Measurements, Distances, Offset

[abodakian]

Hello,

I'm new to Forma and am wondering whether it has the capability to measure distances (a ruler function). Say, I want to start the building edge a certain distance away from the property line,  or check the distance between 2 buildings to make sure I am leaving enough space. Is there such a function? Also, is it possible to offset lines (ex: property lines or any lines I've drawn)? It would also be great to be able to draw lines in any of the axes (x,y, or z). Current lines seem to stick only to the terrain.

Thanks in advance:)

Adrinee

[josh.goldstein · Accepted solution]

Hi @abodakian!

We intend to bring a measuring tool to the main Design mode soon, but in the meantime, you can use 3D Sketch for this.

You can launch 3D Sketch and use the Measure Distance tool in the Guides and Measurements menu:

This will allow you to measure between any arbitrary two points, snapping to vertices and edges of all geometry:

I'm not sure there's a way to offset drawn polygons on the terrain, but I'll bring this up with the product team. 

You can also use 3D Sketch to draw lines in any arbitrary direction. They will appear red initially because 3D Sketch tries to encourage the creation of watertight solids, and the lines will unfortunately disappear in the main Design mode (we'll see what we can do about that too).

You might also consider drawing 2D faces in 3D Sketch which will show up in Design mode, and then you can use whatever edge you want to reference there.

In 3D Sketch, you can turn off the red edges and red back faces diagnostic in the Visibility Options menu:

Hope this helps as a workaround for now! We're working on improving all of this. 😅

[abodakian]

Thank you!

[jay.polding]

Glad to hear measurement tools are coming. Can you please add an ID tool that can provide coordinate information based on a selected point? I am looking to identify and compare the height of terrain at various locations. 

[josh.goldstein]

Hi again, everyone! Wanted to let you know we've released a measure tool in the main Forma design mode. 

By the way, I'm seeing several requests in this thread that cover a variety of features. It would be great to post each of those separately as a new topic in the forum, so we can better track and keep you updated on our progress as the product evolves.

Thanks! Hope you enjoy the new measure tool.