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BimTester for a newbie
Hi everybody,
I'd like to use BimTester in Blenderbim. I went to github but now it's too difficult for me. Then i went here https://wiki.osarch.org/index.php?title=Using_MicroMVDs_for_exchange_requirements but it seems to be not updated to current version. Can someone explain me which input i've to insert ?
If i will be able to succed i will be very glad to write a short tutorial to help people understand the workflow.
Thanks everybody.
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Yes, it has not been updated. Right now, you point the feature file input field at your
foo.featurefile. You can leave custom steps blank if you don't have any custom step definitions (e.g. you are using the out of the box exchange requirement templates).Some of the templates have also been updated to use "quotes" around user inputs, so if you notice some unrecognised tests after running BIMTester, try adding quotes in the exchange requirement sentences. I haven't yet updated the wiki about this.
Btw @bernd have you had a chance to play with the updated version?
ATM I am owerwhelmed with work. Som more patience is needed here.
The good news. I have started to use latest bimtester before update in a real world environment on a daily basis. It runs automaticlly on any created model. Once it runs with a few more tests I need, I will start hacking on the updated version with the aim to use this one.
Thanks for answering,
I've used this feature file
After pressing "Execute BimTestr" the browser popped out with nothing.
Thi is the error:
Where am i wrong? Thanks
@Bimlooser fantastic if you'd like to help with some documentation. Since BlenderBIM is so new and things change a lot maybe you'd like to arrange and record a little tutorial with one of our experts on BIMTester? I'd love to see that.
@duncan I can try
@Bimlooser apologies, the documentation is outdated. I have now updated the Wiki: https://wiki.osarch.org/index.php?title=Project_setup_MicroMVD and updated the tutorial. In the future, there are plans to tie the code definitions to auto generated docs and a web app (see https://blenderbim.org/bimtester for a mockup), so there will be less mistakes and effort required to maintain these particular wiki pages.
The line "The IFC file ... must be provided" is now obsolete, as you specify the IFC when running BIMTester. Just remove that line. The line "IFC data must use the IFC2X3 schema" must have "IFC2X3" in quotes, so it reads:
There was a bit of work done in standardising this so that all user configurable variables are in double quotes to ensure that it is clear what is part of the template and what is customised for the project.
@Moult thanks for the update, no apologies required from such a revolutionary man like you and the entire community. Maybe i found a little imprecision in the wiki page:
.
I tried again but unfortunately i recieved the same error when the web page pops up: no tests appear.
Btw i will try again, if someone have some suggestion to give me will appreciate so much.
Thanks again
@Bimlooser if you're available, can you join the OSArch Live Chat and ping me there? I'll probably need to screenshare to debug your issue. I consider it a high priority to fix it.
Unfortunately now I'm in the bed cause it's 1:27 a.m. here in italy. Can i try next days? if i find you and you are available there is no problem for me. Thanks again
@Bimlooser sure thing. I'm generally online during the Sydney timezone during waking hours!
@Bimlooser great news! One of our new Google Summer of Code students HarshAgarwal helped debug and fix the issue which I suspect you're running into. In short, I completely forgot to compile and bundle Babel language files in the BlenderBIM Add-on. There should be a build up in the next day or so which contains the fix!
Great news!! I'll wait for the next BlenderBim release. Thanks for your time and i'll let you know after the installation
It works. Thanks everybody.
In your opinion, having a very low programming knowledges, how can i try to create my own test?
@Bimlooser either you can learn some programming (it's not hard! Just begin here: https://wiki.osarch.org/index.php?title=IfcOpenShell_code_examples ), or you can ask us here and we'll write something, and you can tweak it.
There is also a work in progress for a new standard for defining simple requirements that does not require programming knowledge called IDS, and a student for GSoC has proposed to help build in a web-based authoring system to create this requirements. So I guess if you wait a while (maybe a few months) this should become available. If this interests you, you should definitely get in touch as a tester!
@Moult Thanks for the link, my aim is to learn some programming (i'll start from the wiki page) and be a tester. Let me know how can i help.
A
out of curiosity is the IDS specification simply codifying the exisiting MicroMVD workflow? Or is IDS very different? I've started to write my own MicroMVD audit feature files with respect to auditing IFC files I get from an architect for structural engineering purposes and I quite like the workflow it makes possible with easing data exchange issues. So I guess I'm wondering what the benefits of a more rigorous standard are since in my specific case (structural <-> architecture model/data exchange) I see the flexibility in writing custom MicroMVDs very appealing. Will IDS maintain this flexibilty?
The IDS specification is codifying "basic" MicroMVD tests. These are really lowest common denominator things like "does property exist" or "is property within range". It is not capable (and you can understand why due to the complexity) of codifying complex checks like "is the geolocation set correctly".
Hi @jchkoch, it's Artur here, the student from GSoC, I've just posted more on IDS in this thread: https://community.osarch.org/discussion/647/ids-information-delivery-specification#latest. I would say IDS is simpler than mvdXML which has pros and cons. Current version of the standard's XSD is here: view-source:http://standards.buildingsmart.org/IDS/ids.xsd. Can you give an example of flexibility you have in mind? I can see if it's possible to map to IDS.
Hi @ATomczak, thanks for the heads up. I'm not really a programmer (although I like to think I know some or at least enough) and so I'm looking at it from a user perspective. The use case that I see for IDS from a structural engineering (my discipline) is to exchange subset "small" models using IFC files on specific elements within a building project where there exists a requirement for the architecture and structural engineering to find a solution which works for both disciplines. I think by utilizing IDS or MicroMVD a quicker turnaround time within the collaboration in such a case will allow me as a structural engineer to iterate through more "solutions" with a architect and be able to add more structural engineering "value" to the client on the project (i.e. rule of thumb: more iterative design -> "better" design). Perhaps, I also do not quite understand the practical differences between IDS and MicroMVDs in terms of their implementation and probably need really try some of this stuff out (easier said than done working full-time on existing projects as a structural engineer).
I feel you, I used to work in structural engineering until January. Am I correct that you want to use it to select some subset of elements and export them to 'small' IFC model? IDS might not be the best approach to do it. The IDS schema is fairly simple and allows you to require certain parameters of your IFC elements, for example: "If IfcWall has a material 'Concrete' it also needs a parameter 'Concrete_class' with a value starting with 'C'". The end-user doesn't need to ever look at the code, or in fact XML formating, because it will be easy to author and validate such IDS. Have a look my (not usable) prototype: http://artomczak.pythonanywhere.com/create. I will populate the demo with some common use-case examples, hopefully till the end of July.