@kawecki

Although you might have a point somewhere, somehow, I just don't see what it is. Sorry. Please clarify (as I'm sure it's me failing).

But your comment reminds me of my own early days in Computer Graphics, say 32 years ago, well described at http://www.povray.org/documentation/view/3.6.1/7/ 

POVRay started with a text-only input format, and one could change whatever by just altering a single line. This lack of realtime, interactive, graphical interface drove me towards Bryce when it hit the stage for PC's: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bryce_(software). And so on. Now PoseRay can translate Poser (as well as DS as well as other formats) into POVRay: https://sites.google.com/site/poseray/samples. All free, like the Pose2Lux / LuxRender stuff.

My point is: altering 3D raytracing scenes by changing text lines: seen it, done it, been there. I just want something better, and easier so I end up doing imaging instead of semi-programming.

Just for teasing (or as some reference), from the PoseRay manual (3.13.14.beta as of today):

• PoseRay will try to load as much material information from Poser PZ3 or PZZ files. Colors and their alternates are added and any value node applied to a color is multiplied. PoseRay can read the following node values from Poser 5+ scene files:- Diffuse Color
• Diffuse Value
• Highlight Color
• Highlight Size
• Highlight Value
• UV scale
• UV offset
• Reflection Value (only if the Reflection node input is used)
• Bump
• Gradient Bump (if a BUM file is used PoseRay will search for a compatible image - jpg, tif, etc)
• Alternate Diffuse (added to Diffuse Color)
• Alternate Specular (color added to Highlight Color and size is picked from brightest color)
• Image Source (applied to bump, diffuse, specular and transparency)
• Eccentricity (applied to highlight nodes only)
• Size (applied to highlight nodes only)
• Roughness (applied to highlight nodes only)
• Highlight Size (applied to highlight nodes only)
• KS (applied to highlight nodes only)
• Reflectivity (applied to highlight nodes only)
• Specular Rolloff (applied to highlight nodes only)
• Inner Color (applied to highlight nodes only)
• Outer Color (applied to highlight nodes only)

In general, my point is: 30 years after the intro of POVRay and about 10 years after the intro of Poser 4Pro (1999, Python) / Poser 5 (2003, Firefly), we should be able to do better - and faster - when starting from scratch, living in an internet driven global forum world, shouldn't we?

Let's go for it.

- - - - - 

Usually I'm wrong. But to be effective and efficient, I don't need to be correct or accurate.

visit www.aRtBeeWeb.nl (works) or Missing Manuals (tutorials & reviews) - both need an update though