[Plugin] Free Rotate 4.4
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@tig said:
@Ken
If you have one cpoint in the Selection WILL use that as the Pivot - I just retested it.
Do you have another cpoint elsewhere ? It takes the first one it finds...
Cpoints inside a group within the Selection are not used to determine a Pivot.
To 'right' the Selection pick the globe's north-pole - and then free-rotate from there...
This is a 'work-in-progress' so feedback and advice are welcomed...
Mr TIG
If I have two cpoints, it will pick one, and pivot around that cpoint. However, I can not move to the other cpoint as I could before.
I am a little bothered by my posts. It seems to me that I may be complaining about something I have no earthly means of accomplishing, to people who are taking a great deal of time an effort to construct. I try to look at each plugin as how does it help me to achieve a completed project, and try not looking at each plugin as "WOW" it would be neat if it did this or this.
In using this plugin, I am looking at using it to align rigging. A four part wire sling with shackles, does not have any flat and aligned surface. However, I need to align each sling part from the crane to the load. With this plugin, I could put a cpoint on the the bottom shackle, another on the top shackle, and align the whole sling from the load to the crane.
Again thank you. I know from a previous post you are very busy and I am thankful for the time you spend working on these plugin.
Ken
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HOW THE HELL DO YOU DO THIS?!!!
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@Ken
I think an option [+Alt?] where you can then select a 'pivot' point and a 'grab' point and then free-rotate using those might be useful then?
I'm thinking a bit like my 'Mirror' tool where you mirror objects using 1, 2 or 3 picked points which mirror about a point, line or plane: the Free-Rotate Tool could have options to set 1/2/3 points 1= pivot, 2= 1+grab i.e. an axis that follows the cursor; and 3= 1+2+offset i.e. another grab-handle that is offset from the 1+2 axis which allows you to rotate the object around that axis.
So you'd probably pick points 1+2 and rotate the object so 1+2s fall on a desired 'line', then you'd pick +3 to rotate the object about that 1+2 axis/line so it aligns correctly in that way too...
It is difficult to control completely 'free' rotation as you have the one cursor but need several reference points at once.
I am busy for the next week or two... but I'll think about it as I do other things.......@Oli
Arcane magic arts...
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Here is v2.0 http://forums.sketchucation.com/viewtopic.php?p=266561#p266561
It includes some radical new methods using modifier-keys Ctrl/Alt/Tab as toggles to freeze/suspend Free-Rotate and let you change the Pivot/Axis dynamically... please read the notes [or at least the VCB text]...
Feedback please.
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Here is v2.1 http://forums.sketchucation.com/viewtopic.php?p=266561#p266561
It now has some radical changes to the modifier-keys "Down_Arrow/Ctrl/Tab" as toggles, to freeze/suspend Free-Rotate and let you change the Pivot/Axis dynamically - using 'Alt' was proving too 'flaky'...
The Cursor colors during the 'Tab' options are now fixed too.Please read the notes [or at least the VCB text]...
Feedback please.
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TIG
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It may just be me, but the first thing I do is to make the globe 200% so I can more easily see the selection inside the globe.
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And I just can't figure out what why there is 3 selections on the "TAB" key. I know it states, change the pivot point on one selection and the axis on the other selection, however, I just don't have a clear idea what each does.
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Must time in trying out each of the tab selections, I get to a stage, that I can't start the orbiting again.
Ken
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@unknownuser said:
TIG
- It may just be me, but the first thing I do is to make the globe 200% so I can more easily see the selection inside the globe.
- And I just can't figure out what why there is 3 selections on the "TAB" key. I know it states, change the pivot point on one selection and the axis on the other selection, however, I just don't have a clear idea what each does.
- Must time in trying out each of the tab selections, I get to a stage, that I can't start the orbiting again.
Ken
The 'globe' is currently made 10% bigger than the selection's bounds - it could be bigger if desired... I await more feedback. I'll rest it to x1.5 for the next version to see how it goes...
The are 3 Tab steps.
Press Tab 1 - you can set the Pivot
Press Tab 2 - you can set the Axis
Press Tab 3 to finish... BUT I see what you mean... once the Axis is done you are done.
I have changed the selection keys - 'Alt' is flaky and locks up ???
See v2.1... but I am considering v2.2 to sort out the Tab anomaly...Thanks for the feedback.
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Here's v2.2 http://forums.sketchucation.com/viewtopic.php?p=266561#p266561
The Tab options are rationalized - picking the axis-point exits to the previous state.
The default 'globe' radius is 150% of the selection's bounds but the notes contain advice on changing this to suit your preferences... -
TIG
Darn, TIG, I just can't get the second TAB to work consistently. There are times it works sometimes, that I get exactly what I want, other times I just can not figure out what I am doing wrong. Note, by the time it works, I have pressed so many keys, I not sure just what made it work.
- I press the down arrow, it resets, and stops.
- I press the TAB, and I can set the pivot point, by moving my cursor the location and clicking the left mouse button.
- I press the TAB again, and here is where I get lost. How do I select the next point, or axis?
Ken, confused.
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Thanks TIG - cool plugin..
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@unknownuser said:
TIG
Darn, TIG, I just can't get the second TAB to work consistently. There are times it works sometimes, that I get exactly what I want, other times I just can not figure out what I am doing wrong. Note, by the time it works, I have pressed so many keys, I not sure just what made it work.
- I press the down arrow, it resets, and stops.
- I press the TAB, and I can set the pivot point, by moving my cursor the location and clicking the left mouse button.
- I press the TAB again, and here is where I get lost. How do I select the next point, or axis?
Ken, confused.
3... Press TAB and then Pick a point on the axis - it should be on a line from the pivot to where you pick [I'll add a guide-line in the next update it might assist...]
4, After you pick it waits for you to press Down_Arrow or Ctrl to restart the Free-Rotate OR you can Tab again to set anew Pivot & Axis point... -
Here's v2.3 http://forums.sketchucation.com/viewtopic.php?p=266561#p266561
It now draws a DarkOrange guide-line from the Pivot-Point [picked at Tab-1] to the moving cursor before you pick the Axis-Point [Tab-2] - This might help clarify what the axis-line will be when you click that second point. This is 'axis' is the orientation that the object will use and 'point' to the moving cursor, as it rotates freely anchored at the pivot....
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Thank you, TIG:
I am going to download and experiment with it. -
TIG
Well I see my problem. When I picked the pivot point, it has a sticky attribute, however, the New_Axis Point did not have this characteristic. It doesn't become sticky until you press TAB again or the down arrow. This is shown in the video, after selection the pivot point, I press TAB and now try to pick the New_Axis point. Note, I see the change to the selection point is made by the circle color, however, I am still allowed to move this point until I press the TAB or the down arrow.
And to the second anomaly. If I correctly pick a pivot point and New_Axis point, and just move the cursor around and around the globe and come back to the starting point on the globe, the selection is not at the original position. I would think that it should be at the same positioning before and after rotation, if I don't make the final selection.
Again thanks.
Ken
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Ken
I'll watch it and absorb...
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@unknownuser said:
Ken, you need a second monitor for all your tool bars!
Well, I was hoping no one would notice. But I get so frustrated with the tool bars alignment exercise, I just load every thing up I think I need. I did manage to get a larger monitor just for Sketchup.
Which, brings me to another frustration. Some tool bars have one or two icon (plugins) in the 12 (typical) icon selections that I wish to use. So I have all these tool bar enabled but only use about 1/4 of the available icons. Wish someone would make a generic tool bar plugin, allowing me to load the icon (plugins) I need. And also, categorize the plugins by function. Well so much for dreaming.
Not sure if you can see any details, but some plugins that have icons and small tool bars and are not encrypted, I have rewrote the script to have the icon (plugins) to show up in other tool bars. I have discovered that I can make a icon show up even in a tool bar scrip that is encrypted, so I have combined some tool bars.
Ken
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Here's v3.0 http://forums.sketchucation.com/viewtopic.php?p=266561#p266561
There is a new 'Up-Arrow' option to rotate constrained around Axis.
This overcomes one of the limitations of using 'Free Rotate' - where the Selection can spin around its Axis as you rotate it.
Remember that you can already use 'Tab' to reset the Pivot and Axis as desired.
Now once you have got the Selection free-rotated to the required 'rake' you can press 'Ctrl' to freeze it temporarily.
Then you press the 'Up-Arrow' to enter the constrained rotation option...
The Selection's rotation - constrained around the Axis - can now be adjusted as required, either picking two points or picking one point and Typing an Angle into the VCB...Please read the Notes...
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It's a nice idea, but I think for it to be useful it needs to be a lot simpler!
When I first run the plugin it selects the center of the component as the axis point. In most cases, I believe, the center of the component is quite a meaningless point.
I think the initial pivot point should be one of two:
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If the idea is to 'select geometry' => run plugin => pivot point and direction automatically selected - it should use the original component's axis point along with the blue orientation. The components axis point is a point that can be changed without the plugin running, and without the object swiveling all over the place before I even know what it's doing.
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If the idea is similar to most of the original sketchup tools, like the "rotate tool" where you 'select geometry' => run plugin => 'select pivot point' => 'select second poingt' => 'select direction point'. then that's the way it should be! let there be an option to first select the pivot point before anything happens.
Just my opinion...
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Hal, thanks for the feedback...
It is a tool-idea that's 'under development' - a 'proof of concept', if you will...
So all feedback is welcome.I had previously toyed with the idea of using a component's insertion point BUT the whole ideas is to let you 'free-rotate' anything selected - rather like the built-in rotate tool.
It is probably a valid idea to start without any movement, and with you first picking a pivot-point and then an axis-point. You could then have a special modifier key set to swap to the selection's center [as it's often 'inside' things!].
Then there could then be a modifier key toggle between 'free-rotate' and 'axial-rotate' - around the axis as it has been transformed by any earlier 'free' rotations...
You then 'confirm' [L-click or <enter>] OR Cancel. If you want to free-rotate action you'd re-run the tool...I'll digest this and come back with v4
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I'm diggin the update. I like the new up arrow feature to flatten the rotate sphere. I would consider adding a red, green, blue axis restriction with a similar flattened sphere, perhaps with the left, right, down arrow keys. I know the concept is to "Free" rotate, but I like your construction point grid idea a little better than the native rotate tool and could see it totally replacing it altogether as one tool to "freely" precision rotate objects.
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