Minnesota Revit User Group (MNRUG) Meeting - April 20, 2011: Autodesk Revit 2012 New Features

Last Wednesday night at the MNRUG meeting, amongst the endless buffet bar of pizza deliciousness, topics discussed ranged from new Revit Blog sightings to Revit 2012 new features to meeting hosts Ryan Companies discussing what they like to see from us as the Architects when collaborating on a project.

Revit 2012 New Features:

Revit Server Integration
Faster work sharing in a WAN environment

Citrix

• Autodesk partnered with Citrix to provide better, more stable RDP/Cloud computing performance

Direct Point Cloud Support

• Directly import Point Clods into a Revit file
• Cuttable, traceable and can identify work planes within a Point Cloud

Linking Improvements

• Open linked files in the SAME SESSION!!! Yeah, that's right.
• Tag rooms in linked models - among other tagging improvements
• Keynote linked models
• "Sort By" options in the Link Manager

Work Sharing Improvements

• Integrated editing request modifications - no more instant messenger or phone calls - Revit provides balloon notifications now for editing requests.
• Color coded workset options - Color code by workset, owner, etc.
• You can now detach and discard worksets

Exporting to .dwg enhancements

• Specify, override and/or modify exporting layers
• Map Revit lines, patterns, texts and fonts, colors and solids to AutoCAD types
• Save multiple Export Setups in a project and transfer to other projects via Transfer Project Standards
• Dimensions now export AS DIMENSIONS! Not, as dumb, cruddy liens and text.

Enhanced Graphic Display Options

• Ghost Surfaces - make elements semi-transparent - by category, by view or by element
• Show Edges - You can show edges in any view style - no more "Shaded with Edges" style
• Show Ambient Shadows - formerly known as Ambient Occlusion except that Revit will now print/save ambient shadows.

3D View Enhancements

• Lock 3D view orientation
• Tag and note 3D views
• Lock and Restore options - You can lock and tag a 3D view, then move/pan/zoom around and Revit will remember the locked orientation and restore it back to the locked orientation with Tags and all.

3D Connection mouse ready
Revit now supports 3D mice

Create Tab
The Create Tab as a couple new features added onto it this time around:

• Create Parts:
• Allows you to select walls, etc and peel back layers, etc. This functions directly in a working view as well as more easily and freely than the Modify options within the Assembly Editor
• Create Assembly:
• Automatically (well as automatically that can be expected from a 1.0 feature) create "shop drawing" or assembly views of selected elements (Curtain mullions, etc.). This automatically creates section view, plans, elevations of the selected assemblies and categorizes them under their own "Assemblies" section of the Project Browser

Adaptive Components

• Adaptive components are no longer limited to mass families and curtain panel families. They can now be placed into a project.

Keyboard shortcuts

• Keyboard Shortcuts now support single key commands

Families

• Families can now cut other families within a project
• Export/Import Type catalogs
• Export/Save families from a selected family, group or view to your library

Miscellaneous User Interface Enhancements

• Starting View - Specify a view that the project opens to every time it is opened to improve performance
• Option to make elements appear semi-transparent upon selection
• Improved Grip display - crisper and gradient fills for better visibility
• Rotate Tool - You can now place the center of rotation without finding it and dragging