[Soc-2005-dev] Verse Integration

[Jiří Hnídek]

Hi Ton,
thanks for your positive reaction :-)

> Hi Jiri,
> 
> Also thanks for the cool wiki doc!
> http://wiki.blender.org/bin/view.pl/Blenderdev/VerseIntegrationToBlender
> 
> I think most of my questions were covered with the wiki for now. :)
> 
> There's a lot of usability issues we should discuss later, but that's  
> what the result of this project will be anyway. Probably the most  
> interesting thing to solve is really trying to pin down the  
> functionality you want to offer to users. Why would someone use Verse  
> in the first in place!

There is no press on users to use verse ... it is optional feature. When 
user isn't connected to verse server, then he works as usual. All verse 
menus are hidden, only verse connect menu is available. When he or she 
is connected, then he or she needn't to use verse for sharing. He/she 
can share or push only some Objects to verse server (depends on user's 
choice).

> While writing marketing docs for the Uni-Verse project, we've defined  
> two interesting levels Verse can work well in for 3d tools;
> 
> 1- Data Conversion
> 
> Basically it is "bypassing the file export/import/conversion  
> bottleneck", replacing using files for import/export with the Verse  
> protocol.
> This is the simplest option. Just connect to the Verse server and send  
> data, or connect and receive data. It is immediately converted to  
> Blender internal storage, and the connection is ended.

Yes, there could be two items in menu somewhere (info header menu, 
3dview header menu, main menu) for example:

1) "Push to server"
2) "Share at server"

These two action could be available for blender Object, blender Mesh or 
blender Object<->Mesh (we could share only object or only mesh data or 
pair object-mesh). In first case: Blender could send all data, but don't 
follow changes of this data anymore and unsubsribe from this data after 
pushing data to verse server. Second case would create verse data and 
push them to verse server. Blender would follow changes comming from 
other clients until user unsubsribe from data, stop session, crash verse 
server, etc.

I have plans to add some popup menu to Outliner for each Verse Session, 
Verse Node, Verse Layer, etc. for example: Verse Node would have these 
items:

"Pop from server"	oposite of Push to verse server
"Subscribe"		start sharing (blender data would be created)
"Unsubscribe"		stop sharing ("make local")
"Destroy"		destroy verse data (on client as well on server) ... blender 
data would be destroyed too in this case

Pushing data to verse server is "simplification" of real-time sharing 
... it is little bit dificult, because I have to refuse all potential 
changes comming from other clients during pushing to verse server.

> 2- Connecting Applications
> 
> Now the data remains on Verse server side, and is a 'dynamic linked'  
> entity within Blender, continuously updating the display. This will  
> allow using tools in one application, and immediately flush changes to  
> the other application.
> In this situation, the first option is available as a sortof 'make  
> Local' (Lkey) command in Blender.
> 
> It might be worth looking at this, as guideline for how the  
> functionality will be presented to users, also in the UI!
> 
> -Ton-

Some visualisation of subscribed Objects (objects shared at verse 
server) could be done in 3d view too. Subscribed Objects could have blue 
center balls (not purple). User could  easily identify subscribed and 
unsubscribed Objects.

Best regards,

Jiri