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Apple Joins Blender Development Fund

blender.org

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Re: Apple Joins Blender Development Fund

#111

Post by ynx »

JAlexoid wrote: post #85
rudedogg wrote: post #68

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've only dabbled in GPU programming, but I think the issue is more serious than this. It's not really pointless churn. OpenGL was released 29 years ago, and the way GPUs work now vs then is massive. Apparently developers want low level access, and that is what Vulkan/Metal give them. As a user I wish Vulkan had a path without so much setup. I'm not sure if that's possible, or maybe it would defeat the purpose. It se…

And OpenGL changed massively. Going from fixed function to programmable hardware. I understand that a lot of developers want low level access to hardware - that's great for a lot of applications. But that low level access means that software is tied to hardware... and software is not forward/cross compatible. Which is a VERY big deal for pro market. Remember when Apple just "forgot" to release a pro grade desktop for…

> But that low level access means that software is tied to hardware... and software is not forward/cross compatible. Which is a VERY big deal for pro market.

As a game dev - hardware dependence has been a fact of life for a very long time. There are too many useful extensions not included in the base profiles, and enough video cards combinatorically combined with those - that the most tractable path is to actually care about the specific device's capabilities.

The best way forward is to be as detailed as possible than to come up with a new albatross to hang around one's neck for the next 30 years. A thin driver with a fatter app stack is probably more manageable going forward than a very fat driver with a continually aging app stack, so long as appropriate care is paid to forward compatibility.

Re: Apple Joins Blender Development Fund

#112

Post by avhon1 »

msci100 wrote: post #92
ragebol wrote: post #53

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sure, but it seems you are looking for (monocular) SLAM?

I was thinking more so to add 3d objects to previously recorded drone footage. Would SLAM be the best option there?

SLAM would be to build a 3D model of what you filmed with a drone.

Adding CGI to drone footage doesn't require that, and is absolutely something Blender can do. Look at its motion/camera tracking features.

Re: Apple Joins Blender Development Fund

#114

Post by SXX »

masalah wrote: post #67
SXX wrote: post #42

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not unless Apple open up their locked-in platform. Blender licensed under GPLv2 or later and fortunately it's completely impossible to change source code license.

Could you please elaborate how does Blender's license prevent them from having an ios port?

Appstore rules are incompatible with GPL. There a lot of past discussions on this topic:

https://www.fsf.org/blogs/licensing/more-about-the-app-store...

Re: Apple Joins Blender Development Fund

#115

Post by Applejinx »

defaultname wrote: post #19

Apple's software and hardware arcs are coalescing into them going all in on AR/VR. Things like LIDAR, Photogrammetry, spatial mapping, USDZ / PBR and friends all come across as pretty marginal novelties on smartphones, but they are all a part of that strategy, and will make much more sense with a headset. They're coming out of the gate with a robust ecosystem. Blender is obviously a huge component of the software sta…

I like the sounds of that. I like the prospect of Apple competing with Facebook on AR/VR. It's an area I was quite interested in some years ago, but firstly wasn't well supported on the Mac, and secondly it got bought up by Facebook to a large extent.

I've been wishing for a modern Playstation so I could try the limited bit of Gran Turismo that's VR and uses their headset. I know the Nurburgring fairly well by now but would love to play there 'for real'. Quite an environment to be whizzing through: that and the tricky rally circuits would be real interesting to get more immersion in.

Re: Apple Joins Blender Development Fund

#116

Post by user-the-name »

progbits wrote: post #103
dagmx wrote: post #3

Apple also submitted a patch to port Cycles to run on Metal. https://developer.blender.org/T92212

I guess some will see this as good news, but further entrenching Metal is just sad in my opinion. So much wasted effort just because they can't admit they lost the standards game and won't move to Vulkan. The generous interpretation is they just don't want to invest into that if it isn't "broken" but the cynic in me can't help but think at least part of the motivation is being different and maintaining the wall aroun…

Vulkan isn't a viable alternative for Apple. Apple wants to give developer an easy to use API to encourage them to use it as much as possible. Vulkan does not offer that.

Re: Apple Joins Blender Development Fund

#117

Post by user-the-name »

outworlder wrote: post #107
valine wrote: post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Cycles is good first step if Apple wants to make blender fully functional on Mac. I wonder if they'll ever attempt to port Eevee to metal, that seems like the logical next step if Apple wants to permanently remove OpenGL from macOS.

> that seems like the logical next step if Apple wants to permanently remove OpenGL from macOS They should just allow third-party OpenGL implementations. OpenGL on OSX is stuck in the past. It would be great to see Metal die a fiery death too, and Vulkan being adopted. The current situation is just DirectX once again.

"Allow"? They aren't doing anything to disallow them?

You can use ANGLE if you want, for instance?

I wouldn't recommend using OpenGL for any new software, though, it is hopelessly clunky and outdated for modern applications.

Re: Apple Joins Blender Development Fund

#118

Post by misnome »

Joeboy wrote: post #83
cdiamand wrote: post #16

It's great to see Blender get the support. The user numbers seem to be arcing upwards. https://www.blender.org/news/blender-by-the-numbers-2020/ If you've ever had a passing interest in Blender or 3d modeling I recommend checking out the donut tutorial, which is fast becoming the "hello world" of blender - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TPrnSACiTJ4 And check out all the donuts - https://www.reddit.com/r/BlenderDough…

Recommend Ian Hubert's "Lazy Tutorials"[1], although they're not really so beginner friendly. More for inspiration and entertainment. [1] https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL4Dq5VyfewIxxjzS34k2N...

This is useful. I used to like, and went through lots of the "Blender Cookie" stuff; even got a paid subscription - but they pivoted to online courses and lots of their individual tutorials and previous work disappeared.

Re: Apple Joins Blender Development Fund

#119

Post by dorkwood »

amelius wrote: post #94

The "problem" I have with Blender is that I can use it about once or twice a year, and of course every time I forget how it works (or the UI has been updated to include an even bigger maze of options). It would be great if Blender had an API on which someone could develop a more beginner-friendly UI. (Curious to know if that happens to be the case).

This guy has made a bunch of custom pie menus, which seems to be the kind of thing you're describing.

https://github.com/HEAVYPOLY/HEAVYPOLY_Blender

Re: Apple Joins Blender Development Fund

#120

Post by user-the-name »

JAlexoid wrote: post #104
viktorcode wrote: post #101

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Apple had their answer in form of Metal. Vulkan, DX12 came out later.

If memory serves - they introduced Metal as a high efficiency low level API for games, not a generic rendering API. Deprecating opengl was confusing for me.

No, Metal is a general purpose 3D API, and has always been. Games are just one of the biggest things 3D APIs are used for, but Metal is for all uses.
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