visualarq

[yorik]

Food for thought... VisualARQ is an Arch/BIM plugin for Rhino: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hfPfvqC5fj0

I think our Arch module begins to compare quite decently to this one... There are a couple of ideas to grab here, that might not be too hard to add, though...

[saso]

When we come close to this we will absolutely have a winner It is however IMO now more about the user experience instead of adding more tools. Over time we will of course want more tools for all the different things we want to do, but we should not ignore for example the cat how simple it is to place edit and move a door in the above video.

[bitacovir]

When we come close to this we will absolutely have a winner It is however IMO now more about the user experience instead of adding more tools. Over time we will of course want more tools for all the different things we want to do, but we should not ignore for example the cat how simple it is to place edit and move a door in the above video.

A CAD CAM software like FreeCAD with many other areas of work such as mechanical design, robotic, etc. is difficult to change for a specific workflow style for architects, I guess. In addition, there is no many developers working in the arch module. I think focusing on the development of a very good box of tools and functions is a first priority.

[JAndersM]

I think focusing on the development of a very good box of tools and functions is a first priority.

Some minor changes for better user experience in Arch that I have thought of:
* Separating the organizing tools and the construction tools in the toolbar. First time I tested Arch I thought floor was a tool for creating floors not organizing a story. Also rearranging the rather messy menus. (I have done this in my ArchGui and can post it if there is interest.)
* Have grid settings for new Arch documents that is reasonable for buildings (and can be set in Arch preferences) like 10x10 m, 0.1 m grid.
* Same as above for view (camera) when creating a new Arch document
* Right-click in treeview to add organizing objects like building, floor etc. Also VisGroup by right clicking would be nice to be able to colouring groups of objects easily.

Then there are other that takes more coding:
* Better preset structures and handling. The current needs further development
* Usage of .FCStd files for storing preset windows/doors would enable user-designed windows/doors and sharing of standard designs (using BOLT?)

[saso]

A CAD CAM software like FreeCAD with many other areas of work such as mechanical design, robotic, etc. is difficult to change for a specific workflow style for architects, I guess.

I absolutely agree we should not be stretching FC in to one direction (eg architecture) and should look for generic solutions that work well for different disciplines and workflows, but having a simple and fast way to place a bolt or a door in your model should not be to different and desired by all the different users. I am not negatively critical, just think it is good to set our goals high, even if we are not able to realize them all just now

[microelly2]

Strategic thinking means for me to get sometime a library with high level functions
which allows me to combine user interactions and methods in a simple way on demand.

* multitouch gestures
* an unified interface over Qt events and Openinventor events
* a simple extendable menu and toolbar system


These things will give speed to advanced users with some programming skills.

The use of such libraries can be done in new special workbenches or combined with existing ones.

I also look for simplification tools for children. Blockly is a good way for going first programming steps and to learn the formal description of workflows.

Kivy language is a good way to define layouts. I have started to combine the benefits if kivy and yaml in my miki syntax. It can already combine Qt, pivy, FreeCAD.Part. So I think about an easy interface for inputs (mouse, gesture, keyboard, network).

On top of this it should be possible to create a UI which is easy to change. So everyone can use a UI with his personal taste.
And for beginners there should be a GUI that is easy to learn and supported by menues and toolbars and online help.