Command Types

Landshape has 5 major command types: Pick, Brush, Draw, View, and Survey.

All commands of a type share several key characteristics. Command icons show type. Also, each command's Learn page should state type.

Take some time to get know the five command types. Once you understand them, you can grasp how to interact with a Landshape command, just by looking at its icon.

Clothes may not make a man, but a Landshape icon makes a command, kind of. It's almost like a cheat sheet. 😀

Let's overview Landshape's command types.

Icon Command-Type Index

Most icons show a small sub-icon in their lower-right corner. The subicon shows the command-type index. It indicates what sort of command it is.

Rhombus = Pick Command.
Pickers let you control terrain via selecting preexisting input geometry.

Ellipse = Brush Command.
Brushes let you control the terrain via areas that you interactively stroke.

Wriggle = Draw Command.
Drawers let you control terrain via point-and-click tools.

Eye = View Command.
Views let you control global terrain styling and object visibility.

Rightangle = Survey Command.
Surveyors let you analyze terrain properties.

Plus = Grow Command.
Growers let you create new terrain. Grow combines with other types.

All commands in toolbars have icons.

Command Types Explained

Pickers

Pickers let you use Sketchup geometry to impose your vision onto the terrain. You use control groups to communicate with the terrain, and drive the result. This way of working enables great accuracy, control, and repeatability. Some allow you to interact with non-terrain. Pickers are Landshape's most powerful commands. Learn more.

Brushes

Brushes let you edit terrain by hovering your cursor on a local area of the terrain area, clicking and stroking. Brushes let you work in a quick and more direct way. However, brush strokes may not have the same accuracy and resuability as geometry-based commands do. All brushes are found in the Brush submenu. Learn more.

Draw Tools

Draw tools, like Draw and Fill, let you edit terrain by hovering your cursor on a point in the viewport, and clicking. Draw tools are typically as accurate as needed. These can be considered the closest to classic Sketchup tools. They are designed to work especially well with terrain. Some, draw tools are general purpose. Draw tools are found under submenus Main and Prop, sharing space with other commands. Draw tools do not have a submenu of their own.

Views

View commands let you style the terrain mesh. They also let you turn terrain-dependent objects on and off. Such objects include Contour, Water, and Skirt. Several are parametric, and when activated will open the VCB for editing. All Views are found in the View submenu. Learn more.

Surveyors

Survey commands let you analyze terrain properties. Initally, the number will be very limited. Holygon aims to add more Survey commands in the future. All Surveyors are found in the Survey submenu. Learn more.

Iconless commands

Note that some commands currently don't have icons. To discover the type for an iconless command, use Learn, and navigate to its Learn page.

To learn what various command type does in more detail - read on.