LDD and colors

[ProvenceTristram]

One thing that greatly irks me about LDD is when you construct and  'paint' an entire project in the extended version, only to discover upon uploading your parts list that half of them don't exist in those colors. I was wondering what the best path was to avoiding this heartbreak on LDD itself? Coloring parts in normal mode on already-built models is, to say the least, hugely tedious, but is that the best way to go to assure that you aren't left out in the cold when it comes to parting a design out? Or is there a faster 'cheat' that will assign colors based on closest existent shade?

Edited October 22, 2016 by ProvenceTristram

[garethjellis]

Use the non extended version where the colours are preset, this will help alot with that problem.

[ProvenceTristram]

But what about when something is already built? Recoloring parts in the normal mode seems to require you to click and individually color every part - this is enormously problematic when a model is already built. 

[SylvainLS]

Yes. Not easy with a big model. Moreover, if the part is already in a “known by LDD” color, you’ll have to change its color twice. For example, whith a part that exists only in blue and red (according to LDD), if it’s in red, when you try to paint it, only blue is shown (because you can’t repaint it in red). So you have to paint it blue to see if red is available. (Whereas, if it were in the not-available green, red and blue would have been proposed.)

Besides, there are errors both ways: parts available in some colors in LDD/real life that actually aren’t available in real life/LDD. And the newest parts aren’t available, so not colorable, in LDD mode.

For a finished model, you can convert it to LDraw and then import it in BrickStock: no image and no price means the part doesn’t exist in that color (or is so rare you wouldn’t find it anyway).

I think the least-effort way is to verify while building. I always have a BrickLink tab open for that 

[ProvenceTristram]

Is there a way to export the LXF into a simple spreadsheet format so I can manually add the parts to a bricklink wanted list? It's not the fastest plan, but given that LDD Manager seems to 'lose' newer parts constantly, it seems to be the only practical route to ordering this out while simultaneously analyzing the color of every part. 

[Calabar]

Using the LDD Mode don't ensure that the part exists in a specific colour or with a specific decoration. Even in LDD Mode there are combinations that are not available in real life.
In brief LDD Mode is not a "real life" mode, but a simplified mode for youngest users.

The only affordable way without an automatic tool (such as LDD Manager, that unfortunately is not up-to-date anymore) is to check the BOM (the bricklist of the parts that compose the model) and check in bricklink if that parts are available. Once that unavailable parts is detected, you can try to replace the colour using an existing one through the shape and colour selection tools.

Last but not least, the fact that a brick exists in real life don't mean that it is easy to find or cheap. Often Mocs are full of rare bricks used in large number, and this makes very difficult to built the set in real bricks.

PS: Bricklink supports upload from LXF files, unfortunately with some limitations. Note that LDD bricks and bricklink ones have different design ids, so a direct import is not feasible.

Edited October 22, 2016 by Calabar

[peedeejay]

2 hours ago, SylvainLS said:

I think the least-effort way is to verify while building. I always have a BrickLink tab open for that 

This.

Of course this doesnt help you in your present situation, but maybe for future builds.

I always build in LDD mode but double check with Bricklink, because LDD mode is not 100% correct and sometimes parts do exist but are bloody expensive...