New API doc - typos and questions

Jim · 21 Jun 2009, 22:34

This post on the API blog is showing start_timer with a fraction of a second resolution. In my experience, UI.start_timer has a whole second resolution and rounds partial seconds down to the nearest second.


    t1=Time.now; UI.start_timer(0.1) {p Time.now-t1} ==> 0.01
    t1=Time.now; UI.start_timer(0.999) {p Time.now-t1} ==> 0.01
    t1=Time.now; UI.start_timer(1) {p Time.now-t1} ==> 1.001
    t1=Time.now; UI.start_timer(1.9) {p Time.now-t1} ==> 1.002

Jim · 22 Jun 2009, 06:48

Point3d.linear_combination

Uses example from Geom.linear_combination.

I would guess the Point3d.linear_combination would only take 2 arguments - the weight, and other point since the first point is the receiver of the method.

thomthom · 22 Jun 2009, 08:58

MaterialsObserver
http://code.google.com/intl/nb/apis/sketchup/docs/ourdoc/materialsobserver.html

Observer events that doesn't trigger:
Sketchup 6
onMaterialChange*
onMaterialRefChange

Sketchup 7
onMaterialChange*
onMaterialRefChange
onMaterialSetCurrent

Only triggers when the name changes. Not when any of the other properties changes.

Jim · 23 Jun 2009, 02:58

Group.move!

@unknownuser said:

This method is the same as the transform! method except that it does not record the move in an undo operation. This method is useful for transparently moving things during an animation.

.move! resets the rotational and scaling components of the receiver's transformation, and does not result in the same final translation as using .transform!

thomthom · 30 Jun 2009, 09:18

Layer.page_behavior vs Layer.page_behavior=
http://code.google.com/intl/nb/apis/sketchup/docs/ourdoc/layer.html#page_behavior

The flag values seems to contradict between descriptions of the two methods.

thomthom · 30 Jun 2009, 09:34

Pages.add_frame_change_observer
http://code.google.com/intl/nb/apis/sketchup/docs/ourdoc/pages.html#add_frame_change_observer

I don't find any more info on this FrameChange observer. Missing documentation?

@unknownuser said:

The argument is an object that implements a method frameChange with the following form:

But then there's no example. And no FrameChange observer is listed in the Observer list.

TIG · 2 Jul 2009, 10:21

Transformation.to_a
http://code.google.com/apis/sketchup/docs/ourdoc/transformation.html#to_a
It would be every helpful if this listed the many items in this array and explained which each of them represents
e.g. tra[14]= Z value
...

Chris Fullmer · 2 Jul 2009, 15:37

@tig said:

Transformation.to_a
http://code.google.com/apis/sketchup/docs/ourdoc/transformation.html#to_a
It would be every helpful if this listed the many items in this array and explained which each of them represents
e.g. tra[14]= Z value
...

I AGREE!!

remus · 2 Jul 2009, 15:42

I dont know if that would be possible, as what each element means varies a lot depending on the transformation (or combination of transformations) that have happened. The exception to this is the final column ([12],[13],[14]) which always represent translation.

thomthom · 2 Jul 2009, 18:32

@remus said:

I dont know if that would be possible, as what each element means varies a lot depending on the transformation (or combination of transformations) that have happened. The exception to this is the final column ([12],[13],[14]) which always represent translation.

Well, an explaination of the difference would be great. Because transformation is a big scary wolf when you start SU scripting... IMO...

remus · 2 Jul 2009, 20:03

I wonder if theyd mind linking out to another site, theres lots of stuff out there:

301 Moved Permanently

(www.ugrad.cs.ubc.ca)

Google Search

(www.google.co.uk)

thomthom · 5 Jul 2009, 11:31

Got to disagree there. .os_language and .get_locale should both return the system settings, as that's what they indicate. They have their uses. But maybe there should be extra method to get the SU language...

thomthom · 5 Jul 2009, 11:33

Ah, I see now:
http://code.google.com/apis/sketchup/docs/ourdoc/sketchup.html#get_locale

@unknownuser said:

The get_locale method returns the language code for the language SketchUp is running in.

Valid return values include (but are not limited to): EN, QE, DE, FR, JP, ES, and IT.

Yes, Sketchup.get_locale should according to the docs NOT return the system locale...

tomasz · 5 Jul 2009, 11:37

Yep, get_locale should not be an alias of os_language as doc suggests and os_language should read os language instead of local SU language.

tomasz · 5 Jul 2009, 11:47

Sketchup.os_language

Sketchup.get_locale

In Polish version of SU6 PL both methods return 'pl' string.
Current description is misleading because I've got SU6 PL installed in Vista EN.
get_locale should refer to SU language instead of OS!

@unknownuser said:

The os_language method is used to retrieve a two character code representing the os language. This is an alias for the get_locale method.

thomthom · 5 Jul 2009, 11:56

@unknownuser said:

Yep, get_locale should not be an alias of os_language as doc suggests and os_language should read os language instead of local SU language.

So, os_language reads the SU locale? that's the wrong method?

tomasz · 5 Jul 2009, 13:15

I have investigated the case and it turned out that SU reads the OS language settings , not the language version of the OS itself. I had the language settings set to Polish in VistaENG. That was why SU returned os_language as 'pl' and get_locale also as 'pl'. So the documentation in right when the OS language selected in OS settings has its presence in SU.

When OS language settings, say Portuguese, is not supported by SU then os_language returns 'en-US' which is wrong.

thomthom · 9 Jul 2009, 07:11

Animation
http://code.google.com/intl/nb/apis/sketchup/docs/ourdoc/animation.html

The first example on that page:


     # This is an example of a simple animation that floats the camera up to
     # a z position of 200". The only required method for an animation is
     # nextFrame. It is called whenever you need to show the next frame of
     # the animation. If nextFrame returns false, the animation will stop.
     class FloatUpAnimation
       def nextFrame(view)
         new_eye = view.camera.eye
         new_eye.z = new_eye.z + 1.0
         view.camera.set(new_eye, view.camera.target, view.camera.up)
         view.show_frame
         return new_eye.z < 500.0
       end
     end

     # This adds an item to the Camera menu to activate our custom animation.
     UI.menu("Camera").add_item("Run Float Up Animation") {
       Sketchup.active_model.active_view.animation = FloatUpAnimation.new
     }

It makes a class named FloatUpAnimation, but no mention of Animation. A bit confusing.
Is it like the Observers?
Should it say class FloatUpAnimation < Animation

scottlininger · 9 Jul 2009, 15:01

It is like observers. It doesn't actually have to be a subclass to work. Any object that replies to the nextFrame callback can be used as an animation.

thomthom · 9 Jul 2009, 15:51

@unknownuser said:

It is like observers. It doesn't actually have to be a subclass to work. Any object that replies to the nextFrame callback can be used as an animation.

Isn't observer like that as well? I realised once that I had used the wrong observer class as a base, but the observer still worked.