Enhancing workflow - Move/Copy

[TwinTiger]

Hello to all.
New user here. Getting used to FreeCAD and its underlying intuitive structure. FYI, I am an Architect and I am using FreeCAD for building design.

A quick request for next update:

Please locate the Copy option to the very top left of the Combo View panel when you invoke either Move / Rotate / Offset.
This will enable a quick glance confirmation at the same time when you invoke the function as to whether Copy is checked or not, rather than a double take adjusting your focus down the panel to wherever it is on one or the other of these actions.

I use these functions regularly and I can't tell you how much time I have lost having assumed copy is invoked or not.

Thanks,
I look forward to contributing to this forum further.

OS: macOS Mojave (10.14)
Word size of OS: 64-bit
Word size of FreeCAD: 64-bit
Version: 0.19.19263 (Git)
Build type: Release
Branch: master
Hash: c4ca00a1d5b7922ef1d2ae3e820bb34ffdb64d9f
Python version: 3.7.6
Qt version: 5.12.5
Coin version: 4.0.0a
OCC version: 7.4.0
Locale: English/United States (en_US)

[Kunda1]

Hello to all.
New user here. Getting used to FreeCAD and its underlying intuitive structure. FYI, I am an Architect and I am using FreeCAD for building design.

Welcome to the FreeCAD forum

A quick request for next update:

Please locate the Copy option to the very top left of the Combo View panel when you invoke either Move / Rotate / Offset.
This will enable a quick glance confirmation at the same time when you invoke the function as to whether Copy is checked or not, rather than a double take adjusting your focus down the panel to wherever it is on one or the other of these actions.

I use these functions regularly and I can't tell you how much time I have lost having assumed copy is invoked or not.

Can you perhaps provide an image with some annotations on what you mean?

Thanks,
I look forward to contributing to this forum further.

Awesome. Looking forward to your participation

OS: macOS Mojave (10.14)
Word size of OS: 64-bit
Word size of FreeCAD: 64-bit
Version: 0.19.19263 (Git)
Build type: Release
Branch: master
Hash: c4ca00a1d5b7922ef1d2ae3e820bb34ffdb64d9f
Python version: 3.7.6
Qt version: 5.12.5
Coin version: 4.0.0a
OCC version: 7.4.0
Locale: English/United States (en_US)

Thank you for posting your FC info.

[vocx]

...
Please locate the Copy option to the very top left of the Combo View panel when you invoke either Move / Rotate / Offset...

I believe you are referring to the task panel that is launched when the Draft_Move, Draft_Rotate, and Draft_Offset tools are launched.

Unfortunately, the task panel is defined in the complicated DraftGui.py file in the source code. It is not a very easy to just move some options around. It would need to be re-coded significantly.

For developers: if you want to give it a try, look at how the Draft_PolarArray is coded.

[TwinTiger]

(Thank you Kunda1 for the welcome)

Hi voxc
Yes, you are correct - and apologies for my lack of correct nomenclature usage

Attached is a composite screenshot of Draft_Move, Draft_Rotate, Draft_Offset and Draft_Scale showing the common Copy (P) in different positions in each Task Panel and at the base of the options each time.

As I work manipulating blocks and objects, having the Copy (P) located in the same location on the Task Panel (specifically immediate top left close to the Function selection: Move, Rotate etc) would make my workflow significantly smoother, both to visually confirm at a glance its activation (or not), or to select and check it on/off.

[paullee]

More participation and help welcome

[carlopav]

Hello and welcome to the forum. I agree with you that's a thing that bother mee too... I think that move/rotate/scale should by default not copy but transform. So one of the things we can make is to auto toggle off the copy option at the end of the transformation.
Offset and mirror could work exactly the opposite instead.
At least I think this is how many many users used to acad perceive as normal.
BIM wb have a different button for move with copy, and also this seems to me very user friendly. We could insert it in draft too.

[TwinTiger]

Thanks carlopav,
Your suggestion would be a great first workaround!

Default setting for Copy (P) should be ‘off’ on Move, Rotate and Scale.
Default setting for Copy (P) should be ‘on’ for Offset and Mirror
Toggle back to default setting after each transformation.