I did some basic programming way way back when a window was a hole in the wall you looked through. I can even remember adding holes to punched paper tape to try and make corrections. With the advent of the PC I went on to other things, mainly graphics, and let the programming slide. I've always wanted to get back into it and Python scripting within PPP looks like a good way to do it. My guess is that there are others out there who also would like a stab at it. Hopefully we can learn together.
I am going to try and write a script (is that the right word?) to make Poser set all of a model's object materials to white and the highlight, ambient and reflective materials to black. I regularly have to do this manually so I guess it would be a useful thing to do.
As I type this I do not know where to start. I'm at ground zero. I'm heading for the Python tutorials. If you know the answer, don't tell me.... but please lead me. Kinda like the detective novel, don't tell me who did it just point out the clues :)

That sounds like a very useful script indeed. I don't have my brain fully wrapped around the concepts either, my plan is much like yours. The PP has lots of sample scripts you can play with and edit.

Post any questions/problems to this forum and I for one will try and help. Recommend www.python.org for tutorials and background information. For books I personally like "The Quick Python Book" by Harms and McDonald and if you want to do gui's then you have to have "Python and Tkinter Programming" by Grayson. Would heartily recommend downloading Python 2.0 or 1.5.2 and have it able to separately so that you can tutorials and learning and gui debugging. There are also a couple of freeware editors out there that recognize the special needs of Python. Check out http://www.scintilla.org Also check out http://www.coriolis.com/store/product.asp?sku=1418 as there will be a book coming out soon that should have a good Poser-Python tutorial in it ( at least it will if I can finish it in time :-)) ) As for leads check out the "Inventory" script under the "Material Mods" tab on the Python Scripts dialog supplied with the propack. FYI, tabs are significant in Python: C/C++: for( i=0 ; i < 20; i=i+1) { do something } Python for i in range(20) do something

!@#$%%^&&*((&^%$$#@!!!!!!! last line should be: Python for i in range(20): tab do something

Sounds like a good idea. I've been looking over the instruction set available and theres a script I want to write right off the bat. Basically, in the script, all figures in the world are rendered as low detailed poly/boxes until you select one. Then its render mode is set to high detail. This way only the figure you're focused on needs to be textured and high detail while editing increasing machine speed. I always wished Poser had that ability and apparently you can set on screen render attributes for seperate actors.

The two books I've found to be most useful so far are: Learning Python - Mark Lutz and David Ascher Programming Python - Mark Lutz Both are published by O'Reilly and are available at their website. I think you can also get them through Amazon.com. I'd also suggest getting a copy of WinPython. It's a pretty good learning tool. Be warned though TkInter doesn't work correctly when called from WinPython.

Sorry, WinPython should read PythonWin. :-)

OK, wading through molasses here. This is a sketchy first shot. No it does not work but I have to start somewhere :) #------------------------------- Start by importing what I assume is a bunch of prewritten goodies that may prove useful #------------------------------- import poser #------------------------------- I need to define that I'm working on the currently selected figure #-------------------------------- scene = poser.Scene() actor = scene.CurrentActor() figure = actor.ItsFigure() #------------------------------ Now to go through the materials list and change the values. RGB is allowed to have value from zero to one so I'm guessing that one must be white #------------------------------ materials = figure.Materials() ________for material in materials: ________set the material.DiffuseColor (1, 1, 1) #------------------------------ Redraw the scene #------------------------------ scene.DrawAll() #------------------------------ OK I know that syntax is out of the window but am I going in the right direction?

Yes, it looks like you're off to a good start. Just remember when you set up your loops that the start and end are marked by the indentation.

Cool.

Phil - Take a look at the beginning lines of the loop in either of the two scripts I've posted. They will give you a list of all the figures in a scene. You can then use that list as the basis for you're selections or you could set up the script to do the materials change for all the figures.

Thanks, yes. I think I needed something that said if no figure was selected PRINT "First select a figure". I had not found that variable.
What is the instruction set you refer to? I have a file called PoserPython.txt is that the same thing?

how about a random materials, I like to use the raodomize function to get different diffuseColor ( and/or ambientColor....) on the figure. BTW, as far as I know trueSpace ( and Alice 3D, www. alice.org) also uses python as its script, does any one know if their scripts would help.

Done, the RandomObjectMaterials.py is complete and it gives the selected figure random diffuseColor for all materials. I rewrote from PhilC's Materials py.

Done, randomAmbientMaterials.py Now she glows :)

Done, ResetMaterial.py to reset ambient back to black ( 0, 0, 0) and diffuse to gray( .5, .5, .5 )

I wonder if we can write a random RandomTextureMap.py so that the selected figure will be mapped with different designated textures in random order. With the randomHeadMT.py as in other message i posted in this Python forum, this feature can possibily create many random new figures.

the random py can be used for the figure's full body MT so that we can get many random new figures, much like the creature creator's randomize feature.

I don't have the PPP yet - would it be possible to set a script that took user input, so you could set ALL of a figures colors to whatever you wanted; i.e. Set the main parts one color, highlights another, reflective another, and ambient colors to a fourth color, input by the user? Would that even be useful?

I'm trying to get that modification to work now. Unfortunately this has a bug somewhere that I can not see:-
R = input("Red 0 = dark, 1 = light" )
G = input("Green 0 = dark, 1 = light" )
B = input("Blue 0 = dark, 1 = light ")

materials = figure.Materials()

for material in materials:

TABmaterial.SetDiffuseColor (R, G, B)
Any ideas why?

What error message are you getting when you run or is it just not giving you the right results? Can you post the full script somewhere?

Thanks, yes. Click here for the script as it now stands. Details in the readme.

Not Found?

I'm not sure if this is a problem, but I noticed you had a space between "light" and the closing quotes on the blue line B = input("Blue 0 = dark, 1 = light ")

Phil. I really like the way you have everything heavily commented. That's the only way the rest of us are going to lean this. Keep doing that please. It's helping me a lot. ScottA

Phil thanks for that mate it works a treat and will save a lot of time........Steve