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[RELEASED] Nottorus - Unlimited Visual programming plugin

Discussion in 'Assets and Asset Store' started by Stridemann, Apr 4, 2016.

  1. Mark_01

    Mark_01

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    Bolt does do reflection and parsing of c# code. It has many people in the group and are
    really good programmers as well. The thing for me about this is, that yes you can have
    what they call human or Programmer Naming. With it I was able to get Realistic FPS Prefab and
    Emerald Ai and a dissolve shader ( to remove dead AI ) all working together and I am a real dummy
    with C# . SO having to start some where depending on your goals and age and interest ...

    I found Bolt an easy way to approach C# and it is not as intimidating as it used to be. So it in some ways is very good..
    The goal of Bolt is to get people interested in C# or atlest have less pain using it to learn C#.

    Using something like playmaker you will never learn C# at all. WE all learn different and it is good to have
    more then one asset. I have talked to the DEV of Unode and they are very young so it will be supported
    a long time I think.
     
    StevenPicard likes this.
  2. Szaruga

    Szaruga

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    @Mark_01
    Well, finally Bolt has parsing or not?

    Ok ... maybe I do not know.
    I wanted to work in Unreal Engine - but when I learned that the Blueprints did not generate C ++ code, they only act as an additional communication layer - I resigned.
    I think tools like Bolt, FlowCanvas, Blueprints (UE4) etc. - reduce performance.
    Perhaps it's a matter of taste, I do not know.
    I need to be as close as possible to traditional coding - but with all the benefits of visual support. An additional advantage is parsing which supports learning.
    And that's what Nottorus and uNode gave me.

    I liked Nottorus very much and the news of the end of support was a blow to the heart.
    I am afraid that the same fate will meet uNode, because both tools are classic hybrids - and nature usually rejects them.
    And Bolt grows in strength thanks to advertising, a nice graphic frame, apparent simplifications - this gives the effect of a snowball that is already growing in an uncontrollable way.

    Hope for me?
    Either uNode survives or Unity will do its own professional tool - which will generate pure C # code
     
    Last edited: Dec 18, 2018
    degiovi and Mark_01 like this.
  3. Mark_01

    Mark_01

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    I think it has parsing and in the discord / Bolt forums there are people making c# scripts for Bolt, as way's to do different things. It has a huge friendly community and Game jams every 2 months I think.

    In the post I had talked about using 3 different packages to get them to talk together .. So one could say it is mostly c# with my bridges .. XD

    Oh and they do talk about speed, as far as visual scripting goes now, I think it is the fastest but, Version 2 will come soon, and be a free upgrade.

    Here is the part I think you are asking about.

    " • Full Codebase Compatibility: Use any method, field, property or event from Unity, any third-party plugin and even your custom scripts without any work required on your end. Bolt directly accesses your codebase via reflection and is always up to date.

    Lightning-Speed Reflection: With its unique reflection optimization engine, Bolt is up to 6x faster than traditional reflection. "

    It is just an observation from me, since I am not involved as a dev or other so I do not know the Unity's NDA's .. but it feels to me they are going to put bolt as the part on Unity ,,, but I could be wrong on that too .. no one is talking HAHA.. but the Pictures of the Unity Visual scripting and Bolt 2, do look very much alike. :D:eek:
     
    StevenPicard likes this.
  4. Deleted User

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    Is anyone experiencing any graphical problems when using Unity 2018.3? Whenever I right click to open the popup menu, It's as if the UI freezes, then everything unfreezes. Am I the only one having these issues (I didn't have them when using Unity 2017.4).
     
  5. Deleted User

    Deleted User

    Guest

    This is what happens to my screen periodically when using Unity 2018.3 (see attachment). Is anyone else having this problem?
     

    Attached Files:

  6. Deleted User

    Deleted User

    Guest

    Hello everyone. I need help trying to serialize my save game data (I have no idea what I'm doing).

    Here's what I have so far
    F4 = save the position of a cube (X,Y,Z coordinates) to a xml or .txt file
    F5 = load the saved xml or txt file, read the data, and move the cube to the X,Y,Z, coordinates

    Why XML or TXT File?
    Because I want to familiarize myself with serialization before I encrypt a save file.

    So far these are the assembles i have loaded in Nottorus (Unity 2018.3). Where can I find the serialization nodes or what am I supposed to do next? Is there a C# script that I can parse that is easy for a noob like me to understand?

    upload_2019-1-7_19-3-52.png


    upload_2019-1-7_19-10-36.png
     
  7. Alienmadness

    Alienmadness

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    Make sure you have the c-sharp and c-sharp first pass assembly checked. they include all of the custom c# scripts you create. i haven't done what your trying to do yet, so this is as much help as i can provide.
     
  8. Alienmadness

    Alienmadness

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    I've experience this before, but no idea what causes it.. i think i just deleted Nottorus and reloaded it. it seems to work fine in 2019.1 for me. (and the previous versions as well)
     
  9. Deleted User

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    Guest

    thx Alienmadness I'll try that
     
  10. wood333

    wood333

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    FYI on Bolt. C# script generation will be (slightly) coupled with Bolt runtime classes, so it cannot be dropped in a project without Bolt unless you make modifications manually. (Ludig did not say what "modifications" to which he was referring).

    Seems Nottorus is still going to be the only Unity visual scripting asset to produce actual C# code.

    I will say Ludig was swift with a response when I asked him a question on their Unity forum.

    I purchased Nottorus a while ago, and if I decide to try visual scripting, I plan to first work with Nottorus. My programming needs will be modest, and I understand Nottorus is pretty bug free for the level of my needs.
     
    Last edited: Jan 24, 2019
  11. StevenPicard

    StevenPicard

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    I agree that pure C# code generation without relying on the VS tool that was used to generate it is a big deal. I have not tried uNode yet but several developers do point to it as a good alternative to Nottorus.
     
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  12. Szaruga

    Szaruga

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    There is also uNode, which is very good at generating C# code, and gets improved rapidly.
     
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  13. jiuweishenhu

    jiuweishenhu

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    Do it!!
    I have finished two projects.
     
    wood333 likes this.
  14. Aiursrage2k

    Aiursrage2k

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    Hello does this package work at unity runtime or is it only in the editor?
     
  15. Alienmadness

    Alienmadness

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    Editor only
     
  16. injerto

    injerto

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    is this dead?
     
  17. Stridemann

    Stridemann

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    Plugin is not supported anymore, but sometimes I'm checking this thread if s1 have some questions
     
  18. Alienmadness

    Alienmadness

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    still a good tool. works with the latest 2019.3 beta fine.
     
  19. Deleted User

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    I don't know if this asset is officially dead, but it works perfectly with every version of unity I've tested (5.3 x86 to 2019.1).
     
  20. gvim80

    gvim80

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    Does it generate nodes from existing scripts?
     
  21. Alienmadness

    Alienmadness

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    yes. it can create nodes for other scripts (i.e. you can call any other script in unity) as well as parse existing scripts into a canvas of nodes.
     
  22. koblavi

    koblavi

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    Hey @Stridemann , have you thought of Open Sourcing? It would be a shame if this great tool just died.
     
    Last edited: Oct 25, 2019
  23. Stridemann

    Stridemann

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    Well, with the current state of project we can do that. Just the code was created long ago and looks like a shame for me, lol. But I'm not sure that I need to remove it from assetstore (mark as free asset?). (I'm not going to sell it anymore).


    Also in this thread I mentioned about creation a new tool for visual programming. Visually more compact than nottorus.
    I lost the video how it works, have only screenshots:
    Unity_2018-07-30_22-47-49[1].png chrome_2019-10-21_19-50-14[1].png
    I stopped it's developing, but still have a sources. I can publish it too.
     
  24. Deleted User

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    I'm so happy right now, if this becomes open source, because the community can update and maintain this wonderful asset.
     
    Stridemann likes this.
  25. Alienmadness

    Alienmadness

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    i was thinking you should releasing Nottorus2.0 . with minor updates, and updated UI (or at least multiple themes included, thinking more Bolt/Mac feel) and a flow that is vertical instead of horizontal (similar to shader graph and the unity visual scripting for ECS/Dots). Seems to me if it was more supported (or at least a general forum) and an refreshed UI, it still has some more usefulness and life. My 2 cents.

    some additional error/refactoring options, would be nice too.. for example, when a script goes missing, or isn't in the project anymore, nottorus doesn't know how to handle that, and all the nodes default back to ints. This might be more work then its worth... but just some thoughts.

    i think you can get lots more sales, with only a little bit of marketing.. but that's just my opinion.
     
  26. Deleted User

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    I agree, an updated UI will be very beneficial. When using Nottorus on my laptop, I can't scroll down far enough to reach the lower levels of the UI (I don't have this problem on my 2560x1440 monitor). A UI that can scale according to screen resolution would be much appropriated on my end.
     
  27. Alienmadness

    Alienmadness

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    another thought for a 2.0 version would be to add ECS/DOTs to nottorus, as an alternative to Unity and a consistent UI for visual scripting for monbehavior and ECS.
     
  28. Stridemann

    Stridemann

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    I like the idea, but how you see that? There probably will be a push requests I should review (or not?) and should be tested. I'm not deal with gamedev anymore and I don't even have a unity installed.
     
    daville likes this.
  29. Deleted User

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    You can release it on GitHub. From the GitHub community multiple people can manage and update the asset if it's open source. Their is already a large GitHub community for unity 3D.
     
  30. daville

    daville

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    I think it would be great if you release it as Open Source, maybe even some people here would be willing to help you with the review of push requests.
     
  31. MostHated

    MostHated

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    I definitely agree that this would be a fantastic community project.
     
  32. CommunityUS

    CommunityUS

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    Certainly interested in the Open Source path too. If you are worried about having to manage it - no need to. All you have to worry about is uploading the code on GitHub and put a license we can use with Unity (like MIT/BSD/Apache) with the code. GitHub walks you through that in case you haven't done it before. Many of us would then fork it and a few lead forks would start to form etc. etc. The community would manage it ourselves. Just need your go ahead and the license to work with Unity - can't be GPL for instance. As Unity is closed source. Needs to be MIT/BSD/Apache or similar less restrictive license.
     
  33. Deleted User

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    Hello everyone,
    It's 2020 and I'm curious is their any update on the open source version of this software?
     
  34. Szaruga

    Szaruga

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  35. Deleted User

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    Guest

    Hello, I just found out about this amazing plugin.
    but since people are saying it's no longer supported, I have 2 questions for @Stridemann :
    1- is the plugin at least compatible with unity 2019?
    2-if I purchase the plugin, will I get access to the source code?
    because if I do get access to the source code, at least I can try to find out what's the problem and fix it to get it working for me.

    and your plugin is amazing by the way, please please please don't let this amazing tool to just ... die.
    Thank you.
     
  36. Stridemann

    Stridemann

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    1 -
    2 - yes. Not the best code (actually I hate it), but you can find it inside package with instructions how to use it (it's easy).
     
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  37. Alienmadness

    Alienmadness

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    I have used it with 2019.3 as well without issue.
     
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  38. Deleted User

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    Awesome!
     
  39. daville

    daville

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    To be fair, for the way it works, unless unity makes some big changes to their engine this should still be usable for long time.

    If it could be compiled as a stand alone editor, you could use it to code any C# App for years.
     
  40. daville

    daville

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    After the announcement of Bolt becoming part of the Unity ecosystem and also recently Bolt becoming Free, I gave it another chance and played around with Bolt 1 and Bolt 2 Alpha.

    The more I learn about how Bolt works, the more I appreciate Nottorus.

    Nottorus is way ahead of all the other tools I've tried, even today without official support, is way more functional than those.

    I guess we'll have to get used to Bolt since it's becoming the standard, but oh boy how I wish Unity had looked into Nottorus instead.
     
    wood333 and Gekigengar like this.
  41. Szaruga

    Szaruga

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    @davill
    I agree.
    Unity chose Bolt, probably because it's colorful and popular.
    Nottorus is much better, but let me remind you that we also have uNode, which is very similar to Nottorus, and even better in my opinion, especially as it is still supported.
     
    JDelekto and daville like this.
  42. Stridemann

    Stridemann

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    There would be no problems from my side if unity wanted to go Nottorus way (copyrights etc).
    But since I quit game dev years ago and probably will never go back I'm not care too much about unity solution. But beginning could be easier A LOT for users who came from UE4.
     
    daville likes this.
  43. JDelekto

    JDelekto

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    I have acquired several of the visual programming tools that are on the Unity asset store and played around with them. While I mainly code scripts by hand, there is something about being able to visualize some things (mainly state machines) which I find really cool --in the case of decision trees, I really liked Node Canvas.

    I too also like uNode, which basically maps nodes and their attributes to the language itself as opposed to abstracting it. The ability to reverse engineer C# scripts into graphs was a real treat. If uNode were able to get someone to design their UI so that it looked as snazzy as Bolt's, I think it would be a real winner.
     
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  44. Alienmadness

    Alienmadness

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    ya that's one reason i havent really used uNode. the UI is confusing.
     
  45. Szaruga

    Szaruga

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    Interface and ergonomics of uNode use - are constantly being improved by the author. But I agree that this is still uNode's weak point.
    However, uNode's strength is (for me) - a clear reflection of the C # language to the graphical environment. Nottorus had the same strength.

    And about Bolt:
    It has its own structure, which to some extent facilitates "graphical code creation", but requires an intermediary. I think Bolt 2 will be similar, it will have things like multi-output functions etc that will require extra C # code to translate the BOLT 2 structures into C #.

    If anyone knows C # - he will quickly find himself in Nottorus or uNode. And if he starts with uNode or Nottorus - it's like learning to program in C #.
    But Bolt requires extra learning because it has its own structures and even its own naming system. which need to be "translated" in one way or another into C #.

    Well, everything has its pros and cons.
     
    Last edited: Jul 24, 2020
    daville likes this.
  46. Deleted User

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    I agree. I tried uNode because @Szaruga recoomended it, but after 10 secconds, the User Interface looked like vomit to me. I couldn't make out anything. To many buttons.

    So I went right back to Nottorus.
     
    daville likes this.
  47. Szaruga

    Szaruga

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    I understand your position. I also don't like some things about uNode interface. However, if you forgive it, possibilities of uNode will be open to you. I have been working with Nottorus for over a year and they are really very similar tools. For me, very similar in quality, but uNode wins primarily because it is supported and developed. And it has a vertical energy flow, more transparent and more in line with traditional programming.
    Comparison of the same code in Nottorus and in uNode:
    Nottorus_ VBLS.png
    There are some differences due to project changes, but it's almost the same, and it good shows differences in clarity.
    uNode_ VBLS.png
    At the moment I am using uNode version 2.0 (although it is still in beta)

    Recently I wrote with the creator of uNode. He fixed all the bugs I reported on a regular basis. Last year he implemented the "rich text" option I proposed. He is very helpful and I think if you would suggest him what to improve on interface, he would try to do it.
    Another example:
    We know that maximizing windows in Unity is far from ideal. Nottorus has a very simple and cool maximization. I showed it to the creator of uNode and he added it to roadmap.
     
    Last edited: Jul 25, 2020
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  48. daville

    daville

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    I've been tempted to buy uNode to give it a try, the vertical flow is pretty nice (Bolt 2 also has that) I'm concerned about the stability of uNode since I've seen you reporting a lot of bugs on the forum.

    On the early days of Nottorus I reported some issues and many feature request, and Stridemann implemented / fixed a lot of them, Nottorus still has some minor bugs, but the only one that really bothers me is the Double Paste of nodes when you hit CTRL+C and CTRL+V

    so you say that uNode works similar to Nottorus in the way that I could just delete the plugin from the project and everything should work? I hate tha other tools require their custom component to attatch the graphs... and also can you do whatever C# is capable of with uNode? things like delegates, interfaces, pure .cs classes, etc ?

    And what do you need to do to enter the uNode 2.0 beta?
     
  49. Szaruga

    Szaruga

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    Everyone who has purchased uNode has access to the beta version 2.0

    Whether it's a lot or not is a relative question. Each of us also has a different level of resistance to problems resulting from errors in the tools we use. I think maybe I have this level higher;) But as I have written many times - uNode, when it works well, pay off with its potential. It's a bit like a woman. Marilyn Monroe said: "if you can't handle me at my worst, then you sure as hell don't deserve me at my best."

    I don't like it either. Currently, probably only Nottorus and uNode can produce clean C# code.


    I encourage you to ask these and other questions in the uNode thread (because this is a topic about Nottorus), i think Wahid will answer and more importantly, these will be more professional answers.
     
    daville likes this.
  50. wendymorrison

    wendymorrison

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    Hi, will this work in unity version 2020 or 2021? The first lot of comments have turned me right off to buying straight away. This asset really reminds me so much of UE4 blueprint. I do have Unode which is just amazing but I turned to this asset cos it looks like UE4 blueprint but if it's dead I'm not going to buy.