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New SoftGoods Tool


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Happy July to you!

I trust you're all staying busy and safe...

A question that occasionally comes up here that of dealing with curved curtains. I've also gotten inquiries about creating something to handle pipe-and-drape runs.

Therefore, we're happy to announce the release of another tool: SoftGoods.

SoftGoods is a Plug-In Object that allows you to insert hybrid models of straight and curved curtains and borders, as well as straight pipe-and-drape runs in your Vectorworks drawings - either from-scratch or based on existing geometry.

SoftGoods models are easily resized by dragging Control Points and making adjustments in the Object Info Palette.

Other things like curtain openings, track visibility, pleat sizing, and curtain images (including scrims) can also be changed on-the-fly.

For pipe-and-drape runs, the tool calculates spacing and tracks slider lengths and hardware and drape counts.

Like other Landru Design Vectorworks tools, select text can be displayed in each SoftGoods instance.

If you're interested in more information or in downloading the manual for SoftGoods, visit http://www.landrudesign.com/VWPlugIns.htm .

Also, feel free to ask questions here.

Regards -

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  • 1 year later...

Marc -

Good question...and you're not the first to ask...

Like the Spotlight Curtain tool, SoftGoods only creates "straight down" pieces. No tableaus or Austrians. That being said, you can use textures to approximate the look. That's how I created the Austrian in the demo images on my Web site. In fact, you can download that texture at www.landrudesign.com/Downloads_Main.htm.

That help, at all?

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Andrew-

I'm trying to create a curtain that's tabbed open. Would need it to actually part and swag and hang. There are various ways I can trick the operation. But it won't look as good as a modeled piece. I've been experimenting with converting the curtain object to a group and then readjusting the nurbs control points. But the program keeps freezing the process.

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I've had some success using a transparent area of my textures to render an opening. I use Photoshop to create a 2D rendering for the entire curtain in its open position. Add a background in a solid, saturated, unnatural color ? think chromakey. In VW, add color filter transparency. For me, the results were cleaner than mask transparency.

You can also create a grayscale, high contrast, blurred version of you image and use it to add a bump to the texture. You may be surprised at the modeling you can do with just textures, especially if the rendering is mainly for presentation purposes.

-Josh

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  • 4 years later...

Ethan -

Assuming you're in the Spotlight WorkSpace...

[spotlight][Reports][Create Report...]

- Give your report an appropriate title.

- List all: Objects with a record

- Listing objects with record: SoftGoods 2

- From the left-hand List Browser, select the fields you want in your report and click the "Add >>" button.

- Click "OK."

A Report will be generated.

[View][Database Headers] will show or hide the database header row. Right-clicking on the row number for that row will give you the ability to "Edit Criteria" further.

Adding "=Value" to numeric column headers will let you perform mathematic functions (like, adding up drape counts) on columns.

I've attached a simple file showing some of this being used to get Pipe-and-Drape counts for SoftGoods 2 instances.

I hope this helps...at least a little...

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  • 3 weeks later...

Thanks :)

Quick question -

Once the report is made, is it possible to go back and edit / reorganize the chosen fields?

I can edit the Criteria on what objects are to be reported on.

But I can't seem to edit the fields being reported?

Sure I'm missing something simple ??

thank you

Edited by Ethan R.
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Once the report is made, is it possible to go back and edit / reorganize the chosen fields?

All you have to do is to make the header row visible ([View][Database Headers]) and click in the header cell over the column you're wanting to change. You'll see something like "=VALUE(('SoftGoods 2'.'TTLSGLngth'))." The text in the second set of single quotes is the name of the parameter field you're reporting. Change that text to match the name of the field you're wanting to display. If you're not wanting to display actual numbers on which you're wanting to perform functions, remove "=VALUE(" and one of the trailing ")s." For example: "=('SoftGoods 2'.'Color')"

Does that help, at all?

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