I’ve been spending the last couple of months updating my Vectorworks manuals for 2010. I have several clients asking if they should upgrade to the new version of Vectorworks. If you are working on Vectorworks 12.5, then yes, upgrade right now. There are so many advances in Vectorworks since you last bought Vectorworks.
A new command makes it easier to add Landmark schedules to your drawing. You used to have to use the Resource Browser to add this, now you can get the plant list directly from the menu bar.
Vectorworks have added a new coordinate point label to the stake object. Coordinates update when you change the origin or move the object.
Use the new Grade Calculator tool to calculate and display slope parameters in areas of changing elevation, including site models.
You can create a concave cloud edged landscape area. You can get an improved 3D visualization of the land area you’ve created.
The hardscape dialog box has been completely re-orgaised, and there are new 3D abilities for the hardscape object. They have made improvements to the hardscape tags.
The new Parking area tool makes it easier to fill in a whole car park. Instead of using several parking spaces, the Parking area is a polygon-based tool. The Parking Along Path tool creates parking spaces along curved paths. You can place spaces on one side, or both sides of the curve.
Vectorworks have made drawing notation callouts and keynotes easier. New bubble and leader styles for the Callout tool, giving you more control, while adhering to office graphic standards..
Walls will now automatically join the cores of the walls together.
Vectorworks Design Series has automatic coordination of sheet numbers and drawing numbers among sheet borders, drawing labels, and section markers.
In the past it has been hard to make unusual walls. The new wall scultping allows you to add a wall projection, or a wall recess.
This is a preference for symbols. I’m really glad to see this, it allows you to choose, symbol by symbol, whether or not the symbol will insert into a wall. I know you can change this on the Tool Bar, but this is way quicker, and much better for a large office.
Set Your Layer options to Show/Snap/Modify others and you can work in 3D. You can select any object on any layer and edit it.
When creating or editing viewport crops, the area outside the crop can now be shown in either wireframe or light grey. This allows you to snap to objects outside the crop while reshaping or moving the crop object.
The totally redesigned help system now uses Adobe AIR; this eliminates browser issues and includes Web 2.0 features.
Previously, you could only drag dimension text parallel to the dimension line. Now, the text for angular dimensions can be moved along the dimension curve and text for all other dimensions can be dragged in any direction, without affecting the dimension line location.
You can now quickly select the default dimension standard for your document or specify a new custom dimension standard from a new drop-down menu on the Tool bar.
Improved DXF/DWG reference import support: xRefs are now imported as referenced design layer viewports (Design Series products) or layer links (Fundamentals). DXF/DWG import saved settings: Vectorworks have added a saved settings capability so you can recall saved sets of import options.
One of the big arguments about associative hatches was that you can’t set the origin on the hatch. This has now changed.
The Rotate, Mirror, Offset, and Move by Points tools don’t require you to pre-select the object you wish to modify, you can select the object as you use the tool by: ctrl+click (windows) command+click (macintosh) to select the object you want.