Revit User interface items disappeared for some tabs

A user in our office reported that an item in his Modify tab disappeared while other tabs appear normal.

It seems that having Revit on a second display with a diffrent display resolution as the main monitor could cause this problem. Anyone out there experiencing this issue?

I recommend closing and restarting the Revit program should help to correct the display problem.

Saving Loaded Families

Save a selected family or all families loaded in the current project or template in a location that you specify.

You can save the family or families to a location on your system or to a network location. Each family is saved as an RFA file and all family types are saved with the family. Only Loadable families can be saved with this option. In-place families and System families, such as walls, duct systems, and patterns, cannot be saved.

To save a selected family

1. Do either of the following:
   Click [R] >Save As >Library >Family.
   Right-click a family in the Project Browser, and click Save.

2. In the Save Family dialog:
   A. If you are using Save As >Library >Family, for Family to save, select the family from a list of families loaded in the project.
   B. For Save in, navigate to the location where you want to save the family.
   C. Specify the name and file type for the family, and click Save.

To save all families

1. Do either of the following:
   Click [R] >Save As >Library >Family.
   Right-click the Families category in the Project Browser, and click Save.

2. In the Save Family dialog:
   A. For Save in, navigate to the location where you want to save the families.
   B. For Family to Save, select <All Families>, and click Save.

Source: Autodesk Site

Slanted Wall - Leaning Wall: Part 2

The slanted wall or leaning wall shown below is often a question asked in the various Revit forums and also in our office. Let me guide you on how to do it in addition to the method that I early published way backed in 2010. 

The following are steps to follow:
1. You start an In-Place Mass. Enter a name whatever you like.

2. Create the Mass with a face that is at an angle you want to create. Tip: create your Mass in a 3D view wherein you can choose a wall face to use as a work plane. You are not doing the actual Mass of the targeted Wall. It is just the face of the angled wall.

3. Make the necessary adjustment and finish the Mass.

4. Go to Architect and Site tab, Wall tool, and select Wall by Face.

5. Pick the angled face of the Mass you have just created.

6. Do the wall editing profile on both sides to include the slanted portion.

7. The resulting model will be as shown below.

8. Place your wall openings using your standard door or window family.

Workflow - Creating a Loadable Family

Depending on the complexity of the family, the creation process can be time-consuming. If you can identify a family that is similar to the one you want to create, you can save time and effort by copying, renaming, and modifying the family to create the new family.

For best results when creating a family, use the following workflow.

1. Before beginning family creation, plan your family. Identify requirements regarding family sizes, how the family displays in different views, whether a host is required, the detail level to be modeled, and the origin of the family

2. Create a new family file with the appropriate family template.

3. Define subcategories for the family to help control the visibility of the family geometry.

4. Create the family skeleton, or framework:

- Define the origin (the insertion point) of the family.

- Lay out reference planes and reference lines to aid in sketching component geometry.

- Add dimensions to specify parametric relationships.

- Label dimensions to create type or instance parameters or 2D representation.

- Test, or flex, the skeleton.

5. Define family type variations by specifying different parameters.

6. Add a single level of geometry in solids and voids, and constrain the geometry to reference planes.

7. Flex the new model (types and hosts) to verify correct component behavior.

8. Repeat previous steps until the family geometry is complete.

9. Specify 2D and 3D geometry display characteristics with subcategory and entity visibility settings.

10. Save the newly defined family, and then load it into a project for testing.

11. For large families that include many types, create a type catalog.


Source: Autodesk site