[Bf-committers] Final Design of Basics (render api)

[Campbell Barton]

Hi, just read through your doc and it looks a lot better to me.

One thing I think should be re-thought is your basic property system.
http://wiki.blender.org/index.php/Render_API#Bookmarking_Data

Blender already has property's for anything with an ID (materials, 
objects, geometry etc...)

One of the reasons these were added was to support settings for external 
renderer's.

A solution for this could be to give each scene, object, mesh, material 
and light  a copy of blenders ID-Property, so it could use this for 
storing user settings. but also add temporary settings there without 
messing up the user data.

Joe did a nice job with the ID-Prop api but you'd probably want to have 
your own interface to modifying the data so the render api could be kept 
stable if blenders ID props ever change.

At least its probably not a lot of work wrapping the ID-Prop API, you 
could look at the python API interface as a guide.

- Cam


Aaron Moore wrote:
> Hi,
> 
> I just completed my final design of:
> 
> 1) The basic Render API.
> 2) The Render API plugin system.
> 
> http://wiki.blender.org/index.php/Render_API
> 
> I have also created an code example of how a simple renderman exporter
> would use the basic Render API. I have talked and thought this design
> through several iterations this week, and this is the final one. I am
> asking for opinions and reviews. For the basic functionality, I
> consider this design comprehensive and finished, so if there is any
> disagreement with this, let me know.
> 
> Functionality that is in:
> - Render / Camera settings
> - Render Context
> - Objects / Instances
> - Lights / Geometry
> - Polygon Meshes
> - Render Layers / Passes -- this is the most recent addition.
> 
> Functionality that is currently left out:
> - Shadow / Raytrace settings
> - Special Light Settings (no diffuse, no specular, ...)
> - Materials / Textures
> - World Settings
> - Radiocity
> - Non-Polygon Geometry
> 
> I think the design of these features can happen in parallel with the
> implementation of the basic features.
> 
> Also, I haven't gotten any feedback on the plugin system yet, if you
> have an opinion about it that warrants sharing, please tell.
> 
> Aaron
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> 


-- 
Campbell J Barton (ideasman42)