[Request] ... Open Component

haynesc · 4 Jan 2010, 18:45

hi all ...

would it be possible for a script to do the following ...

Dave R · 4 Jan 2010, 18:56

So this would entail copying the selected component, opening a new session of SketchUp and pasting the component there? Interesting. Would you want to be able to send the component back to the original model or update the existing instances in the original model or would that not be important?

Al Hart · 4 Jan 2010, 18:56

The quick answer is "Yes".

If you can get the full path of the .SKP file for the component, then you can use UI.openURL() to open it in a new instance of SketchUp.

e.g. UI.openURL('c:/docs/mattest.skp')

Dave R · 4 Jan 2010, 19:09

Al, does that mean the component itself would have to be saved as a SKP file? Could it be just a component in a larger model that is saved?

haynesc · 4 Jan 2010, 19:23

hi all ...

i regularly import say "building model" into "site model" so that my models are organised ....

what i would like to be able to do is right click on the component and click on an option such as in illustrator or indesign ... "Edit original" ...

this would open the component in a new instance of sketchup to do edits ... then maybe when closing the model and saving changes the "building model" would update inside the "site model" ...

perhaps a dialog pop-up to give you the option to update or not ...

"... a linked model has saved changes, would you like to update the link?" - Yes / No

haynesc · 4 Jan 2010, 22:24

... it would be great if an option to open up a component in a new sketchup instance can be placed in the context menu

TIG · 4 Jan 2010, 22:26

I have already written a tool to save a selection as a separate componnet...
http://forums.sketchucation.com/viewtopic.php?p=183756#p183756
[Part of a series to export_by_layer etc]
Saving an existing Component would be even easier...
You'd only need to open its file afterwards ?

TIG · 5 Jan 2010, 11:50

Revisiting the initial request and thinking about it... why would you want to do this at all ?
Using Save_as will export the Selected Component to an external skp file.
If you then Open that skp and change it you will need to reload it into the original Model...

If 'Opening the Component in a New Window', were simply a request to Edit the Component without the rest of the Model getting in the way, then this is already built-in to SketchUp !
There are two most useful toggles once you've discovered them.

When you Edit a Component [or a Group] within the Model you can toggle two settings found under Menu > View > Component Edit > 'Hide Rest of Model', AND similarly > 'Hide Similar Components'.

Sometimes you want other parts of the Model to be visible even if they can't be Edited: for example, so you can snap or infer to them, but other times they are in the way and you want them to become 'invisible'. Similarly, sometimes seeing the other instances of the same component is useful as you can see the changes to the set of them as you Edit, or even snap to them, but other times they can also be in the way.

I have shortcut keys assigned to these two toggles and I often use them when modeling,
I wholeheartedly recommend them

haynesc · 5 Jan 2010, 11:52

cool ... thanks didnt realise this