Model Versus Annotation Elements - Essential Skill Video

Learn how to place model and annotation elements in project views.

What is the Difference Between Model and Annotation Elements?

Model elements

• represent physical elements such as walls, windows, and doors.
• placed in a project are visible in all views.

Annotation and detail elements

• are used to add dimensions, notes, and tags to a view, as well as to add details to the graphics generated by the model geometry.
• are view-specific, they appear only in the view in which you placed them.
• can be copied from view to view, but any changes made to them in one view will not be transferred to any other views.

Learning Objective

In this video, you will learn how to:

• Place a model component
• Place a text note.
• Place a detail component.

Terms and Concepts

Term/Concept	Definition
Model Element	Model elements are used to define the geometry of the project. Model elements appear instantly in all views of the project once placed. In most cases the model elements represent physical elements such as walls, windows, and doors. All of the categories for model elements are found on the Model tab of the Visibility/Graphic Overrides dialog and the Object Styles dialog.
Annotation Elements	Annotation elements are view-specific elements used to: document the project, for example, dimensions, tags, or notes. add details to a view not generated by model geometry, for example, lines and detail components. Large-scale details such as a wall foundation or parapet will use annotation and detail elements to fully illustrate the condition.
Project View	Project views are used to see the project model. Each view is controlled independently. When a model element is placed in a view, this model element will be visible in all other views of the project, according to the visibility and graphics settings for each view. Annotation elements placed in a project view will only be visible in the view they are placed in.
Visibility and Graphics	You can change the visibility status and graphic appearance of Individual elements by selecting the object and applying a visibility override from the context menu. The visibility override has priority over the visibility settings applied to the category in the view. This override option allows you to display individual elements as needed in a view. For example, a single door can display as "halftone" while all other doors display normally.

Video