Move viewport content relative to crop, rather than vice versa.

[line-weight]

At the moment (unless I'm missing something) it's a right palaver if you want to move the contents of a cropped viewport, whilst keeping the viewport in the same place on the sheet.

 

Typical scenario: you have a zoomed-in detail of a floor/wall junction. A change to the design means the floor changes to a lower level, but the detail of the junction remains the same. Lowering the floor in the model means that the relevant junction now sits outside of the viewport crop (and is not in line with any relevant annotations).

 

To remedy this you have to:

1) Go into crop edit mode, and move the crop object so that it's in the right place relative to the model view.

2) Exit crop mode. The viewport is now in the wrong place on the sheet.

3) Move the viewport back to its correct place on the sheet.

4) Go into annotation edit mode, and move the annotations back to where they should be relative to the viewport content.

5) Exit annotation mode and hopefully you are now done, unless there are several other viewports that need the same treatment for the same reason.

 

It would be much simpler if there was an edit mode where the crop object and annotations remain locked to their position relative to the sheet, and you can then move the viewport content around, to bring it back into the crop area, and back into alignment with the annotations, in one go. A one step process.

[Pat Stanford]

Better Option.

 

Edit the Crop of the viewport. Switch to the Translate View tool (or Walk through, or Flyover depending on what kind of a view you are in) and you will be able to leave the crop object in place and move the design layer(s) behind the crop. Annotations stay in place also.

[line-weight]

45 minutes ago, Pat Stanford said:

Better Option.

 

Edit the Crop of the viewport. Switch to the Translate View tool (or Walk through, or Flyover depending on what kind of a view you are in) and you will be able to leave the crop object in place and move the design layer(s) behind the crop. Annotations stay in place also.

 

I think this is something that is supposed to work in a 3d view? (Didn't know this until now - not that I can actually get it to work so far)

 

But I'm actually thinking of section and elevation viewports.

[Pat Stanford]

In 2019 it does not work in Section Viewports, but it certainly works in regular viewports in 3D views.

[Boh]

So this is a new feature in 2019 as I can't get it to work in 2018. I did notice in 2019 that the translate view changes a top/plan view to a top view.

 

Great trick though for me it would be most useful if it worked for Section viewports. Often I want to use a live section line but to get the section line in the right place in the reference plan (i.e. get end markers located where I want them), I have to change the length of the section line which changes the viewport and I have to do as Line-weight mentioned - realign the annotations & crop and then reposition the VP back into the correct place on my sheet.

[Pat Stanford]

I just tried in VW2018 and get the same abilities as in VW2019. I think this has been around since the introduction of Viewports.  VW2012? 

 

I don't know why it is not working for you.

 

For Section Viewports, if you put a Crop Object in the crop group, then it will not move on the sheet layer. If you go to the design layer and move or resize the Section Marker, what is in the Crop will move to follow the Marker. Not the best option, but better than trial and error.

[line-weight]

I can get it to work in 2018, if I make a very simple test file.

 

However I can't get it to work on one of my 'real' drawings.

 

In the test file, little frame corners appear on the viewport crop object when I use the translate tool. This doesn't happen in the 'real' file.

 

**edit - I think it might be to do with multiple view panes. When I created a floating pane in the test file, it stopped working.

Edited June 13, 2019 by line-weight

[Pat Stanford]

Do you intend to have the viewport in perspective view? If not set the Projection to Orthogonal and the frame corners will go away.

 

I have not tried using multiple view panes.  Maybe later.

[line-weight]

The frame corners are not a problem, I was just noting their absence in the one that wasn't working. As it happens in both cases they were in perspective view.

 

Unfortunately the type of view I'd mainly like to use this in would be section viewports...and it seem it doesn't work for them.

[bcd]

This is a good wish - a Target Point in the Model for the Center of a Viewport.

'till then this may be helpful:

 

Use the Move command rather than click drag etc.

 

eg. The floor lowers by 200 mm

Edit the Annotations>Select All  - Move -200mm in the y direction

Edit the Crop  Move -200mm in the y direction

Say the VP is 1:10

Move the VP +20mm in the y

[Pat Stanford]

You are correct that it does not seem to work when using Multi-view.

 

Can you click on the Bug Submit link at the bottom of the page and report it?

[line-weight]

3 hours ago, Pat Stanford said:

You are correct that it does not seem to work when using Multi-view.

 

Can you click on the Bug Submit link at the bottom of the page and report it?

I can, but...

 

In the past, a bug uncovered here on the forums would be picked up and submitted by JimW.

 

Is there no-one at VW who will take over this function from now on? Doing a bug submit requires me to fill out a tedious form. The issue is explained by reading this thread so I don't feel hugely inclined to spend more of my time duplicating information that's already available.

[Amorphous - Julian]

@line-weight @Pat Stanford

 

The above post re bug reporting highlights the advantages of a dedicated forum moderator- A person who is hired by Vectorworks, and act as an advocate for Users.

 

Customer like me feel reassured when comments/complaints here is taken from the standpoint ‘I understand how this can be frustrating for you as a user, and let me find out what I can do about it’.

 

To demonstrate what it looks like from our standpoint of users, when a Vectorworks issue arise at our office, we spend hours diagnosing, testing, material gathering, and writing up a forum post that is considered, concise and detailed.

 

The process of posting an issue thus can easily takes upwards of an hour. However, these issues on forums are not always picked up or resolved by technicians/developers.

 

As architects/designers who run busy offices on slim margins, we honestly can’t put in too much time into software bugs and forums (but unfortunately have to as that is the only way we can help improve Vectorworks). 

 

So, as an example of how a dedicated forum moderator would benefit us- we would really appreciate if the process of translating a bug discussed in forum to bug report is done by a VW employee (moderator). This is only one small example of many other benefits I can see.

 

I hope my suggestion is taken in the correct way- it’s meant to give us a best path forward together as a community of users and developers- Vectorworks can only improve as a constructive collaboration on both sides. Jim’s departure seem to have taken away that vital link between users and developers.

 

See post below.

 

 

[line-weight]

I agree completely @Amorphous - Julian.

[RGyori]

As do I... ++

[bcd]

On 6/13/2019 at 2:56 PM, bcd said:

This is a good wish - a Target Point in the Model for the Center of a Viewport.

'till then this may be helpful:

 

Use the Move command rather than click drag etc.

 

eg. The floor lowers by 200 mm

Edit the Annotations>Select All  - Move -200mm in the y direction

Edit the Crop  Move -200mm in the y direction

Say the VP is 1:10

Move the VP +20mm in the y

I don't understand the dislike ('boo') reaction here @kliefhead - I understand these to mean that a member has real issue with a post and probably one that they would be eager to  explain. If for no other reason than to inform other users as to why the post is incorrect/ misleading/ offensive etc.

I've noticed you apply them liberally across the forum.  I'd be happy to hear what others think.