Hello, welcome to this video! In this video we'll see all the amazing 2D
features inside Graphisoft ArchiCAD 21, and all you need to know to start
using this software for the first time.
Leave us comments in the video description to improve our next guides for
Graphisoft ArchiCAD!
When you open ArchiCAD, a dialog box opens, this is used to either start
with an empty project with Create a New Project, or to open an existing one
with Open a Project. When choosing the first option, set your favorite
template below, and then go to New.
When opening a new document, the whole software workspace appears. This
is composed of several Toolbars, such as the Standard one on top; and
several Palettes, such as the Info Box on top, the Toolbox on the left, and
the Statusbar at the bottom. You can also open and close Toolbars and
Palettes by going to Window, and then to Toolbars or Palettes.
All the tools used to draw inside your project are collected inside the
Toolbar on the left. The Design section lists all the tools to draw in 3D,
such as walls, doors and roofs; and the Document section lists all the ones
to drop 2D objects, which are very useful for designing floor plans.
In this video we will demonstrate how to work with the 2D tools inside the
Document section. If you are interested in 3D projects, check out the next
video in this guide!
The Line Tool is used to draw single segments on your workspace. Just set
a beginning or initial point, and then click once again to fix length and
inclination.
Use the Arc/Circle Tool to draw arcs and circles. In this case you need
to set three points: one to set the center, another for the radius, and the
last one for the arc length.
The Polyline Tool is used to drop consecutive straight sides or curves, by
sharing the last fixed node, indicated as a black cross. You can go on
drawing straight sides by using Straight segment, or start drawing arcs
by choosing another drawing mode from the dialog box. To stop drawing, you
can close the overall path, or click on the last node. In these cases, your
pencil icon becomes black.
In case you make a mistake, you can undo any action by using CTRL+Z. To
undo a drawing that is in progress, just use the Escape key.
All of these 2D drawings lay on the Ground Floor by default, with no
height. So you won't see these when you preview your project with any 3D
point of view in the tabs on top.
ArchiCAD has several aids to help you in designing your objects correctly.
While drawing an object, several dashed lines appear, indicating the main
horizontal direction (as X axis) and the vertical one (Y axis), including
inclinations at every 45 degrees.
Additionally, a small dialog box measures the direct distance between the
last fixed node (the black cross) and your current pointer, right under
Distance. Under Angle, you will get the inclination in respect to the X
axis, taken as reference.
If you want to insert numbers instead of using your pointer, you can
type directly with your keyboard, and move up and down with your Up and
Down Arrow keys. If you need to navigate below any further, you can also
set the horizontal position (as X Coordinate) or and the vertical one (as
Y Coordinate). The Z Coordinate is always zero, since 2D drawings lay on
the ground completely.
When everything is set up, just use the Enter key to set the drawing point.
Positions and distances use the same measurement unit chosen inside the
ArchiCAD options. To change and set them, just go to the Options tab, then
to Project Preferences, Working Units....
Another important tool is the Text Tool, used to design text and
annotations on your project. First set two points to create the text area,
which locates the text on your document. Then, just type in the desired
text, adjusting the text distribution, spacing and properties on top, such
as font family, height, color and style. To edit existing text, make sure
to select it first, in order to make changes effective.
To apply text, just click elsewhere. You can edit it again by enabling the
Arrow Tool, and double-clicking on the text object.
Remember that you can quickly check your 2D objects by zooming in and out
with your mouse wheel.
The Info Box on top is very useful, since it shows, for the enabled tool
from the Toolbox, several properties and options to control your drawing.
For example, when you enable the Line, the Arc/Circle or the Polyline tool,
you can change the way to draw these objects under Geometry Method; the
line style under Line Type, and the line color under Pen.
In case you use the Text Tool, you can change the font family under Font
Type, the font height and inclination under Font Size and Rotation, the
text style and distribution under Text Style and Alignment, and the text
color under Text Pen.
For the full list of properties, just click on the button under the Default
Settings section.
When you draw among existing objects on your document, your pointer changes
shape depending on the object keypoints you are hovering on. Objects nodes,
vertices and centers are indicated through checkmarks, points on the sides
and curves through star triangles, and midpoints through horizontal marks
on the object itself.
Besides these, you can also show blue guidelines, which extend any object
side or radius on your project. If you hover over an object side for some
time, a dashed guideline shows up. If you hover over a curve, its arc will
be extended. If you hover over any keypoint, this will be taken into
account to create other guidelines, that will interact with the others. To
delete all the guidelines created, just use the Escape key.
Now, let's see how to edit your objects.
To start editing, you have to select the object first. Just enable the
Arrow Tool, and click on the object to select it. This will be represented
in a green color, with all its vertices shown as black nodes.
At this point, when you select a node or a side, a dialog box shows up,
with several tools to edit the object as you like. These are divided in two
rows: the first one lists all the tools to edit the node or the side
selected, whereas the second row lists all the tools acting on the whole
drawing. Let's check the most important ones.
Choose Drag to move the object. Choose Rotate to rotate the object, by
setting the rotation point, the radius, and then the angle of rotation.
Choose Mirror to mirror the object, by setting two points.
Choose Multiply... to create copies of the object, creating an array with
a regular shape defined.
Let's see all the tools listed in the first row. If you click on a node,
you can use Move node to move the selected node; Fillet/Chamfer to regulate
the shape of a vertex as you like, applying a defined radius. Choose Offset
all edges to adjust the object size by fixing an offset from its contours.
When you choose a side, use Insert new node to add a new vertex. Use Curve
edge and Edit segment using tangent to curve or adjust the side. Use Offset
edge to edit the object shape by applying an offset just on the selected
path.
While editing Arcs and Circles, you can use Radial stretch to fix the
arc/circle radius, and choose Angular Stretch to adjust the Arc length.
To undo any modification in progress, remember to use the Escape key.
To cut, copy and paste a selected object, just right-click on it.
You can also edit multiple objects at the same time by selecting all of
them. To do this, simply enable the Arrow Tool, and then set two points to
create a grey selection area, that will select all the objects that touch
it.
If you prefer to select objects one by one, just click on each of them by
holding Shift down.
The Standard bar on top lists other advanced 2D editing tools. Let's
take a look.
The Trim tool is used to cut parts of the drawings delimited by either
nodes or sides.
The Split tool cuts a selected object in two. Just set two points to
define the direction, and then select the side you want to select first.
The Adjust tool sets the sides length in order to align all of them
to a defined edge. You just have to draw this edge by setting two points.
The Intersect tool is used to stretch two sides, in order to create a
vertex. Simply select the two sides, and then click on the tool.
The Resize... tool is used to size an object correctly. Take a look!
Another very useful 2D tool is the Fill Tool, used to add filling and color
to all 2D drawings with a closed shape.
When you enable this tool, you can directly draw a fill drawing in
different ways, depending on what you choose under Geometry Method inside
the Info Box. You can draw a simple rectangle, or a customized polygon
shape by setting several nodes.
In case you already have a 2D contour, you can apply fill by holding the
Spacebar down, and clicking within it. The fill will cover all the empty
space until it meets the closest boundaries.
The fill that is created is an independent object, that you can move
outside the contour, and edit it as seen for 2D drawings. If you want to
keep the countour, an it's , just select both and go to edit,
Grouping, and then to Group.
The Info Box lists everything you need to customize the fill appearance.
Under Fill Pattern, select the kind of pattern to use. Under Fill Pen, you
can choose the Foreground and the Background color of the pattern chosen.
Under Outline Type select the line style for the fill contour, and its
color under Contour Pen.
Additionally, under Construction Method, you can edit the way to distribute
the pattern inside your fill.
You can also import images and photos inside your ArchiCAD document. If you
enable the Drawing Tool, and click on the document, you can browse for your
picture. Select it, and import it by clicking on Open.
This picture is delimited by a 2D contour that you can edit as seen for
standard 2D drawings. You can also crop the image.
Whereas, if you want to size the picture, make sure to use Stretch.
Now, let's see how to save and export your document!
To save and export, just go to File and then to Save As.... Set where
to save your document and its name, and decide its format. Choose a .pln
format to save your work as an ArchiCAD document, in order to open and edit
it at another time. Select a .pdf document to render your project to
view or print it. In this case, check Page Options... to set the page size
and layout to use. Use Document Options... to set additional options to
export your work, such as zoom, grids and positioning.
Thanks for watching this video! Check out the next one in this guide to
see how to work with 3D projects with Graphisoft ArchiCAD 21!