JUMP! - User manual

Version 1.2

Last update 4 Mar 2024

Introduction

Thank you for purchasing “JUMP!”.

"JUMP!" is an Add-on for Blender that allows you to create, save and recall custom viewpoints, i.e. store and recall the view positions of the viewport. This tool is especially useful when you are working on complex scenes and want to quickly navigate from one point in the scene to another.

The viewpoints created with "JUMP!" are saved in the .blend project file and are shared across all scenes.

How to install JUMP!

“JUMP!” must be installed like any other Add-ons.

First, save the JUMP.zip file downloaded from the store in a folder of your choice.

Then open blender and open the preferences window. Go to the Add-ons section and press the “Install” button. Browse the files on your computer, choose the JUMP.zip file and press the “Install Add-on” button.

At this point you should now see the line “3D View: JUMP!”.

To activate the add-on, press the check box to the left of the name,“JUMP!” is ready for use. 

Adding a new viewpoint

To save a new viewpoint, move the viewport to the desired position and press the + button in the side panel. The new viewpoint will be added to the list.

Alternatively you can select the “Add a new viewpoint” item in the “View”->”Viewpoint”->”Manage custom viewpoints” menu. 

You can also add a viewpoint from the pie-menu (which opens by default with ALT-J key combination) by pressing the button that appears on the left "Add new view”.

Recall a viewpoint

You can recall a previously created viewpoint in various ways:

• selecting it from the list in the side-panel
• by choosing the corresponding item in the “View”->”Viewpoint” menu
• moving the selection using the buttons with arrow icon or from the “View”->”Viewpoint”->”Manage custom viewpoints” menu, choosing one of the “Previous viewpoint” or “Next viewpoint” item.
• Via the pie menu, which opens by default with the ALT-J key combination.

Obviously, to recall the viewpoints even more quickly, it is possible to assign a keyboard shortcut to each of them. To do this, move the mouse in the menu “View” above the entry of the desired viewpoint, press the right mouse button and select the "Assign shortcut" item.

Note: the pie menu can contain a maximum of 8 viewpoints, so only the first 8 will appear.

Rename a viewpoint

It is possible to rename a viewpoint in side panel by double clicking in the list on the entry corresponding and entering the new name. The name of a viewpoint must be unique.

Update a viewpoint

You can update/modify a viewpoint, just select it in the list in the side panel, move the 3D viewport to the new position and press the button   

The same functionality is accessible in the “View”->”Viewpoint”->"Manage custom viewpoints” menu by selecting the “Override the selected viewpoint” item.

Remove a viewpoint

To delete a viewpoint, select it and press the “-“ button in the side panel or choose the "Remove the selection" from the “View”->“Viewpoint”->“Manage custom viewpoints” menu.

You can also delete a viewpoint from the pie-menu by holding down the ALT key and clicking on the viewpoint to delete.

Lock and unlock a viewpoint

You can avoid accidental changes by locking a viewpoint. Just click on the lock icon next to the viewpoint name. Repeat the operation to unlock.

Other options

By default (when JUMP! is installed), every time you select a viewpoint, as well as the position of the view, the previously stored values of the focal length and clip distances (clip start and clip end) are also automatically restored. If you prefer to keep the focal length and clip distances currently used in the viewport, you can deactivate the "Restore focal length" and/or "Restore clip start and end" options.

The "Lock rotation” option (which can be activated in the side panel and in the pie menu) has the purpose to block the rotation of the view and prevent unwanted movements.

UI user preferences

You can change some aspects of the JUMP! user interface by modifying some parameters in the preferences window in the “User interface” section. 

The “Show in view menu” option is used to show or hide the features of JUMP! in the “View”->”Viewpoint” menu, the “Viewpoints in view menu” option instead is used to hide or show the list of viewpoints in the View menu and the “Show in side panel” option is used to show or hide the JUMP! tab. in the side panel (N-panel).

With the “Show in pie menu” option it is possible to activate or deactivate the pie menu and with the controls on the right specify the shortcut you want to use to open the pie menu (by default pressing the ALT-J key).

Finally, the "show mini panel in pie menu" option is used to show or hide in pie menu the small panel with the functions for creating a new viewpoint and the navigation buttons.

Import/export viewpoints

JUMP! stores the viewpoints inside the .blend file and keeps them common to all scenes.

If you want to copy viewpoints from one project to another you can use the import/export function in the preferences panel.  

By pressing the “Save viewpoints in user preferences” button, all the viewpoints in the project will be copied into the user preferences (overwriting those already present).

The “Load viewpoints from user preferences” button performs the reverse operation, i.e. the viewpoints previously saved in the user preferences are copied into the project.

NB: viewpoints for which a viewpoint with the same name already exists in the project will not be copied.

Disable or remove JUMP!

If you just want to deactivate “JUMP!” (without uninstalling), open the blender preferences window, go to the Add-ons section and search for “JUMP!” in the list. Once this is done, press the checkbox to the left of the name to deactivate “JUMP!".

However, if you want to completely remove the plug-in you must press the “Remove” button (If you don't see it, press the triangle button to expand the entry).

NOTE: “JUMP!” stores the data necessary for its operation (viewpoints and more) in two "hidden" objects.

Is a very small amount of memory, however if after installing “JUMP!” you want to completely clean the .blend file from these objects that have become useless, look in the outliner panel and delete the two objects called “.JUMP_AREASINFOS” and “.JUMP_VIEWPOINTS”.