Jump to content

Cabling tools


Recommended Posts

Hi everyone,

 

Three wee cabling questions:

 

How do I adjust the positions of labels (eg: length) on cables?  This is per instance, obviously. I cannot for the life of me figure out how to move the label without moving the whole cable.

 

I've just laid in several cat5 control cables.  Why do some have circles at one end, and other have arrows at both ends?  I can't see any differences between the properties of the cables in the object info window.

 

How do I adjust the size/shape of these handy end shapes?  When I get into directional signal cables, I foresee those circles' being a giant pain.

 

Thank you!

 

 

Link to comment

First Question:  Near the bottom of the Object Info palette (OIP), under the "Display On Drawing" separator is a check box labeled "Lock Labels to Standard Positions".  Uncheck that box, and a blue control square will appear over each label.  You can move the labels using those control points using the Selection tool (the arrow).

 

Second Question: I'm not sure why some cables have circles at the end and some do not.  They all should be one way or the other if you have not done any manipulation in the OIP, but here is what the circles are about and how to get rid of them.  When you lay any cable run, it can be divided into parts.  A 150' cable will usually be divided into a Part 1 being 100' and Part 2 being 50'.  There are other ways it can be divided if you want.  The circles will mark the end of each part.  In your case, you only have one part so the end of part marker is drawn at the end of the cable and is not very useful.  You can turn off the display of the end of part markers by going to the same area as above and finding the check box labeled "Mark Connections".  If you uncheck that box, all the circles will go away.

 

You can determine whether the default to check a box or uncheck a box by selecting a cable tool and clicking on the box below the class list that has a wrench and a pencil in it.

image.thumb.png.e22e61a60a724d0abdbd4d135705c271.png

 

This will bring up the default OIP, and any settings you make there will be the defaults for that cable tool.

 

Third Question:  You can adjust the shape of the arrow heads by assigning the cable run to a class and adjusting the class attributes.  You can only adjust the shape of the circles by changing the shape of the "Cable End Marker" symbol.  If you modify the symbol in your working file, it should change the that shape in that file.  However, all new files will import the symbol from the "Marker Symbol" file.  On a Mac, that file is located in the "Marker Symbol" folder located in the "Cable Tools" folder located in the "Defaults" folder located in the "Libraries" folder" located in the Vectorworks 2019 folder.

 

 

HTH,

 

Sam

 

image.jpeg

image.png

image.jpeg

  • Like 1
Link to comment

Thanks so much, Sam.

 

Turns out the length label I couldn't move was a "connection" - ie: it disappeared when I unchecked "display connections".  I turned on "display length" instead, and was able to move that label as you describe.

 

I'm still working on the silly circles, and I'll update if I figure it out. For now the class attribute change does the trick for the arrows.

 

Appreciate your help.

 

A.

 

 

Link to comment

If the silly circles are attached only to multicable, then you need to find the check box in the OIP that is labeled "Draw Breakout Range" and uncheck it.  It can be found below "Break Out Length".  If the silly circles are occurring elsewhere, we'll need a picture, because I have no clue as to what you're talking about.

 

HTH,

 

Sam

 

 

  • Like 1
Link to comment

Hi Sam,

 

So I was overly optimistic.  When I switched the length to a "middle label" instead of a "connection", the blue control square appeared, but I was not able to move it independently.

 

Attached are screenshots of an example, and the cable tool defaults at its creation.  I'm hoping I've made some glaring error that is easy to fix...

 

Thanks,

A.

 

tempSS.thumb.JPG.498e7e6b61ac4d369c4da7887913052f.JPGtempSS.thumb.JPG.bc4877632938aea2f59d9fe12324ba48.JPG

Link to comment

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Restore formatting

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...