Is there any way to keep the lookfrom control from disappearing once a command is started?

There are many times I want to pick a point plainly visible from one perspective but the second point is hidden. Getting a different perspective would reveal that previously hidden point.

Why does the lookfrom control disappear to make it difficult to get that second perspective?

Is there any way to nail the lookfrom control so it doesn't disappear?

Comments

  • Mine does not disappear, and it works in the middle of simple commands, e.g., line, move, copy. However, lookfrom does not seem to work during direct modeling commands, e.g., dmpushpull, dmextrude. Wonder why not. I don't know that I'd tried it before you asked, but it would be useful in the situations you describe. I zoom and orbit until I can see the second point—and every time keep wishing that middle mouse button could orbit instead of pan without having to hold 'shift'!

  • I have noticed that some operations leave the lookfrom control alone so it is usable throughout the active command environment. Other times it disappears.

    For example, if I pick the box icon or manually enter the box command to draw a 3D box, the lookfrom immediately disappears before I do anything else. When the command completes, the lookfrom usually returns. I say 'usually' because sometimes on rare occasions it doesn't return after a command completes (not necessarily box) and I have to enter the lookfrom command.

    On my v19 linux system, picking the move or copy causes the lookfrom to disappear.

    If I issue dmmove, lookfrom disappears immediately but reappears after I'm done selecting entities. I can therefore reorient my perspective to pick a point.

    There are other commands where lookfrom never disappears.

  • The LookFrom widget disappears when dynamic dimensions steal the input focus and thereby deactivate the main frame. A workaround is to turn them off. In some cases you may be able to click on the main frame title bar to re-activate it.

  • @Owen Wengerd

    I just tried a move command. After I pick an object to move there's no place on the screen I can click to reacquire the lookfrom. If I click inside the main window that acts as my base point and then the lookfrom does appear but that's doesn't offer me the opportunity to rotate the object to select a hidden base point.

    DYN on or off makes no difference on v19 Linux. Does your move act differently?

  • Yes, on my Windows system the LookFrom widget is still available during the MOVE command. I don't have a Linux setup to test, but from your description it sounds like a Linux-specific bug. I recommend to report it in a support request to make sure it is logged.

  • Thank you for the information.

    Since I have V20 available to me, I think I should try that first before creating an incident report. If on V20 I have the same issue, I'll report it.

    Thank you for your time.

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