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[3DS MAX] PolyUnwrapper 4.0 Released

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polycounter lvl 6
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PolyTools3D polycounter lvl 6
Hi guys,

I have just released PolyUnwrapper 4.0.
http://www.polytools3d.com/polyunwrapper


What's New

+ NEW Multi Stitch. Stitch Multiple Shells at once
+ NEW Packing algorithm and tools
+ NEW Tool for matching the Shells Width and Height
+ NEW Grid Spacing and Show/Hide Grid button
+ NEW Render Offset UVs
+ NEW Cycle Checker map
+ NEW Cycle Freeform Snap Pivot
+ NEW Grow Geometry Selection
+ NEW Shrink Geometry Selection
+ NEW Added support for localized versions (Japanese, Korean, Chinese)
+ NEW Added support for 3ds Max 2015
+ NEW PolyUnwrapper Toolbar will now automatically undock when Unwrap Editor is Maximized (Max 2012+)
+ NEW PolyUnwrapper Toolbar and other windows now keeps on top of the Unwrap Editor
+ NEW Render mode Shells Bounding Rectangle
+ NEW Added Render Open Edges

- Improved Multiple Shell Edges detection algorithm in Align to Edge tool
- Improved Validate geometry at startup
- Improved Added option to switch to Dynamic Color Palette if Color Palette file is missing
too many selected edges would lead to a very long operation
- Improved Settings Manager
- Improved Render Settings now save the Render Color Mode correctly
- Improved PolyUnwrapper Toolbar move/resize when docked in in 3ds Max 2012 and above
- Improved Docking/Undocking mechanics now works better.
- Improved Support for all localized 3ds Max versions is now much stable
- Improved compatibility with Windows 8
- Improved Added Undo for Mirror with multiple selected objects
- Improved Now Unwrap Editor maximizes to full screen (if it was in full screen) when
the PolyUnwrapper Toolbar is undocked (Max 2010-2011)
- Improved the VFB is now much more efficient and render much smoother with specially with very large images
- Improved VFB window will now change to normal state when rendering, if it was minimized
- Improved Added Hand and Zoom cursors to the VFB
- Improved VFB can now zoom IN-OUT using Ctrl+Left/Ctrl+Right mouse buttons
- Improved Edges render faster now
- Improved Used Texture Area is always calculated and displayed in the VFB when rendering faces
- Improved Algorithm for rendering selected edges runs up to 50X faster for 100K edges and uses around 50% less memory
- Improved Send UV Selection (Edges) runs up to 220X faster for 50K edges and uses around 50% less memory
- Improved Part of the UI has been redesigned
- Improved Uninstalling will now also remove the PolyUnwrapper Macros

- Fixed VFB Get Used UV Area was not reporting accurate values in some cases
- Fixed Bug in Render color palettes dynamic generator
- Fixed Select Open Edges algorithm where it failed to find all OP in certain meshes
- Fixed wirecolors where not restored if Subobject Level was 0 and node was deselected
- Fixed wirecolors where not restored if nodes were deleted
- Fixed Enlarge/Shrink brush size buttons where enabled all the time
- Fixed UI Elements not being disabled in subobjectlevel 0
- Fixed Settings were not restored correctly to default values
- Fixed Bug in Send UV selection to modifiers
- Fixed Render parameters where not keeping their values when docking/undocking the Toolbar
- Fixed Bug in Set Brush Size dialog not being able to retrieve the actual size
- Fixed VFB window will now open at a fixed size if rendered template is too small
- Fixed Memory Leak in Send UV Selection to Poly
- Fixed bug in Render Color Palette where the first color of the palette was never used
- Fixed several minor bugs

- Changed Disabled Stitch in Face mode
- Changed Align Macros are now unified
- Changed initial countdown screen for unregistered versions, will now appear only once per 3ds Max session
- Changed EULA

- Removed Save/Load UVW buttons
- Removed DialogMonitorOPS

[mod edit: added 3ds max to title]

Replies

  • Dubzski
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    Dubzski polycounter lvl 11
    Wowa that is the best unwrap tool ive seen for 3DS Max yet. Nice release.
  • Quack!
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    Quack! polycounter lvl 17
    Yay! I just started to use this tool because of textools being unsupported on the later versions of max.

    Glad to see you are updating it!
  • cptSwing
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    cptSwing polycounter lvl 11
  • Noors
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    Noors greentooth
    A must have. Thanks !
  • zOffTy
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    zOffTy polycounter lvl 16
    Awesome tool!!
  • Abdullah
    great tool man. Dose packing snap uv shells to grid?
  • Norstu
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    Norstu polycounter lvl 8
    Is the price the same for those that already own Polyunwrapper v3? or is there an upgrade option?
  • PolyTools3D
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    PolyTools3D polycounter lvl 6
    Thank you guys for the nice comments.

    @Abdullah:
    The packing function does not snap to grid. Instead it uses pixel units for the padding between the Shells. This ensures a better consistency in the Shells distribution.


    @Norstu
    It is a free upgrade for all current customers. If you owned PolyUnwrapper 3, you should have received an email with the new information already. If you have not received such an email, please contact me.
  • Joshflighter
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    Joshflighter polycounter lvl 9
    Wow this is awesome!
  • Eric Chadwick
    Yeah, super cool toolset. Thanks for the updates!!
  • Eric Chadwick
    Also, can you add a grid texture with circles and a per-pixel grid? Maybe the one here with the big R...
    http://wiki.polycount.net/TextureCoordinates#UV_Map_Grids
    Good things to have in a uv map grid:
    • A large checker grid to see large distortions.
    • A fine per-pixel grid to see small distortions.
    • Circles help with solving distortion, as it's easier for the human eye to see when a circle is distorted than a square.
    • Unique colors across the map, to see where the UV is tiling.
    • Letters and/or numbers to see when the UV is reversed.
    • Letters and/or numbers to see where a mesh feature is located in UV space.
  • Mark Dygert
    Looks awesome, can't wait to try it out.
    Eric, what is the purpose of the circles and the R on that texture you linked? I mean obviously these grid maps are used to test pixel density and to look for stretching, but what advantages does the map you mentioned have over others?
    A circle helps detect stretching but in a slightly different way, if you see ovals you've got issues, sometimes a square might look kind of fine when its distorted certain ways, but a circle won't.

    Letters or numbers help you tell if shells are flipped inside out, they show up as wrong reading.
  • rls
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    rls polycounter lvl 3
    The best UV tool for 3dsmax I know :)
    have you any plan to adapt this tool in another software?
  • PolyTools3D
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    PolyTools3D polycounter lvl 6
    Does this tool include a flatten or relax brush? I love that feature in UVLayout.

    Unfortunately there are some limitations when working with the UVW Unwrap Modifier, and these are one of them.

    Although they could be implemented, that would need to be in the UVW Unwrap Modifier source code, but it is not legal to modify and distribute it.
  • PolyTools3D
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    PolyTools3D polycounter lvl 6
    Thank you Eric for this suggestion. I am planning to create more checker maps as well as an interface to easily manage them and to change the colors of the first checker map.

    Also, I was thinking to have a maximum of 4 custom maps (plus the default one)

    Meanwhile, you can use other maps than the provided ones by just replacing them.

    C: \Users\USER\AppData\Local\Autodesk\3dsMax\MAX_VERSION\enu\scripts\PolyUnwrapper\ui\

    “checker_01.png” and “checker_02.png”

    You could also use other files (.JPG, .BMP) and modify the path in the PolyUnwrapper .INI, in the Preview section:

    [preview]
    checker1Color1=[90,90,100]
    checker1Color2=[220,225,240]
    checker1Tiles=32
    checker2Path=C: \Users\USER\AppData\Local\Autodesk\3dsMax\........
    checker2Tiles=2
    checker3Path=C: \Users\USER\AppData\Local\Autodesk\3dsMax\........
    checker3Tiles=1

    Here you can also change the default colors for the first checker map there.
  • PolyTools3D
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    PolyTools3D polycounter lvl 6
    rls wrote: »
    The best UV tool for 3dsmax I know :)
    have you any plan to adapt this tool in another software?

    As today, I have no plans to translate it for another software/s. But who knows...
  • Eric Chadwick
    Vig nailed it.

    To my eye, squares are not as easy to see distortions with... short rectangles still kind of look like squares, until you rotate them sideways. But for me with circles it's easier to see if they're oval or not.

    I made the 6th and 7th ones, but I still like the R better, easier on the eyes I guess.
  • Neox
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    Neox veteran polycounter
    here is btw the updated version of the checker in the wiki

    checker_512.gif
    pixelbased, with squares and circles for easier stretching recognition, easy on the eye becuse of the low contrast and numbers/letters to instantly see the orientation of faces
  • Eric Chadwick
    Oh cool! I'll get it up there, thanks for doing this Neox.
  • Shrike
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    Shrike interpolator
    That looks really nice, but what I am really missing is the reverse smoothing group split which seems a lot more functional to me (Split UVs after smoothing groups) that tex tools used to offer. If you had this then id be instant sold
  • oXYnary
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    oXYnary polycounter lvl 18
    Do you have any complicated examples of your packing? As with something with organic and mechanical island shapes, say about 200 islands. Cant get a clear idea of the usefulness of this with your demo version being only 1000 tris.
  • PolyTools3D
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    PolyTools3D polycounter lvl 6
    Shrike wrote: »
    That looks really nice, but what I am really missing is the reverse smoothing group split which seems a lot more functional to me (Split UVs after smoothing groups) that tex tools used to offer. If you had this then id be instant sold
    I agree it is a missing feature (among a few others) in Max 2010-2011, tough it was implemented in Max 2012.

    I will definitely be looking to add it in next versions.
  • PolyTools3D
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    PolyTools3D polycounter lvl 6
    oXYnary wrote: »
    Do you have any complicated examples of your packing? As with something with organic and mechanical island shapes, say about 200 islands. Cant get a clear idea of the usefulness of this with your demo version being only 1000 tris.

    @oXYnary,
    The Packer is, same as the UVW Unwrap packer, a bounding rectangle packer, so it is not meant to be used to pack complex organic shapes.

    Regarding performance, I believe it is very efficient. Below are some test results on an average PC:

    Texture Size = 1024x1024
    Pixel Padding = 4

    65K Tris, 500 Shells - 895ms.
    5K Tris, 150 Shells - 170ms
    3K Tris, 1,500 Shells - 816ms
  • Kaine123
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    Kaine123 polycounter lvl 10
    If I have this and textools installed with Max 2012, will there be any problems?
  • Eric Chadwick
    No probs. I have this setup myself, plus a few more things. Works great.
  • Eric Chadwick
    I have a couple feature suggestions.

    In the Render tab, it would be helpful if the W and H fields detected the dimensions of the bitmap currently loaded in the Edit UVWs background, and updated their values accordingly. If non-square, also unlocking the aspect ratio lock button. Is there a way to do this?

    It would also be helpful if the render function respected the material ID dropdown (right above it in the Max window UI). When I change the dropdown from "All IDs" to one specific ID, your render function still renders all the IDs, instead of the one I have visible. However, Max's own render function does respect this.

    Thanks again for this cool toolset!
  • PolyTools3D
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    PolyTools3D polycounter lvl 6
    @Kaine123,
    As Eric said, you should have no problems using both Textools and PolyUnwrapper.

    @Eric,
    'Thank you for these suggestions. I will look into this and see how they could be implemented.

    For the texture size, perhaps a button to get the current displayed texture and update the render size will work.
  • Eric Chadwick
    Yeah, I don't mind a button. Though maybe you could detect the bitmap load, and quietly set it then?
  • PolyTools3D
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    PolyTools3D polycounter lvl 6
    It could be if you are in another Tab that is not the Render one, so when you switch to the Render I could get the current bitmap size and update the values.

    The problem is if you are already in the Render Tab and you change the displayed texture. Then it would require a constant monitoring of the dropdown control in order to update the render size.

    I will have to look in depth into it to find a good implementation.
  • Eric Chadwick
    Automatic is always nice. But could be as simple as a [get] button, under the H field or something.
  • cptSwing
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    cptSwing polycounter lvl 11
    Sooo... 'tis the season to be jolly.. and for xmas discounts.. isn't it? ;)
  • Eric Chadwick
    You want to discount down from $35 ??
  • cptSwing
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    cptSwing polycounter lvl 11
    Yeah, sorry. I do sound like a scrooge, don't I?
  • Mehran Khan
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    Mehran Khan polycounter lvl 9
    I just started using this, and I am loving it, bravo on a great job!
  • PolyTools3D
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    PolyTools3D polycounter lvl 6

    PolyUnwrapper 4.2 is out. It is a Free Update for all current users.
    http://www.polytools3d.com/polyunwrapper

    What's New

    + NEW Added support for 3ds Max 2017
    + NEW Align Shells: Shells can now be aligned to the 0-1 space as a group
    + NEW Added Get Render size from current texture map
    + NEW Settings Manager UI
    + NEW Advanced UV Shells Randomizer
    + NEW Expand Selection By Smoothing Group now works with strict groups too
    + NEW Render custom UV Tile (with UDIM nomenclature)

    - Improved Rectangle Packing algorithm
    - Improved Align Shells operations run up to 20X faster
    - Improved Align Shells undo performs much faster
    - Improved Center & Fit by Shell up to 20X faster
    - Improved Center & Fit by Shell undo performs much faster
    - Improved Match Shells up to 20X faster
    - Improved Match Shells undo performs much faster
    - Improved Mirror by Shell up to 20X faster
    - Improved Mirror by Shell undo performs much faster
    - Improved Scale by Shell up to 20X faster
    - Improved Scale by Shell undo is now enabled for multiple objects
    - Improved Normalize Shells operations run up to 10X faster
    - Improved Normalize Shells undo is now enabled for multiple objects
    - Improved Rotate Shells operations run up to 10X faster
    - Improved Rotate by Shell undo is now enabled for multiple objects
    - Improved Randomize Shells up to 10X faster
    - Improved Randomize Shells undo performs much faster
    - Improved Align Shell To Edge up to 30X faster
    - Improved Align Shell To Edge undo performs much faster
    - Improved Expand Selection to Model runs up to 3X faster
    - Improved Expand Selection By MatID runs up to 5X faster
    - Improved Expand Selection By Smoothing Group runs up to 2X faster
    - Improved Expand Selection By Smoothing Group now works with faces with no smoothing groups
    - Fixed bug in Send Selection
    - Fixed bug in Rotate Shells if Snap Angle is enabled
    - Fixed bug in Expand Selection By Smoothing Group where it would fail to properly select some Smoothing Groups
    - Fixed memory leak in Randomize Shells
    - Fixed memory leak in Align Shell To Edge
    - Fixed memory leak in Expand Selection to Model
    - Fixed memory leak in Expand Selection By MatID
    - Fixed memory leak in Selection By Smoothing Group
    - Changed moved Render Size out of the render tab to be always visible
    - Removed Scale up/down in Rectangle Packer


  • Jaston3D
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    Jaston3D polycounter lvl 8
    Seems like a good replacement for Tex tools since tex tools seems to not work with max 2017? Has anyone else had any luck getting textools to work on 17?
  • joemar0000
    is there any application for these stuffs? i really love to learn doing it. thanks
  • Noors
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    Noors greentooth
    Cool dude. Hell, so much speed improvement. Probably 200x faster than max tools :D. Soon it will execute before pressing a button.
    Yes it replaces textools. It's a must have for uv'ing imo.
    Eventhough you'd think it's redundant with some max tools, it does it better and faster (eg align to edge, normalize, all expands options)

  • musashidan
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    musashidan high dynamic range
    Since installing this plugin I use it religiously. It's a must for unwrapping. Great release. Although Max 2017 uv editor is definitely improved a lot, this tool really boosts the workflow.

    All that's needed now is an improvement in the packing algorithm,  even an extra plugin akin to Ipack within Max,  I'd gladly pay for. (Hinthint) :)
  • cptSwing
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    cptSwing polycounter lvl 11
    Another recommendation from me - wouldn't want to to use Max without it. Thanks for adding align-shells-by-group, as if you'd read my mind ;)
    I do agree with the packing comment by Musashidan, haven't tried the new packer though. A bridge to IPackThat would probably also be appreciated (though I have yet to use it myself).
  • Synaesthesia
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    Synaesthesia polycounter
    Loving this tool so far. I've recommended it to everyone I know in my community. :smile: One issue to note, the link to Polyunwrapper via Paypal is for 4.0.3 instead of 4.2 - so I'm a release behind right now.

    One thing I want to mention is that using Multi Stitch causes Constant Update in Viewports to turn off. Is there a workaround for that? 
  • PolyTools3D
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    PolyTools3D polycounter lvl 6
    Loving this tool so far. I've recommended it to everyone I know in my community. :smile: One issue to note, the link to Polyunwrapper via Paypal is for 4.0.3 instead of 4.2 - so I'm a release behind right now.

    One thing I want to mention is that using Multi Stitch causes Constant Update in Viewports to turn off. Is there a workaround for that? 
    Thank you so much Jonathan for purchasing and recommending PolyUnwrapper. I have updated the PayPal URL. :smile:
    You should also have received the email with your License information and the correct URL for version 4.2.

  • Synaesthesia
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    Synaesthesia polycounter
    Fantastic!

    I am curious however if we can fix up Multi Stitch so it doesn't affect Constant Update in Viewports. That's the only real issue I've encountered so far. Everything else is absolutely phenomenal. This is what Max unwrapping should be like.
  • skyline5gtr
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    skyline5gtr polycounter lvl 9
    man i need this bud so broke 
  • musashidan
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    musashidan high dynamic range
    man i need this bud so broke 
    Not to sound like a pr**k but this is only 30quid. A pittance for what it is....
  • Titus
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    Titus polycounter lvl 14
    Hello! Here is some bug report for version 4.2 - i have got an error of macro, if i press shortcut combination alt+cntrl+A (it's Align to Edge), and some of other functions do not work properly with shortcuts.
  • Ootrick
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    Ootrick polycounter lvl 6
    would love to see more usage/tuts with this, been eyeing for a while
  • PolyTools3D
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    PolyTools3D polycounter lvl 6
    Thank you guys (and those who emailed me) for your comments and for reporting these bugs. A fix is in the way and will be released ASAP.
  • musashidan
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    musashidan high dynamic range
    Ootrick said:
    would love to see more usage/tuts with this, been eyeing for a while
    Just go through the online docs on the site. All the tools are explained.
  • PolyTools3D
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    PolyTools3D polycounter lvl 6
    PolyUnwrapper 4.2.4 is out.
    http://www.polytools3d.com/polyunwrapper

    What's New

    + NEW Added MacroScript for Pack Shells (Rectangle Packer)
    + NEW Added MacroScripts Align Shell to Edge (Closets 90 degrees, Horizontal and Vertical)
    + NEW Added MacroScript for Send UV Selection
    + NEW Added MacroScript for Smoothing Groups From Shells
    + NEW In Max 2010 and 2011 the PolyUnwrapper Toolbar is undocked when maximizing the UVW Editor (same as in Max 2012+)
    + NEW Option to have the PolyUnwrapper Toolbar always undocked
    + NEW Option to Dock/Undock the PolyUnwrapper Toolbar when restoring the UVW Editor
    + NEW Option to remember the PolyUnwrapper Toolbar position when is closed (if undocked)
    - Fixed Toolbar size in Max 2017 with UI scale larger than 100%
    - Fixed Render Template Window in Max 2017 with UI scale larger than 100%
    - Fixed Utility UI in Max 2017 with UI scale larger than 100%
    - Fixed MultiStich MacroScript was not working
    - Fixed Align Shells in Face mode MacroScript was not working
    - Fixed Actions bound to keys or menu items disabling ConstantUpdate option
    - Fixed message dialog not being the top most when resetting all PolyUnwrapper Settings
    - Fixed Checker Map tiles value not being saved on exit
    - Fixed Render With and Height not being saved on exit
    - Fixed Settings .INI file not being created if file not found
    - Fixed some additional Settings not being loaded properly
    - Disabled the Toolbar close "X" button
    - Changed Removed "Load at Startup" option from the Utility plugin. It is now included in the Options
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