[General IT]–One click image uploads with Clupper

I’ve been using a really handy tool lately, called Clupper. If you are someone who is always sending screenshots to people online, perhaps adding them to forums/social networking, or sending support requests, this could save you some time.

Once you’ve downloaded it and set it up, it will sit in your tray. To use it, all you do is take a screenshot, and then click it. It will then upload the image and copy the URL to your clipboard.

Combine this with the Windows 7 Snipping Tool and you have a really easy way to send clippings to others. For instance, the above image, I opened the snipping tool, selected that area, then clicked on the pink arrow.

It then uploads it to my pre-configured FTP site (it can also use image hosting sites) and then gives me the URL. This is also handy when you use the ALT+PrintScreen windows shortcut to take a screenshot of the active window.

Have a look at it http://pnpq.de/

[Revit API] Autodesk University 2010–Introduction to the Revit API

The Autodesk University class listings for both physical and virtual classes are now available on the AU website. Head over there and take a look, there are lots of great looking classes. It is also available in a handy spread sheet format.

This year they have tried to mix things up by changing the class selection a little bit, instead of having the same speakers present the same classes (even though they have been doing a great job of it) they have decided to try and get some fresh new content. Whilst new content is great, there are some classic ‘must have’ classes, and for those they have tried wherever they can to give a new speaker a chance to present on those to get a different perspective.

One such ‘must have’ class is the ‘Introduction to the Revit API’ class, which as a part of the changeup, I have the privilege of presenting. I have a high standard to live up to, as in previous years Danny Polkinhorn has done a stellar job of presenting this class, and helping many people to take their first steps in Revit API development (including me!).

The class description is this:

From Hello World and beyond, this class will take you through the steps of creating a Revit add-in from scratch and registering it to run inside Revit using the Revit application programming interface. You will learn how to get input from the user, access their currently selected elements, and read and write to and from the project database. Learn how the RevitLookup tool can help you to get familiar with the Revit file structure and debug your application, and learn how filters can help you speed up your database searches. With a little Microsoft® .NET programming knowledge, you can create great add-ins for Revit. This class shows you the basics that you can then build on. Some .NET programming (C# or Visual Basic®) experience is recommended.

It is a 60 minute lecture, on the first day of AU in November.

I would love to hear from anyone who is attending this class as to anything they would like to see included that isn’t listed in the description above, its not a huge timeslot so I won’t be going into great detail (there is a great range of Revit API classes this year that will cover more in depth topics), but I would like to hear from people who have maybe just started learning the API as to what certain things you found difficult or what gotchas you had so I can make sure I touch on those.

From my talks with people locally who have been trying to learn the API the first challenge is that of learning C# (or VB.NET), as a result I have been contemplating doing a sort of ‘C# for Revit Users’ webcast/blog post series in the lead up to AU. Stay tuned for information on that.