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28/01/2016 20:11:52

PatMarrNCMuvizu mogul
PatMarrNC
Posts: 1738 		Currently if I have 100 favourites, all 100 get loaded into the pick list, and there is no way to separate favourite characters from favourite objects etc etc. This is not only confusing, but it also uses more memory to load everything at once.

It would be not only cool, but also a resource-saver, if the favourites directory could be parsed by subdirectory instead of populating the favourites pick list with every single stored favourite. If this were possible, users could create subdirectories like this:

CHARACTERS
__heroes
__villains
__mythological
__animals
__military
__by occupation

OBJECTS
__Trees

__Vehicles
--------cars
--------trucks
--------aircraft
--------watercraft
--------spacecraft
--------bikes

__Weapons
-------phasers
-------sabres
-------axes
------hand guns
------rifles

Then, if the pick list opened to a list of directories instead of to a long list of individual favourite files, chances are that only a few items would ever need to be loaded into the pick list at a time, making it MUCH faster and more useful in my opinion.

I would be happy to create my own directory structure... but I'll take the idea one step furtyher and suggest that the directory structure could be automated based on the name used when saving the favourite.

For example (CHARACTERS (Heroes (Batman))) would save as...

CHARACTERS
__Heroes
--------Batman
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28/01/2016 20:20:19

ukBertyMuvizu mogulExperimental user
ukBerty
Posts: 975 		Nice idea What He Said
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19/04/2016 19:50:05

PatMarrNCMuvizu mogul
PatMarrNC
Posts: 1738 		I like being able to save favourites, but eventually the dialog box gets so crowded it isn't convenient to find things anymore. I like the organization idea posted above, but it may never happen, so here's a follow-up idea that's possible now:

1) depending on operating system, the favourites folder is probably located at one of these locations on your PC:
On my Windows 8 machine, the path is C:\ProgramData\Muvizu\Favourites\
on other systems it may be: C:\Users\All Users\Muvizu\Favourites

2) Since MUVIZU is hard coded to look in this directory for favourites, and doesn't recognize the existence of subdirectories... the existence of subdirectories doesn't hurt anything!

3) So I've gone ahead and created sub directories that help me to organize my favourites. When I save a favourite, it goes to the main folder... and from there I just move it manually to a subdirectory associated with a project or asset type. This helps me find stuff when I need it

4) then, when I'm working on a project, I move favourites into the top level directory where Muvizu can find them. This approach accomplishes three goals:
.......a) now I can have many more favourites without cluttering up my favourites selection dialog box
.......b) and can easily populate the dialog box with exactly the items I need for the current project (and nothing more)
.......c) and it greatly enhances the ability to organize the favourites so I don't waste time finding whatever I need for future projects

after completing a project, the top level directory can be cleared by dragging the items to subdirectories according to asset type

Its easy to create a shortcut on the desktop (or wherever you choose) to rapidly access the favourites directory for housekeeping and organization
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19/04/2016 22:28:28

MrDrWho13Muvizu mogulExperimental user
MrDrWho13
Posts: 2220 		That's an interesting solution PatMarrNC, thanks for sharing!
Of course, as either Ziggy or Berty said (Sorry I can't remember which), if you simply mention this concept on every email you send to Muvizu for a few years, you'll get the feature. Simple!
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19/04/2016 23:58:21

PatMarrNCMuvizu mogul
PatMarrNC
Posts: 1738 		MrDrWho13 wrote:
That's an interesting solution PatMarrNC, thanks for sharing!
Of course, as either Ziggy or Berty said (Sorry I can't remember which), if you simply mention this concept on every email you send to Muvizu for a few years, you'll get the feature. Simple!


LOL! That is truly funny! You and Ziggy and Berty have been here far longer than I, so I'm sure the joke is based in a healthy dose of reality!

Hard as it may be to imagine (since I've probably made a real pest of myself on this forum) But I have mixed feelings about badgering the developers of software that I really like. My gut feeling is that they are far more aware of all the possibilities than I am, and they have their own ideas too... all of which exceeds the budget and time for actualizing any of it.

So, whereas I realize that it is the squeaky wheel that gets the grease, I'm not comfortable being the person who raises the discomfort level to the point where somebody else's agenda gets superseded in order to shut me up.

So I end up being that annoying guy in every forum who suggests workarounds that can be used today, and who therefore inadvertently undermines the grass roots improvements that would normally come from the collective mind of the users.
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22/04/2016 20:06:57

gonzo
gonzo
Posts: 6 		hi
perhaps the file browser in muvizu .. for download the sets and models....

is the answer for a better overview.. for sets, ase and fbx files

rebuilt it so that it use on or more directorys on the comp (on and offline- file bowser)

if that works it might be nice
edited by gonzo on 22/04/2016
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31/05/2016 15:03:29

PatMarrNCMuvizu mogul
PatMarrNC
Posts: 1738 		I finally made a formal request about adding the ability to navigate subdirectories under the FAVOURITES folder. The answer was
I don't think we would add sub-directories to favourites.


Oh well, back to the idea of creating my own subdirectories for organization reasons, then moving items in and out of the top-level favourites folder to keep only the items my current project needs

I've been doing this for a while now, and it does help me find what I need more quickly. It's just inconvenient to manually move stuff around when I know how easily the same task could be accomplished if I could simply navigate to subdirectories.
edited by PatMarrNC on 31/05/2016
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31/05/2016 15:16:49

PatMarrNCMuvizu mogul
PatMarrNC
Posts: 1738 		gonzo wrote:
hi
perhaps the file browser in muvizu .. for download the sets and models....

is the answer for a better overview.. for sets, ase and fbx files

rebuilt it so that it use on or more directorys on the comp (on and offline- file bowser)

if that works it might be nice
edited by gonzo on 22/04/2016


you are right, Gonzo. Organizing models in subdirectories already works if you access them via the IMPORT menu... (and I do that too)

But given the current paradigm of allowing only SETS to be uploaded to the store, the only CONVENIENT way to get cool stuff out of a set and stored so it can be loaded conveniently into a new project is to save it as a favourite. Hence the problem of finding needles in haystacks once I have hundreds of favourites in the same directory.
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01/06/2016 05:36:13

Rocque
Rocque
Posts: 359 		It sounds like something to consider as your experience on the site grows. I am thinking that now is the time to start thinking seriously about how I am going to keep all of this organized for the future.

How often do you use the same set in different projects, Pat?

Is it a good idea to build a set and save it, and then once you start using it in a project do a new "save as" with that project name?

Am I correct in that you can save sets to upload or "open", but not characters unless they are saved as favorite characters in Muvizu, then you scroll through the list of names to find the one you want just by the name? I can see where you might want to keep a list of names with perhaps a screen shot of the character when creating series, but with time gaps in between them. My brain needs more memory space so I rely in things like that to help it along. External memory. Ha!

I guess the longer I can keep things simple, the better off I might be. However, that could get boring.
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01/06/2016 15:57:41

PatMarrNCMuvizu mogul
PatMarrNC
Posts: 1738 		Rocque wrote:
It sounds like something to consider as your experience on the site grows. I am thinking that now is the time to start thinking seriously about how I am going to keep all of this organized for the future.

the sooner you start to organize your assets, the less clutter you'll have to rearrange later. Video making (in my opinion) requires a LOT of different resources... many of which can be re-used in other projects. If you have everything stored logically so you can find it when you need it, your work flow will be faster and your degree of sanity will be higher.

How often do you use the same set in different projects, Pat?

A lot of the sets in the store are highly re-usable, and that's what makes them so desirable. I re-use as much stuff as I can. Obviously, some stuff is very specific to a story.. but there's a lot of stuff like trees, vehicles, accessories, that I use all the time.

Is it a good idea to build a set and save it, and then once you start using it in a project do a new "save as" with that project name?

A lot of the sets in the store are highly complex and they take a long time to load. I frequently open sets and delete a bunch of stuff and re-save under a different name. In any given project, I might have the same basic set saved under multiple names, with different dialog and camera animation (in case I want to go back and change something later)

I tend to work in very short scenes, and piece it all together in the video editor later

Am I correct in that you can save sets to upload or "open", but not characters unless they are saved as favorite characters in Muvizu, then you scroll through the list of names to find the one you want just by the name? I can see where you might want to keep a list of names with perhaps a screen shot of the character when creating series, but with time gaps in between them. My brain needs more memory space so I rely in things like that to help it along. External memory. Ha!


anything that you get in a downloaded set can only be reused as follows:
1) you can open the set as-is, and start your project from there...
2) you can open two sets, and copy-paste between them...
3) you can open a set and save anything you want to use later as a favourite. Then you can re-load it from favourites without having to reopen the whole set

And yeah, it would be great if you had a visual thumbprint image of each saved favourite. I tend to use detailed naming conventions. For example: (VEHICLES_red car) (CHARACTERS_Napoleon) (ANIMALS_red squirrel). That way, if there are a lot of items in the favourites list, at least they will be sorted with all the vehicles , animals and characters together so I can more easily find the one I want.

I guess the longer I can keep things simple, the better off I might be. However, that could get boring.

yeah, everybody has to find a set of conventions that works for them. Artsy people especially tend to be unconventional in their preferences, so it's hard to find one convention that works for everybody.
edited by PatMarrNC on 01/06/2016
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01/06/2016 16:15:47

PatMarrNCMuvizu mogul
PatMarrNC
Posts: 1738 		my file organization scheme:

DOCUMENTS is where I keep stuff for each of the programs I use...
DOCUMENTS > MUVIZU has the following folders:

  • SETS (where I store all the stuff I download from the store)
  • SKINS (where I store all the character templates and skins I modify
  • MODELS (where I put any models I may want to use later. Subdirectories are used to keep things organized
  • TEXTURES (where I save any textures, like seamless patterns that can be appled to backdrops or objects)
  • AUDIO (where I store sound effects like applause, laughter, environmental noise, foot steps etc)
  • PROJECTS (where I store all the assets for each project) Each project contains all the same subfolders as the MUVIZU folder, plus a VIDEO folder so I can collect each scene as it's rendered to video. It also includes a DIALOG folder, where special audio used for character dialog is kept. The PROJECT folder also contains a text file for collecting ideas, writing scripting notes, recording the lyrics to songs etc. If I'm using any assets from another animation package, such as Anime Studio, I also maintain a sub folder for all those resources.


Without a way to organize projects, one directory full of random files gets confusing in a heartbeat.
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