[stefan_kaplan]

Thanks for your replys, JD.

A few more errors and wishes:

- Error: When using "Hidden Layers: Do not render", this happens: Groups that are hidden or on an Off-layer are rendered! Faces that are hidden or on an off-layer are not rendered. None should be rendered.
These are the objects modeled in SketchUp:
This is the model to be rendered:
The rendering:

- Error: As mentioned by other users: Wrong flipping/mirroring when exporting to mxs. Example: SketchUp-model and MXS-file
- Wish: ability to press "enter" after entering a value instead of clicking somewhere else in the window.
- Wish: Sun on/off unlinked to SketchUp. I would prefer a completely unlinked shadow-setting (or an option to link/unlink to application).

A couple of answers:

- Error: Sometimes the buttons in the Maxwell Scene Manager doesn't work. Restarting the Scene Manager ususaly makes them function again.
--JD-- Could you tell me which buttons you mean? Which operating system are you running on?
= This happened short after installation and I have not been able to reproduce this issue. It concerned the Ground Plane Mode-button and a few times the Environment Type-button.
I run WinXP 32bit.

- Error: Output Resolution: When using "Custom"-mode and "Aspect Locked", changing the Y-value will change X and Y to "2" and mess up the scene. Changing the X-value will sometimes change X and Y to "2" but doesn't mess up the scene.
--JD-- I'm not able to observe this, so could you give a more specific set of steps by which I may duplicate it?
= This only happens when the "Show Aspect Ratio in Viewport" is enabled.
The steps are very simple: In Output Resolution choose Custom Mode. Choose a preset. Make sure to enable the button "Show Aspect Ratio in Viewport". Lock the aspect ratio. Drag or click the Y-slider to change the value. When mouse-button is released, X and Y values are changed to "2 px" and the Scene is messed up (result is VERY close zoom-in and no field of view).
To me this is quite a bad error because when the scene is being messed up it is instantly saved and the action can't be undone in any way. Only way to get the scene back is to revert to last file-save.

/Stefan

[JDHill]

Thanks again for the detailed critiques, Stefan. I'll come back to the other issues, but first I am especially concerned with the last one, i.e. the camera resolution problem. There is still something unknown happening here, because the specified conditions do not result in this behavior here at all. So, if you could write down an exact set of steps, i.e. starting at opening SketchUp, with all details such as whether the window is maximized or not, etc., and going up to the point where the values go to 2px, I will try again to duplicate it here. Any specific detail may hold the key, for example, this time you said 'Choose a preset' -- it may be some small detail like this that makes the issue appear.

[Richard]

So, you want each material to actually be holding many complete material definitions, including preview images? I don't know about that -- in MXED, the previews you store are runtime only and are not saved in the file.

Oh dam! That means I spent some time in studio making variations of a material with the Mxed thinking how useful it was to be later and when closed I'd have lost those previews. Bugger, I am yet to extract all those materials from the MXS (still running behind) and thought I was smart - no need to worry now I guess. Shite!

I am not clear on the Studio feature you are referring to -- where can I 'save out' camera settings in Studio? This must have escaped my attention.

There is a new feature in V2.1 that allows the camera to be saved out of the Studio scene. I'll check and get back on this one!

[soarchitect]

does the new sketchup plugin work with maxwell 2.03?

[Half Life]

no.

[Burnum]

Great work on the new plugin JD! It was a nice talking with you at SIGGRAPH as you patiently entertained my crazy thoughts about materials that Maxwell can't easily reproduce just yet. (aerogel, or glowing gases... etc.)

[stefan_kaplan]

Thanks again for the detailed critiques, Stefan. I'll come back to the other issues, but first I am especially concerned with the last one, i.e. the camera resolution problem. There is still something unknown happening here, because the specified conditions do not result in this behavior here at all. So, if you could write down an exact set of steps, i.e. starting at opening SketchUp, with all details such as whether the window is maximized or not, etc., and going up to the point where the values go to 2px, I will try again to duplicate it here. Any specific detail may hold the key, for example, this time you said 'Choose a preset' -- it may be some small detail like this that makes the issue appear.

This error might only appear on my system... It would be great if someone else could test it as well.

My simplest way to the error is as follows:
1. I startup SketchUp. The application Window is automatically maximized (this is how I left the application last time I used it). the model is seen in "Top"-view (this is controlled by my current template).
2. I draw a rectangle that fills most of the drawing area. I need an object to see if the view changes later on... camera is still in it's original position, "Top"-view.
3. I Open the Maxwell Scene Manager. The Material-tab is autmatically current (and grey/inactive).
4. I Switch to the Camera-tab.
EDIT ("Application" is now replaced with "Viewport" as it should be, sorry): 5. I click the Mode-button to change from "Viewport" to "Custom". The active Preset is automatically set at "640x480". The "Lock aspect ratio"-button is automatically activated (aspect ratio is locked).
6. I Press the "Show aspect ratio in viewport"-button. The Grey bars appear in each side of the screen.
7. I Clik the Y-slider in order to change the resolution (In this example i click on the grey part of the slider to move the blue part to the right and get a higher resolution) = Immediately the X and Y values are changed to 2px and the SketchUp Scene has changed to a VERY close zoom-in and no field of view.

Here is a graphical excample with a textured rectangle. The Rectangle is 5000 x5000 mm and one checker-square in the pattern is 50 mm.

This is how the application looks just before clicking anywhere on the Y-slider (field of view is 30 deg.):



And after cliking the Y-slider (field of view is now 0.69 deg.):



SketchUp-file to download

Thank you.

/Stefan

[JDHill]

Thanks -- it appears that something unexpected is happening around step 5. When the camera tab is first opened, and its mode is set to Viewport, it should not be showing a resolution of 640x480; it should already have picked up the physical dimensions of the viewport.

[stefan_kaplan]

--By the way, I've made a small change in the discription in my previous post (I don't think you misunderstood the walkthru, but I've updated it anyway)--

Thanks -- it appears that something unexpected is happening around step 5. When the camera tab is first opened, and its mode is set to Viewport, it should not be showing a resolution of 640x480; it should already have picked up the physical dimensions of the viewport.

This is a screendump from exactly the step you mention (between my step 4 and 5), i.e. first thing I see after opening the Camera-tab, before changing anything:



and after only changing the mode from Viewport to Custom:



/Stefan

[Richard]

Could this be an issue born by the camera FOV being set in SU at less than 1 and the limit of the maxwell camera being 1?

Or does this happen at any camera angle?

[JDHill]

Let's try this and see what we find:

1. start SketchUp
2. open the Scene Manager
3. go to the Options tab
4. go to the Diagnostics panel
5. enable Ruby Echo
6. go back to the Camera tab
7. switch from Viewport to Custom mode
8. switch back to Viewport mode
9. switch again to Custom mode

What messages are printed in the ruby console, and what are the X and Y resolution values in the camera?

[stefan_kaplan]

Let's try this and see what we find:

1. start SketchUp
2. open the Scene Manager
3. go to the Options tab
4. go to the Diagnostics panel
5. enable Ruby Echo
6. go back to the Camera tab
7. switch from Viewport to Custom mode
8. switch back to Viewport mode
9. switch again to Custom mode

What messages are printed in the ruby console, and what are the X and Y resolution values in the camera?

I don't understand much of this but here's the text from the ruby console:

MX: camera.resolution: 1854,1072 => 640,480
MX: camera.output_mode: viewport => custom
MX: camera.film_size: 36.0,20.8155339805825 => 32,24
MX: camera.show_ar: [empty] => false
MX: camera.model: [empty] => Custom
MX: camera.output_mode: custom => viewport
MX: camera.film_size: 36.0,20.8155339805825 => 36,20,8155339805825
MX: camera.resolution: 1854,1072 => 640,480
MX: camera.output_mode: viewport => custom
MX: camera.film_size: 36.0,20.8155339805825 => 32,24

At this point the X and Y resolution is still 640 x 480.

/Stefan

[JDHill]

Thanks Stefan, it is fine if you don't understand it -- this helps me understand the communication that happens between different components during runtime. However, it is still not quite enough information, so I would ask you to do this again, but with slightly different steps:

• 1. start SketchUp
  2. enable Options > Diagnostics > JavaScript Echo
  3. resize the Scene Manager & JavaScript Echo windows as necessary
  4. close and re-open SketchUp
  5. enable Options > Diagnostics > Ruby Echo
  6. in the Ruby console, type 'MX.log=true' and hit Enter
  7. go to the Camera tab
  8. switch from Viewport to Custom mode
  9. switch back to Viewport mode
  10. switch again to Custom mode

If you could then email me these items:

• a. your SketchUp template file
  b. the contents of the Ruby console
  c. the contents of the JavaScript console (just use the 'Copy' link in the window's title bar)

This should allow me to pinpoint where the problem is coming from -- I wanted to start with simpler things first, but they're not getting us very far.

[JDHill]

BTW, all, I'm going to split some posts from this thread out into separate topics, so check for that if you see a post missing.

[stefan_kaplan]

If you could then email me these items:

• a. your SketchUp template file
  b. the contents of the Ruby console
  c. the contents of the JavaScript console (just use the 'Copy' link in the window's title bar)

This should allow me to pinpoint where the problem is coming from -- I wanted to start with simpler things first, but they're not getting us very far.

I'm not sure how to email you the files - do you mean 'pm'?
Anyway I packed the requested information in this zip-file.

/Stefan