On Land

Nothing against the little guy, but as time goes on it becomes more evident that Pluto isn't a planet-type thing.

In 1930, when it was discovered, it was called a planet because they thought it was a big (big) thing in the Saturn and Neptune style. As more observations were made, the estimate of its size dwindled, until today, when we know that it is in fact smaller than Earth's moon.

Further, at the time, Pluto was the only thing out there. So it's tiny, and has a weird orbit, but what else are you going to call it?

Today, we know it's not a tiny weird planet. It's a completely normal example of a different kind of thing. Pluto inhabits a region of space that is crawling with Pluto-type things. We already know of one that is as large as Pluto, and several that are at least half its size.

This situation will only get 'worse'. The designers of the New Horizons mission to Pluto estimate that there are 1000 Pluto-sized objects beyond the orbit of Neptune. They just can't all be planets.

I like this story because it illustrates that knowledge is always in flux. There is a lot of sentimentality about Pluto. Children like it because it's small and different. Adults want there to be nine planets because there were nine when they were in school. Many casual observers seem to believe that the solar system is basically worked out. "They'll have to rewrite the textbooks!" In fact, solar system astronomy is a very dynamic field, and they should probably rewrite the books every year anyway.

Link.

1. Duplicate the zTemplate 10 folder and rename it with the project name. To duplicate a folder, drag and drop it within the same window while holding down the Option key. Name the folder after the client. If this is a second, or later, project, add a number. (Please don't use roman numerals, they are hard to read.) If it's a sub-project or related project, add a descriptive term. Examples: Stevens. Kernan3. Salamander Garage.

2. Within the fresh project folder, open the project file template for new home or addition. The template names end in .tpl. The new template, 'NewHome10.tpl', is at the top of the project folder. The existing conditions template, 'Addition10.tpl', is in the '4 Site & Existing Conditions' folder.

3. In the library manager, make sure you have the following libraries loaded:

• From your local Applications / Graphisoft / ArchiCAD 10 folder, 'ArchiCAD Library 10'. (Note: Load this whole folder. This is different from AC9, where we would load only the 'ArchiCAD 9 Library.pla'.)

• From the carrot (2 Resources), '1 Rill & Decker LIB10'. Don't load the entire '2 Project LIB10' folder. Click 'OK' and 'Done'. (Much more on libraries here and here.)

4. Once the libraries load, Save As. Format: ArchiCAD Project File. For the name use the client name, similar to the folder name. If the folder is named 'Box Elder', the project should be 'Box Elder.PLN'. For an existing house use 'Existing Box Elder.PLN'.

5. Go to the Finder and delete the project templates from your project folder. They are no longer needed. If by some weird chance you need a template again, you can always get it from the zTemplate folder.

6. Back in the project, fill in the Project Info (File -> Info -> Project Info). The relevant fields are Client, Project Name (Residence, Addition, Renovation), Street, City, State/Country (State), Postal Code (Zip).

7. Set up the stories. Story elevations are floor-to-floor. Important: In AC10, we no longer set the roof story to the height of the top occupied story (Attic, 2nd floor, etc.). In order to interact properly with the Floor Plan Cut Plane, the roof story should be set well above, perhaps even higher than you think. (12'?)

The templates contain an attic story by default. If your project doesn't have an attic, delete this story. You should also delete the attic-related layouts.

8. Build the model until it's done or someone tells you to stop.

Once the model is to-a-point, it's time to prepare the layouts for the model and vice versa.