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[RELEASED] ProBuilder 2.0 : Seamless, Intuitive Level Design in Unity. Finally LIVE!

Discussion in 'Assets and Asset Store' started by yahodahan, Feb 6, 2013.

  1. gekidoslair

    gekidoslair

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    Ok created a new project and imported prototype into the project first, THEN loaded the other sample scripts I had started to write in afterwards and now it's working. No idea what was causing the issue, but now it works with the exact same content / scripts I had before. Very strange.
     
  2. karl_

    karl_

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    Thanks for keeping the thread updated. There weren't any errors in the console at all? That's really odd - most of the time a persistent console error is the cause of these kinds of things.

    I've been keeping up with the betas, and so far haven't noticed any issues (on my Windows machine - I've not updated Unity with my Mac yet).
     
  3. Barachiel

    Barachiel

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    Hi there. I just started running into an unusual problem today and I have no idea what's causing it or how to fix it.
    I'm roughing out something similar to a runner type game and I instantiate random prefab tiles well ahead of the player as they go.
    These tiles are about 8-12 units long on average and quickly thrown together with ProBuilder. Each one is parented to an empty game object with scripts, a kinematic rigidbody and a trigger collider.

    This has been working fine up until today. For some reason, seemingly random tiles will, quite rarely, stop having collision. Checking these tiles, they are identical to any others of their kind already spawned but the player character falls through them.
    Using the Pb_Entity component on it, during runtime, if I click the button to change it to a mesh collider, or even click the Box Collider button when that is what it's already using, the issue is resolved and the character collides with it as it should.

    If I feed my path generation script the same seed, it's always one of three tiles in the same general area that fails in this manner.

    I honestly have no clue what's going on, so I figured I'd drop by and see if anyone had run into this issue before.
     
  4. karl_

    karl_

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    Are you using a mesh collider or a box collider normally? When you fall through, is the mesh collider's mesh field null, or the box collider bounds wrong?
     
  5. Barachiel

    Barachiel

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    Hey there, thanks for the prompt reply.

    I use box colliders where it makes sense, but some tiles require a mesh collider.
    Only two tiles have given me trouble so far though, and I use a box collider on both.
    On the problematic tiles, when inspected at runtime, the mesh field is not empty and the bounds are correct. If I inspect another, working tile from the same prefab closest to it, everything appears identical (except the mesh name, which is slightly different for each instantiated prefab).

    EDIT: After having come back to it and attempting to test further, I've suddenly stopped being able to replicate the issue. I had tried restarting Unity before without success, so it looks like it's gone and disappeared as mysteriously as it occurred, at least for now.
    With any luck, it won't come back.
    Sorry to have bothered you, and thanks for the reply anyhow. =)
     
    Last edited: Aug 23, 2015
  6. S_Darkwell

    S_Darkwell

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    Hello!

    One feature that would save me many hours is the ability to snap an edge or a vertex to a surface.


    For example:
    I've created a table with tapered legs.
    I wish to add a support bar between them, flush against both sides.

    What I wish to create the rectangle for the support bar with the correct depth and height.
    Then, grab the top edge of the support bar's side and snap it to the side surface of the leg,
    then repeat the action on the bottom edge of the support bar's side,
    thereby conforming that side of the support bar to the slant of the leg.

    Unfortunately, the only method of which I am aware (if the legs are already tilted),
    is to repeatedly slice both legs until the division is at approximately the correct height
    for where I want the support bar to be, detach the edges where the support bar will connect,
    invert the normals of the detached surface, bridge all of the support bar's edges to create the bar,
    bridge the gaps on the legs to close them up, then piece by piece drag all of the unused leg vertexes and collapse them.

    On countless occasions, having a feature to simply drag a vertex, edge, or surface flush to another surface would have saved me an hour or more of work.

    I truly hope you will consider this feature! Also, if there is a better approach in the meantime, I would love to know it!

    Thank you in advance! Be well!
    - S.
     
  7. mwituni

    mwituni

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    Hi,

    I bought this a while back and originally did some playing around to see what I could do and was impressed.

    Yesterday I installed into a new project to start building with it, and as you did an update I downloaded via Asset store. However, I'm having some issues using it.

    I cannot select faces to edit them.

    I created a pipe using Shape tool, now want to edit that.

    Using the Object-Vertex-Edge-Face UI, I can switch between them and I was able to select vertexes easily and move them around. The same with Edges, but I cannot select faces. As soon as I click the Face UI button (the last one of the 4) and then try click on a face to select it, the object I'm editing (a pipe) looses focus totally and I have nothing selected. I then need to select it again in the Hierarchy window.

    To confirm it I tried creating differnt shapes - like cube, and same behaviour.

    This is very frustrating. Is there a bug? And is there a workaround?

    thx
    ____________________________________
    EDIT
    I tested this in a totally new project, and it works fine.

    So it seems to be related to my existing project - which is only 2 days old and doesn't have many assets loaded - just some terrain building tools.

    Is there any scripts that you can think of that may affect only FACE behaviour? May be a starting point to figure out what is different.
     
    Last edited: Oct 2, 2015
  8. karl_

    karl_

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    Do any of the terrain building tools take ownership of the Scene View? As in, do they have tools that are shown and interacted with via handles?

    One way to help narrow down the problem would be to remove Assets one by one til either face selection works, or it's ruled out the possibility that an incompatible asset is the problem.
     
  9. docsavage

    docsavage

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    Hi Karl,

    Just a quick question. Is the ProBuilder Advanced version the same as included in the probuilder complete bundle I have?

    Thanks
     
  10. karl_

    karl_

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    Yes, ProBuilder Advanced is in the ProCore Bundle.
     
  11. docsavage

    docsavage

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    Thought so but just wanted to confirm. Thanks for the reply Karl.
     
    karl_ likes this.
  12. docsavage

    docsavage

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    Hi Karl,

    Just updated the package and testing it. A bit stuck with the connect vertices option though. Using the same object I cant seem to get a connecting edge created using the connect option. It will work if both selected vertices are part of the same quad (it adds a diagonal line across the quad) but if they are part of unconnected quads they don't connect. Basically if trying to create a bridge between two parts of the object. Imagine trying to create a walkway across a pipe object opening. Like I said it is the same probuilder object not separate ones. It may be me or it may be a bug.

    thanks

    doc
     
  13. karl_

    karl_

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    I think in this case you'd use the "Bridge Edges" action, which requires 2 edges. Unless I'm misunderstanding your intentions?
     
  14. docsavage

    docsavage

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    Hi Karl,

    The bridge option is not working for me.

    I selected the pipe shape making it 15 tall and 10 wide with 12 sides, a wall thickness of 2 and 12 subdivisions for the height. Selecting 2 opposite edges on the top of the pipe and selecting bridge does nothing. I checked all directions in case the normals where facing the opposite way.

    The other thing tried was selecting a face on the bottom subdivision. extruding. then selecting then next one along and one up and extruding. repeating this to make a stairway around the edge of the pipe. Trying to connect two vertices from each step to fill the gaps does nothing. Collapse does but it doesn't look right.

    Sorry to have to write it out. If you could point me in the right direction on how to post pictures on the forum I will gladly put images on.

    Not needed urgently for anything just learning to use the asset.

    Thanks again.
     
  15. karl_

    karl_

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    Ah, I think the problem may be that there isn't an exposed edge. By default ProBuilder won't allow bridging or extruding between manifold edges, but you can turn off that precaution in the Preferences/ProBuilder window by setting "Manifold Edge Extrusion" to "On" and "Bridge Perimeter Edges Only" to "Off".

    Does that get things working like you'd expect?
     
  16. docsavage

    docsavage

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    Probuilder2.png probuilder.png

    Hi Karl,

    Managed to get images working!!!!!

    Thanks for the response. The first suggestion worked great for the bridge.

    Although still stuck here. I want to connect the points and then select the three points needed to fill the gap with a face.
     
  17. xxhaissamxx

    xxhaissamxx

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    is it mobile friendly ?
    is there any video show how much batches & tries and verts sample scene it take ?
     
  18. karl_

    karl_

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    Yes, the geometry put out by ProBuilder is mobile friendly (the mesh is the same as any imported model mesh). How many vertices/triangles a mesh has depends on the UV seams and normals - by default ProBuilder will try to reuse as many vertices as possible when building a mesh. Meshes built in ProBuilder are also compatible with static and dynamic batching. Basically ProBuilder meshes will be as mobile-friendly as any model you'd import from Blender or Maya.

    I'd also recommend you try out the free version first: https://www.assetstore.unity3d.com/en/#!/content/11919
     
  19. docsavage

    docsavage

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    EDIT - Karl beat me to it. :)
     
  20. xxhaissamxx

    xxhaissamxx

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    thanks a lot i will try it and thanks for the link i didn't know there is a free version
     
    karl_ likes this.
  21. radionix3d

    radionix3d

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    I've been watching tutorials but I can't figure out how do you extrude polygons in local space (i.e. normal direction). I can use global space only.

    Also another question can I snap vertices to each in edit mode but not like vertex to vertex - just XY position or just X position of one vert? Also can I set a pivot dynamically for every modelling operation? Like for example I want to scale object using selected polygon as a bottom or rotate a polygon around a selected edge?
     
  22. karl_

    karl_

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    Control + E always extrudes along the face normal, or if you hold Shift while dragging the translation tool you can use "Planar" handle mode to follow the normal.

    Snapping vertices on planes should be as easy as dragging just the handle axis that you want an holding V. It's a little finicky when objects are rotated or scaled though, so watch for that.

    You can set and reset the pivot whenever you'd like; just select verts/edges/faces and use Set Pivot to move the object pivot to the current handle position. Make sure the pivot mode in Unity is set to Pivot and not Center when using this feature.
     
  23. radionix3d

    radionix3d

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    Ok, this has worked!

    This works, thanks!

    unfortunately I hasn't been able to make it work. It works only in object mode but not in elements mode. I need something like this - http://i.imgur.com/ZDpjzLF.gifv
     
  24. mwituni

    mwituni

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    Hi,

    I am getting the same behaviour across different scenes and projects.

    While I am able to get this working in a totally new scene, that's not very useful ... it should be a tool to be used in only new (empty) scenes.

    There certainly is something wrong with slecting (clicking on) faces to select them. Strangely enough, I can multiselect faces (or select single face) by dragging a selection box around it/them. But not by simple click. This also means some of the other functions needing a normal mouse-click on a face does not work.

    Please investigate this, its really difficult to work with.
    perhaps test your product in scenes with other assets, not just alone.
     
  25. karl_

    karl_

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    Usually what's happening when scene interaction is not working is that some other plugin in "using" the mouse click, which prevents ProBuilder from registering the event. Would you mind PM'ing me a list of the Assets you currently have installed in this project? Specifically ones that hook the SceneView (Terrain Editing plugins, for example).
     
  26. mwituni

    mwituni

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    Hi Karl,

    Thanks for your quick reply. I had this a few weeks back and was told the same thing, so I tested it in a new project and it does work. Now I've added few things to a new project and I have the same problem. I'm not even using many assets yet - mostly terrain, environment, and a few mesh assets.

    But I'm sure ProBuilder is meant to be used WITH other objects.

    I will PM you the details in a few minutes. I really look forward to having it resolved it as its really frustrating using ProBuilder in a crippled and limited capacity.
    ____________________________________________________
    EDIT:
    For the benefit of others ... Thanks to Karls EXCELLENT support working on this, it turns out it was never a ProBuilder bug - its a Unity bug with Linear Color Space ... the solution is to simply change to Gamma Color Space (see link)!

    For other
     
    Last edited: Nov 23, 2015
  27. mwituni

    mwituni

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    Because my earlier post may have put potential customers off or made them wary ... I just want to give feedback to assure any potential customers this is really an awesome tool, and I am now using it instead of external modelling tools.

    Its just so flexible and easy to build out your meshes. I was battling earlier (see earlier posts where I couldn't easily select faces) but with some excellent support this turned out to be a Unity bug, and in a few hours since I can easily select faces to do operations on, so my modelling has just started flying. Even with the bug before I was enjoying the tool - only progressing slowly and a bit frustrating.

    Below is a pic of what I've done in a few hours (and I'm no pro modeller). About 25% of it I did before I had faces selection working and that took like 2 days, but since I can now easily select faces too, progress is really fast.

    All the objects already include 3 LOD's - its so easy to do LOD's ... so far I found the best way for me is to start with LOD2 and create the basic model, then duplicate that to LOD1, add more detail, and finally LOD0 with high detail. This works perfectly for me as I can quickly create basic shapes to flesh out the overall design effect, then when happy I already have my LOD2 meshes, so just refine them by adding more details.

     
    John-G and karl_ like this.
  28. mwituni

    mwituni

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    Some feedback on UV editor:

    From my work with the UV editor, a key to zoom and frame the current selection would help.
    So ... if I select a few faces, then open UV editor, it would be nice to have a keystroke that refocuses the UV window display on the current selection, unless there is something I'm missing?

    At the moment I have to open the UV editor, then zoom right out until I can see the selected faces, then pan and zoom to get them larger in the UV view.

    Actually, when opening the UV window, that may be the best view to show - current selection if any (else all).
     
  29. karl_

    karl_

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    The 'F' key does this. It will also frame the canvas to where-ever your mouse is if nothing is selected.
     
  30. mwituni

    mwituni

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  31. ksam2

    ksam2

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    Hi I have a question, I made a car long time ago with 3d max and export it to unity as fbx, can I now add pro builder to this model and edit it with pro builder editor? if yes how we can do that?
     
  32. karl_

    karl_

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    Yup, just select the model and use "Tools > ProBuilder > Actions > ProBuilderize"
     
    ksam2 likes this.
  33. ksam2

    ksam2

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    Cool! just one more thing. after importing my model into unity it becomes "Triangle" faces and hard to edit. is there any way I could back it on square faces?
     
  34. karl_

    karl_

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    You can try using the "ProBuilder (Preserve Faces)" option, which tries to keep quads. Doesn't always work though, as it depends on the model to have been modeled and exported using quads in a way that ProBuilder expects.
     
    ksam2 likes this.
  35. Arganth

    Arganth

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    any change for a christmas sale? :D
     
  36. zenGarden

    zenGarden

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    I am using Unity 5.3 .0f4
    I create some object with ProBuilder 2, than i choose in PRbuilder menu Actions -> Strip Probuilder scripts
    The original mesh is okay in the scene, but if i make it a prefab, copying the prefab on the scene it no more has a mesh component ?
    And i can't find the mesh or it's location of the original object with a name like "pb_Mesh-3333333" for example ?
    It is a bug ?
     
  37. karl_

    karl_

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    The reason prefabs don't work when ProBuilder scripts are stripped is because Unity doesn't serialize mesh assets. So when you make a prefab out of a ProBuilder object behind the scenes ProBuilder is reconstructing that mesh any time you instantiate it in scene. If you remove the pb_Object component, the data that is used to rebuild the mesh is no longer available.

    To get around this limitation you can use the Tools > ProBuilder > Actions > Make Asset menu item to save the mesh to your project, then make that a prefab (or just leave the ProBuilder scripts attached - they'll be stripped when you build your project anyways).

    ProBuilder meshes aren't saved to your project, they exist as instance objects in the scene (or in metadata when made to be a prefab).
     
    hopeful likes this.
  38. zenGarden

    zenGarden

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    Thank you.

    Can't this be automated ? I would like to keep the objects and it's mesh keepign a simple workflow with one click on the strip menu and i think people using the strip menu function want to keep their mesh also.
     
  39. karl_

    karl_

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    You're suggesting that when stripping ProBuilder objects it should automatically create and link the mesh asset? That makes sense to me, I'll try to include that in a future update.

    In the meantime, you could just not strip ProBuilder scripts, since as I mentioned earlier they're already automatically removed when you compile your project (unless there's some other reason for removing them that I'm not aware of?).
     
    Last edited: Dec 28, 2015
    hopeful likes this.
  40. Disastercake

    Disastercake

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    I finally got around to playing with Probuilder and I was quite amazed! It instantly transformed Unity from a basic bare-bones engine into something that can compete with the best. I'm especially happy to see a vertex painting tool in there with texture blending shaders, great for making optimized terrains. However it won't work for my needs because it's missing one critical thing...

    Vertex soft selection. Looking back at posts this was promised a few times over the past several years but seems to keep getting put on the back burner. I cannot stress how important this tool is. This one tool would increase the capabilities of probuilder exponentially. Do you have any news on adding a soft selection feature? The lack of this feature is the only thing blocking me from being able to use probuilder in my project.
     
    karl_ likes this.
  41. karl_

    karl_

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    I can't provide an exact timeline, but soft-select and bevel are top priorities for near future updates.
     
  42. adamh1

    adamh1

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    pro builder is super awesome!

    im a few months out of date, can i just ask are there any major updates coming soon for PB?
     
  43. karl_

    karl_

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    I've been working on getting a new vertex sculpting/painting tool ready for release, and I'm nearly finished there. With that project complete, the plan is to go full steam on some major ProBuilder refactoring & feature additions. There will probably be a small point release soon just to address some 5.3 & 4 compatibility issues, then a major update in a few months.
     
  44. Disastercake

    Disastercake

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    Excellent news! I'm very much looking forward to seeing that. =)
     
  45. Disastercake

    Disastercake

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    Awesome! Thank you for the prompt response. To clarify regarding the soft selection tool... even something basic like just selecting a vertex, and then being able to choose a radius and roll off parameters would be enough. Even if visual feedback on the selection strengths can't be shown (like the red to yellow to white gradients in Maya) it would be fine enough. Something fancy would be cool, but just the basic feature is all that's really needed.

    A bevel tool is also important, but not nearly as important as soft selection.
     
  46. mwituni

    mwituni

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    I'd like to see the ability to have a newly created shape snap to the existing selection point.

    So if I'm editing an object, and have a vertex selected, I might want to add a cube there to create a new part
     
  47. mwituni

    mwituni

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    Protool is really a powerful tool for easy construction in Unity ... I actually use it now in "preference" of other 3D Tools for building - depending on what I'm building.

    Now that I'm commuting a lot, what would be really cool is to have it as a lightweight standalone app - ie. not having to load up Unity.
     
  48. mwituni

    mwituni

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    I seem to have a problem with the MIRROR tool

    It keeps resizing the mirrored mesh...

     
  49. karl_

    karl_

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    That would be super cool, and it's something we've kicked around in the past. No immediate plans to do so though :)

    That does sound like a bug. I'll make a ticket to look at that, thanks for the report.
     
  50. mwituni

    mwituni

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    Hey Karl,

    If you remember, a while back i had selection issues - selecting faces. You worked out it was the Gamma / Linear space, and when i changed it worked.

    But even in the correct lightspace, I've noticed that I sometimes (very rarely) get a similar issue when working on smaller parts - like 0.5m etc. Yesterday it happened again, and what I realized is that the (new) cube I was working on (and couldn't select faces) I had placed within the bounds of the larger building I was working on. Normally thats not an issue, but for some reason it was and sometimes (very rarely) is. All I had to do was move the smaller object away from the larger, then i could select faces etc. Strangely, once I moved it back in the bounds it was fine, so once its "activated" its fine ... so there may be some var not initializing until faces are selected.

    So it seems that randomly (and very rarely), face selection on a smaller new object within the bounds of a larger PB object does not work. Almost as if some certain state the larger object was in causes it.