# Shelflayout A Layout? Or Not A Layout?

**URL:** https://forum.highend3d.com/t/shelflayout-a-layout-or-not-a-layout/3465
**Category:** Maya
**Tags:** mel
**Created:** [December 10, 2005, 10:16pm UTC](https://forum.highend3d.com/t/shelflayout-a-layout-or-not-a-layout/3465 "2005-12-10T22:16:04Z")
**Posts on this page:** 4
**Page:** 1

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### Author: ![ewerybody](https://forum.highend3d.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/e/bcef8e/32.png) [@ewerybody](https://forum.highend3d.com/u/ewerybody)
#### Post date: [December 10, 2005, 10:16pm UTC](https://forum.highend3d.com/t/shelflayout-a-layout-or-not-a-layout/3465/1 "2005-12-10T22:16:04Z")

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We all know there are some scary things going on in Maya sometimes, especially in Mel: ![](http://www.highend3d.com/boards/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/laugh.gif)

someone seen this before?  
layout -exists Animation;  
// Result: 1 //

layout -q -childArray Animation;  
returns just nothing! But:

shelfLayout -q -childArray Animation;  
// Result: shelfButton1 shelfButton2 shelfButton3 shelfButton4 she...

hope the layout command has no more suprises for me today...

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### Author: ![sunit](https://forum.highend3d.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/s/d26b3c/32.png) [@sunit](https://forum.highend3d.com/u/sunit)
#### Post date: [December 11, 2005, 3:43pm UTC](https://forum.highend3d.com/t/shelflayout-a-layout-or-not-a-layout/3465/2 "2005-12-11T15:43:29Z")

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QUOTE(ewerybody @ 12/10/05, 02:16 PM)  
We all know there are some scary things going on in Maya sometimes, especially in Mel: ![](http://www.highend3d.com/boards/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/laugh.gif)

someone seen this before?  
layout -exists Animation;  
// Result: 1 //

layout -q -childArray Animation;  
returns just nothing! But:

shelfLayout -q -childArray Animation;  
// Result: shelfButton1 shelfButton2 shelfButton3 shelfButton4 she...

hope the layout command has no more suprises for me today...  
[snapback]222066[/snapback]

if you're working on linux, some of the generic mel query/edit commands don't work properly (for example, using "control" to query often doesn't return the right value). perhaps windows has some of these same quirks. in any case, using more specific mel commands to query (such as shelfLayout) may help to spot problems in your code at some later stage (if and when you encounter errors),

cheers,  
sunit

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### Author: ![ewerybody](https://forum.highend3d.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/e/bcef8e/32.png) [@ewerybody](https://forum.highend3d.com/u/ewerybody)
#### Post date: [December 12, 2005, 10:31am UTC](https://forum.highend3d.com/t/shelflayout-a-layout-or-not-a-layout/3465/3 "2005-12-12T10:31:17Z")

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yea its windows.  
but as you see: some quirks as well ![](http://www.highend3d.com/boards/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/smile.gif)  
And yes I just use `control` and `layout` to differ between these two. But I'll use the exact command for qerying and editing..

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### Author: ![joojaa](https://forum.highend3d.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@joojaa](https://forum.highend3d.com/u/joojaa)
#### Post date: [December 12, 2005, 10:35am UTC](https://forum.highend3d.com/t/shelflayout-a-layout-or-not-a-layout/3465/4 "2005-12-12T10:35:37Z")

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is it possible theres a naming clash... because of teh clash the shelflayout will unioquely be able to identify the thing while layout does not (tough ist totaly capable of saying such exsist because theres a clash, but ist of no consequence since what you querry exst clash or no clash)

Anwyay i idnt test thi soo thoiroughly justa a idea on what might be going on. Because this cloud appear to be glitch while its not. Tough sometimes there is a glitch.

PS but yes it does not indeed appear to work. in neither 7.0, 6.5 nor 6.0