New API doc - typos and questions

thomthom · 3 Nov 2009, 13:01

UI.inputbox
http://code.google.com/intl/nb/apis/sketchup/docs/ourdoc/ui.html#inputbox

It should be noted that the default value types you pass to the input box controls the return types.
http://forums.sketchucation.com/viewtopic.php?f=180&t=23288&p=197300#p197298

thomthom · 6 Nov 2009, 09:53

http://code.google.com/intl/nb/apis/sketchup/docs/releases.html
The release notes says:

@unknownuser said:

Cleaner, hash-based syntax for initializing

But there's nowhere any example of what the hash should look like, keys etc.

Jim · 6 Nov 2009, 12:22

Thom, you are right it needs to be documented.

This is from the webtextures_loader.rb. The constants are defined a little earlier in the code, but this gives some idea about the keys:


 # Create our dialog.
    keys = {
      ;dialog_title => title,
      ;scrollable => false,
      ;preferences_key => WT_DIALOG_REGISTRY_KEY,
      ;height => WT_DIALOG_HEIGHT,
      ;width => WT_DIALOG_WIDTH,
      ;left => WT_DIALOG_X,
      ;top => WT_DIALOG_Y,
      ;resizable => true,
      ;mac_only_use_nswindow => true}
    @dialog = UI;;WebDialog.new(keys)

thomthom · 6 Nov 2009, 12:25

Thanks Jim. Would probably be able to guess most - but...

What's unexpected there is :mac_only_use_nswindow - Same as WebDialog.navigation_buttons_enabled?

Dan Rathbun · 6 Nov 2009, 12:50

@thomthom said:

What's unexpected there is :mac_only_use_nswindow - Same as WebDialog.navigation_buttons_enabled?

Isn't 'nswindow' a base Cocoa (or Carbon) window class?

thomthom · 6 Nov 2009, 12:54

@dan rathbun said:

@thomthom said:

What's unexpected there is :mac_only_use_nswindow - Same as WebDialog.navigation_buttons_enabled?

Isn't 'nswindow' a base Cocoa (or Carbon) window class?

hm... I Googled 'mac nswindow' seems that you might be onto something.
http://developer.apple.com/mac/library/documentation/Cocoa/Reference/ApplicationKit/Classes/NSWindow_Class/Reference/Reference.html

Does it give any visible difference when it's set to true as oppose to false?

Dan Rathbun · 6 Nov 2009, 13:18

@thomthom said:

Does it give any visible difference when it's set to true as oppose to false?

I don't know. I don't have an Apple machine. [..wish I could install OSX of my 686 clone for devlopment. XCode looks like a neat IDE.] There are so many attributes, methods, etc. there it's hard to guess what the SU API is refering to.

thomthom · 9 Nov 2009, 11:21

Edge.reversed_in?
http://code.google.com/intl/nb/apis/sketchup/docs/ourdoc/edge.html#reversed_in?
The reversed_in? method is used to determine if the EdgeUse object is traversed in the corresponding direction as its corresponding edge.

Apart from the EdgeUse typo - what does the method really do. I don't understand at all from the description what it does.

TIG · 10 Nov 2009, 10:12

@thomthom said:

Edge.reversed_in?
http://code.google.com/intl/nb/apis/sketchup/docs/ourdoc/edge.html#reversed_in?
The reversed_in? method is used to determine if the EdgeUse object is traversed in the corresponding direction as its corresponding edge.

Apart from the EdgeUse typo - what does the method really do. I don't understand at all from the description what it does.

I use it in my 'orient faces' method - although I agree that it all seems pretty arcane and badly explained. If an edge is reversed in a face it is going contrary to that face's logical loop direction. If you test an edge belonging to a selected face and that edge has that face face plus another one that both return as being either reversed or not-reversed then you know that this other face has the same 'orientation' as the selected face: if the other face has the opposite 'reversed-ness' to the selected face then it needs to be flipped over (reversed) so it orients the same way as the selected face...

thomthom · 10 Nov 2009, 11:01

There's a logical orientation of the loops?

TIG · 10 Nov 2009, 11:33

@thomthom said:

There's a logical orientation of the loops?

If you get a set of vertices for a face's loop it's always listed as an ordered array: it will be rotating 'counter-clockwise' to the face's normal if it's an external loop, or 'clockwise' if it's an internal loop... If an edge's start/end vertices break this 'rule' I think it's said to be 'reversed in the face' ? That is the order of the edge's vertices don't follow the loops 'handed-ness' so are flagged thus...

jarl · 10 Nov 2009, 12:06

@unknownuser said:

Your help in finding typos/missing details are very welcome!

On http://code.google.com/intl/da/apis/sketchup/docs/ourdoc/point3d.html#+ it says that the argument is a Point3d, but it should say a Vector3d.

Jarl

thomthom · 10 Nov 2009, 12:28

Geom;;Point3d.new(10,10,10) + Geom;;Point3d.new(20,20,20)
Error; #<ArgumentError; (eval);261;in `+'; Cannot convert argument to Sketchup;;Vector3d>
(eval);261

TIG · 10 Nov 2009, 14:18

@jarl said:

@unknownuser said:

Your help in finding typos/missing details are very welcome!

On http://code.google.com/intl/da/apis/sketchup/docs/ourdoc/point3d.html#+ it says that the argument is a Point3d, but it should say a Vector3d.

Jarl

If you add two pointstogether it returns a vector (or another point if it's taken as an array) ?

thomthom · 18 Nov 2009, 10:12

Color
http://code.google.com/intl/nb/apis/sketchup/docs/ourdoc/color.html

When creating a Color object you can specify an alpha value. Not mentioned in the examples.

Color.new
http://code.google.com/intl/nb/apis/sketchup/docs/ourdoc/color.html#new
The way the arguments are presented now it looks like they are all equal, but it's actually wither RGB(A) values or a String. It also takes Hex, array with Integers or Floats.

Oddly enough, you can do: Sketchup::Color.new(128) and get a Red-ish color. But not Sketchup::Color.new(128, 255) - where it will throw an error saying at least 3 values are required. So if you can specify 1, 3 or 4 values for the RGBA combination.

TIG · 18 Nov 2009, 11:08

But the Color's Alpha value is always ignored anyway ?
Whereas Alpha value for the material is used !

thomthom · 18 Nov 2009, 11:22

@tig said:

But the Color's Alpha value is always ignored anyway ?
Whereas Alpha value for the material is used !

Yea, that's what I've noticed as well. Confusing. Should be mentioned in the docs. I had hoped that the alpha channel would be used the the view.draw2d method, but alas - it does not. Wondering if it's by design or if it's a bug.

TIG · 18 Nov 2009, 13:48

I guess it was perhaps an early implementation when perhaps Color and Material were the same thing ?
Also I suppose it allows you to import a RGBA value from elsewhere directly into a Color, but then using the first 3 items in the array is no hardship ???
Seems that the alpha could be removed as it's not needed/useful ?

thomthom · 18 Nov 2009, 13:51

I'd rather see view.drawingcolor= make use of the alpha channel and let us draw transparent objects to the viewport.

thomthom · 18 Nov 2009, 17:00

@tig said:

That would be much more use... unfortunately with drawaren't we limited to the built-in color-set, and that has no transparency setting ?

draw is currently bugged an only draws black fill.
draw2d works, and you can specify any Color object (or hex,int,float,array that equal to a colour) but it ignores the alpha.