parameters in geomview

[Dennis Roseman <roseman at dimension4.math.uiowa.edu>]

This is in part a follow-up to yesterdays e-mail about "loading two  
geoms".

I have found a work around for my previous problem.

I can change the names of the little dodecahedra as I am constructing  
each new slice.  Then when I save it there will be no loading problem  
(for me).

I just select the targetgeom, load 


(progn (copy targetgeom myname)(delete targetgeom))

into the command window edit "myname"

This has the effect of renaming the target geom.

Having geomview do its own renaming might cause problems in the  
construction I mentioned.  Since my construction is iterative,  
geomview would end up getting names (using the current name-producing  
of geomview) such as:

ddd<1><6><8><13><16><21><23><etcWithAbout30Such"Subscripts"etc><123>

In fact, at least in the example I am building now, I think it will  
be convenient to choose my own names.

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&& 


It might be even nicer if I could have a file, call it "rename"  
containing:
(progn (copy targetgeom myname)(delete targetgeom))

What I'd like to do is something like this: in a command window type:

< rename daname

and have myname replaced by the parameter daname
 


As far as I can tell, there is no way to do this in the geomview  
language.

A better use of such parameter passing would be as follows:

In what I am doing, I want to position objects very carefully but  
interactively.  For example, here is a simple command file I have  
made called xt1:

(xform targetgeom
   1 0 0 0
   0 1 0 0
   0 0 1 0
   1 0 0 1
)
I also have files xt_1 for translating by -1, and files zt1, zt_1 etc  
etc.  I have a directory filled with lots&lots of files of this kind

I select an object and translate it using these files via the command  
window:

< xt1

The problem comes when I want to translate by .3, then I need to  
write a new file etc.  


What would be handy is something a file xt like:

(xform targetgeom
   1 0 0 0
   0 1 0 0
   0 0 1 0
   myvalue 0 0 1
)

Then in the command window I can do:

< xt .3

and it would do:

(xform targetgeom
   1 0 0 0
   0 1 0 0
   0 0 1 0
   .3 0 0 1
)


So, in summary:
1) can this parameter passing be done & I just don't know how to do  
it?
2) If it can't be currently done--that's OK.  To do something like  
this might be a REAL PROJECT. And since I have a lot of files written  
I'm set for a while.
3) This could also be done by writing a simple module for each  
parameter I need to pass.  Which I could do myself, if things get  
very tiresome the way I am doing it.
Maybe that's the simplest solution.