Maybe you could use a custom marker, then, Hans?
But the distance there will depend on the distance between nodes, so if you move a node, it changes.
The 'Scatter' extension doesn't distort.
Then there's the 'ruler' LPE, that could help with the location of circles on a path with curved segments.
None of them will be able to do what you need fully, that's why I hadn't said anything before.
Maybe the 'ruler' LPE could be extended to use something different than plain lines, to mark the path?... That would do all you need.
Or the 'Scatter' extension could be modified and merged together with the 'Measure Path' extension, to produce something like this.
(I've seen this asked for a couple of times, maybe there already is a feature request for it here: https://bugs.lauchpad.net/inkscape - if not, you could make one).
Kind Regards, Maren
Am 11.02.2017 um 01:59 schrieb Hans Carlson:
Thanks for the reply, but I guess I wasn't very clear with my original question.
I wasn't trying to suggest the links in the chain couldn't move, just that the individual links aren't distorted. Obviously, just like with a real physical chain, something has to give. So when you move a REAL chain, the links slide against each other, but the links don't stretch or twist.
Maybe a rope or a cable would have been a better analogy than a chain.
In my drawing, my "CHAIN" isn't so much a chain as a series of 2D circles. There's a gap between the circles and the circles don't overlap each other.
And the "circle" isn't just a simple path based circle... it's a group of objects that contains a couple different circles with different stroke width, colors and an X in the middle. I suppose you could imagine a target or dart board. It isn't either of those, but that's a reasonable analogy.
My hope is there's some way to use "Pattern along Path" (or maybe something else), to duplicate the circles along the path, but without distorting the shape of the circles. The gap between the circles can shrink or grow to accommodate the curve, but the circles themselves shouldn't be distorted. Also, once the pattern (circles) is laid out on the path, I was hoping there would be some way to change the curve of the path with the circles on it, again without distorting the circles.
I'm not looking for animation... the reason I want to move my "pattern along path" after it's been created is because I need it to fit in and around other stuff without overlapping them. The big problem is, I need to have exactly 60 circles and I can't tell how many circles "Pattern along Path" will generate until I try it. So, I try it (using Preview mode), count the number of circles and then have to go back and change the route slightly to make it longer or shorter. Then back to "Pattern along Path (Preview)", count circles, readjust... over and over and over and over.
Also, when Pattern along Path places the circles on a curve, the circle is slightly distorted... it's no longer a true circle.
One thing I thought *might* work (and I have no idea if this is even possible), would be something like this:
- Create a path with a specific number of nodes (60). I can do this
manually, but it sure would be nice if there was some way to create a simple 2 node path and then bring up a dialog to "Add X nodes to path".
- Somehow attach an object (my circle) to each one of the nodes. The
center of the circle would be at the same point as the path node.
- Now, move the underlying path into whatever curve I want, but the
circles don't distort. If I move a node, then the circle moves with it, otherwise the circles just sit there or I suppose they could rotate about the center... that would be fine.
Again, I'm just throwing that out there to see if there's a way to do something like that.
Another idea might be to create a path that doesn't stretch. ie, just like a real rope or cable, if you pull on part of the rope/cable it doesn't stretch, instead one or both ends will move. I'd like to do the same kind of thing with a path... if something like that is possible.
On Fri, 10 Feb 2017, brynn wrote:
I'm pretty sure that's a physical impossibility, to put a curve into a chain, without moving the links or making it appear shorter. So such a depiction would not be realistic.
Besides that though, it's just not possible for a 2D, non-animation, graphics program. Because each time you move a chain link, it intersects differently with the next link.
If you've already learned how to draw a chain, then you probably already understand how to make one part of the chain link look like it's on top of the next link, in one place, and in another place, to look like it's under the next link. This is simulating 3d in a 2d medium.
So once you understand that, you must be able to see how much work would be needed, each time you want to change how the links interact. I suggest you try your hand at it :-)
You'll need to look to Blender, or other similar 3d modelling program. But I don't think....well I'm not sure, but I don't think Blender can do animation. For 3d animation, you might need to look at Synfig.
All best, brynn
-----Original Message----- From: Hans Carlson Sent: Wednesday, February 08, 2017 1:53 PM To: inkscape-user@lists.sourceforge.net Subject: [Inkscape-user] Movable Chain
I'd like to create a movable chain of sorts... I'm not sure how or if this is possible with inkscape (0.91)...
There seems to be lots of tutorials that show how to create a chain using Pattern along Path, the problem is, once the chain is created that's the end of the tutorial. I need to go a step further and actually move/manipulate the chain without deforming the links or changing the length of the chain. Maybe the "Pattern along Path" examples are completely wrong for what I want to do.
To put it another way, take a real physical chain... 10' long, sitting on the floor. I can move the chain around, pull on one end, push the chain in the middle, shape it into an S curve, form a circle with the chain, etc. All the while, the individual links are exactly how they started -- they haven't been stretched or bent or deformed in any way. And while the actual length of the chain can very a little bit it's limited by how much slack there is in the individual links.
Now, I want to do the same kind of thing in inkscape. I want to create a line long enough to hold exactly 60 circles, 20px in diameter with 5px space between each circle. Then, and this is the important part, I want move and reshape this "chain" around the canvas, just like I can do with a path composed of lots of nodes. But, I don't want the circles to change shape. The space between the circles can change a *little bit*, but should be limited... like the links in a real chain.
I'm very new to both vector graphics and inkscape, so I'm not sure if what I'm trying to do is easy, difficult or impossible. I would appreciate some enlightenment.
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