WhoCanDo Posted December 5, 2017 Share Posted December 5, 2017 I have just loaded VW2018 SP2. I have upgraded from VW2016 and somewhere in between we seem to have lost the picking function when objects are stacked. If I have two objects on top of each other, whether on different layers or the same layer, I can't pick the object at the top of the stack when I have the object at the bottom of the stack picked. It seems that I have to deselect the all objects before picking the one at the top of the stack. Why did this change? What's the benefit of the extra process of deselecting before selecting? Quote Link to comment
zoomer Posted December 6, 2017 Share Posted December 6, 2017 That is the best feature ever. It prevents from dragging the wrong object, just because it is in front of your selected object. Quote Link to comment
WhoCanDo Posted December 6, 2017 Author Share Posted December 6, 2017 I can sought of see your point of view if the objects are stacked on the same layer but if they are on different layers, do you still have the same opinion. I think you are drawing differently to us :-) since VW is so flexible. Quote Link to comment
zoomer Posted December 6, 2017 Share Posted December 6, 2017 (edited) Not sure about the Layer thing. There are the Show/Show+Snap/Show+Snap-Edit Modes to control that if you want to touch other things or not. But the changed behavior for the drag tool is a great feature. You could not drag a special Element where multiple Elements are overlapping at a point you need to start dragging from at all in the past. And even selecting that Element before from a side where you can grab it, it would not have helped. You had to chose the more tedious Move By Points Tool instead. Now it does in a 2D View. (or in better Top Plan only) And if you need to drag another than the selected Element, a 1-click-only allows, at another Element's non-stacked portion, still instant drag or slection first action. Edited December 6, 2017 by zoomer Quote Link to comment
WhoCanDo Posted December 8, 2017 Author Share Posted December 8, 2017 Ok. I'm thinking you have a good argument for intersecting objects on the same layer , but not while they are on different layers . Show layer modes won't help if I have one object selected on layer two and I want the other on layer one. If I hide layers and pick the layer one object and then unhide layers to re-position this object in relation to the layer two object, I just get both objects moving together. eg. if you draw a 50mm line on the second layer down and then a 20mm line, centrally located over the 50mm line, on the first layer, then when you pick the end of the 50mm line it should select but when you try and pick the 20mm line, even though it's up the stacking order, you can't select unless you de-select the 50mm line first. Yes, you can marquee or shift+alt marquee but I thought VW pride in stacking sequence was the priority. I am mostly working in 2D with layers for different types of components, even though they are all lines and polygons. This makes it easier to select all one layer and know I have one component type. This also means that the are stacked on top of each other. I know their layers by the layer colours so I know which one is on top. It's just frustrating that now I have to de-select a lower layer item to select the one above it I guess I will get use to it if it benefits the greater community. Thanks for the wider viewpoint. Quote Link to comment
AlanW Posted December 8, 2017 Share Posted December 8, 2017 (edited) @WhoCanDo,Hi not sure if this helps but if yo have say 5 lines exactly on top of each other you can select all then hold the "J" key down and click on the lines and you will see all the items listed and you can then cycle through them and when the one you need to select you release. HTH Also to avoid selecting unwanted items hold the shift key down and marquee over the item you want. this way you only select the item and not other items on the design layer. Edited December 8, 2017 by Alan Woodwell Quote Link to comment
WhoCanDo Posted December 10, 2017 Author Share Posted December 10, 2017 Great idea Alan, I've panned through those keyboard shortcuts a few times and must have missed a few. Thanks Quote Link to comment
WhoCanDo Posted April 27, 2018 Author Share Posted April 27, 2018 It's been a while trying to get a hand of this regression and it still doesn't work. If I have a drawing with two layers. I draw a rectangle on the bottom layer. I then draw a line, matching the top edge of the rectangle, on the top layer. Repeat this for the bottom edge of the rectangle. Very simply, this is what we are drawing in our process. Keeping in mind that there are other objects within the rectangles area so a rectangular marquee selection won't work without picking them too, how do you pick all three? Well it use to be as simple as alt and select overlap on the bottom edge picking up the line and rectangle, then shift select the top line. Now, using the above process, when I select the top line, the rectangle is deselected. 😒 I can understand the reason for this change on a single layer but surely the hierarchy should be a priority so I can choose something on the layer above without deselecting something below. Also, the new design doesn't always work. I am often drawing the line (as above) and then ctrl picking up the line to duplicate it to the bottom. Sometimes, however, I will draw the line and then ctrl pick it up, only to find that it picked up the rectangle instead of the line. Not happy so far. Quote Link to comment
Tom Klaber Posted April 27, 2018 Share Posted April 27, 2018 @whocando I am sure there is method to your madness, but it sounds like you have an unconventional use of layers which is causing your workflow woes. I am not sure exactly what you mean by components, but my simple reading is that classes would be a better organizational method. This would allow you to separate out these components when needed, but also have them in the same layer which would solve your selection griefs. Quote Link to comment
AlanW Posted April 29, 2018 Share Posted April 29, 2018 @WhoCanDoHi to allow you to select an object that lies under others select them all and hit "J" and you get a dialogue box of all the items you selected then you can tab through the list and choose then one you need. HTH Quote Link to comment
WhoCanDo Posted April 30, 2018 Author Share Posted April 30, 2018 Hi Tom, our classes are allocated at the end of the process as a "Mark" number. Hi Alan, "J" allows me to select one on the list but I want the bottom line + the rectangle + the top line. As stated, other objects in the area doesn't allow for selecting all. Going back to VW2016, I could Alt-marquee the bottom line and rectangle, then I could shift-pick the top line. Now, I can Alt-marquee the bottom line and rectangle but when I shift-pick the top line, I deselect the rectangle. This shouldn't happen because the rectangle is on a layer below the line. I can understand the argument for this happening on the same layer (even though I hate it) but what's the point of having shift-select if it doesn't add to my selection. The old system had more rights than wrongs but the new system has more wrongs than rights. At the least, resurrect the hierarchy. Quote Link to comment
WhoCanDo Posted April 30, 2018 Author Share Posted April 30, 2018 I just tried the "J" command again. If I have two rectangles on top of each other and select them both, then J-pick lists two rectangles. Correct but useless to know which one is which. If I have one rectangle and two lines on top of the rectangle (as in previous example) and select them all, J-pick lists one rectangle and one line. Does "J" really work like it should? Quote Link to comment
mike m oz Posted April 30, 2018 Share Posted April 30, 2018 On the Object Info Palette (OIP) there is a way of selecting the object you want using the four buttons in the top RH corner. - When you have multiple objects selected there will be three black dots on the first button. - Use the arrow buttons to toggle between the selected objects. - When you have the object you want selected click on the three black dots button to change the selection to a single object. NB I've used the Properties palette in the images below but the use principle is the same on the OIP. 1 Quote Link to comment
WhoCanDo Posted April 30, 2018 Author Share Posted April 30, 2018 (edited) Hi Mike, nice to hear from you I like that idea. I may be able to use that elsewhere. However, a little off topic. All I am trying to say is that the change of pick priority regarding hierarchy is wrong. We liked VW2016 version which, as far as I remember, goes back 23 years to the day I first used MiniCad. I am trying to pick three objects using Alt-marquee and Shift-pick. The task is to pick two lines and a rectangle. The two lines are on two sides of a rectangle. The two lines are on a layer above the rectangle. I can't pick them all with a marquee because of other objects within the area. I would like to Alt-marquee over one line and the rectangle edge, then Shift-pick the other line. When I pick the second line, it results in deselecting the rectangle. This was capable in VW2016 because the line is on a higher hierarchy level and also possible when the line was on the same layer but at a higher hierarchy than the rectangle (the line was drawn second or bought forward at some time). If the line and rectangle are on the same layer then I will have to work with it because someone in the above posts says it's an innovation, but not for different layers Edited May 1, 2018 by WhoCanDo Spelling Quote Link to comment
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