Looks like super amazing tool.
What is more important if it’s saves with max scene? Did you need to install your every custom tool on other machines? How about render nodes?
You can treat like plugin.
Just put in shared network drive and path to there.
Also… I saw you can include with scene when u send to backburner.
I don’t know how deadline would handle this.
what is a minimum package i have to provide with my plugin made in the MCG? what files make a plugin work and come with it for sure?
when does the system compile the mcg plugin? on load?
When you package a graph it becomes a fully self contained unit containing all the dependencies, 1 file file for user to install. You can give a package al sorts of meta data like a description, author, version etc. They compile on max startup iirc and then become available in max.
If anyone is looking for some MCG ‘basics’ tutorials, Michael Spaw and I cooked some up and posted them along with the packaged MCG files to play with.
Check them out at:
http://www.elarasystems.com/labs
is a graph opened for user (can see, modify)?
as of today? no.
At least you will like that.
Important: If you distribute the MAXScript file alone without an MCG graph file (the .maxtool file) it will not work: MAXScript uses the MCG engine to dynamically compile the graph file on initialization.
it sounds like at least two files have to be distributed – .ms and .maxtool – to be simply added with the system load
In the MCG there is a package button, you press that and you get one file to distribute to anyone else you like Which I believe is a .zip file with a different extension. It will contain the maxtool and compound files you need for the tool.
For now nothing is encrypt-able, which I think is a good thing, and hopefully people will be encourage to share with this.
that’s exactly the subject i want to discuss… share-ability. (free, obliged or enforced ;))
let’s continue…
every mcg plugin compiles on initialization (system load). of course we hope it’s fast. how fast? 2 secs? 5?
well… i have about 50 custom plugins in my framework. they cost nothing of loading time now. but made with mcg it’s 100-250 secs on load. am i missing anything again?
If you want you can just evaluate .maxtool when u need.
Then it will also auto generate .ms UI file.
And… MCG loading time is minimal.
I don’t think .net is compiled when it max is launched.
It is compiled when user try to access UI.
wait… but a user has to make .ms file, doesn’t it? as i understand the system register a .ms file, compile its source on-the-fly (which needs .maxtool file), and only after that makes it valid
when you evaluate .maxtools file, .ms file.is generated automatically.
MCG package zips maxtools file with current UI ms file.
Then when you install MCG package, max just uses included ms file.
you are missing the point… one package file doesn’t mean one file added to the system.
std-mxs-plugin or macroscript are the things i can put in some special directory to make them automatically added to the system.
if i have to install, unpack, unzip – it’s a different story.
i was asking how many minimum files a mcg plugin needs. it looks like two: .ms and .maxtool
looking at some of those graphs on the recent examples posted they would bamboozle and “scare” 90% of the artist I’ve ever worked with . So I don’t see it as a particularly “non technical” solution, maybe for very simple stuff (which for the most part is probably covered by existing max plugin set) but the more advanced stuff looks quite involved. The embree stuff looks like a winner though for the mesh to mesh stuff (would be nice for that to available to the SDK and mxs). Also interesting is “normal” modifiers working like world space mods or are they actually world space modifiers ?
I can not say it is easy.
You need to know what is vector at least.
Foe me, it is as easy as Genome/TP and a little easier then box#3.
But, many of complicated graph can be wrapped as a compound.
If max community build enough compound, it can be easy enough for many users.