BIS add-on for Blender 2.8

BIS (Blender Interplanety Storage) add-on is ported to Blender 2.8

The add-on branch for Blender 2.7 is fixed on the number 1.5. The master release for Blender 2.8 has the version number 1.6 and higher in future development.

For both add-on versions the same library is used, so all BIS materials are available for all add-on versions, however, please note, materials made for Blender 2.8 may not look correct in Blender 2.7 and backward.

Now the download consists of two archives to install the add-on:

  • bis_2_7.zip – for Blender 2.7
  • BIS.zip – for Blender 2.8
Download

How to add input of integer type to the node group

To make an integer input/output in the node group:

  1. Install the BIS add-on 1.5.2. version or later,
  2. Select the desired node group in the Node Editor,
  3. In T-panel in the “BIS” tab, “Tools” section: click “+ Input” to create an input or “+ Output” to create an output in the selected node group.

BIS: Pro- account

The BIS library is free and fully accessible for all users. Any content (materials or meshes) from the open part of the library can be downloaded by any user without any restrictions. So why do you need a pro- account?

At first, this is a way to support the project. Like any other free project, BIS needs for users support. However, the BIS pro- account is not only a status attachment. The pro- status does not provide any additional content, but it allows you to make your pipeline with BIS more convenient.

Pro- account users have the following advantages:

Continue reading “BIS: Pro- account”

Using Microsoft Visual Studio Code as external IDE for writing Blender scripts/add-ons

Blender has its own built-in text editor for writing scripts and add-ons, but it’s much convenient to develop them in external IDEs that provide the user with more features such as autocomplete, syntax highlighting, integration with version control systems and other tools that make development faster and easier.

One of these IDEs is Visual Studio Code from Microsoft. This is a free universal environment that supports development with various programming languages, including the Blender API language – Python.

Continue reading “Using Microsoft Visual Studio Code as external IDE for writing Blender scripts/add-ons”

BIS: Saving meshes (objects) to the storage

The “Meshes” section of the BIS library is for storing meshes (objects).

Saving objects to the BIS personal storage:

The BIS interface for saving/downloading objects is placed in the “BIS” tab of the T-panel in “3D View” window.

  1. Authorize it the Blender add-on.

  1. Mark one or more objects selected.

Continue reading “BIS: Saving meshes (objects) to the storage”

How to check if Blender object property/attribute is read-only

To check is an attribute/property of any Blender object (mesh, node, modifier, etc.) read-only:

  1. With the is_property_readonly function, execute the following command:

<object> .is_property_readonly (‘<property name>’)

  1. Through the rna structure, execute the following command:

<object> .bl_rna.properties [‘<property name>’]. is_readonly

For example, for the “is_editmode” mesh property (is the mesh in edit mode or not):

Automatically changing the orthographic mode – perspective mode in Blender 2.8

In the new Blender 2.80 in the “3D View” window (3D Viewport), when scrolling a wheel to zoom or pressing the num pad buttons (1, 3, 7, 9) to center the view to different sides, the projection mode automatically changes between orthographic and perspective.

To disable this automatic mode changing, in the “User Preferences” window – “Interface settings”, change the value of the Auto Perspective checkbox:

Blender 2.80 Beta released

Blender 2.80 Beta released now.

This version available for download from the official developer Blender site builder.blender.org/download

Highlights:

  • The release, of course, is not stable and is not recommended for use in production.
  • The estimated release date of the stable release is after 4 months.
  • The API is declared stable, but some minor changes can be made. Add-on developers are encouraged to start porting their add-ons to 2.80.
  • The bug-tracker opens for any bug reports.

How to find out in what version of Blender the blend file was saved

To check in what version of Blender the blend file was saved:

  • Open your file in Blender
  • In the Python Console window execute the following command:

Or open the blend file in any text editor, for example in Notepad++. The Blender version will be listed in the first 15 characters.

Also, the version of the open blend file can be viewed in the Outliner window in the Data Blocks group:

How to get the version of the add-on installed in Blender

A complete list of add-ons installed in Blender we can get using the addon_utils:

Having the add-ons list, we can get the version of the desired add-on by its name with the following code:

Where the ADD-ON_NAME is the name of the desired add-on.

If the add-on is missing a version indication, the default result will be returned.

 

How to programmatically switch between vertex, edge and face selection mode

Change the mesh_select_mode property to switch in mesh edit mode between vertex, edge and polygon selection mode in Blender.

For vertex selection mode:

Edge selection mode:

And face selection mode:

The multi-select mode is enabled too. For example for vertex and face selection mode:

In BMesh for vertex, edge and face selection mode:

For multi-select in BMesh: