Select Reader Feedback: First Anniversary Collection

As the year 2004 draws to a close, AECbytes completes its first year of existence. It was formally launched on November 20, 2003 and published its inaugural issue on December 9, 2003. Since then, the content base has grown to 45 articles published to date, and the subscriber base has grown to over 1800, representing over a 100 countries from around the world. Over 23,000 pages are viewed by AECbytes readers a month.

None of this would have been possible without you, the readers, who have continued to sustain the publication with your interest. Many of you have also taken your valuable time to write in with your feedback, comments, and suggestions, making this an extremely enjoyable and interactive experience for me. Thank you!

To commemorate its first birthday, this issue of the AECbytes Viewpoint series is dedicated to you, the readers. It includes a compilation of select reader responses and feedback received throughout the year. In the absence of a formal "Letters to the Editor" section, these comments will serve to showcase what readers think about the publication and the issues that it covers. It was extremely difficult to keep this selection to a manageable read, from the overwhelming number of responses to choose from. My attempt was to present as diverse a spectrum as possible—in content, opinion, as well as location. I hope you find it an interesting read.

The comments are grouped according to the four broad categories of article type (Newsletters, Features, Reviews, and Viewpoints) and subsequently by the specific article they were written in response to.

Newsletters

Readers Weigh In on BIM, PEN, and Other Acronyms (April 7, 2004)

"I agree with your conclusions. I am not crazy about BIM either, but I think we should just accept it. The most important thing is to have a new name (not CAD) to signal to the world the dramatic change that this new use of technology will bring to the design and building industry and, secondly, that the acronym be pronounceable. BIM meets both the requirements, so let's move on to making it happen." Pat Douglas, AutoCAD instructor, USA

To BE or not to BE: Bentley's 2004 User Conference (May 27, 2004)

"Your most recent article on Bentley's work was most interesting. I particularly noted your references to Bentley's commitment to interoperability. Like so many other rapid prototyping shops, we find ourselves seriously considering a total migration to AutoCAD products because of the extraordinary amount of time spent dealing with file conversions. We find it is simply not acceptable these days to operate in the AEC community without being able to work on DWG. What surprises me is that, despite efforts of groups like the OpenDWG alliance, the ability to work with DWG files seems no better than it was 3 to 5 years ago. If Bentley can really seamlessly operate on DWG, it will be a true leap forward. If they are committed to open standards, then perhaps Bentley can be the keystone to DWG interoperability. I see an open file format as the most important factor in a successful and vibrant AEC marketplace." Name withheld

The Rise and Fall of Autodesk Architectural Studio (September 9, 2004)

"I've always read you eagerly and when I read about Autodesk's decision to discontinue Architectural Studio, I knew I had little to wait before receiving an AECbytes newsletter on it. In the meanwhile, I wondered what could have gone wrong and why, apart from the workflow limitations—Architectural Studio is so poorly interoperable with Autodesk's CAD and BIM software to make people doubt it is even an Autodesk product!—and the never-taking-off tablet PC platform. The modus operandi of senior architects is too deeply rooted in their way of thinking and designing, by many years, if not decades, of close relationship between eye and hand, thought and drawing, mind and paper. They aren't willing to move to an automated pen based system, unless the benefits are so compelling so as to trigger an entire revolution. I think Architectural Studio should have been (and its heir must be) not only fully interoperable with paper (scanners and printers) and software (CAD and BIM), but also easy to learn, platform and hardware (tablet PC) independent, and accessible to every architect. At the Faculty of Architecture in Genoa, we see dozens of students fighting on their notebooks with AutoCAD or Architectural Desktop to conceptually sketch on screen just like their senior teachers do on paper! If only they knew of Architectural Studio's existence and could get it easily, they would use it even with a common mouse. I think Autodesk should not only look beyond the mere sales results of Architectural Studio and towards the future evolution of the AEC software market, but also try and reach as many students and young architects as possible, even if it means giving Architectural Studio away for free!" Andrea Vian, Ph.D. Student and Instructor, Genoa Architecture University, Italy

"I always read the AECbytes news from my computer here in South Brazil and really like it. But about the article on Autodesk Architectural Studio, I would like to complete it if I could. I best-test all kinds of CAD software and hardware (I'm currently testing Revit, AutoCAD 2005, and Sketchup 4), and I can say that Autodesk missed one important key feature in Architectural Studio: the output. Sketchup did it very well: image export control, 3D DWG and 3DS, Piranesi, and so on, even AVI compressed. Architectural Studio had only the option to print it in large scale or have it exported to JPEG without any DPI levels/resolutions (essential to plot in colors or work it out in another software). Also, the communication with other Autodesk solutions was very poor—it only worked with Architectural Desktop or AutoCAD. Other missing features were 3D import, 2D and 3D integration, textures, measuring ability, and precision. I don't think the pen-based input was the problem, considering that even in Brazil we can get cheaper alternatives to tablet PCs such as tablet tables for about US $100. Please consider sending this to Autodesk so they can evaluate and consider a remake of our beloved Architectural Studio." Roberto Zaffari, Architecture student, PUC-RS, Brazil

BIM Goes Mainstream: Graphisoft's New Virtual Construction Solutions (November 15, 2004)

"Thanks for this excellent review of Graphisoft's progress in the application of BIM to link the design and construction phases of the life cycle. It is clear and compelling and I await your review of how it actually worked on a real project (Webcor Builders' California Academy of Sciences building)." Paul Teicholz, former director of CIFE, Stanford, USA

Autodesk University 2004 (December 7, 2004)

"Wonderful article. I was an AU attendee this year as for the past 5 years representing the educational field. I was most impressed with Mr. Kamen's keynote address." John Porta, CAD Instructor, High Tech North, USA

Feature Articles

Technology at Work at Gehry Partners: A Case Study (February 26, 2004)

"Congratulations!! Extremely informative and well written stuff—it was a pleasure to read." Naveen Makhija, Manager(GIS), RMSI, India

"I just got done reading your feature on Gehry Partners. It was as if I took a trip to their offices. Enjoyable reading, especially the links to Rhino and CATIA." Alamdar Arastu, Architect, US Department of Housing and Urban Development, San Francisco, USA

"I just wanted to let you know I enjoyed your AECbytes article on Gehry Partners. I found your conclusions about their workflow to be right on the ball—that through experimentation and experience, Gehry Partners found the tools and the workflow that works best for them. As a technology consultant for architecture firms in Manhattan, I have found that the really sophisticated firms typically approach technologies with a healthy skepticism—always asking how a particular piece of software or technology can help them do what they do, better. They understand that just because something is new or has all kinds of bells and whistles, that does not mean that it will be useful to them. So until that one magic solution that does everything well appears on the shelves (schematic, design development, 2D/3D presentations and visualizations, construction documents, fabrication, construction administration and building life cycle management), I find that I must learn as much as I can about the existing tools, so that I can help my clients make informed decisions. Thanks again for your insightful article. I look forward to future issues of AECbytes." Chaim Zeitz, Senior Systems Consultant, AP3D Consulting, USA

The IFC Building Model: A Look Under the Hood (March 30, 2004)

"I just finished reading the IFC Model article. Congratulations. I think it is a great piece. You did a nice job of making this topic accessible to the average building design professional, who is not an Express programmer or computer scientist by training. This piece will help a lot as an educational foundation for IFC's. I also appreciated the 'tone' of your article—you observed that there is much promise ahead but a lot of real work to do yet, and you rightly attribute some responsibility to us vendors for the state of the building industry. I agree with you on all points. Well done!" Mark Sawyer, CEO, @Last Software, USA

The Eureka Tower: A Case Study of Advanced BIM Implementation (June 2, 2004)

"Thank you for continuing to provide an extremely useful service to our industry. Regarding your very interesting case study concerning the Eureka Tower published just today, I always find it exciting to see advanced adoption of technology in the AEC community, especially applied to the real world. However, this case study appears to lack any reference to the use of true building information modeling other than tracking physical dimensions in 3D." Henry Purdy, Vice President of Product Management, Construction Software Technologies, Inc. / iSqFt, USA

Product Reviews

Meridian Project Systems' Prolog Application Suite (March 18, 2004)

"Nice piece on Prolog. A fair and balanced review. On another note, here's a harangue about your view that tools like Prolog and Constructware are somehow less useful because they do not buy into the BIM bandwagon. To me this is like saying a new car is flawed because the car maker has not taken hydrogen technology into account. When there is demand for 3D CAD viewers or an interface with BIM, you can bet we'll build it out. But since BIM is barely out of the (dare I say?) demonstration phase: 1) you can't expect vendors who cater more to the construction/PM/owner side to build something that none of their clients or prospects are asking for; and 2) which BIM flavor would you have us build for—Autodesk (proprietary) or Bentley? Or is it Graphisoft's schema? Ditto for the idea that our focus (Prolog, Constructware, Primavera, etc.) on 2D drawings is off base. The industry uses 2D drawings, that's the way it is. If someone said—'we're willing to help fund development of a 3D CAD viewer because it's that important to us'—I think MPS, Constructware, Primavera, whoever, would build that out. Hasn't happened yet. So don't dog us for not building out toolsets that no one is asking for. We respect the BIM value proposition but we have to be pragmatic." Steve Setzer, Director of Marketing and Communications, Constructware, USA

ArchiCAD 9 (September 23, 2004)

"I found your review very worthwhile, both for the clear description of new features, and its present shortcomings. Your vision of what BIM should be was fantastic and notable, for it focused where this product should be going. I had already paid for the upgrade, but had little idea what features it offered me (in terms of productivity) but your article gave me the info I needed to feel better about this perpetual upgrade cycle. Keep up your keen analysis and prodding." Scott Page, Designer, Berkeley, USA

"When will you have the Archicad 9 vs. Revit 7 shoot out? In my opinion these are the only two programs worth looking at." Mark A. Molina, Lucchesi Galati Architects, USA

Piranesi 4 (October 19, 2004)

"Thanks for a very enlightening review on Piranesi. I have watched it for some time, but all the reviews I read did not explain how it worked. Your review was concise and very informative. I am a one person firm that does a lot of complex custom homes. While AutoCAD has always been my base, I have tried to use VIZ, with little satisfaction. In the last year I started using SketchUp, and it is time effective as well as intuitive enough to make a big impact on how I present to clients. I use it simultaneously with Architectural Desktop, and actually have two different 3D models when I am finished, one in ADT for working drawings and one in SketchUp for presentation. I think Piranesi might take my SketchUp and ADT models to the next level. Thanks again for the review." Dan Kamp, d.j.kamp and associates, USA

Autodesk Revit 7 (December 15, 2004)

"You write in your review: 'Revit 7 does not demonstrate any dramatic new feature additions.' Huh? I think all Revit users would disagree...." Aaron Rumple, Design Architect, KAI, USA

"Nice review of Revit 7. Very fair and very balanced. Kudos to you." Paul Seletsky, Director of Technology, Davis Brody Bond, USA

"Your review of Revit 7 is excellent and quite complete. I particularly find the listing of specific features helpful. The strengths and limitations section tells it like it is and helps me to be aware of where Revit stands in comparison to other solutions. Sometime when you have the energy, it would be great to see a side by side comparison of Revit, Archicad, Bentley, and ADT. You are the only writer that I have seen who knows the various products well enough to do that. Most seem like they have hardly opened the software. Others are invested in one system only and cannot see the value of other packages. Keep up the excellent work." John Brunt, Architect and Professor, Brigham Young University-Idaho, USA

Viewpoints

Goodbye CAD. Goodbye BIM. Hello PEN. by Paul Seletsky (March 10, 2004)

"It was a pleasure to see IFC's specifically mentioned in your article! As a member of the IAI's Technical Advisory Group and one of only a handful of modelers that is involved with the development and specification of IFC's, it is very encouraging to see articles such as yours that go beyond just the 'BIM' paradigm. The necessity to allow those object-based concepts to freely flow between actors and their tools during the life-cycle of a project will clearly present the opportunity for significant gains across the AEC industry. Well done!" James Forester, Chief Data Architect, Newforma, USA

BIM, Change, and Leadership—A Call to Arms? by Larry Rocha (June 23, 2004)

"I read your article and wanted to let you know that I believe you are 'dead on' from my opinion, with the exception of the time frame. With the types of projects we do here, I think BIM will come sooner (within 5 years), rather than later. We are already using BIM in-house and for coordination between consultants to a large extent. We have 3 major CM firms that we deal with continuously that want to be involved and are getting ramped up for it. One CM has already done one project this way and is working on the second. I am currently working with a couple of manufacturers to get their products/systems into a format that can be used in ADT and have data tied into it to cover the gambit of possibilities for extraction to a database. We also will be able to locate in the real world using GPS." Harvey Phelps, Senior Associate, HOK Sport+Venue+Event, USA

Are We Forgetting Design? by Chris Yessios (November 24, 2004)

"Congratulations on a very good and interesting article by Chris Yessios. It is a thought provoking and well researched paper which sums up my feelings aptly. Please continue with more like this!" Michael Wilkinson, Alpha Meric, New Zealand

This wraps up the first anniversary collection of reader feedback as well as AECbytes' offerings for 2004. I look forward to returning with more features, reviews, reports, case studies, and viewpoints in 2005. Please continue to write in with your feedback, which will again be showcased in a similar compilation at the end of 2005.

Best wishes to you all for a festive holiday season and a happy and fulfilling year ahead!

Note: The views expressed in Viewpoint articles are those of the individual authors and do not necessarily reflect those of AECbytes. Also, no advertising or sponsorship is accepted for Viewpoint articles.