Workspace Layers v4

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clintonman
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Workspace Layers v4

Post by clintonman »

WorkspaceLayers4_beginning.jpg
left workspace layers v3, right experimental v4

I've started trying new ways to do workspace layers. The old method is pretty crazy. It works but if you undo a few times it can end up in a bad state. The quick fix for that is to clear all undos, but then you lose the ability to undo whenever the layers tool is used. One big improvement would be to replace the dropdown menu with individual buttons. I did some tests there and it would solve the problem. The dropdown is the center of the problems with the version 3 layers.
This new method uses the webserver plugin and a web browser view window inside tS. My tests show it will work and it won't be limited to 24 layers. So it's just a matter of putting in the time.
One note is that this new technique only works with windows 10 and maybe windows 7 and 8. The view uses the internet explorer base so it's limited tech. The newest internet explorer is old tech and older versions are just too old to even work at all. Because of the age everything has to be made from scratch. If the browser was more modern there would be all sorts of tech that would make it much easier to make a web based UI.
Clinton Reese

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Re: Workspace Layers v4

Post by trueBlue »

web browser view window inside tS
:bananathumb:
HTML View Control?
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Re: Workspace Layers v4

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trueBlue wrote: 04 Apr 2021, 22:40
web browser view window inside tS
:bananathumb:
HTML View Control?
Yep.
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Re: Workspace Layers v4

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Things are going pretty smoothly. The difficult part was the layer color control. The spectrum color control, http://bgrins.github.io/spectrum/ , was used because the internet explorer base does not have a basic color input like a modern browser.
Now the scripts can set the layer color, name and visibility.
layers3_vs_layer4.jpg
So far the new layers on the bottom is far less complex than the old layers on top.
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Re: Workspace Layers v4

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workspacelayers4.jpg

Added the "select layer" and "add to layer" buttons
The add to layer only changes wireframe color and layer number for the selected items. It does not update the visibility or locking for the objects.
Next up is "add new layer" to create empty layers and "remove layer" which will move it's members to the no layer section and delete the layer from the list
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Re: Workspace Layers v4

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workspacelayers4_2.jpg
All parts are working except for the display mode.
Added the ability to remove a layer
Added the ability to add new layers

Layer 0 and 1 are permanent and cannot be removed because layer 1 is the default layer for lights in workspace and layer zero is kind of the default layer of modelspace objects.

Needs to get the display mode working and then some setup functions in truespace to initialize and refresh the layers data.
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Re: Workspace Layers v4

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workspacelayers4_3.jpg

Alright, it's working!
Added teh display mode controls and checkboxes for hidden lines and back face display. Initialize button to get started and a refresh button for when objects are added or removed from the scene.

Next step is to make it fancy and pretty.
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Re: Workspace Layers v4

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workspacelayers4_4.jpg

Fancier and prettier version though it can still use a bit of work.
The plan is to move the initialize button to the bottom, style the buttons and the last 2 checkboxes to look like they exist in trueSpace and line up the "no layer count" with the count column. Maybe replace the add and remove column headers with vector images then balance their weight. The lock is a little heavy compared to the other icons.

Then finally get back to coding and fix the bugs.
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Re: Workspace Layers v4

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:worship: :worship: :worship:
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Re: Workspace Layers v4

Post by trueBlue »

:worship:
My two sense...
I would would welcome a more compact UI as much as possible
Eliminating the "Workspace Layers 4" header which could be the title of the floating frame and any unneeded padding or unused space
Not sure why one would need Hidden lines and Back face options for a layer system, but eliminating those would shorten up the UI
If possible, add helpful tooltips to the column icons and or buttons

I notice that your Clintons3dPlugin.rsx plugin has:
utilityFunctions.CreateServer()
utilityFunctions.DestroyServer()
utilityFunctions.PoleServer()
utilityFunctions.SocketComm()

Is this the same as your Clintons3dRsView.rsx plugin and or could your Clintons3dPlugin.rsx plugin be used for this project?
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