[jjs]

In the Maxwell window , I get this error with an assembly I am trying to render. Another similar assembly renders without any problem.

What sort of things should I look at to correct this?

Anybody got any ideas?


TTFN


Jonathan

[juan]

Hi Jonathan,

It uses to happen due several reasons, my first ideas are:

- You have assigned a texture to a component and this texture has a format that maxwell does not support. Maxwell could have some problems with png or tiff, (even some times with tga but it is already fixed). Check the format of your texture. You can export a non supported format to a supported one with a lot of free applications.

- You have moved the mxs to another computer to render it, so when maxwell looks the bitmaps it does not find them. You can write in the command line options (in additional settings of the render tab) this command:

-bitmaps:0
(do not forget the first "-")

It forces maxwell to ignore the bitmaps, check you can render the scene in this case. Please tell me if you still have problems. If you want, you can send me the assembly so I can debug and find what is happening.

Listening to your suggestions of previous posts I am thinking in new enhancements for the plugin. I will work in new ideas soon. New ways and tools to texture are complex to develop, this work is more in the SolidWorks side, and I am sure they are working in that. But we can add tools to make the material handling easier and pretty usable. I will give you news about it as soon as possible.

Best,

Juan

[jjs]

I knew 'tech support' would be in on a Saturday .

Thanks for the reply - I have tried the -bitmaps command and it works now.

I have altered a transparency of a part in Solidworks that is different from an assembly that does work. It might be that - When i have a moment I will check.

Good luck with the texture handling and ideas for the plugin.

It is difficult to give many suggestions of how a user would like it without knowing how much your standalone Maxwell will do the job of the current plugin.

If the 'standalone has all the tools built in and all the plugin does is supply the SW geometry, then I suppose it is the way changes in SW geometry are handled when a designer changes the SW model and how Maxwell re-synchorises with it.

Do you feel comfortable with using 'Configuaritions' in SW? If you feel a little uncertain about how they are used, take a little time to investigate them before committing too much time to programming. I say this because using 'configuartions' is at the core of producing design concepts . Differences in feature on a model or in an assembly are explored and discussed with clients (bosses ) etc and each is stored as a seperate confiiguration. When maxwell is thrown into the mix - I can see that configurations will be used to control the texture and colour variations etc in designs. So a material needs to be able to be 'globaly' applied or configuration specificically applied - all in an easy to use interface !! So Good Luck

TTFN



Jonathan

[Frances]

I knew 'tech support' would be in on a Saturday .

Thanks for the reply - I have tried the -bitmaps command and it works now.

I have altered a transparency of a part in Solidworks that is different from an assembly that does work. It might be that - When i have a moment I will check.

If using the -bitmaps:0 switch allows you to render, then it is a problem with one of your texture bitmaps.

[juan]

I knew 'tech support' would be in on a Saturday .

how could you knew that? .. anyway "tech support" will be out from august 28 to Sept 3. (just one week)

I have altered a transparency of a part in Solidworks that is different from an assembly that does work. It might be that - When i have a moment I will check..

Please notice me if you get some results. I think transparency changes could not be the cause, it is too strange, even for windows programs. what format has the texture? jpg?

Do you feel comfortable with using 'Configuaritions' in SW? ... using 'configuartions' is at the core of producing design concepts .... So a material needs to be able to be 'globaly' applied or configuration specificically applied - all in an easy to use interface !!

So easy I know how importants are configurations in SW. At now, the maxwell material is stored in the active configuration, so if you changed the configiguration and you reassign materials this new reassignment do not delete the older. But we have just begin with it. We want maxwell fully integrated in SW, and manage configurations is a "must-to". We go on that way.

Yours,

Juan

[jjs]

Juan - I've emailed you the assembly - is 18mb though so let me know if you get it OK.

The project is confidential so please don't post any pics here

The Assembly is made of two sub assemblies. The subassemblies render on their own.

TTFN

Jonathan