How to identify what layer something is displayed on?

[caf200]

Background: My designer/builder is using Chief Arch X12 and I'm using Home Designer Pro 2021.  He shares the files with me and I do minor edits but he does the big ones.  (I can't use the most current version because of the graphics card requirements).

 

Problem: He sent me the latest plan (zipped) but I couldn't see the furniture.  I had all my related "Layer Display Options" turned on (fixtures and furniture) for my arch/floor plan and 3D camera views.  Turns out he created a custom layer name for our furniture and had it off for some of this work.  In HD, you can not see custom layers or toggle them off | on.  He reuploaded another plan with the layers turned on and I could see them (at least in the arch/floor plan view but not in the 3D camera view).

 

Question: In trying to understand this problem, I was trying to determine for any fixture, furniture, or anything else what layer it is associated with. I could see it in the arch/floor plan so I was trying to figure out it's "layer" so I could check the layer options in the 3D layers settings.   I have no idea if that information is available -- ie. what specific layer something is "tied" to.

I thought maybe it was the components ID (see attached) but that does not seem to be it.  

 

Perhaps you cannot determine what layer something is on and you have to guess?  Or they (CA) believes it is just obvious.  I read thru the help but it didn't help.

 

[DavidJPotter]

I assume that your Chief User created one or more custom layers and those custom  layers do not show in HD Pro 2021 or any other version of HD Pro. We Chief Users create custom layers all the time and place different object on different layers because we can. Home Designer Users cannot, period, dorry.

 

DJP

[solver]

6 hours ago, caf200 said:

Question: In trying to understand this problem, I was trying to determine for any fixture, furniture, or anything else what layer it is associated with.

 

Select an object, look in the Status Bar.

[caf200]

11 minutes ago, DavidJPotter said:

I assume that your Chief User created one or more custom layers and those custom  layers do not show in HD Pro 2021 or any other version of HD Pro. We Chief Users create custom layers all the time and place different object on different layers because we can. Home Designer Users cannot, period, dorry. DJP

 

Correct the design/builder created a custom layer with furniture that I placed with using the fabric/look from our existing furniture that we will take and place in various rooms of the new house.

 

Well I wasn't complaining that my HD software doesn't have the capability to created custom layers like CA software does. I get that. 

 

What I think sucks and is an oversight is when a CA plan is shared with a HD user that the "Layer Display Options" (LDO) lines cannot be seen even if greyed out and non-toggleable (ie. Disp or Lock column in the LDO dialog.  It just makes for a lot of confusion the way it is setup for sharing.  I do understand that, currently, the CA user needs to make sure they go into the LDO to turn on layers before saving and sharing to a HD user.

 

Anyway, I appreciate your response. I'm a retired developer so I look at usability and use cases closely especially when I'm the guinea pig

[caf200]

33 minutes ago, solver said:

 

Select an object, look in the Status Bar.

 

Doh! Thx. I was lost amongst the tree and missed the forest.   

 

Perhaps I missed it but all my reading on Object Layers I never came across that. Perhaps I overlooked it.  I did also see 'Drawing Group' in the status bar that I never paid attention to. When I looked that up in the help it seemed to quickly point out that it is in the Status Bar.  My complaint should be with tech support so they can have the help developers update it. As a past developer, we spent a ton of time making the software "obvious" to use when possible but the help was very critical too.  In general CA/HD help is very very good.

 

[update] I'm relooking at the help and I do see mention of the Status Bar under "Layer Attributes". I just glossed over it when reading so much in that pursuit. [/update]

 

The Status Bar at the bottom of the main program window displays information about the current state of the program.
This information depends on a variety of conditions such as settings in the Preferences dialog, the type of object selected, and the current position of the pointer. The information may include the following:
• The type of object currently selected or the total number of group-selected objects.
• A description of the edit handle that the pointer is over.
• A brief description of the toolbar button or menu item highlighted by the mouse.
• The name of the active tool, a brief description of that tool, and its hotkey, if it has one.
• The length and/or angle of an object as it is being drawn.
• Basic information about a selected library object, folder, or catalog.
• The current floor.
• The layer that the selected object is on.
• The selected object’s Drawing Group.
• The size of the active window in pixels.
• The current CAD coordinates of the mouse pointer.