Locking/Freezing commands apart from hiding (+Soft Selection option)

I've just seen a video about a script or something in modo that caught my attention, and obviously I was asking myself if that is possible in NVil as well. But first, the video:

http://youtu.be/daxVsJJwXsg

I tried to find a method which makes this possible in NVil, but I couldn't figure out a simple way. I tried using morph targets, but it is not a lot of fun, because I have to duplicate an object first and repeatedly adjust the falloff. I got some good results with it, but it isn't that intuitive for such a task.

So for now I think one possible implementation of what you can see in the first 8 minutes of the video would be to create a checkbox in the soft selection panel that could read something like "only on checked groups". The checked selection groups in the scene explorer would act like a mask, so that only components would be affected, that are inside the selection groups. The vizualisation of the soft selection should appear accordingly.

With this kind of masking, there would be an easy way to create dynamic shapes.

Another way of being able to mask stuff would be to implement the freeze/unfreeze commands for groups of components in the scene explorer, as it is already the case for object groups. Freeze then means, that the transformation for these is locked. Frozen components would need their own color option in the preferences then, so one can easily see them in the 3d view.

There was some discussion about Groboto features lately, so I thought I'd push this proposal once more, which to me seems a lot less effort to implement. Any thoughts on that?

I would certainly like to see the ability to add masks/lock vertex, it is something I use quite a lot in Wings 3D.

I would certainly like to see the ability to add masks/lock vertex, it is something I use quite a lot in Wings 3D.

Hopefully this is what you want
vertex mode > View > Hide.

Hopefully this is what you want
vertex mode > View > Hide.

I thought I had tried that, but, obviously not.

Yes, that does what I need. Many thanks.

I was having a look at what Vaquero was trying (the masking from Groboto > Modo)

With hiding the vertex, there is still a problem with the soft selection for this, as the soft selection will grow over surface (not specifically along the shown Vertex). So I split off the surface I wanted to soft select(the ring), to get the selection over surface as I needed. (only adds a few seconds extra). Hid the boundary vertex, then soft selection before translation.

This was a very quick attempt. (No sub-d)

I thought I had tried that, but, obviously not.

So I thought, too. But it just seems strange, that the 'hide' in vertex mode operates different from the other components (not hiding vertices, but locking them). But for convenience it is necessary to see the rest of the mesh while editing with what I had in mind. I could always build a composite tool, which converts the selection to vertices first, before hiding the rest (Hide Unselected).

Now there would be a new opportunity to add an option for soft selection surface growth to "not cross hidden vertices". Because welding the vertices afterwards can be a lot of work, even though it got easier with the retopo weld.

Steve, which settings did you use for the soft selection to get the smooth result? I've always got a peak or it was uneven when I tried to reproduce it.

Learned something today. Thanks!

But it just seems strange, that the 'hide' in vertex mode operates different from the other components (not hiding vertices, but locking them).

I thought that, maybe that's why I thought I had tried it but had not, due to thinking it would not work. (I blame it on old age)

Now there would be a new opportunity to add an option for soft selection surface growth to "not cross hidden vertices".

Something like that would certainly help for this workflow.

Because welding the vertices afterwards can be a lot of work, even though it got easier with the retopo weld.

For those types of weld I:-
Merge Meshes
Select open edges
Change to vertex
weld to small threshold
( I can see a request coming for a "P_Weld_Threshold")

Steve, which settings did you use for the soft selection to get the smooth result? I've always got a peak or it was uneven when I tried to reproduce it.

That was default. But I am working to scene scale 0.1 if that makes a different.

Duh... I just noticed that the hidden vertices still transform while moving polys/edges.
I decided that I don't like the current mechanisms for 'Hide/Unhide' due to inconsistencies:

Vertex Mode

• In vertex mode 'Hide' will lock the vertex transformation only for vertex mode.
• Enclosing faces with the selection won't hide the polygons.
• In vertex mode and if soft selection is enabled, 'Hide' will affect all vertices within the soft selection.
• 'Unhide' will unlock locked vertices.

Edge Mode

• In edge mode 'Hide' will only hide enclosed faces, else it does nothing!
• Soft Selection has no effect on 'Hide'.
• Hidden vertices (really not visible at all) are locked only in vertex mode afterwards.
• 'Unhide' does nothing!

Polygon Mode

• In polygon mode 'Hide' will hide the faces and lock the vertices only back in vertex mode.
• Soft Selection has no effect on 'Hide'.
• 'Unhide' will unhide faces and unlock vertices.

My suggestion is to seperate the Hide and Lock commands, while Hide will automatically lock vertices. Note: Lock is called Freeze in Mesh Mode. So there needs to be a consistent naming! Freeze/Lock command should also work in object mode! (It already does so in the context menu of the scene explorer and object list).
The Freeze/Lock command should as well work in any other subobject mode, including the context menu in the scene explorer groups view. Locking components should prevent them from being transformed in local space (so you can still move the whole object around, except the object itself is locked), also in other modes!
Unhide should unhide stuff, regardless of mode.
 The meaning of "Freeze Object Scale" & "Freeze Object Oriention" should not be confused with locking, therefor one should be renamed.

[Edit:] I prefer soft selection NOT having an effect on the execution of these commands.