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- PLANE MANIPULATIONS
- *******************
-
- Planes are currently generated by selecting points. Boundaries or tool
- paths can be defined by tracing with the HATCH and FILL options off.
- Tool paths may be animated by the alternate DRAW PLANE option.
- Note that boundaries and hatchings are treated as different planes.
-
- The following secondary selections are allowed:-
-
- OPTIONS:- Not yet implemented.
- ADD:- Planes are added by selecting points (may or may not
- be pre-defined).
- DELETE:- Planes are deleted by locating points until the plane is
- uniquely defined.
- If option selected with the LEFT button, the user will be
- able to delete planes in reverse order of storage.
- MOVE:- Planes may be moved as complete entities.
- Selection of this option with the LEFT button allows for
- rotation together with translation.
- STYLE:- Hatching lines can have line styles as for normal lines.
- CHANGE:- Plane specifications (hatch, fill) can be altered to
- be those currently active by selecting this option
- and then locating the plane.
- Alternate selection allows for the change of PEN NUMBER
- only, or line style and thickness only. This selection
- also allows for changes in GLOBAL mode.
- PEN:- Specify pen number and line thickness as for lines.
- UNPAK:- Hatchings may be unpacked into lines.
- HATCH:- Hatchings are displayed and selected graphically. If
- hatchings are to be turned off, press the RIGHT button
- when selection requested. IF cross-hatching is desired,
- press the LEFT button when selecting pattern.
- If the PLANE HATCH command is selected with the LEFT
- button, the user will be able to either alter the angle of
- hatching or to define a point through which the hatching
- lines must pass.
- FILL:- Similar to and can co-exist with hatching. This is the
- only part of the system that cannot be plotted out
- on a pen plotter.
- Alternate selection with the LEFT button allows for
- hatching with an existing symbol string. This can then be
- plotted on a pen plotter. Position of the original symbol
- string governs the hatching. If it is desired that this
- symbol string is not to be displayed, define it as a
- construction line item. (*WARNING* this hatching with
- symbols can be very slow for a complex boundary.)
- TRACE:- An alternative way to add planes is to make use of the
- TRACE command. This command would allow the user to turn
- a closed polygon (may include circular arcs)
- into a plane so that it can be hatched or filled.
- The user would select a starting point. Qikdraw would
- start tracing along defined lines/arcs. Where it becomes
- ambiguous, the user would be prompted by inverse-coloured
- squares. The user would select the appropriate path by
- pointing to the point desired.
- If the TRACE command is selected with the LEFT button,
- the path can be defined to be always turning left (or
- right) whenever the path is not uniquely defined.
- MODIFY:- Adding additional vertices to the plane. These vertices
- can only be inserted between points not linked by an arc.
- Alternate selection deletes vertices.