Project Browser is pretty important in Revit. You need it to find and open a view. However, when your project becomes comples you will have many views. It can be difficult to find a view in the long list.
There are several tips that you can use to help you find the view that you need easier and faster.
View Naming
Many Revit users add number prefix in front of the view name. You should see it quite often, even Revit sample files use this prefix.
The reason why we add the prefix is to sort the view name. Sorting the view name is the easiest way.
Would the View Title on the sheet have the prefix too? Yes, but you can change the Title on Sheet property. If you don’t fill this field, Revit will use the view name. The prefix will not look good on your sheet, but don’t worry. You can show only view name on sheet.
Browser Organization
The next step that you can do to manage the Project Browser list is using Project Browser. This is particularly helpful when your project has grown and has many views. You can filter and group the views.
You can access the Project Browser by right clicking on Views then click Browser Organization.
In the Browser Organization, you will see two tabs: Views and Sheets. The settings for each category are similar.
There are several default organizations and you can add or modify it. Except for “All”, you can’t edit the organizations.
Select Discipline then click Edit.
Browser Organization Filtering
In the Browser Organization Properties, the first tab is Filter. It allows you to show only floor plans, a specific discipline, or a specific phase. It can simplify the list in your Project Browser and avoid the confusion.
The sample below is created to show only views in Architectural discipline.
Browser Organization Grouping and Sorting
The Grouping and Sorting tab allows you to group the views further. You can also sort the view by another property.
You can see how David Light arrange the views in Project Browser here. It is a good example in using Project Browser Organization.
Search
The last tip: use search. If you right click on Views, you can see Search… in the context menu.
Search allows you to find a view or a family quickly in the Project Browser.
For example, you need to find views that contains plumbing in it’s name. Type plumbing and click next. Click next until you find the view that you want.
Search doesn’t filter the view name. It will highlight the view in the Project Browser.
To Sum Up
The Project Browser can be overwhelming. You can have so many views there. 1st floor can have architecture floor plan, color scheme, furniture layout, mechanical design, plumbing design and the list can be very long.
You can arrange the browser to see the views in order that you like. And you can filter views that you are not using at the moment.
If you haven’t organize it, you probably want to start using it now!
