[Bf-funboard] Re: [Bf-committers] Re: [Bf-python] scripts as 'core tools'

Robert Wenzlaff (AB8TD) rwenzlaff at soylent-green.com
Sun Sep 25 16:56:12 CEST 2005


On Sunday 25 September 2005 00:45, Campbell Barton wrote:

> Having a C function that allowed Hard coded C menu items would be good,
> as long like - RUN_SCRIPT("blah.py");
> Would be kind of cool, and allow Blender team to hand pick good quality
> scripts to include in the UI.

While this might be a cool thing to have, we must resist the temptation to 
make it a quick fix for everything. 

I've said it many times: 

The worst enemy of good software, is software that is good enough.

That said here is a few  "basic tools" as listed in several modeling books I 
have:

Vertex and Edge Bevel - An edge becomes a quad, a vert becomes an n-gon (n = 
number of edges that the vert is part of ).  Without proper n-gon support, 
this is difficult in Blender.  I have filled notebooks of methods and special 
cases where that method ends up making a mess of the mesh.

Vertex extrude - We have this but other packages extrude a vertex to 3 faces,  
rather than an isolated edge. ie; it fills in between the original geometry 
and new edge/vert.  Kind of a anti-bevel.  Think of pulling on the corner of 
a block of clay.  Again, n-gons are created.

Merging - we have remove doubles, but that's a poor way to weld.  ie; you 
can't weld parts that don't fit tighter than a tolerance window.  ie; if I 
want to weld 2 cylinders into a "T" shape, I have to  cut a hole in one, and 
"fish-mouth" the other (the actual welding term!).  This has a lot of the 
same problems as booleans, if the geometry doesn't match up, it will make a 
mess.  But if the user sets up the geometry right there should be a way to do 
it that produces acceptable results (and a whole section in the docs on 
getting the geometry set up right).  

I am not too familiar with what f-gons can do or what functions exist for 
making f-gons. But I don't think they "solve" the above problems.

One thing that might make remove doubles more useful is constraints on the 
movements of the verts.  If there were a "edge slide limit"  and an "absolute 
limit", ie; verts moved up to the "edge slide" value in the direction of 
their existing edge (towards the nearest face intersect point?)  until they 
were within the "absolute limit" of another vert, then they merge.  This you 
could specify a large amount of slop in the vert locations, but it would have 
a reduced effect on the overall geometry since they would remain in their 
current edge positions for most of the move.

-- 
*********************************************
     Overheard at the Wenzlaff house:

 Connor: Let's play Robin Hood.
 Liam: Ok, I'll be the Taxi collector.
*********************************************
Robert Wenzlaff   rwenzlaff at soylent-green.com



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