On Matt666's suggestion (right before I released), it could be possible to configure ToolsOnSurface as an extension of Sketchup (like Sandbox), which you can turn on and off from the Menu Preferences--> Extensions.

This way, you can decide whether you want to load it, or can turn it off when you troubleshoot your plugins.

As I don't know what would be the best for users, I would simply ask all of you about what you think is more appropriate.

For the version configured as Extension, you just need to replace the file ZLoader__OnSurface.rbwith the one attached in the Sketchup plugins directory.

Also, I indicate the time of loading the ToolsOnSurface scriptsin the About menu item of the ToolsOnSurface menu. Can you check if you see abnormal load times in your environment(on mine it is below 100 ms)

Thanks for your feedback

Fredo

To replace the existing file in the Sketchup PLugins folder

J'ai posté une nouvelle version de la suite d'outils, avec plus de formes geometriques et un mécanisme d'inference simulée.

C'est sur le Ruby forum
http://www.sketchucation.com/forums/scf/viewtopic.php?f=180&t=11212#p76625

Additional doc on Offset on Surface(which I could not attach to previous message, as It exceeded the limit of 2 Mb). Just drop it in the TOS_Dir_13 subfolder.

to drop in subfolder TOS_Dir_13

The information on ToolsOnSurface is maintained on the Plugin Home Page of ToolsOnSurface. This is also where you can download the RBZ file.

• LibFredo6: v14.3b or above

• Sketchucation ExtensionStore: v4.4.0 or above (for licensing)

• Sketchup version: SU2017 and above

• Platform: Windows and Mac OSX

• Usage: Licensed under Sketchucation SCFLicense

• Free Trial period (full features): 30 days from first usage

• Perpetual license (3 seats): $15

• Part of Fredo6Bundle2022 license (8 plugins): $50

To purchase the license of ToolsOnSurface or the Bundle of 8 plugins, go to this page and sign in.

Tools on Surface is a Suite of Tools drawing on curved surfaces, with lines, various shapes, offset and Freehand / Polyline. It provides an inference mechanism, a Contour Editor and a dedicated Eraser.

Shapes includes:

• Circleand Polygon
• Rectangle, defined by its length and width
• Parallelogram, defined by its length, width and angle
• Ellipses, defined by axes
• Circle defined by 3 points
• Arcs(circular)
• Sectors, defined by origin, direction and angle
  All shapes have in addition the option to draw Rings, that is, the same contour offset by a negative or positive distance. And of course, all generated contours can be later edited by the Contour Edition tool.

The inference mechanismtries to simulate some stickiness when lines are drawn along some remarkable directions. There is also a Lock inference mechanism to force drawing in a particular direction. A Protractor can help to pick particular angles.

ToolsOnSurface also works to draw lines and shapes 'without' a surface.
See videos in the tutorial

Quickcard ToolsOnSurface - English - v2.0 - 12 Nov 13.pdf

Quickcard ToolsOnSurface - French - v2.0 - 12 Nov 13.pdf

There is a very good video by Justin (TheSketchupEssentials) giving an overview of the plugin.

@whaat said:

Thanks guys,

Maybe this snippet will explain what I am trying to do.

def onMouseMove(flags, x, y, view)
> 
> 	if @hide
> 		 
> 		ph=view.pick_helper
> 		ph.do_pick(x,y)
> 		e=ph.best_picked
> 		if e.class==Sketchup;;Group
> 			if (test_condition)
> 				e.hidden=true
> 				@hidden.push(e)
> 			end
> 		end
> 	end
> end

I don't want the hiding to be 'undoable'. When the user clicks the mousebutton, some geometry gets created. This is the operation that I DO want 'undoable' (which works fine). However, all of the hiding that is done in the 'onmousemove' method is also added to the undo stack.

I had the same issue with Joint Push Pull, as I do hide faces when dragging.
The workaround I found is to do a Sketchup.start_operationbefore all, and then do an Sketchup.abort_operationwhen the edition is finished (you have also to trap it in the OnCancel method). This way, you get nothing in the Undo stack and anyway, all individual operations are in the same batch of modifs.

Fredo

I think you'd better use Transform by vector, since each vertex would have a different transformation. So you create a list of vectors for each vertex between the original point and the rounded points.

Note that this may not work fine as Transforming elements in Sketchup follows the same rules as in the User Interface, allowing or not the transformation based on privileged direction.

In my opinion, just rounding the coordinates of vertex will destroy the planarity of faces if you had some in your model.

@plot-paris said:

if I do large jpp operations, SketchUp sometimes freezes (certainly, if I click somewhere else).

By the way, in case you exhaust all posts in SCF, I would recommend that you perform JPP by pieces. Normally, making sure the option "extend to neighbors" is on, then the result should be the same.

For the time being, there seems to be no way to interrupt the script or prevent it to grasp all Sketchup CPU, giving the impression that Sketchup freezes. May beGoogle will do something for version 7!

The file stored on Crai Depot contains a bug, for whatever reason. Sorry for that
Please download instead from the Forum athttp://www.sketchucation.com/forums/scf/viewtopic.php?f=180&t=6708#p42783

Fredo

@mpowell1234567890 said:

Both. It happens with a large model. "For example, I made a large maze type shape using a "cubic benzier" or "the freehand" tool. then I clicked on the shape to select it. Then I used the joint push pull to push pull it. 1st click I chosen the height, but when I click it the 2nd time - after a minute, it freezes up.

So, Can you confirm this works fine with small model?

Then, how large is the 'large model'?
Although there are surely limits to how many faces and segments you can handle (due to limits in Ruby memory allocation), JPP usually takes very long when there are many elements. Because Ruby is not multi-threaded within Sketchup, it may 'freeze' Sketchup and even the progress bar, while computing. This may take minutes or longer, but may well end up at some point in time. If you can, try this before doing something else than computing to see if it finally finishes.

A few hints and questions

• LibTraductor should be the version 20 Jan 08
• Don't worry with LibTraductor.def. It is just useful to force a particular language and not mandatory at all
• Are you on PC or Mac?
• Is Tools on Surface working fine?
• Can you turn on the Ruby console and load manually the script (type load 'JointPushPull.rb'. Then can you post the output arror messages in this thread

Thanks

Fredo

@arkix said:

How can i say more about your "great job" ?!? ...maybe (if you help me how) i can help to translate it in italian to diffuse and use more.
I mean... i tried immediately to translate it but, obviously, I am not a magician about Ruby script and I could not do this: I added and copied everything you have already done for the translation into French by putting | IT | and translating but ... nothing! does not work!
You can, please help me?
Thanks again for everything

ArkiX,

Thanks in advance for the offer. I think it's wise to wait a little bit (at least next version 1.3) to have something more stable. I will then publish a clean text file for contributors to translate in their favorite language, and then integrate it myselffor release.

By the way, the translated language should appear automatically based on your local Windows. If it is in Italian, then the script will use the strings with |IT|. Is it the case with your PC?

@jorgensen said:

Is it possoble to connect two Cubic BeizerSplines ?

Not really. But this is a good idea.

Watkins,

This script was written in one hour for someone who asked for this in the French section of the forum (the idea was just to Xray a selection). So, it is not polished and there is no documentation. True, the current version only handle one selection, as the objective was mainly to generate pictures from the model.

However, if you think it is useful, I can pour more time into it and come up with something that would be more useful and handle many selections.

In your case, I simply recommend you restore the model and then select your two components.

Also, note that I found no way to Xray bitmap textures (as the Ruby API does not give the capability to duplicate textures!). The bitmap texture does not appear when Xrayed.

Fredo

Here is one, very ugly.

Just drop it in the Plugins folder and it should appear in the toolbar when you restart Sketchup.

By the way, the script keeps memory of the selection, so that you can toggle between Xray and Plain as you wish after you made the initial selection.

For toggling, just recall the menu, without selection.
For the icon, I remember I have published an ugly one, with name IconXraySelection.png.
If you can't find it, create whatever icon with this name and it should appear in the toolbar.

If this script is useful, then I may document it and release it properly (and add an option for wireframe as well).

Fredo

@jclements said:

So far my experimentation has only turned up the following: It seems the "left-over" vertical edges from the rounded corner are left remaining. However, at least in simple models, they are easy enough to erase.
John

In this version 1.0, I preferred to keep a non-destructive approach, because the few investigations I had made showed me that the clean up must be handle with subtle care in order to avoid messing up the model. In simples cases, it is anyway relatively easy to do the cleanup by hand.

So this should be for a further version.

This is possible, and it's typically a script that would be progressively enriched by the experience of users, because similarity is something actually quite subjective (unless you have the full specs of what Wings3D does).

Let's get more feedback from other members of the forum.

It looks like you still have in your plugin folder an old file which has not been updated at the new version level 1.2 (apparently it loads an outdated definition of a structure called OFS_Node). This can possibly be OffsetOnSurface.rb (from version 1.0) or LibOnSurface.rb (from version 1.1). I don't think this is related to other scripts.

So, just re-install version 1.2, making sure that you replace and overwrite all files "xxxxonsurface" (including theose you may have renamed).

Fredo

@cphillips said:

I am blown away! That little game is pure genius. I been looking at the same API's for years and it never occurred to me to use the webdialog to drive animation.I am glad Sketchup isn't done surprising me.

Thanks for finding that video Daniel.

Chris,

I am glad to see that the speech gave a substantial room for your SketchyPhysics. I have always been so impressed by what you have achieved, and so amazed by the results of some models in 3D Warehouse (those shown during the speech are incredible !).

...and this idea of coding via the web dialog boxes is really a great idea to explore further, as beyond doing animations, I am sure there are other useful tricks that can be implemneted this way.

Fredo

@daniel s said:

Offtopic, but today using tools on surface I thought that a "scale on surface" would be useful. Not making a request because you have already too many things but I´m telling this because something like that can replace some other future tools. For example, using the circle OS and then using the Scale OS you can make the Ellipse OnS, or with the poligon OS you can make a square and then with the Scale OS make the rectangle OnS. Just a thought ...

Daniel S

Actually, my plan is simply to release a Polygon tool specified by 3 points, which will cover ellipse (with high number of segments), down to rectangle (4 segments) and isocele triangle (3 segments).
Otherwise, the only idea I could see for Scale On Surface, would be to force the Offset in a particular direction, or in radial mode, from a particular point. In the general case, I think you have a better control with the Offset tool.