×
INTELLIGENT WORK FORUMS
FOR ENGINEERING PROFESSIONALS

Log In

Come Join Us!

Are you an
Engineering professional?
Join Eng-Tips Forums!
  • Talk With Other Members
  • Be Notified Of Responses
    To Your Posts
  • Keyword Search
  • One-Click Access To Your
    Favorite Forums
  • Automated Signatures
    On Your Posts
  • Best Of All, It's Free!
  • Students Click Here

*Eng-Tips's functionality depends on members receiving e-mail. By joining you are opting in to receive e-mail.

Posting Guidelines

Promoting, selling, recruiting, coursework and thesis posting is forbidden.

Students Click Here

Jobs

DIMENSION TEXT IS IN MY WAY

DIMENSION TEXT IS IN MY WAY

DIMENSION TEXT IS IN MY WAY

(OP)
Very often, after I pick the 1st point for my Smart Dimension... the dimension text is stuck to my cursor, making it impossible to pick my 2nd point. By now, there MUST be a work-around for this. I can't find any SYSTEM OPTION or DOCUMENT PROPERTY to control this. Please advise...
 

Jack L Tate - Xtreme Tower Products - SolidWorks 2011 - Windows XP Pro - RocketFish Mouse - SpaceNavigator - Slacker Radio - Swingline Stapler - Pop Tarts - C8H10N4O2 - Rental Bowling Shoes - Titanuim Spork - And that's all I need!

RE: DIMENSION TEXT IS IN MY WAY

I am with you on this one. It is annoying and I hope there is an answer out there...

SW 2011 SP 5.0 x64
Core i7-2600@3.40GHz
Quadro 4000 DUAL DISPLAY
Windows 7 PRO x64 16 Meg

 

RE: DIMENSION TEXT IS IN MY WAY

I'm unaware of an answer as well, except - it's not that it doesn't work - if 'guess' at a general area, it seems to attach correctly.

SW Premium 2011
64 bit SP4.0
Intel Xenon X5650 @2.67GHz
2.66 GHz   11.9 GB of RAM

RE: DIMENSION TEXT IS IN MY WAY

(OP)
It interprets my 2nd pick as my radial or diameter dimension location. This only happens when I'm dimensioning between 2 circles.

Jack L Tate - Xtreme Tower Products - SolidWorks 2011 - Windows XP Pro - RocketFish Mouse - SpaceNavigator - Slacker Radio - Swingline Stapler - Pop Tarts - C8H10N4O2 - Rental Bowling Shoes - Titanuim Spork - And that's all I need!

RE: DIMENSION TEXT IS IN MY WAY

APPARENTLY THE DIMENSION TEXT IS BLOCKING ACCESS TO YOUR CAPS LOCK KEY.

RE: DIMENSION TEXT IS IN MY WAY

(OP)
That made no difference.

Jack L Tate - Xtreme Tower Products - SolidWorks 2011 - Windows XP Pro - RocketFish Mouse - SpaceNavigator - Slacker Radio - Swingline Stapler - Pop Tarts - C8H10N4O2 - Rental Bowling Shoes - Titanuim Spork - And that's all I need!

RE: DIMENSION TEXT IS IN MY WAY

Pick the 2nd point first?  lookaround

RE: DIMENSION TEXT IS IN MY WAY

Do the elements you are trying to select not highlight when hovered over?

Have you tried using the Magnifying Glass (G key) when selecting the 2nd entity? If the glass is placed so that the entity is off centre, the dimension text is offset and should allow easier selection.

RE: DIMENSION TEXT IS IN MY WAY

Ha! I've been barking about this for years now, and even submitted and ER back in 2007.

Reference Number: 183681
Date and Time: 8/5/2007 3:00:00 PM
Problem:  "Selecting geometry is obstructed"
Solution Ideas: "I would like to submit an ER to the dimension function. It is very difficult to manually dimension from SW part when inserted into a drawing. When selecting the first piece of geometry, the dimension is automatically generated and follows the cursor when the cursor is move. This obstructs the cursor when selecting the second piece of geometry. This happens quite often in section and detail views. I would like to propose moving the dimension value from the cursor pointer area. This would allow the SW user access geometry when dimensioning."
 

Colin Fitzpatrick (aka Macduff)
Mechanical Designer
Solidworks 2010 SP 5.0
Dell T5500 Windows 7 Pro (64-bit)
Xeon CPU 2.53 GHz 6.00 GB of RAM
nVida Quadro 4000 2 GB
3D Connexion-SpaceExplorer

RE: DIMENSION TEXT IS IN MY WAY

Oh, Happy T-Day everyone. Have a great holiday!
 

Colin Fitzpatrick (aka Macduff)
Mechanical Designer
Solidworks 2010 SP 5.0
Dell T5500 Windows 7 Pro (64-bit)
Xeon CPU 2.53 GHz 6.00 GB of RAM
nVida Quadro 4000 2 GB
3D Connexion-SpaceExplorer

RE: DIMENSION TEXT IS IN MY WAY

I've experienced this problem as well.  It usually happens when you are zooming way in to select between to very close entities and the text becomes a billboard covering everything up.  I haven't found a work around but it's only rarely a problem and one I can usually work through.  Perhaps if solidworks could make the unplaced dimension text semi-transparent it would mitigate this problem.

-Kirby

Kirby Wilkerson

Remember, first define the problem, then solve it.

RE: DIMENSION TEXT IS IN MY WAY

To prevent the "billboard" effect, go to Tools > Options > Document Properties > Detailing and select the Always display text at the same size option.

RE: DIMENSION TEXT IS IN MY WAY

(OP)
I should clarify... this usually happens with circular silhouette edges.

Jack L Tate - Xtreme Tower Products - SolidWorks 2011 - Windows XP Pro - RocketFish Mouse - SpaceNavigator - Slacker Radio - Swingline Stapler - Pop Tarts - C8H10N4O2 - Rental Bowling Shoes - Titanuim Spork - And that's all I need!

RE: DIMENSION TEXT IS IN MY WAY

This is what I'm experiencing (see attached). Nonetheless, we should never have to experience this. It's a plain out bug that needs to be fixed.   

Colin Fitzpatrick (aka Macduff)
Mechanical Designer
Solidworks 2010 SP 5.0
Dell T5500 Windows 7 Pro (64-bit)
Xeon CPU 2.53 GHz 6.00 GB of RAM
nVida Quadro 4000 2 GB
3D Connexion-SpaceExplorer

RE: DIMENSION TEXT IS IN MY WAY

I don't think it's a true bug. It's working as intended, to enable WYSIWYG placing of the dimension after a single pick. Unfortunately the intended way was poorly conceived when a multiple pick is required.

But whatever it's called, it needs to be fixed, and an ER would be the simplest method. The SPR could then be posted here for others to add their vote.

RE: DIMENSION TEXT IS IN MY WAY

This is not a fix but, what I do, is do the "select other" thing.  Then you move the mouse around (even if you can't see anything) but eventually something pops up on the select other and you can check if it is what you want.

Usually works for me.  In fact, I often have to do this even when everything is visible.  On large assemblies (physically, not a bunch of parts), the thing will usually snap to nothing or the wrong thing in the drawing.  In either case, when this happens, you have to start the whole dimension process over again.  A real pain.

John

RE: DIMENSION TEXT IS IN MY WAY

Do you guys not have the Dynamic Highlight function enabled?

RE: DIMENSION TEXT IS IN MY WAY

Yes, it is a pain and should be a simple code fox for SW, but they choose to ignore the requests to fix it. I wish you could pre-select the geometry then select the dimension function. That would help.

Colin Fitzpatrick (aka Macduff)
Mechanical Designer
Solidworks 2010 SP 5.0
Dell T5500 Windows 7 Pro (64-bit)
Xeon CPU 2.53 GHz 6.00 GB of RAM
nVida Quadro 4000 2 GB
3D Connexion-SpaceExplorer

RE: DIMENSION TEXT IS IN MY WAY

Where's that at CBL? I see Dynamic Highlight under colors and is set to orange

Colin Fitzpatrick (aka Macduff)
Mechanical Designer
Solidworks 2010 SP 5.0
Dell T5500 Windows 7 Pro (64-bit)
Xeon CPU 2.53 GHz 6.00 GB of RAM
nVida Quadro 4000 2 GB
3D Connexion-SpaceExplorer

Red Flag This Post

Please let us know here why this post is inappropriate. Reasons such as off-topic, duplicates, flames, illegal, vulgar, or students posting their homework.

Red Flag Submitted

Thank you for helping keep Eng-Tips Forums free from inappropriate posts.
The Eng-Tips staff will check this out and take appropriate action.

Reply To This Thread

Posting in the Eng-Tips forums is a member-only feature.

Click Here to join Eng-Tips and talk with other members!


Resources