Value lists as input data
One of the powerful possible applications of a parametric design tool like Paragraphic is to be able to design custom diagrams and info-graphics to visualize data and values. For this purpose I’ve now added the simple but powerful Value list parameter type. This is simply a field where you can input a number of values or text strings separated by commas, and this set of values can then be used by various features to pick and use one of these values.
Generation indexes
In order to pick values from value lists, or to calculate dynamic values in other ways, you can use what I’m currently calling Generation indexes, or just Indexes. These are basically sequence numbers, representing the number of the element in a repetition or group. You can access these via the index value parameter node to use the index value directly as a value, or indirectly via the Value from list or Text from list parameter nodes that let you pick an item from a value list based on an index.
The index selection controls will automatically update and show any available indexes in the layer, showing what repeater or parent layer group has set them. So you can for example pick an item based on the index an element has in a specific repeater, or use the index the layer has in the parent layer group.
For more basic cases I’ve also added a simple Apply value list group node that just lets you apply the values in a value list to various transformations of the elements in a group, which can also be useful for more artistic repeating patterns.
Additional changes and improvements
UI/UX
- Renamed Inputs panel to Parameters and refer to them as Document parameters instead.
- Implemented drag reordering and moving layers in/out of groups in the layers list.
- Implemented copy and paste support for layers (including connections to/within layers!)
- Implemented undo/redo of layer reordering and grouping/ungrouping.
- Implemented undo/redo support for changing Image data parameters (imported images).
- Added warning messages for when you try to set properties not supported by the element type (like setting text on a path element), explaining why nothing happens.
Generation
- Added a new Join texts parameter node for adding together input texts for text parameters.
- Improved / rebuilt layer generation index system to be specific to each layer node, and dynamically show what indexes are available (more on this later in a separate post).
- Added layer generation indexes for index in parent layer groups.
Distribution
- Implemented a simple update check system to check for available updates and notify the users with a change log and download link, in preparation for wider testing to ensure testers are using the latest version.