manual/compositing/types/output/file.rst

@@ -27,11 +27,6 @@ Image
    The image(s) will be saved on rendering, writing to the current frame.
    An entire sequence of images will be saved, when an animation is rendered.
 
-.. note::
-
-   To support subsequent arrangement and layering of images, the node can supply a Z-depth map.
-   However, please note that only the OpenEXR image formats save the Z information.
-
 
 Properties
 ==========

manual/modeling/geometry_nodes/simulation/simulation_zone.rst

@@ -6,7 +6,7 @@
 Simulation Zone
 ***************
 
-Simulation allows the result of one frame to influence the next one.
+A simulation zones allows the result of one frame to influence the next one.
 That way even a set of simple rules can lead to complex results, with the passing of time.
 The most common type of them is physics simulation, with specific solvers for physical phenomena.
 
@@ -26,6 +26,7 @@ It is not possible to have any link going towards outside.
 The result of the simulation can only be accessed via the Simulation Output node.
 This also allows sub-frame interpolation for motion blur.
 
+
 Clock
 =====
 
@@ -33,12 +34,14 @@ The simulation is tied to the animation system, with support for sub-steps.
 It will only be evaluated while the animation frame changes, and is cached like
 the existing physics simulations in Blender.
 
+
 Properties
 ==========
 
 In the Node Editor the inputs can be renamed, shuffled and removed.
 This is also the place where sub-steps can be defined for a simulation.
 
+
 Baking
 ======
 
@@ -65,6 +68,7 @@ This allows for the simulation to be rendered in a non-sequential order.
 
    Baking the simulation will bake all the simulations in all modifiers for the selected objects.
 
+
 Examples
 ========
 

manual/physics/index.rst

@@ -17,3 +17,4 @@
    forces/index.rst
    collision.rst
    baking.rst
+   simulation_nodes.rst

manual/physics/simulation_nodes.rst

@@ -0,0 +1,58 @@
+
+****************
+Simulation Nodes
+****************
+
+Through the use of :doc:`Simulation Zones </modeling/geometry_nodes/simulation/simulation_zone>`,
+:doc:`/modeling/geometry_nodes/index` can be used to create custom physic simulations through nodes.
+Simulation zones allow the result of one frame to influence the next one.
+That way even a set of simple rules can lead to complex results, with the passing of time.
+The most common type of them is physics simulation, with specific solvers for physical phenomena.
+
+.. seealso::
+
+   Read more about :doc:`Simulation Zones </modeling/geometry_nodes/simulation/simulation_zone>`
+
+
+.. _bpy.types.Object.use_simulation_cache:
+.. _bpy.ops.object.simulation_nodes_cache_calculate_to_frame:
+.. _bpy.ops.object.simulation_nodes_cache_bake:
+.. _bpy.ops.object.simulation_nodes_cache_delete:
+
+Baking
+======
+
+The simulation is automatically cached during playback.
+The valid cache can be seen as a strong yellow line in the timeline editor.
+This allows for animators to quickly inspect all the previous frames of a simulation.
+
+.. figure:: /images/modeling-geometry_nodes-simulation-baking_timeline.png
+   :align: center
+
+   Cached frames in the Timeline.
+
+For the cases where the current frame is the only one relevant, users can opt-out of "Keep All Cache" to save memory.
+
+When the result is ready to be sent to a render-farm, it can be baked to disk.
+This allows for the simulation to be rendered in a non-sequential order.
+
+.. figure:: /images/modeling-geometry_nodes-simulation-baking.png
+   :align: center
+
+   Simulation and Physics, Geometry Nodes user interface.
+
+.. note::
+
+   Baking the simulation will bake all the simulations in all modifiers for the selected objects.
+
+
+Examples
+========
+
+Combined with the :doc:`/modeling/geometry_nodes/geometry/sample/index_of_nearest`,
+this can be used for a number of sphere-based simulations.
+
+.. figure:: /images/modeling-geometry_nodes-simulation-example.png
+   :align: center
+
+   Index of Nearest sample file CC-BY Sean Christofferson.

manual/render/cycles/gpu_rendering.rst

@@ -20,12 +20,6 @@ Rendering Technologies
 Blender supports different technologies to render on the GPU depending on the particular GPU manufacturer
 and operating system.
 
-.. note::
-
-   :ref:`Path Guiding <bpy.types.CyclesRenderSettings.use_guiding>` is not supported
-   when rendering on the GPU.
-
-
 CUDA -- NVIDIA
 --------------
 
@@ -34,8 +28,6 @@ Nvidia graphics cards with compute capability 3.0 and higher. To make sure your
 see the `list of Nvidia graphics cards <https://developer.nvidia.com/cuda-gpus#compute>`__
 with the compute capabilities and supported graphics cards.
 
-.. note:: :doc:`/render/shader_nodes/osl` is not supported.
-
 
 .. _render-cycles-gpu-optix:
 
@@ -44,13 +36,9 @@ OptiX -- NVIDIA
 
 OptiX is supported on Windows and Linux and requires a Nvidia graphics cards with compute capability 5.0 and higher
 and a driver version of at least 470. To make sure your GPU is supported,
-see the `list of Nvidia graphics cards <https://developer.nvidia.com/cuda-gpus#compute>`__
+see the `list of Nvidia graphics cards <https://developer.nvidia.com/cuda-gpus#compute>`__.
-OptiX works best on RTX graphics cards with hardware ray tracing support (e.g. Turing and above).
 
-.. note::
+OptiX takes advantage of hardware ray-tracing acceleration in RTX graphics cards, for improved performance.
-
-   :doc:`/render/shader_nodes/osl` is supported with a few limitations.
-   Refer to the :doc:`/render/shader_nodes/osl` documentation for a list of limitations.
 
 
 HIP -- AMD
@@ -77,17 +65,16 @@ Minimum driver versions:
 Please refer to `AMD's website <https://www.amd.com/en/graphics>`__ for more
 information about AMD graphics cards and their architectures.
 
-.. note::
+On Windows, experimental hardware ray-tracing support is available with the most recent drivers. This can be enabled in the preferences. However there are currently known issues regarding motion blur, hair rendering and degenerate triangle shapes.
 
-   :doc:`/render/shader_nodes/osl` and the *Clip* extension mode in the
+The *Clip* extension mode in :doc:`/render/shader_nodes/textures/image` is not supported for HIP.
-   :doc:`/render/shader_nodes/textures/image` are not supported.
 
 
 oneAPI -- Intel
 ---------------
 
 oneAPI is a computation library that is supported on Windows and Linux and requires a
-Intel® Arc™ graphics card with the Xe HPG architecture.
+Intel® Arc™ graphics card with the Xe HPG architecture. Hardware acceleration for ray-tracing is supported.
 
 Supported GPUs include:
 
@@ -101,8 +88,6 @@ Minimum driver versions:
 Please refer to `Intel's website <https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/products/details/discrete-gpus.html>`__
 for more information about Intel graphics cards and their architectures.
 
-.. note:: :doc:`/render/shader_nodes/osl` is not supported.
-
 
 Metal -- Apple (macOS)
 ----------------------
@@ -111,9 +96,17 @@ Metal is supported on Apple computers with Apple Silicon, AMD and Intel graphics
 macOS 13.0 or newer is required to support all features and graphics cards.
 
 Apple Silicon and AMD graphics cards also work on macOS 12.3 and newer, however
-without support for :ref:`MNEE caustics <bpy.types.CyclesObjectSettings.is_caustics_caster>`.
+without support for :ref:`Shadow Caustics <bpy.types.CyclesObjectSettings.is_caustics_caster>`.
 
-.. note:: :doc:`/render/shader_nodes/osl` is not supported.
+:ref:`Light Trees <bpy.types.CyclesRenderSettings.use_light_tree>` are not support when using
+an AMD graphics card with Metal.
+
+
+Limitations
+===========
+
+ - :ref:`Path Guiding <bpy.types.CyclesRenderSettings.use_guiding>` is not supported on any GPU.
+ - :doc:`/render/shader_nodes/osl` is only supported for OptiX, with some limitations listed in the documentation.
 
 
 Frequently Asked Questions
@@ -122,14 +115,11 @@ Frequently Asked Questions
 Why is Blender unresponsive during rendering?
 ---------------------------------------------
 
-While a graphics card is rendering, it cannot redraw the user interface, which makes Blender unresponsive.
+On older GPU generations, graphics cards can only either render or draw the user interface.
-We attempt to avoid this problem by giving back control over to the GPU as often as possible,
+This can make Blender unresponsive while it is rendering.
-but a completely smooth interaction cannot be guaranteed, especially on heavy scenes.
+Heavy scenes can also make Blender unresponsive on newer GPUs, when using a lot of memory or executing expensive shaders, however this is generally less of a problem.
-This is a limitation of graphics cards for which no true solution exists,
-though we might be able to improve this somewhat in the future.
 
-If possible, it is best to install more than one GPU,
+The only complete solution for this is to use a dedicated GPU for rendering, and another for display.
-using one for display and the other(s) for rendering.
 
 
 Why does a scene that renders on the CPU not render on the GPU?
@@ -154,8 +144,9 @@ Yes, go to :menuselection:`Preferences --> System --> Compute Device Panel`, and
 Would multiple GPUs increase available memory?
 ----------------------------------------------
 
-Typically, no, each GPU can only access its own memory, however, some GPUs can share their memory.
+Typically, no, each GPU can only access its own memory.
-This is can be enabled with :ref:`Distributed Memory Across Devices <prefs-system-cycles-distributive-memory>`.
+
+The exception is NVIDIA GPUs connected with NVLink, where multiple GPUs can share memory at a small performance cost. This is can be enabled with :ref:`Distributed Memory Across Devices <prefs-system-cycles-distributive-memory>` in the preferences.
 
 
 What renders faster?
@@ -171,6 +162,33 @@ Error Messages
 
 In case of problems, be sure to install the official graphics drivers from the GPU manufacturers website,
 or through the package manager on Linux.
+The graphics drivers provided by the computer manufacturer can sometimes be outdated or incomplete.
+
+
+Error: Out of memory
+--------------------
+
+This usually means there is not enough memory to store the scene for use by the GPU.
+
+.. note::
+
+   One way to reduce memory usage is by using smaller resolution textures.
+   For example, 8k, 4k, 2k, and 1k image textures take up respectively 256MB, 64MB, 16MB and 4MB of memory.
+
+
+The NVIDIA OpenGL driver lost connection with the display driver
+----------------------------------------------------------------
+
+If a GPU is used for both display and rendering,
+Windows has a limit on the time the GPU can do render computations.
+If you have a particularly heavy scene, Cycles can take up too much GPU time.
+Reducing Tile Size in the Performance panel may alleviate the issue,
+but the only real solution is to use separate graphics cards for display and rendering.
+
+Another solution can be to increase the time-out,
+although this will make the user interface less responsive when rendering heavy scenes.
+`Learn More Here <https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-hardware/drivers/display/timeout-detection-and-
+recovery>`__.
 
 
 Unsupported GNU version
@@ -210,7 +228,7 @@ Remove compatibility checks
 CUDA Error: Kernel compilation failed
 -------------------------------------
 
-This error may happen if you have a new Nvidia graphics card that is not yet supported by
+This error may happen if you have a new NVIDIA graphics card that is not yet supported by
 the Blender version and CUDA toolkit you have installed.
 In this case Blender may try to dynamically build a kernel for your graphics card and fail.
 
@@ -222,35 +240,3 @@ In this case you can:
 #. If you build Blender yourself, try to download and install a newer CUDA developer toolkit.
 
 Normally users do not need to install the CUDA toolkit as Blender comes with precompiled kernels.
-
-
-Error: Out of memory
---------------------
-
-This usually means there is not enough memory to store the scene for use by the GPU.
-
-.. note::
-
-   One way to reduce memory usage is by using smaller resolution textures.
-   For example, 8k, 4k, 2k, and 1k image textures take up respectively 256MB, 64MB, 16MB and 4MB of memory.
-
-
-The Nvidia OpenGL driver lost connection with the display driver
-----------------------------------------------------------------
-
-If a GPU is used for both display and rendering,
-Windows has a limit on the time the GPU can do render computations.
-If you have a particularly heavy scene, Cycles can take up too much GPU time.
-Reducing Tile Size in the Performance panel may alleviate the issue,
-but the only real solution is to use separate graphics cards for display and rendering.
-
-Another solution can be to increase the time-out,
-although this will make the user interface less responsive when rendering heavy scenes.
-`Learn More Here <https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-hardware/drivers/display/timeout-detection-and-recovery>`__.
-
-
-CUDA error: Unknown error in cuCtxSynchronize()
------------------------------------------------
-
-An unknown error can have many causes, but one possibility is that it is a time-out.
-See the above answer for solutions.

manual/render/cycles/render_settings/sampling.rst

@@ -197,7 +197,7 @@ Light Tree
    falloff, ray visibility, and complex shader node setups including textures.
    This can result in an increase in noise in some scenes that make use of these features.
 
-   Note, this feature is currently disabled for AMD GPUs on Windows, Linux and macOS.
+   Note, this feature is currently disabled for AMD GPUs on macOS.
 
 .. _bpy.types.CyclesRenderSettings.light_sampling_threshold:
 

manual/render/output/properties/format.rst

@@ -40,10 +40,6 @@ Render Region
    See the :ref:`Render Region <editors-3dview-navigate-render-region>`
    documentation to see how to define the size of the render region.
 
-   .. note::
-
-      This disables the *Save Buffers* option in the Performance panel.
-
 .. _bpy.types.RenderSettings.use_crop_to_border:
 
 Crop to Render Region

manual/render/output/properties/frame_range.rst

@@ -24,8 +24,8 @@ Step
    Controls the number of frames to advance by for each frame in the timeline.
 
 
-Time Remapping
+Time Stretching
-==============
+===============
 
 Use to remap the length of an animation; making it run slower or faster.
 The *Old* and *New* settings may either be used as absolute values or as a ratio:
@@ -33,7 +33,7 @@ For example, setting *Old* to a value of 2 and *New* to 1 will run the animation
 
 .. warning::
 
-   Using *Time Remapping* will not influence the *Start* or *End* frames set above,
+   Using *Time Stretching* will not influence the *Start* or *End* frames set above,
    so make sure that your animation is not cut off or has extraneous still frames at the end.
 
 .. _bpy.types.RenderSettings.frame_map_old:

manual/render/output/properties/stereoscopy/introduction.rst

@@ -13,5 +13,5 @@ There is support for many different stereo 3D visualization types.
 .. note::
 
    If you have a real 3D display at some point you can change the 3D display mode in the Window menu,
-   by calling the Stereo 3D operator.
+   by calling the *Stereo 3D* operator.
    Be aware that some modes require a fullscreen editor to work, and this can be taxing on your CPU.