Copy and Paste Question (sort of)

ECOHOMES · 18 Jun 2011, 08:26

In the learning process I am drawing the odd little houses.
Please tell me, should I want to place the same house in a sort of small complex area which would acomodate 4 of these cottages

Can I mirror the cottage to put it on the "opposite side of the street?"
Can I then copy the two now opposite one another and repeat these further "up the street" now showing 4 cottages, 2 on each side of the street.
Thank you again,
Hans

Gaieus · 18 Jun 2011, 08:49

Hm. Alan beat me howver here is my post still...

Hi Hans,

After you made one of these houses, select all its entities and make a component first (right click > make component).

Now select it again and start scaling in one direction then type -1 and press Enter. This will mirror your component. You can also right click > flip along... (the correct axis of the component).

Your original copy is still available in your Component window > In model.

Now select bot components (keep the shift key down to ad/remove from a selection when clicking)., grab the Move tool and press the Ctrl key. Notice that beside the move cursor, now a + sign appears showing that when moving, you will actually move a copy of the component(s) and the original will remain in its place.

(if, after placing the copies, you type x2 or 2 or 2x or 2 and press enter, it will repeat the copy once more. Certainly you can type any number here - this is called linear array - there is also a radial array with the Rotate tool).

Some references:
http://sketchup.google.com/support/bin/answer.py?answer=94866
http://sketchup.google.com/support/bin/answer.py?answer=94867
http://sketchup.google.com/support/bin/answer.py?answer=94895
http://sketchup.google.com/support/bin/answer.py?answer=94896

Alan Fraser · 18 Jun 2011, 09:10

I'm tempted to say that there's a Make Component button right next to the Select tool, but Gaieus is such an old user he probably doesn't bother with such things.
(Actually, it's quicker to right click, as he suggests).

Alan Fraser · 18 Jun 2011, 09:40

Hi Hans,
Yes, you can do both of those things. What's more, if you select the whole of your cottage and make it a component, this will not only keep all the geometry grouped together but will lead to only a very slight increase in file size even if you duplicate the building many times down the street. In effect, SU is saying to itself "I want the same as that, but over here." instead of having to remember a whole lot more geometry.

Assuming you have the cottage grouped, or componentized, select it, then select the Move tool and press C; you will see a little + sign appear next top the cursor indicating that you are about to copy something, not just move it. This is toggleable....so if you started to move the building then realise that you are only moving it, not copying it, you can still press C; and the original building will reappear in position, allowing you to carry on moving the copy.

You can either use the Rotate tool to rotate the copy to face the other way, or you can just hover over it with the Move tool and you'll see some little red control points appear...which can also be used to rotate it. If you place the cursor over one of these points, you'll see a protractor appear. The precise angle of rotation can be seen in the measurement box on your toolbars, as you actively rotate the object.

You can also flip an object too. Just right click it and from the context menu that appears, choice the appropriate axis to flip it along. Obviously, by rotating the house copy, you are maintining the same floor plan but facing the other way; by flipping a copy, you are producing a mirrored floor plan.

You can then copy this matched pair of cottages all the way down the street (assuming it's a straight street...although there are Ruby scripts for dealing with sinuous paths once you get a little more expert).
Just select both buildings, then copy them both (by the same procedure as before) a little ways down the street. Having done that...and before you do anything else type nX Enter...where n is the number of copies you want. If n is 9 for instance, you'll get a total of ten houses on either side of the street...all equally spaced. In the video below, you'll just manage to see a 9x appear in the VCB (Value Control Box or Measurements Box) at the top right, immediately prior to the street being populated.

[flash=640,390:3dw0vcrg]http://www.youtube.com/v/I7yJ4vgHVEw?version=3[/flash:3dw0vcrg]

Gaieus · 18 Jun 2011, 09:43

I do not have that toolbar active.
But that button is interesting as you can make a component of a single geometry like a line with it (while you cannot do it from the context menu). The Edit menu item also works this way (and also for groups).

Actually the fastest is to use a hotkey - G for components by default.

ECOHOMES · 18 Jun 2011, 12:09

@alan fraser said:

Hi Hans,
Yes, you can do both of those things. What's more, if you select the whole of your cottage and make it a component, this will not only keep all the geometry grouped together but will lead to only a very slight increase in file size even if you duplicate the building many times down the street. In effect, SU is saying to itself "I want the same as that, but over here." instead of having to remember a whole lot more geometry.

Assuming you have the cottage grouped, or componentized, select it, then select the Move tool and press C; you will see a little + sign appear next top the cursor indicating that you are about to copy something, not just move it. This is toggleable....so if you started to move the building then realise that you are only moving it, not copying it, you can still press C; and the original building will reappear in position, allowing you to carry on moving the copy.

You can either use the Rotate tool to rotate the copy to face the other way, or you can just hover over it with the Move tool and you'll see some little red control points appear...which can also be used to rotate it. If you place the cursor over one of these points, you'll see a protractor appear. The precise angle of rotation can be seen in the measurement box on your toolbars, as you actively rotate the object.

You can also flip an object too. Just right click it and from the context menu that appears, choice the appropriate axis to flip it along. Obviously, by rotating the house copy, you are maintining the same floor plan but facing the other way; by flipping a copy, you are producing a mirrored floor plan.

You can then copy this matched pair of cottages all the way down the street (assuming it's a straight street...although there are Ruby scripts for dealing with sinuous paths once you get a little more expert).
Just select both buildings, then copy them both (by the same procedure as before) a little ways down the street. Having done that...and before you do anything else type nX Enter...where n is the number of copies you want. If n is 9 for instance, you'll get a total of ten houses on either side of the street...all equally spaced. In the video below, you'll just manage to see a 9x appear in the VCB (Value Control Box or Measurements Box) at the top right, immediately prior to the street being populated.

[flash=640,390:1r5f8sc0]http://www.youtube.com/v/I7yJ4vgHVEw?version=3[/flash:1r5f8sc0]

Hi Allan,
Thank you for the very comprehensive tutorial I have printed both and file them as I do with all these tutorials.

I have another question please. I have made my cottage a component - after making a row of houses on each side of the street - some tree which was included in the component needs to be removed, but somehow I can not get back to my original working copy sothat I may alter a few essential things now that I have seen them in "Styreet formation.
Could you please help again to undo the component sothat I may work on the model some more?
Thank you again
Hans
(NB.. going to watch rugby shortly - do you know the game?)

Alan Fraser · 18 Jun 2011, 12:31

Hans,
All components are identical in terms of geometry. Therefore what you do to one, you will do to them all. You can individually scale components as long as you stay outside of the bounding box, but once you enter Component Edit mode...either by right clicking the component and choosing that, or by simply double-clicking it to get inside its bounding box, everything you do to that component will be reflected in all the others.

Therefore, you ought to be able to simply delete the tree from one of the cottages (it doesn't matter which one) and it will disappear from all the others too. If you need to make some changes to the component that are a little tricky...because all the other houses keep getting in the way, I'd suggest you make a new copy some distance away from all the others, then work on that. You can delete it when you've finished the amendments, as all the others will have changed in line with your editing.

Rugby? Oh yes, we used to play it at school instead of football (soccer). I went to a proper school. (That's a dangerous thing to say in this part of the world, as half the Everton and Liverpool football teams live within about a mile of my house.)

ECOHOMES · 18 Jun 2011, 14:33

Hi Allan,
Yeh I started a week ago and I'm hooked on this program its brilliant.

I would like to show you what it looks like now, nothing startling but i am quite pleased with what I have learned - some real nice people on this forum. I'll attach only a jpeg - it's very basic. - Thank you all for the lessons - I'm sure this is only the beginning - I'm thinking of homes with furniture showing and photoreal renderings in the future.

Allan, If I were you I would move - how can you live where Everton and Liverpool are domiciled - Move to London near the emirates - I am a fanatical Gunners supporter.
Have a lovely weekend - off to watch Rugby now.
Hans
NB please do not be shy to critique - thats how I'll learn.