BlowTorch Chat Window Plugin Update
With the BlowTorch Test version 4 release, some fixes have also come to the chat window, as well as tweaked ui use. Please update your BlowTorch Test installation to the latest version 4 before updating this plugin. The version indicator for the most up to date version is 1.14.
For those with it already installed, you should be able to auto update from the MENU->Options->Chat Window->Check Update
For those without, please see the earlier Chat Plugin post for installation instructions.
Please read on for more information on changes and new features.
BlowTorch v2 Test Version 4 Update
The first stab at the test version has been out for a while, and many bugs have been reported. A great deal of them have been fixed, as well as some new features. This post is the complete(ish) list of all the things that have been fixed or added in this version.
For those who have the test version installed, it should be notifying you that there is an update available.
For those that dont, please see the BlowTorch v2 Test installation instructions page.
BlowTorch v2 Test Version
It is time for me to release what I've been working on to anyone who would like to try it out.
BlowTorch v2 New Features Guide
There is a demo video that I made about a year ago that shows how to use some of the new features. Some things had changed since then and I am in the process of recording a newer video and getting a better visual demonstration of how the features work. But here is some text as well as the old video.
BlowTorch v2 Test Version Installation Instructions
This shouldn't be too difficult but there are a few steps. All paths are on the sdcard in the /BlowTorch/ root directory. There will be a number of places where search paths are discussed about what dialogs will search where, and they are all relative to this /mnt/sdcard/BlowTorch/ or wherever your external storage happens to be.
BlowTorch Chat Window Plugin
Filter that text! Also yank it out of the main output window and put it in its own littler window where it won't get scrolled away.
The chat window plugin is a pretty simple script, but it has many examples of how to get things done on Android with Lua.
AE Interoperability
The 3ds Max 2012 Subscription Advantage Pack was recently released. Features include iray 2.0, better SDK support, and a render pass system called State Sets which plays well with Photoshop and After Effects CS4 and CS5. This article will focus on the After Effects interoperability features provided by the State Sets interface. The interoperability features support the transfer of standard 3ds Max Cameras, Lights, Planes (as Solids in AE), Helpers (as Null objects in AE), and footage rendered via the State Sets interface.
Turn an ArrayList into an Array
In Java and Android, Arrays have a fixed length. Coming from Perl and PHP where arrays can grow and shrink without needing to be redefined, this concept presented challenges while defining arrays. Enter the ArrayList. Unlike Java's and Android's Arrays, whose size doesn't change, you can add or remove elements in an ArrayList dynamically.
However, several of the methods I'm using require Arrays and not ArrayLists. You may also want to convert an ArrayList to an Array because some operations can be faster with an Array. Fortunately, there's a simple call that will convert an ArrayList to an Array, here's how:
Weekend Learning Android
Last weekend I decided to sit down and learn to program for Android. If you're familiar with C or C++ and object-oriented programming, Android development should be a breeze. I, however, knew nothing of any of these. Fortunately, Dan is an excellent teacher and, while I don't have much experience with "real" programming languages, I often write Perl and PHP at work so I have some very basic understanding of the concepts. Getting into the habit of using strict in Perl (a pragma that makes you delcare your variables in the scope you'll be using it) has been helpful because you have to declare EVERYTHING in Java (the primary language Android SDK uses).
I came across a couple issues installing the SDK and getting Eclipse running for Android, which I'll post later for those seeking help, but the process mildly time consuming and relatively painless.
3ds Max 2012 Hot Fix 2
The 3ds Max 2012 Hot Fix 2 is now live. Go install it, all ye 3ds Max users:
- Autodesk 3ds Max 2012 Hot Fix 2 for 32-bit and 64-bit
- Autodesk 3ds Max Design 2012 Hot Fix 2 for 32-bit and 64-bit
Hot fix 2, which comes a month after Service Pack 1, lists 10 new fixes for 3ds Max 2012. It addresses issues with CAT, MAXScript, the material editor, and more. Like the Service Pack before it, Hot Fix 2 is a cumulative update. This means that it includes all the previous fixes (Service Pack 1 and Hot Fix 1), so if you just installed 3ds Max 2012 you don't need to worry about the previous updates, just download Hot Fix 2.
Take a look at the table included at the end of this post or the "Readme" PDF in the links above for the full list Hot Fix 2 specific fixes.