Creating Own Objects?

[Anonymous]

I've been working in ArchiCad 10 for about 2 months now, and I'm having huge problems with creating simple GDL object with the build-in tool "Save 3D model as". I have tried almost anything, including selecting a pair of Tree out of the AC 10 library, and then making a single object of them. But after creating this object, the whole project becomes instable and I get error messages about not having enough memory. This despite the fact that I have 4 GB of DDR2 RAM. Sometimes I also get a "Warning!" when I open the object. The message looks like this:

"Warning!

Unnecessary token(s) after end of command at line 96 in the 3D script of file Tr?d.gsm."

Now, I'm wondering if there is anything I can do to sort this problem out? Or doesn't the "Save 3D model as"-tool work as it should?
________
French Cooking

[Dwight]

Well, I make 3D objects in the way you suggest and there's never an unusual problem. Just the usual problems.

However, making new objects out of old objects as you are doing is not a valid test, since all the new object does is "Call" the old one.

Make an object from three or four slab pieces or a simple table made from primities to test.

[Anonymous]

Thank you Dwight

The test with slabs worked! But my little problem still remains. Isn't it possible to save default library parts as a simple GDL object then? Or am I doing something wrong?
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BOX VAPORIZERS

[Frank Beister]

You can't merge object code by saving them together as one object. As Dwight figured out, there will be just CALLs in the new object. To expand existing objects, there is no other way than to open them, modify the code by hand and save them renamed.
The save 3D-model option is for quick creating real GDL objects, which can be modified too. Often this is the starting point of larger full parametric objects, if you replace the auto created nodes of the resulting commands by parameters.

[Anonymous]

Why do you want to save default lib. parts as a new gdl-object? Is it a combination of objects that you want to recycle again and again? In that case I would save that file as a module-file or regular pln-file, not as gdl-object.

If you want it parametric, then I make a new object from scratch and use like Dwight said, CALL, and use the same variablenames as in original GDL-object.

[Anonymous]

I used to have huge problem with size and speed when I multiplied many objects, so in AC 9 I saved a bunch of objects as a single GDL-object, and it worked great! But enough about that. F. Beister, you said that "Often this is the starting point of larger full parametric objects, if you replace the auto created nodes of the resulting commands by parameters." I'm kind of new to modifying GDL-objects, as you can see Would you mind telling me how to do this? Can you do it in AC, or do I need a separate program?
________
Herbal vaporizers

[Ignacio Azpiazu]

Do you still get the problem if when you get the 'Save as Library Part' window you check 'Non-editable binary 3D data' instead of 'Editable GDL Script'?

[Frank Beister]

atab. There are several informations about creating objects by "save as" out of the plan or by dragging into a script window here in the forum or at least in the gdl manual. If you open such an auto created object there are, if you have not saved as binary, a lot of commands appear to reproduce your graphical edited elements. The first few 10s of lines are not so much interesting, because they restore the environment settings in the moment of saving the object (PENs, MATERIALs etc.). Normally transformation commands (ADD, ROT etc.) are introducing the sculpture creating parts. Have a look at the manual to see how they work and what are the parameters for. You can also use the www.selfgdl.com to serach for keywords and get references into the manual or the cookbook. If you have found a parameter of the command, you want to get flexible you can replace the value by a significant name. Use this name to add a new parameter in the parameter list. This I meant is the first step to parametric objects. No way to create complex objects, but a good one to get quick results.

Example:
If you save a slab, a CPRISM_ -command is created in the script:

!!
PEN          4
BODY    -1
ADDZ          -3.195
cPRISM_ "DEFAULT", "DEFAULT", "DEFAULT",
             5,         0.36,
        27.76440094153, 14.31665428471,     15,
        28.86212690307, 14.31665428471,     15,
        28.86212690307, 14.48297640009,     15,
        27.76440094153, 14.48297640009,     15,
        27.76440094153, 14.31665428471,     -1
DEL          1
BODY    -1

The fifth parameter of the command steers the height of the slab/prism. Replace the 0.36 with "height" and create a (length)parameter in the list, named "height" too. Set a description and default value (e.g. 0.36) to it and save the object.

!!
PEN          4
BODY    -1
ADDZ          -3.195
cPRISM_ "DEFAULT", "DEFAULT", "DEFAULT",
             5,         height,
        27.76440094153, 14.31665428471,     15,
        28.86212690307, 14.31665428471,     15,
        28.86212690307, 14.48297640009,     15,
        27.76440094153, 14.48297640009,     15,
        27.76440094153, 14.31665428471,     -1
DEL          1
BODY    -1