A new Jan-18-2007 beta release is now available from the download page at http://moi3d.com/download.htm .

New stuff:

Image backgrounds! You can now bring images into MoI's viewports for use as visual tracing or proportion guides.

This is available under View/Image. After starting the Image command, push the "Add" button to insert a new image. The list of images is shown, allowing you to remove or hide/show any particular image. Pausing over an image name will show you the full path.

The following options are also available, and affect all images:

Draw below objects - choosing this option draws images as a backdrop behind everything else.

Draw with objects - this option draws images mixed in as if they were regular objects.

Draw above objects - this option draws images on top of everything else as an overlay. This is intended to be used with transparency, it gives you a way to always see a faint image without objects blocking the way.

Show in all views - shows the image in all viewports.

Show in ortho only - only shows the image in the Top/Front/Right views, not in the 3D view.

Transparency - you can put in a percentage value here from 0% (fully opaque with no transparency) to 100% (completely transparent).

It currently isn't possible to edit the location or size of an image after you place it, this will be coming for the next beta release.


New Transform / Align command. This new tool makes it easy to line up either control points or objects. This can be used for example if you have 2 points that you want to adjust so they are exactly horizontal or vertical. If you select entire objects instead of points then you also have an option for which sides of the objects you want to line up with each other.

New "Cap ends" option for sweep and loft so you can create a solid in one step when sweeping with planar curves.

Toggle switch for Circular array so you can switch between "fill angle" and a new "step angle" mode.

Variety of bug fixes, including some for meshing small-sized objects.

Please let me know if you have any problems!

- Michael

Thanks for all you've put into this!!!
Will be busy working with the app and will report back!

Thanks
Mike Fitz
www.3dartz.com

Michael thanks for the update and all of your hard work! Can't wait to dig into this one.

Yay!

Gotta say - you have always been as good as your word here , Michael. Said the new beta'd be out today and it is.

Thank you so much for your fast pace of development, keeping us all in the loop, listening to our ideas and making kicka@@ software.

Thanks Michael ! Now downloading =)

Thanks very much for the kind words!

- Michael

Tnx Michael!! ;)

Bravo one more time :)
You will have french translation in few time :)
Since I have some free time : so something like at 23 hours Greenwhich meridian :D)

Ok, i updated the german translation on my site. http://poi.sturmwelt.de

MfG
sk2k

Hi Michael
17 h 35 Greenwich's Meridian :)
New "French Translation" is in your Lettrer's box :)

Just something about images :)
But damned and sorry I have not good reading this
< It currently isn't possible to edit the location or size of an image after you place it, this will be coming for the next beta release.

So my folowing remarks is not avaible :(
That work's very fine but...
It's not possible to put one image in a "Rectangle Object" for move it or resize it after the first input?
Seems this will be very practical :)

Yes, i agree with Pilou ! ;) (hei Pilou, you remeber me? On ZbrushCentral?)

For Michael, little WISH:

1) U can add some slider to move the image on x,y,z and one for scale it?

Tnx in advance for the reply! ;)

Mr Braun, a demo user like me? Of course I remember :)

Yes of course Pilou! ;)

@Mr Braun : That's a very new crazzy prog isn't it? :)
And like me you must more reading the First post :):):)
< It currently isn't possible to edit the location or size of an image after you place it, this will be coming for the next beta release.
http://moi3d.com/forum/index.php?webtag=MOI&msg=325.1

@Michael
You say Angle to Fill
and Step Angle
Ok
But they work singly!
There is not "Angle to Fill" + "Step Angle" and the same time :)
That can be cool too!

a tiny tiny "bug"
When you increase the UIcursor UI to the max of big size, then reduce to the smal size
width of the UI on the right stay "big" ! (not the caracteres)
You must press "Default" for a normal use :)

Rhino 4 has this feature called Picture Frame. But the images on the planar surfaces are visible only when the current shading mode is set to render textures. It is a really nice feature, though. I agree it would be nice in Moi too. But it would probably require that Moi is able to render textures in real-time. the side-effect is that Moi would have to support textures for all objects. I think nobody will complain if Moi can support textures!!! :)

jonah

**PS - the other nice thing about using a surface with displayed image is that it will support trimming/splitting operations. So it's especially helpful for visualizations such as architectural, using planes to represent background objects (or people) in a scene. trim away the parts of surface you don't need...

Hi Michael,

Nice work, thanks ! ;-)
I really like the align tool. Very useful !

Just add AI import/export and I'm ready to buy the commercial version ! ;-))

As Michael don't refind the keys of It letter's box :)
Here the "french translation" of the 18 Jan version
Just replace the old file "FrenchStrings" by this one in the folder /MoI beta Jan-18-2007/ui
Simple isn't it? :)

Hi Mr Braun

> For Michael, little WISH:
>
> 1) U can add some slider to move the image on x,y,z and one for scale it?

I'll be working on a way to edit the images for the next beta.

What I'm going to try to do is enable direct editing of the images when you are inside the image command - I mean that you will be able to click and drag on an image to move it, and there will be some kind of frame that will appear that will allow you to scale it.

That's the concept anyway.

This should also be a good trial run for an object frame that will eventually become a different way to scale and rotate regular objects as well.

- Michael

@Michael
> You say Angle to Fill
> and Step Angle
> Ok
> But they work singly!
> There is not "Angle to Fill" + "Step Angle" and the same time :)
> That can be cool too!

Hi Pilou, but I don't think it is possible for both to work at the same time! Unless you can explain how it would work...

These are two different ways of calculating the same value - that is what angle to rotate for each item in the array.

Using Angle to fill will take that full angle and then divide it by the number of items - 1 to calculate the rotation angle for each new item.

Using Step angle lets you input the rotation angle for a new item directly.

But they both result in calculating the same thing, that's why you can't have both at the same time. You can't have a new item that is rotated by two different rotations at the same time...


> a tiny tiny "bug"
> When you increase the UIcursor UI to the max of big size, then reduce to the smal size
> width of the UI on the right stay "big" ! (not the caracteres)
> You must press "Default" for a normal use :)

Yeah, I have seen this happen sometimes too. Something is not quite exactly right in the size calculations when going from big to small sometimes.

However, if you close the program and then re-open it, it should use the new size correctly. So that's an easy way to solve the problem.

I probably won't be focusing on fixing this bug very soon because you don't normally need to change the UI size on a very regular basis, it's something that you will more just pick a size you like and use it from there on out - it should work fine for that.

- Michael

Soon Italian Strings of MOI! ;)

P.S:
How i change the UI colors?

Tnx ! ;)

P.S2: Tnx Michael for your work! ;)