In Modeling Machine Parts Live with Aaron at 1hr. 50min. 8sec. Matt recommended an extension with the ability to draw a line from the center of itself. Not unlike the “draw rectangle from the center” feature added in SketchUp 2020. He then implored me - by name - to build it for him.
Let it be known that his request has been answered!
Lo and behold, here is the extension below and for now it is FREE.
The extension still has some rough edges and lose bolts but I am just dying to get it out there: jpc_LineFromCenter - Signed.rbz (17.0 KB)
Thanks @TysonK,
I am so sorry about the mix up.
Yes please, I would love to try more crazy extensions!
I will be ready in my secret lab to bring life to your great ideas.
Architectural drawing frequently needs to establish a centreline or centrepoint between two other lines/points. There used to be an extension called Midpoint that helped with this.
So how would it work?
For points, I imagine invoking the command and then picking any two points in space to define the controlling parameters. Then the extension would place a marker (3D cross?) at the centrepoint with axes normal to the working environment. Ideally, this would be a species of construction line. In fact it could be three such lines meeting at the midpoint. That way, it is easy to delete it after use by clearing all construction lines.
For lines, something very similar. In this case you would select two parallel and coplanar lines and the extension would place a single construction line halfway between them. There would have to be a warning system if the two chosen lines were not parallel or were not coplanar.
In case it’s useful, what I tend to do for lines using native tools is to place one along one of the “founding” lines, then copy it to the other founding line, then hit /2. It’s pretty simple but a bit of a faff.
STOP PRESS*
On reflection, maybe the lines don’t need to be coplanar, just parallel?
The link had a time index to bring you exactly to the place in question.
So also answering my own question …
Aaron needed to find the midpoint between 2 circles (holes) which were one above the other Y-wise looking down from above.
He had to draw (with the LineTool) a temporary vertical line between the outer vertex of one to the other, and then use a midpoint inference to draw a horizontal line denoting the center between the 2 holes.
I recreated the scenario, thinking that using an inference toggle lock, we should be able to do this natively. But it does not work natively.
In a related thread, I envisioned an extension that, behind the scenes, drew just such a line to provide a temporary midpoint inference, deleting it automatically at the end of the action. Such a line might look a bit like hidden geometry so you can see that it has been briefly created. I have no idea if such a thing is even possible!
I am sorry about the toolbar.
I don’t have a MAC computer to test it on. Subsequently all my extensions are “Windows Only”.
The problem is that the toolbar icon is a SVG witch Mac doesn’t load.
I might try putting a PNG toolbar for Mac users like you.
Like I said:
I was lazy in my terminology. By coplanar, I meant on the same axial plane (XY, YZ, XZ). Not sure if there is a neat single word for that. Coplanaxial?
