Subject:
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Re: New Building Instructions from the latest LPub
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Newsgroups:
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lugnet.cad, lugnet.inst
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Date:
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Mon, 9 May 2005 14:10:07 GMT
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Viewed:
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7582 times
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In lugnet.cad, Allister McLaren wrote:
> In lugnet.cad, Kevin L. Clague wrote:
> > Hi all,
> > I've been making good progress with LPub development. I've been putting it
> > through its paces for testing purposes, and finally finished the LDraw file for
> > my small pneumatic walker Pedmatic (due to a typo of mine, it is also sometimes
> > referred to as Pendmatic).
>
> Hi Kevin. Any idea when this new release will be available for download? No
> hurry or anything, but I've got a couple of instruction I want to generate
> sometime this year or the next, and would like to have a go at it. Do you want a
> beta tester?
I've stopped adding new features. I have been in testing phase. The building
instructions I just posted were pushed through LPub to try to flesh out a lot of
bugs.
I've finished updating the docs. I hope that I can release it today or
tomorrow.
>
>
> > Here is the original MOC:
> >
> > http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=46671
> >
> > Here are the building instructions for Pedmatic:
> >
> > http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=126902
>
> Awesome. I'm not too keen on the psychedelic background, but I see the
> potential. I never could figure out how to make the background transparent. Can
> you see the background through transparent pieces? Can you get it to reflect off
> chrome pieces?
Art is interesting isn't it? I thought it looked better than a plain
background. I tried to have the fractal be subtle as to not distract too much
from the model.
LPub added support for transparency when I switched from bitmap and JPEG to PNG.
I don't think you can see through transparent parts. I'll have to play with a
transparent part and a background image to see if this is true.
LPub renders all the images assuming a white background that affects apparent
surface colors. LPub does not put the background in the POV-Ray model and
render. This means that you will not see the background reflected in chrome.
>
> > The building
> > instructions use a few new LPub and LSynth features:
> >
> > - LSynth now has the ability to create synthesized results into a MLCad group.
>
> 'kay.
>
> > - LPub now has the ability to remove previously defined groups, as an
> > alternative to buffer exchange.
>
> 'kay. What was the point of that again?
Lets say that I'm creating BIs for a pneumatic model, and that the a switch is
added in step 3, and the piston is added in step 15. The connecting hoses are
packed neatly inside the structure between them. Shortly after you add the
switch, you need to add the hose, because you're adding parts that trap the
hose. But, at this point in the design, the piston is still not in the model.
What you need to do is add a version of the hose that is unconnected. As you
add more parts that further trap the hose, you'll need to replace the original
unconnected hose with a different unconnected hose. Eventually you need to
replace the final unconnected hose with a hose that is connected to the piston.
The LDraw language does not provide a way to change a part's placement,
orientation or shape. James saw this issue first and created the CLEAR
meta-command. This makes the renderer forget everthing that is in the model,
preceding the clear when rendering.
Using CLEAR, to solve the above situation, you would have to:
1. Add all parts up through to the time where you add the second version of
unconnected hose (with steps of course.)
2. CLEAR the entire model to get rid of the first version of the unconnected
hose.
3. Add all the parts added in step 1 again, without adding the first
unconnected hose. This is a maintainability nightmare by the way.
4. Add the second version of the unconnected hose.
5. Repeat for all subsequent versions of the hose.
The above process is nasty, because you really end up with the same brick
represented again for each CLEAR that follows it.
Michael Lachman regognized this issue and created buffer exchanges. You are
allowed 26 buffers A-Z. At any time, you can save the current model up to the
current step into a buffer. You can add parts, then "remove" them by doing a
buffer exchange restore. This works well when you are trying to "remove" parts
across a few steps. If you were to try to apply buffer exchange to the above
pneumatic model scenario you would do this:
1. Add all parts up through to the time where you add the first version of
unconnected hose (with steps of course.)
2. Buffer exchange save A
3. Add the first version of unconnected hose.
4. STEP.
5. Buffer exchange A restore.
5. Add parts for this step.
6. Buffer exchange save A
7. Re-add the first version of the hose again.
8. Repeat steps 4 through 7, until you get to the second version of hose.
9. Repeat steps 3 through 8 until you've added the final version of the hose.
This one is very messy too, just in a different way. Like I said, buffer
exchange works well for removing parts across just a few steps. It works well
for "exploded" building instructions that have arrows showing you where to add
parts.
Remove group simplies the above scenario tremendously. The pneumatic scenario
for above is:
1. Add all the parts up to and including the first version of the hose.
2. Add all the parts up to the next version of the hose.
3. Remove previous hose.
4. Add next version of hose.
5. Repeat step 2 through 4 until add versions of the hose are added.
6. Add any parts after the final version of the hose.
It is much simpler. What remove group does is let you randomly remove parts
from your model. You may choose to replace those parts by adding a replacement
to the model, or not.
>
> > - LPub now has support for multiple steps per page, and this reduces the
> > number of pages from 93 down to 31.
>
> Woohoo! Is it customisable?
Yes.
Currently the steps are organized in columns with vertical dividers. You have
to specify how many steps are in each column, and how many steps are on the
page.
LPub tries to organize these things into an enclosing rectangle in a way that is
pleasing to the eye. Example:
LPUB MULTI_STEP BEGIN
STEP
STEP
STEP
LPUB MULTI_STEP DIVIDER
STEP
STEP
LPUB MULTI_STEP DIVIDER
STEP
LPUB MULTI_STEP END
This gives you three steps in the first column, two in the second and one in the
third. LPub figures out the tallest column, and evenly spaces steps withing the
column to match the tallest column.
>
> > - The use of POV-Ray's transparent background (alph-channel) is fabulous for
> > providing background images as the backdrop to building instruction pages.
> >
> > For those interested, the backdrop used in Pedmatic's BI's is generated by a
> > fractl program I wrote a few months ago.
>
> I guess that answers my question above. Again, woohoo!
>
> >
> > I'm working on Inno setup now for LPub and LSynth. Gotta figure out how to run
> > an uninstall before the new install and then I'll be ready.
>
> I don't know an Inno from an Outo, so I say, whatever, go for it. It'll be grand
> whatever it is.
>
> Allister
Kevin
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