PyNodes opens up the node system in Blender to scripters and adds a number of UI-level improvements.
=== Dynamic node type registration ===
Node types can now be added at runtime, using the RNA registration mechanism from python. This enables addons such as render engines to create a complete user interface with nodes.
Examples of how such nodes can be defined can be found in my personal wiki docs atm [1] and as a script template in release/scripts/templates_py/custom_nodes.py [2].
=== Node group improvements ===
Each node editor now has a tree history of edited node groups, which allows opening and editing nested node groups. The node editor also supports pinning now, so that different spaces can be used to edit different node groups simultaneously. For more ramblings and rationale see (really old) blog post on code.blender.org [3].
The interface of node groups has been overhauled. Sockets of a node group are no longer displayed in columns on either side, but instead special input/output nodes are used to mirror group sockets inside a node tree. This solves the problem of long node lines in groups and allows more adaptable node layout. Internal sockets can be exposed from a group by either connecting to the extension sockets in input/output nodes (shown as empty circle) or by adding sockets from the node property bar in the "Interface" panel. Further details such as the socket name can also be changed there.
[1] http://wiki.blender.org/index.php/User:Phonybone/Python_Nodes
[2] http://projects.blender.org/scm/viewvc.php/trunk/blender/release/scripts/templates_py/custom_nodes.py?view=markup&root=bf-blender
[3] http://code.blender.org/index.php/2012/01/improving-node-group-interface-editing/
Dragging on toggle buttons can now be used to press multiple buttons at once, especially useful for layer and outliner buttons.
notes:
- automatically enabled for all toggle buttons
(may change this if it becomes a problem).
- only buttons of the same type are pressed
(helps avoid annoyances eg; dragging past layer buttons onto other 3d header buttons and pressing by accident).
- automatic axis locking - dragging will lock to X/Y depending on the initial drag direction,
makes swipe motions work better, especially with the outliner.
implementation details:
- may re-implement as a region handler (currently its a modal operator).
- checking buttons in-between cursor motion events could be more efficient (but currently works ok).
- button execution needs to be improved
(currently executing a button thats not under the mouse needed a workaround for passing uiHandleButtonData),
requires further changes to UI code, will do next.
This was caused from using theme shadow setting to clip the popups and a hard-coded value to translate the popup within screen bounds - these values should be the same.
Full log is here:
http://wiki.blender.org/index.php/Dev:Ref/Release_Notes/2.66/Usability#Matcap_in_3D_viewport
Implementation notes:
- Matcaps are an extension of Solid draw mode, and don't show in other drawmodes.
(It's mostly intended to aid modeling/sculpt)
- By design, Matcaps are a UI feature, and only stored locally for the UI itself, and
won't affect rendering or materials.
- Currently a set of 16 (GPL licensed) Matcaps have been compiled into Blender.
It doesn't take memory or cpu time, until you use it.
- Brush Icons and Matcaps use same code now, and only get generated/allocated on
actually using it (instead of on startup).
- The current set might get new or different images still, based on user feedback.
- Matcap images are 512x512 pixels, so each image takes 1 Mb memory. Unused matcaps get
freed immediately. The Matcap icon previews (128x128 pixels) stay in memory.
- Loading own matcap image files will be added later. That needs design and code work
to get it stable and memory-friendly.
- The GLSL code uses the ID PreviewImage for matcaps. I tested it using the existing
Material previews, which has its limits... especially for textured previews the
normal-mapped matcap won't look good.
Blender's data link button (typically with menu and searching options)
now has a X icon to clear its contents.
Before you had to click, delete text, enter.
For example:
- Object Parent
- Modifier objects or vertexgroups
This fix saves each user 100 clicks per day, with 100k users
that's 3 billion clicks per year!
It introduces a new (py-extendable and registrable) RNA type, UIList (roughly similar to Panel one), which currently contains only "standard" list's scroll pos and size (but may be expended to include e.g. some filtering data, etc.). This now makes lists completely independent from Panels!
This UIList has a draw_item callback which allows to customize items' drawing from python, that all addons can now use. Incidentally, this also greatly simplifies the C code of this widget, as we do not code any "special case" here anymore!
To make all this work, other changes were also necessary:
* Now all buttons (uiBut struct) have a 'custom_data' void pointer, used currently to store the uiList struct associated with a given uiLayoutListBox.
* DynamicPaintSurface now exposes a new bool, use_color_preview (readonly), saying whether that surface has some 3D view preview data or not.
* UILayout class has now four new (static) functions, to get the actual icon of any RNA object (important e.g. with materials or textures), and to get an enum item's UI name, description and icon.
* UILayout's label() func now takes an optional 'icon_value' integer parameter, which if not zero will override the 'icon' one (mandatory to use "custom" icons as generated for material/texture/... previews).
Note: not sure whether we should add that one to all UILayout's prop funcs?
Note: will update addons using template list asap.
Now scrollbars correctly hide and show, making space for the actual contents
in a region. It solves several old hacks, and puts view2d code a bit more
back in control as well.
Implementation notes:
- The view2d mask feature is working again
- The #define V2D_SCROLL_HORIZONTAL_HIDE means: "turn on hiding".
- Code for UI_view2d_region_reinit() is enforcing better standard view settings
But... two hack/patches needed to be added:
- Region panel drawing: if after generating the button panels it appears
a scroller hides or reveils, it calls all the generating code again.
(a simple scale doesn't work due to rounding differences in layout code)
- View2d code that maps 'tot' and 'cur' rects: if this code detects that
the mask changes, it calcs the map code again.
Also a bugfix (issue in 2.65)
- The left/bottom area split widget was drawing 1 pixel too large sometimes,
leaving bad trails on moving area dividers.
Nice formatted version (pictures soon):
http://wiki.blender.org/index.php/Dev:Ref/Release_Notes/2.66/Usability
Short list of main changes:
- Transparent region option (over main region), added code to blend in/out such panels.
- Min size window now 640 x 480
- Fixed DPI for ui - lots of cleanup and changes everywhere. Icon image need correct size still, layer-in-use icon needs remake.
- Macbook retina support, use command line --no-native-pixels to disable it
- Timeline Marker label was drawing wrong
- Trackpad and magic mouse: supports zoom (hold ctrl)
- Fix for splash position: removed ghost function and made window size update after creation immediate
- Fast undo buffer save now adds UI as well. Could be checked for regular file save even...
Quit.blend and temp file saving use this now.
- Dixed filename in window on reading quit.blend or temp saves, and they now add a warning in window title: "(Recovered)"
- New Userpref option "Keep Session" - this always saves quit.blend, and loads on start.
This allows keeping UI and data without actual saves, until you actually save.
When you load startup.blend and quit, it recognises the quit.blend as a startup (no file name in header)
- Added 3D view copy/paste buffers (selected objects). Shortcuts ctrl-c, ctrl-v (OSX, cmd-c, cmd-v).
Coded partial file saving for it. Could be used for other purposes. Todo: use OS clipboards.
- User preferences (themes, keymaps, user settings) now can be saved as a separate file.
Old option is called "Save Startup File" the new one "Save User Settings".
To visualise this difference, the 'save startup file' button has been removed from user preferences window. That option is available as CTRL+U and in File menu still.
- OSX: fixed bug that stopped giving mouse events outside window.
This also fixes "Continuous Grab" for OSX. (error since 2009)
turns out there were copy-pasted functions for operator search popups which were identical except that one skipped internal ops.
de-duplicate so both work the same now.
The way it works now, navigation keys (up/down, number, a-z) - won't apply to a submenu if there are no active buttons in that menu, instead the parent menu gets the event.
Replace old color pipeline which was supporting linear/sRGB color spaces
only with OpenColorIO-based pipeline.
This introduces two configurable color spaces:
- Input color space for images and movie clips. This space is used to convert
images/movies from color space in which file is saved to Blender's linear
space (for float images, byte images are not internally converted, only input
space is stored for such images and used later).
This setting could be found in image/clip data block settings.
- Display color space which defines space in which particular display is working.
This settings could be found in scene's Color Management panel.
When render result is being displayed on the screen, apart from converting image
to display space, some additional conversions could happen.
This conversions are:
- View, which defines tone curve applying before display transformation.
These are different ways to view the image on the same display device.
For example it could be used to emulate film view on sRGB display.
- Exposure affects on image exposure before tone map is applied.
- Gamma is post-display gamma correction, could be used to match particular
display gamma.
- RGB curves are user-defined curves which are applying before display
transformation, could be used for different purposes.
All this settings by default are only applying on render result and does not
affect on other images. If some particular image needs to be affected by this
transformation, "View as Render" setting of image data block should be set to
truth. Movie clips are always affected by all display transformations.
This commit also introduces configurable color space in which sequencer is
working. This setting could be found in scene's Color Management panel and
it should be used if such stuff as grading needs to be done in color space
different from sRGB (i.e. when Film view on sRGB display is use, using VD16
space as sequencer's internal space would make grading working in space
which is close to the space using for display).
Some technical notes:
- Image buffer's float buffer is now always in linear space, even if it was
created from 16bit byte images.
- Space of byte buffer is stored in image buffer's rect_colorspace property.
- Profile of image buffer was removed since it's not longer meaningful.
- OpenGL and GLSL is supposed to always work in sRGB space. It is possible
to support other spaces, but it's quite large project which isn't so
much important.
- Legacy Color Management option disabled is emulated by using None display.
It could have some regressions, but there's no clear way to avoid them.
- If OpenColorIO is disabled on build time, it should make blender behaving
in the same way as previous release with color management enabled.
More details could be found at this page (more details would be added soon):
http://wiki.blender.org/index.php/Dev:Ref/Release_Notes/2.64/Color_Management
--
Thanks to Xavier Thomas, Lukas Toene for initial work on OpenColorIO
integration and to Brecht van Lommel for some further development and code/
usecase review!
use an enum typedef for button types. it was quite annoying debugging UI code since the defines are bit-shifted. GDB would show but->type as 13824 and blender define was (27 << 9).
Now but->type shows as a humanly readable names.
This commit reshapes a bit runtime button info getter, by adding a new uiButGetStrInfo() which accepts a variable number of uiStringInfo parameters, and tries to fill them with the requested strings, for the given button (label, tip, context, RNA identifier, keymap, etc.). Currently used mostly by existing ui_tooltip_create(), and new UI_OT_edittranslation_init operator.
It also adds a few getters (to get RNA i18n context, and current language iso code).
Finally, it adds to C operators needed for the py ui_translation addon:
*UI_OT_edittranslation_init, which gathers requested data and launch the py operator.
*UI_OT_reloadtranslation, which forces a full reload of the whole UI translation (including rechecking the directory containing mo files).
For the first operator to work, it also adds a new user preferences path: i18n_branches_directory, to point to the /branch part of a bf-translation checkout.
Restored single triangle for special menus, which still isn't perfect but
probably makes more sense.
Added drawflag bit flags to button, which is currently used to declare, that
button need to have up/down arrows. This is needed because it's tricky to
distinguish if button should have such arrows. For example, ID search buttons
is a simple block button which doesn't directly mean it'll have pop-up menu
and not all buttons which cases pop-up menu to display need to have such
arrows.
So currently only ID selector button is forcing up/down arrows to be displayed,
all the rest buttons now behaves in the same way as it used to be before.
When adding extra context data in a layout using uiLayoutSetContextPointer, this info was not inherited by popup menus generated in this layout. While operators from regular buttons work fine, the data is missing in operators from menus and such. This patch copies the bContextStore from buttons to the new uiLayout used for popups.
added some missing functions too - which are not used yep but should be there for api completeness.
* CDDM_set_mloop
* CDDM_set_mpoly
* BLI_mempool_count
If enter is pressed outside of any button in menu, generate two menu return values:
- UI_RETURN_CANCEL so button wouldn't be executed
- UI_RETURN_POPUP_OK so callback associated with popup block would be executed
This patch adds a new CLIP_EVENTS flag for uiBlock, which will prevent the ui_but_find_mouse_over search function from looking into "lower" uiBlocks (i.e. those further back in the list). The order of block creation for nodes has also been updated to use the z-ordering (just the nodetree->nodes list).
In order for this to work, the bounding box values of the uiBlocks have to be set explicitely to fit the node size, those are usually either zero or calculated from the internal buttons.
