Why is it important to accurately model the land features of your project site with a toposurface?
The material used for building into the side of a hill is the most important thing engineering-wise, and design-wise, if a house is built into a hill, you cannot have any windows in the places where the building is below grade. How the house is shaped generally is very important for the surrounding area, because otherwise, that area will need to be developed, which will take time and money.
When designing a project...
I think you should generally adapt the building to its surrounding terrain, as that will force you as an architect to be more creative, which will create more unique buildings. I am also personally a big fan of incorporating nature into buildings, like what is shown in Falling Water.
Describe a case when it would be worthwhile to create a new custom component in Revit… How do you decide when to customize versus using readily available components?
If you, as either a student or an architect, are creating something very unique or niche, it might be worthwhile just to create your own component because then it can fit your specific needs, and you won’t have to worry about editing or trying to find an already made component.