Medeek Wall Plugin
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While I am still fresh with gable walls (and the code for this module) I am contemplating getting the hip variant done as well:
I've already got two votes in favor of it (myself and Larry Belk) however I want to put this out to everyone else and find out if it is of any interest, would you use this gable wall type?
It will probably take me about 3 or 4 days to make it happen or I can move on to other items in the list.
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Version 1.5.6 - 07.16.2020
- Updated the gable wall module to allow for zero wall height shed walls.
- Added triple single hung windows to the window module.
View model here:
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I've been chiseling away at these plugins now for almost 5 years, granted I only started working full time on them since April 2018, but I do think they have evolved significantly even at that.
With that being said there is still much to do. Additional plugins (Floor, Interiors, Decks, Project, Engineering, RC, etc...) are needed to fully flesh out the building and all of its potential elements. At some point the engineering and estimating pieces also need to become a reality, this will take everything to a new level. Sadly I am still working on the design/architectural elements, but if all goes well I should have most of it wrapped up in a few more months and then begin the engineering and estimating pieces. I also want the ability to export elevations and sections quickly into Scenes and then they can be easily moved into Layout, I've got some good ideas on that. A DXF export utility for floor plans etc... would also be nice, there is so much one can do with the API, it is mind boggling.
Every day I get emails from customers and potential customers requesting various features or new plugins, obviously there is a demand for this sort of thing, my email inbox bears this out. Unfortunately, I am so over taxed just trying to knock out the things on my existing todo lists that many of these great ideas go by the wayside (some do eventually make it on to my lists).
For a concise summary of the recent updates:
http://design.medeek.com/resources/wallpluginchangelog.html
As they say though, the squeaky wheel gets the grease, if I get enough demand for a certain feature it tends to move it up the list. Please keep the feedback rolling in, it only makes the plugins better.
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So I'm looking at the hip wall again because I've had some further interest in it.
However, I'm trying to figure out the best way to frame the top plates, which variant is preferred:
Version 1:
Version 2:
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First look at a hip wall with blocking:
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Hip wall with insulation and blocking:
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Hip wall with windows and doors:
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Version 1.5.7 - 07.21.2020
- Enabled the gable wall tool with the ability to draw and edit hip walls.
View model here:
https://3dwarehouse.sketchup.com/model/8707c88c-0874-4c47-8563-f4e4326da53f/Hip-Wall-2
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Version 1.5.7b - 07.22.2020
- Updated the gable wall module to allow for zero wall height hip walls.
- Fixed a bug with the trimming of Simpson Strong-Tie wood shear walls (WSW).
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Off the beaten path a bit today, had a discussion about engineering and the plugins, so it got me thinking about the engineering module and beams and headers. Some ideas on representing loads on beams below:
Not sure I like how the distributed loads are represented with a transparent PNG, it might be better to simply draw two connected arrows which represent the extent of the distributed load (start and end points along the length of the beam).
The colors represent different load types (ie. Dead, Live, Snow).
The magnitude will be represented by the height of the arrows and size of the arrow heads.
The loading diagrams will be placed on their own specific layer so they can easily be toggled on an off.
Initially I think it would be best to stick with just rectangular distributed loads, trapezoidal and triangular loads complicate things considerably. Notice how the loading is placed on the beam such that coincident loads are offset in the Y axis so they can be better visualized and not Z-fight each other.
This would be a significant upgrade to the plugins, allow the user to quickly calculate and check a beam or header, similar to doing a check in Weyerhauser's Forte or any other comparable engineering application.
The output would be something similar to my Beam Calculator here:
https://design.medeek.com/resources/beam/beam_calculator.pl
However the output probably should be less verbose and more compact, similar to the one page output of Forte.
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Version 1.5.7c - 07.23.2020
- Fixed a bug with certain wall sheathing materials as applied to gable, hip and shed walls.
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Version 1.5.8 - 08.01.2020
- Fixed a bug with all wall assemblies when auto-assigment of materials is turned off in the global settings.
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Version 1.5.8b - 08.02.2020
- Added a semi-transparent polygon fill to the draw wall tool wireframe.
- Added an option for vertical ZIP Systems
7/16" and 1/2" wall sheathing materials.
View model here:
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Version 1.5.9 - 08.18.2020
- Added the "Basic Options" parameters to the Wall tab of the Global Settings.
I'm not sure why these parameters never got added to the global settings a long time ago but I guess better late than never.
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Version 1.5.9b - 08.18.2020
- Fixed a bug with gypsum when applied to the end condition for interior shed walls.
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Version 1.5.9c - 08.19.2020
- Fixed a floating point rounding error in the blocking and cavity insulation modules for all walls.
No bells and whistles tonight. Sometimes it's just about putting out the fires.
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Version 1.6.0 - 08.23.2020
- Enabled variable king stud and trimmer stud widths for garage doors (non-portal frame).
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Version 1.6.0b - 08.23.2020
- Added the ability to create, load and delete garage door presets within the Edit and Draw (HTML) Menus.
- Fixed a bug with reading in presets from the door and window edit menus.
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Version 1.6.1 - 08.26.2020
- All gable wall types (gable, hip, shed) now include the option to enter in the wall slope as a pitch or angle.
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For completeness I think it would be a good idea to add the option for arched garage doors and dutch corners. The algorithms for arched doors already exist within the man door module and the geometry of dutch corners is very simple. Give me a couple of days and I will knock this one out.
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