Dynamo

I had the good fortune to be able to attend Autodesk University this year, and without initially intending to do so, ended up with the majority of my classes centered on Dynamo. Dynamo is an open-source add-in that works with Revit (and Vasari) and provides a graphical means of creating custom programming for Revit. The architect side of me appreciates the graphical interface; the long-time AutoCAD^®/AutoCAD^® Architecture customization side of me (AutoLISP^®, VBScript in formula properties) appreciates the ability to do things and process data in ways not accommodated by the out-of-the-box commands and features.

I have had a long-time desire to become familiar with the Revit API and explore the possibilities available there, but a combination of a lack of significant stretches of dedicated time and being somewhat intimidated by the amount of things I would have to learn just to get started have conspired to keep me from starting that journey. From what I have seen so far of Dynamo, there is a much lower entry barrier, and I am excited to learn more and apply that knowledge to real-world, useful projects.

As I discover things (or have others show them to me), I expect I will be documenting them here. Until then, here are links to the Dynamo website and other related resources.

Dynanmo Website
Dynamo Downloads
Dynamo Tutorials
Dynamo Blog
Dynamo Gallery
Dynamo Community (discussion forum)

I would also like to express my thanks to Zach Kron, Marcello Sgambelluri, Nathan Miller, Ian Keough, Michael Hudson, Andrea Vannini and Nuri Miller, who taught one or more of the classes I took at Autodesk University this year. Check out the materials that are available on line:

AB6644: Dynamo: The Future is Wide Open - Zach Kron (session recorded)
AB6542: Explore the Possibilities with Computational BIM - Ian Keough (session recorded)
AB6557: Practically Dynamo: Practical Uses for Dynamo Within Revit - Marcello Sgambelluri (session recorded)
AB6545-L: Dynamo for Dummies: An Intro to Dynamo and How It Interacts with Revit - Marcello Sgambelluri
AB5482: The Great Dynamo Dig: Mine Your Revit Model with Computation - Nathan Miller (session recorded)
AB5492: White-Glove Packaging: Creating Custom Dynamo Nodes - Nathan Miller
AB6495: Dynamo Hero: Using Revit Scripting Tools to Optimize Real-World Projects - Michael Hudson and Andrea Vannini
SD5132-L: Automation Prototyping: A Side-by-Side Comparison of Dynamo and the Revit API - Nuri Miller