It is time for renewal-let Autodesk know what they have missed to fix

[acbsdesign]

Hello Advance Steel Users,

It is time for maintenance and subscription renewal for Advance Steel.

It is time now to inform your re-seller what is necessary to be improved as soon as possible, and that they have to be pro-active not only during the last two months of the year.

I will start with a few items that have been overlooked over the years, I hope everyone can add a few hot ones too:

1. Overall drawing stability-dimensions moving during update-end of 2017-and still same issues -improved, but still moving.

2. Overall drawings stability-Section views regenerate and move during update, even if once deleted or moved, they re-generate and re-position at their original location

3. Compass marks re-generate and move over dimensions and details during update.

4. Labels move on erection drawings during update -even jumping above adjacent beams. (....Here I will try to stay calm)

5. Anchor Bolts macro is missing-tables with anchors do not work well.

6. Clipping in model views is turning off on one side with no reason

7. Bolts generator-please see idea station, explodable in general, with possibility to weld nut or bolt in the shop

8. Document manager to be improved-please see idea station

This post is for the Real Advance Steel Users, and it is not addressed to people not doing real detailing.

Regards,

Ilko Dimitrov

[iwafb]

Some more items we are regularly finding issues with, and hope to be fixed/incorporated someday soon.

- Cloning of drawings.

https://forums.autodesk.com/t5/advance-steel-ideas/clone-manual-modifications-from-one-drawing-to-th...

- Ability to perform simple tasks (example query distances) without closing dialogues. See ideas station (several requests).

- General dialogue improvements. See ideas station (several requests).

- Purlin lap macro fixes.

https://forums.autodesk.com/t5/advance-steel-forum/please-fix-purlin-lap-macro/m-p/7332093#M12591

- Ability to split assemblies over several drawings.

https://forums.autodesk.com/t5/advance-steel-ideas/process-to-split-large-assemblies-over-multiple-d...

- Fix coordinate dimension start points on split views.

https://forums.autodesk.com/t5/advance-steel-ideas/coordinate-dimensions-in-callout-views/idi-p/7063...

- Ability to copy and paste dimensions and labels for similar details and general drawing editing improvements.

https://forums.autodesk.com/t5/advance-steel-ideas/copying-dimensions-from-one-detail-to-another/idi...

https://forums.autodesk.com/t5/advance-steel-ideas/make-drawing-editing-easier/idi-p/7411348

https://forums.autodesk.com/t5/advance-steel-ideas/similar-label-selection/idi-p/6809125

- Improvements to view management.

https://forums.autodesk.com/t5/advance-steel-forum/restoring-previous-display-without-affecting-proj...

- Ability to ignore forced updates.

https://forums.autodesk.com/t5/advance-steel-ideas/ability-to-reset-update-required-status-of-drawin...

Cheers.

Dart

[andrejpa]

Partial cut view and Create Detail dialog - restore functionality of version 2017.0.

https://forums.autodesk.com/t5/advance-steel-ideas/partial-section-views/idc-p/7212226#M2091

https://forums.autodesk.com/t5/advance-steel-ideas/new-create-detail-dialog-in-as2017-1-more-hindran...

[acbsdesign]

THESE HAVE BEEN SUBMITTED IN IDEA STATION-I am not attaching links for each of them-there is a search tool and all can be found easy:

1. Grid lines-to appear on all erection plans
2. Base pate macro improvements-holes in leveling plates and plate washers to be 1/16" larger than the anchor bolts by default, not "same as base plate" as they are now-this does not make any sense, leveling plates fix the anchors location, washer plates are present due to oversized holes in base plates.
3. Allow manual depth control for automatic views
4. Create real welds as solids in the model, bevel the members using these solids as a cutting element, in any shape and curve-this is critical for the bridge fabricators
5. Choose Destination folder during batch plot
6. UCS placed at object to be with Y-axis up, not with Z pointing down 
7. (New) Destination dwg for section views
8. Options to rev down dwgs and edit revision for multiple sheets at once, not one by one-having a 300-500 dwgs revved up by PM's mistake, modified, it will take a while to rev down all dgws
9. Double clip connection macro-one clip shop bolted to main, other clip to main to be field bolted-this is a very common practice to ease erection / fabrication, currently we explode this macro in order to work.
10. Concrete fillet pan stairs-Add real Light Gauge Material, not 1/16" or 1/8"
11. Concrete fillet pan stairs-Add macro for pans at landings-this is missing 
12. Breaks in extension lines in dimensions
13. Horizontal Through Plates-Moment Plates to HSS column
14. Shear Plate to be detailed with punch mark (connection side) Near Side
15. Finish of bolts to be included in connections macro
16. Stop annoying movement of cut view symbols during detail update
17. Modification of external lists prior to PDF export
18. Option for Manual labels for slotted holes-now diameter and length has to be entered manually as tokens
19. Beam dwg style-repetitive dim’s, ordinate dim’s too far, absolute dim’s to be aligned
20. Intelligent bolt pattern dimensioning, by clicking on the first hole rest to be dimensioned
21. Call-out Detail-Bottom attribute to be centered
22. Bolts-N or X to be taken automatically based on bolts orientation and plies connected
23. Moment Connection Macro-Different values for cuts at top and bottom flanges
24. Grid and Elevation List on MP drawings
25. Explicit quantity for Dummy ‘Assembly parts’ to be an option
26. Locate Cut Symbols at Points of Cut View Creation
27. Intelligent Connections to Cambered Plate Girders-shear plate, stiffener plate
28. Option to show elevation of members in the model
29. Command 'Hide detailed parts'
30. Different Values for X and Y clipping
31. Dimension hole pattern in beam flanges to first hole only-ordinate and absolute dimensions combination for cleaner drawings
32. Moment Connections-Backing Bar dimensions and alignment
33. Automatically renumber Cut Views when a Cut View is deleted-option in MT
34. Different value for clipping of stiffener plates along X and Y-this is State DOTs' requirement-Please include this, we need it very often.

Regards,

Ilko Dimitrov

[acbsdesign]

This was sent to my re-seller, and to a few Autodesk Employees to have a look what we are dealing with-after a simple update section views re-generated and moved, hole labels moved, section view symbols moved.

The negligence of this development management is unbelievable. Let your re-seller know what is going on.

We definitely need a new driver, and I do not care if we are called "The Mob" or just real users.

[FCort]

You are correct. Default assembly drawings need to improve a lot (standard beams with clip angles, any program can do that) . Show only the necessary information and the necessary sections with labels in the right place.
Learn from your software competitors. Or at least pay a consultant from http://www.nisd.org/.

[acbsdesign]

@FCort,

The idea to hire consultant from NISD is very good.

I hope Autodesk will read this and do something.

Regards,

Ilko Dimitrov

[acbsdesign]

35. Show newly created elements in model during 3D Model view update similar to cameras. Currently new elements do not show on 3D View during update.

[FCort]

35.1 After update these new parts don't appear in any drawing that were created without cameras. We need to show these parts without having to generate from scratch a new drawing.

[acbsdesign]

36. Double angle connection Main to 2 secondary beams: (2) clips shop bolted to the Main beam, other (2) clips field bolted to each secondary beam .

[acbsdesign]

21. Call-out detail-text to be centered on both detail and call-out - please do not disregard this one, it is not a "small thing" an application manager called it-just it does not look good. It looks like it is done by a shoemaker. And we are not shoemakers.

[Anonymous]

My comment is simply if 2018.2 is not released before the end of my maintenance period

we shall not be renewing it. 

Don't hold your breath