Neil Blevins explains Ptex: soon to be included in D|S 4.5
wancow
Posts: 2,708
http://www.neilblevins.com/cg_education/ptex/ptex.htm
He compates it to UV Mapping, explaining how Ptex works and how it differs from UVS...
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Thank you for linking to that, it was very informative.
I twuz a goot compatiason, dunchathank?
I looked on my original post... "he compates" he COMPARES!
Sheesh... I suck at spelling.
So is DS4.5 going to get modeling capabilities? If not, I really don't see this being that useful, especially since so many here just buy extra textures over making their own. I have used a similar technique with Mudbox, but I can't see applying it inside DS, guess we'll see.
FSMC, it'll be able to read Ptex files, which must be created by a 3D Paint program or suite with 3DPaint capability. 3DCoat, Zbrush, BodyPaint... and I'm pretty sure Blender now can create and save Ptex... you're supposed to be able to do this now with the 4.5.2.40 beta.
...looks like it won't even be Daz soon before I could take advantage of this as Z-Brush is 699$, Mudbox & Mentalray are 795$, BodyPaint 995$, Vray 1,350$ and and Mari almost 2,000$.
Even at 349$ 3D-Coat is a stretch.
...bugger. I guess it's cool they are looking into such "professional" features, however these apps are simply way out of line budget wise. The only hope for many of us is that Blender supports this.
If it does, or will some time in the near future, it will be interesting.
Blender does. As of two years ago.
...excellent. Thank you. Makes the learning curve just that much more worth it.
I needed to share this with you guys. A response to me from Neil Blevins:
Italics by Me, Red Text by Neil
In any event, thank you again for everything you've written and the attention you've given all of us! Those of us who live on the low end don't get much respect from high end artists, and when we do, it's very much appreciated!
Haha. I hate the terms low end and high end, they're all just tools, some are better at certain tasks than others. I see all of us artists as one big community, regardless of what software we choose to use or what sort of job we have. So it's no problem, glad to help out everybody.
- Neil
Neil Blevins works for Pixar. This is his website: http://www.neilblevins.com/
and this is Neil's DA Gallery! http://soulburn3d.deviantart.com/
Edit: Changed my mind. Don't want to start something.
Sloth, the difference is: Ptex is open source. Whatever zBrush has is proprietary.
I've no idea when zBrush introduced Polypaint. But Ptex has been around since 2008 it turns out. It was made opensource in 2010.
Proprietary, if you have the software to implement it. Ptex is a good thing, and I don't want to dismiss it in any way. That's why I removed my comment above. I wouldn't mind seeing some video on it. Do you have any links? I'm trying to imagine our wonderful character texture artists here trying to get a photoreal skin onto those tiny square, LOL!
If daz could buy Nevercenter's Silo....
Proprietary, if you have the software to implement it. Ptex is a good thing, and I don't want to dismiss it in any way. That's why I removed my comment above. I wouldn't mind seeing some video on it. Do you have any links? I'm trying to imagine our wonderful character texture artists here trying to get a photoreal skin onto those tiny square, LOL!
Proprietary as in exclusive to zBrush unless you negotiate with them to get licence to implement it in whatever software you're using.
this is the most comprehensive video I've seen on ptex http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GxNlAlOuQQQ
Proprietary as in exclusive to zBrush unless you negotiate with them to get licence to implement it in whatever software you're using.
this is the most comprehensive video I've seen on ptex http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GxNlAlOuQQQ
Thanks for the link... going to watch it right now.
Edit: 4 minutes later, and I stand corrected. That is really pretty cool and not the same as Pixologic at all. The only thing similar was the look of the finished map, and even that's not quite the same. I would say more, but my foot is getting my tongue all dirty.
I'm watching this video now... also interesting: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YNgy2CYEvfI
...i agree, at the price (159$) Silo would be a reasonable addition to the Daz offerings especially considering the fact they appear to have little interest in ever fixing Hexagon (even though they keep selling it).
Slosh, stop eating your own feet! I'm the one who does that around here!
I don't know if they still do it, especially with a new version due real soon now, but when I downloaded the trial I got an email with a discount offer part way through the trial period. Of course it may well still be out of reach even then.
I'm guessing that moving forward there will be a revolution in 3D texturing complete with tools, many inexpensive or free. Between OpenSubDiv and Ptex, the world as we know it will probably change more then going from the original 3D Wolfenstien to Unreal Tournament. Although in full disclosure I should say that I've been over optimistic at times in the amount of time it would take for changes to be implemented. I'm still waiting for 3D worlds and interfaces to be ubiquitous.
Gedd, any application that does not implement at least one of those, ptex or osd, will probably lose all credibility and fall out of use. I would not be at all surprised if Wings3D had osd coded in at some point...
Hell, they're always looking for developers! http://www.wings3d.com/?page_id=81
Here's a demo of 3D Coat's version.
It just occurred to me that one of the other things needed is a cross-product rigging solution. Even if there ends up being proprietary rigging aspects on top of the common one, it could be a big move forward. And while we're at it, how about a standardized deformation and physics solution complete with particles... all supported in WebGL with automatic downsizing for underpowered or smaller screen size platforms... anyone for that?
Don't wake me up, it's a good dream ;p
We actually have one, if you're talking about importing and exporting rigs: BVH will do that. We just don't have it in DS
I was referring to something a bit more robust then BVH... something worthy of this generation.
FBX will do this as well... i haven't tried to do it in D|S yet.
Gedd, I'm curious to know what kinds of format features you see as lacking? What is it we need that we do not have?
In regards to what, rigging? Deformation and physics?
In those cases, I would say something closer to what one can do in C4D, carried over between apps without loosing anything in the translation. While there are a lot of things a particular software package can do better then C4D.. it pretty much has a lot of what I would like to see cross platform/product, including camera tracking and light matching for 2d/3d. Note, I'm not talking about the interface but rather that level of functionality.. anything one can do in C4D to be able to be translated between packages without loss, so individual tools could create different work environments for fleshing it out.
In regards to cross platform rigging and exchange formats.
Well right off the bat, there's no real cross-product physics, and the rigging that carries over is a mess typically. But beyond that, say rigging... it would be nice if things like muscle morphs could be defined and carried over... triax weighting, what other packages even support it? As for physics or even extended materials? How about some way of defining standardized things like glass, metal, leather, in ways that would have some robust data structures common to the material that would carry over and be utilized in the various packages (rather then be hand input) in a way that a packages internal shaders would by default encapsulate rather then replace the imported specifications where possible.
I guess that is one thing that I would like to see changed, a format for various packages to encapuslate and override when neccessary a robust and fleshed out core. A core that could be developed by the industry and expanded upon where the various tools simply expanded their internal structures to take into account the growing standardized core. A core that had it's own version number where all tools defined what level of the core they supported at the moment and where it degraded gracefully.
Of course if that happens, people will complain about their favorite tool not supporting some feature another does, like the browser wars.. but at least we would appreciate the big step forward :)
Right now, we have piecemeal solutions like mtl files, bvh files, and nothing for physics, camera tracking, etc... which are weak both in their functionality and in the support they receive in the industry by various tools. If the industry took the level of functionality increase that Ptex and OpenSubDiv offer, expand it to include other features and built a core suite which everyone could get behind, it would help grow the industry quite a bit it seems.
...i agree, at the price (159$) Silo would be a reasonable addition to the Daz offerings especially considering the fact they appear to have little interest in ever fixing Hexagon (even though they keep selling it).
If they get (yet) another program, then they should get the developers behind it too. Otherwise it'll end up in the digital dustbin as no development what'soever.