Section Viewport Questions

[Bruce Kieffer]

How do I modify the look of a section viewport? I can't find the options to make this look better.

Edited November 23, 2014 by Bruce Kieffer

[michaelk]

By default, when the first section viewport is created VW adds a class called Section Style. That class has a red fill and a thick black line. Change that class and you will change the look of the cut plane.

If you want to get fancier, look in the Advanced Properties > Attributes tab. You can give the objects beyond the cut plane graphic attributes of another class.

hth

mk

[CipesDesign]

Additionally, I usually spend quite a bit of time Annotating my sections to make them appear exactly as I want them. I only use the original VP as a base, or background to trace over.

[Bruce Kieffer]

Got it. Thanks. I'll try the clip cube next to see if that does a better job for me.

[Bruce Kieffer]

Tried Clip Cube. Not sure what value that tool is. Can't make a viewport using clip cube, and it only works in wireframe and OpenGL on a design layer. Hum!

[CipesDesign]

I don't use it a lot, but I think the purpose of Clip Cube is to have the ability to temporarily (visually only) clip away objects which are in front of other objects thereby making it easier to work on the objects beyond. I think Jonathan uses this a lot. Maybe he'll chime in...

[Guest Wes Gardner]

Whoa! Wait a minute thar podner...Clip Cube can make Section Viewports...run Clip Cube, set your clipping plane, right click and from contextual menu choose "Create Section Viewport", done...

You can then do all the advanced options to get the materials to show (or not)

Wes

Edited November 23, 2014 by Wes Gardner

[Bruce Kieffer]

Wes,

I'm having trouble figuring this out. Maybe because I don't know how to set a clipping plane, or because I'm trying to use the clip cube on a perspective view?

[michaelk]

Bruce

You can absolutely use the clip cube in a perspective view.

Just hover over a face so it highlights. Then right click. The bottom option will be Create Section Viewport.

For some reason (maybe Wes knows) you can't create a section view from the top or bottom surfaces of the clip cube.

hth

mk

[Bruce Kieffer]

I got a bit further, but I don't think Clip Cube will do what I want. I want a viewport of this view clipped. The section viewport doesn't seem to allow for this perspective. Again, maybe I'm missing something?

[Guest Wes Gardner]

Let's see if I can answer correctly..

@ Michael - you're absolutely correct, Clip Cube will only let you "clip off" views from the side - currently it's a limitation of the tool

@ Bruce - I've attached a couple of views of a room I'm looking at raised paneling in, they are taken from the Clip Cube but they are ONE POINT perspectives (set in the OIP of the Viewport where you can switch from Ortho to Persp...currently, once again, a bit of a limitation of the tool, it can't produce the view you want other than doing just what you did - take a screen shot a place it on a sheet

Hope this helps...

Wes

[michaelk]

Bruce

You can do it the old fashioned way:

Create a section viewport on a design layer all by itself. Set the view and perspective you want. Create a SLVP.

hth

mk

Edited November 24, 2014 by michaelk

[barkest]

Be aware that currently there is a bug where imported sketchup models do not show in a section viewport. I believe this is fixed in SP2

A workaround is to import the model as .3ds

[Bruce Kieffer]

Thanks to all. I now understand how to do what I want to show, and it opens up another valuable aspect of Vectorworks.