@dalek said:

TIG,
Very helpful again. I've got another one.

I've got two components that cross in my model. I want to delete the bottom half of one of the components, and keep the top half that lies on the other side of the second component. Kind of like an "x", and I want to delete on of the edges so I end up with a "y". So, I "intersect with model." That gives me lines where the two compenents cross, but when I go to delete the edges I don't want, it deletes the entire edge, even the edge on the other side of component #2. Is there any way to prevent this, or do I have to retrace the shorter edges I want to keep?

Dale

Use 'Intersect' when you are within the component itself (during an edit). Do it for each component in turn. That way the intersecting lines are then made within the components and you should be able to erase them within each component during an edit as desired...

The more pieces of edge you have in any curve the less 'ragged' it'll look... However, you seem to be using a Style that is designed to looked particularly 'ragged' ? Try changing the Style and the curves might then look better...

@dalek said:

Is it possible to "search and replace" components? In other words, I have a component that I want to replace with a different component. Do I need to select, delete, choose new component, then place it? Or is there a simplier way?

Select the components to be replaced - picking + ctrl (or shift) adds to selection. In the component browser move the cursor over the component you now want, right-click and choose 'replace selected'. The selected components are replaced with that one...

You can also select an instance of a component and then select all the same ones using the 'select' sub-menu in the right-click context-menu... before using 'replace selected'... as explained above...

@dalek said:

Thanks. Next question. When I want to add a small component onto the end of another component, I do so by making another component consisting of the two. So far so good. Now, how do I "meld" them together so that the lines don't show? For example, I'm adding a wood post end onto an existing post, both of which are components. I make a third component out of the combo, so I've got a component post with ends. How do I delete the lines between the two old components that have now become one?

If you want to have one (new) component that has the parts of the two components, BUT not the two components within it, then edit this new component that's now containing the two and select them both and explode them - now you have the parts within this new component BUT without any sub-components. Now you can erase any unwanted coplanar lines without losing their attached faces. If you remove an edge and a face goes with it then the faces to the sides of that edge aren't in the same plane (=coplanar)... so if you want the edge to be unseen you can either hide it or smooth it (erase+shift or erase+ctrl) - there are subtle differences in doing one or the other in the way the two faces appear to join or sweep together...
IF you want the two separate components to be kept within this new one, then to hide the edges where they 'join' you can edit each in turn and hide any edges that touch the other's so that when they are placed together in the final thing their coincident edges are hidden.
Toggle View > Hidden Geometry on/off to see hidden/smoothed edges as dotted lines...

Sketchup.active_model.entities.to_a.each{|e|e.erase! if e.valid?}

is a bit shorter and does the same...

@3dmodellers said:

Hi,
I tried using this plugin. But it dint initialise.
Here's what I did. I saved the plugin in the 'plugins' folder. Then started sketchup. But was unable to find the calculator menu anywhere.
Is anyone facing such a problem? any solutions?

regards
Pritam

With most scripts if you open them in a text editor there are instructions written at the beginning...
'Volume' is a right-click context-menu item - there is NO top-bar menu item. You just select a group/component (or more) and you will get 'Volume' on the context-menu...

Look at my Grow.rb too... this would do the same thing - even make a spiral / helical stairs in one go...

@matte said:

Thanks TIG, but I can't see where to grab it from?
MAtte

See earlier msg for re-upload as zip...

@matte said:

Could someone please tell me where can I find this "win32ole.so" file that I need to put into the ruby folder?
Thanks,
Matte

Here it is... Put it in the Plugins folder with the script(s)...

EDIT:
Sorry I forgot - ".so" files don't upload properly - here it is zipped...
Unzip it and put the resulting "win32ole.so" file into Plugins etc...

http://www.sketchucation.com/forums/scf/sas/Ruby/win32ole.zip

@unknownuser said:

Didier

Thx for the link, I found V4.2, Do you know if it uses the same win32ole.so file as the V3 ???

/D

It does.

@tomsdesk said:

I've done some playing around trying to come up with a work-around and have found SU will only cut one face at a time...you can copy several different components at the same time to cut the same face, but you can't use even the same component to cut different faces at the same time. And you can't nest components then explode them to cut different faces.

When I use thick walls, I position and cut all my windows on the outside walls, then use a "cut outline only" component on the inside walls...boring!

That's what Didier and I have been discussing recently in the Ruby Forum... What you'd do is place the normal cutting component (window/door etc) in the outer face - then if it meets certain criteria like it's a compo instance, it is glued to a face and is cutting etc AND there's a parallel face behind it into which it could have a reveal and hole (say within 24"/600mm?)... then it offers a right-click context menu to punch a hole through the inner face. This would involve calling a special cutting compo that makes a matching sized hole and also has a 'scalable' perpendicular reveal lining. This is then auto-placed in the inner wall face and cuts the inner hole etc. The instance of the initial cutting compo and this new inner hole compo are tied together with matching attributes. They also have 'observers' that activate at startup and spot that they've been changed. If one moves then the other auto-moves with it, if one is scaled the other scales with it etc. It the initial cutting one is erased you are asked if you want to remove the inside hole too. If the inside hole is erased then you are warned of its 'link' and if you 'no' it's put back...

Watch out for some trial scripts for this...

###group.material="Yellow"### i.e. you remove this bit of code and add this.
entities.each{|e|e.material="Yellow" if e.typename=="Face"}

Only faces get to be yellow - edges stay unchanged...

A .skm file is really a .zip file with another suffix. In a convoluted way you could copy it to the temp folder change it into a zip file, unzip it (you'd need win32.ole (? or ..api?) - [TBD's idea of DeZip = much better] etc and a free unzipper utility)... then the files you'd get out would include the jpg/png files and info about the material etc ... so you could then recreate it within the model rather than import it 'raw' ?

group=Sketchup.active_model_active_entities.add_group
entities=group.entities
### make the sphere a group - no danger of it sticking to some existing geometry...
circle1=entities.add_circle([0, 0, 0],[0,0,1],15,24) 
circle2=entities.add_circle([15,0, 0],[1,0,0],15,24) 
face=entities.add_face(circle1) 
face.followme(circle2) 
entities.erase_entities(circle2)
group.material="Yellow"

Group the sphere's parts and colour the group...

@rhankc said:

I can see where the layer 0 is in the .skb, After writing the list in notepad do you just paste it in at the layer 0 end?

And thanks for the extra layer ext rb. I'll give it a shot.

The skb file is just a backup of the skp file. Writing or pasting stuff manually into the model's file without deeeeeeeep knowledge of what you are doing WILL mess up the model completely ! Don't be tempted to try it... unless you read and write binary code - it's NOT a simple text format...

Use my LayerExIm.rb script tool to import a list of layer names via the Ruby API interface - it knows how to make new layers/names and insert them into the data base properly. You can first export a list from an existing skp that has the layer names you need, or simply write a notepad.exe based text list of the layer names - one per line, normal charcters, no tabs... (start with it called MyLayers.txt BUT afterwards change the file's suffix to MyLayers.layers when you've done so the importer can see it... Then use my Layer Import tool, select the list and the layers will appear in the model. If that model file were put into the Templates folder and its name selected under Preferences as the default template then you'll always start with that set of layers in any new skp.
Purging the model will remove any layers that are 'empty'. If you want to get them back reimport the .layers list... You can have different 'layers' lists to suit different stages of your work, just as you can have different templates or styles for different types of modelling...

@unknownuser said:

import
The import method is used to load a file by recognizing the file extension and calling appropriate importer.

Syntax
status = model.import "path+filename", show_summary
Arguments
“path+filename” – the path and name of the file to import. [It works out the importation type from the file's suffix of .dwg/.dxf/.skp/ etc]

show_summary - true if you want to show a summary window, false if you do not want to show a summary window.

Return Value
status – true if successful, false if unsuccessful

so I'd expect that:

Sketchup.active_model.import("C;\\...FULL_PATH_TO...\\my.dwg",false)

should work [it does].

Incidentally the equivalent model.export(filepath,false) method also works...

@jclements said:

For the mathematically challenged, a way to enter a diameter rather than a radius. Maybe toggle between radius or diameter entries using the Tab Key or simply following any numeral in the VCB with a "d" or an "r".

Pull out a circle, in the VCB type 1000/2 and you get a circle of radius 500, calculated from the diameter 1000 - so it's already there...

When making a circle typing into the VCB a number on it's own [500] sets the radius, a number followed by /2 [1000/2] sets the radius [500] from the diameter.. and also a number followed by an S changes the number of edges (segments) the circle has [32s = 32 segments] - the more it has the finer it is an appears graphically BUT the more facets it makes when it's made 3D... Since most cylinders etc made from circles as 'smoothed' they can have relatively few edges BUT still look OK whilst keeping the poly count down...

@rhankc said:

Where is the layer file stored and what is the extension for the SU layer list. And can you edit layer lists directly from that location?

The layers live within the model file itself. Didier's LayerManager does lots of clever things including import/export of layers...

My specialised script [LayerExIm.rb v1.0] just imports/exports lists of layer names (xxx.layers)...
See here: http://www.sketchucation.com/forums/scf/viewtopic.php?p=15372#p15372
Usage: Select Export and a list of layers is made in the model's folder
called 'model_name.layers'.
Select Import, a browser lets you select the 'xxx.layers' file
and then it's merged into the current model's layers.
You can also write your own layer list, use a plain text editor
[e.g. NotePad.exe] and suffix it .layers; the layer names
should be one per line, use normal text characters [no tabs]...

http://www.sketchucation.com/forums/scf/viewtopic.php?p=17156#p17156 gets you v3.0 of Roof.rb with sloping fascia and soffit options...

The new RoofHelp.doc file is also in a 'zip' format in the same thread...

Merry Christmas to one and all...

This is the latest version of my 'Roof' script.

Fixed the reversed face glitches in Hipped roof's fascias if the 'selected-face' was itself reversed.
Listed materials' now use their 'display_name' rather than their 'name'.
Offset_eaves code has been completely rewritten to correct inexplicable irregularities in the soffit sizes produced in v3.1 - it was eventually easier to redo the code rather than try to find the underlying cause...
I found that v3.2 still had a glitch with some vector normalizing [cause of the original v3.1 issue I suspect] ! It's now fixed anyway.
...
v3.4 Fixes a minor typo glitch which stopped A:B pitches working IF you didn't have some other scripts loading too.
v3.5 Glitch with rare soffit/fascia combos fixed with @fstype="Vertical+Horizontal",
also issue with some distorted faces addressed so eaves are always 'out', Roof-Slope now reports to 3 d.p.
v3.6 Errors minimized. Speed greatly improved. Roof-Slope now reported in angle, 1:B and A:12.
v3.7 Error/Glitch in 'Gable by Width' fixed.
v4.0 Minor tweaks and v2016/2017 full compatibility.
v5.0 Updated, compatible with all current versions

Feedback please.
Latest version available from the PluginStore http://sketchucation.com/pluginstore?pln=Roof

There were previously ~3000 downloads of v3.0... so a lot of you might need to update, as only ~200 of you updated to v3.6

I've also included the original Help docs in two formats in the zip file...