Chapter 25

Getting Acquainted with the Revit API

If you've ever wanted to learn how to program in .NET but thought it might be too hard to learn, we recommend that you give it a try. Programming in .NET isn't difficult as long as you start out slow and keep it simple; the benefits can be limitless.

There are a number of reasons that a power user should want to learn the Revit application programming interface (API). Modeling and drafting processes can be tedious, with several repetitive tasks that can prove to be tremendously cost effective when automated. Let's face it—nobody wants to repeat the same task over and over if they can have a button implement these tasks for them. Beyond basic automation, you can start to extend functionality that is not readily achievable through the basic user interface.

In this chapter, you'll learn to:

• Understand the basics of the Revit API
• Build, install, and debug your own API projects