Perhaps, I should better explain what I'm trying to do.

> How many other windows applications can you count that don't get the focus
when
> they start ? I can't think of any, the exceptions being services or other
non-
> user-oriented things such as tray applets.

You're right, most applications when they start do get focus, but in my case
I am using POV-Ray like a service.  I'm building a framework for
distributing renders to my home computers from a remote computer.  The
problem I run into is annoying users that may or may not be on those
computers when the remote render starts, which I plan on being at a very low
priority.

For the most part all of this works right now.  I'm still working on
cleaning it up, but I can submit any number of renders, and have the remote
machine render them one at a time.

Here's the problem I'm facing and the choices I have.

1) If I start a single instance of POV-Ray on startup using ABX's "start"
method, this being my preferred way, then the splash screen shows, and POV
runs minimized, which is great.  If however I then invoke POV again with a
/RENDER it maximizes and comes to the front, thus annoying whoever is on
that remote computer, each and everytime a /RENDER is submitted.

2) I can invoke POV seperately for each render using /RENDER and /EXIT still
using the "start" method, but the splash screen shows each and every time,
which is as annoying as the coming to the front problem.  I have no desire
to supress the splash screen for the very reasons it's there, so...

What I'd really like is for the currently running instance of POV to remain
minimized when a subsequent /RENDER is sent to it, thus behaving like a
background task.  But on startup it would still show it's splash screen,
thus the user would know it was there.

> Why are you running a separate instance of the program for each frame of
the
> animation ?

I have a program that is generating POV SDL files, some of which are frames
of an animation.  Then I spawn the remote renders on all these files.
Particle systems in general have to write a new SDL file for each frame, and
can't use POV's internal clock animation.

Andrew

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On Mon, 15 Jul 2002 09:45:40 -0500, "Andrew Wilcox"
<awi### [at] unpuzzledcom> wrote:

>I know the GUI will always open with POV, but is there a way to keep it from
>coming to the front when I do a render using the "/RENDER" command-line
>switch.  I'd like to be able to do rendering in the background without
>having to alt-tab back into what I was doing.

How about waiting for the source and compiling a win32 console
version? Or waiting a couple more hours after the source release when
someone will have compiled it already :)


Peter Popov ICQ : 15002700
Personal e-mail : pet### [at] vipbg
TAG      e-mail : pet### [at] tagpovrayorg

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Peter Popov <pet### [at] vipbg> wrote:
> How about waiting for the source and compiling a win32 console
> version? Or waiting a couple more hours after the source release when
> someone will have compiled it already :)

  Be very careful with the usage license of POV-Ray if you do this and
want to distribute a program bundled with such compiled version of POV-Ray.
  This starts to be close to the part that talks about a program trying to
obfuscate the fact that it's actually using POV-Ray for the rendering.

  (But of course as long as you don't distribute anything, you can do whatever
you want with it.)

-- 
#macro N(D)#if(D>99)cylinder{M()#local D=div(D,104);M().5,2pigment{rgb M()}}
N(D)#end#end#macro M()<mod(D,13)-6mod(div(D,13)8)-3,10>#end blob{
N(11117333955)N(4254934330)N(3900569407)N(7382340)N(3358)N(970)}//  - Warp -

Post a reply to this message

On Wed, 17 Jul 2002 08:05:46 +1000, "Chris Cason"
<new### [at] deletethispovrayorg> wrote:
> "W?odzimierz ABX Skiba" <abx### [at] babilonorg> wrote in message
> > BTW. I tried to start pvengine via console START command and seems povray
> > forces its window to be always maximized. I have tried it also with /NR
> > option. Here is quote from my batch:
>
> Are you sure you mean maximized ?

I have rechecked it and it is not maximized. I turned off 
Options -> Other Settings -> Save Settings On Exit
and minimized window before closing. Now with START /MIN it is not maximized
(full screened) but still not minimized.

> It also used to remember if it was minimized, but that feature was taken
> out due to user complaints.

I hope I will have enough time to check in sources if there is another
solution to those "dialogs on minimized starting" problem.

> > I have tried it also with /NR option
>
> As the docs say, /NR simply tells the editor to not restore edit sessions.

I just thought that settings saved with "Save Settings On Exit" is part of
edit session.

ABX

Post a reply to this message

That's why I'm pushing for a compromise.  When the first instance of POV
opens it should do what it does now.  Show the splash, open up, come to the
front etc.  But on subsequent /RENDER commands sent to the original instance
POV should stay minimized if it is minimized, or stay in the tray if it's in
the tray.  That way it's obvious that POV is doing the work, and those of us
that want to use in the background can work.

Am I way off base here?

Andrew

> > How about waiting for the source and compiling a win32 console
> > version? Or waiting a couple more hours after the source release when
> > someone will have compiled it already :)
>
>   Be very careful with the usage license of POV-Ray if you do this and
> want to distribute a program bundled with such compiled version of
POV-Ray.
>   This starts to be close to the part that talks about a program trying to
> obfuscate the fact that it's actually using POV-Ray for the rendering.
>
>   (But of course as long as you don't distribute anything, you can do
whatever
> you want with it.)
>
> --
> #macro N(D)#if(D>99)cylinder{M()#local D=div(D,104);M().5,2pigment{rgb
M()}}
> N(D)#end#end#macro M()<mod(D,13)-6mod(div(D,13)8)-3,10>#end blob{
> N(11117333955)N(4254934330)N(3900569407)N(7382340)N(3358)N(970)}//  -
Warp -

Post a reply to this message

Andrew Wilcox <awi### [at] unpuzzledcom> wrote:
> That's why I'm pushing for a compromise.  When the first instance of POV
> opens it should do what it does now.  Show the splash, open up, come to the
> front etc.  But on subsequent /RENDER commands sent to the original instance
> POV should stay minimized if it is minimized, or stay in the tray if it's in
> the tray.  That way it's obvious that POV is doing the work, and those of us
> that want to use in the background can work.

  Why do you want to restart povray every time you want to render a scene?
Moray renders a lot of scenes and only starts povray once.

-- 
#macro M(A,N,D,L)plane{-z,-9pigment{mandel L*9translate N color_map{[0rgb x]
[1rgb 9]}scale<D,D*3D>*1e3}rotate y*A*8}#end M(-3<1.206434.28623>70,7)M(
-1<.7438.1795>1,20)M(1<.77595.13699>30,20)M(3<.75923.07145>80,99)// - Warp -

Post a reply to this message

Actually, I don't want to restart POV every time.  I only end up down that
route because of the "start" method mentioned earlier.  I'd rather start a
single instance and then send renders to it.  This would be faster because
POV would already be loaded into memory.  The annoyance is that each render
that is sent causes POV to come to the front.  Since I'm working on
distributing renders, I don't know who might be using the computer where the
render starts, and I really don't want to bother them while they're reading
the POV news groups. :-)

Is there some other mechanim to send renders to POV other than simply
"pvengine.exe /RENDER object.ini"?

Andrew


> > That's why I'm pushing for a compromise.  When the first instance of POV
> > opens it should do what it does now.  Show the splash, open up, come to
the
> > front etc.  But on subsequent /RENDER commands sent to the original
instance
> > POV should stay minimized if it is minimized, or stay in the tray if
it's in
> > the tray.  That way it's obvious that POV is doing the work, and those
of us
> > that want to use in the background can work.
>
>   Why do you want to restart povray every time you want to render a scene?
> Moray renders a lot of scenes and only starts povray once.
>
> --
> #macro M(A,N,D,L)plane{-z,-9pigment{mandel L*9translate N color_map{[0rgb
x]
> [1rgb 9]}scale<D,D*3D>*1e3}rotate y*A*8}#end M(-3<1.206434.28623>70,7)M(
> -1<.7438.1795>1,20)M(1<.77595.13699>30,20)M(3<.75923.07145>80,99)// -
Warp -

Post a reply to this message

Andrew Wilcox <awi### [at] unpuzzledcom> wrote:
> Actually, I don't want to restart POV every time.  I only end up down that
> route because of the "start" method mentioned earlier.  I'd rather start a
> single instance and then send renders to it.  This would be faster because
> POV would already be loaded into memory.  The annoyance is that each render
> that is sent causes POV to come to the front.

  AFAIR, it does not do this with Moray. What's the difference?
  (OTOH, I haven't used Moray with pov3.5.)

-- 
#macro M(A,N,D,L)plane{-z,-9pigment{mandel L*9translate N color_map{[0rgb x]
[1rgb 9]}scale<D,D*3D>*1e3}rotate y*A*8}#end M(-3<1.206434.28623>70,7)M(
-1<.7438.1795>1,20)M(1<.77595.13699>30,20)M(3<.75923.07145>80,99)// - Warp -

Post a reply to this message

Ok, I just downloaded and installed Moray, and this is the type of behavior
I'm looking for.
Moray has some type of communications DLL.  Perhaps this is no longer the
right group for this thread, but who would I ask about communicating with
POV-Ray directly, rather than simply using Java exec() calls so send
Render's to POV?

I plan on releasing this Java based POV distrubuted render code once I get
it in a user friendly state, the only detail I have left is how to get the
finished renders back to the client that requested them.

Andrew


> > Actually, I don't want to restart POV every time.  I only end up down
that
> > route because of the "start" method mentioned earlier.  I'd rather start
a
> > single instance and then send renders to it.  This would be faster
because
> > POV would already be loaded into memory.  The annoyance is that each
render
> > that is sent causes POV to come to the front.
>
>   AFAIR, it does not do this with Moray. What's the difference?
>   (OTOH, I haven't used Moray with pov3.5.)
>
> --
> #macro M(A,N,D,L)plane{-z,-9pigment{mandel L*9translate N color_map{[0rgb
x]
> [1rgb 9]}scale<D,D*3D>*1e3}rotate y*A*8}#end M(-3<1.206434.28623>70,7)M(
> -1<.7438.1795>1,20)M(1<.77595.13699>30,20)M(3<.75923.07145>80,99)// -
Warp -

Post a reply to this message

"Andrew Wilcox" <awi### [at] unpuzzledcom> wrote in message
news:3d34a172$1@news.povray.org...
> I have a program that is generating POV SDL files, some of which are frames
> of an animation.  Then I spawn the remote renders on all these files.
> Particle systems in general have to write a new SDL file for each frame, and
> can't use POV's internal clock animation.

You could write a GUIEXT and use that to fire up renders.

-- Chris

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