Not reading ESC key

Helper

On 01/05/2016 at 05:12, xxxxxxxx wrote:

I'm creating a plugin tag and, since some of the processes are slow, I wanted to implement a way to stop the calculation.
So, I tried to read the ESC key and, if pressed, a variable is set to True and my calculation process finished.
I tried to read the ESC key with this routine:

def EscPressed() :

msg = c4d.BaseContainer()
if c4d.gui.GetInputState(c4d.BFM_INPUT_KEYBOARD,c4d.KEY_ESC, msg) :
if msg[c4d.BFM_INPUT_VALUE]: return True

return False

And, in my main process, I have the stop variable set to False at the beginning.
Inside the main loop, I have:

if EscPressed() : stop=True

and all my calculation only occur if stop==False

I placed a print stop inside my main loop but it always prints False, no matter how hard and frequently I press the ESC key.
What could be wrong?

Helper

On 01/05/2016 at 12:16, xxxxxxxx wrote:

I placed my keyboard reading code inside a Python scripting tag and doesn't work because, in order to make it execute the code constantly, I had to press Play. And, as soon as I press the Esc key, the play stops.

Them I tried with a different code, to read the CONTROL key:

def CtrlPressed() :
     bc = c4d.BaseContainer()
     mk = c4d.gui.GetInputState(c4d.BFM_INPUT_KEYBOARD,c4d.KEY_CONTROL, bc)
     if mk and bc[c4d.BFM_INPUT_VALUE]: return True
     return False

It works inside a Python tag, but not inside my plugin
It ALWAYS returns False.
What could be happening?

Helper

On 01/05/2016 at 12:29, xxxxxxxx wrote:

This is the code I put in my tag plugin's Message() method.

        bc = c4d.BaseContainer()  
      c4d.gui.GetInputState(c4d.BFM_INPUT_MOUSE, c4d.BFM_INPUT_MOUSELEFT, bc)  
      print bc[c4d.BFM_INPUT_VALUE]

It sort of works...But there's a catch. The tag needs to active.
When I LMB click in the editor view. I do get a value change from 0 to 1. But only once.
After that. I get nothing. Because the tag is no longer active.
I'm guessing this is probably why you're not getting any return value.

-ScottA

Helper

On 01/05/2016 at 14:55, xxxxxxxx wrote:

I placed...

if CtrlPressed() : print "CTRL pressed"

at the beginning of the Message method.
And it works... but only outside the main calculation loop inside the Execute method, and that is where I wanted it to work
So, if I make an adjustment to the parameters of my tag, it starts calculating. If I press the CTRL key, it shows nothing in the console but if I keep it pressed, it prints several "CTRL pressed" after finishing the calculation.
So, it is not detecting the key when it should.
Anyway, shouldn't the GetInputState return me the state of the keyboard/mouse as it is, in the moment the command is executed?

Helper

On 01/05/2016 at 15:48, xxxxxxxx wrote:

I changed my keyboard checking code to:

def abort_key() :

bc = c4d.BaseContainer()
     if c4d.gui.GetInputState(c4d.BFM_INPUT_KEYBOARD,c4d.BFM_INPUT_CHANNEL,bc) :
          print "+"
          if (bc[c4d.BFM_INPUT_QUALIFIER] & c4d.QALT) :
               print "ALT pressed"
               return True
     print "-"
     return False

Now I just check for the ALT key.
And the only Console output I get is a lot of "-"
So, the test is failing at the first if.
The GetInputState(c4d.BFM_INPUT_KEYBOARD,c4d.BFM_INPUT_CHANNEL,bc) is returning False.

Helper

On 01/05/2016 at 15:59, xxxxxxxx wrote:

AFAIK. The code in a tag plugin only executes if the object it's on changes. Or the tag itself changes in some way. Or their selection status changes.
So if you are sitting there idle. And the host object or tag doesn't change. I can't see how the tag would ever be able to catch a key press event.

Rather than using the keyboard. You can use a button gizmo on your tag.
Clicking that button will update the tag and make the tag's code execute. Which will allow you to run your stop code.
I don't see how you can use a key press in this scenario. But maybe someone else has an idea.

-ScottA

Helper

On 01/05/2016 at 16:05, xxxxxxxx wrote:

I don't want to detect the keys while it is idle.
I need to detect the keys while executing my tag code (from the Execute method).
So, if the Execute method is running, it is because something changed in my tag. But the calculation inside the Execute method can, sometimes, take a few seconds to perform. That is why I wanted to test for some key combination (Esc would be the best) to stop my code execution.

Helper

On 01/05/2016 at 16:43, xxxxxxxx wrote:

I even tried sending a Message (a custom message, with the ID of my own plugin) to the Message method.
But, even there the code fails with the GetInputState(c4d.BFM_INPUT_KEYBOARD,c4d.BFM_INPUT_CHANNEL,bc) , that returns False

Helper

On 02/05/2016 at 00:05, xxxxxxxx wrote:

Hi Rui, this works for me in a Python Scripting Tag:

import c4d
import time
#Welcome to the world of Python
  
def test() :
    state = c4d.BaseContainer()
    if c4d.gui.GetInputState(c4d.BFM_INPUT_KEYBOARD, c4d.KEY_ESC, state) :
        if state[c4d.BFM_INPUT_VALUE]:
            return True
    return False
  
def main() :
    tstart = time.time()
    while (time.time() - tstart) < 1.0:
        if test() :
            print "STOPPED"
            break
        time.sleep(0.1)

However, you should prefer to use BaseThread.TestBreak() anyway.

import c4d
import time
#Welcome to the world of Python
  
def main() :
    tstart = time.time()
    while (time.time() - tstart) < 1.0:
        if bt.TestBreak() :
            print "STOPPED"
            break
        time.sleep(0.1)

Best,
Niklas

Helper

On 02/05/2016 at 00:20, xxxxxxxx wrote:

I can make it work on a Python Scripting Tag too.
It just doesn't work inside my plugin tag.

As for using BaseThread, I would have to move my whole code into a new thread, right?
Will that work on a tag plugin?

Helper

On 02/05/2016 at 02:25, xxxxxxxx wrote:

Hello,

as far as I can tell there is no way for this and when you think about it it should not work. At any time you can create a background thread with a BaseDocument that contains your plugin. So when the user presses the Esc button you cannot know if this is related to the execution of this specific task.

The only proper way is to check the given BaseThread in TagData.Execute(). Check if the given thread stops with TestBreak().

Best wishes,
Sebastian

Helper

On 02/05/2016 at 02:34, xxxxxxxx wrote:

Thank you.
I will try to change my code into a user thread, then.

Helper

On 02/05/2016 at 03:10, xxxxxxxx wrote:

However, shouldn't it be possible to read the keyboard, anyway?

Helper

On 02/05/2016 at 05:57, xxxxxxxx wrote:

It is working in a different thread now.
However, I still can't seem to abort it
I override the TestDBreak method to this:

def TestDBreak(self) :
     state = c4d.BaseContainer()
     if c4d.gui.GetInputState(c4d.BFM_INPUT_KEYBOARD, c4d.KEY_ESC, state) :
          print "testing ESC"
          if state[c4d.BFM_INPUT_VALUE]: return True
     return False

inside the Main in my thread I check for self.TestBreak() and it ALWAYS returns False.
The Console never shows "testing ESC" (the print is there just for testing).
How can I test for the user pressing Esc, so that I can return from my code prematurely?

Helper

On 02/05/2016 at 06:09, xxxxxxxx wrote:

You understood it wrong. You don't have to make your own thread, just use TestBreak() on the
BaseThread that is passed to TagData.Execute().

GUI functions in the C4D API are not supposed to work from any other than the main thread.

Helper

On 02/05/2016 at 08:47, xxxxxxxx wrote:

We don't know what Rui is doing in his "heavy Task".
But does anyone else think that doing anything calculation intensive in a tag Plugin's Execute() method is a very, very, VERY bad idea?

The tag's code executes upon every frame. And a tag is typically only used to read attribute values, or as a storage container. Which is a fast operation.
The thought of crunching numbers upon every single frame in the Execute() method seems very wrong to me. The Message() method seems to me like a safer place to do that.
But even so. The tag code needs to execute so fast from frame to frame that it just seems too dangerous to do anything too intensive in there.

Can a tag really safely handle crunching code on the fly like that?

-ScottA

Helper

On 02/05/2016 at 08:56, xxxxxxxx wrote:

Well, it only calculates if the points change
So, once the calculation is done and there is no changes in the number or location of the vertexes, it just returns c4d.EXECUTIONRESULT_OK

Anyway, having it in a separate thread made it more efficient and I seem to be able to detect the ESC key now. I just have to use the bt thread to do it (thank you, Scott, Sebastian and Niklas).
Now I just have to fine tune the code to make it calculate only when it is needed, after the user halts it with ESC.

Helper

On 02/05/2016 at 09:00, xxxxxxxx wrote:

Sure it can safely take as much time as it needs. Only it will be annoying to the user if it takes too
much time. Just look at dynamics, they'll take many seconds per frame on a very large scene, too.
(And that they are computed from a SceneHook instead of a Tag plugin doesn't make a difference here).

-Niklas

Helper

On 02/05/2016 at 09:03, xxxxxxxx wrote:

Originally posted by xxxxxxxx

Anyway, having it in a separate thread made it more efficient

Are you talking about spawning a new C4DThread? I strongly believe that this won't be more efficient.
If anything, it should be the same performance (+ the overhead for spawning and waiting on the
thread) unless you're doing multithreading, which you can't in Python unless you do actual multiprocessing.

Helper

On 02/05/2016 at 09:09, xxxxxxxx wrote:

By "more efficient" I mean that as I adjust the parameters, the calculation stops and it starts again with the new values.
When it was in the main thread, I had to wait until the calculation was over (anything between .3 seconds to 20+ seconds) to adjust the parameters and see the new result.