Path routing suggestion for grid to non-grid connections and between different grids #301
Description
Grids provide a really convenient way to get around the lack of manual alignment options. However, according to the docs:
Because a grid structure imposes positioning outside what the layout engine controls, the layout engine is also unable to make routes. Therefore, these connections are center-center straight segments, i.e., no path-finding.
Specifically, if either edge endpoint is in a grid, path-finding is turned off. This becomes very annoying when we wish to connect free-floating components to ones in a grid, and even when we try to connect items in different grids to each other.
I would like to propose an approach in which path-finding is enabled for any pair of components that contain a non-grid element when traversing the graph between them in the hierarchy. E.g, given something like
a.b
c.d
b --> d
In this scheme, if any of a, c or root are not a grid, then b --> d should have path-finding enabled. I realize that there will be some complexity in the interface between the grid container and its non-grid parent where routing needs to switch from one mode to another.