Version 5.4 BETA only. The grid status window is missing in the BETA version only.
Hey!
Thanks for the feedback, we are still fine-tuning these smaller parts of the UI, so itâs super useful.
Indeed, on the new design the grid size is not shown immediately on the main screen all the time. The information is available though if you click on the corresponding icon near the orientation cube (itâs the one below the magnet).
When & how do you use this information in your design workflow?
Hello Peter
I reference it regularly to envision what I am designing. Itâs like a speedometer in a car. Itâs used as a reference. Itâs also in the old version so I got used to itâŚ
When it is necessary is setting the grid size. Without the view, knowing when it is set correctly requires going back and forth. Adjusting real-time is far more practical.
Neil
Hi
+1
I tried the beta yesterday with the new interface and the first thing that disturbed my was I didnât know the grid size when starting a new design.
Actually, I started sketching a line just to guess what the grid size was.
I always try to wait a bit before giving feedback, as you need to get accustomed to the new interface, but this was really a missing piece of information for me.
As an engineer, Iâm very excited by the parametric capabilities, but also interested to keep the simplicity of Shapr3D when using direct modeling.
So far, it seems to be preserved, the most noticeable change when not using the history being the new way sketches are handled: several sketches now can have the same location, and the projection not being editable.
You are doing a great job on that move to both parametric and direct modeling.
The main missing function so far after a couple of hours of test is the ability to merge 2 sketches into a single one (not to mention variables that are on the road map).
Thanks for the feedback regarding the grid. Weâve been getting this pretty consistently, so finding a place for it on the new UI is very high on our priority list and will likely happen in a few weeks.
@PEC, what triggers you to merge two sketches? Is it just that you forgot to edit the original instead (because perhaps being used to how Shapr3Dâs been working until now), or you have other reasons?
For me, every single item created has its own identity and is a âsub-design.â. I may create several sub-designs of the same idea with minor differences. Once all the SDâs are completed and I have chosen the overall design is completed. At this point merging may occur. I need visual references, which results in multiple similar sketches. If I edit the original lose the ability to compare. Until the final product is 100% acceptable, I continue to âswap outâ SDâs.
Neil
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Hi @Peter_Gy
You are right, I just pressed the space bar on a body surface to add new elements to a sketch and ended with drawing on an other sketch.
So I need to get used to the new logic, which is not a great deal.
Is there a way to know which sketch is currently selected when you are drawing on it? For instance, it would be nice to have the name in bold in the item list or any other visual indication.
But I also notice that when you project on an existing sketch, it creates the projection on new sketch.
Is it the expected behavior? If yes, this would be a good reason to be able to merge sketches.
Best
Pec
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As for an identifier, I am glad you asked, I was just about to indirectly raise this issue. Let me explainâŚ
Whenever an item is in use, it is highlighted on the list. HOWEVER, if I copy the previous sketch, I want to use it and modify, without losing the original sketch, they are now both the same sketch on the list. If I make changes to the copy, and want to hide the initial sketch, I cannot. If you copy a sketch, you cannot isolate them individually. I must redraw the sketch. This is a huge issue. Complex sketches can take time, not being able to copy, becomes an issue.
Neil
Thanks for the explanation, makes perfect sense. Thereâs actually a bit of a smart logic here about how we reuse sketches, which seems to not be working as smart for you:
- we hide sketches that are âfully usedâ (eg. all sketch fillings in them have been used in a subsequent operation)
- sketching on the plane of a visible existing sketch edits the existing sketch
- sketching on the plane of a hidden sketch starts a new sketch (unlike in the production app where we un-hide the existing sketch and start editing that)
We will be improving highlights, both on the canvas and in item & history step lists. Right now, the best workaround to check which plane youâre working on would be to select something in the given sketch plane which would highlight the sketch plane in the items menu.
Right now the behavior you see for sketch projections is whatâs expected, but we plan to improve that. The method to project into an existing sketch plane is to activate that plane and then use the Project tool from the sketch menu where itâs now been added.
Makes sense â but if I understand correctly, this is not a change in the parametric version, rather it works just like that in the production app as well, right?
We will be adding a âDuplicateâ tool for similar purposes. Until then, a workaround can be to move & copy the sketch out of itâs original plane and then move it back. Moving a sketch out of the plane creates an unlinked copy that you can then edit and show/hide/isolate independently. Itâs a bit of a hassle though as youâd need to move it away and back which creates not one but two copies, but itâs likely still easier than fully recreating a sketch from scratch.
Hi @Peter_Gy
Many thanks for the explanation.
It is very useful to understand the logic as you describe.
I will try the projection on a sketch following your explanations.
Thanks also for being so fast to answerđ
You are correct. I had figured out both work-arounds, but as you said, they are a hassle. You think as a designer, I think of a design and create based on my own logic. I believe you have two basic users, professional and ameteur. Shapr3D is ideal for both. The fact that you are acting on an ameteurs suggestions is perfect example of your dedication to the end user.
Neil
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Hi @Peter_Gy
with Version 5.440.0 (5547) on MacOS, I donât understand how to project on an existing plane; it always creates a new sketch (sketch 03 in the video) with the projection.
When I select the sketch first and then the project tool from the sketch menu as you explained, only the sketch is displayed, the body disappears, so I have nothing to project.
I simply donât understand how to do it. A short video showing it would help 
Pec
(note : I have to delete twice the sketch 03 : first time delete the content but the empty sketch is still in the item list, but Iâm sure you are already aware of this).
There is a dedicated sketch button now in the sketch menu 
@Istvan: Do you mean this one? I tried it but didnât succeed.
When I click on Project - Sketches, the body 01 (cube with the hole) just disappears, so I canât project the hole of the cube on the sketch plane 01 (cf second half of the video in my previous msg).
Sorry, I still donât get it, or maybe it behaves differently in the next SW version? 
Dis you try to project the edge or the face?
I tried both.
Could you show a screenshot of the design history list opened as well? My hunch is that the body was created after the sketch plane you are trying to project to. When you start the project tool, we automatically roll back the history to the time when the sketch plane was generated to ensure that you are not trying to project things that you actually couldnât. If that is the case, you can likely simply reorder the history steps to ensure you create the body before the sketch plane l.
You guessed right, the body is created after the sketch I try to project to.
But I canât create body 01 before the sketch 01.
Actually you can see the history in the video I uploaded.
Basically
1/ I sketched a square
2/ extrude to make a cube (body 01)
3/ move the cube away from the sketch 01
4/ select a face of the cube, draw a circle on it so it creates sketch 02 (// to sketch 01) and extrude to create the hole
5/ and now I try to project the hole of body 01 on sketch 01.
So by construction, I canât create body 01 before the sketch 01, but I understand now why I canât project body 01 on sketch 01 as it would create a kind of infinite recursive loop. So thatâs ok for me 
though it disturbed me a little bit, probably Iâm too used to the traditional way Shapr used to do it 
Many thanks again for the great support, and congratulations for the continuous improvement.
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