Polylines

[Bert Kemp]

In corel x5 is there an easy way to identify open polylines. maybe a way to make them stand out so you can close them.
or just a way to say close all open polylines?

I went back and tried all the options in join curves and still says theres open lines

[Scott Shepherd]

"Join Curves" from the Join docker. Just put in the gap value that's okay to join and hit apply.

[Bert Kemp]

Thanks Scott
I did do that but it still says Ihave open polylines maybe I have to make the gap more. I'll try increasing the gap.

[Scott Shepherd]

Yes Bert, that's exactly how you solve that. You're on the right track.

[Bert Kemp]

That didn't work I made the gap .35 from .25 and it still says I have an open. I can't see it anywhere.driving me nuts

[Scott Shepherd]

Are you in millimeters? .1 different in mm isn't much. Make it .5 and see if that closes it.

[Bill George]

Bert when I work in AutoCAD and in Coral I have my snap set to like maybe 1mm or sometimes less. Then when I draw something it always Snaps to the endpoint or whatever I am close to. In ACAD I can set it to Snap to Endpoint, Center or whatever. I don't think you can do that in Corel.

[Bert Kemp]

Scott
I'm working in Inches

Bill
I can snap to these and there all checked LOL 308566

[Scott Shepherd]

You put in .35 inches and it wouldn't close the gap? Can you post the file (X5 compatible please)?

[Bert Kemp]

308569
this is driving me crazy i've tried every thing I can think of must be some stupid little thing I'm missing here

Ya Know what I'm so frustrated with this I'm canning the project I do something different. it should be this hard to get a flag to engrave and look like a flag. I've worked on this file sine 7 am today engraved it at least 30 times on paper and it hasn't come out right yet. I'M DONE!!!!!

[Bill George]

I looked at it in X6, is this a Trace? Lots of short and not connected lines. Curious as why your working in Inches and the machine is Metric. That would really screw things up for me.
Anyway I think your going to have to go in and extend all the lines by hand. Unless Scott has a better idea.

Was it a BMP or JPG file and could you post it before things got changed?

[Bert Kemp]

Bill I don't see anylines that aren't connected


I looked at it in X6, is this a Trace? Lots of short and not connected lines. Curious as why your working in Inches and the machine is Metric. That would really screw things up for me.
Anyway I think your going to have to go in and extend all the lines by hand. Unless Scott has a better idea.

[Scott Shepherd]

308574

Bert, that's pretty simple to explain. Look at the drawing I have attached. You've got 3 or 4 objects with huge gaps in them, some of them were behind other lines. That's where your issues are.

Just a a point of reference, the Smartfill tool would make that a couple minute fix at most.

Take a look. Hang in there, I know it's frustrating, but it'll get easier.

[Bill George]

That's what I was seeing.

[Bert Kemp]

Thanks guys but I give up at least for today 7 hours to make a flag engrave just not worth it.

[Tony Lenkic]

Bert, how big is final piece? From your attachment it is less than 3" square. That should take no more than 10 minutes to engrave. Are you saying 7 hours including artwork setup?

[Glen Monaghan]

I see 4 problems with quick examination. The "rectangle" around the stars is open, starting at bottom left near the 2nd star up on far left and ending at top left. There is a stray line that probably should just be deleted underneath a star; starting at the top left star, go down one and right one to the 2nd star down in the 2nd column to find the stray line. The bottom stripe on the flag is open, starting on the bottom of the stripe approximately in the middle and ending on the bottom near the left side. The "four stripes" to the right of the stars aren't really stripes, just an open zigzag that starts at the top and works its way down; you actually get what looks like separate stripes if you join the start and end.

[Bert Kemp]

Tony it how long I've been working tring to get it to engrave right. It only takes a few mins but it keeps saying I have open polylines

Bert, how big is final piece? From your attachment it is less than 3" square. That should take no more than 10 minutes to engrave. Are you saying 7 hours including artwork setup?

[Tony Lenkic]

bert,

To check for open polylines set your nudge offset high enough to clear current size of image. Break image apart then move one piece in any direction and you will see where you have open polylines.
I like to use smart fill toll to achieve closed images. One thing also in your attachment I see pole has bit map fill.
Here is my try.

[Glen Monaghan]

Nudge offset is intended to deal with small offsets where it might look like the figure is closed but actually is not. In this instance, though, the offset value would have to be ridiculously huge to close the open polylines. See my previous post as to where they are. Or use the shape tool to select each shape in turn. When you see, as you do with the bottom-most stripe, that the start and end triangles are nowhere near each other, you know you have an open shape.

[Bert Kemp]

I couldn't get it to open, thanks for tring tho.


bert,

To check for open polylines set your nudge offset high enough to clear current size of image. Break image apart then move one piece in any direction and you will see where you have open polylines.
I like to use smart fill toll to achieve closed images. One thing also in your attachment I see pole has bit map fill.
Here is my try.

[Mike Null]

Bert

Things like this are where a good clip art file comes in handy.. You may even have a drawing similar to that on your version X5. A Google search will turn up thousands and maybe some vector items.

[Bert Kemp]

Mike I downloaded a vector file of the flag from free downloads just so many to choose from and there all like this one with overlapping lines. I'm not great in corel or lasercut so its difficult but I'm learning. For the most part I can do what I want but now and then I get a file thats real hard for me to figure out
How does one go about finding a particular graphic in the corel files. I look in there and theres hundreds and there labeled by number so if Iwanted to find a car , or flag how would you do it.


Bert

Things like this are where a good clip art file comes in handy.. You may even have a drawing similar to that on your version X5. A Google search will turn up thousands and maybe some vector items.

[Bill George]

The Flag.cdr just above opened fine in X6 and I used the one on the right as a Vector export into my LaserCut program. Set up fine for a vector and the simulate shows it will work.

[Rich Harman]

Mike I downloaded a vector file of the flag from free downloads just so many to choose from and there all like this one with overlapping lines.

Just FYI, LaserWorks has an option where you can delete overlapping lines (lines that lay on top of others). You can also close gaps.

[Tony Lenkic]

Bert,

Try these two options

[Dave Sheldrake]

Hiya Bert,

You need to get away from splines to use LaserCUT effectively, it doesn't handle beziers very well at all and in many cases will cause crashes. The files is compiled to a point variant when it downloads to the machines so all those little grip points get added in. Even a Bezier file of 100k can end up at 40 to 50 meg when compiled :(

cheers

Dave

[Bert Kemp]

Rich I have lasercut 5.3 does thathave the option you mentioned

Just FYI, LaserWorks has an option where you can delete overlapping lines (lines that lay on top of others). You can also close gaps.

[Mike Null]

Bert

There are many preset but adjustable drawing tools in Corel. In the attached example I used the table tool, rectangle tool, star tool, convert to curves, the envelope tool and the smart fill tool. I didn't actually draw anything.


308679

[Bert Kemp]

Hey Dave been a while:)
anyway I have a hard time understanding all this polylines , splines and beziers stuff. I try reading some of the tutorial, but I find them hard to understand. I need real basic instruction, you know laymen s terms. Not only that but you have to know what you want to do and what process will do that for you. Its not easy not knowing. I'm learning by doing and sometimes it takes a whole day of trying different functions in corel to see what they do. People here telling me to try this and that really helps me learn also. I know that some of the stuff I design and make you guys could do in half an hour, but sometimes it takes me an entire day to figure it out. I'll post a picture when I get on my other computer.

Hiya Bert,

You need to get away from splines to use LaserCUT effectively, it doesn't handle beziers very well at all and in many cases will cause crashes. The files is compiled to a point variant when it downloads to the machines so all those little grip points get added in. Even a Bezier file of 100k can end up at 40 to 50 meg when compiled :(

cheers

Dave

[Rich Harman]

Rich I have lasercut 5.3 does thathave the option you mentioned

Yes, that is the version* I use.

*except I use LaserWorks...

[Bert Kemp]

Rich where would I find the option to delete overlapping lines?


Yes, that is the version I use.

[Rich Harman]

Rich where would I find the option to delete overlapping lines?

Select the graphics then at the top of the screen choose "Handle", then "Delete Overlap".

[Bill George]

Its really too bad, the Chinese programmers are so close to having a decent program. Maybe they get told, that's good enough for those guys in the US!

[Don Corbeil]

Select the graphics then at the top of the screen choose "Handle", then "Delete Overlap".

Is there an equivalent corel X6 macro that does the same w/overlapping polylines?

[Bert Kemp]

Rich I don't see that option in lasercut or corel, I corel x5 and lasercut 5.3, not lasercad or laserworks.


Select the graphics then at the top of the screen choose "Handle", then "Delete Overlap".

[Rich Harman]

Rich I don't see that option in lasercut or corel, I corel x5 and lasercut 5.3, not lasercad or laserworks.

Maybe it is named something different in LaserCut. I was under the impression that the two programs were quite similar. It could be that LaserCut does not have that feature.

[Bert Kemp]

I tried searching HELP in lasercut but nothing came up.

Maybe it is named something different in LaserCut. I was under the impression that the two programs were quite similar. It could be that LaserCut does not have that feature.

[Michael Kowalczyk]

best thing is to NEVER use a DXF file ALWAYS USE a DWG so much cleaner and easier to import.

[Bert Kemp]

I think I can only import DXF into laser cut:(


best thing is to NEVER use a DXF file ALWAYS USE a DWG so much cleaner and easier to import.

[Bill George]

I think I can only import DXF into laser cut:(

I've used AutoCAD for years, for what we are doing Bert DXF is fine. It's one good way for Importing Exporting into graphics programs. Otherwise a BMP works fine for Importing art or clip art.

[Mayo Pardo]

I'm curious if you have your VIEW set to WIREFRAME when you're looking for open lines that should be connected?
It would be more difficult seeing them if you were in enhanced or normal view.

[Bert Kemp]

Hi Mayo,
I'm in unfilled hair outline mode, guess its kinda like wire frame.


I'm curious if you have your VIEW set to WIREFRAME when you're looking for open lines that should be connected?
It would be more difficult seeing them if you were in enhanced or normal view.

[Bill George]

I think he means, go to Top Menu bar, select View and the drop down shows Wireframe, etc, and others as Normal and Enhanced.
Frankly I just used the Magnifying Glass to look at that file you posted and I could see the lines clearly were not connected and missing in some places. I am in Normal or Enhanced mode most of the time.

[Tommy dunn]

Hi bert
There is data check in laser cut
i think it's in tools,

Tommy

[Bert Kemp]

I see that, now tell me what it does and how it will help me:)


Hi bert
There is data check in laser cut
i think it's in tools,

Tommy