Rulers Actual Size

[tomerf]

This may already be possible and I don't know how to do it.

When I project a ruler I can double click on it to get its properties box. From here I can make it longer or shorter. But is there a way to alter how the ruler is displayed so that it will show real-life measurements (i.e., a projected inch would actually be viewed as one inch)?

A previous thread discussed ideas for tracing around actual objects, students, etc. It would be handy to be able to adjust the gradation to allow the ruler to show actual measurements.

Tom

[Westlake]

I created some rulers using the Camera Tool which can be sized to the actual size - they are image objects rather than a real tool, so you can size them to the exact length. This is quite an issue with younger students who don't understand the concept of scale.

I will put the file on later when I am on my other computer - getting near my bedtime right now and I am feeling a bit mellow after enjoying grilled salmon with cajun spices, brown sugar and fresh lime juice, baked potatoes, salad with fresh dill from the garden, and a glass of New Zealand chardonnay....

Hilary

[Westlake]

OK - try these. Save them into your My Images folder in ACTIVstudio or ACTIVprimary.
They don't all have units, so could be used for inches (we gave those up a while ago..) or centimetres.
Hilary
Now - coffee and chocolate...

[tomerf]

Hilary,

You're the best! What a parsimonious (I love that word) solution. You speak to exactly what originally prompted my request - students who don't yet "get" scale.

As an aside, in our writer's workshop we speak sometimes of delicious words. Your word choice left my mouth watering. Coffee AND chocolate?

Tom

[Westlake]

Coffee AND chocolate?

Tom
I've given up cream.
BTW 'parsimonious' has a slightly pejorative tone - implying meanness, niggardliness. I prefer 'elegant' - defined as 'cleverly simple, ingenious'.
In other words, bleeding obvious when you see it done but not when you are searching for the answer!
Hilary

PS how about some more rulers - with inches if you must.... :D

[tomerf]

Ye gad. The word I thought meant one thing means something very different. That is not the word I would have chosen at all. I had in mind the Law of Parsimony, which I remembered as being "the simplest way to explain things is usually the best." Something happened to my word when it left the phrase.

I have been trying to make an inch ruler to post here. What I have been surprised to find is that when my ruler is set at 0 degrees the photograph-area tool appears at an angle. One side is higher than the other. When I rotate the ruler a bit to match the frame of the camera, it pixelates on the edges and does not look good. See attached.

I wonder why this is the case?

[Westlake]

I had in mind the Law of Parsimony, which I remembered as being "the simplest way to explain things is usually the best."
Aha - Occam's Razor. Parsimonious in the sense of 'succinct' 'using the minimum of words'....
You could always use the Humpty Dumpty defence "When I use a word, it means just what I choose it to mean - neither more nor less". (Alice in Wonderland)
Hope someone sorts your ruler - I will be offline for a while.
Hilary

[Peter Lambert]

Can't think what the rotation problem is, I'm not affected. Have attached a 12" ruler image

[tomerf]

Thanks for the ruler, Peter. Yours is on the level and in my library now.

Tom

[Peter Lambert]

Thanks for the ruler, Peter. Yours is on the level and in my library now.

Tom
I've always been on the level Tom :-)

[seabass]

Hey, is it even possible to make a ruler that is actual size with actual inches and cm's? Doesn't it depend on the size of the projected image and resolution?

[tomerf]

You're right, the object size changes depending on how far it is being projected, etc. My initial request was to have a function on the ruler powertool that let you resize it from the board as we can with objects. Currently, the sizing arrows only make the rulers longer or shorter but do not allow for adjusting to actual size as it is displayed (wow, does that make sense?). The solution so far has been to create images of rulers that become resizable objects...but you can't make them longer or shorter. As someone from the Sopranos might say, "Whadyagon'do?"

[markrobinson]

Thanks.

The scaleable rulers feature request is noted and will be reviewed for possible inclusion in a future release of the software.

[maryjo204]

I feel really dumb but I cannot open the rulers. Can someone please help. Also, can someone tell me how a container is formed around the sentence. Mary Jo

[Margaret Allen]

Some pcs/laptops don't seem to like opening straight from here. Try saving the flp somewhere first and then navigate to this point from within the program. +wave+

If you search for containers there are a lot of posts which deal with how you create containers. Hope this helps....

[Dug]

Some pcs/laptops don't seem to like opening straight from here. Try saving the flp somewhere first and then navigate to this point from within the program. +wave+


I'm pretty sure the problem with flps not opening directly from the forum is to do with Internet Explorer. Margaret's solution certainly works, but an alternative is to download and use a different browser - Mozilla Firefox works a treat for me.:)