@plot-paris said:

for example, I copy(move) an object and type in the distance (lets say 50), then hit enter. but if I want to move it only one third of the distance I just type in

50 / 3

and the object is moved one third of 50.
the same could work when drawing geometry like a line.

The only problem with the VCB is that it does not work when you have decimalsin the numbers
For instance, if your unit is Centimeters and you type in the Line tool:

• "50.0/3" will give 3 cm
• "50.0/3.0" will give 50 cm

It's not very complex to supersede this in Ruby, but the trick is that you have to convert numbers to Float first. Otherwise, 50/3 will simply give 16, not 16.67. You can try in the Ruby console. So a straightforward #Eval() won't make it.
I had to do it in my script PlaneShear for entering angles (in degrees, radians or as a tangent value)

Strange!
I get an "unknown" error when loading Getkeys.rb.
Difficult to tell more, as whether by opening Sketchup or loading the file via the Ruby console, the error is desperatly "unknown".

Otherwise, I would suggest that the community of Ruby developers tries to come up with a uniform solution to complement some missing functiosn of the Ruby API. If this DL programs works both on Windows and Mac, then it is really a good base. We could package it as a library, and a few of us in charge of updating it.

Then, we could develop a few other functions that could be useful and probably require to go down to the System:

• Move the mouse cursor to a given position
• Intercept keys before Sketchup (when in a tool, all the short cuts like Space, 'L', etc..., are actually trapped by Sketchup, before they even reach the tool OnKeyDown method
• Access to the main loop in order to be able to interrupt a lengthy process by typing a key
  Fredo

@daniel s said:

Yes, i get the tooltip.
I'm using Windows XP.
I will try with other computer and report back.

Daniel S

My fault. The reason is that you use BIG icons. I had a bug there. It is fixed now and I updated the archive in the main post of this thread. Tell me if it is better.

Then 2 questions

• Do you get the tooltip when you mouseover the empty icons?
• are you running Sketchup on Mac?

Daniel

Strange!
Do you get the cursors?

[Edit - 12 Jul 08] New version 1.3 (more shapes, inference, freehand) available at
http://www.sketchucation.com/forums/scf/viewtopic.php?f=180&t=11212&p=76625#p76625

[Edit - 5 Jun 08 - 16:00 CET] I forgot to include LibTraductor.rbin the package, which can be a problem if it is the first time you install my scripts. There is no change to this file however (still the version of 20 Jan 08). I updated the ZIP Arhive.

[Edit - 5 Jun 08 - 06:00 CET] Fixed bug with Big icons, detected by Daniel S.

[Edit - 5 Jun 08 - 05:00 CET] Release of version 1.2

Here is the next version v1.2 of the Tools On Surface, with 3 new tools:

• Polygon and Circle
• Eraser
• Contour Editor
  
  This version supersedes the previous v1.1 and should be used instead, as it allows all contours generated by the tools to be later edited.

The main feature is about Editing Contour, which I had to introduce as on some surfaces, the calculations do not give expected results. I also rewrote the algorithm to make it more robust (but there's still some remaining issues).

For installation, just open the Zip archive, select all files and Extract them to the Plugins directory of Sketchup. It now creates a subfolder TOS_Dirfor storing icons, cursors and PDF documentation. So you can remove the subfolder OFS_Dir that was used in previous versions.

I updated the documentation, which is now composed of:

• A QuickStart guide in English and French covering all tools
• A tutorial specifically dedicated to the OffsetOnSurface tool, in English

For the next versions, I had in plan to complete:

• Select Contour
• Tape Measure
• Rectangle
• Rail (multiple parallel lines for roads or so)
• Arcs, Ellipse and non-uniform polygons (i.e. requiring 3 points for inputs)

My original plan was however to focus on DrapeOnSurface, as this basically allows drawing anything on a plane with the standard Sketchup tools and then apply it to a surface.

I must say that the contributors of the forum do not help me having rest, and it’s true that, unfortunately, Move and Rotate are feasible (with and without Copy Mode). Text On Surface is also manageable, and I could complement TIG’s script to make the text follow the surface. I am still wondering what could be a FollowMe On Surface however.

Finally, this version still includes my own icons and cursors, although I have already received proposals for getting something much nicer, which I willingly accept. We probably need more tools to come up with the full suite in a next version.

Do an Extract All in 'Plugins' folder - include LibTraductor.rb

Circles and Polygons are coming!
Probably in a few days.

Actually, I am struggling to make the algorithm a little more robust, as Sketchup is not accurate enough with methods like Interesect_line_plane, which causes some problems in some situation.

By the way, I did not get bug reports about these tools, while myself, I can find several problems when playing with different surface topologies. Maybe it's good enough in a day-to-day work?

By the way, I am not sure Bezier is useful on surfaces (precisely because Bezier are much better when drawn in a plane), but I am working on Arcs and also on Polylines (useful in order to correct contours).

Just a matter to find some time!!

Daniel,

If there is one area where I still have to learn is the Inference mechanism in Sketchup.

However, if you wish to draw contours parallel to others (as in your example), then I suggest you use the Offset tool (possibly with Construction line mode). Select the edges and also faces they border and offset by a distance. This is described in the Tutorial, on pages 3-4.

I plan to build a Tape Measure tool to ease this operation, but it is still not written.

Fredo

PS: by the way, thanks for the icons. I'll see how to integrate in a next release (and there is another proposal from CadFather which I need to look at).

@majid said:

i made a date palm tree , when started to play whit this great ruby ... it was just a fun ...but finally the result was amazing.... and here is some pics, to show my respect to Fredo

Majid,

I think this would deserve a tuto, as myself I am still wondering how you used the tool to create so realistic palm trees !

Fredo

@daniel s said:

Hi fredo...

About the offset on surface the external offset deletes the original surface... is there a way to keep the original surface like in the previous version? In the image I put in "1" the external offset, in "2" the actual result and in "3" what i´m trying to get.

About the icons and cursors i tried to make them.. but i can´t do the ones with Cline. The ones i can don´t look very good... but i post them here.

Daniel S

Daniel (and all)

Sorry for this. I fixed the bug and reloaded on the first message of this thread.
(Bubbalove: try again, as you wanted to download when I was replacing the file. Sorry)

Macs,

I understand. This is due to a problem in Sketchup when you create a curve made of edges on an existing edge (you can check this is the case when you generate in a group and then explode). I'll try to fix it.
By default, the script generates curves for each line drawn. If you deactivate this option (key F9), it works correctly.

Je viens de publier la premiere version d'une suite d'outils permettant de dessiner ou de creer de la geometrie sur des surfaces. Pour l'instant, il y a OffsetOnSurface(deja publie, mais avec quelques evolutions) et LineOnSurface, qui clone l'outil de dessin de lignes de Sketchup, mais sur une surface.


Il y a une petite doc en Francais
J'ai en plan d'autres outils, des que j'ai un peu de temps!

voir : http://www.sketchucation.com/forums/scf/viewtopic.php?f=180&t=9637&p=60520#p60512

@solo said:

Just gave me another toy, I mean tool.

3 minutes to make.

Solo,

very nice illustration of what you can do by combining JPP and the Tools on Surface.
Would you mind if I take the picture and put it in the documentation?

Fredo

@macs said:

Hi Fredo! Your tools are fantastic!
I think i found a problem while I was playing with the line tool:

I've attcached this simple model
draw a plane line with your tool from the lower vertex of the segment
up in vertical. The result line will be connected to the upper circle
and not to the starting vertex.
The same does not happen with the costruction line.

I am not totally clear on what happened to you.
What is sure is that when the surfaces contains planes which are perpendicular, the interpretation of a path on the surface is always ambiguous.

@gaieus said:

A question: what do you mean by "Drape on surface"? The Sandbox Drape tool is already applied on a surface!

Unlike the native Sandbox, DrapeOnSurface would not use projection, but reconstruction of geometry on the surface with respect of distance. Typically, you should be able to draw text (or any shape) fully around a cylinder (and possibly extrude it with JPP).
DrapeOnSurface is also an easier way to produce drawings on Surface. Actually, you draw on a plane (where you have all Sketchup tools and can be accurate), and then you drape on the surface.

@gaieus said:

Another question; how about a texture positioning (with multiple pins and the ability to dustort the image) on surface? All those organic modelers (like kwistenbiebel) are crying for something like that!

Interesting idea, but it would need to be described in more details

[Edit 17 Sep 09] new version 1.5 available with more shapes, Eraser and Contour Edition, see http://forums.sketchucation.com/viewtopic.php?f=323&t=11212&hilit=plugin#p76625.

As you could guess, Offset On Surface was the first member of a family of tools that would reproduce the Sketchup native tools, but on Surface.

So here is the first version of ToolsOnSurface. It contains only 2 tools at the moment:

• OffsetOnSurface(with a number of enhancements compared to version 1.0 and replacing this version (see original discussion at http://www.sketchucation.com/forums/scf/viewtopic.php?f=180&t=8821)
  

• Line on Surface, which is analog to the Line tool in Sketchup
  
  For Offset On Surface, there are a few evolutions:

• Generate in Plain Line or in Construction Line (with / without Construction Point)

• Handle overlapping contours and split them, to try handling the issue raised by a4chitect (see http://www.sketchucation.com/forums/scf/viewtopic.php?f=180&t=6708&start=45#p52807)

• Double Click to repeat with same distance on a different selection (as requested by Coen)

• Generation Group now common to all operation on surface

• Correction of distance possible after operation

• Revisit the contour simplification algorithm

• Separate file for default settings (colors, options, …)

• Added a programming API for Ruby

• Fixed a number of bugs

For Line on Surface, it is quite similar to its Sketchup cousin, with a few evolutions

• Draw Plain Line or Construction line (with / without Construction Point)
• Also supports distance in VCB (during and after) and redo via double click

I updated the documentation on OffsetOnSurface accordingly.

I also added a short Reference manual for all Tools on Surface. It describes the installation and summarizes the key points for each tool. It is available in English and in French.

Next tools should be

• PolygonOnSurface(including Circle and ellipses)
• TapeOnSurface, to mimic the Tape Measure tool
• RectangleOnSurface
• DrapeOnSurface

Fredo

PS: Call for Help: Icons and Cursors
You surely noticed that my artistic limits for designing icons and cursors. So, if anyone has suggestions, thanks in advance!

The problem is that you also need key shortcuts within a tool (for instance I use Function keys to change some options and parameters in JPP or OffsetOnSurface).
Sketchup traps any key type and would switch to the tool is the key is assigned to any.

@north_frost said:

Great tool
Works excellent

Thanks.
I suggest you try the latest version, which has more features
http://www.sketchucation.com/forums/scf/viewtopic.php?f=180&t=6708

Do you mean that the list of colors in the doc does not apply to #view.draw_points??
see http://download.sketchup.com/sketchuphelp/gsu6_ruby/Docs/Ruby-Color.html

@a4chitect said:

could someone help me understand why when editing spline sometimes the selecting cursor is a black filled square and sometimes it is an empty square? the filled cursor can't be locked to axes when moving while the empty square can and also snaps to geometry better. I could't recognize any apparent reason why sometimes I get the filled one and sometimes don't. thanks

By the way, you seem to use the older version which had bugs about inferences. I have made a correction in the release of January 2008, which is on Crai Depot
(see also http://www.sketchucation.com/forums/scf/viewtopic.php?f=180&t=5429)