Sean’s Dial ticks is a plugin for rapidly creating various types of dial-based instrumentation.
The latest version, 2.04 [ tested on LW7.5c+ ] allows for unique surfaces for all of the constructed elements, and a built-in color chooser for those surfaces. It also largely addresses Modeler’s LScript font choosing/loading limitations. Included is an integrated help file, created with SHM Help File Editor .
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Sean’s Dial Ticks v2.04 [ Updated Feb.2006 ]
For documentation and helpful hints, see below, or use the built-in help file.
Documentation
Be sure to have at least one font loaded before running Dial Ticks.
Dial Ticks requires a font to run. If no font is present, it will prompt you
load one using the Text>Font Manager in the Create Menu (LW8 Defaults).
Method
The Use Font method is the standard setting for Dial Ticks, and is used for
creating all number-based instruments.
The Use Current Layer method allows the user to place a peice of geometry on the
foreground layer and use that in a radial array around the dial. For proper placement, the geometry should be centered at the origin.
Start Count At
Dial Ticks can place numbers around a central ring in the manner of a clock or compass. Start Count At is the numeral with which the script begins placing those numbers. For a clock, you would start with one. For a compass, you might want to start with zero.
Count By
If Count By is set to one, each new number on the dial will be incremented by one [1,2,3,Etc.]. If you set Start Count At to zero, and Count By to five, the sequence would be 0,5,10,15,Etc.
The Count By can also be set to a negative number, but this will rarely be necessary.
Number of Ticks
This determines the number of numbers (or instances of geometry) that will be placed around the dial face. For a clock, the number would be 12, unless it’s a 24 hour clock, but let’s not get crazy.
Numbering Direction
Setting the Numbering Direction to clockwise or counter-clockwise determines which direction the numbers get laid around the dial face. This may be a stretch, but for a clock, you would set the Numbering Direction to CW (clockwise).
Zero Padding
Set to zero, you get sequences like 8,9,10,11. Set to two, the sequence becomes 08,09,10,11.
Set to four: 0008,0009,0010,0011.
Justify Numbers
Outside Ring places the numbers, you guessed it, on the outside of the ring. Inside Ring places them on the inside.
The Don’t Justify setting you would use if you wanted numbers on the outside ring, but placed like crap. That setting has been in since version 1.0, and I can’t remember why it’s there. It may be useful when using layer geometery instead of font. Maybe.
Offset First Number
If the offset is set to zero, the first number will be placed at the 12 O’clock position (top of the ring). If you wanted to make a clockface, with 12 O’clock at the 12 O’clock position, you would set the offset to one.
Offset Direction
You can set the first number offset to be either clockwise, or counter-clockwise. For a clockface, chose Clockwise (CW).
Axis
This selects the axis the dial will be draw in. If you are using the Use Current Layer method, be sure your geometry looks good in this axis.
Ring Radius
This determines the base radius of the ring.
Placement
This governs the placement of font or layer geometry around the ring. If set to Horizontally Normalized, the font would be placed like the font on a clock face, with each number presented parallel to the horizontal plane for easy reading.
If set to Uncorrected Rotation, each number will align toward the center point of the dial, as if you used Modeler’s Radial Array.
Once these values are set, press Ok to proceed to the next step.
Minor Ticks / Tick
This controls the number of Minor Ticks displayed between each Major Tick. For a standard clockface, you would want four Minor Ticks (which makes for five minute divisions, the fifth being the next Major Tick).
Make Outer Ring
Outer Ring Radius
If Make Outer Ring is checked, an Outer Ring will be drawn using the radius value from Outer Ring Radius.
Make Inner Ring
Inner Ring-Tick Radius
If Make Inner Ring is checked, an Inner Ring will be drawn using the radius value from Inner Ring-Tick Radius. The distance between the Inner and Outer Radius values determines the length of the Minor Ticks, whether the rings are drawn or not.
Show Major Ticks
Major Tick Radius
If Show Major Ticks is checked, Major Ticks will be drawn. Their length is the distance between the Major Tick Radius and the Inner Ring Radius.
Select Font
If there is more than a single font in your current font list, you can choose from those fonts in this drop-down list.
Font Height
You would think this is very simple, and it is…almost. Enter the height you want the font to be in this field. The tricky bit is, there is no absolute scale for rendering true-type fonts into geometry in modeler. So this uses some best-guess scaling factors, which, if you are lucky, will give you something not quite entirely unlike the font height you’ve requested. Oddball fonts may require some trial-and-error to get the proper fit.
Color Controls
On the right side of the requestor are color controls. Choose the colors of the various bits there.
Some Helpful Hints
The number that Dial Ticks chooses for the Major Tick Radius is always calculated to have a pleasing gap between the Major Ticks and the Numbers. If you are changing the size of the rings, it is usually best to leave this number alone, and adjust the ring numbers to get the style you want.
To get more interesting renders, play with the Particle/Line Thickness in Layout in the Edges tab of the Object Properties pane. Thicken up those lines for a more interesting dial. If you want the lines to have varying thicknesses, break the object up into multiple layers and change the thicknesses per layer.
October 25th, 2007 at 9:58 am |
Thanks for a great work! It saved my day
March 19th, 2006 at 12:53 am |
Great work..
I used to love this in the early days but couldnt get it running right in 7. Many thanks for the update!
March 3rd, 2006 at 10:48 am |
Thanks for this cool lscript…nice idea…
Keep the light waving