Wayne's 'Special Project'

[Wayne]

Well as I gave more details at the 3d Max london user group I can go into a little bit more detail now about something I've been writing the last year. It is a brand new polygon reduction plugin and stand alone app called 'reducto'. This is not the same quadratic algo that every other app uses..this is totally new and wrote to be a '1 click' solution in the same way that MudWalker is. Invented , and programmed by my own fair hand.


I showed the samples last night at teh London 3d max user group (where I was gving a talk on mudbox), the main one being a 12 million tri count model and a 1/2 milion tri count model...both looked indentical. (Ask some of the guys that were there for an unbiased view.)

For more techy types: The quardatic algo used in just about every poly reduction out there was in my opinion never meant as an 'end point' but rather to inspire. So I came up with my own that includes its own rudimentary AI that is programmed from an artists perspective, not a programmers. As with MudWalker its aimed to be a simple '1 click' no thinking needed solution. Its taken so far over a year to get to the restricted build thats is being tested at the moment.


Short version: it reduces polygon counts beter than anything else out there at the moment.

When can you get it..... once its ready. Consider this a 'teaser' for redcuto...now you know it exists......


Wayne...

[Shawry]

So, im assuming you use it at the end of your workflow, once finished sculpting..
Now.... would u use something like this before u would retopo your mesh? or before or after you would extract any maps from your model? Ive just never used anything like this before.

[Wayne]

There's a fair few ways you can use it...if you need to reduce polys but keep all your details for 3d printing (plus it can be operated in batch mode and provide you with a number of reduced models of various polycounts)..or if you ned to bake a map in another app and is cannot handle the polygon count of your sculpt.

There's a fair few othe way it can be used though.....

Wayne...

[beelzeboss]

This will be really useful for taking stuff to print or even a still render so there is no messing with displacements. It is good that mud will have its own alternative to decimation master.

Will it preserve all of the UVs?

[steelsky]

I was just gonna say the same Beel.... Ive been wondering if anything likce decimation master would come mudbox's way ... or independant etc.

good question on the UVs....

Have you decided on the distro method?.... same as mudwalker or will this be a pay up job?

[Wayne]

I was just gonna say the same Beel.... Ive been wondering if anything likce decimation master would come mudbox's way ... or independant etc.

good question on the UVs....

Have you decided on the distro method?.... same as mudwalker or will this be a pay up job?

Right now I've not decided either way...it depends on a lot to be honest. UV's it can but it will cost a performance hit.

Wayne...