rollout with more than one column?

[bhnh]

I'm working on a rollout that's getting mighty tall. Is it possible to split a rollout into two or more columns? Many thanks.

[Anonymous]

I'm working on a rollout that's getting mighty tall. Is it possible to split a rollout into two or more columns? Many thanks.

If you envision a floater that works like the Command panel when expanded into multiple columns, it could be possible to hack (see 3. below) but it is a poor solution.

If your rollout is getting too long, you have several options:
1. Use a Rollout Floater instead of a Dialog so you can scroll your rollout inside it
2. Use a Rollout Floater and split the one Rollout you used as dialog into multiple Rollouts so you can collapse/expand them.
3. Use a Dialog with one or two sub-rollouts to place one or more rollouts inside them.This would look a lot like two-column layour, but would lack the built-in logic for showing a rollout in the second column if the first one is too long.
4. Just make your Dialog wider and reposition all controls into groups or something. See the "Customize UI>Quads>Advanced Options..." dialog, a MAXScript that John Burnett wrote back in Max 4. My initial version of that same dialog used to be rather tall, his update made it wider and much more useful.

[Anonymous]

Bruce, not as far as I know, not in a literal way, but really, it's all just grouped commands on a panel size which is determined by you, and if you look at some of the tools found in Max, such as the UVW Unwrap Options Panel, you'll see how you can visually group functions with a border.... and then you can look at the Macroscripts that ship with Max, to see how that could be implemented.

Basically, just size your panel appropriately to be wider, and space your commands to be located there on the next "column". And, I'm not sure you can place more than 1 rollout on a panel, side by side, but perhaps you can, so you can then group functions into the 2 or more rollouts, laid out horizontally. Check the Maxscript Help for info on that as well as borders and other techniques for arraying your tools onto the panel.

Edit, beaten to the punch bowl by the Master himself. 😉 Thankfully, we sort of agreed in our reponses, so I don't have to edit that. 😉

[bhnh]

As always, many thanks, Bobo. 🙂

[Anonymous]

As always, many thanks, Bobo. 🙂

Here is a repost of my CGTalk example just for reference...

(
    global masterRollout 
    try(destroyDialog masterRollout)catch()
    rollout childRollout01 "First Rollout"
    (
        button btn_button01 "Button01" width:170
        button btn_button02 "Button02" width:170
        button btn_button03 "Button03" width:170
        button btn_button04 "Button04" width:170
        button btn_button05 "Button05" width:170
    )
    rollout childRollout02 "Second Rollout"
    (
        button btn_button01 "Button01" width:170
        button btn_button02 "Button02" width:170
        button btn_button03 "Button03" width:170
        button btn_button04 "Button04" width:170
        button btn_button05 "Button05" width:170
        button btn_button06 "Button06" width:170
    )    
    rollout childRollout03 "Third Rollout"
    (
        spinner spn_spinner01 "Spinner01" fieldwidth:80
        spinner spn_spinner02 "Spinner02" fieldwidth:80
        spinner spn_spinner03 "Spinner03" fieldwidth:80
        spinner spn_spinner04 "Spinner04" fieldwidth:80
        spinner spn_spinner05 "Spinner05" fieldwidth:80
        spinner spn_spinner06 "Spinner06" fieldwidth:80
        spinner spn_spinner07 "Spinner07" fieldwidth:80
    )    

    rollout masterRollout "Master Rollout"
    (
        subRollout sub_rollout01 width:200 height:200    across:2 align:#left offset:
        subRollout sub_rollout02 width:200 height:200    align:#right offset:
        on masterRollout open do
        (
            addSubRollout sub_rollout01 childRollout01
            addSubRollout sub_rollout01 childRollout02 rolledup:true
            addSubRollout sub_rollout02 childRollout03
        )
    )
    createDialog masterRollout 410 210
)

Follow the link for the result:
http://www.scriptspot.com/bobo/stuff/forum/twocolumnsrollout.gif

[bhnh]

Thanks to all. I noticed a somewhat hackish (IMHO) alternative can be assembled in the Visual MAXScript Editor.

[bhnh]

OK, here's something I slapped together in the Visual Editor. Interesting alternative, though for what I'm doing I think I prefer collapsible rollouts in a floater. Thanks again.