[Plugin]BuildingStructureTools1.92 Apr 28, 2013

[Bob James]

Seems like a fantastic tool, although I can't get it to work- "Can`t click "Next point". Any tool."

Same for me.

[paddyclown]

Seems like a fantastic tool, although I can't get it to work- "Can`t click "Next point". Any tool."

Same for me.

yeh, me too , no second click possible, (SU pro 8 on Vista platform)....

[TIG]

I have now loaded the tool and get the same problems...
Here are two 'tweaked' files that work.
Replace one in Plugins and the other in the tool's own subfolder.
I have swapped the \ to / in the 'require' statements.
I have trapped a 'read_default' error. The author having used/tested the tool for some time won't have realized that his code crashed if a particular registry entry was missing [probably as he had written that entry ages ago in earlier tested code], but because it crashes at the start the entry never gets written ! In 'tst_main', at line #123, I've added a trap so there is no crash and it now works, writing the needed registry entry the first time you use the tool, and so all is now well...

building_structure_tool.rb

tst_main.rb

[macannurc]

thanks to both tak2hata & Tig

I can finally test it, and it seems a plugin with great potential

Google SketchUp Pro 7 (7.0.10248)
Mac OSX 10.4.11, old PPC G4

[tak2hata]

Thanks TIG!
Thank you for helping.
It was not hit on at all where I am necessary to put up the hand.
It was doubted that it was a problem of the inch in my conception.
Now It work with your help!

EDIT: by TIG - An updated version of all of the files is now available here...
viewtopic.php?p=315482#p315482

Hi,howardhong!
I'm grad to see you.
Help from Korea and other countries will surely recovers Japan.
Therefore, we also work hard.

Thanks for all!
best regard.

[Humpmetwice]

Is there anyway to add beam sizes to this?

[paddyclown]

just a word: thankyou !

well done guys, a nifty tool is born... maybe you should get together with Goh who does the 1001bit tools ? Between you you may just turn SU into the only fun BIM program out there

all the best...

[TIG]

Is there anyway to add beam sizes to this?

In the folder 'building_structure_tool' there are two CSV files:

default_pflist.csv contains the steel sizes and standard sizes of other things used in the tool
You can edit those in plain text editor - e.g. around line #151
##STEEL_BEAM,“Sœ¬—À,,,,,,
b15,H-150x75x5x7,,,,matSTEEL,BLACK,BLACK
b19,H-198x99x4.5x7,,,,matSTEEL,BLACK,BLACK

This 'b15' is one country's standard 'code', and the 4 relevant sizes in 'mm', 'material' etc... but you can add your own - just ensure that the ',' count is the same...

You could also add other things like additional items at the end...

Also default_pipelist.csv contains 'tube' code/sizes.

[Bob James]

This 'b15' is one country's standard 'code'

Does anyone have a "Rosetta Stone" to convert these codes into USA codes?

[watkins]

Don't forget this:

http://www.cad-addict.com/2009/07/sketc ... olbox.html

and this:

http://sketchup.engineeringtoolbox.com/ ... to_10.html

There is also beamtool.rb and Steels.rb which can be found here http://rld.crai.archi.fr/rld/plugins_list_az.php

Regards,
Bob

[TIG]

This 'b15' is one country's standard 'code'

Does anyone have a "Rosetta Stone" to convert these codes into USA codes?

try this http://www.structural-drafting-net-expe ... -beam.html ?
My old SteelSections includes most UK/EU sizes... in the txt file...

[watkins]

Dear TIG,

Where would one find 'ye olde SteelSection.rb'?

Regards,
Bob

[TIG]

...Where would one find 'ye olde SteelSection.rb'?...

Try here http://rhin.crai.archi.fr/rld/plugin_details.php?id=412 [all all good scripts go in the twilight of their years.........]

[watkins]

Ah, didn't realise that Steels was the same as SteelSection.

Thanks, Bob

[Dave R]

It would appear that this plugin causes the old grayed out menu items. I haven't seen that for awhile but it happened after I installed this one. I've deleted it and I have no problem.

[tak2hata]

Thanks about the info of world steel beam tables.
I will read it later.
Earthquake hit me now!
Very Terrible.

[TIG]

It would appear that this plugin causes the old grayed out menu items. I haven't seen that for a while but it happened after I installed this one. I've deleted it and I have no problem.

This new tool does add 14 additional commands, which might just tip you over the mythical limit and then causes gray-outs...
It needs those for the Toolbar, but since it doesn't use context-menus it's weird as that is the usual connection...
You don't need to uninstall the tool completely, you can simply rename 'building_structure_tool.rb' as 'building_structure_tool.rb.txt' so it isn't auto-loaded at startup; then later if you want the tool's functions you can type load "building_structure_tool.rb.txt" in the Ruby Console and it's loaded for the rest of that session...
Do you have 'ContextMenuOptimizer' by AlexM, which tries to optimize 'commands' to reduce 'gray-outs'?

[Dave R]

Hi TIG,

I know I could have renamed it but I still have the ZIP file. I don't have AlexM's ContextMenuOptimizer but I'll look for it. The greyed out menu thing was a big issue before with TOS or something else but the plugin was updated and the problem seemed to have gone away. I don't remember what the changes was to the specific plugin, though.

[TIG]

Hi TIG,
I know I could have renamed it but I still have the ZIP file. I don't have AlexM's ContextMenuOptimizer but I'll look for it. The grayed out menu thing was a big issue before with TOS or something else but the plugin was updated and the problem seemed to have gone away. I don't remember what the changes was to the specific plugin, though.

The 'ContextMenuOptimizer' is available here viewtopic.php?p=252413#p252413
There is a 'theoretical' limit of ~1000 commands being active before the context-menu 'breaks'.
The optimizer tries to 'flush' unused commands so this is avoided...
Unfortunately you have to have a 'command' made if you are to use a toolbar, so the more tools that you have that use toolbars the nearer you will get to the limit and then get possible gray-outs.
The earlier problem with some of Fredo's tools [and a few others] was that they remade a new command every time you used the context-menu, and thereby it quickly used up the available command slots as the old command was still remembered too... and the dreaded gray-outs ensued...
These issues were addressed in the tools' code, and one command is now initially defined and reused as needed, so as long as you've updated all of Fredo's tools etc then that particular problem has gone.
However, I still get occasional gray-outs on context-menus when I have a lot of tools loading commands during tests etc, so it is possible to exceed this limit even with the optimizer running and when all tools themselves have been optimized...
Remember that most context-menu items will remain available on the end of the Edit Menu, so you can usually do the required actions that way if the gray-out happens - but if all else fails you must save and restart

[Dave R]

Thanks TIG. Installing it now.

[TIG]

Incidentally I have found that the one script that tips we over the edge is thomthom's selection_toys ad that adds dozens of new commands under three submenus in the context-menu. If I stop this loading I get no gray-outs

[thomthom]

Incidentally I have found that the one script that tips we over the edge is thomthom's selection_toys ad that adds dozens of new commands under three submenus in the context-menu. If I stop this loading I get no gray-outs

It does add a few Command objects - but it's not leaking them. (I've checked.)
However, it does appear that SketchUp has a limit to Command objects regardless - so if you have many plugins installed you may experience greyed out menus.
If you load just Selection Toys it does not grey out. If you remove a few other plugins you'll not get the grey outs. The only thing is that Selection Toys adds a few items which fills up the limit more than others.

[TIG]

Thomas
I wasn't suggesting that your tool was faulty - it just adds lots of commands that use up the available 'slots'.
It would be good if Google could resolve this issue as we are currently hitting a wall with the number of plugins we can load at once if they have commands set ?
You don't need commands to have an item display in the context-menu, unlike a toolbar that has to have a command, but a command does allow 'validation_proc' etc... BUT if you disable selection_toys in the context-menu it still tips the commands over the limit and grays-out - it seems it's the commands total not the number used in the context-menu itself! The only way is to stop it is to stop it loading completely - OR if I want its functionality then I need stop some other tools loading that make numerous commands themselves. Which brings us back to this thread - these tools will cause gray-outs if you have many commands getting made by tools, so one way to temporarily disable some - selection_tools is a soft target as you can remove many commands with one disablement!
It's a pity we can't dynamically load/unload commands without restarting Sketchup...

[thomthom]

Yea - the design of Selection Toys UI manager is troublesome with the current Command limitations. For version 3 it'll be completely different, but that's not an update that'll be coming in the immediate future.

[baldaman]

Dear TAK2HATA
It is a great pain to see your country so violently damaged.
Here in Paris we keep looking toward japan and pray for all japanese people.
United, we shall overcome!

[tulacong]

thank you

[diegog321]

Thank you very much for the plugin

Hope you are doing OK

Diego

[Elibjr]

Thanks about the info of world steel beam tables.
I will read it later.
Earthquake hit me now!
Very Terrible.

First of all, thank you for the use if the plug-in. But after this seeing this note and looking at he latest news reports of a 9+ Richter scale earthquake that hit your country last week and the rising with issue with the nuclear power plant because of the earthquake, I am praying that you and your family are OK! Please let us know your status when you can so we know that you are OK. We all appreciate what the work you and others have done on this plug-in, but my family and I are praying that you and your family will be able to get though this tough time.
Elibjr.

[howardhong]

kanvare!..nippon...

[Bob James]

This 'b15' is one country's standard 'code'

Does anyone have a "Rosetta Stone" to convert these codes into USA codes?

try this http://www.structural-drafting-net-expe ... -beam.html ?
My old SteelSections includes most UK/EU sizes... in the txt file...

Thanks, TIG.
I think I'll stick with Profile Builder.