hi
I'd like to be able to specify in the type properties what folder to switch to when something is selected - but not through a callback

I'd like to see, for each parameter, two fields:
1 Use Current Folder - the folder that the parameter is in
2 or string field for the name of the folder to switch to (disabled when the Use Current Folder box is on)



thanks

Yup. I second this.

Also any associated handle would be selected too.

I third this. I'm about to try to figure out how to do this now, it'd be nice for there to be a good system in place already.

So just to be clear, you're talking about an extension to the existing feature that automatically switches parameter pages when you select part of an HDA to show its handle, right? The Current behavior would be equivalent to the “Use Current Folder” option being on, yes?

Could you explain why you want to switch to a different folder than the one the parameter being modified is on? Obviously the rationale for “Use Current Folder” is that you would want to see the value of the parameter you are changing. What is the rationale for showing some other page?

Thanks,
Mark

because the folder switching breaks all the time when you cut and paste in the Dialog Script
being able to explicitly set the folder would allow one to fix this…and would allow for custom mappings…


oh and where does one find “Use Current Folder” ?

Could you send us an example where the current automatic folder switching doesn't work? Obviously this is supposed to work and the fact that it is broken isn't the best reason to introduce a new feature to work around the existing broken feature

Being able to set the folder explicitly wouldn't be any more likely to work than the current system. If the current system isn't working, presumably any similar system that is built on the same basic functionality also wouldn't work. So first we need to fix the problems with the existing functionality.

There is no “Use Current Folder” option. I was saying the current behavior is designed to act as if there were such a check box that was always turned on. I was trying to make sure that I understood your request by confirming that we are talking about the same thing here. Given your response I'm concerned that I'm missing something here…

So could I again ask for a situation where (assuming the current system worked properly) you would want to have a different behavior, where the folder set to some page other than the parms being modified? I'm looking for a description of the real-world workflow that you're trying to achieve. I just want to understand why this new capability is needed.

Thanks,
Mark

Here is an example file, using 9.5.141, though I tried this in 9.1 with the same problem.

This is a simplified example, however this is currently happening to me on a character rig, and I have no way to control which parameter page shows up.
You can see that clicking on objects in the scene results in the incorrect parameter page being opened.

In this specific example. you can work around it by moving “Transform” and “Subnet” in the type properties parameter interface, move it below the other folders. Then the selection seems to match up.

However, my rig digital asset interface has folders within folders and the wrong parameter pages open when the viewport null objects are selected… so what should I do?

Thank you for the example file, however the OTL definition is missing, so the hip file is essentially empty. Can you upload the OTL too please?

Thanks,
Mark

Sorry about that… here you go.

Perfect. Thank you. This bug will be fixed in the 9.5 build tomorrow. For pre-9.5 builds, the problem can be avoided by ensuring that the first page in a switcher is never invisible. So in the asset you provided, if you move the invisible Transform and Subnet pages to the end of the set of pages, then the automatic page selection will work.

Mark

Excellent. I haven't seen instant response to users for bug-fixes like this anywhere else…

AH HA!

thanks mark!

the very first thing I do when making an HDA is lock the transforms and make the transform folder invisible…


@shikung444 - get used to it, this is Side Effects we're talking about!

So will this eliminate the need for the “flip to this page” field for HDA parameters? Or are there still cases where you want to customize this behavior? I'd still like to hear a use case for this kind of customization if it is still needed…

Thanks,
Mark

I'm sure I had a good example at some point…but I can't remember what it was…

that said - is it a difficult thing to add this as an option?

I guess in the mean time consider it a very low priority RFE…

No, it probably wouldn't be that hard to add. But adding a new check box and input field to the already rather full Type Properties Parameter page is liable to make things more intimidating and confusing. And if nobody is going to use this new feature it's better not to clutter the UI, and better not to spend the development time on it.

RFE submitted though because it's always good to capture new ideas. 31487.

Please post here (or edit the bug if you can) if you think of a driving need for this ability.

Mark

After some further testing, automatic folder switching seems to be working nicely now even for folders 2 levels deep. Before I was always hesitant to trust it, as it never seemed to choose the right folder before. Just wanted to let you all know that it seems to be fixed now. It is something that I would still like to see in the OT properties though, and hope that the way to develop user interfaces can advance as well.

If it can keep progressing, maybe one day we can create user interfaces easily with python, create non-linear animation track view systems, and build all kinds of custom interfaces for the animators like people do with mel in maya. (and have it switched to those things based on selections in the viewport.)