Meshwork Release Notes

May 10, 2003: version 2.0.1

• fixed a problem that caused Meshwork to require Quesa/QD3D to launch (note: these are still highly recommended because without them some features, such as 3D Preview, will not work -- get Quesa at http://www.quesa.org)

May 09, 2003: version 2.0

• VRML export now scales uniformly (by a factor of 0.01) on all three axes.
• New "Face Consistent" feature
• 3DS file import/export improved
• Initial support for SKN format (used by The Sims)
• Now properly interprets textures that have a resolution set to something other than 72 dpi (this was a common problem with textures made in Photoshop)
• More efficient update of coordinate display when drag-selecting a large number of vertices
• Disabled Undo/Redo, as it was found to be too unreliable
• Improved compatibility with Quesa (used for the 3D Preview window)

December 3, 2001: version 1.9

• several new material transparency/translucency options have been added to the Material dialog
• no longer crashes if you quit while a Material dialog is open
• default button in dialogs no longer have ugly gray border in OS X
• 3DS import now imports pinned-mode texture mapping coordinates
• Texture Map window now updates to reflect currently selected material
• Texture Map window no longer draws hidden triangles
• fixed crash in OS X when a help tag pops up
• if you try to import a 3DMF file without QD3D/Quesa installed, you now get a nice error message instead of an app crash
• when a material is smoothed, the normal averaging now applies across duplicate vertices found at exactly the same location (as is often used when you need to apply two different UV locations to the same point in 3D space)
• changed the way non-English languages are supported: we now use a "Language Support" folder that maps English to other languages. Alias "L1" points to the language you want Meshwork to use.

August 5, 2001: version 1.8.2

• fixed a crash in OS X which could occur on the second use of the "Open..." command
• clicking the red close button of an inactive Meshwork window now closes that one, instead of closing the frontmost window
• vertex coordinates are written in Mesh and 3DMF files with up to 7 digits past the decimal point, instead of 3
• fixed a crash which could occur when using Paste in the Carbon version of Meshwork
• fixed the Face Front command, which in 1.8 did the exact opposite
• Preview window now keeps background color and rendering choice as long as the window is open. (Brightness is reset on each use of Preview, due to a limitation in QuickDraw 3D.)

July 11, 2001: version 1.8.1

• updated the 3D Preview in the Carbon version of Meshwork to work with Quesa 1.6d13
• fixed a crash which would occur when using Undo after Creating a Sphere, Sphere 2, or Cylinder (this bug first appeared in 1.8)
• fixed a bug which caused the "Do you want to save?" dialog to lack a "Don't Save" button when quitting under OS X
• new windows now get a unique title and a (usually) unique position
• improved DXF import to support VERTEX meshes (in addition to 3DFACE arrays)

June 25, 2001: version 1.8

• First release for Carbon/OS X! The Carbon version of Meshwork is now considered the "standard" release; the classic PowerPC is now called "Meshwork (Classic)", and "Meshwork.68k" is still available for 68k Macs. Other changes:

• native file type changed from 'TEXT' to 'Mesh' (but the format is unchanged, and Meshwork will still open files of either type)
• added Viewer Options to Preview window
• moving the Open and Save dialog boxes now refreshes background windows
• made grid points slightly darker for better visibility on LCD screens
• Transform and Create dialogs now remember their settings between invocations
• fixed several memory leaks that could occur when using Transform & Create dialogs
• fixed an abrupt exit which could occur when saving a posed model, if the number of bones had been reduced since some of the poses were made
• bones and other unconnected vertices are now properly ignored by the Relax and Tense commands
• subdivide command now interpolates bone settings and texture (UV) mappings
• added new menu commands "Zoom In" and "Zoom Out" (with keyboard shortcuts)
• 3DS exports now have file type '3DSM'; 3DS import recognizes either '3DSM' or 'BINA'

February 17, 2001: version 1.7.2

• fixed a bug which made it impossible to enter the second field in the registration dialog
• fixed a bug which could sometimes cause a crash after deleting a lot of geometry from a model, saving the document, and closing the window

February 14, 2001: version 1.7.1

• Fixed a nasty bug in version 1.7 which caused Meshwork files to become corrupted. My sincerest apologies for letting a release slip out with such a bug. All users of 1.7 should immediately upgrade to 1.7.1.

February 11, 2001: version 1.7

• The big news this release is that Meshwork now supports pinned-mode texture mapping! This is a major new feature, which allows you to have complete control over the UV (texture) coordinates of every point in the mesh. For details, see sections 2 and 3 of the manual.
• Also, as of 1.7, Meshwork is available in French (as well as English, Dutch, and German).

August 8, 2000: version 1.6.4

• re-opening an already open file now brings that document window to the front, rather than opening it again in a new window
• fixed a bug which caused models in the editing window to be displayed inside-out
• fixed a bug which caused the "nudge" values when using Shift or Control with the arrow keys to ignore the current zoom
• array-key "nudge" values now depend on the grid size (base nudge is gridsize/(2*scale); control key does 1/5 of this, and shift key does 4X this)

May 22, 2000: version 1.6.3

• enabled use of decimal values (rather than only integers) in various dialogs wherever it makes sense (e.g., for cylinder height, but not for cylinder subdivisions)
• refactored drawing code used in Poses window; may improve stability under Mac OS 8.1
• general optimizations for improved performance
• in blueprint mode, the current view is now indicated with a dark outline
• "Find Strays" no longer selects bones
• command-click can now be used to select a bone and all attached vertices

April 18, 2000: version 1.6.2

• fixed bug which caused an error message when doing a "Save" after a cancelled "Save As"
• fixed bug causing a DebugStr message when quitting after importing a 3DMF model
• fixed bugs causing the "Face Front" and "Flip" commands to undo/redo incorrectly
• improved the "Subdivide" command to also divide triangles bordering on the selected geometry, rather than generating holes

February 13, 2000: version 1.6.1

• DXF output now puts each material in a separate layer ("mat1layer", "mat2layer", etc.); should make creating Avara models much easier
• fixed a bug which could cause an application crash when quitting with the Poses window frontmost
• added balloon help to the Poses window; clairfied or corrected other balloon help here and there
• multiple open Poses windows now work properly (up to four; a limitation that should be extended or removed in a future release)
• fixed a bug which caused flickering help balloons when balloon help was on, and the cursor was held between the window and the menu bar

January 30, 2000: version 1.6

• many improvements to the Poses window:
  • new trackball and rotation dials provide much easier pose editing
  • editing commands (cut/copy/paste/clear) can now be applied to the currently selected pose
  • miscellaneous cosmetic improvements
  • Poses window now has a dedicated section in the reference manual (section 3.5)
• creator code of VRML files is now set for MacLookAt rather than Cosmo Player
• viewpoint in VRML files is now 10 meters away rather than 25

December 7, 1999: version 1.5.4

• fixed bug causing program exit when deleting the first custom pose in the list of poses
• fixed a similar bug causing exit when vertices are bound to nonexistent bones
• fixed poses in 68k version of Meshwork (previously gave undesirable results)

December 1, 1999: version 1.5.3

• fixed bug causing crashes when using Undo after Pasting geometry into a document

November 28, 1999: version 1.5.2

• fixed bug causing strange effects when adding bones to an already-posed model
• added Undo support for bones and bone assignments
• changed order of bone transformations, such that children bones are always applied before their parents
• fixed a bug causing side effects when deleting a pose

November 26, 1999: version 1.5.1

• fixed bug (introduced in 1.5) which broke the Import 3DS and Import DXF commands
• increased scroll rate (using arrows) of poses window
• now fixed: poses window scrolled down farther than it should
• poses window now updates when activated after bones are added, deleted, or changed
• improved DXF import/export to support material numbers
• improved DXF export for better compatibility with unforgiving importers

November 20, 1999: version 1.5

• added the "Poses" editing window, for flexible bone-based mesh deformation
• added support for Mesh (not TriMesh, which was already supported) geometry to 3DMF Import
• fixed bug which caused distant triangles to be drawn on top of closer ones
• improved POV-Ray export: all materials are now joined into a single object via a "union" statement
• fixed display bug which sometimes caused the window not to update when duplicating points
• fixed Anaglyph mode, which had gotten flipped (red vs. blue) at some point; also tweaked the depth factor a bit.

October 22, 1999: version 1.4.1

• added support for textures in POV-Ray export (user must create PNG files called texture0.png through texture7.png, similar to VRML export)
• fixed a bug which caused texture images to not be saved when doing a "Save As"

October 2, 1999: version 1.4

• added 2D Polygon tool
• added Grid button, allowing for adjustable alignment grid
• fixed bug which caused symmetry relations to be broken when switching camera views

August 28, 1999: version 1.3.2

• fixed bug which caused most distant of overlapping points to be selected in top, bottom, front, and back views (now always selects closest of overlapping points)
• improved performance & reliability of Undo, Revert, window-closing, and other things which deallocate geometry data
• Undo/Redo menus are now properly updated when switching windows or opening new windows
• fixed bug that caused Undo/Redo to get confused after saving a file (note: the undo buffers are cleared when saving, so you still can't undo past the last save point)
• Show/Hide commands are now undoable

August 23, 1999: version 1.3.1

• fixed Import bug which corrupted coordinates with more than 9 digits past the decimal place; affected DXF written by Infini-D, and possibly others

August 14, 1999: version 1.3

• coordinates are now editable in the toolbar -- just click or tab to enter, and click outside the coordinate panes when done
• fixed two bugs with Subdivide command: display was not refreshed, and material assignments were lost
• fixed bug: pressing '2' on the numeric keypad did a Revert (!) (old debugging code that should have been removed long ago)
• 3D Preview window can now be closed with Escape or command-period
• added a "close base" option to the Create Cone dialog
• added Appearance Manager support

July 11, 1999: version 1.2.2

• fixed bug which caused Meshwork to drop into the debugger if you clicked on the vertical divider in Blueprint view
• Create Cylinder dialog now has an option to create closed (capped) ends

June 19, 1999: version 1.2.1

• attempting VRML Import in 1.2 dropped into the debugger (or exited with error type 12 if no debugger was installed); fixed by disabling the VRML Import item

June 14, 1999: version 1.2

• added VRML export -- all modeling features are supported, though you must save your own texture files (see the reference manual for details)
• added support for non-Meshwork resources, such as the 'ckid' resources used by version control systems

June 6, 1999: version 1.1.3

• improved the way the 3D Preview is done: now works entirely in memory, without need of a temporary file on disk, and is considerably faster
• fixed a bug causing points dragged with the mouse to move in large increments when the scale is magnified
• fixed a bug in the 68k version causing erroneous coordinate values in points moved with the arrow keys
• improved the robustness of the 3DMF export when dealing with degenerate triangles (triangles with two vertices in the same place)
• improved the Combine command to remove degenerate triangles
• improved the Lathe command to automatically remove degenerate triangles caused by points on the axis of the lathing
• fixed a serious bug causing any previous geometry to get munged by the "Sphere 2" command
• made Sphere 2 properly undo/redoable

April 24, 1999: version 1.1.2

• fixed another bug introduced in 1.1, which broke the Open command on systems without Navigation Services

April 20, 1999: version 1.1.1

• fixed a bug introduced in 1.1, which prevented proper saving over an existing file

April 18, 1999: version 1.1

• fixed a bug involving DXF import of quadrilateral faces
• fixed bug involving undo/redo of the Duplicate command
• added "Sphere 2" command to the Create menu
• added "Subdivide" command to the Transform menu
• added "Select Connected" command to the Edit menu
• implemented limited 3DS import/export
• added support for Navigation Services

March 7, 1999: Version 1.0.1

• Normals are now recomputed after scaling, relaxing, or tensing.
• Material assignments are now undo/redoable (but note that changes to material properties are persistent, i.e. not undoable)
• Bug involving undo/redo across a change in symmetry button settings has now been fixed.
• Bug involving incorrect deletion of mirrored points (i.e. with symmetry buttons) has now been fixed.
• Spurious "end of file" error when reading a Meshwork file without a resource fork has been fixed.
• 3D Previewer is now a little smarter about reporting when it's unavailable due to old or improperly installed QD3D.
• Camera commands (cmd-1 through cmd-6) can now be used to exit Blueprint mode.
• Several corrections and enhancements to the documentation.

February 20, 1999: Version 1.0

• numerous bug fixes
• multiple Undo
• 3D Preview (PPC version only)
• blueprint view
• lathe/extrude tools
• full balloon help
• several new import/export types
• numerous small improvements
• finished documentation

November 4, 1998: Version 0.9

• added texture sketch -- a line drawing of your mesh, superimposed on the texture shown in the Material dialog; if no texture, you can copy this sketch to your favorite draw/paint program for coloring
• implemented Copy, Paste, and Clear functions for mesh data
• added cool (and more functional) about box
• changed display of selected vertices in anaglyph view
• implemented standard mappings for keys F1 - F4
• bug fixes:
  • with symmetry tool on and both sides of a symmetrical pair selected, dragging caused strange deformations
  • clear, split, and disconnect did not honor symmetry buttons
  • random UV coordinates were shown when null material was selected
  • command-clicking a material selected its faces, but not deselect others (it now does so unless you also hold the shift key)
  • when doing Deselect All command, mirrored points were not properly refreshed
• began new, greatly expanded documentation; currently only reference section (i.e. section 3) is written

October 17, 1998: Version 0.8.2 (interim release)

• fixed bug causing vertices to disappear after exporting to 3DMF with planar texture mapping (bug crept in with 0.8.1)
• removed a couple unused options from the Material Properties dialog
• added a visual depiction of mapping type and axis

October 16, 1998: Version 0.8.1 (interim release)

• fixed bug causing abrupt exit when using selection tool with symmetry buttons active
• fixed cylindrical and spherical texture mapping (now seamless!)
• add partial implementation of Anaglyph view

September 28, 1998: Version 0.8

• enabled Symmetry option buttons for adding, connecting, & dragging vertices
• enabled Rotate command
• added support for import of simple DXF files
• added Create menu with several geometric primitives
• added "Face Out" command to Transform menu
• flipped isometric view; view is now from above (+Y), in front (+Z), and to the right (+X)
• added "Center Selection" command to Camera menu

September 13, 1998: Version 0.7

• added Split tool: adds a new point midway along an edge
• added "Scale" menu command, for scaling a set of points
• added "Rotate" command, but not yet implemented
• added "Draw Faces" option, to allow showing/hiding of triangle faces
• added Balloon Help for the toolbar (toggle balloons with Help key or menu)
• added centering cursor while in Center mode
• fixed cosmetic bug which caused ugliness when using invalid texture mapping

August 29, 1998: Version 0.6

• added support for two bone attachments per vertex, with a relative weight
• added a "no material" selection to the material palette
• fixed bug which caused furthest, rather than nearest, point to be selected when points overlap
• fixed bug which caused new points to be misplaced while working in bottom view
• fixed cosmetic bug causing points to be drawn on top of the toolbar

August 16, 1998: Version 0.5

• fixed several minor point-selection bugs
• can now open material options by double-clicking in the material palette
• added basic support for bones (see the documentation)

July 26, 1998: Version 0.4

• added Duplicate command to Edit menu
• changed "Triangle" menu to "Transform," and added Invert Face, Flip Horizontal, and Flip Vertical
• added command-click of material to select that material (and deselect others, unless shift key is also held)
• fixed bug: negative non-integer numbers were getting incremented by 1 when opening a file
• fixed 2 bugs involving texture mapping
• changed 3DMF Export so that hidden triangles are not exported
• added depth sorting of triangles (most extremely very cool)

July 19, 1998: Version 0.3
This is the first release with some support for texture mapping. It's still crude -- it allows only one projection type, and doesn't export the texture to POV-Ray (though it does export it to 3DMF). But it's a good foundation. Other changes:

• vertices can now be shifted with arrow keys
• vertices can now be dragged around with the mouse
• improved vertex selection behavior (now follows Mac standard for clicks, shift-clicks, and drags)
• fixed cosmetic bugs when "Drag Edges" or "Draw Vertices" is off
• confirmation upon closing an unsaved window
• Material options dialog box substantially expanded.
• Miscellaneous small bugs fixed in the code.

July 12, 1998: Version 0.2.1
This is mostly a maintenance release -- I discovered several bugs after yesterday's release (cringe!). But I've also thrown in a feature for good measure:

• added "Draw Edges" and "Draw Vertices" options in Display menu
• fixed bug which caused Meshwork to quit upon shift-clicking nothing
• fixed bug which set scale to 1 upon camera switch
• fixed bug which caused new vertices to be misplaced except in front view
• changed view definitions to match QuickDraw 3D Viewer

July 11, 1998: Version 0.2

• Fixed several minor bugs
• Added material configuration (option-click in material palette)
• Added material color and smoothness to POV-Ray and 3DMF export
• Changed file format to support smoothness/color info

July 8, 1998: Version 0.1

• First pre-release