TheSwamp

CAD Forums => CAD General => Dynamic Blocks => Topic started by: Kate M on February 16, 2007, 05:00:58 PM

Title: Dynamic input, dynamic blocks, and OTRACK -- Bugwatch
Post by: Kate M on February 16, 2007, 05:00:58 PM
Anybody know of a fix for this?

1. Dynamic input breaks OTRACK when drawing objects. You can only pick the first point (not any subsequent points) by direct distance entry with OTRACK. SOLUTION: Disable "Dimension Input where possible".

Great, BUT:

2. Disabling Dimension Input means your dynamic blocks no longer give you any feedback regarding distances being stretched or scale. Kinda defeats the purpose of incremental or list distance parameters.

I don't know which one to choose! What do I do?
Title: Re: Dynamic input, dynamic blocks, and OTRACK -- Bugwatch
Post by: hudster on February 17, 2007, 04:31:12 AM
If you have a list of scales you could use a "lookup" parameter.

I have a dynamic radiator block with a lookup, much easier than stretching the block to the right size.
Title: Re: Dynamic input, dynamic blocks, and OTRACK -- Bugwatch
Post by: sinc on February 19, 2007, 08:40:58 AM
The choice is easier in Civil-3D.  There, you can't use Direct Input at ALL.  It interferes with important C3D functionality.  And it's even worse - some things don't work right if just running OSNAPs are enabled, so we must constantly be turning those on and off, as well.

As someone said, "It's progress, Jim, just not as we know it..."
Title: Re: Dynamic input, dynamic blocks, and OTRACK -- Bugwatch
Post by: sinc on February 19, 2007, 08:51:21 AM
Oh, and be very leary of Direct Distance Entry with running OSNAPS in 2006 and later, if you have Distance Input enabled and/or a floating console window.  In these cases, it measures the distance directly toward the cursor.  Otherwise (and in earlier versions of Autocad), DDE measures toward any active running OSNAPs, i.e., if you put the cursor close enough to the end of a line to activate the END running OSNAP, then DDE would measure directly toward the end of the line (the active OSNAP), even if the cursor is still floating in space "near" the OSNAP.  But with DI enabled, this is different.  If you want to use DDE with running OSNAPS, make sure you put the cursor right on the OSNAP before doing the DDE.  If you have the "magnet" feature on (in OPTIONS, it's ON by default), then the cursor will tend to "snap" to running OSNAPs, and the DDE will work correctly.  You just need to make sure you put the cursor over the OSNAP (it should "magnetically lock" to the OSNAP) before you type the DDE.
Title: Re: Dynamic input, dynamic blocks, and OTRACK -- Bugwatch
Post by: Kate M on February 20, 2007, 01:32:41 PM
If you have a list of scales you could use a "lookup" parameter.

While that works for many of my blocks, I have several where the number of possible combinations would make a very unwieldy lookup table. Guess I'll keep looking...
Title: Re: Dynamic input, dynamic blocks, and OTRACK -- Bugwatch
Post by: Kate M on February 20, 2007, 01:42:48 PM
On second thought, I may go with lookups after all. (I forgot that you're allowed to have more than one lookup per block, and I'd usually only need two.) Still VERY annoying, though...