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MattyB

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Everything posted by MattyB

  1. Oh yes, if only Spotlight lights could come across too...
  2. We're Electricians (or I am at least), these kinds of decisions are part of our everyday workload (or should be). If you modify the CM to something off-piste, then you could mark the result in red text, and have a pop-up warning, much like the one that you get in Braceworks.
  3. Ultimately, I would like to see the cable tool like the irrigation tool, whereby the sprinklers are our loads, the pipes are our cables, the valves are our distro boxes, main pipes our feeders, and the POC, our generators, or house breakers... Then as we add elements (loads, cables etc..) the system reports on the drawing, pressure (voltage) and flow (current). But hey, that's a pipe dream.
  4. Hi Sam, Essentially yes, something like that. Or this.. I would like to be able to input the circuit amperage, and have that give me the true volt drop across the cable. The loop impedance is essentially the same equation, but with 0 (zero) amperage. And then have that displayed on the drawing, much like the Phasing field. (the one that's says' 3 hots, 1 neutral, 1 ground (or rather CPC!)). Is that possible?
  5. That's it. I want the chance to make those errors, I am using a metric system, so was confused about the role of CM, but my industry does use aluminium cabling on occasion (I know, I know, I'm trying to change that, one cable at a time) so I do want to adjust the CM, or metric equivalent. Being able to calculate the actual volt drop may be an Entertainment specific thing, where I know the actual loading of each and every cable, so I see now why VW may not want to allow that connection.But it is called Spotlight. True, I might have to get my wallet out.But in my mind I want so little, the cable tool is so close, I... just...want..it...to...do...just.a..little...more. I just want to mess with the volt-drop calculation, the rest I can live with. Cheers Sam, Matty
  6. Hi Sam I don't think you have a vocabulary problem, I think I have a vocabulary problem, I often use words that I don't know the real meaning of, or I make up, so thanks for your patience. When I say extensible, I mean that its functionality can be expanded, I know nothing of computer coding, I did some work with XML in my rebellious youth, before realising that I had absolutely zero aptitude for it. Maybe that's where I have stolen the word from. The thing I want the cable tool to do most, is calculate loop impedance, and write it on the cable at any of the marker points. The Volt drop thingy is so close to what I need to do, but it doesnt actually calculate volt-drop. The volt-drop calculation needs amperage to function correctly, 0 amperage = 0 volt-drop (simplified to heck). There is a field where you can input an amperage value, but it has no effect on the volt drop shown, meaning its not part of the equation, it just shows a max value, which is like removing your car's speedometer and replacing it with a sticker stating 'Max speed 240kph' or replacing your fuel gauge with a 'Max tank capacity: 75litres' sign, sure its information, but not very useful. when i say extensible, i want to get back there and join up the various bits of information the drawing has, to produce the information I desire. It has all the variables, cable length , cable construction, amperage etc just need to get them together properly. I guess my only understanding of how this may work is from filling out formulas in Excel cells, and obviously that is not correct. Failing above, maybe it can be done in the worksheet... I thought there must be a worksheet that the report tool populates, but I see now that this is not so. When I create a cable worksheet I get to choose from many fields that I would like shown, but I would like to add my own custom fields at this point, to say, add column with my loop equation, take the cable info and produce an output. I can add these columns after worksheet creation, but I was hoping to add it somewhere upstream and have every worksheet have it at creation. My idea of a template. There is some calculation going on back there, as the cable totals are added, but its done before the sheet is created, or I cant see the formulas within the sheet cells. I suppose I could have my own worksheet that has its cells linked to the Cable report worksheet, then it could apply my formulas, then I could link the results back to the cable phasing field, (as I'm not using it) and then that could be marked onto the cable in the drawing, There! King of the Kludge! Or I could retreat back to my land of crayons and calculator. Cheers Matty
  7. And that command could be expanded to include a template to look up a user defined column or row. In vectorscript. Create Cable Worksheet, you have a bunch of choices, that is true, but why not lay the whole hog on the table, and make it extensible? Correct, the latter, A template, so the report populates My worksheet. I want to be able to 'CALL' parameters from the drawing, So, I draw a cube, I want to be able to populate the PIO, or Record(?) field, with this info. I then want to be able to call the field, without going to a spreadsheet (excel) apply a User constraint, and tag to the Drawing. Ha!, I don't mess with any settings on the machine I use for work, I use my daily driver to run the experiments on, 2020 13". " Tractor" its a pet name for something to which people rely upon to get their job done. The Beast is my "only for Cad 'Tractor' so its stock, and if CM doesnt work there, it doesnt work any where, New york, New York!
  8. Wow, thank you Sam, I will have to think hard about each of these, to construct a cohesive reply. In the meantime, I appreciate your interest in my very 'me' specific problem. But, can you use the CM tool, for Anything(!), mine does not work... Cheers Matty
  9. I just kicked the Beast, and CM doesnt work there either.
  10. Additionally, I mess with VW on a sandbox machine, to not mess with my primary tractor, so it could be that I have screwed up some functionality by modifying the P'in-manager, but can anyone give me the CM of any cable/source? Then I will know its my end. Cheers Mat
  11. There must be a template from which this worksheet is to be built. When I do a cable report i get the standard worksheet, if I then want to USE this information I have to populate new rows and columns to apply calculations, IE, take the length, apply the resistivity of copper, as per the cable Size, and work out a Zs (R1+R2) + Ze. I have to do this every time!!! If I could save as default the worksheet with my added columns and rows that hold these formulae, then I could populate the allowed fields to the drawing (like phasing). It's easier to manually transfer this to Excel, Or export to Excel, so what is the point of having a worksheet in VW, if you have to go to a third programme and start typing....,? To qualify, I may be missing a whole lot of stuff here, but Ive been beating on the Cable tool for 3 days now and am no wiser to its use. I just want to keep drawing, I could do this with crayons and have. There is a promise of functionality, that , in my case, is not realised. Matty *(excellent pun, before,)
  12. Thank you Sam, You have offered a wealth of insight, to which I shall have to ponder extensively. Regards Mat
  13. Or.... Is there a way of modifying the Cable worksheet Template...
  14. Thanks Mark, Yes quite a good pun, unfortunately I didn't pick it up first time. I think tags are not what Im after, I want the info embedded in the cable tool, so when I draw a cable it pops up automatically attached. I haven't worked out how to edit a tag into a cable pref. There is much I don't understand about the cable tool, its a bit like a chocolate teapot. There is volt drop, but its calculated at a static amperage max, which is not useful in any way as Vd is a product of actual amperage, which you cant input (useless) There is a CM value, which I can not get to function (useless) Ultimately I would like an extensible OIP, so I can nominate that Id like this field drawn on the drawing, and this one and this one, etc... There are user fields, but that just some where to store some text, in case you feel like typing practice. What would be useful would be if the User fields could make calls on parameters from the drawing, like Length, modify that, say by a calculation, and have the option to have it drawn on the drawing.. so I draw a cable, plonk in an actual amperage, and the cable shows actual volt drop, on the cable. When you look at the Irrigation tool, you realise the work has already mostly been done. Instead we get the Irritation tool. Cheers Mat
  15. Hi All, I'm at the cable tool again, Is there any way of choosing which fields can be placed within the drawing, at the moment in the Feeder cable I can add the Length and the Phasing to display on the Drawing, but phasing is pretty useless for me as most of my cables are of the same construction (5G), I would much prefer to have the Wire gauge, or the Connector type, or Cable weight shown instead. Is there a way to choose that? Any help would be appreciated. Regards Mat (the cable tool fool)
  16. Hi Jc, Its a hack, I can drive a MA, but I don't have one at home where I dream up a lot of this stuff (covid, thanks) I am using my iPad to provide Artnet at home through Blackout, lamps move and respond correctly, except Arri. Arri sky panels are not a mover, and I feel that they have been pushed to the bottom of the pile in terms of compliance (so they should), us Arri users make up a very small percentage of VW customer base. To your question, Any Mode! Tell me, which mode should I use to gain access to RGB?? ( I also stand before you as someone who has made the most rudimentary mistakes, so it, quite possibly, is my fault) Cheers Mat
  17. Thanks Mark, Good advise.
  18. I rarely have to go truss to truss, I can see that as adding an extra challenge, if I don't have Perm Cats in the right places I usually just build temporary ones (as long as the building has height and tonnage available).
  19. Hi Sam, It's a neat trick, I don't even have to redraw the Poly's, just convert them to Nurds...Thanks I do want more from the cable tool, ideally I want to be able to connect the whole system and do system reports, much like Creo, it may be possible now Connect-cad is onboard. NA do have a MEP programme, but again it's overkill, I just want something that will show that my volt drops are within range, and that my soccas are not too long for earth impedance/pfc. I was having great success with the Cable tool this morning, I am able to set most of the defaults in Plug-in manager so the cables I like are first up, I can also save cables as symbols which are then editable as PIO, so that was going great, until I tried to resize the drops labels which broke VW and Ive spent the last hour trying to get it back running from TM. Customising the PIO must make a Plist in my user folder, took ages to try and root it out.... I blame you of course, for giving me the encouragement, if there is something I have learned after 35 years in lighting it is, confess your sins, no matter how diabolical, then blame someone else. Thanks and Cheers Matty
  20. Thanks Sam, I hadn't thought of using Nurds curves, to be fair I don't have any experience with them, Im a more straight line kinda Guy. I won't hang soccas on their connectors ever (I say ever, but when looming cherry pickers and big cranes, sometimes there are connectors in the air but a quick loop and a texas whip, cable to cable, takes the strain off, Ive even run chains so the cables can be zip-tied at the prescribed half/metre interval. so i get what you are saying). My usual workload is that I draw poly-lines, from distro to lamp, plonk that info into excel, add the vertical portions, press go, and I get the cable schedules, lengths, numbers off, etc, then I might go back and draw the poly in 3D for any unusual routing, just as a reminder to me later of why I went that way. I then draw a schematic that represents the system segment and do my electrical calcs from it, and later use it as a cheat sheet for the electrical testing and confirmation. As a workflow its got a few whirlpools, I was hoping that the cable tool would pick up just a little slack, to smooth any portion would be a help, but every time I visit the cable tool I get frustrated that it wasn't made for me specifically (c'mon VW, Im paying £800 a year, surely I can have my own tools, named after me?) Thanks Sam, you've given me plenty to explore. Matty
  21. Thanks Sam, I hastily responded above, out of frustration, but you have brought a good measure of questions to the table in your earlier notes. I often have multiple cables heading to the 'Grid' from a ''rack' or Hdd, along a similar path, (from dimmer room to Grid *Cats) so i want to pump out a bunch of parallel cables to the same destination, I will set up that pathway as a single cable and then x(30?) with an offset, once overhead i can extend those cables (poly-lines) to their various deployment places, (join tool). But I don't want to draw each one, Duplicate array, yes, let me explore that.Thanks. Second, I use the usual variety of cables that we use, I would like to.... say OK mains Powerlok 150mm, choose it and start drawing, like a symbol. I haven't looked into whether I can save a cable pref as a symbol, but that's interezting, fingers crossed. Third, I know that you are here to support people like me, of your own volition, Amazing! but i cant see why VW doesnt offer this as a tool for developers. The frustration is as a non -coder , that this is not everyday. I start a cable (poly line) (dimmer shed west) i go east (Value x), then I go south (value y) then i go to the Perms (value Z) then left and right, then drop down to the truss ( +x+y+z). Third, I'll sponsor you in that endeavour. . Matty
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