My dream 3D editor lets you model & arrange objects (similar to most) but also lets you deftly slice them up for performance sensitive export targets such as games.

Examples of features;
- Lets you slice big chunks of the scene based on # of polys (range) and it automagically takes the mappings + textures used in each chunk put them all into 1 texture.
- Smart instancing where you use instances, but can also combine instances and any changes to the original is propogated to the instances (combined or not).
- Ubiquitous support for parallax mapping and texture baking.
- Smart UV editor that is designed to be used by sane people (not like many UV editors).
- supports cross platform standards through and through.

For the price of Maya, I'd expect to see more smart features that understand how games are made and provides artist features for better doing games.

What other features would you like to see that doesn't yet exist in current 3D programs?

• ease of use
• useablility
• mac like program

unknown Wrote:• ease of use
• useablility
• mac like program

I'm working on it!

Thats a great idea.Infact i wish go for working on such issues.well Thanks there if you could able to submit it early.

I gotta reply to this because it's so goofy that I finally got an email notification today, like a month later. I don't know if the mods are sleeping or the forum software effed up, but man... lame...

Anyway, yeah, I'm still working on it!

AnotherJake Wrote:

unknown Wrote:• ease of use
• useablility
• mac like program

I'm working on it!

Sweet!
I just realised there was somthing I forgot from the list,

• Uses a different language that python for scripting

-No huge sprawling bugs (Blender has many of the above features but crashes seemingly randomly for me)
-GUI (With blenders incomprehensable UI, I didn't always know that boolean operations are done by selecting exactly two objects in object mode and pressing w. AFIK this is the only way to do boolean and that doesn't appear).

I would like something somewhere between Meshwork vertex based editing and Bryce's boolean capabilities, and some of Amapi's extrude/hulls/splines stuff.

Tried ac3d?
I bought this six months ago, seems like a great app, don't find much
time for modelling these days though. The developer is quick to
respond to bug reports.

AnotherJake Wrote:I gotta reply to this because it's so goofy that I finally got an email notification today, like a month later. I don't know if the mods are sleeping or the forum software effed up, but man... lame...

Pretty much the former. ROBERT's post was his first or second, so it was pending approval before showing up to non-moderators. I only just approved it yesterday. Sorry.

unknown Wrote:Sweet!
I just realised there was somthing I forgot from the list,

• Uses a different language that python for scripting

Right now I have it set up for Lua, but I'm trying to develop the plug-in architecture so that anyone can add bindings for other languages.

Actually, the whole program is heavily based on a Cocoa plug-in architecture so that it is extensible to do as much as possible for custom applications. If it doesn't do something you want, you might be able to either script it or make a plug-in for it.

Other random notes: I am definitely not making something like Blender! More like Milkshape for the Mac is what I have in mind. Right now it's just a simple triangle mesh editor. It's fully native to OS X, using Cocoa, and will never be found on any other system. The UI is simple and easy to digest, and so far it is all-in-one (no multiple windows floating around yet, and I'll try to keep it that way). The script editor is up and running well with full syntax colorization, line numbers, hidden characters, tabs (not text tabs, think Safari tabs), etc., and is fully customizable. For modelling, I'll try adding things like lathes and extrudes. Skeletal animation is a must at some point. I recently found a decimation algorithm I'll try out for automatically reducing poly count. I'm also working on adding pressure-sensitive sculpting using graphics tablets. This project is far more complicated than anything I've yet attempted, so I hope it doesn't show up DOA, but so far, so good. There is a pulse...

unknown Wrote:Sweet!
I just realised there was somthing I forgot from the list,

• Uses a different language that python for scripting

You have something against Python?

OneSadCookie Wrote:You have something against Python?

Yes. A lot of things.

If you don't like Python, what on earth language would you prefer?

Is there an open source sample framework for Mac OS X that can be used as a starting point for a 3D editor?

It would be great if I can port my 3D editor/MFC application for Windows to Mac, using some native (Cocoa?) framework. Most of the underlying code is platform independent.

- OpenGL
- multiple views/splitter view
- example how to use mouse/keyboard
- file load/save
- resizing of main window
- popup menus, toolbar, status bar

optional:
- plugins?

Once we have such framework, this can be used by different project.

Does this exist already under a liberal license (preferably Zlib, MIT or BSD style license).
Any links?

Thanks,
Erwin