Jason T. Radice

Thank you for adding a bit of context.
However, there is not one thing that I have been critical of that is not true with regards to this paver or its installtion. I also had purposely redacted the manufatcurer’s name, as I do with all of my posts. I also have spoken directly with the manufatcurer with regards to this particular product and its…[Read more]

I was retorting J. Robert’s comment about being in an LA firm is the “best” place for an LA to be. In fact, it really isn’t always. I was trying to defend those of us who work outside of that world, in engineering offices, in planning offices, and in architects offices, that we are the people who can really have an impact on the profession by…[Read more]

I was retorting J. Robert’s comment about being in an LA firm is the “best” place for an LA to be. In fact, it really isn’t always. I was trying to defend those of us who work outside of that world, in engineering offices, in planning offices, and in architects offices, that we are the people who can really have an impact on the profession by…[Read more]

In some states, LAs can engineer and stamp drawings for those things, which is why they are on the test. A good number of LAs routinely size pipes and in-ground storm drainage systems, and with the current trend of designing bioswales and water infiltrations systems, it is quite lucrative for the profession to be able to design a whole stormwater…[Read more]

Back in the day when you used to have to do this part of the exam by hand in a hot room with shaky tables, I used the PPI books to prepare and found them most helpful in that they not only help you with content, but tell you WHAT the reviewer is actually looking for, and it is really nit-pickey like ensuring your contours blend into existing…[Read more]

It depends on what kind of work you want to do. If you want to go into any kind of commercial work (not residential design) you will need a license to have the ability to stamp permit and construction drawings. If you do very high end residential, a license adds credibility, and again, you may need it to stamp submission drawings for structures…[Read more]

Any portable drive will be PAINFULLY slow to try to run programs off of, if the system would let you do it at all. And booting from a portable drive isn’t as easy as you think. You have to go into the BIOS and change the settings, again, if the computer will let you boot off of USB. Your CAD and any image software will grind to a halt if you try…[Read more]

This is a very ignorant statement you’ve made here. Sure, being in some arch or eng firms aren’t always the  most glamorous types of work for an LA, but if you are into the planning end of things it can be ideal. And it certainly raises the profile of the LA profession if you are ambitious and push yourself within these firms. Besides, if an ar…[Read more]

I worked for a commercial real estate developer for a while I really liked the job. Depending on how the company works, you are very often the client, so you have a great deal of decision making power you will never get at a LA firm. The second most “powerful” LA employment is generally in architect’s offices, as they are pretty much always the le…[Read more]

I worked for a commercial real estate developer for a while I really liked the job. Depending on how the company works, you are very often the client, so you have a great deal of decision making power you will never get at a LA firm. The second most “powerful” LA employment is generally in architect’s offices, as they are pretty much always the le…[Read more]

I know FL Wright would be outsourcing it all overseas.

If you are looking for something with similar capabilities that actually works (quite well, in fact), check out M-Color.
Once you get it set up and learn how it works, it plots CAD plans into color renderings near instantly. Makes great and tiny PDFs of those plans, too. I used it for years at one of my former employers and it was very…[Read more]

Central Park took years to design and teams of draftsmen and illustrators (and Calvert Vaux) to produce the mountains of plans…in INK. People forget the row after row of draftsmen in a smokey, stuffy, hot room in suits with vests who, bent over their tables with inkwells and trying to draw on linen, which worked at the pleasure and direction of…[Read more]

Same situation. aby concrete is porous and will hold water…so it isn’t fire resistent and will crack or spall apart, sometimes violently. You can get these elevated models with grates in them to keep the fire off the metal base and allow coals to fall below., and you really don’t need too much air underneath unless you plan on doing some b…[Read more]

I would very highly recommend using one of them steel elevated firepits in this case, such as the type below. If you are at all worried about the surface underneath, this is the only way to go. The heat of the fire and coals, along with the moisture in the natural stone or mortar will definitely crack the stone, and the stone may even “explode”…[Read more]

It isn’t necessarily that they are dumb (though that does happen). From my personal experience in interacting with lots of engineers, architects, and LAs on site issues, there is STILL a general misunderstanding or plain ingnorance of the ADA regulations. Some of it is unscrupulous contractors as I recently reported to a local mall who had some…[Read more]

http://www.asla.org/land/LandArticle.aspx?id=33951

Scroll down to the comments until you find a long one by robmcginnis@me.com for some clarification.
I need to look into this as well because I will shortly be applying for reciprocity in VA. Oh, and congrats on getting the license!

I’m still using the RLA moniker, as I don’t agree with the logic of PLA. Nobody outside a few people in the profession knows what it means, and it isn’t tied to anything like a proper title of PE, which is what it was based on. PE is a LEGAL abbreviation of title, PLA is not. RA is generally a legal abbreviation of title, RLA is generally a legal…[Read more]

Allrightythen. This week’s challenge involves a lesson on the proper choice of materials for a particular location.
What the photo shows are a specific clay brick permeable paver system installed in front of a building on a major university campus. These pavers are also installed at other locations around campus, but not in as large an area as t…[Read more]

Agreed. WHAT you work on makes all the difference in the world. Doing most residential or garden scale design work with AutoCAD and Vectorworks is like using a sledgehammer to drive a finish brad. Both can be used for that, but can be way overpowered and very expensive for the task.
Depending on how complicated your designs are and how detailed y…[Read more]