OTOY Forums

Hello everyone,

This first post is set to list all plausible feature requests for 3DSmax plugin. Please feel free post your request. To keep the topic tidy and reach its goal, there are some rules and explanation about this topic. So, before you post anything, please read the second post first. I'll add my current requests first, but with your support we can make a better list.

Dear Octane development team. We sincerely would like you to keep an eye on this topic in the future. If we can succeed and keep this list updated with collective meaningful requests, you'll have a proper address to look at. Since this is currently coming from an individual user. If it reaches a remarkable post count. I would like you to take control over me, and make this sticky or any effort it's visible to most users.

Octane MAX user community's collaborative wishlist.
The list below is not classified or sorted by importance

Show Shaded Material In Viewport: A better compatibility is greatly needed feature to see what we're doing.
- "Show End Result" not working. It's not possible to show the "raw map"? (see 9th post)

IES Light :
- Visibility in Viewport: Another greatly needed feature to see what we're doing.
- Ies lights with target point and visualization of the ies 3d shape.
- ies distribution wireframe preview
- target ies lights
- flat or spherical ies emission

Global Custom Material Override: If possible please add an option to retain or ignore original materials' transparency information.

Global Displacement Override: An On/off checkbox for whole scene like in vray. This might also need to be implemented in octane core code I think. DONE !

Render settings presets: A preset list that is able to save and load renderer settings. Like vray it would great to select all render setting or individually like kernel, info channel, imager, Post Processing information.

More Maxscript Connectivity: Improving Maxscript connectivity with Octane.
Maxscript documentation that would help us show the way in writing maxscripts, create scripts that would help us.
Hiring a maxscripter to solve issues or help developers how to enhance maxscript integration. DONE !

Camera Wishlist:
- F-stop integration: A better way which allow us to control FOV and DOF like on a camera.
- A way to copy settings between Octane cameras. (Maybe a preset Save/Load?)
- convergent stereoscopic camera
- correct, serious and professional anaglyph preview
- camera selection through the connection line

Octane Proxy:
- Relink missing proxy-files via Asset Tracking not working. You have to relink manually which takes forever...

Material Editor
Color Correction:
-When applying a color correction node, the "show shaded material in viewport" setting gets deactivated. Possible to fix?
- 2d texture preview on material slots, for mixed materials too.

Material Convertor:
-Converting light objects can be done with another button that only converts light objects.
-Converting specular materials as "Fake shadows" option ON as default would be good. When converting it is always unchecked.
- V-Ray Blend Materials don't get converted (as Mix Materials).
-Keep "Show shaded material in viewport" setting after converting
-V-Ray IOR Values of 1.6 get translated as an Index of 1.6. In V-Ray default is 1.6, in Octane 1.3. So it should be changed to 1.6 = 1.3. Otherwise it's too reflective/metalic.
-Bump Maps gets converted as "RGB Image". Possible to convert them always as "Greyscale Images"?
-It's really hard to work with materal convertor with most ready assets are being sold like Evermotion, iTrees, ForestPack Pro, Sigershaders are essentially created for use with Vray. We want to use them as well but it's really cumbersome to convert their materials. We'd like you to focus on material conversion on that perspective.

Additionally,
Ex. Color correction brightness values do not convert correctly. Hue in Color correction conversion is not right as well. The Material Convertor should be able to convert more complex materials like sold vray tree materials with lots of materials for leaves, with color correction for color variances.

Octane Lights Lister: A light lister similar to original max's light lister which supports all all Octane lights is needed. The lister might include Vray lights in the scene as well so that we can see how many light we should work on converting in the first place.
If possible.. Please add the feature where you we can see the emitter materials in the list. And we can change the emission material properties from the lister. The lister might scan the scene and list applied materials name and numerical properties of the emission textures..

Octane viewport:
DONE ! -Ability to lock Octane viewport to camera or selected perspective view.(while allowing editing in other viewports.)
DONE ! -Ability to see all passes individually right from the Octane viewport.
DONE ! -Ability to save all the passes within viewport.
-Premultiply Alpha checkbox in viewer.
-Hotpixel removal slider to test on the go.
CLAY is DONE ! -Clay or "Custom Material Override" checkbox.
-Ability clone viewport to max's main VFB. To be able to put the render to Max's RAMPlayer for comparing. If you want to enchance this a little bit more. You can find a way to let us save renders temporarily and let us view before and after. Pretty much like the History feature on Vray VFB.

Alpha Masks for materials: Alpha masks for specific materials. This could be a render Elements pass where we can choose Which material ID is going to be rendered as mask (with Alpha or just BW render)
This might need to be implemented in octane core code. But it would be cool if it could be done.

Fur/hair passes: This might need to be implemented in octane core code. But it would be cool if it could be done.
Light passes
Render layers

- anisotropic reflections for the main rendering core.

Please let me know if there are problems in this list.

Hi everyone,

As you know Octane 3ds max integrated plugin is one of the most used plugin for octane.
There are over 10000 post for MAX.
I really think that there is a lot more to be done in Octane Max plugin itself, without touching the main renderer core.

Currently our request are mainly from the individual wishlists, +1's, +1000's in the forum.
I believe the development team has to little time to look at some crucial user wishes. I've seeing so much that very important problems(VIP) that are addressed and are sadly ignored or haven't been seen because of the team's workload. So what we should do is to create a place to call out in the best simple way..

Apart from the main render kernel core which is strictly tied to octane standalone's core, I would like to collect all the plausible feature requests as much as compact as it could be.

So, I set this new topic for Max Community to push Otoy development team to help us with our beloved plugin's future.

But here I really would like to see your support on this..

There are some basic rules we all should agree:
In here you should NOT post any feature request that is mainly related to main renderer. For those who dont know... Octane max plugin is tied strictly to the octane standalone's core program. Therefore, asking for example, cloud volumetrics with laser beam bounces or something like that, this is not the right place to ask.. So please help us maintain our wishlist focused on the max plugin as possible, its UI or any additional support features. If there are requests that need to be in the main octane core, post them as well, but please let us stay in the right direction as possible.

Keeping the topic as compact as possible will help the team easily point out what users are really asking for.

It would be really great to have some information and collected requests that we can ask from the development team in the best brief way as possbile. And we can cross out thigs that are resolved. And continue request those that are still aren't addressed.

So, I say we should keep this topic tidy. Whenever a reasonable feature request is being talked about. I'll keep that in the first post updating it. So we'll have a list that has been talked over and been accepted from the community. I'm assuming that way we can help the team and ourselves..


I've already added some requests to the list some are from me, some are from the users that they demand but get no response.
Please let us know if we need to add another request or delete an already addressed issue. I'll try to spend my personal time to keep this list alive as possible.
I really want to see the max plugin to perform and comfort us better.

Best,
oguz

maybe a voting list like they had in the Standalone forum would be a good idea.

My 2 cents.
Im not sure if your list includes features that are implemented but don't work well
- (eg random colors, forest plugins, matte system(very slow, no reflection)).

Very keen on VFB, shaded viewport, displace override,

1. Lock to Viewport or camera while allowing editing in other viewports.
2. Sample biasing (night shots with a lot of point lights are almost unrenderable in Octane) - this could be something that can only be done at the core level.
3. A way to copy settings between Octane cameras.
4. GPU manager (to enable GPUs for backburner without starting max and setting devices). also for adding and removing net GPUS from certain Master computers.

Thank you 3dgeeks for the post.

If I remember correct, that voting system was a part of 1.5 release. And There were still lots of missing features in the renderer. So developers asked us help them prioritise what to code.

What I'm trying to do here is not that. There are some features that must be there from the startup.
The list, I'm trying to establish here is to put a user supported list to the developers that all of these or most of them is a definitely MUST for our working pipeline. Which we're used to have those features in other/older renderers, and we need them with Octane as well. This must not be selective.
I mean what is wrong with texture visibility support in ordinary viewport, right?
There is no need to prioritise our demands.
But Otoy can make up an vote system and let us choose what to improve. That's ok. But it's different.

Basicly, I want to keep this 3DSmax centric as much as possible. Other standalone users may unite and make their own lists as well.
Like your example "lights' sample biasing is a thing about core kernel. So I would suggest you that we should not put that on the list. But I totally agree about that issue, which I suffer from it as well.

I couldn't understand what you mean by GPU manager. If you think that can be accomplished inside max and without touching the core. Than I'll add it to the list.

About random colors: .. Since it's a part of the main core. It would be great if we complain about it on the main standalone topic.
Forest plugins: I assume you mean the itoo forest pack. Well I'm a user of it as well. and it's really pain to convert it's materials.
Either material converter has to be improved. Or itoo software will add octane materials for all it's library. We may ask Karba for better conversion...
Lock to viewport or Camera is absolutely bang on. Thanks...

Hi,
many of these requested features are not 3ds Max related, can't be developed by Karba but Abstrax.
I don't know if Karba is programming the Octane kernel.

To develop the best rendering engine look at Vray, et voilà. Vray is 10 years old and has tons of features.
Many features that we are requesting sometime can't be developed because Cuda limits.

I created a list of features 3 years ago when Octane for Max was released. Now we have stereoscopic output. 3 years ago I was able to do stereoscopic renders using the gpus and Vray....

I requested target lights for 3 years. Corona, Arion, Thea, Vray already have proprietary ies lights with target point and visualization of the ies 3d shape.

For this new list we have to wait 3 years more.

Thank you Gabriele for your reply.

I do agree with you all the things you said, except when you say these most of them are not max related.
And btw I remember Karba, saying that he is also working for the main kernel. I'm sorry if I'm mistaken.

Nevertheless, they are also needed features go injunction with max.
And yet, max is one of the most (maybe the most) used plugin out there.
And it would not hurt to point out renderer specific needs here. But asking them in 3dsmax perspective would be the way to go.

We all can agree that we all used to post requests among reporting bugs. And I sadly hate that apart from hearing out our bug reports there is still no new enhancements in max plugin (besides the new kernel updates).

I was once close to establishing and recruiting a maxscripter to sort out a decent light lister to help my pipeline. But I bumped on walls in scripting because of lack of documentation and support. So I quit thinking about it and wrote myself a simplest script for my needs. Which I then released in the forum.

The main problem I see is that the team is absolutely busy at all times. We all know that and agree on the fact that gpu coding is hard, really hard whilst maintaining the speed and overall performance.
But while the team is so busy apart from bug reports they have no recollection of a genuine requests that are made. And there is also +1'ers (+1000'ers I call them) that clogged the system at some point.

But it's no surprise that there are no longer bunch of wishes or ideas that are posted in max forums.
I believe that is simply because we(or I) feel ignored. And that team has no extra time to separate logical wishes from illogical ones. And when we ask for a certain thing or a request, due to pressure or busyness whatever that is the team feels like they are attacked in a way.. (a friends quote)..
Of course they are right at some point where a guy jumps out and shout "I gave my money therefore you should do it". But even it's harsh to say that, 3 or 4 genuine request are forgotten in the topic and goes right to the trash (forum's dark corners)..

And when we say team, it certainly means Abstrax and Karba(mostly).
Which we all agree that they both are truly great people.. I mean I earn money with the help of what these guys have done.
But at some point we need to know if there are plans to add more to max. Cause it's not only the core that help us. The UI, simple subtools like light lister, custom material override and such would save us a lot of time in working right?

Likewise, I'm also sceptical about the list to be taken into consideration.
I remember asking for bunch of useful stuff before v1.5 launch. Called them as "small annoying things". I got negative response that there are no time for those. Big improvements were coming. Since than nothing has been done. Except a material convertor update. Which still is not greatly useful the way we use it.

And these statements makes programmers get angry I feel sympathy for it. No hard feelings but I just don't get the anger occurring time to time.
That's why I do feel otoy needs to add another person to the team to keep track and classify proper requests Where Karba is working late hours for development. BTW, I only know about max progress I have no idea how other plugins development work.

Anyway... As being patiently and patiently waiting new releases go by, but not seeing additional features on max pipeline. I thought if it would help, if users of max plugin could discuss each feature request on our own and collectively make a list so that can everyone in forum and team could spot "what do those max users really want". I genuinely believe that would help the team if they want add more to max plugin.

I'm thinking about continuing adding stuff to the list for at least few months. (let see some more releases pass by..) I would be very happy if you,Gabriele can spare a few wishlist here. Your support would be really great.

If this also doesn't work at all.. Sadly, it would just be a waste of time But I'll say that I tried )

Cheers,

Firstly I agree that Karba and Abstrax and the team have done a great job in a short timeframe.

Random colors - The random colors are a max issue, ie they work fine locally but not in an XREF. So i would say that it very likely a Octane max plugin issue. Then again its more a bug than a feature request.

GPU Manager
Case 1 - (this is likely a core item) when you using distributed rendering it would be good to have a central console (maybe web console) so that Slaves (and specify the no of GPUs on the slave) to assign to different Master computers. Needed in a studio where load balance is required amongst a number of artists.
Case 2 - (this is likely a Max item) when i leave my workstation to render overnight via backburner, it only uses the number of devices specifed in the Kernal Device panel. Need a way to easily set it to all GPUs. I tried to find an ini file to set this but couldnt find it. So now i need to open max on mine and anyone elses workstation to make sure they didnt forget to enable all devices.

Also one more item
Saving of samples like corona does. This would
1. stop samples being lost when slaves were stopped or crashed.
2. enable renders to be continued from previous session.

Thanks 3dGeeks,

In the latest release I remember Karba said "3ds max xref is quite annoying thing to deal with. I will try to fix it." So I guess that is in the pipeline.

Gpu management in standalone and max plugin all are tied between each other. In my humble opinion.
Network render problem with slaves is again a piece in the core.

"Show End Result" not working. It's not possible to show the "raw map"?

Thanks Rob,
Added under Show Shaded Material In Viewport..