I have posted another one with the general question of how to directly contact developers and perhaps I will get answers there.
Additionally, I would like to sketch some recent problems concretely, in hope to perhaps find somehow who is able to help me there:
saving and using components → sometimes when i save working dynamic components to the folder prepared for my components and then import them to another model, some of the programmed functions just disappear. Has anyone a clue, why this happens and what can be done to solve the problem?
summing up object-volumes and suface-area → in cases when i only use the “FACEAREA”-function on a DC it always sums up the correct surface-area. but when I use this function in a DC wich also has formulas for LenX/LenY/LenZ then it doesn´t sum up correctly. Any clues on solving that?
If in any way, it was possible to get in direct contact to developers of DCs, I think this could be the fastest way to solutions. Is there any possibility for this? I am aware, that the people, I then get in contact with are workers in this topic and won´t invest much time on helping me without finding a basis for payment of spended times…
always right click and save the DC via the context menu to the folder
can you post a sample?
after a change in size using LenX/LenY/LenZ, the object is stretched, therefore you need to scale definition(right click menu) then redraw so that facearea updates ( this is the same as to scaled objects, so not a DC “bug”)
Saving objects:
that´s exactly the way I always do it but ntl sometimes the DCs are “damaged/have options taken away”…found no solution up to now.
FACEAREA:
I will post an example with two objects. the small dice doesn´t have fundtions on LenXYZ and always works right for the FACEAREA. The bigger one doesn´t calculate on base of the changes made with LenXYZ-function.
right click the large group, context menu, gives an option to reset scale, the small does not, therefore the large one has been shorten or scaled
reset scale will return it to the original size, or changing it to a component will allow you to choose “scale definition” which then will return the correct area
Thank you for that hint. It´s nevertheless a little bit sad, that SU will not do the “scaling-update” by it´s own but at least I now have a solution to get to the right results.
That was very helpful…I knew “reset” scale but didn´t work with “scale definition” so far. Thanks!
there isn´t perhaps a function to “tell” SU sth like “scale all definitions in this model”?
My DCs are partly very complex groups of multiple components and it will be much work to click into each one, for being sure that all the FACEAREA-calculations are up to date…
realised what maybe happening to your save DCs, they could have copied elements (especially groups) that have not be made unique, so that they “update” to its copy when brought into a drawing, i,e, formulas change.
It is a great temptation to reuse parts, but care should be taken to assure each part is made unique if it is required to have different formula. So say, if you are building a collection of cupboards, then best to build each type within the same factory (drawing) so any accident of conflicting copies can be addressed
a copied group can have component type properties until that link is broken (not always done), so use right click to see if a unique option is available
I was saving components just yesterday and, for the first time, 2 of 10 that I imported had cleared the formulas from my X,Y,Z (position) attributes. Is this what you’re describing? I was working in 2018, fwiw
Yes…that´s the issue I´m describing.
The difference in my models:
it´s not the “formulas” that disappear out of the component-attributes - it´s the “dropdown-/type-in-fields” in the component-options that disappear
it´s usually not the functions for LenXYZ that mostly dissappear…mostly it´s the RotXYZ-fields in the options.
@pcmoor: I´ve resaved all DCs again after having checked if there are parts (or the whole group) that were not unique. they all were and I´ve still got problems with disappearing option-fields.
…any more hints on this perhaps? Or did I perhaps get sth. completely wrong up to now?
Are you saving them with blank fields like you show in the first picture? Maybe try having them defined when you save? Or is there a reason you prefer not to?
It’s pretty disconcerting that this could be a pattern. Are you using SU2018, too?
does this happen even when you import into an empty file?
if not, can you systematically import into a model of one (or small number) of item(s) until the effect may be noted.
Here I send the original file, in wich i implemented some of the actual DCs.
Up to now, most of them loose options when I save them to a folder and then import them out of the “components”-window…Does this also happen when other people try the same with my DCs?dynamische Komponenten - reduziert.skp (2.7 MB)
a peculiarity I forgot about, as a matter of habit I nest multiple rotation
As observed, the DC does not read multiple rotations at the same level, plus they are overwritten on import.
So the workarounds, use separate attributes to retain the values, so not overridden on import and nest each rotation … a bit messy
There is another workflow you may be interested in, that is to use a ruby script to insert the component and align it using two points, that is you place and scale as simply as drawing a line in any direction.
Here´s another issue folks (perhaps someone is able to help):
I´m located in Germany. So I tried to make a document wich makes the actual problem clear in english language.
It´s not the first time, I have to deal with a similar problem:
sometimes SketchUp seems to calculate on base of other fields, that I didn´t tell it to use.
In this example one of the groups in my dynamic component doesn´t work properly, positioning this group when the Length of the whole component should change.
I will add the .skp of the component and a PDF with the discription of my problem…have I described it in an understandible way?
I just created some for the first time, and as long as I use them in the source file or copy paste them to a new file, nothing changes and I have all attributes available. However, when importing them through the components section it removes all the attributes.
To save a component or dynamic component for reuse via the component broswer or drag and drop, you use the right click menu on the selected component and choose “save as”
Its very likely the component you are accessing is a file with the component inside, if you explode this item after inserting via the broswer you will find you DC with its options, right click this and use save as to over-write to fix
if still problems, please up load the file example
