[Plugin] Component Stringer UPDATED May 23, 2013

pbacot

Very cool plugin that ultimately should be very useful, for architectural modeling not just necklaces. Thank you Chris.

We have something like this in our CAD program. Some of the different things that CAD feature does is: place objects contiguously or at a user-set spacing, stretch/shrink and bend objects objects or not. rotate objects or not, rotate randomly, fill the length of a path with various "fudge" settings (gives different number/spacing of objects within path), offset objects from path. Just some options to think of possibilities.

pilou

Suggestion : a little rotation between each components?
Ah damned that was yet in the Todo list
So this one : change colors between each components (or according with the segment)

PS We are listening crickets or cicida during the video plug

Click Draw

I was gonna ask about the crickets too. Must have been a late night thought process that had to get you up and working.

MartinRinehart

Blows me away, Chris. What was the inspiration?

ken

@click draw said:

first attempt....! Thanks Chris.

Click Draw

How did you get the components to overlap? Seems to me, what ever you did could be used to make an anchor chain.

Thanks in advance.

Ken

TIG

@unknownuser said:

@click draw said:

first attempt....! Thanks Chris.

Click Draw

How did you get the components to overlap? Seems to me, what ever you did could be used to make an anchor chain.

Thanks in advance.

Ken

You make the component and string it along... then edit the component so it is longer or a differing shape and it will overlap etc. I outlined a chain making idea earlier...

simon le bon

Dear Chris,

A lot of people are waiting for long a set of tools to make copy of objects along a path.
With this Component Stringer, we get one of them. A cool one.

It is very easy to do various necklaces with it.
I have played it and threw an eye on some corners of it's possibilities.

What it is not made for:

It is not made to make chains when links are imbricated together.
I have tried TIG solution (not exactly the same) with a rather poor result..

@tig said:

Make half chain link (U) and use this tool then edit that chain and copy/hand the U geometry into an O loop of say 2.2 the original length, now you have your links; us 'make unique' on one of the links, edit it and rotate its contents 90 degrees. Select every other link and replace with this rotated one... a chain... done.

Also this tool is not made to mix more than one component on to the path. If we need to do that, we have to do another way.

Thnk you again for this tool! you have a great talent to concoct easy but useful and strong tool..

My respect, Simon.

Click Draw

Hi Ken,

Like TIG said, make your component and then edit it and do what you like to alter the dimensions and shape and it will update as you do it. Very cool. You also have to make sure the axis is in the proper position on your component. Hope that makes sense. I'll be trying more shapes and posting here soon. Awesome script!
Jeff

MALAISE

Very efficient tool to create wood roofs, barrels ,boats and arches.
Maybe Components axis should be shown
PAM

JClements

If you could also give user options to also scale along the component's other axes:
(1) axes A-B and A-C, or (2) axis A-B, or (3) axis A-C, then you'd have something similar to a blend-along-path.

And if it could then "skin" the sides (vertices) of the components, it would be equivalent to a Scaled-Extrusion Along a Path. Idea for another Script.png

Idea for another Script 2.png

Idea for another Script.skp

wolfy

Another gem for the jewel box! Thanks Chris

utiler

Hi Chris, thanks for this great work!!! It is very close to something i have asked questions about in the past....

Like Pilou, I think it would be great to see some rotation options at each segment. Also the suggestion of nil scaling would be nice too so the component is think dependent on segment length.....

I haven't played with it yet but I can say now that it's a BOMB!!!!!!

d12dozr

@martinrinehart said:

Blows me away, Chris. What was the inspiration?

http://forums.sketchucation.com/viewtopic.php?p=200754#p200754

Chris Fullmer

The rotation options are implemented here, so they will be in the next release. I also like John's ideas about scaling the components smaller. But that will take a lot of code writing so I would not count on seeing that soon. And I will not be using this tool to add a skin. That's very complex.

But I will say the rotation is working great and is perfect for chains. Nil scaling would be easy to implement. I'll put that in too. So I'll hopefully get this released within the next 24 hours.

Thanks for all the comments!

Chris

Chris Fullmer

UPDATED!

Added rotation and twist capabilities
developed and added my menu items for donations and youtube
Added a no-scaling option

Ok, there you have it. It now lets you rotate components easier for chain making. I updated the video on the main page, or see it here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ymYoEHiexg

That shows how I would use it to make chains. Have fun!

Chris

simon le bon

@chris fullmer said:

UPDATED!

Added rotation and twist capabilities

developed and added my menu items for donations and youtube

Added a no-scaling option

Hi Chris, ....!......

Hi Jeff,
Your Black and white chocolat Skeleton his highly... "eatable"

I thought it was not possible to make imbricated components with this Chris' tool...
You show me I was wrong!
I have tried to find your "how to".
We just have to scale up or reajust with Move tool the component once it is distributed along the path.