materials to a wall, all the walls in the room change. To change a single wall, select the wall, open the specification, and select the material on the Materials panel. Mick 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4ndrew Posted January 24, 2015 Author Share Posted January 24, 2015 Excellent - THANK YOU. I think it goes without saying that I likely would not have found this in the user manual presented in such a straightforward way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kbird1 Posted January 24, 2015 Share Posted January 24, 2015 your welcome ...and I appreciate the Thank You message. Mick. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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