Object highlighting under the cursor like in Joint Push Pull

[bakursky]

Hi, everybody! I want to create a plugin which can fix a tiny UX problem in SketchUp - edge and face highlighting when mouse on. Any modern 3d modeling tool has this feature. I’ve found this feature in Joint Push Pull plugin, but I want to do it by default in SketchUp startup. Can you help me with some code?

[MikeWayzovski]

Most modification tools work the way you want: select for instance the move tool and hoover over an entity.
If that entity is a group or component, you can not select faces and edges this way, though, because they are wrapped in a container. This is also the reason why I think it it will create more confusion then its usibility

[bakursky]

@MikeWayzovski

If that entity is a group or component, you can not select faces and edges this way, though, because they are wrapped in a container. This is also the reason why I think it it will create more confusion then its usibility

yep, but I always choose an object by select tool because it gives you the ability to move objects by clinging to other surfaces and entities.

@MikeWayzovski

because they are wrapped in a container.

Of course, it will highlight a group’ bounding box if mouse under group

[DanRathbun]

@bakursky

… but I want to do it by default in SketchUp startup.

There is no way to modify the native tools.

You’ll need to write your own select tool.

You need to learn Ruby and then in the API Documentation see …

Class: Sketchup::Selection

Class: Sketchup::PickHelper

Class: Sketchup::Tool

Also take at look at the Linetool example in the Examples extension …
http://extensions.sketchup.com/en/content/example-ruby-scripts