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Where is the UV Editor with UV Unwrap?


ShaddamIV

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I may be interested in Form-Z, I have been since "Buried In Time".

It's cool because Form-Z export directly to EIAS3D "Electric Image Animation System".

So I have been looking the web and documentation to see if Form-Z would be right for me.

Form-Z is fantastic, but something is bothering me : How do you texture complex subdivision models like humans, animals, plants etc?

Where do you unwrap and burn the UV's? There is only Cubic/Spherical/Cylindrical/Planar

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Hi ShaddamIV,

 

Yes, formZ works great with Electric Image.  However it does not have a dedicated UV editor package.  For these effects, you need to Export to another program that does this, and then re-import the result back to formZ (which works well with ZBrush, UVMaper, and others).

 

Does that work for you? ;)

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No It does not work for me. I already have Shade, Strata CX Pro and the latest Cheetah3d and they both s..k at anything other than polygon subdivisions. I am looking for a single modeler solution so I don't have to move constantly from one software to the other.

 

FormZ reminds me of Electric Image Universe Modeler (discontinued). A software that I loved back then before UV unwrapping became mainstream.

 

So if you eventually add a "Select UV Seams" with a proper "Unwrap UV" for polygons/subdiv feature then call me back.

If you do it I will buy your product, until then your product is useless to me (not entirely).

 

From what I have read on other websites, this is the feature that prevents FormZ to be taken seriously in the 3D animation/Gaming industry like it used to be.

 

PS:  a subscription to your products without the need to have the full license first : a la "3D Studio Max" would be more attractive to amateurs like me.

 

Anyway, thank you for your time and I will fallow FormZ development closely because it could definitely be the "perfect" 3D modeler.

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Justin, 

 

You can think of UV mapping as a reverse projection (simplification).   Where the 3D Coordinates are laid out in 2D space so that a full map can be built.   Then the mapping is reversed to apply to the 3D object/Space.

 

Simple objects work well for projection mapping, but complex organic forms, not so much.   At least in any kind of seamless mapping.

 

Of course, in order to do this, there is distortion.  but when building the map, this can be accounted for because the UV's are provided.

 

A good UV system would be great in fZ.  Especially with the newer modeling tools.

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So UV is basically for organic modeling then.  I could see how the new modeling tools could really benefit from that!  I wonder why there isn't just a plugin for it then?  Seems like something a third party could provide since it's unlikely to be needed by most FormZ users who only build things that actually need to be able to be built in real life.  Real life = Real budgets , which most often do not allow for complex organic shapes.  Sure it would be great if all these extras were provided by FormZ, but then I worry they are being stretched too thin, and we won't get an updated rendering engine that we need far more, IMHO.

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UV mapping is used on more than complex organics.  I use it all the time on furniture and it is absolutely necessary.  As the pillow example above shows there is no possible way to get a fabric pattern to map properly on curved surfaces.  So for anyone (like everyone) who builds interior architectural models it is a must.  I have faked it many times in photoshop but an integrated solution would be very beneficial.  In the mean time I resort to unwrapping and exporting the UV map in 3DS Max and transferring pieces of the model back and forth. 

 

Concerning Shaddam's post about a subscription based software I disagree.  I bought 3DS Max in 2012 which was the last year you could buy it outright.  Now I would have to pay $1600/year to use the new software.  How is that better?  Autodesk gives out cheap or free software to the schools to get everyone trained on their product and then sticks it to them when they graduate and every year after.

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I agree with Andrew West and others, UV Mapping would be a huge boost for Z. I have been waiting for it for years. I still use FZ of course, and too often I have to add weathering and details Post render in PS.

Form Z NEEDS a uv mapping tool with proper ability to select seams.

 

I too am skeptical of the subscription plan.  The upside could be a monthly plan so you could spend more time evaluating the tool, or using it only if you have intermittent projects than that Might have some appeal for the folks who can't shell out $1200.

But for reason that I am sure are financially well thought out no-one does this, its either annual subscription or full license. I would guess it is only a matter of time before FZ goes subscription only - for Pro, anyway.

 

Which I will be happy to pay if we get an included modern renderer (yes Pylon I know about Maxwell  :D I mean included in the price) and a robust UV Mapper.

 

Bart

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