LDCad 1.6 suggestions/plans

[Jaco van der Molen]

Buffer exchange works for immediate replacements of everything from this step. But, sometimes, the situation is more complicated. Especially with Technic models instructions. Look at this example, steps 45-48. There is a submodel containing some (long) pins and a bendable front part, now straight. After this submodel is attached to the main model there is a step with arrows showing how to push those long pins, then another step showing pins in the new location and the front part of the (sub)model bent to the new angle and soft axles bent as well, connected with that front part.

This is near to impossible to create with bufferexchange commands because they are too "heavy" - they force you to replace everything or nothing, they can't work with parts of submodels in the main model etc. It's like an attempt to fix your watches with a jackhammer. I believe we need more subtle and precise commands.

Maybe I'm over simplyfinig it but the first thing that springs to me is adding an option to groups to control in which step(s) it should be shown. This combined with the nested use of groups (and the planned multi layered use of groups) should make it possible to hide/show anything when needed. But it would only be really useful if LPub would also be able to use it.

Sorry to pop in so late in this discussion and I don't know if it has been discussed (can't find it) but that is what the LPub meta command REMOVE GROUP is for. You group the pins in step 45 and name that group ie. "pins". Then getting to step 47 you use !LPUB REMOVE GROUP "pins" to kind of remove the pins from the LDraw structure and add the same pins in that step, put them in the right place and ignore (PLI IGN) the newly added pins (that are already added) so that the part count is correct in PLI and BOM.

Atleast, this can be done with the MLCAD version of Groups.
What I am wondering is if the LDCad group meta is supported in LPub(3D)?