Gilles Tran wrote:

> But now, the current machines have enough RAM to digest gigantic meshes
> without complaining so that primitives have become much less competitive.
> This is why, for instance, my Maketree objects are no longer interesting,
> since we have POV-Tree, which exports in mesh (with a better algorithm) and
> allows the creation of entire forests thanks to mesh instanciation.
> 
This concept still confuses me.

//case 1: mesh instantiation:
//create tree
#declare SomeTree =
mesh {
	triangle {}
	triangle {}
	triangle {}
	...
	texture T
}
//create forest
LOOP 10000 TIMES
	object { SomeTree translate RandomLocation }	
ENDLOOP

//case 2: primitive instantiation
//create tree
#declare SomeTree =
union {
	cone {}
	sphere {}
	triangle {}
	...
	texture T
}
//create forest

LOOP 10000 TIMES
	object { SomeTree translate RandomLocation }	
ENDLOOP

How is it that case 1 gets a performance/memory gain and case 2 doesn't?
Especially since, as I found out recently, every intersection of a mesh 
element spawns a texture calculation anyway, up to a limit of 100.


> The big remaining issue for hobbyists, however, is uv-mapping. AFAIK there
> is no free uv-mapping tool allowing real-time 3D painting and some
> automatisation for vertex unwrapping (such as the expensive Bodypaint).
> Until we have such a tool, mapping will remain a limitation for mesh users.
> 
I take it that real-time 3D painting obviates the need for uv coordinate 
unwrapping by hand?

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