[Doug McLean]

I sort of noticed something similar yesterday when I was training.

I wondered if it was a 20.2.85 glitch or something but haven’t explored too much.

New version is out in less than a week, hopefully this gets fixed

[Vince]

I think there might be a few glitches with this version – I’ve noticed it freezing a few times as well as more problems with custom markups.

[Troy DeGroot]

Is it deleting the layer from the prebuilt tool or removing it from the placed markup? I know layers don’t work with Studio Sessions, so even if layers are built into the tools they will not create or assigned to layers in the Session. Just an idea or box to check for possible issues.

[Vince]

Layers are assigned to the prebuilt tools. The first couple of times the tools are used everything works fine but then I notice there is no layer assigned in the Markup List and when I check the actual tool, the layer is gone from there too.

[Vince]

I’ve also noticed another problem where the order of the lines and text to a custom tool change order when a markup is placed.

[Vince]

I’ve actually captured the problem on video and have now sent it off to Bluebeam.

Disappearing-Layers-2022-09-16.mp4 10 MB MP4 - Click to view

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[David Cutler]

I’m hitting “like” on these posts, but I don’t “like” what you are seeing!

Great video @Vince !

Yet another reason to have your tools exported and saved to an secure location.

I think I’m going to stay back in Revu 20.2.70 were I’m not seeing these (or other) issues….

😎🍿

[Don Walke]

I have a similar problem, but not with layers. Seems that every two or three times I open the program, one or two of the tools gets corrupted. It’s always the first tool in a toolbox, and the tool acquires attributes of some other tool in another toolbox (subject, layer, color, ect). I just replace the profile with a saved copy.

[David Cutler]

If the error is consistent @dhwalkellc you might try placing a “sacrificial” tool in that position. That way when the glitch occurs you just ignore the damaged tool until a time when referring your tool is convenient.

[Vince]

Great idea David!

[Don Walke]

Good idea, just odd that a program with such valuable and unique functionality would have glitches like this.

[David Cutler]

I completely understand your frustration @dhwalkellc !

I am not a software designer/programmer so I have no idea how they make these programs do everything that they do all with the click of a mouse. If you haven’t already done so please report the issues that you’re seeing to BlueBeam so that they can address them. I know @Vince has done this in the past and the items that he has brought to their attention have been resolved.

[Vince]

So, I’ve just had it confirmed that this is an official problem with Revu 20.2.85 and that the engineers are working on a fix for a future release???

The recommendation if you are incurring this problem is to go back to 20.2.70 which can be downloaded from https://downloads.bluebeam.com/software/downloads/20.2.70/BbRevu20.2.70.exe

[David Cutler]

Thank you for the update @Vince and for the link to the previous version. I need to get one of my coworkers updated, but don’t want to take his machine to .85 if there is any risk of him having any problems….

[Vince]

@lizlarsen it doesn’t look like Bluebeam are going to fix this problem anytime soon so I was wondering if you thought it was possible to write something in Javascript which could set the Layer based on a description in a custom column?

If so, would it be able to cope with all of the markups at once or would it need running on each individual markup?

Just looking for ways around this issue as it is driving me crazy having to go back and edit the properties of all of the markups.

[Liz Larsen]

To my knowledge, JavaScript cannot access column info.

@isaac-harned , do you know if that’s true?

[Isaac Harned]

I think it might be able to:

CustomColumnGet-1.png 177 KB Image File - Click to view

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[Isaac Harned]

OK further (confusing) clarification here. When finding that method, I was using the Bluebeam Script Reference 2.0.9, which was apparently published on Feb 9, 2018. This is apparently superseded by Version 1.0.8 (Published Feb 27, 2019?), which removes said method. Both attached.

Bluebeam-Script-Reference-1.0.8.pdf 390 KB PDF - Click to view

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Bluebeam-Script-Reference-2.0.9.pdf 488 KB PDF - Click to view

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[Vince]

Looks interesting @isaac-harned but exactly how you’d use that (if it still exists?!) I have no idea! 😆

[Liz Larsen]

This is the Script reference document, and not JavaScript.

JavaScript within Adobe can get custom column info, but to my knowledge the Bluebeam API does not include that method.

[Liz Larsen]

Here you can see the available list matches the version 1.0.8

[David Cutler]

If you have the layer names in a custom column @Vince you could filter by that layer name, “water” for example and then select all and reestablish the layer that way.

Unfortunately that doesn’t solve the problem of the layer assignment getting wiped from the tool, but it might help re-establishing the layers on markups that you have already placed.

I’m guessing that you are probably doing something along these lines already, but thought I’d throw it out there just in case. 😎

[Vince]

Thanks @David Cutler

I am indeed working on something along the lines of what you have suggested.

I was just hoping that there would be a magic way of using that information to populate the layer details.

Waiting for Bluebeam to fix the layer problem and for Microsoft to fix the issues which are causing Excel to crash is getting rather annoying now.

[David Cutler]

As @Doug McLean posted so eloquently the other day in the “Angled Markups” discussion:

“I shouldn’t have to do that though.”

Perhaps we need to challenge @troy-degroot and @mechave to see who has better contacts at Bluebeam to find out when they are going to release an update that will fix these issues in what I would call a “signature” feature of their product? Maybe if we leverage the combined voices of UChapter2, ATG, Brighter Graphics and Applied Software (Graitec) through our combined contacts we can get someone’s attention?😎

[Vince]

Sounds like a plan @David Cutler !

[David Cutler]

Nothing but crickets today @Vince – Everyone states side must have taken the day off for Presidents Day… 😎

[Doug McLean]

Holiday here in Canada too.

Family Day in most of the country

[Vince]

A day off in February @David Cutler ? What a fine idea!

[David Cutler]

Presidents Day is a Federal/National Holiday in the US so Government Offices/Schools/Banks and many larger businesses are closed for the day. Retailers tend to have “Presidents Day Sales” – especially in the automotive industry. Smaller companies, ours for example, not so much. 😎

Now we enter the spring slog from now until Memorial Day in May which will be the next 3 day weekend.

So, are you going to ask the “when is the next update coming” question on MCR this morning @Vince ? I expect that between @lizlarsen and @Doug McLean one of them will ask about XCON 23…

[Vince]

Only just read this @David Cutler – thanks for asking about the update for me! 🤣

I just need to contact Microsoft to find out about their update for Excel!

[David Cutler]

Unfortunately their response was less than satisfactory…

I was surprised by their statements about XCON 23 also…

Might have to push @troy-degroot on hosting the first UChapter2 Brainery Conference to fill the potential void… Could call it “Brainstorm 23″…

😎

[Vince]

At least with XCON I no longer have to think about how I will try and convince the boss that I need to go!

The UChapter2 version would be good though – maybe we can go back to Troy’s roots and do a virtual meeting whilst all standing around bbq’s with a beer in hand? Lunchtime for you guys and evening for me – unless you don’t mind a bbq for breakfast?

[Liz Larsen]

Last month I contacted someone at Bluebeam because I have a couple ideas for XCON presentations, including a panel idea. But logistically I’m not sure how that would work, so I wanted to chat with someone who had experience with past presentations to pick their brain.

It took maybe three weeks to get a response. The response was that they didn’t have an answer/update for me yet, but hoped to by the end of the month.

Maybe a week ago I started to have suspicions that we might not have it at all this year, and I now know that other people are also having those same thoughts.

Given all of that, I would hazard a guess that we might be getting some sort of announcement within the next week or so.

We’ll see ❓❓❓ 🤷‍♀️

[Vince]

After all the talk of what a success last year’s event was and how great it was to have an in-person event, it will be interesting to see how the justify not holding it at all this year (if that is the case).

[Doug McLean]

well it is very expensive, but for your $800 US per person, you should get a lot.
My wife was just looking at an HR conference here in Vancouver that was $1100 CAD for two days, but they have paid speakers, which Bluebeam does not do really.

I for one would LOVE to see it go ahead, I’m just wondering how much Nemetscheck is pulling the strings though

[Doug McLean]

wow, that’s hardly any…. our next one is Easter, which is in April this year.

We now get 11 ‘Statutory’ holidays a year here in BC, union workers usually get at least two more.

[Vince]

Over here we get 8 bank holidays – 2 at Easter, 2 in May, 1 in August, 2 at Christmas and 1 at New Year.

I think if you’re employed the minimum number of days holiday that you have in addition to those is 20.

However, I think a lot of places offer a lot more. The last place I worked at you started with 26 and after 5 years this then increased by a further day a year up to 31 or 32,

[David Cutler]

Another thought @Vince – While this also falls into the “I shouldn’t have to do that” category I was reminded today of the ability to set a “Markup Layer” in Revu. Figured I’d mention it as an option in this situation. Note that this doesn’t work efficiently if you are jumping around between markups that you want on a variety of layers, but if you are measuring all of your demolition items for example it works well.

To use this option simply right click on your layer label in the layer menu and select “Markup Layer”. Now every markup that you apply will be assigned to the selected layer until you unselect the option. (Note that if a markup tool already has a layer assignment that assignment takes precedent.)

[Vince]

Thanks @David Cutler – I’ve never looked at that feature before!

I’m not sure it will be available in all instances but it may be in some so, I’ll take a look in the morning and see what I can do with it.

[David Cutler]

Seems as if someone has indicated in the last week or two that every once in a while even an expert can learn a new trick @Vince !

The key to using “Markup Layer” is to have the desired layer available. Efficient ways of bringing standard layers into a pdf has been discussed above if I remember correctly.

Hope this helps ease the pain until Bluebeam get’s this known issue addressed.

[Vince]

As I mentioned in the chat on MCR this week @David Cutler , most of the time I sit there thinking “what on earth are they talking about!”.

As annoying as the disappearing layer issue is though, I’ve decided that compared to the problem I have with Excel it is a minor inconvenience!

So, after being reset to a windows version from January 2021 I discovered yesterday that several of my newer spreadsheets don’t work because they rely on functions that have been released in the last year or so.

Microsoft’s helpline decided the way to fix this yesterday was to install all of the latest updates.

The end result is that all of my newer spreadsheets work again – woo hoo! However, the older ones that I had the initial crashing problem with – yep you’ve guessed it – crash again!

Can I get anyone from Microsoft to tell me when there is going to be a fix – you’ve got to be kidding. They just try to talk around the issue and hope you go away and then bother them again in a few days when you try to tell them again that their fix isn’t a fix.

[David Cutler]

Stumbled upon another workaround this morning @Vince that I thought might be worth mentioning.

As I’m sure you are aware when you use a tool it automatically populates into a “Recent Tools” toolbox. What you might not realize is that if you change something in that tool during use – the layer assignment for example, the tool that appears in your “Recent Tools” includes that change. So, if your layer assignment disappears, you can set it the first time you use the tool in that session, and then re-use the modified tool from the “Recent Tools” toolbox, rather than your standard location.

While this falls firmly in @Doug McLean ‘s “I shouldn’t have to” category, it does work.

[Vince]

Thanks @David Cutler I’ll give that a go!

[Liz Larsen]

Oh hey there, check out the 4th item on this list.

Screenshot_20230328-145955.png 785 KB Image File - Click to view

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[David Cutler]

I wonder if @Vince has seen the news, downloaded the update and tested it out yet????

Thank you for posting @lizlarsen !

[Vince]

Thanks @lizlarsen and @David Cutler !

I’ve been out of action for the last couple of weeks so not had a chance to look at this yet. However, I’ve just downloaded the latest update and look forward to hopefully testing it out next week.