Development and Updates for the Medeek Wall Plugin

[Medeek]

Initially the gable wall matrix will look like this:





Since only one gable wall type will be enabled.  It has been nearly six months since I started working on the gable walls and unfortunately it has been quite a bit more complicated and problematic then I originally imagined. 


Gable walls change up almost every aspect of the wall from connections to other walls to trim and wainscoting.  The differences between rectangular walls and odd shaped walls is so drastic that I've basically had to write completely new modules for windows, doors, garage doors, trim, wainscoting, advanced options etc...  its almost like there are two plugins running side-by-side.


To get to all the other gable variants is going to take some serious coding but the leap is less than from the initial leap from rectangular to gable so I am fairly optimistic that it will be manageable.

[Medeek]

Version 1.0.9 - 04.01.2019
- Fixed a bug with exterior wainscoting.
- Fixed a bug with midspan blocking and wall presets.
- Added the Shearwall toolbar and icons.

The fix with the midspan blocking and the wall presets is a critical fix if you are using wall presets and I would highly recommend upgrading to this latest version of the plugin.

[Medeek]

Version 1.0.9b - 04.03.2019
- Fixed a bug with the data logging module.

Not exactly a critical fix, just another box to check off.  Some of you may have noticed an occasional pop up that warns about an error connecting to the Medeek server.  This fix should resolve that minor annoyance.

[Medeek]

Version 1.1.0 - 04.26.2019
- Fixed the show_modal bug for macOS in the Materials and Headers tabs of the global settings.

[Medeek]

Okay, let's try this again.  I've uploaded a new version of 1.1.0 with all the show_modal calls replaced with non-modal calls.  My conclusion is that show_modal is a complete disaster when using macOS, realistically one can only use non-modal html menus.  I'm just hoping now that this does not somehow create issues for users in Windows.  I don't think it will based on my limited testing thus far.

If it does then I simply add some logic which switches to non-modal html menus if macOS is detected.   However, I would rather that the plugin behaves in a similar fashion for both operating systems.

Please re-download Version 1.1.0 and let me know what you get.

[Medeek]

SketchUp Essentials latest video:

[Medeek]

Has anyone ever seen or tried these type of studs?

[Medeek]

Version 1.1.1 - 06.19.2019
- Corrected the code for raising and logging exceptions.

[Medeek]

Version 1.1.2 - 06.25.2019
- Fixed an HTML/javascript bug with the wall edit menu (specific to Internet Explorer).
- Fixed an HTML/javascript bug in the General tab of the Global Settings (specific to Internet Explorer).

These two fixes were prompted by problems being encountered by users of SketchUp 2015.  I haven't quite decided yet but I will probably end support for SU 2015 and 2016 in the very near future as I have already done with the Truss plugin.  At some point the effort to maintain compatibility with older versions of SketchUp is no longer feasible or profitable.

If you are a registered or even trial version user of the plugin and still using SU 2015 or SU 2016, please contact me so that I can get a better feel for how many users are still requiring this compatibility.

[Medeek]

Excellent live modeling session by Aaron this afternoon:



After spending quite some time modeling this very simple structure it quickly becomes clear to me why extensions are so important. 

I am hoping to get the gable and shed walls out shortly to close that gap.

[Medeek]

As some of you are aware the Wall plugin includes a number of connectors and hardware, primarily Simpson Strong-Tie but a few others vendors as well.  The full list is available here:

http://design.medeek.com/resources/wallpluginvendors.html

Mitek also provides a comparable line of hardware with their USP Structural Connectors.  I'm considering adding in the equivalent product lines from Mitek and then allowing the user to specify in the Global Settings which vendor they prefer so that the menus populate with the appropriate vendor's products and thereby give the user more options and control over their hardware choices.

[Medeek]

SketchUp Essentials latest video on the mdkBIM suite:

[Medeek]

This particular design for a storage unit was originally created by me about four years ago for a local client here in Western Washington.  I had another purchase of this planset from my website and the customer requested that I also provide the 3D model so I thought this might be a good opportunity to test out the plugins and see what difficulties I would encounter with a fairly simple but large model:



Framing:



Wall Framing and Foundation:



The floor plan (originally drawn in AutoCad):



View model here:

https://3dwarehouse.sketchup.com/model/11cf8d48-a861-4887-b7b5-3dc26a09772c/MEDEEK-STORAGE8443

This planset can be purchased here:  http://design.medeek.com/plans/search.pl

Overall the process of creating the model went quite smoothly, I was pleasantly surprised.  However I did note a few things:

1.)  When you have a large wall and are putting an excessive amount of doors or windows into it the regen time starts to become noticeable.  Not sure what the fix is here but I will give it some thought.

2.)  With extremely large truss assemblies it may be advantageous to turn off the metal connector plates, the model gets a bit heavy and regen times are also affected.

3.)  I need to add in more light fixtures (ie. external wall packs)

4.)  There is currently no way to add a vent or window into a gable truss.  This had to be done manually.

5.)  The Simpson holdown DTT2Z was not being properly rotated, additionally I needed to utilized a Titen HD bolt in this model, I will address that this evening and release and update of the Wall plugin shortly.

6.)  Anchor bolts typically need to be manually moved around and deleted.  It would be nice to figure out a way for the plugin to preserve the manual manipulations even with a regen when the assembly is edited.

7.)  I don't have a way to deal with two wall intersecting each other in a "CROSS", in the model I simply had them pass through each other.  I will need to give this some further thought.

8.)  I don't like the way I am creating/managing the components for slab reinforcement (mesh or rebar).  I will need to change this up slightly.  It works but performance suffers on large SOG foundations.

9.)  Obviously I need to spend some time further integrating the estimating module, that would be really nice for generating a materials list.

10.) The parametrics of all of the plugins is really nice and to be honest, essential. 

11.)  I manually copied over some more gutter downspouts since I need more for this long gutter run.  By adding CUSTOM into the instance name I am able to maintain these additional downspouts even with a regen of the truss assembly.

[Medeek]

Version 1.1.3 - 09.23.2019
- Fixed a bug with the placement of Simpson's DTT2Z holdown and replaced included component with a low poly version.
- Added the option for Titen HD holdown anchor bolts: THD50500H, THD50600H, THD50800H, THD501200H, THD501400H, THD501500H.

[Medeek]

Version 1.1.4 - 09.28.2019
- Fixed a critical performance bug that affects all the modules within the extension.


*** CRITICAL PERFORMANCE UPDATE ***

If you are noticing a slowdown of the plugin performance after multiple edits to a wall assembly, this fix will resolve that issue.  This issue affects all previous versions of the plugin.