Re: Beginner wildfire user

My advice though, always, strike out in a new direction, be bold. Take the unfamiliar as a cue to stretch and learn. Don't retreat to the safe and comfortable. Think of the opportunities you'll miss! Give yourself and the new Pro/e a chance. And by all means, visit the User area of ptc.com and the New Tools section which has, not only the Menu Mapper, but a whole tutorial on using pre-select/select to speed up what you're trying to accomplish. But here's a clue to get you started: it works in outline or tree format ~ start at the top level and work your way in: part->feature->geometry; or assembly->component->feature->geometry. RMB click cycle through any of these. Select a part and RMB click cycle through its features, select a feature and RMB click cycle through its geometry ~ article/paragraph/sub-paragraph/point, in the indented tree format.

On the other hand, if you move your cursor over an assembly and pre-highlight get 'stuck' on a component for 5-10 seconds, you have another problem. It normally flickers pre-highlighting on/off as you move over components in an assembly. It's very quick flashing, no sticking, certainly not with your hardware config. We can figure it out with more details.

David Janes

I am building an assembly around a cylinder head (intake manifold, fuel injection hard lines, brackets, bolts, etc). Moving the mouse around the graphics window, it sometimes crosses over the cylinder head. The cylinder head pre-highlights, which would be fine if it didn't have the effect of locking up the program for 5-10 seconds. Pre-highlighting is fine and useful, I have no problem with that. But in this particular assembly it is a hinderance to productivity. I did not know where to find it in the help file as I did not know what to call it.

See above.

I know how to use it to my advantage, but I wanted to be able to turn it off when it has become a disadvantage.

This paragraph sums up my problem nicely. On normal parts, this behavior is quick, exactly as you describe, and absolutely fine. This particular part file (the cylinder head), is 87 MB. That doesn't seem too large to me considering the things pro/e is used to design. It does have a lot of edges to highlight, but it seems pro/e would be able to handle that as well.

These techniques are even more needed with pre-highlighting. Just think of how much computational horsepower you'd save with a simplified rep of the most geometrically complex part if you filetered out all the features which were not needed for assembly, such as ribs, cooling vanes, fillets, chamfers and especially any very small features which are completely unneeded for assembling and assembly modelling. You'd be surprised. Or if a part is included in an assembly as a place holder, a volume representation, how much easier on the system to make such a part into a shrinkwrap.

: >It was there by accident and you don't : >like something lighting up and slowing you down. Or, you actually meant to pick : >something and got flustered by the pre-highlighting (which is similar to SW : >functionality, so what's the beef!) : : See above. : : >In which case, you'd be doing yourself a huge : >favor to learn how to use the pre-highlighting to your advantage, as sort of a : >graphical 'query select'. In fact, if you do what Jason suggested, getting rid of : >the 'irritant', you'll be back to the old, familiar, warm blanky ~ the QS list. : : I know how to use it to my advantage, but I wanted to be able to turn : it off when it has become a disadvantage. : : >

: >My advice though, always, strike out in a new direction, be bold. Take the : >unfamiliar as a cue to stretch and learn. Don't retreat to the safe and : >comfortable. Think of the opportunities you'll miss! Give yourself and the new : >Pro/e a chance. And by all means, visit the User area of ptc.com and the New Tools : >section which has, not only the Menu Mapper, but a whole tutorial on using : >pre-select/select to speed up what you're trying to accomplish. But here's a clue : >to get you started: it works in outline or tree format ~ start at the top level : >and work your way in: part->feature->geometry; or : >assembly->component->feature->geometry. RMB click cycle through any of these. : >Select a part and RMB click cycle through its features, select a feature and RMB : >click cycle through its geometry ~ article/paragraph/sub-paragraph/point, in the : >indented tree format. : >

: >On the other hand, if you move your cursor over an assembly and pre-highlight get : >'stuck' on a component for 5-10 seconds, you have another problem. It normally : >flickers pre-highlighting on/off as you move over components in an assembly. It's : >very quick flashing, no sticking, certainly not with your hardware config. We can : >figure it out with more details. : : This paragraph sums up my problem nicely. On normal parts, this : behavior is quick, exactly as you describe, and absolutely fine. This : particular part file (the cylinder head), is 87 MB. That doesn't seem : too large to me considering the things pro/e is used to design.

See above and if you're using a Windows system, open the system monitor. Check page file, cpu and memory useage. If memory and pagefile are both high percentages, your system is being stressed by Pro/e. What it 'seems' like must be checked against reality. Ten years from now, when the computers are a thousand times faster than at present, we'll be asking them to do a thousand times more and we'll still be wondering what the hold up is.

David Janes

pre-highlight get

For the most part I agree with your advice David. However, there's a problem in Wildfire sometimes when using the 'Measure-Distance' functionality if you have pre-highlighting turned on. The problem comes into play whenever you want to measure the distance between an interior planar surface and an exterior planar surface that are parallel. Let's say that you select the exterior surface first. Well, you then have to rotate the model in order to be able to select the interior surface. It's like Wildfire can't wade through the part model to the interior surface--so to speak. I ran into this just last week. As soon as I turned pre-highlighting off, I could easily Query Sel to pick the interior, planar surface without even having to rotate the model. Other than this bit of quirky behavior, I do personally prefer to use pre-highlighting also David.

S.T.

"S.T." wrote in message news:7Fb3b.43$ snipped-for-privacy@eagle.america.net... : "David Janes" wrote in message : news:lfT2b.43222$ snipped-for-privacy@news1.central.cox.net... : >

: For the most part I agree with your advice David. However, there's a problem : in Wildfire sometimes when using the 'Measure-Distance' functionality if you : have pre-highlighting turned on. The problem comes into play whenever you : want to measure the distance between an interior planar surface and an : exterior planar surface that are parallel. Let's say that you select the : exterior surface first. Well, you then have to rotate the model in order to : be able to select the interior surface. It's like Wildfire can't wade : through the part model to the interior surface--so to speak. I ran into this : just last week. As soon as I turned pre-highlighting off, I could easily : Query Sel to pick the interior, planar surface without even having to rotate : the model. Other than this bit of quirky behavior, I do personally prefer to : use pre-highlighting also David. : : S.T. : Sorry to do this to you, S.T. You're going to be so embarrassed. I just did it and it works great, a part just as you described ~ a part with a cut in it at the top so that there are parallel inner and outer surfaces. The measurement went fine.

Opened the measure tool and picked distance, plane for first feature, prehighlighted the outer surface and selected it; for the second feature, picked plane in the popup list, prehighlighted again the outer surface, then RMB click cycled through the surfaces below it, prehighlighting jumping from one parallel surface to another, until I got to the surface facing outward and LMB picked that surface. Trick is the RMB click cycling through as you would through a QS list. In other words, prehighlighting works like a graphical QS. When you get to the surface or other geometry you want, LMB click to select it. Just don't LMB click select that outer surface first when try to prehighlight something under it.

Once again, ptc.com has provided a tutorial on the selection process on the 'User>New tools' page. It's a very helpful introduction and if you haven't been through it, chances are, you're still a little confused.

David Janes

Hi David,

First of all, thanks for the tip on the Analysis-Measure-Distance functionality using pre-highlighting in Wildfire. I learned something beneficial to me. But I'm certainly not embarrassed by not knowing about the new query methodology while pre-highlighting is turned on. I haven't had any training in Wildfire and am currently the only person in my department that has access to it. There hasn't been any time for me to check out any of the User-New Tools info at all. Just get the work out ASAP. No time for experimentation whatsoever. That's another story altogether.

While I do appreciate your willingness to help, I really don't understand why you feel compelled to come off so condescending towards certain users on this forum at times. Maybe I'm just a "little confused" by this type of attitude. You may come to the realization someday that you probably don't know everything that there is to know about Pro/E yourself David. Obviously you are quite familiar with the software, but don't let it go to your head-if it hasn't already. People will be much more impressed with your knowledge if you come off like a nice, helpful guy instead of trying to undress other users for trivial oversights or lack of knowledge in a certain area. Just don't take yourself and this whole CAD thing so serious David. You'll be much better off if you don't take another Pro/E user's confusion about a certain aspect of the software's functionality as a dig on your favorite MCAD tool.

S.T.

You're absolutely right! You can't be embarrassed because your cheap, narrow-minded, short-sighted, shallow bean counters know nothing about the value of training. In my book, if you're doing this on your own (and saving the company's ass, to boot), you're a hero. The world needs more like you.

My only point in writing that was to emphasize a simple point that comes up in a lot of messages to this NG: people get frustrated, they're under pressure to produce, they panic and push the panic button ~ the words on the panic button say 'Pro/e Sucks! It doesn't work!'. And my other point in writing that was to suggest to you, and all facing simlar situations, is that you use every possible opportunity to your (and eventually your company's) benefit. Aggressively seek out the opportunities, make the opportunites, especially for training: you can only benefit!

David Janes