Showing point elevations as feet and inches w fractions.

I'm sort of old fashioned so you know what I would do.

Which reminds me of a story about Popeye the Sailor and fractions. There was some reason why he had to go back to school and start over in First Grade. If he could pass a few questions, they would move him up a grade. About Third Grade he was asked what to do if he had three apples to share with a total of five people. He thought and thought and then proudly said, "I'd make applesauce."

Make a CSV file, do the conversion in Excel, replace the point description with the feet-inches result, and plot the point description only?

BajaOR, post: 385316, member: 9139 wrote: Make a CSV file, do the conversion in Excel, replace the point description with the feet-inches result, and plot the point description only?

I've never done it, but it seems like if you just convert it to fractional inches, you'll seldom have an even fraction.....hopefully it can be feet, inches and decimal inches....? Can you have it round to the nearest 1/16th and then have it convert to lowest common denominator 1/2" if it rounds to 8/16? It just gets complicated.

Can you give the contractor a calculator and show him how to use it? It sure gets complicated if you add, subtract or multiply feet, inches, and fractions vs. decimal feet.

Sorry just some random thoughts.

We usually do it the old fashioned way, but due to time constraints and the large scope of this project we went new school.

Observer28, post: 385323, member: 6721 wrote: We usually do it the old fashioned way, but due to time constraints and the large scope of this project we went new school.

I'd be interested in knowing what both the "old fashioned" way and "new school" methods are.

BajaOR, post: 385316, member: 9139 wrote: Make a CSV file, do the conversion in Excel, replace the point description with the feet-inches result, and plot the point description only?

This is the only way I couldsuccessfully think to do it as well.

Tom Adams, post: 385318, member: 7285 wrote: I've never done it, but it seems like if you just convert it to fractional inches, you'll seldom have an even fraction.....hopefully it can be feet, inches and decimal inches....? Can you have it round to the nearest 1/16th and then have it convert to lowest common denominator 1/2" if it rounds to 8/16? It just gets complicated.

Can you give the contractor a calculator and show him how to use it? It sure gets complicated if you add, subtract or multiply feet, inches, and fractions vs. decimal feet.

Sorry just some random thoughts.

I agree, I wish we could leave it in decimal feet, because its easy to work with and you dont lose anything in the conversion.

Jim in AZ, post: 385326, member: 249 wrote: I'd be interested in knowing what both the "old fashioned" way and "new school" methods are.

To me, the old school way is drawing out a sketch of the floor, marking out a grid, and then use a Philly or Linker rod and mark the spots right onthe sketch converted into final numbers.

New school is using a total station and a prisim pole to store the data, and manipulate the numbers in the computer.

Tell him that it can't be done and show him this to prove it:

[MEDIA=youtube]QxjVW8iLMdU[/MEDIA]

wow, that sounds like a disaster waiting to happen. I'd be tempted to tell them no, that's not standard practice, but they are free to mark up the plans any way that they see fit.

It might just be easier to give him your decimal pocket tape and, say hey use this for the layout, Also any time a contractor ask for something that is not standard, its a big red flag and I know the job will not go smoothly, and I document everything, if he calls me to ask me to do something I say email that request to me, so I can prove 5 months later he did ask for a change.

Scott Ellis, post: 385354, member: 7154 wrote: It might just be easier to give him your decimal pocket tape and, say hey use this for the layout, Also any time a contractor ask for something that is not standard, its a big red flag and I know the job will not go smoothly, and I document everything, if he calls me to ask me to do something I say email that request to me, so I can prove 5 months later he did ask for a change.

I completely understand where you are coming from with the written requests. Its a necessity for one to cover his own hide. NYC Feet and Inches is building standard. Constantly converting back and forth. Its a nuisance!

I have a calculator (bought years ago for under $15 if memory serves) that converts between decimal and fraction. I'm also pretty sure there are web pages that will do the same thing.

Of course, the drawback is having internet (though one could likely find the page with a "smart" phone).

What program are you using and are you making Z values for every point or certain points?

Here is a chart I give to contractors that don't get it.
http://www.independencetube.com/downloads/ConversionInchesDecimalOfFoot.pdf

Observer28, post: 385355, member: 6721 wrote: I completely understand where you are coming from with the written requests. Its a necessity for one to cover his own hide. NYC Feet and Inches is building standard. Constantly converting back and forth. Its a nuisance!

It is rough sometimes trying to be the middle man between the Architect's who use inches and the Engineering's who mostly use tenths.

Scott Ellis, post: 385354, member: 7154 wrote: It might just be easier to give him your decimal pocket tape and, say hey use this for the layout, Also any time a contractor ask for something that is not standard, its a big red flag and I know the job will not go smoothly, and I document everything, if he calls me to ask me to do something I say email that request to me, so I can prove 5 months later he did ask for a change.

I use to take my broken engineer yo-yo's (tape) and cut them in one foot sections and hand them out to users that could not understand tenths of feet (tapes that had 10ths on one side and inch's on the other.) The rest of your comment is excellent advice too! Jp

Can you change the way elevations are displayed in AutoCAD? I would assume they have a way of doing that for architects.....?

Seems like you could bring in the points like you normally do and just create a label style that would show it the way he wants it.

Tom Adams, post: 385376, member: 7285 wrote: Can you change the way elevations are displayed in AutoCAD? I would assume they have a way of doing that for architects.....?

Shouldn't be that hard. Doesn't the "Dimensionstyle" command in ACAD/Carlson/Intellicad do just that. Pull down "Architectural", then set precision.