[solved] FreeCAD has selection filters?

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drmacro
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Re: [solved] FreeCAD has selection filters?

Post by drmacro »

NewJoker wrote: Sat Feb 04, 2023 7:56 pm Actually, I offer a bounty for someone willing to implement those selection filters from the Assembly 4 wb in FreeCAD: viewtopic.php?t=72925
I customized my toolbars, as I note...at which point I consider it in FreeCAD and I proceed. 8-)
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan: Spock: "...His pattern indicates two-dimensional thinking."
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NewJoker
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Re: [solved] FreeCAD has selection filters?

Post by NewJoker »

drmacro wrote: Sat Feb 04, 2023 8:20 pm I customized my toolbars, as I note...at which point I consider it in FreeCAD and I proceed. 8-)
Good if that's sufficient for you. I want something more (actual integration with FreeCAD, not a shortcut linking to Assembly 4 wb) and hence the bounty I offer.
mario52
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Re: [solved] FreeCAD has selection filters?

Post by mario52 »

Hi
NewJoker wrote: Sat Feb 04, 2023 8:29 pm bounty gratis I offer.
try Macro_Select_Hovering Image

mario
Maybe you need a special feature, go into Macros_recipes and Code_snippets, Topological_data_scripting.
My macros on Gist.github here complete macros Wiki and forum.
drmacro
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Re: [solved] FreeCAD has selection filters?

Post by drmacro »

NewJoker wrote: Sat Feb 04, 2023 8:29 pm
drmacro wrote: Sat Feb 04, 2023 8:20 pm I customized my toolbars, as I note...at which point I consider it in FreeCAD and I proceed. 8-)
Good if that's sufficient for you. I want something more (actual integration with FreeCAD, not a shortcut linking to Assembly 4 wb) and hence the bounty I offer.
Configurable toolbars ARE in FreeCAD. Tools in FreeCAD are organized in workbenches. Being able to mix them to my satisfaction is a great feature.

I have access to them throughout, that is not only sufficient, but a fully functional feature.
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan: Spock: "...His pattern indicates two-dimensional thinking."
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NewJoker
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Re: [solved] FreeCAD has selection filters?

Post by NewJoker »

drmacro wrote: Sat Feb 04, 2023 9:44 pm Configurable toolbars ARE in FreeCAD. Tools in FreeCAD are organized in workbenches. Being able to mix them to my satisfaction is a great feature.

I have access to them throughout, that is not only sufficient, but a fully functional feature.
Still, you need independent downloadable content for that and have to rely on the connection to GitHub and the availability of someone’s repository. Not to even mention the fact that many users (including the OP who is an advanced user developing his own workbench) don’t know that such functionalities exist (because they are not available by default) and have to search for each one of them. In my opinion add-on approach is good for less commonly used features but not for essential functionalities like this. However, I know that I’m not going to convince users like you so I’ll just keep my opinion and bounty and hope that someone will eventually help me implement this or I will learn coding enough to do it (someone will still have to accept and merge it but that’s another problem).
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Re: [solved] FreeCAD has selection filters?

Post by dprojects »

NewJoker wrote: Sat Feb 04, 2023 10:22 pm Not to even mention the fact that many users (including the OP who is an advanced user developing his own workbench) don’t know that such functionalities exist (because they are not available by default) and have to search for each one of them.
For me it is OK that Assembly 4 have this functionality and the FreeCAD core not has it. I don't know for example Path, but this is installed by default. I don't have CNC, so I don't need it in fact.

Only problem I see is that it is not documented at FreeCAD website. I can understand that Zolko don't like making documentation, I also more prefer to produce code, features not documentation. But for sure there are many people that love making documentation, have good language skills, so they can describe it all at FreeCAD website. They can always ask the feature owner for review, if the description is correct from technical point.

NewJoker wrote: Sat Feb 04, 2023 10:22 pm In my opinion add-on approach is good for less commonly used features but not for essential functionalities like this.
But as you see I see the "selection filters" in a little different way than other CAD systems and other users. From my perspective it is more useful in practice. So, you have to add more and more to the FreeCAD core... this problem is only well-known for someone who manage large distributed systems.

The documentation and access to knowledge about this feature is only problem not localization of the software.
Currently FreeCAD is about 1GB, if you pack all workbenches and macros this would be maybe 20GB, big mumbo-jumbo.

Thanks
Darek
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workbench for woodworking is available at: github.com/dprojects/Woodworking
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NewJoker
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Re: [solved] FreeCAD has selection filters?

Post by NewJoker »

dprojects wrote: Sun Feb 05, 2023 9:06 am Currently FreeCAD is about 1GB, if you pack all workbenches and macros this would be maybe 20GB, big mumbo-jumbo.
It's really small for a CAD software. Including all workbenches and macros in basic FreeCAD package wouldn't make sense since the majority of them are rather niche and meant for very specific purposes. But there are a few (just a few) that contain functionalities so fundamental that they should be included in FreeCAD itself in my opinion. Implementing them wouldn't significantly increase the size of FreeCAD. And let's keep in mind that nowadays a few GB are nothing for most of our computer drives.
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Re: [solved] FreeCAD has selection filters?

Post by GeneFC »

NewJoker wrote: Sun Feb 05, 2023 1:57 pm But there are a few (just a few) that contain functionalities so fundamental that they should be included in FreeCAD itself in my opinion.
They are already included. 8-)

What you are asking for is the inclusion of extra functions that YOU use.

It never stops. Someone else has a different list of "so fundamental" functions. There are several hundred addons that someone thought to be "fundamental".

The current mix works pretty well. The specific additions for any one individual are easy to accomplish, as pointed out above.

Gene
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NewJoker
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Re: [solved] FreeCAD has selection filters?

Post by NewJoker »

GeneFC wrote: Sun Feb 05, 2023 2:12 pm What you are asking for is the inclusion of extra functions that YOU use.

It never stops. Someone else has a different list of "so fundamental" functions. There are several hundred addons that someone thought to be "fundamental".
They are available in pretty much all CAD software apart from FreeCAD for a reason. If you make a poll among general CAD designers (not people who work only in FreeCAD) or ask some independent CAD experts (I would help with that if someone here was interested) then you will see what is really missing from FreeCAD. But it requires acknowledging the fact that FreeCAD is not a complete CAD software yet and still requires some improvements in terms of built-in functionalities and taking a look at what other programs offer. Not to copy them or to compete with them. Just to understand what really matters in efficient CAD design for serious projects (hobbyists can also benefit from that, even if they don't know they need it yet) and to provide open-source software which is an actual alternative to commercial solutions.
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Re: [solved] FreeCAD has selection filters?

Post by Hologram »

This diametrically opposed:
"Yes, I need it"
vs "No I am fine with addons or don't use it at all"
Won't get the discussion anywhere.

My 2cts is that generic workflow features, such as selection filters, would generally benefit everyone's workflow. You can choose not to use them, sure.

But that's different from saying: "I need feature X so I can model RC planes" or "I need high-end NURBS surfacing to model cars". To me the distinction in what to include by default or to exclude boils down to whether a feature would generally be useful or benefit many workflows as opposed to just a small subset of workflows for a niche industry/ branch.

In Blender, there are many addons that you need to use for some serious modelling (e.g. for select through, loop cuts not being in the center, grouping, handling booleans, moving the 3d cursor and origin, etc.). If any of these addonmakers stops development and compatibility with master ceases to be a thing, then it leads to a large gap in functionality for the software. And that's not advantageous to users.
I get that not developing certain things in master helps to do other things, it's a trade-of and there's only so much time devs can spend on it. But in the long run, it benefits the user to have a reliable, maintained workflow. To me, many addons should be seen as proof of concept or stop-gap band-aid for the time being. Relying on addons in long or very long run will come back at you at some point, unfortunately. It's better to have feature development spread across a group, than to rely on a single, albeit generous, volunteer.
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