Civil 3D Object Enabler Only 32bit

As I was getting ready to prep for a Navisworks demonstration, I checked out the latest dataset we get from Autodesk.  Well, to my surprise the site info, a Civil 3D file wasn’t showing properly…almost not at all.  So I of course checked the Scene Stats to see what was going on.  Well, the Civil 3D Object Enabler (OE) wasn’t installed.

Side note: If you don’t know, the Scene Statistics will show you if you are missing an Object Enabler.  You can get there by going to View->Scene Statistics.  Here’s a little screen shot…

Okay, so the OE wasn’t installed, no big deal.  I’ll just go out to Autodesk.com and download and install the OE…so I thought.  I get out to the site where they have the OE’s listed and I noticed that Civil 3D didn’t list 32-bit and 64-bit after the name.  So, thinking maybe it was an error on the page, I clicked the link and then I really found out that there wasn’t a mistake…it’s only available as a 32-bit install.

Okay, maybe they haven’t made it available yet.  So I sent a message off to Autodesk and received a not-so good response…

“…it may not be technically feasible with this release.”

So, if you are running Navisworks 64-bit version, please be aware that you may run into trouble reading Civil 3D files.  You may want to get a NWC file (if they can) or even a DWF that you can use.

Navisworks Exporters Not Installing

Have you ever installed Navisworks and when you go to Revit, AutoCAD, etc. and the NWC (or  NWD for AutoCAD programs) exporting option isn’t there?  Examples…In Revit 2009 it would be in the Tools->External Tools pull-down menu.  In Revit 2010 it would be in the Add-Ins Ribbon Panel.  In AutoCAD products it would be available by typing NWCOUT or NWDOUT.  But what do you do when those options are not available after you’ve installed a Navisworks program (except Navisworks Freedom)?

Some think they have to uninstall and reinstall the Navisworks program, or try and do an Add/Remove Programs to change the install.  Well, the second option is the way to go, but it’s not a change of the Navisworks program.  It’s actually a change to the Autodesk Navisworks Exporter Plug-ins option.

Autodesk call this “prime the exporters” in Navisworks.  Just in case you aren’t familiar with making changes to a program, here’s how you can access the Exporter Plug-ins and Prime them (using Navisworks 2010  and Revit as the example)…

1.)  In Windows XP: Access the Start > Settings > Control Panel > Add Remove Programs option.

-or-

       In Windows Vista: Access the > Settings > Control Panel > Programs and Features option.

2.)  Click the Autodesk Navisworks 2010 32 bit/64 bit Exporter Plug-ins option.

3.)  Click the "Uninstall/Change" button and the Exporter Plug-ins dialog will open.

4.)  Click "Add or Remove Features".

5.)  Click "Restore Defaults", or manually check the Revit entry.

6.)  Click "Next" and follow the prompts to install the applicable exporters.

Depending on how the program was installed, deployment/disk/download, or how it was installed, the exporters may not install with the program initially. When you prime the exporters they should work just fine.

Hotfix – Revit Openings Are Solid in Navisworks 2010

Some folks have seen an issue come up when using an exported NWC file from Revit (using the NWC exporter add-in) where the openings (e.g. doors and windows) are being displayed as solid objects.  There is a hotfix available for Navisworks, not Revit to fix this problem.  The hotfix can be downloaded here…

http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/ps/dl/item?siteID=123112&id=13379829&linkID=10382102

Again, this is a hotfix for Navisworks and how it’s exporting the objects to a NWC file exported out from Revit.  The problem isn’t really with Revit, it’s the exporters that are installed to allow Revit to export to Navisworks.

Welcome to my Navisworks Info

Hello Everyone!! For those of you coming over from my Revit Architecture blog, thanks. And for those of you coming here directly welcome!

After consulting/teaching/supporting Navisworks for about a year now, I figured it was time to collect my thoughts regarding Navisworks in one place. So, you’ll see some tips/tricks I’ve picked up and just plain ran across. I’ll also be posting news about Navisworks…things like updates (service packs, hotfixes, etc.), new release info, etc.

This is probably not going to be a daily thing (as those who follow my Revit Arch page can tell), but as I get info I will post it. There aren’t a lot of blogs about Navisworks, so hopefully you find this blog useful.

I welcome any comments and questions. If you would like to see something talked about here, please let me know!

Thanks again for stopping by my little piece of the blog world!
Dwane