How do you change the dimension of a circle sketch?

[cjshull]

I seriously l cannot figure this out.  When I click my circle sketch, it has no dimensions or visible dimensions.  I click edit sketch, I get nothing.  I can drag it's size bigger and smaller, but what I need is a measurement input box.  how do I change it's diameter?

[mstrater]

In the "Sketch" drop down menu, look for "Sketch Dimension". Select that, click on your circle to apply a dimension to it, and then click where you want the dimension to be positioned. You should then be able to enter whatever value you want for the diameter. You can double click the dimension later to edit it again.

[dewaine50]

This seems like a radically complicated way to edit sketches. Can I just passively display my exact dimensions always so I can edit them on the fly in everything?

[etfrench]

Short answer is No  You need to get used to the parametric way.  In Timeline mode (versus Direct Modeling) all of the dimensions in a sketch are only two mouse clicks away in the Change Parameters dialog.

p.s. You can turn the display of a sketches dimensions in the Browser.

[Anonymous]

Short answer shouldn't be the typical "No [because there's a senselessly different, unintuitive and unnecesseryly complicated way]" - but: "Holy cow! We instantly reported that idiotic programming failure, will be covered in the next update! Of course you often need to change the size of a sketch element on the fly, and of course that dimensions thing is a plain hindrance, also blocking the view. So we told the programmers to display an "Edit" menu item after rightclick on any sketch element you can choose from the Sketch menu, showing all it's parameters like X/Y/Z position and dimensions for instant, quick and intuitive editing without that stupid "Dimensions" workaround.
Of course this has *nothing* to do with Fusion's parametric approach (because a circle's size is a most basic parameter) - but I just couldn't figure out any other excuse for that major fault of the software, hihi."

THAT's the kind of answer I wish I could read.

I am real fed up with that stereotypical "No, OF COURSE you need to do it an unintuitive and complicated way!"
Fusion has awful faults and crude features, so let's face the truth if we wish to make it any better.
And please stop calling each and every hair-raising Fusion fault a brilliant feature. 😉

[chrisplyler]

Tomato/tomaaaahto.

I like it the way it is. What seems unintuitive to you seems perfectly reasonable to most of us. Placing dimensions is not a "workaround." It's the intended methodology.

[Anonymous]

It does not seem unintuitive, it is.

Let's say I scribbled a circle, then a rectangle. Now I see that the circle is a bit too small in diameter.

First intuive idea: Right click, edit diameter, Enter. Finished. Like edits work everywhere.

Now the intended methodology: Right click, select "Sketch Dimension", place the dimension, click, enter diameter, Enter, right click on newly added dimension, Delete.

Three steps versus eight steps.

So why is a simple change of a single parameter something like "intended methodology"?

It's just unnecessary effort.

At least for those who don't need or want dimensions displayed.

And as Fusion doesn't add dimensions automatically when creating a circle, dimensions don't appear to be even part of that "intended methodology".

Just add "Edit" to the context menu - and all parties should be happy.

[etfrench]

Actually Fusion 360 can add dimensions automatically when a circle (or other geometry) is created.  Instead of complaining about the interface, spend some time to learn it.

Hint: Experiment with finalizing the size with the keyboard and with the mouse.

[davebYYPCU]

Nope, If circle is blue, (unconstrained) in my colour scheme, click and drag is so convenient, I don’t see the problem, 

click drag the centre point to move it, 

click drag on the diameter curve, change size.

Works everywhere, inside or outside the current sketch 

Intuitive.

[Anonymous]

> "Actually Fusion 360 can add dimensions automatically when a circle (or other geometry) is created.

That's something you don't see if you don't like cluttering your drawing with dimensions.
But if there's indeed an option for adding dimensions automatically, I of course stand corrected. 🙂

> "Instead of complaining about the interface, spend some time to learn it."

I don't see too much sense in using the interface for things I don't wish to do.

And I did not complain about the lack of automatically adding dimension, I complained about being forced to edit a simple single parameter using a stream of unnecessary steps.

Fusion aims to pull over users of other CAD tools, that's why there's that "Startup" licences. This is a proven marketing move, and I also appreciate that.

If you're a complete "noob" to CAD, you might not run into deeper problems - because you just don't know there's better, more intuitive ways of achieving something.

But if you've got just a little CAD experience, you constantly tear your hair out when stumbling over the next counterintuitive way of doing it with Fusion.

There are indeed features I like. And of course I like using Fusion for free.

But while I like some features, there's far more features making me think "What the heck did those devs smoke while developing that feature in such a counterintuitive way?"

And even after spending several hours with the software, I ponder about getting a paid version of a different software, doing things far more intuitive.

As said: If you start your CAD experience with Fusion, you might get used to the strange processes soon.

But if Fusion wishes to pull over other CAD users, there's a long way to go - a way towards, not away from intuition.

[Anonymous]

Dave: Try the "R" example. 😉

[HughesTooling]

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@Anonymous wrote:

As said: If you start your CAD experience with Fusion, you might get used to the strange processes soon.

But if Fusion wishes to pull over other CAD users, there's a long way to go - a way towards, not away from intuition.

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Or if you start with solidworks, inventor or any other solid modeling program. The whole point of a parametric modeling program is you dimension and constrain everything so it's easy to edit and create new versions. If you don't want a parametric modeler just move on and find a program that fits your needs. If they dumb fusion down to a drag it to somewhere near type of program it will not be any good for precision work. I've tested a few programs a few years ago with very impressive youtube videos building parts, trouble was when you had to build something accurately it was near impossible. I didn't waste my time on them, just uninstalled and moved on until I found Fusion.

Mark

[davebYYPCU]

Why?

[chrisplyler]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Let's say I scribbled a circle, then a rectangle. Now I see that the circle is a bit too small in diameter.

First intuive idea: Right click, edit diameter, Enter. Finished. Like edits work everywhere.

Now the intended methodology: Right click, select "Sketch Dimension", place the dimension, click, enter diameter, Enter, right click on newly added dimension, Delete.

Three steps versus eight steps.

And as Fusion doesn't add dimensions automatically when creating a circle, dimensions don't appear to be even part of that "intended methodology".

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Intended methodology: Press the D shortcut key on your keyboard, place the dim on the circle, type the desired value, hit enter. It's literally a total of one and a half seconds, more only if the desired dimension value has lots of decimal places or something.

Fusion does add dimensions automatically when creating a circle, just like it does for everything else, if you type in the value and hit enter instead of just clicking randomly to place the circumference.

Why the heck would you delete a desired dimensions? Has nobody told you about fully constraining your sketches? Have you not put yourself through even a little bit of the beginner tutorials?

[chrisplyler]

I had 28 years of various CAD experience before I started with Fusion. I've never torn my hair out once.

And if your answer to my question about deleting dimensions is, "I don't want the clutter," then just uncheck this option:

[Anonymous]

One-in-all reply.

Looks like the majority of you got me wrong - or did their best for getting me wrong.

My point of criticism isn't the parametric internal structure of Fusion, nothing wrong with that - it's the horrible face Fusion shows outside.

I could give you endless examples, but let's stay with the topic at hand, editing a circle's diameter.

Fusion's approach: Right click, select "Sketch Dimension", place the dimension, click, enter diameter, Enter, right click on newly added dimension, Delete.

EIGHT steps.

Just tell me why I need eight steps for simply changing a circle's diameter?

Why there isn't just right-click, choose "Edit", enter the new diameter?

With a body like a box, I get that edit option in the context menu.
But with a sketch, I don't.

Naturally, a sketch is a sketch, a stage where you permanently need to edit and rearrange things.

And exactly at this stage, Fusion does it's best to hinder the process of quickly setting up a sketch.

Any sense in that? - Just go ahead, tell me. I'd be happy to be proven wrong, also happy to learn.

Dave: Haha, sorry! 😄 Mismatched two different threads. The other thread is about that "green circles" cluttering up your workspace if you work with a lot of splines in a confined space. Tracing the outlines of the letter "R" was used as an example for others to retrace the problem.

chris: I know the ways of defining a circle with Fusion, of course I use the input fields.
And of course I know I can double-click a dimension for changing it.

But I just don't wish dimensions to be displayed.

And in that case, editing a simple parameter like the diameter becomes a senseless act: Displaying dimensions again, editing, hiding dimensions again.

> "Have you not put yourself through even a little bit of the beginner tutorials?"

> "And if your answer to my question about deleting dimensions is, "I don't want the clutter," then just uncheck this option:"

Now show me a tutorial telling me how to change a circle's diameter without using dimensions display.

That's the point. Up from the start.

[chrisplyler]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Fusion's approach: Right click, select "Sketch Dimension", place the dimension, click, enter diameter, Enter, right click on newly added dimension, Delete.

EIGHT steps.

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Nope. Read MESSAGE 14 again.

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@Anonymous wrote:

Why there isn't just right-click, choose "Edit", enter the new diameter?

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There is a double-click on the dimension, enter the new diameter. No more steps than what you propose. Don't even have to click an Edit button or anything.

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@Anonymous wrote:

With a body like a box, I get that edit option in the context menu.

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Now you're talking about Fusion's Primitive bodies. I'm not going to go into WHY you should avoid them here, but you should.

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@Anonymous wrote:

And exactly at this stage, Fusion does it's best to hinder the process of quickly setting up a sketch.

Any sense in that? - Just go ahead, tell me. I'd be happy to be proven wrong, also happy to learn.

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You only find the process hindering because you're inflexibly demanding to have it your way. The way Fusion does it differs from your proposed way, but it isn't any harder or any more steps. If you've watched a few of the beginner sketching tutorials, and still feel a lack of confidence in a particular area, I would be happy to make you a custom video answering your question(s) and/or showing you how easy it is.

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@Anonymous wrote:

But I just don't wish dimensions to be displayed.

And in that case, editing a simple parameter like the diameter becomes a senseless act: Displaying dimensions again, editing, hiding dimensions again. Now show me a tutorial telling me how to change a circle's diameter without using dimensions display.

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Well, I really don't understand why you don't want them displayed. They, along with constraints, are the lifeblood of the sketch. But, if you must, I would point out that you can use the Parameters dialog to change any dimension value. You can even make often-changed values into Favorites or User Parameters so they will appear at the top of the list. But even if you don't want to do that, the process of "displaying dimensions again, editing, hiding dimensions again" isn't really any more work than "right clicking, clicking an Edit button or context menu item, editing, exiting the Edit dialog."

Look, I get it. Quite often I use some software and think, "Why the heck did they do it like this, when doing it this other way is better?" Yes, that has even happened using F360.

But here is the reality: Every person in the world doesn't think exactly the same, including you, me, and the Autodesk developers. We voice our opinions, they try (painfully slowly it sometimes seems) to feel out the majority user consensus (if one can be discerned) and make changes/improvements to their software appropriately. Not every user is going to be satisfied in every little way. As a user, if you find the software useful enough versus the price of it, it's best to voice your opinion in the Idea Station forum, and in the meantime just make the tiny, tiny effort required to adjust yourself. I mean, the time you've spent whining about this so far, honestly, is more time than you will waste leaving dimensions on and using them as intended, compared to your proposed way, over twenty years of use.

Personally, I can't imagine turning dimensions off. I would turn them back on immediately and wonder who had been Effing with my computer while I was in the break room! I mean, suppose you had a shape like this... How would you edit this via a properties dialog or whatever? You can't just right-click on the '3' sketch, choose edit, and type a value. Just editing the value in place is MUCH more intuitive, and quick and easy.

[Anonymous]

I'll keep it (more or less) short as it obviously does not make any sense explaining things in detail again and again.

This is what you first wrote, chris: "But here is the reality: Every person in the world doesn't think exactly the same, including you, me, and the Autodesk developers."

So if you realized this is the reality, why can't you accept there's not everyone on this planet preferring your way?

I do NOT like my drawings cluttered with numbers and lines and symbols. I just wish to see the clean, undisturbed objects. Without dimensions, without additional lines, without splines drowned in "green circles" (see other thread).

And thus I do not wish to add dimensions if I just wish to change a circle's diameter.

I also won't buy a cow if I wish to have a single glass of milk.

If we agree on the fact that every single person prefers a different way of doing something, why do you (all) defend Fusion dictating the way to go?

Only thing I ask the devs (in this thread D:) is: Give us an "Edit" option in the context menu of every single element. As a PLUS, not as the rule.

File closed, everybody happy; quick and simple.

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I indeed read a lot of threads till I decided to speak up.

And it's all the same almost everywhere: Someone asks for a simple way of doing something, a simple way people are used to, a quick and easy solution.

And the answers are always the same: NO, not possible with Fusion! Of course not! Do it the complicated way, because it's SO much better building a brewery if you like to have a glass of beer!

Sorry, not my opinion.

[TheCADWhisperer]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Sorry, not my opinion.

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Are you familiar with:

AutoCAD?

Autodesk Inventor?

SolidWorks?

Creo?

[chrisplyler]

Put it on the Idea Station, provide us a link here in this thread, and I'll vote for it. No good reason NOT to have an Edit/Properties tool in a right-click context menu. As long as it doesn't take away from the existing method that I prefer.

Really though,  I've shown you that it isn't really more difficult or more steps to do it the current way. You're just opposed to the clutter on screen. Hey, that's fine. But it's simply a visual preference instead of a functional one. And as already discussed, it isn't really any more work to show dims, edit one, and hide dims than it is to right click, pick from context menu, edit, close. You just want it your way because you just do. Again, that's fine, and I would vote for it to make you happy as long as it doesn't make me unhappy. Why not, right? But stop with all the "functionally better" category of arguments.

And please think about this:

Currently, a circle without a dimension (or some other constraint along the circumference somewhere that locks it to some other element) does not HAVE a dimension. It is not defined. That's why it's blue instead of black. Well, F360 must be keeping track of whatever arbitrary value it was dragged to, otherwise it wouldn't display at all I imagine. F360 must be storing a value somewhere so that the blue circle can be displayed. But it obviously isn't stored anywhere that can be user-edited. It isn't in the Parameters list, for example.

So this improvement you're suggesting will require more than just adding an Edit/Properties item to a context menu. It's going to additionally require indexing all the hidden values used for display purposes and exposing them to the UI beyond just the display, such that when you open the Edit/Properties tool, there is a value available for editing. Not a trivial amount of coding probably.

Well, hmmmmm, maybe I'm wrong about that. After all, the hidden value is displayed when you place a dimension but haven't yet entered your actual desired value. So it must already there behind the scenes, huh?

Just rambling at this point....

Anyway, just asking the devs to do it, here in this forum, will get you nowhere. Post it on the F360 Idea Station forum. That's where Chad, the temp-agency guy that Autodesk refers to as the "development team," looks to see which idea has the most votes for the year, makes himself a sticky-note to look into that idea next year, crumples it up and throws it in the bottom drawer of his desk.