Really stupid question - adding points to/joining polys

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BraselC5048
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Joined: Mon Mar 17, 2014 8:46 pm

Really stupid question - adding points to/joining polys

Post by BraselC5048 » Wed Mar 19, 2014 7:27 pm

Ok, this is really basic, but I have no idea what to do. How do you add a point to an existing polygon? I right click, but there's no option to do it. And is it possible to join two polygons? I would assume yes of course, but I don't have the slightest clue how to do it.

meshman
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Re: Really stupid question - adding points to/joining polys

Post by meshman » Wed Mar 19, 2014 10:34 pm

While working with Polys or Lines, if you select the matching button (poly or line) so that the cursor reflects being in Poly or Line mode, then press and hold the "I" (big i) key and click on the poly or line to add more vertexs aka points. <---help file

I have not really tried this out, but... the folder where SBuilderX is installed on your system also has a SBuilder.ini file. It can be opened in Notepad or the like. There is a line;

AutoLinePolyJoin=False

Changing this to: =True should allow for adjacent lines or polys to be joined into one. But I want to recall that it might be joining lines and polys even when it wasn't intended??? Maybe Luis (the author) can share some insight on how that works in SBX.
Lance

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roger-wilco-66
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Re: Really stupid question - adding points to/joining polys

Post by roger-wilco-66 » Wed Mar 19, 2014 10:57 pm

Don't know for polys, but lines can be joined unwantedly with the parameter set when the two disjunct vertices are are close to each other and the lines have the same name - if I recall right!

Cheers,
Mark
Development of historical sceneries for FSX and Lockheed Martin Prepar3D Simulators

My scenery development galleries:
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/x0skkam7xu8zz8r/DFwnonB1nH

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Luis Sa
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Re: Really stupid question - adding points to/joining polys

Post by Luis Sa » Fri Mar 21, 2014 1:03 am

Hello,

The need to join lines and polys appeared to me when I was reading FS2002 (or FS2004?) BGL files. Terrain polygons and lines appeared broken at a certain QMID levels. So in order to rework or to use the reading as a base for FSX output, I have created the possibility of joining polygons or lines.

In the INI fle you will see this lot:

Code: Select all

AutoLinePolyJoin=True
DisplayJoin=True
DirJoin=False
NameJoin=False
If you set AutoLinePolyJoin=False no joining happens at all. If it is set to True, then you have the following:

NameJoin=True means that a join (or several joins) only occurs if the candidates to be joined (lines or polys) have the same name (or label). If you create a 5 point line it will get a default name of 5_Pts_Line_Of_Type_None. If you create a 4 points line it will get a name of 4_Pts_Line_Of_Type_None. Now if you are in Line mode and you pick the second line and move it so that its staring point passes over the ending point of the first one, nothing will happen. Now insert (see this post) one point on the second line line and repeat the experience. Nothing will happen since the 2 lines have different names. So what is important is the name not the number of points. Edit the proprieties of one of these lines so that that get the same name and repeat the experience. As soon as the 1st point of one line passes over the last point of the othe, they join. Now you will have only one point.

Change AutoLinePolyJoin=False and NameJoin=False . With this setting you can draw lines without the danger of being joined. So draw some 3 or 4 lines so that the 1st point of the next line is very near to the last point of the previous lines. Do not bother with names as you have NameJoin=False. Now go to the Edit>Preferences menu and press the INI button. Edit the file so that AutoLinePolyJoin is changed to True. Close the INI and inspect your 3 or 4 lines. You will see that they are only one. They have joined into a single line.

DirJoin=True means that joining will only happen if there is a coincidence od the 1st point of one line with the last point of the other. If you change this parameter to False, lines can be joined when the 1st point of one coincides either with the 1st or the last point of the other line.

DisplayJoin has to do with the "coincidence". With False, the coincidence (the condition upon which 2 points are considered to be very near one of the another to trigger a joining) does not depend on the Zoom of the display. It has to do with a "distance" that depends on the length of the lines. On the contrary when it is set to true (I never used it by the way), joinings may happen at low zoom levels as the triggering "distance" is now measured in pixels.

What I have said in relation to Lines has a counterpart in relation to Polys. One poly will join another poly if 2 edges of the same side and "running one against the other" if DirJoin=True are made to coincide by moving one poly over the other.

All this happens in Line or Poly mode only.

Regards, Luis

BraselC5048
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Joined: Mon Mar 17, 2014 8:46 pm

Re: Really stupid question - adding points to/joining polys

Post by BraselC5048 » Sun Mar 30, 2014 11:16 pm

Ok, I just now did what you said (I haven't needed to join any polys until now), and nothing happened. Overlapping with the same name (a couple of them), and name join and auto join set to true, and nothing happened. Tried every method you posted, and I still couldn't get the polys to join. No idea what I'm doing wrong.

EDIT: Never mind, created a new .ini file, and figured out how to do it correctly.

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