Working with booleans...

[Dimitri]

Just wanted to put some images showing how efficiently the booleans in Wings work (the renderings have been done in Blender).

As you see below someone may build easily and intuitively complex structures just by adding, subtracting or intersecting. The only needed thing is refinement after the boolean operations' being accomplished. That's to say bevelling or filleting the seams, building a better topology on the resulting objects etc.

Of course, there is the issue of conceiving tool kinds that can be implemented and used in Wings for achieving such refinements.

Let share your ideas about smart tools -or even modelling ways- that someone may use for producing refinements as the mentioned ones. The boolean tools may open a whole new dimension in modelling inside Wings... it is worth discussing detailedly about them.

[maker]

Interesting. More than the modelling, the use of Freestyle(?) Is it difficult to learn?

I too like many features of mlab: e.g., arrays (Body| Move Arrangements) - except Radial Arrangements, which has, for me, a somewhat awkward implementation - Random movement / colouring, tube-along-path, fit-on faces(? not sure of name)...

It will be a lot more interesting when ggaliens implements preview in all the features (or many of them.) I - and many of us - be able to understand what they actually do, and maybe use them properly then

btw, does Impression (Boolean) work properly for you? I never could get it to work.

[ggaliens]

Pick a few that I should add preview to ...

where there will be a big payoff for user. I'll give them a shot.

[Dimitri]

Maker, the rendering has been made with Blender's native line adding tool. Freestyle is good but it is a little bit slow in applying the lines, as far as I have discerned to this moment.

The booleans in Wings are very easy to use and are working very clearly, except in some rare cases. Someone may model with them even significantly complex shapes without the slightest flaw.

[maker]

Pick a few that I should add preview to ...

where there will be a big payoff for user. I'll give them a shot.

Thanks. That's wonderful, esp considering all that you've already given in your plugins.
1. Object: BooleansI don't think this is possible, since you're using outside libraries; but if it is, it will be simply superb. Esp. for "Booleans|Impression," which I'm unable to get working.
2. Face: Fit on & Random color/transforms.
3. Edge: Dial to, Extrusion Contouring, Rod on Edges Cage.

Thanks again

Edit: Besides Booleans, I love the Random Transformations stuff, and Face|Put Arrays... I'm hoping to do a sort of mini-tutor (sort of showing some possibilities) on them

Edit 2: There seems to be a problem with default settings of Body|Shape Extruder|Bezier|Bezier5pts, if I may say so.

The booleans in Wings are very easy to use and are working very clearly, except in some rare cases. Someone may model with them even significantly complex shapes without the slightest flaw.

I agree - they're simply superb in most cases. Only - like you pointed out (I think) somewhere else - selecting edge loops can be a problem then. So we have to use sparingly.

Any chance of you doing a min-tutorial (or video, while using) on them? Esp on Boolean|Impression.

[Dimitri]

Really, the difficulty of selecting edge loops (and working with them smoothly as in the case of bevelling them) is one of the main problems appearing after boolean operations. But I think that with the adding of some simple topology tools we can deal with those problems efficiently. This is, besides, one of the reasons I did begin this thread here... to initiate a discussion about this topic.

Booleans are a very intuitive way of modelling... and we already have them in Wings... so, it will be a pity not to harness all the power they may offer.

As to the tutorial... the workings of boolean operations is very easy to understand, there is no need for any tutorial in the present time... but if we had some topology tools that may contribute to the refinement of their results, then there could be some tutorials, of course.

Btw, if someone wants to have an idea about what can be achieved by the use of booleans can see some excellent samples in Groboto's site below:

http://www.groboto.com/v3/

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Below is another sample of roughly done boolean modelling in Wings... it is inspired from the samples in Groboto's site:

[maker]

Sweet! (And cute )

[/quote]http://www.groboto.com/v3/]

Looks interesting - but more for assest / organic form creators.
Good luck. I, too, think that mlab deserves to be a lot more popular than it is (perhaps with some more detailed infotips.)

[A correction about Boolean|Impression: It does work fine, except that it deletes the 2nd object. Which, I think, it shouldn't. Sorry.]

[Dimitri]

Some further work with booleans... all the model has been made by the use of booleans, except for some details on it. The means with which the 'impression' tool may endow the user too are very rich, as it is evident from the images below. The large green decal on the shape has been put by using an 'impression' like workaround by the aid of booleans (I did not use the new 'impression' tool because my pc has a problem in installing the new versions of ML Wings)...

[ggaliens]

I like your spacecraft as usual. Very neat use of Booleans. Thanks for sharing.

[Dimitri]

Thanks Mark... as it seems the booleans may open a whole new modelling way in Wings, indeed...