SP3, Rulers in the skybox!

[euromodeller]

In surveyor I have come across a new ruler anomoly.
It's not pie in the sky, but rulers in the sky .

On starting a new route the first thing I do is change from 10m grid to 5m grid.
Then on the single baseboard I like to get the exact centre by using 2 diagonal rulers.
First diagonal ruler worked as expected.
Second ruler vanished when I tried to place the second end at the corner of the baseboard, I found it later when I started to repeat the operation, it was in the skybox.
I then discovered that I could alter its length in the skybox.
I then experimented by placing a random ruler on the baseboard but I was allowed to continue it as far as I wanted into the sky box, I am sure that this would not have happened previously.
This is a different thing to previous ruler problems.

I then tried the same thing on several routes and got a similar experience.

Please try it on one or more of your routes to confirm if you can reproduce the anomoly.


edited to add, you can actually draw rulers in the skybox!

 

[pware]

I followed your steps as described (5m grid, baseboard diagonals) but was unable to reproduce the anomaly in as far as the second ruler vanishing and appearing in the skybox. I was able to draw a ruler entirely in the skybox, but as the Surveyor cursor icon is not able to move into the skybox, I was not able draw it far from the edge of the baseboard. Likewise, I was able to extend a ruler from the baseboard into the skybox but, again with the limitation of the cursor staying on the baseboard, it could only extend out so far.

The ruler behaviour I observed was no different to what I had been able to do in other versions of Trainz.

 

[euromodeller]

Hmm, that's odd, I can move the mouse ponter icon out to the skybox with the end of the ruler attached and I can edit the ruler when it's in the skybox, e.g, move it around.
Admittedly I never tried this in other versions but it seems odd to be able to draw a ruler out in the skybox.

 

[Dinorius_Redundicus]

A ruler in the skybox. That’s just God.

 

[euromodeller]

I've borrowed god's rulers and been trying reproduce the vanishing ruler... and succeded

New baseboard for this experiment.
Position viewpoint as image below and start to draw a ruler from the top corner toward the bottom edge.

Now continue to pull the ruler down to the bottom edge as below.

Now for the party piece.

The curser will not go off the edge of the board, but, continue pulling the ruler end to the corner along the bottom edge and.... gone!

(it's actually still attached to the top corner but the end is out in the skybox)

Now, change point of view to that below..

You can now fly rulers anywhere in the skybox.
So looking out you can do this, but looking in from outside you can't.

I even tried it on another PC and got the same result.


I would like to know did this happen in SP2 or is it new to SP3?.
It's annoying when you are used to the curser stopping at the edge, but now doesn't except as in view 2.

I probably have too much time on my hands, plus I am easily distracted by something unusual. :hehe:

 

[pware]

OK, just repeated the experiment. Two observations.

1. If your point of view (camera position) is beyond the edge of the baseboard when you are dragging out the free end of a ruler, then both the Surveyor cursor and the free end of the ruler will stop at the baseboard edge and the ruler cannot be extended out. However, if you release the mouse button to fix the free end of the ruler and then use the Edit Ruler button, you can extend the ruler end beyond the baseboard. From that outside viewing position it is impossible to draw a ruler that starts outside the baseboard (i.e. in the skybox).
2. If your point of view is hovering above a baseboard then the free end can be dragged out beyond the baseboard edge using the Draw Ruler tool and you can even start a ruler in the sky.

Still no vanishing ruler problem and it does not seem to matter what baseboard grid size has been selected. Apart from your vanishing ruler, I don't see this as a "bug" - rather it is an "undocumented feature".

 

[euromodeller]

Thanks for taking the time to check it out.
It's annoying when you are making a Modelz layout, using measurements from the edges is important when setting things out.
I am sure that rulers stopped at the baseboard eges when viewed from all angles, but at my age memory is not perfect, I can forget what happened yesterday but can remember vividly what happened 50 years ago!

I'll just have to be vigilant at the edges!

Take care