Find and replace multiple components?

[JPMays]

I'm running into an odd problem with swapping components as well. I have about 200 instances of one component, that I need to swap with another one. If I select an individual component, and right-click to swap, it works fine. If I select multiple, that option is not available. If I use the Component window and right-click on the component and Select All, they are all selected, but the option to Replace Selected is grayed-out and unavailable. What gives?

[Gaieus]

When you selected all the instances, do not right click on the definition of this component in the component browser but on the definition of the one you want to replace these instances with. There will be the menu item available...

[xombie1912]

@tig said:

Are your doors [etc] all separate components or scaled versions of the same one?
If they are scaled then the swap should be seamless.
If they are separate versions [which is more likely because scaling will affect rail/stile sizes] - e.g. Door-18-24-A, Door-20-24-A, Door-24-24-A etc then to use a scripted 'swapper' you at least need the replacements to follow the same pattern of 'name-coding' - e.g. Door-18-24-B, Door-20-24-B, Door-24-24-B etc - i.e. let's say the coding is Element[Door]-Width[18]-Height[24]-Code[A].
Once you have a logical way of encoding an element's name I can show you how to make a script that will go through the selected components and find their Element, Width, Height and Code and then swap for available elements with another code. A version that would run in the Ruby Console [initially at least] would take the form swap_components('-A','-B') - it would find all code-A instances in your selection and swap them with any available code-B versions - either using those already loaded into the SKP or perhaps available in a specific set of folders in the ../Components folder - e.g. a /Doors folder and a /Drawers folder... It relatively easy to find components that have a name ending in '-A' and find and the source equivalently name one, but with its name ending in '-B'. The secret is in having a logical naming convention for components that might get swapped - I used A, B etc as the 'Code' but it could be more complex - swap_components('-A-Oak-Antique','-B-Maple-Limewash') etc etc...

hello TIG can you help me for 1plugin i want to made i have the idea but i dont know about ruby console if you are interested please send me a private message
thanks a lot

[antioche]

Hi xombie1912 and TIG,

I would be interested in using the ruby script that you described, that is to say, run through the selection and swap components that match a specific name pattern with others.

More specifically in my case, I want to find modified dynamic components (automatically named by SketchUp for instance Name_of_initial_component#3 ) to revert them with the original component definition (Name_of_initial_component).

The reason for doing this is that I have create a Room dynamic component that calculates its floor area using the FACEAREA property. Inside each rooms are dynamic Windows and Door components. I need to have a separate instance of these windows/doors something else in the model to create a graphical schedule of doors and windows.

However, I need the Room dynamic components to recalculate FACEAREA() of a certain material, but this calculation is only updated when the component is redrawn (Right Click > Dynamic Components > Redraw). Unfortunately, this redraw causes all dynamic components inside them to become unique components (hence being renamed Name_of_initial_component#1 instead of Name_of_initial_component), so that they are now treated as separate definitions (although they are still identical) and the link to the schedule is broken (i.e. updating one does not update the other...). Not sure why...

The script would allow me to quickly run through the Room components and reassign the correct window/door definitions to the components it contains.

Alternatively, if you know a way to refresh a FACEAREA() calculation in a dynamic component without requiring a redraw? That would be my preferred solution...

Any suggestion or draft function of this Ruby function you described?

Cheers,

Teebs

[tenquin]

Boa Tarde!

TIG, poderia nos auxiliar como desenvolver o plugin para substituir portas?
Desde já agradeço.

[TIG]

@tenquin

Why do you need a plugin to swap doors?
Years ago I explained how to do it with the native tools...

Por que você precisa de um plugin para trocar as portas?
Anos atrás, expliquei como fazê-lo com as ferramentas nativas...

[antioche]

Hi TIG,
I suspect Tenquin may be referring to my post just above, which would involve relinking identical dynamic components that have lost their original definition due to a redraw action within nested dynamic components (see my post). Your suggested approach in your original post would not work, as the redrawn DCs get renamed as unique (although they are not).
Any suggestion on how to achieve this?

Cheers,

Teebs

[TIG]

OK

Let's consider this...
The original component is named [let's say] "DC" - so its unique-ified siblings are named DC#1, DC#2 etc...
So we can search the model's definitions for matching 'patterns' and replace their instances...
The naming has to be logical, and all instances the same...

model=Sketchup.active_model
defns=model.definitions
name="DC" # perhaps you'd use an inputbox to get this 'name' ?
defn=defns[name]
dcs=defns.find_all{|d| d.name =~ /^#{name}#/ }
# note how 'name' starts the match-pattern and has a following #
model.start_operation("Un-unique #{name}", true) # one-step undo
puts "Un-unique #{name}"
dcs.each{|d|
  p d.name # to see their names listed in the Ruby Console
  d.instances.each{|i| i.definition = defn }
  # replace with original
}
model.commit_operation
puts "Done"

This works within nested components etc...
You could check that the geometry/size etc of the instance of the original defn matches the instance of the to-be-un-uniqued definition, but that requires more convoluted code...

[antioche]

Many thanks for the quick feedback, TIG!
Seems to make a lot of sense. Not able to test right now (deadline looming on another project) but will test and feedback.

Teebs

[tenquin]

Olá TIG!
Boa tarde!
Obrigado pelo retorno.

Desculpe se não soube me expressar corretamente, na verdade preciso que o plugin troque todos os componentes que tem um parâmetro específico, no caso o parâmetro "modeloptions=portas inferiores"

Desde já agradeço.

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[TIG]

@tenquin

Yes, that's nothing like it !

You could try editing the code...

###....
dcs.each{|d|
  next unless d.get_attribute("dynamic_attributes", "modeloptions", "") == "portas inferiores"
  # this skips if it's not that type of dc ???
  p d.name # to see their names listed in the Ruby Console
  d.instances.each{|i| i.definition = defn }
  # replace with original
}
###...

[tenquin]

Obrigado mais uma vez TIG!

Vou estudar mais um pouco e tentar fazer,
sou novo em programação mas vou tentar até conseguir. rsrs

[tenquin]

@tig said:

OK

Let's consider this...
The original component is named [let's say] "DC" - so its unique-ified siblings are named DC#1, DC#2 etc...
So we can search the model's definitions for matching 'patterns' and replace their instances...
The naming has to be logical, and all instances the same...

> model=Sketchup.active_model
> defns=model.definitions
> name="DC" # perhaps you'd use an inputbox to get this 'name' ?
> defn=defns[name]
> dcs=defns.find_all{|d| d.name =~ /^#{name}#/ }
> # note how 'name' starts the match-pattern and has a following #
> model.start_operation("Un-unique #{name}", true) # one-step undo
> puts "Un-unique #{name}"
> dcs.each{|d|
>   p d.name # to see their names listed in the Ruby Console
>   d.instances.each{|i| i.definition = defn }
>   # replace with original
> }
> model.commit_operation
> puts "Done"
> 

This works within nested components etc...
You could check that the geometry/size etc of the instance of the original defn matches the instance of the to-be-un-uniqued definition, but that requires more convoluted code...

Olá TIG

Desculpe minha insistência.
Há alguns meses conversamos sobre o código acima, que faz um script que substitui componentes.
Ainda não consegui fazer com que funcionasse, criei um componente com nome DC e copiei e colei o código no console Sketchup,mas não obtive resultado.
Estou me dedicando a Ruby, mas mesmo depois de ler o livro Automatic Skechup, não consegui identificar o que está errado...

[TIG]

What results do you get ?
The Ruby Console will show errors and output.

You are looking for a component definition name, NOT a component instance name.
They are different things.
The component's name is displayed in the Components Browser.
Instances can have different names from their definition - this shown in Entity info - if it's selected...

[tenquin]

@TIG

Obrigado mais uma vez por responder.
Não retorna nenhum erro, porém nenhum resultado também. Segue uma imagem.

Minha intenção é buscar os componentes por atributos dinâmicos ao invés de por nome, se poder me dá uma luz de como ficaria o código assim eu agradeço, se não, depois tentarei editar o código para se adequar ao que desejo.

[TIG]

What else do you expect ?
You have 1 component definition named 'DC'.
If you had more using that name pattern - e.g. 'DC#1', DC#2' etc.
Then DC would prevail !

The code is working just fine - but your model has got nothing in it to be processed !

[tenquin]

Perdão TIG.
Você tem razão, eu não estava sabendo usar o código corretamente.
Agora me parece que está funcionando.
Obrigado

[kostiaarh]

@tig said:

IF you name your components logically then a script in the form swapcomponents("-aaa","-bbb") is straightforward - and quite simple - I can talk you through it... Once you have something working vis the Ruby Console it#s easy enough to add a menu item and dialog, even a toolbar and so on...

First off - make a logical component-naming strategy/
Then write is a simple step-sheet explaining how you'd like to use the new tool... e.g.

I select various cabinets where I want to swap one type of door [and drawer] for another.
I activate the new tool tell it what code to find and what code to replace it with... and it automatically finds equivalent doors [and drawers] in the model [or perhaps SKPs in folder[s]] in ../Components/.
It then uses/loads them and replaces the current component instance with the required definition.
A dialog reports what's been changed and/or any errors.
It is one step undo-able.
For example always name doors 'Door-WWW-HHH-FINISH-CODE' and then all we have to do is swap components with the same base but a new FINISH and/or CODE - In the input you could type Door*-Oak-A and in the output type Door*-Maple-A and all doors code A would change from 'Oak' to 'Maple'; or Door*-A >>> Door*-B would swap from code A to code B - if there were no Oak versions of code B doors then the closing dialog tells you!
On a more global system *-A >>> *-B tries to swap all type A 'fitments' to type B.
If things are 'nested' - components inside groups etc then it's more tricky but not impossible...
You could also swap ironmongery from Handle-*-A >>> Handle-*-B.
See the schema ?

TIG can I ask you to post an example of this code here? Thanks.

[TIG]

You quoted my example of a step sheet...

Please outline exactly what you want to do - what to find by a pattern-match and how to rename them etc...

This thread have been around for a decade !
So what you want to do needs to be specified very precisely...