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MSFS20 Status of Blender2MSFS, is 0.40 the last version there will be?

tml

tml

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Blender2MSFS (a.k.a. MSFSToolkit) is great, and thanks to the author.

But. The latest release is 0.40, from September last year. (Or have a missed something and there are more recent ones?) And even with my so far quite trivial experimentation with aircraft development for MSFS with Blender, I think I have noticed some problems.

So let me be blatant and raise some questions:
  • Will there be any more development, and will those also be released to the public?
  • If the intent is that it will continue to be freely available, why not have it on Github as a project that others can contribute to, if the original author is not interested any more?
  • The upstream glTF importer and exporter by the Blender foundation (https://github.com/KhronosGroup/glTF-Blender-IO ) is being developed all the time. (Blender2MSFS includes a version of it that was current last summer.) It surely has important bug fixes and feature additions that the exporter in Blender2MSGS would benefit from, too. (Like the possibility to export only visible objects, which is very useful, if you have the habit to keep for instance reference images or just temporary or experimental objects saved for later around in the same Blender file but don't want those to be exported to glTF.)
An example of what I think is a problem and I would love to see fixed when exporting Blender models for MSFS is that, as far as I see, animations are exported in a random order. Possibly they should be exported in a consistent and predictable order, like alphabetical order according to name? I am not sure but my theory is that it is the order of the animations in the JSON that determines for instance which "GEAR ANIMATION POSITION:n" simulation variable that each animation corresponds to. (But if somebody knows better, do tell.)
 
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ronh said:
Are you talking about this?

github.com

GitHub - noolaero/msfs-toolkit: A collection of content creation tools for Microsoft Flight Simulator.

A collection of content creation tools for Microsoft Flight Simulator. - GitHub - noolaero/msfs-toolkit: A collection of content creation tools for Microsoft Flight Simulator.
github.com github.com

or the Blender2MSFS toolkit here. If so the ability to export only visible is already there. I use it now.
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Hmm, no, I am talking about https://www.fsdeveloper.com/forum/resources/blender2msfs-toolkit.256/ . In Blender the add-on shows up as "MSFSToolkit", that's why I used that name. (Edited the thread title and the post.) Your link is something completely different.
 
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marcoh said:
The developers has disepear from this forum and don't respond to messages.
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Oh, how sad.

marcoh said:
In the tread https://www.fsdeveloper.com/forum/threads/blender2msfs-limitation-color-multipliers.450272/.
you'll find a smal evolution of the tool 0.40.2.5.
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OK. Will have a look at that one then, at least.

(A bit later.) Sorry, but I can't find any link to a new version in that thread? @Mikea.at says "This is a unofficial Version of the Toolkit" but I don't see what the "this" refers to? (Event later.) OK, I was blind, now I found it.

Anyway, I wonder what the license of the Blender2MSFS is? Would it be OK to simply fork it on Github, and in the future try to develop it as a co-operation, in the open? (As things like this should be done from the start, if they are going to be released publicly for free anyway, in my opinion.)

Wasn't it so that the other Blender exporter (and importer (!)), msfs2blender2msfs from the FlyByWire people, has also stalled?

Sigh. One almost hopes that the upstream Khronos glTF exporter/importer people would take this effort under their wings, and future work would be done there, upstream, in the official glTF exporter/importer.

--tml
 
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tml said:
Oh, how sad.


OK. Will have a look at that one then, at least.

(A bit later.) Sorry, but I can't find any link to a new version in that thread? @Mikea.at says "This is a unofficial Version of the Toolkit" but I don't see what the "this" refers to? (Event later.) OK, I was blind, now I found it.

Anyway, I wonder what the license of the Blender2MSFS is? Would it be OK to simply fork it on Github, and in the future try to develop it as a co-operation, in the open? (As things like this should be done from the start, if they are going to be released publicly for free anyway, in my opinion.)

Wasn't it so that the other Blender exporter (and importer (!)), msfs2blender2msfs from the FlyByWire people, has also stalled?

Sigh. One almost hopes that the upstream Khronos glTF exporter/importer people would take this effort under their wings, and future work would be done there, upstream, in the official glTF exporter/importer.

--tml
Click to expand...

What's sad is ASOBO not supporting Blender due of commercial "mafia" with AutoDesk, that's what sad, especially when is a very much community base hobby, that include also smaller payware developers not just freeware.
 
tml said:
Anyway, I wonder what the license of the Blender2MSFS is?
Click to expand...

It's Apache License 2.0, so one can do whatever one likes with it. As the readme.md says, "The license of the software can be simplified as follows: Do whatever you want with it."

If the original author is no longer interested in updating it publicly (which of course is perfectly fine, we are not entitled to expect him to continue), there is IMHO no reason to not just then "adopt" it as a community effort. But it would require somebody who actually 1) knows Python well enough, 2) knows Blender's Python-accessible data structures well enough, 3) knows glTF well enough, and 4) is an experienced enough Blender user to understand what improvements are needed and how they could be implemented.

--tml
 
Sandro81 said:
What's sad is ASOBO not supporting Blender due of commercial "mafia" with AutoDesk, that's what sad, especially when is a very much community base hobby, that include also smaller payware developers not just freeware.
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Asobo does not need to support anyone. There was no promise, "Hey, we have this really kicking flight simulator, it really, really rocks, it just needs a little community support to get it off the ground! Roll up your sleeves and we promise, you won't be sorry!"

They did not promise, because they did all of that, alone. To the devs, they throw a bone of 3ds integration. It is the absolute best, absolute most expensive 3d software and that integration is pretty generous of Asobo, imo. They do not need to, will not trouble to offer more integration, because doing so does not sell simulator licenses.

I have been editing my simulator scenery since 2014. I find that the MSFS scenery development pipeline, with the SDK and the integrated placement tool, is the absolute easiest, most intuitive and powerful scenery creation system I have encountered, since the beginning. Considering I have even made a few bucks already using it, so far, any idea that Asobo does not support the small guy developer, seems preposterous.

Maybe someone needs to develop a game where people can simulate developing simulations.
 
=rk= said:
Asobo does not need to support anyone. There was no promise, "Hey, we have this really kicking flight simulator, it really, really rocks, it just needs a little community support to get it off the ground! Roll up your sleeves and we promise, you won't be sorry!"

They did not promise, because they did all of that, alone. To the devs, they throw a bone of 3ds integration. It is the absolute best, absolute most expensive 3d software and that integration is pretty generous of Asobo, imo. They do not need to, will not trouble to offer more integration, because doing so does not sell simulator licenses.

I have been editing my simulator scenery since 2014. I find that the MSFS scenery development pipeline, with the SDK and the integrated placement tool, is the absolute easiest, most intuitive and powerful scenery creation system I have encountered, since the beginning. Considering I have even made a few bucks already using it, so far, any idea that Asobo does not support the small guy developer, seems preposterous.

Maybe someone needs to develop a game where people can simulate developing simulations.
Click to expand...

That's not how it works my friend, we are not talking about for example "mods" in Skyrim or Fallout, in that case Bethesda DOES NOT need to support anyone as it is not integral part of the gameplay, nor are needed or expected as much as GTA or other games where is up to people to do something, if they want to as no SDK is given.

In this case these are not mods, these are not modification of the base game not expected by the developer or audience, these are integral part of the gameplay in the hobby for over 20 years... the hobby itself would not exist without the creation of addons for it as one cannot think a developer, even more so if we look 20 years and more back, can create enough up to date content for it to keep it relevant. Furthermore is called SDK for a reason, isn't it RK? Software Development Kit, they are supporting 3D Studio Max as these are contractual obligation with Autodesk which I know exist in the industry, for a fact, I am not supposing it, I am telling you.

Also no need to have you resume thanks, I could not care less to give you mine, it is not a kindergarten and you are taking the scope of this post well away from what's intended.

No one said that is not a decent SDK, although missing basic features still, we are not even talking about the tools here, we are talking about a community based hobby, a game that has decided not to use standards as for example Unity or Unreal for which an ad-hoc exporter is needed for, whether you like it or not, a widely used software.

Also you sound very patronizing, let me tell you, but we got that already at the CV part, thinking that "small guy" use Blender and the big guy use an under developed software like Max haha no my friend, that's also not how it works...another thing I can tell you FOR SURE here...
 
I'll tell you what is patronizing, jumping on the entitlement soapbox, "give me more free crap you sweat blood to create in the name of freedom, or whatever."

"Contractual obligation with Autodesk," is LITERALLY anyone that uses it these days. You cannot purchase the software, so you must enter a contract. Even I am under contract for my soon to expire demo version.
 
It's entirely reasonable to expect Blender support, especially considering how Asobo is going for open formats like glTF. Blender is improving very rapidly while 3ds max is stagnating. I see no reason why 3ds max should be preferred over Blender for new projects.

Earlier this year I wrote a multi exporter for Blender2MSFS, and in the process found several smaller things to improve in Blender2MSFS. Sent patches to the original author, but received no reply. If anyone is willing to restart Blender2MSFS development or at least coordinate such patches, I'd be happy to contribute.
 
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Paavo said:
Earlier this year I wrote a multi exporter for Blender2MSFS, and in the process found several smaller things to improve in Blender2MSFS. Sent patches to the original author, but received no reply. If anyone is willing to restart Blender2MSFS development or at least coordinate such patches, I'd be happy to contribute.
Click to expand...
Sounds like a plan! If nobody else volunteers, I will set up a GitHub repo, and import each published Blender2MSFS release as a separate commit, as a start. I am not really skilful enough to do much development on it, though (but I will of course gladly accept PRs). I will wait a few days first, in case somebody else has a better idea or is more suitable to do it.
 
The original readme.md mentions a lot of people. It is sad if none of them has "taken over" maintenance of the code and released new public versions. (Stay calm: I am not saying they would have any obligation to do that. I am just saying it is sad that they haven't.) Are they jealously guarding any improvements they might have made to not let potential competitors have them? But why did they co-operate with Otmar Nitsche in the first place then? I fear there might be much add-on business politics here that mere mortals and newbies to the scene like myself don't know anything of. Here is the list:

Members of the team:
Otmar Nitsche (Wing42)
Dean Crawford (DC Design)
Bill Womack (iBlueYonder)
Raz Goeta (Gaya Simulations)
Finn Hansen (Orbx)
Alex Vletsas (SimWorks Studios)
Tony Wroblewski (W2XP)
Daniel Chircop (MS Design)
Mitsushi Yutaka (FS Painter)
Scott Armstrong (Aurora Simulations)
Click to expand...
 
Hi,

I follow with great interest this topic and I have installed some plugins (bestdani, noolearo, fbw and vitus)
A default in my opinion that is always present in each pugin ... is "the name" used for each plugin in the interface (File -> Import/Export menu): they are not significant and not being explicit enough,so it is very easy to make mistakes when trying to use "one plugin" instead of another one.
I am trying to modifiy each _init_.py file in order to distinguist each plugin from another.
 
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