[Plugin] Set Arc and Circle Defaults 1.1 2011-09-03

[openhatch]

Name : SetArcCircleDefaults

Description : When SketchUp loads, this script selects the circle tool and changes the number of sides to the circle (to predifined user preference), then selects the arc tool and changes the segments in the arc (also to user preference). This way it effectively sets their "defaults" (to lower or higher numbers) according to user preference. As this script comes "shipped", it sets the sides of a circle to 12, and the segments in an arc to 6.

(The defaults for sides of a circle and segments in an arc could be directly set via SketchUp's Ruby API.. if it let you do that. It doesn't as of SU V8.)

This script requires the eventrelay plugin (windows only at this writing), or EventRelay.dll, and includes a version of that .dll known at this writing to work. eventrelay is available at http://code.google.com/p/eventrelay/

Author : Alex Hall (c) 2011
http://blog.openhatch.net/contact/
Released under the GNU GPL v2

Installation: At this writing, and unless eventrelay is ported to the Macintosh, this plugin is for Windows only. Copy these files into the Sketchup Plugins directory:

EventRelay.dll
SetArcCircleDefaults.rb
setArcCircleDefaults-config.txt

(For example, Google Sketchup 8's plugin directory on Windows 7 defaults to: "C:\Program Files (x86)\Google\Google SketchUp 8\Plugins" - copy these files there in that case. Then, start Sketchup. For help finding the plugin directory look in the forums: search.php?keywords=plugin+folder+OR+directory )

Usage : To alter the "defaults" which the script sets for sides of a circle and segments of an arc, go to the "Plugins->Set Circle and Arc Segments Defaults", enter the desired values in the popup box, and click "OK".

POSSIBLE CAVEAT: If you select any window besides SketchUp while SketchUp is loading, it may type key-presses to change these settings into some document or web browser text box etc. It seems the script avoids that by typing an inert {TAB} key, but if your set "defaults" for the Circle and Arc tool don't load with SketchUp, make sure you don't select any other windows after starting SketchUp to load.

You could also modify the script to exploit any of the functionality of the eventrelay plugin.

For defaults, numbers divisible by four may be advisable, as they will provide vertices at right angles along the perimiter of the circle, which makes for easy rotation and geometric snapping/angular construction.

Future plans: possible exception handling for any errors related to config file.

Version history:

[UPDATE] 1.1 Revamped from scratch, incorporating suggestions by AlexMozg. Added config storage to setArcCircleDefaults-config.txt file in plugin directory (with setting via "Plugins->Set Circle and Arc Segments Defaults" menu.)

1.0 08/11 Planned updates : none. Could have menu option to alter and store "defaults"; not programming that. Anyone else is free to.

[Bob James]

Thanks, openhatch, I'll use this often.

[AlexMozg]

Without "EventRelay.dll"
Safer to use the method "send_action" to activate the tool, because that hot keys of these tools can be modified.

Code: Select all

require 'sketchup.rb'
unless file_loaded?(file_name = File.basename(__FILE__))
Kernel.require 'win32ole.so'
wscript = WIN32OLE.new("WScript.Shell")
Sketchup.send_action   "selectCircleTool:"
UI.start_timer(0, false){
   for key in %w|12 {ENTER}| ; wscript.SendKeys key; end
   UI.start_timer(0, false){
      Sketchup.send_action   "selectArcTool:"
      UI.start_timer(0, false){
         for key in %w|6  {ENTER}| ; wscript.SendKeys key; end
         UI.start_timer(0, false){Sketchup.send_action   "selectSelectionTool:"}
      }
   }
}
file_loaded(file_name)
end


[thomthom]

Without "EventRelay.dll"
Safer to use the method "send_action" to activate the tool, because that hot keys of these tools can be modified.

+1

[vicspa]

Hope someone takes you up and does a menu option.

[Bob James]

Hope someone takes you up and does a menu option.

+1

[openhatch]

Ha!

Thanks to AlexMozg for rewriting it a better way!

(I have little idea what that code actually does, BTW)

That rewrite only ran after I found a copy of win32ole.so and dropped it into the plugins folder. The copy of the file I found was linked from this thread.

Is that file what I should use then (or is it safe)?

[openhatch]

So.. okay.. I added a plugin menu option to alter and store "defaults".

And per suggestion, the code uses Sketchup.send_action to avoid problems of hotkeys changing.

I encounted an undesirable side effect with SendKeys via win32ole.so (and found the same limitation with eventrelay's SendKeyMacro): if Sketchup was loading for a while and I (for example) had a web browser open with a text box, while Sketchup was out of focus, SendKeys would type the macro (for example "12s") into the browser's text box! - appearing to make ghost typing (could be creepy for a user) but also not typing it into SketchUp's Value Control Box.. and so not changing any setting!

After quite a bit of frustration, and observing that strangely the second parts of the macro (for the Arc tool settings) didn't type into the web browser window, but in fact got in to SketchUp.. however those magic brackets and start_timer(s) work, they seem to alleviate it.. I finally got the error to apparently go away by placing an inert {TAB} before the macro for Circle Tool (as Circle Tool was to Arc Tool (whose settings worked), so Tab is now to Circle Tool).. blah blah but it apparently worked:

Code: Select all

   UI.start_timer(0, false){
  Sketchup.send_action   "selectSelectionTool:"
    myEventRelay.SendKeyMacro("{TAB}")
      UI.start_timer(0, false){
      Sketchup.send_action   "selectCircleTool:"
      myEventRelay.SendKeyMacro(circleSides.to_s + "s{ENTER}")
      UI.start_timer(0, false){
        Sketchup.send_action   "selectArcTool:"
        UI.start_timer(0, false){
        myEventRelay.SendKeyMacro(arcSegments.to_s + "s{ENTER}")
          UI.start_timer(0, false){Sketchup.send_action   "selectSelectionTool:"}
            }
         }
      }
   }


Sticking with eventrelay over win32ole; it seems to load and execute faster.

[Involute]

I'd love to get this to work, openhatch, but I'm unfamiliar with plugins. Can you give me some pointers (cut and paste the code to a file, save it in plugins directory, etc.)? Thanks.

[openhatch]

I'd love to get this to work, openhatch, but I'm unfamiliar with plugins. Can you give me some pointers (cut and paste the code to a file, save it in plugins directory, etc.)? Thanks.

Sorry I missed this reply. Added to usage notes in the post is this answer:

Extract the files in the .zip archive to your plugins folder (for example, in Windows 7, this is usually "C:\Program Files (x86)\Google\Google SketchUp 8\Plugins"), and start Sketchup.

[Edit:] no, that answer is already in there under installation instructions...