[Bf-python] Python API refactoring wiki

[Joe Eagar]

Campbell Barton wrote:  
>> Hey JoeHeed,
What is with "JoeHeed" anyway?  That's the second time someone's done that.

Maybe I'll use a different nick, like HeedJoe, or JoeIsYourGod, or 
JoeHeeds[put disliked politician here] Will and So Should You.  Or maybe 
ObeyJoeAndYouWillBeSpared.

To add a point to this pointless email, is anyone planning on adding 
support for python-defined node editors?  My idea was to use a 
Draw.Register system, where you register callbacks for a variety of nodes.

You could add node types to existing node editors, but what I think 
would be the most useful would be adding support for python-defined node 
*editors*.

This would allow making, say, logic editors for different external game 
engines, or shader editors for renderman shaders.  A plant-growing 
system would especially benefit from this (like in Maya).

An example code using this approach might work as follows (note that the 
string constants are more for clarity, they would be different can more 
efficient in a real API):

from Blender import Node #import the node module

class Test (Blender.Node.NodeType): #inherit the node type class
    ins = ["fVEC4", "fVALUE"] #input node points, f is for float.
    outs = ["fVALUE"] #output node point
    invals = [] #this is where the input node point *values* are 
deposited on a run-time node.
    outvals = [] #this is where the output node points *values* are put 
on a run-time node.
    val = 0 #this is a specific variable to run-time instances of Test.
    def gui(self): #this is for drawing UI stuff, possibly using the 
Draw module.
       pass

    #this function processes button events
    def event(self, evt, val):
       pass

    #this function executes the node.
    def exec(self):
       self.outvals[0] = self.invals[0][0] + self.invals[0][1] + 
self.inval[0][2] + self.inval[1]
   
    #this is for saving node-specific data
    def save(self):
       return str(val)

Type = Test()
Node.NewEditor("Test")
Node.Register(Type, "OBJECT") #have options to attach node to objects, 
library blocks of all types, or the global scene.

. . .then when you go to the node editor, theres a new editor (in 
addition to the compositor and material nodes) called "Test."  You'd 
then add nodes by pressing shift-A like normal.

joeedh