GrahamT Posted October 11, 2019 Share Posted October 11, 2019 Hi everyone I use loci a lot in my drawing work and it is very frustrating having to create loci every time I need them, eg. if I want to move or copy something, for example. I previously used AutoCAD and there was a very useful command called 'copy with base point'. The OSNAP feature in AutoCAD used to work very well in allowing you to choose your base point, be it an endpoint, midpoint or intersection of existing lines or objects. In effect the loci were there but not visible, however AutoCAD could pick them, if you get my meaning.... A real game changer for me would be if I could set VW to create loci every time I create a line or object. I realise this would result in a lot of loci on the screen but that wouldn't bother me personally. What does bug me is not being able to pick a point on an existing line as a 'base point' to copy adjacent content without VW picking the reference line itself! I'm just trying to emulate what AutoCAD could do but VW cannot ;-) Any suggestions please? Thanks in advance :-) Quote Link to comment
mike m oz Posted October 11, 2019 Share Posted October 11, 2019 If you have your Snaps set correctly on the Snaps palette there is no need for loci because the points you mention will already be available when you use the Move (and copy) by Points tool. Quote Link to comment
GrahamT Posted October 11, 2019 Author Share Posted October 11, 2019 Thanks Mike, I wasn't aware of the move and copy by points tool (I'm learning VW on the job as I go) but I am now. It still seems quite convoluted - going back to my original question....can loci be placed automatically whenever you draw something? Quote Link to comment
GrahamT Posted October 11, 2019 Author Share Posted October 11, 2019 Thank you for clarifying. Quote Link to comment
Pat Stanford Posted October 11, 2019 Share Posted October 11, 2019 Trying to use VW the way you used AC will likely result in great frustration. There are just too many differences. You need to accept that you will need to learn to do things in the VW way. As Mike says, Snaps are basically the same as your loci. You can set them to provide end/mid/intersections or even a random division. By hovering over an object you can see little tick marks that are the current snap points. If you grab and drag the point on an object you want to move you can then "read" the snap points and put it exactly where you want. You might also want to check out the help files on the Snap Box versus the Selection Box of the smart cursor. This determines how close to a snap point you have to be to get it to snap versus how close you need to be to get it to select. You may also want to read up on the Snap Loupe to let you temporarily zoom in to make a selection or pick a point. Quote Link to comment
GrahamT Posted October 14, 2019 Author Share Posted October 14, 2019 Thanks very much Pat - this has made things a lot simpler. I didn't know about either Snap Loupe or Coincident Object Selection. I think the underlying problem I have is that I have been thrown in at the deep end without any training in VW. As a 30 year veteran of AutoCAD it's not surprising I'm trying to do things the AC way. Your help, along with Mike's, is very much appreciated. Quote Link to comment
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