Coming Soon: Scene Groups!
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Yes, I plan to add a renaming capability to the mix. It wouldn't be a global rename (pattern-matching) functionality, just a per-scene rename. The goal (though maybe I'm thinking too narrow) was simply to manage large quantities of scenes, and get them organized and easily visible. Renaming fits my scope (organization), and I suppose if enough people asked, I could possibly be persuaded that there's a case to be made for a pattern-matching rename function within this plugin. I didn't intend to duplicate Todd's functionality, but perhaps something could be worked out.
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Rick, whenever you're (it's) ready. Obviously sooner would be better than later, but either way this plugin is a must have in my eyes. Merry coding!
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Update
After some bug squishing, I have two feature items left to implement:- Scene and Group renaming
- Group removal (single and global)
Another thing I'm considering is a SceneGroupReader. It would be a view-only interface (no drag/drop or organization tools) that would provide just the collapsible groups and click-to-select scenes. It would be offered with the organization set and as a free standalone. Thoughts?
I was also thinking about a text file export-import feature. I imagine it would work this way:
- user exports (via the plugin) the scene names to a text file
- user opens the text file and adds group headers before each group of pages (all pages under a group header will be added to the group)
- user saves the text file, then imports it.
I think it might be faster in some cases than even drag/drop. See sample text files for before/after. Thoughts?
Thanks, all!
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That looks really promising! Thanks for the visualisation.
WRT the external text file. I suppose it could work and offers some kind of control / standardisation, but it is yet another file to access. Personally, I'd rather have all functionality accessible from one interface.
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My first shot at a screen-capture video. This shows the actual plugin in action, with no editing gimmicks.
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By way of update, after a family crisis and extended work schedules ("overtime"), I hope to get back to this soon. I just heard about a peripheral request that might be relevant to this plugin, so the scope might expand (either now or in a future version).
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Still enthusiastic, bring it on!
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Excellent news. I have wanted something like this since v4!
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Yeah Rick, I know you're probably still working on it, consider this a BUMP and reminder.
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Actually, I hit a block at the renaming functionality. Click-drag is used to organize, and click is used to activate the scene, leaving not much else for renaming, other than adding a row of links under the scene name (or icons beside the name) for accessing the various features. The icons could be a possibility.
Thoughts?
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Sounds incredably useful! Thanks Rick!
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@rickw said:
Actually, I hit a block at the renaming functionality. Click-drag is used to organize, and click is used to activate the scene, leaving not much else for renaming, other than adding a row of links under the scene name (or icons beside the name) for accessing the various features. The icons could be a possibility.
Thoughts?
Personally, I'd be happy to do renaming in the normal SU scene organiser tab if need be. Just to be able to organise them would already be a great help, until such time as you can figure things out.
Is the organisation still only one tier deep or several tiers deep Rick? praying you answer several tiers deep
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Still only one (sorry). I'll be happy just to get this one released, and then add the functionality once I get the API for the javascript figured out. It may be another free/pro dual offering...
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Rick,
In general, for your (Smustard's) scripts, I wouldn't mind seeing more Free and Pro versions.
Hopefully, it wouldn't be a maintenance nightmare.
Who knows, perhaps it would lead to more revenue as users would be able to experience the free version and then see the value of purchasing the PRO version.
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Seems fine Rick, as long as it is easily recognisable and clear when looking at it at a glance, even simple check/uncheck boxes would do. I hate looking at an interface for more than a glance when I'm checking settings, different story when I'm doing them, but even then a simple and clear interface is quite important.
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Update: I added icons for "activate scene" (the arrow), "rename scene/group" (the quotes), and "delete group" (the 'x') - feedback?
John: Thanks for the input. I'll see how it goes for future scripts...
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I suppose I could drop the "activate scene" icon and go back to clicking the title to activate the scene - that would declutter things a bit.
I may need to go back and update my as-yet-unreleased SceneExporterPro to display the scenes in groups (or save it for the first update).
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@rickw said:
Another thing I'm considering is a SceneGroupReader. It would be a view-only interface (no drag/drop or organization tools) that would provide just the collapsible groups and click-to-select scenes. It would be offered with the organization set and as a free standalone. Thoughts?
Maybe this would be useful for someone... my boss could use it when showing a model with tons of tabs to a client in my absence. I wouldn't want to limit anyone's options. But for me, it would be useless.
I would go for the 'pro' scene organizer/exporter version... call it "SceneMaster" or "SceneMonster" if you like - meaning I want two tabs in the dialog at the top... one to use the scene exporter tool, the other to use the scene organizer/viewer tool.
some clarification questions.... can I drag and drop more than one scene at a time into a group? this is key!!!! (I didn't see you do that in your video demo)
If I'm in one file and have 30 different scenes, and I don't want them all, but want to export and bring in scenes 3-6, 10-15, 17, and 24 into a DIFFERENT MODEL... can I do that with your tool?
Can I use your organizer to, say, remove the check from the 'remember hidden geometry' box to a select group of scenes all at once? KEY FEATURE!!! I see this as a drop-down dialog box under the 'group' title... and it applies that set of check box settings to each scene in the group.
Can I auto-batch-rename all the scenes within a group easily? I type in "Exterior_#" and it renames all the scenes in the "Exterior" group to Exterior_1, Exterior_2, Exterior_3... etc.
Can I assign a color to a group of scenes? So that the Group one's tabs can all be red, and group two's tabs can all be blue, etc? (this could be randomly generated colors for the groups if you want - but it's easier to see a color than read a name sometimes)
Can I select a group and just loop the animation or just export the animation for that group only? This is another Key wish/feature!!!
I assume if you open a model with a hundred scenes in it, you've accounted for dynamically adjusting your dialog to fit them all into that dialog on the same screen... right? Also, I assume your tool automatically loads all the existing scenes into it, not just the ones created after opening the dialog.
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Hello
After reading Fletch, I see I'm facing similar wishes. Displacement, copy could be
very useful for looping sequences in animations. I mean: you don't have to redraw the whole scene , but paste a previous one. for instance : (open then close a door) several times in a complex animation (not following scenes).It's also just a wish because I know the work to program such a feature.
friendly
MALAISE
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@fletch said:
@rickw said:
Another thing I'm considering is a SceneGroupReader. It would be a view-only interface (no drag/drop or organization tools) that would provide just the collapsible groups and click-to-select scenes. It would be offered with the organization set and as a free standalone. Thoughts?
Maybe this would be useful for someone... my boss could use it when showing a model with tons of tabs to a client in my absence. I wouldn't want to limit anyone's options. But for me, it would be useless.
Understood. It would be for a scenario like you described.
@fletch said:
some clarification questions.... can I drag and drop more than one scene at a time into a group? this is key!!!! (I didn't see you do that in your video demo)
No, which is why I mentioned the text file import. But now I think that maybe the drag-n-drop should be secondary to a mass organizer dialog with checkboxes and naming (more like the SceneTiming and SceneExporterPro dialogs).
@fletch said:
If I'm in one file and have 30 different scenes, and I don't want them all, but want to export and bring in scenes 3-6, 10-15, 17, and 24 into a DIFFERENT MODEL... can I do that with your tool?
No, that's what PageExIm is for. My planned upgrade for PageExIm is to specify the scenes that are imported.
@fletch said:
Can I use your organizer to, say, remove the check from the 'remember hidden geometry' box to a select group of scenes all at once? KEY FEATURE!!! I see this as a drop-down dialog box under the 'group' title... and it applies that set of check box settings to each scene in the group.
Not yet. I was trying to learn the API for the d-n-d stuff. I like this idea, though
@fletch said:
Can I auto-batch-rename all the scenes within a group easily? I type in "Exterior_#" and it renames all the scenes in the "Exterior" group to Exterior_1, Exterior_2, Exterior_3... etc.
Ditto.
@fletch said:
Can I assign a color to a group of scenes? So that the Group one's tabs can all be red, and group two's tabs can all be blue, etc? (this could be randomly generated colors for the groups if you want - but it's easier to see a color than read a name sometimes)
To paraphrase Henry Ford, you can have any color you want, as long as it's Smustard Yellow
But I certainly understand the request and its reasoning.@fletch said:
Can I select a group and just loop the animation or just export the animation for that group only? This is another Key wish/feature!!!
We don't have that much control, outside of taking things out of the slideshow. If that's acceptable, then it can be done.
@fletch said:
I assume if you open a model with a hundred scenes in it, you've accounted for dynamically adjusting your dialog to fit them all into that dialog on the same screen... right? Also, I assume your tool automatically loads all the existing scenes into it, not just the ones created after opening the dialog.
Every scene in the model will have an entry, whether existing when the dialog is opened, or after. I don't think resizing to accommodate all hundred scenes is a good idea - hence the collapsing group tabs and scrollbars.
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