Changing stacking order of multiple shapes in one go

heyvern · Post by **heyvern** » Fri Sep 22, 2006 6:56 pm

I don't know if this is a no brainer... but I just discovered it.

I am working on a scene with shelves of boxes and bottles and cans in a grocery store.

I did one shelf and copied the layer and want to rearrange the items so as not to look the same.

The view is angled so ordering of my shapes is critical. Moving the boxes around on the shelf is a pain because each box has two shapes... the box fill and the lines for the "front corners". You can't have all that as one shape for some reason.

So... instead of moving shapes using the lower/raise shape command...

I just "cut" and "paste" the item mesh. This automatically puts both shapes at the top. I can reorder the boxes and bottles really really really fast.

Hope this helps out.

-vern

Rai López · Post by **Rai López** » Fri Sep 22, 2006 10:59 pm

And remember that you always can raise a shape to the top or send it to the bottom pressing Caps key and the arrow keys... No multiple shapes, yes... but very quickly too and less risky (I think) ...BYE!

7feet · Post by **7feet** » Fri Sep 22, 2006 11:56 pm

I'd made a script mod a while ago that would tell you what level a particular shape was in the stacking order, might help for something like this.

heyvern · Post by **heyvern** » Sat Sep 23, 2006 12:39 am

I have that script you created. I've been using the layering shortcuts as well...

However... I have like... a thousand boxes and bottles and cans all over this thing.

Each item has two and sometimes 3 shapes... caps... labels... etc. So... you have to... raise one shape to the top... then the next one... and lower it one layer... etc etc... if I raise the "bottom" shape of a box... to the top... the lines aren't selectable... have to select from the list... then raise to the top..

<sigh>... the explanation is worse than doing it...

Now I can group select a whole section of "cans" cut... paste... they are all on top and can be slid over another section of boxes or items. All those shapes... all in one shot... just two clicks of the keyboard.

Much much much easier than anything else.

-vern

7feet · Post by **7feet** » Sat Sep 23, 2006 1:04 am

Nah, I gotcha. Good solution. I just seem to be mentioning the script stuff a lot lately 'cuz there's a lot of new folks here who don't exactly know the potential of doing a little diddling with the program.

In another thread, somebody requested to be able to select multiple "groups". Maybe they meant shapes? One of the other bits I always wanted to do was grabbing shapes across layers and messing with them. Probably not a hard bit to drop in there. Well, hopefully in a few days I'll just be able to chill and do what I like ,"artist in residence" is sounding pretty good.

heyvern · Post by **heyvern** » Sat Sep 23, 2006 4:33 am

I love that shape layer script... thingy... I use it constantly.

Is it just me or is there an... avalanche of questions lately? From the new AS most likely.

I use to make an effort where I could to help... now... I feel I'm slacking off a tad... like a flood... I'm hiding out.

-vern