Overview

Indigo Figs Zone Stamp is a cell-based zone stamp whose size and location for each cell can be adjusted.

Key Features

  • 3 Customize-able Scale Sensitive options
  • Flexible Size/Location
  • Reference Level options and Marker options for Elevation data (Floor Elevation / Ceiling Elevation)
  • Custom Text with Symbol options
  • Custom Unit Formats / Styles
  • Scale Sensitive Text Styles
  • Model View Options

Getting Ready

After copying Indigo Figs Zone Stamp to your working library or linked library, go to Options > Element Attributes > Zone Categories then assign it to any Zone Category of your choice.

Working with Zone Stamp’s settings

Go to the “Preferences & Log File Path” tab in “Zone Selection Settings”, then choose “Use Zone Stamp’s Settings” preset.

Content Settings

There are two main types of content, “Zone Parameter & Custom Text” and “Classification & Properties”. Each type contains up to 14 cells. To add/delete cell, use “+” / “-” button.
Number of cells and selected display content are the same through out the settings (with Scale Sensitive enabled or not). User can control cell’s visibility using “Show/Hide” checkbox in front of each cell’s settings. Cell’s visibility can be different from one scale to another.

For “Zone Parameter & Custom Text”, depend on the cell’s content selected, use “More/Fewer Option” button to open/close optional settings for each cell’s content.

Scale Sensitive

Go to “Scale Sensitivity Settings” tab and input the desired values. There are 3 values (scales) available with restriction, value 1 < value 2 < value 3.
By default, the values are set to 50, 100 and 200 (1:50, 1:100 and 1:200). It means ;

  • Drawing scale 1:1 to 1:50 uses all the values from 1:50 settings.
  • Drawing scale 1:51 to 1:100 uses all the values from 1:100 settings.
  • Drawing scale 1:101 and higher values (smaller scale) uses all the values from 1:200 settings.

To activate, check the “Scale Sensitive” checkbox.

If the working unit is set to imperial unit (Options > Project Preferences > Working Units > Model Unit), user can use the preset values/scales provided.

Rearranging Cell

By default, the initial location is set away from the zone stamp’s origin point, this is so that users can later move the cells and rearrange their location about the origin to fit the design.

The initial offset distances for “Zone Parameters / Custom Text” and “Classification and Properties” can be set in the “Preferences” tab.

Adjusting the offset distance values affects all existing cells. It’s highly recommended to adjust these values before start rearranging cells.

Before start rearranging cells, maker sure that the “Scale Sensitive” checkbox is checked and the active scale is the same as drawing scale.

Click “OK” and start rearranging cells. Make sure that the “Move node” in the pet palette is selected. “Move Cell” hotspots are located at the corners of each cell, “Cell width” hotspot at the middle-left and “Cell Height” at the middle-top.

When choosing overlapped hotspots, the only hotspot of the higher content order (in the zone stamp settings dialog) is active.

Cell’s location could be anywhere but it’s recommended for user to rearrange the cells somewhere corresponding to the zone stamp’s origin to avoid confusion. After moving cells to the desired location, use the toggle “Cell’s hotspot” to set to “Off” (by moving the hotspot slightly to the left or double click it).

Use “Move Zone Stamp” hotspot in the middle of the zone stamp to relocate the whole zone stamp as needed.

If more cells are added, the newly added cells will appear on their initial locations. Users can then move them to the desired locations.

General Content Settings

By default, “Use Difference Alignments” is selected for Content & Title Alignments. This option overrides the alignment settings in the “Text Settings” tab (T1, T2, T3) if both the content and title text are present. If the title field is blank, the alignment setting from the “Text Settings” tab is used.
If “Use the Same Alignment” is selected, the alignment setting from the “Text Settings” tab is used.

The “Content & Title Alignment” setting also affects “Classification & Properties Display Options” since the Parameter Name could also be classified as “Title” text.

Pointer

Pointer and Table Frame appear only when Cell’s hotspot is turned off. This is to prevent hotspots from overlapping. Go to “Pointer & Table Frame” tab, click the “Draw Pointer” icon and check the “Draw Table Frame” checkbox if needed.

“Draw Table Frame” will draw rectangular shape from overall size and location of all cells.

Use 4 additional hotspots to adjust the start point, angle, length and offset distance as needed.

Repeat for other scale sensitivity settings.

Working with Model View Options

For general information about MOV, please visit ; https://helpcenter.graphisoft.com/guides/archicad-21/archicad-21-reference-guide/views-of-the-virtual-building/model-view-options/

Apart from being able to control 2D representations and other options globally, this feature is designed to allow users to alternate the content of the same cell for each MVO.

Most of the options in MVO are the same as in the zone stamp. Please read “Working with Zone Stamp’s settings” for more information.

Since cell’s height, width and location can be set from zone stamp only, it is important that the number of cells (with the same “Show/Hide” option) are the same for each MVO.

Make sure that the active scale is set correctly according to the drawing scale so the zone stamp reflects the current viewing parameters.

In zone stamp, go to the “Preferences & Log File Path” tab in “Zone Selection Settings”, then choose “Use MVO’s Settings” preset.

Go to “Zone Parameters & Custom Text” tab. All of the parameters’ input are now locked. This indicates that the zone stamp is now use the settings from MVO.

Note : Since there is no parameter stored in the zone stamp while using MVO’s settings, the locked parameters in the user interface might not show to same values as the values display on drawing and therefore should be disregarded.

Click “OK” and start arranging cells into position, then change the display “Model View Options Combination” to see the result.

Scale-sensitive parameters

“Zone Parameters & Custom Text” tab

“Classification & Properties” tab

“Text Settings” tab

All parameters are scale-sensitive.

“Marker & Symbol Dimensions” tab

“Pointer & Table Frame” tab

On-Screen Parameters

  • Cell Width
  • Cell Height
  • Cell Location
  • Cell’s hotspot (Toggle On/Off)

Model View Options Preset

Go to “Preferences & Log File Path” tab to set the value.

Use MVO’s Settings

All of the settings from Model View Options Combination are used.

Exclude Classification and Properties

All of the settings from Model View Options Combination excluding “Classification and Properties” are used.

Options for “Classification and Properties” available in Model View Options Combination can be different from options in zone stamp. This preset allows users to manually select the content for each zone stamp.

Use Zone Stamp’s Settings

All of the settings from the zone stamp are used.

Custom Select

Choosing “Use MVO”s Settings” or “Exclude Classification and Properties” preset can slow down the computer while moving/resizing cells because lots of parameters are being transferred from the Model View Options Combination to the zone stamp at the same time. This preset allows users to select only parts of parameters that affect cell’s width/height while editing and then switch back to “Use MVO”s Settings” or “Exclude Classification and Properties” preset later.

When selected, the MVO Options for each tab is unlocked. Go to each tab and select the preferred option.

Custom Text

Custom Text offers additional options ;

  • Draw symbol shape
  • Read content from a log file (Read Log).
  • Vertical Spacing

To display additional options, click “More Options” button at the end of the cell’s settings.

Draw Symbol

This feature draws selected shape around text. Use comma “,” to separate each symbol (No space is required before/after comma.)

Read Content from a log file (Read Log)

This feature requires Indigo Figs Symbol Label 21 version 1.04 and above. If enabled, the zone stamp will read a log file (.txt) created with Indigo Figs Symbol Label.

Specify the log file

Go to “Preferences & Log File Path” tab, type in the full path in to “File Path” input.

If the “Model View Options” preset is set to “Use MVO’s Settings” or “Exclude Classification & Properties”, the “File Path” input will be locked and the zone stamp will use the file’s path specified in the Model View Options Combination instead. This also applies if the preset is set to “Custom” and “MVO : Zone Parameters/Custom Text” is set to “Use MVO’s Settings”

The selected symbol shape have to match the data in the log file. If reading is successful, the content regarding the selected zone will be displayed. If not, “-” will be displayed.

Vertical Spacing

This value affects the vertical spacing when multi line occurs (total width of the content/symbol’s size is greater than cell’s width). The value is the percentage of symbol’s size.

Custom Text in Model View Options Combination

Custom Text1 – Custom Text 10 ; The values will be displayed globally via the zone stamp. Users cannot redefine the values via zone stamp. Use these values with “Read Log” enabled or when the content is needed to be displayed in all zone stamps.

Custom Text 11 – Custom Text 20 ; Users can redefine the values for each zone via zone stamp.

Example,

Change the content for the 3rd cell to “Custom Text 11” for “IF Floor Plans” MVO Combination. Leave the input field blank.

Change the content for the 3rd cell to “Custom Text 12” for “IF Ceiling Plans” MVO Combination. Leave the input field blank.

Note : The Custom Text selected have to be different for each MVO Combination.

Select a zone stamp and open the “Zone Selection Settings” dialog and go to “Zone Parameters and Custom Text”. The input field is now unlocked. Users can redefine the custom content for each zone (also, separately for each MVO combination).