Orientation of text in dimensions


 
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Greg



Joined: 13 Apr 2004
Posts: 218
Location: Vancouver, BC, Canada

PostPosted: Fri Jan 18, 2008 11:41 am    Post subject: Orientation of text in dimensions Reply with quoteFind all posts by Greg

I wondered if there were a way of switching text in dimensions so that they read from the opposite side of the page. I cannot seem to see any reference to such in the manual.

I am working on adding dimensions to some drawings which have many non-orthogonal lines. There are some instances where the object being dimensioned is slightly off vertical in one direction or the other, and the resulting text flips, making it look odd on the drawing. The example I have attached shows the situation. It would be nice to be able to flip the text on one of the dimensions so it looks consistent with the other.

The options under Drawing Setup > Dimensions only seem to act on exactly vertical dimensions.



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MikeCharek



Joined: 14 Apr 2004
Posts: 160

PostPosted: Fri Jan 18, 2008 2:36 pm    Post subject: Reply with quoteFind all posts by MikeCharek

Here's one work-around: rotate the thing being dimensioned slightly so the dimension text is oriented the way you want. Then convert the dimension object to a group, and rotate the "thing" and the dimension group back to the proper orientation.
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Peter Severin Carlsen



Joined: 29 Oct 2004
Posts: 80
Location: St. Paul, Minnesota

PostPosted: Fri Jan 18, 2008 5:11 pm    Post subject: Reply with quoteFind all posts by Peter Severin Carlsen

Somehow I thought there was a dimension tool in wildtools 3D where the witness lines came out parallel to the side you were trying to dimension...but it must have been a dream.

The only solution I know is to edit the dimension and cut the printed dimension from the line with one of the carrots. If you don't remove the carrot the dimension will reappear even if you delete it. Then use paste and the printed dimension comes back as text block that can be rotated and placed on the dimension line where you want it. You have to edit the text to remove the carrot, but it can be done.

Conrol of the orientation of text on dimensions would be a nice feature to have. I have plans for tenant spaces where the base plan is oriented one way and the Owner wants the plans with the entry door down and dimensions end up upside down and right for left. So there are uses for a way to control it.

It might also be nice at the very least to be able to "blow-up" a dimension so the number and line are separate objects and not linked.

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Peter Carlsen
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Greg



Joined: 13 Apr 2004
Posts: 218
Location: Vancouver, BC, Canada

PostPosted: Fri Jan 18, 2008 8:47 pm    Post subject: Reply with quoteFind all posts by Greg

Peter,

Actually with the WT dimension tool, if you hold down "shift" it does keep the dimension line parallel to the surface, but you don't have any control over which direction the text reads from.
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Alfred Scott



Joined: 15 Apr 2004
Posts: 640
Location: Richmond, VA

PostPosted: Sat Jan 19, 2008 9:52 am    Post subject: Reply with quoteFind all posts by Alfred Scott

You can use Convert to Group to convert a dimension line to a line and a text object. I do have a 3D Dimensioning tool as part of WildTools 3D coming out with PC8/WT9 and Greg is using that.

I'll make a note to see if I can work on the direction of the text with this tool. I suspect it's a matter of what direction the line goes in, and that if you reversed the order of clicks with the tool, you might be able to fix it. Also try the Reverse tool as a way to fix this.

Right now I'm busy with a Stair Tool that Greg is asking for.

Alfred
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Greg



Joined: 13 Apr 2004
Posts: 218
Location: Vancouver, BC, Canada

PostPosted: Sat Jan 19, 2008 10:08 am    Post subject: Reply with quoteFind all posts by Greg

Alfred,

That is certainly a work-around to get the text facing the correct way.

If you have the correct selection made in the Drawing Setup > Dimensions (i.e. the bottom of the 3 options), the direction of text does depend on which point you start from in drawing the dimension, however it only seems to work on dead vertical dimensions. It would be nice if it worked on dimensions drawn in any direction.
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ftribel



Joined: 14 Apr 2004
Posts: 255
Location: Paris, France

PostPosted: Sat Jan 19, 2008 11:17 am    Post subject: Reply with quoteFind all posts by ftribel

As we print drawings and part of (the same) drawings many times a day, I dream sometimes from text and dimension tools that would print textes and dimensions always to the same size, independantly from how they are drawn.
I would parameter the size when printing.

Possible ?
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