[Plugin][$] Curviloft 2.0a - 31 Mar 24 (Loft & Skinning)

brookefox · 1 May 2012, 04:27

It depends on the edge selection you choose (follow or curve) and also you need to click in the empty space to force the separation of the 2 contours since they are contiguous.

OK, I thought I had tried that. I will now for sure. Thank you. For me a work around is to make it in two moves with 'skinning'. Pic shows the desired and thusly achieved results.

brookefox · 2 May 2012, 18:26

Cross post from elsewhere to here, where it may be of some use...model here with Fredo's Curviloft tools and TIG's Extrusion Tools.

artcrazy1313 · 4 Jun 2012, 02:19

Hi Guys
I am new in this scetchup world and I need some help.
I am trying to download .rb in my scetchup8. I do everything it was asked and put in scetchup plugin foldr but for some reason nothing comes out.. Please have someone help me out.
I am also tring to download this .rb for round corners , but cand find a link for download.

TIG · 4 Jun 2012, 08:42

@artcrazy1313 said:

Hi Guys
I am new in this scetchup world and I need some help.
I am trying to download .rb in my scetchup8. I do everything it was asked and put in scetchup plugin foldr but for some reason nothing comes out.. Please have someone help me out.
I am also tring to download this .rb for round corners , but cand find a link for download.
The download link is almost always on the first post in any tools thread [it also has '[Plugin]' at the start of the thread's title]. The Plugins Idex red-button takes you to a page that in turn links off to all plugins available here, and a few elsewhere too...
Be sure to read the tool's download page - sometimes you need to get and install a help file or a library of helpers [like this tool] that are kept in their own subfolder.
Be sure to follow the tool's instructions for download, extraction and placement in the Plugins folder.
If the tool comes in a zip file ensure that the 'loose' files go into the Plugins folder and that any helper files zipped inside a subfolder are put into Plugins still INSIDE that subfolder - never move files around as the tool will break.
You are on a MAC so ensure you are using the right root-level 'HD' library Plugins folder and NOT a 'user' one...
There are several helpful threads about installing scripts/plugins - do a forum Search.
Thomthom has also made a 'Simple Installer' tool [>=v8M2 only] that will automatically install scripts and extract/install from archives of scripts - look for that in the Plugins Index...
Note that some tools [like this one] are Extensions that need activating [one-time-only] from the Window > Preferences dialog, then the tool's Toolbar probably needs activating from the View...menu item...
Note also how each tool is activated/used...
Many new tools do appear in the Plugins-menu... BUT many do not - for example the menu items for this very tool are found in Tools > Fredo Collection > CurviLoft submenu !!!

baz · 4 Jun 2012, 09:50

Off topic.

Tig, you are so patient and helpful. I saw this post and my first thought was has he tried 'search', has he looked at the 'how to download plugins' tut, has he made any effort at all? Or is he a first poster who needs some direction about how to help him/her self
I guess what I'm trying to say is that you and others on this forum contribute so much, I worry that you get overloaded with things that don't really help to progress SU.
Your call though, I'm inclined to 'tough love' myself.

artcrazy1313 · 4 Jun 2012, 16:33

@tig said:

@artcrazy1313 said:

Hi Guys
I am new in this scetchup world and I need some help.
I am trying to download .rb in my scetchup8. I do everything it was asked and put in scetchup plugin foldr but for some reason nothing comes out.. Please have someone help me out.
I am also tring to download this .rb for round corners , but cand find a link for download.
The download link is almost always on the first post in any tools thread [it also has '[Plugin]' at the start of the thread's title]. The Plugins Idex red-button takes you to a page that in turn links off to all plugins available here, and a few elsewhere too...
Be sure to read the tool's download page - sometimes you need to get and install a help file or a library of helpers [like this tool] that are kept in their own subfolder.
Be sure to follow the tool's instructions for download, extraction and placement in the Plugins folder.
If the tool comes in a zip file ensure that the 'loose' files go into the Plugins folder and that any helper files zipped inside a subfolder are put into Plugins still INSIDE that subfolder - never move files around as the tool will break.
You are on a MAC so ensure you are using the right root-level 'HD' library Plugins folder and NOT a 'user' one...
There are several helpful threads about installing scripts/plugins - do a forum Search.
Thomthom has also made a 'Simple Installer' tool [>=v8M2 only] that will automatically install scripts and extract/install from archives of scripts - look for that in the Plugins Index...
Note that some tools [like this one] are Extensions that need activating [one-time-only] from the Window > Preferences dialog, then the tool's Toolbar probably needs activating from the View...menu item...
Note also how each tool is activated/used...
Many new tools do appear in the Plugins-menu... BUT many do not - for example the menu items for this very tool are found in Tools > Fredo Collection > CurviLoft submenu !!!

@unknownuser said:

First of all I want to thank you for your detail info and your time... As much as I appreciate your help , this is to me a Chinese
I was wondering if we could connect and I gave you permission to enter in my computer and show me how to install this things. I really need your plug ins. They re great. I am willing to pay for your time... thank you..

artcrazy1313 · 4 Jun 2012, 16:58

leroy_elroy · 13 Jun 2012, 06:32

Hi all,

another noob having problems installing to sketchup 8 here. But I have done my research before posting... I have extraced the files and moved them into the plugin folder as described, but upon starting SU the error windows keep coming up.

I tried extracting them with winrar, explorer and 7-zip, even tried installing the plugin-finding plugin as suggested in earlier posts, but to no avail.

and yes, the latest libfredo plugin is loaded and running fine. I have tried this process at two computers to the same result. Ideas?

Also just wanted to say well done for taking a frustratingly basic modelling platform and taking it up to the next level. As somebody who learnt Rhino before SU I've had moments of agony, but this is bringing it up to speed.. Assuming I can get it to work.. I wonder how long before we see the equivelant of Grasshopper and Kangaroo for Rhino....

baz · 13 Jun 2012, 07:29

I think you have the files in the wrong place. On my puter the files you show are in Plugins/CURVILOFT_Dir_12
You seem to have lost the parent folder.

thomthom · 13 Jun 2012, 07:31

@leroy_elroy said:

another noob having problems installing to sketchup 8 here. But I have done my research before posting...

You missed the footprint description:

You extracted the content of the CURVILOFT_Dir_12 folder directly into your plugins folder instead of preserving it.

I made a small utility plugin to help the installation process: http://forums.sketchucation.com/viewtopic.php?t=42315

leroy_elroy · 13 Jun 2012, 08:13

derp.
I stand corrected, thanks for the help!

keith siu · 16 Jun 2012, 01:47

HI, I am new. After installation, can't find Curviloft at Tool or plugin. What can I do?

Dave R · 16 Jun 2012, 10:16

@keith siu said:

HI, I am new. After installation, can't find Curviloft at Tool or plugin. What can I do?

You haven't given us anything to help you with. The first thing is go back and read the first post thoroughly and make sure you did everything right. Did you install the plugin correctly? Does it have the footprint as shown in the first post? Did you install the current version of Libfredo6? Did you look under View>Toolbars for the Curviloft toolbar? Do you find Fredo6 Collection in the Tools menu?

jgb · 18 Jul 2012, 14:11

Strange one here. It's a simple surface to form, I've done way more complex ones.
When I select all, and hit "Skin" the selects go white and nothing happens.

It does skin manually by joining the vertexes into triangles.
I have redrawn every line, there are no gaps, no fragments, nothing I can see.

If I join any 2 vertices, either side will skin. Remove the join and no skin.

What's wrong

BTW, at first I thought it may be an interference with the SimFonIA plugin I just loaded.
But Curviloft worked OK on other more complex surfaces in the same drawing that this shape originated in.
What's wrong here???

Rich O Brien · 18 Jul 2012, 14:33

You need to add some 'breakers' to allow Curviloft to read your mind.

pilou · 18 Jul 2012, 15:05

Ah damned someone send a similar trick in the same time!

Just divide this segment and all will works fine!
But that is not very normal

PS If you can save your file in v6, this will be very fine for nostalgic people who don't use V7, v8
(i must use some usb keys between computers

Dave R · 18 Jul 2012, 16:53

[off:3b3ctz5x]We should take up a collection for our poor friend, Pilou. He needs to move into the current century with his computer. I'll donate a graphics card. Does anyone have a spare motherboard? Memory? Hard drive? Etc. [/off:3b3ctz5x]

jgb · 18 Jul 2012, 18:03

@rich o brien said:

You need to add some 'breakers' to allow Curviloft to read your mind.

If you mean those 4 lines at the vertexes, I just tried that, and Pilou's segment break, and still, no skinning. Don't understand why they did not work for me.

In that same model, I just did 3 more similar shapes and the same thing happened. But when I joined any 2 vertexes in those constructs, (as well as the original problem), they skinned normally. So I joined 2 vertices at 1 end to form a triangle, and the rest of the construct skinned when selected.

That made me think Curviloft can't handle 2 or more acute angles. Yep!!!
I moved 1 end vertex in at varying angles.
As soon as the angle was 90 deg or more the construct skinned.

Something for Fredo to look into.

Rich O Brien · 18 Jul 2012, 18:06

Did you look at how i picked the profiles and rails independently?

jgb · 18 Jul 2012, 19:26

@rich o brien said:

Did you look at how i picked the profiles and rails independently?

I noticed, but I never had any real success doing that, so I ignored it.

There is a whole lot about CL that I do not understand, particularly the toolbar.

Fredo really needs to define what the colors mean (red, magenta, etc) when the perimeter has a problem.
I tried playing with "errors" (gaps, fragments and double lines) but could not get consistent, if any idea of the feedback from CL. Same with the toolbar, changing parameters seemed to have no effect.
So now I just select a perimeter and hit either "skin" or "loft" depending.

On most of my complex surfaces (wing fairings, etc) I usually end up redrawing most of the skin to simplify (line reduction) the result, as I find CL tends to create far more small triangles than necessary, but at least it does a very good job of making the curves, that I know take would hours to tweak if done manually from scratch, having done many before I discovered CL.

It is one of the few core plugins that I could not live without now.