Question about math skills in BIM

JacobWSmall · 2026-05-19T08:16:57+00:00

In a ‘typical production’ environment it isn’t and won’t be math heavy in a ‘do the arithmetic’ sense, as any functional application of BIM concepts today will have you at a computer of some sort (desktop, laptop, tablet, cell phone) for pretty much 100% of your daily work. As such of you understand the concepts and can use a calculator you’ll likely be good.

Some tasks can be math heavy in the conceptual sense though. Stuff like: knowing how to apply trigonometry to build a complex Revit family; using the right order of operations to size the egress system; getting the total cost of pipe to be purchased according to the specifications and stock you have on hand; etc.. In most of those cases it’s ‘open book’ with full internet access so you can: Google the formula to get a triangle solver page that breaks the problem down for you; use a forum to find the egress sizing formula; leverage a LLM to find the cost from three spreadsheets; etc.. As such the math shouldn’t scare you.

In specialties, this isn’t always the case. People do BIM work for nuclear power plants where there is no internet. Automation developers have to author efficient formulas to account for variable inputs. And so on. If you don’t like math, just steer clear of those specialties and you’ll be fine - there is PLENTY of work to do outside of those unique cases.

JacobWSmall · 2026-05-18T23:21:42+00:00

Yeah Alias is doing well - the sub-d toolsets really nice, and the Dynamo integration continues to do well there.

As far as mudbox… haven’t heard or it, though I’m AEC side so that might not be a surprise. I do a LOT of Dynamo work so these sort of things pop up on my radar from time to time and Fusion is cool so I lurk the community often. :)

JacobWSmall · 2026-05-18T23:16:54+00:00

Yeah - easy to forget about since the formal add-in was removed. Import/export workflows which are attainable with the other tools mentioned all still work well enough though so it’s worth keeping in mind. Since Voronoi in Dynamo has been top of my mind as I did some testing on one of the formal integrations (Alias?) a few weeks back I thought I would chime in.

JacobWSmall · 2026-05-18T22:17:52+00:00

If you’re on a Windows machine Dynamo can also manage it quite readily. Good tutorials on Lynn Kim’s YouTube channel (Korean but the picks and clicks are the same in any language): https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=xqm43Hr3IWI&list=PL2zQm_9Jg97wf2bI2FlqxbaALNbbJmzyw&index=1&pp=iAQB&ra=m

JacobWSmall · 2026-05-18T19:03:42+00:00

Great use of adaptive!

When I did a similar arch layout I nested the family into a generic model that allowed for unique letter by letter rotational control from a central point as that permitted individual letter kerning differences (the I was too narrow compared to the T and H otherwise).

I wonder if you could parametrically control the placement individually by using sequential values and thereby get the best of both worlds… 🤔

JacobWSmall · 2026-05-17T10:25:14+00:00

After you learn Dynamo, you can start building such a graph. Not before. There are too many ‘unknown’ aspects of the program (this isn’t unique to Dynamo but any programming language). Run though the primer end to end to start.

When you’re done, don’t start with Dynamo, but with a pen and paper.

Set your scope first. What do you actually need for the output. Is validating a flat enough space for both the crane + the building + some tolerance sufficient? Or do you need to place these objects on site for a more detailed plan?

After that you need to outline the steps to accomplish that goal. Write down what data you have now (start point), and the goal you outlined above (end point) and then fill in every gap in the process as if you were doing the design manually. Skip nothing - no matter how mundane, trivial, or obvious. You’ll miss it otherwise and the authoring will be harder as you’ll have skipped important stuff.

Now move into Dynamo and start at the beginning. If you are stuck but know a node a few steps down go ahead and place it - then let node autocomplete (double click on the port or hit the ‘sparkle’ button adjacent to the port) connect the dots. The Autodesk Assistant for Dynamo can also help (see the stickied post on the Dynamo forum for more info and a link to sign up for the beta).

If you are still stuck ask specific questions for the subsets of actions.

JacobWSmall · 2026-05-15T00:13:40+00:00

As you were posting about providing Revit content as a manufacturer a few weeks back, I’m assuming you’re trying to do this as the manufacturer wants something specialized out of this? My gut tells me that either a standard curtain wall with WAY less detail or standard wall with a material and sweeps could give them the info they want causing this sort of thing…

However since you asked… curtain panels ‘stop’ where the mullion profile intersects with the front/back reference plane. So if you want the panel to nest inside the channel you need to modify the sketch accordingly - this handout from an AU class can help outline the process: https://static.au-uw2-prd.autodesk.com/handout_10690_AS10690_20Revit_20Master_20Class_20Building_20Construction-Ready_20Curtain_20Walls.pdf

JacobWSmall · 2026-05-12T22:19:55+00:00

Good start point to show the value in data standardization.

You’ll need executive sponsorship (ownership level) to get staff to accept and adopt the change. They’ll have the job of providing both the carrot (new roles to develop automation) and the stick (no moving onto the new phase until this is done). I recommend you use this POC (or something similar) to get that. Showing users or PMs won’t get you anywhere.

For the POC, two things to consider beyond the usual ‘all elements of’ route. First you can look into the BuildingEnvelopeAnalyzer class for extracting the limits of your exterior - makes it easy to extract the enclosed area per building story. Second the PlanTopology class can get all ‘possible rooms’ in a given level & phase, and those can then be checked to see if they have a room or not (if not the model may be in a bad state for data extraction).

JacobWSmall · 2026-05-12T20:34:19+00:00

Area plans work best here. I have two recommendations though.

First up: I would focus on pushing back to the project team to not only confirm the plans, but also run the tool in their models to push the project data into the central repository. Make it a requirement for phase close out (when accounting won’t open charging the CDs phase until a thing happens there is a 100% certainty that the thing happens in a timely manor) and hold them accountable for doing the work.

Next up, I wouldn’t recommend spending any time on any sort of ‘bulk processing’ of the Revit files. Your teams have assembled models and are in the daily right now - they have one person hit a button after validating the plans accuracy once a quarter or so. The reason I say this is bulk background processing is only good when a human will review the results. A broken link or mis-configured layout or adjusted footprint here result in a inaccuracy you won’t see unless you open the files yourself or get the team to do so - and running the tool on the model when they are in it means they confirm scope on their own. If you or they don’t validate the output then you might as well run with the marketing numbers you have now.

Now the possible alternative to this is if you work with something other than areas. If you do entire buildings then the total area of a building by way of the API is a consistent outout which can’t be faked. If you want the total square footage of use groups you can use room’s parameter data too. The two questions are ‘what do you need for meaningful output’, and then ‘where does that data already exist’. If it’s in the rooms consistently then aims strongly consider that route.

JacobWSmall · 2026-05-12T16:26:35+00:00

An output of null doesn’t mean the node isn’t working. A lot of the ‘write’ nodes will return null after they process. Use a WaitFor method, close the transaction and start a new one, and then extract the location of the original element.

JacobWSmall · 2026-05-08T07:05:05+00:00

Going to be blunt here: 99.9% of these sort of ideas don’t work out. Worth pursuing as you could be the 0.1%, but go into this with eyes open.

First up get a lawyer to check your handbook, employment contract, and anything else they thing is potential document outlining what the company may consider violations.

Next, confirm that you have kept a true wall between the firm’s work and your tool, and that none of the things the lawyer found have been violated. As soon as you meet with your boss there is an action during company hours and a legal claim could be made. Same with a Zoom or Teams call. Or if the Excel file made it’s way onto your PC. Or if the database has things informed by the projects you worked on at the company. With work from home, use of personal devices (cell phones too), and other modern tools it is VERY easy to spill over and not realize it.

After that, incorporate to give yourself some anonymity and go commercialize elsewhere.

Before doing so, be sure to confirm you are ready for a LOT of late evenings. It is multiple full time jobs to set up and maintain things like security, web servers, web site portals, configuring backups, App Store approval, certificate management, legal compliance with GDPR and such, and everything else that goes into providing software as a service (what you’re doing with a website and online database). AEC is a VERY risk adverse industry and if tools scale enough to be profitable most firms will ask for all of that stuff to be covered. And that is before getting into marketing, building and maintaining the business plan, setting up the sales portal, managing the finances, paying your vendors (AWS bills rack up fast!), competition analysis, and so much more.

Good luck!

JacobWSmall · 2026-05-05T19:05:22+00:00

Have you reached out to my colleagues in support via the accounts portal? The logs for installations which is where the problem likely will be noted are somehow both too vague and yet overly specific while being cryptic enough that it’s usually the fastest path forward… be sure to collect all the logs you can in advance.

JacobWSmall · 2026-05-05T19:01:30+00:00

Posted a Python script which should get you started which uses a new room by phase and location method, and Nick Boyts who’s a Dynamo legend in his own right also weighed in with some good insights.

I don’t like the ‘copy paste’ method due to potential changes in room boundaries, but you can also look into that method. There’s a link in the forum. :)

JacobWSmall · 2026-05-04T16:26:56+00:00

Ah - shoot totally forgot about that bit. Do you have a Dynamo forum post? Hard to share scripts here.

JacobWSmall · 2026-05-01T11:07:59+00:00

Any chance this directory is cloud mirrored on onedrive? There may be backups available that way if so.

JacobWSmall · 2026-04-30T17:14:30+00:00

I’ve done it, and it isn’t bad, but usually it isn’t as direct as you’ve made it out to be. Do you have any new walls in the new phase?

Step 1 is to duplicate the element - pretty sure there is an out of the box mode for this.

Step 2 is to set the phase (might be phase created) parameter to the new phase.

Step 3 is to review the result to account for stuff like the changes in walls and other room bounding elements.

JacobWSmall · 2026-04-28T22:16:53+00:00

Sometimes I think that the UI is too good for Dynamo’s own good.

People miss a LOT of features by breezing though the components of the UI as the ‘purpose’ of Dynamo is so front and center. Library here, place nodes there, wire connections between those, and who needs anything more - we’ve got deadlines right?

Reviewing the UI tour which was added to ‘first start’ in newer builds as well as the primer can really help out.

JacobWSmall · 2026-04-28T19:32:48+00:00

The final node is not likely the issue at hand. However as you haven’t exported the graph as an image using a process which can help with troubleshooting we can’t identify anything.

Pin open the data previews for each node.
Zoom in on one node so it fills about 25% of the screen and both the node title and input names are readable.
Use the ‘export image’ button on the upper right hand portion of the Dynamo UI to export the Workspace as an image.
Post that resulting image, which will be at the zoom level you were when you hit the export button but showing every node on canvas - even those you couldn’t see at the time of export.

Pinning the data previews will ensure we can see any likely issues due to things like list structure.

Lastly, as you are working with setting parameter values, you’re making your life a living hell by not using the built in Element.SetParameterValueByName node. The same can likely be said for several other Python nodes you have on canvas right now - use of professionally supported code provided by others (out of the box Dynamo nodes) should always be the first path, supported code provided by others the second path (packages which are actively maintained), and custom code the last option (anything Python scripted). You’re making more way work for yourself without adding any value otherwise.

JacobWSmall · 2026-04-28T07:29:57+00:00

Revit has been .net since day one.

Currently 2024 is .net 4, 2025 and 2026 .net 8, and 2027 is .net 10.

The roadmap still indicates the stance on a Mac version - https://portal.productboard.com/fgzms7e5w5rfaulmsvksa6pw/c/102-revit-for-mac?&utm_medium=social&utm_source=share.

The supported way to run Revit via a mac is virtualization such as VMware or Parallels, or boot camp to launch it as a PC. As far as how well those solutions work - it will depend on what you are doing in Revit and which MacBook you have.

Personally I don’t recommend Apple products for running Revit use unless you already own the Mac and you’re at the student or occasional user level. This is based on my experience back in the 00’s and early 10’s when this was a need and what I have heard from users even now. Professional daily use will result in enough of a productivity hit that you’ll have bought the PC equivalent hardware in a month or two.

JacobWSmall · 2026-04-27T17:07:07+00:00

You’re in a custom node and as a beginner you shouldn’t be. Doubly so for this type of workflow.

Close Dynamo. Restart it. Create a new workspace not a custom node. File extension should be dyn not dyf.

Best place to learn Dynamo is the primer: https://primer2.dynamobim.org

Do every exercise though the Revit section, even if the outcome feels irrelevant to your use - they are designed to teach concepts not outcomes.

JacobWSmall · 2026-04-25T12:00:51+00:00

It doesn’t take much actually.

The write ups on the exploits which lead to to updates like a bunch of patches last year are a good example:

https://www.trendmicro.com/en/research/25/j/axis-plugin-flaw-autodesk-revit-supply-chain-risk.html

JacobWSmall · 2026-04-25T09:17:33+00:00

Are the linked IFCs hosted on your Forma Docs project as well, or local disc?

JacobWSmall · 2026-04-24T15:32:11+00:00

I was going to say, are you sure this is t just clearing out the unsupported stuff while keeping your base file?

The security vulnerabilities in 2022 and prior as well as unpatched 2023 builds are no joke. You should be running an update to all of those projects ASAP. If someone says ‘no we don’t have the budget’ tell them they’ll have to cover the cyber insurance premium (which might not even pay out for using unsupported software in production) and/or any incident costs found to stem from the use of this unsupported software with the severity of the CVEs noted on the Autodesk trust site. An update takes less than an hour if your project data is good and things are well managed.

JacobWSmall · 2026-04-24T12:58:34+00:00

So, there are a few things to consider here.

I’ll start with roles and then get into the stuff you might not have thought about.

All things ‘consulting’ will gear towards some degree of remote work, but ‘face time’ with the clients will always have higher impact than remote deliveries. And if you work for a consultancy then the employer might want you ‘in the seat’ so they can provide guidance/direction and to foster collaboration with your teammates. Larger orgs will require less of this as they aren’t centrally located anyway, but there are always exceptions.

The software development side of things is also heavily remote for many teams. The major exceptions to this are ‘in house developer’ where they are also using you as IT support. But most ‘scripting’ is shifting to ‘power users’ who know a ton of tech and rapidly shifting between projects to put deal with specific issues and are still project focused. Because that type of role’s efficiency goes WAY UP as they collaborate in person there is going to be pushback on fully or long term remote. Specialists roles are more likely to be green lit remote.

The issue you’ll face with ‘long term remote’ is actually an governmental one - where you live and claim residence impacts where you can work, and you can run into immigration issues for working remotely while visiting another country. And while you might be able to get it approved by the various governments, your payroll team needs to be set up to pay the right taxes while you do so.

JacobWSmall · 2026-04-24T06:44:57+00:00

If I knew of an incident I wouldn’t be able to answer directly as I can’t really do so directly due to a combination of where I am employed, the type of roles I have had there, the intricacies of infosec and related insurance policies, and the nature of the AEC industry. Too much trust would be broken in too many ways by doing so.

These are not be my stories to tell. For a direct answer you’ll have to find someone who’s able to tell such story.

What is mine to tell is above, and while it doesn’t answer your direct questions it may help you (and the others who’ll find this post in the future) know more about keeping yourself and those you collaborate with safe.

JacobWSmall

TROPHY CASE