I used to think I was quite good when I first used this many years ago
(10ish) but I've now come back to it, and have changed platform to the Mac,
I cant work out how to use the .ini files anymore, I was looking to change
the resolution (I understand the Mac versions dont have the command line
option available) and I need to make the changes in the .ini files I
include, I realise there are standard render settings in the INI folder and
I think it is pointing at that, but there are no optiions in the
preferences menu for different render resolutions, if this is where they
are supposed to be changed.

Stuffed, and really confused

Can anyone help :)?

Post a reply to this message

Horsewood <jes### [at] tiscalicouk> wrote:

Why would you use ini files? Unless you have something special you want
to do, set your settings in the settings panel.
- Make sure your scene file is the top window
-  Go to edit >> xxx.pov settings (xxx.pov is the name of the scene file
you have open)
Now you can setup everything. 
The resolution can be set in the output tab.
This is for the official POV-Ray version, if you use MegaPOV, the
preferences panel is always visible.

Hope this will get you started. 

Yvo

> I used to think I was quite good when I first used this many years ago
> (10ish) but I've now come back to it, and have changed platform to the Mac,
> I cant work out how to use the .ini files anymore, I was looking to change
> the resolution (I understand the Mac versions dont have the command line
> option available) and I need to make the changes in the .ini files I
> include, I realise there are standard render settings in the INI folder and
> I think it is pointing at that, but there are no optiions in the
> preferences menu for different render resolutions, if this is where they
> are supposed to be changed.
> 
> Stuffed, and really confused
> 
> Can anyone help :)?


-- 
-----------------------------------
MegaPOV at:  http://megapov.inetart.net
MacMegaPOV at:  http://users.skynet.be/smellenbergh
E-mail: yvo### [at] gmxnet

Post a reply to this message

yvo### [at] gmxnet (Yvo Smellenbergh) wrote:

>Horsewood <jes### [at] tiscalicouk> wrote:
>
>Why would you use ini files?

A very simple reason: Making some preview renderings in the GUI 
application. And then do the real work as a batch job with the command 
line application.
When using the menu/dialog driven configs in the GUI app and the ini 
file for the command line program, you always have to try to keep them 
identical. If you use only the ini files for both the GUI app and the 
command line program, you never have this problem.


>Unless you have something special you want
>to do, set your settings in the settings panel.
>- Make sure your scene file is the top window
>-  Go to edit >> xxx.pov settings (xxx.pov is the name of the scene file
>you have open)
>Now you can setup everything. 
>The resolution can be set in the output tab.
>This is for the official POV-Ray version, if you use MegaPOV, the
>preferences panel is always visible.
>
>Hope this will get you started. 

I know the settings dialog. But why did they take the ini file support 
out of the GUI app? Yes, in older versions the ini files were considered 
and even written by the GUI app.
Progress in not always an enhancement.



Best regards,

Post a reply to this message

> I know the settings dialog. But why did they take the ini file support 
> out of the GUI app? Yes, in older versions the ini files were considered 
> and even written by the GUI app.

It has not been taken out at all! To the contrary, you have access to "the 
command-line" directly via the Render Settings dialog. As such, all commands 
to read and write INI files are at our disposal.

 > A very simple reason: Making some preview renderings in the GUI
 > application. And then do the real work as a batch job with the command
 > line application.
 > When using the menu/dialog driven configs in the GUI app and the ini
 > file for the command line program, you always have to try to keep them
 > identical. If you use only the ini files for both the GUI app and the
 > command line program, you never have this problem.

You can simply request that the INI file be written in the GUI, and use that 
to render on the command-line.

	Thorsten

Post a reply to this message

Thorsten Froehlich <tho### [at] trfde> wrote:

> > A very simple reason: Making some preview renderings in the GUI
> > application. And then do the real work as a batch job with the command
> > line application.
> > When using the menu/dialog driven configs in the GUI app and the ini
> > file for the command line program, you always have to try to keep them
> > identical. If you use only the ini files for both the GUI app and the
> > command line program, you never have this problem.
>
>You can simply request that the INI file be written in the GUI, and use that 
>to render on the command-line.

I searched in the preferences dialogs of 3.6.1 very thoroughly and 
didn't find anything related to INI files.
Would you please tell me, where to find the checkbox that tells the Mac 
version that it should write INI files? I must have it overlooked.



Best regards,

Post a reply to this message

> I searched in the preferences dialogs of 3.6.1 very thoroughly and 
> didn't find anything related to INI files.
> Would you please tell me, where to find the checkbox that tells the Mac 
> version that it should write INI files? I must have it overlooked.

Please carefully read what I wrote:

 >>>
It has not been taken out at all! To the contrary, you have access to "the 
command-line" directly via the Render Settings dialog. As such, all commands 
to read and write INI files are at our disposal.
<<<

	Thorsten

Post a reply to this message

Thorsten Froehlich <tho### [at] trfde> wrote:


>> I searched in the preferences dialogs of 3.6.1 very thoroughly and 
>> didn't find anything related to INI files.
>> Would you please tell me, where to find the checkbox that tells the Mac 
>> version that it should write INI files? I must have it overlooked.
>
>Please carefully read what I wrote:
>
> >>>
>It has not been taken out at all! To the contrary, you have access to "the 
>command-line" directly via the Render Settings dialog. As such, all commands 
>to read and write INI files are at our disposal.
><<<

I'm not sure. Do you really mean "command line"?
Come on, when I have to enter command line arguments in a GUI 
application, I don't need this GUI application. Then it is simpler to 
save the disk space and use the command line application.

By the way: In earlier versions of the Mac version, there _was_ direct 
INI file support in the settings dialog. This direct support _has_ been 
taken out.



Regards,

Post a reply to this message

> I'm not sure. Do you really mean "command line"?
> Come on, when I have to enter command line arguments in a GUI 
> application, I don't need this GUI application. Then it is simpler to 
> save the disk space and use the command line application.

Well, you are the one insisting on using INI - text - files for 
configuration ... so you enter 10+ arguments in a file, one more won't be 
any more work at all.

> By the way: In earlier versions of the Mac version, there _was_ direct 
> INI file support in the settings dialog. This direct support _has_ been 
> taken out.

It could not do many things the command-line can, in particular not handle 
more than one fixed-name INI file per scene. Most users had no use for it 
and it added a lot of clutter while benefiting very, very few, not making it 
useful to develop a whole elaborate GUI for all that flexibility of the 
command-line just to use INI files in every way possible. On the other hand, 
every Mac user using INI files likely knows the command-line anyway, making 
it a natural fit for most (even if you get an INI file elsewhere, the manual 
explains how to use it with a command-line).

If you don't like it that way, well, sorry can't help with that ;-)

	Thorsten

Post a reply to this message

Thorsten Froehlich <tho### [at] trfde> wrote:


>> I'm not sure. Do you really mean "command line"?
>> Come on, when I have to enter command line arguments in a GUI 
>> application, I don't need this GUI application. Then it is simpler to 
>> save the disk space and use the command line application.
>
>Well, you are the one insisting on using INI - text - files for 
>configuration ... so you enter 10+ arguments in a file, one more won't be 
>any more work at all.

No!

With the older GUI version (I think, it was 3.0 or 3.1) I had no need to 
fiddle with the parameters in the INI file. POV-Ray did it for me.


>> By the way: In earlier versions of the Mac version, there _was_ direct 
>> INI file support in the settings dialog. This direct support _has_ been 
>> taken out.
>
>It could not do many things the command-line can, in particular not handle 
>more than one fixed-name INI file per scene. Most users had no use for it 
>and it added a lot of clutter while benefiting very, very few, not making it 
>useful to develop a whole elaborate GUI for all that flexibility of the 
>command-line just to use INI files in every way possible. On the other hand, 
>every Mac user using INI files likely knows the command-line anyway, making 
>it a natural fit for most (even if you get an INI file elsewhere, the manual 
>explains how to use it with a command-line).

But why first the denial? (see <news:43ba73be@news.povray.org>)

|>But why did they take the ini file support out of the GUI app? Yes, in
|>older versions the ini files were considered and even written by the
|>GUI app.
|
|It has not been taken out at all!


>If you don't like it that way, well, sorry can't help with that ;-)

A clear statement could have avoided missunderstandings and annoyances. 

Now I know, that the real meaning of your declaration was: 'We have 
taken out the GUI support of INI files. Sorry, but it was difficult to 
handle and only few people needed it. But we have a simple replacement: 
Set "options.ini +GIoptions.ini" into the command line field of the 
scene file's options dialog.'

Probably, I can live with such a solution. But it's really not Mac-like!



Best regards,

Post a reply to this message

> But why first the denial? (see <news:43ba73be@news.povray.org>)
> 
> |>But why did they take the ini file support out of the GUI app? Yes, in
> |>older versions the ini files were considered and even written by the
> |>GUI app.
> |
> |It has not been taken out at all!

Exactly what is the purpose of your argument, putting words in my mouth I 
never said or just being annoying? You can still access it via the GUI, so 
it has not been taken out of it.  The feature changed, that's all! - And 
that is what is in the part of the paragraph you omitted: "To the contrary, 
you have access to "the command-line" directly via the Render Settings 
dialog. As such, all commands to read and write INI files are at our disposal.".

>>If you don't like it that way, well, sorry can't help with that ;-)
> 
> A clear statement could have avoided missunderstandings and annoyances. 
> 
> Now I know, that the real meaning of your declaration was: 'We have 
> taken out the GUI support of INI files. Sorry, but it was difficult to 
> handle and only few people needed it. But we have a simple replacement: 
> Set "options.ini +GIoptions.ini" into the command line field of the 
> scene file's options dialog.'

That is exactly what I said in my first response, except giving the exact 
command-line arguments to do it.

> Probably, I can live with such a solution. But it's really not Mac-like!

As Mac like as INI files...

	Thorsten

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