Issues with the onMouseMove method within a Ruby Tool

[dagobo]

Hi all,

I've got some troubles to understand the view.invalidate command implemented inside the onMouseMove method within a Tool Ruby script.

This method is called to refresh the view and to allow the tool to draw some temporary graphics.

If I want the draw method to draw something different either I clicked once or twice, can I create two draw methods (draw1 and draw2) ?
Or should I use a variable (first_click=true or false) to tell the draw method which graphic it must draw ?

Eventually, I don't want the draw method to draw simple lines in real time, but I want a component attribute to be modified (LenX) and immediatly displayed when the onMouseMove method is active.
It is a bit like the Push-Pull method : can I tell the draw view to update the LenX attribute's value in real time and to display immediatly the component with the good dimensions ? Or should I use another method than the draw method to allow my onMouseMove method to do that in real time ?

Thanks a lot for your help,

Marie

[sdmitch]

dagobo, to start, you could add a variable @first_click = false, then in the onLButtonDown or onRButtonDown methods toggle it by @first_click = !@first_click. In the draw method, use a if then else statement to draw different things given the state of @first_click.

[Jim]

SketchUp tools are event-driven - you do not decide when when the methods (defined by the Tool interface) are called - SketchUp calls them. What you need to do is decide how to react depending on the state of your tool.

Here's a very basic example:

class MyTool
  def activate
    @state = 0
  end
  def onLButtonDown(flags, x, y, view)
    @state += 1
  end
  def onMouseMove(flags, x, y, view)
    case @state
      when 1; # Do this
      when 2; # Do that
      when 3; # do the other thing
    end
  end
end

[dagobo]

Thanks Jim.

I am actually trying to implement my draw method within my tool ruby script that way :

def draw view 
	@component.set_attribute("dynamic_attributes","angle_h", @angle_horizontal_degres)
	@component.set_attribute("dynamic_attributes","angle_v", @angle_vertical_degres)
	$dc_observers.get_latest_class.redraw_with_undo(@component)
end

The draw method is called within my onMouseMove method.

What I am trying to get is to make my tool draw and direct my component (@component) towards the right direction (given by both the attributes "angle_h" and "angle_v").

For now, my script doesn't return any error message, but it doesn't do the right operation.
My component is directed toward the same direction each time I compute the script, which is not the good direction.

The lines I use to direct the component are perfectly working within my onLButtonDown method, but not within my onMouseMove method (through the draw method) as you can see.

How could I fix this ?

Thanks a lot,

Marie

[TIG]

def draw(view)
is a standard method within a Tool class that is auto-called by Sketchup when any event happens that needs a [re]draw - like a onMouseMove ... you don't need to specifically 'call' it in your own code
http://code.google.com/apis/sketchup/docs/ourdoc/tool.html#draw
Don't use draw but rather a new method called say def update() that is explicitly called from your onMouseMove method when certain conditions are met like so '@state' checking tests... Leave 'draw' to do it's own thing like draw some temporary graphics etc...

[dagobo]

OK so if I make a simple draw method that way :

def draw(view)
	view.line_width = 3       
end

and if I create a draw_beam method that way :

def draw_beam()
   @component.set_attribute("dynamic_attributes","angle_h", @angle_horizontal_degres)
   @component.set_attribute("dynamic_attributes","angle_v", @angle_vertical_degres)
   $dc_observers.get_latest_class.redraw_with_undo(@component)
end

which I can call inside my onMouseMove, will it work correctly ?

[TIG]

Why ask me?
You are the one with all of the code...
Just test it.

You need to call your method self.draw_beam() within the onMouseMove method - probably after you've test for a certain 'state' being reached - e.g. perhaps initially 'draw_beam' doesn't kick in with @state=0, but after you have done some other stuff when you've then set @state=1 - then in the onMouseMove method the line would be self.draw_beam() if @state==1 etc, later on, perhaps after you click again, you'd set @state=2 so then the 'draw_beam' stops...