I recently downloaded the sage brush file from this web site: http://blender-archi.tuxfamily.org/Greenhouse#How_to_use.3F The resultant file purports to be a “Blend” file; however, after unzipping it, a file with the extension “EXE” appears. Is this OK to use in Blender? If so, how do you “open” it?
I just wanted a sage brush to add to a scene I’m working on.
Thanks!
Are we talking about the “Sage-full.zip”?
Unpacks to a normal .blend file here… What did you use for unzipping?
It does state “Sage-full.zip”; however, immediately after it opens, it shows as a Blend file - then reverts to an EXE and wants Terminal.app to open it??? I changed the file format back to “Blend”, and the icon changed as well, from “EXE” to the Blender logo. I’ve never seen that before??
Here downloaded zip contains blend file created in blender v2.48. Bush inside. No malware.
Now, the question is: With my project going in Blender 2.74 Cycles, is there any way I can save/use the file created in Blender 2.48 Internal?
http://blender-archi.tuxfamily.org/images/Sage-full.zip
is a .blend file
and it opens just fine in 2.73 on opensuse 13.2
To not to confuse yourselves seeing old style interface switch off Load UI on User Prefs - File tab before you open blend file.
As for data and objects - you’re perfectly fine to use file on latest available blender version (provided that file from zip does not do “shows as a Blend file - then reverts to an EXE” ).
Eppo - While on my desktop, I simply changed the EXE format to Blend, and it works fine; however, the project I want to use it in has been created in Cycles, and the “Sage” file is a BL Internal. How do you mix the two - or can you?
Eppo - While on my desktop, I simply changed the EXE format to Blend, and it works fine; however
jmarkt
What f-ed up software are you using to uncompress a normal zip file ???
it should NEVER ,NEVER, NEVER!!! ,NEVER
change the name of a file by rewriting the name of the file extension
not even on a MicroBLEEP operating system
please post the name and where you got that archive software so we can tell people TO AVOID IT !!
Yeah, that unzip behaviour is a bit suspicious. You talked about “Terminal.app” - so I take it you’re on a Mac?
You can always import that bush into your Cycles scene and recreate the materials with nodes. Look how the materials are created in Blender Internal, make notes which texture file goes where and the rest should be pretty straightforward.
What “part” will that bush play in your scene? Will it be the “hero” of the shot - or some background figure? If it is the latter, it might be sufficient and much easier to just map the billboard png file of that bush (also available on the site you linked to) to a plane and leave it at that.
Cycles (or Blender in general? or all imaging softwares? ) is bad at stacked transparencies, first. Your converted sage will be time consuming to render.
Conversion is possible - there was even some addon for that iirc, however this is fairly easy to do manually and addon wont give you material you could come up on your own.
Second, images in file are not by any means optimized for rendering on a pc - all sizes are random numbers which are not “power of two” rule being used in binary world.
Third - while some of included in blend file images (actually all which are really used) are png, available alpha channel is not used to create transparency, instead, separate texture image is used which feels odd, not efficient and makes asset mess.
Considering all this here’s a sample of material and how sage does look rendered in cycles.
Conversion is easy - you need 3dview, UVeditor and Node editor open, Blender render initially. Switch to Cycles render and with some plane selected on Node editor menu tick and un-tick Use Nodes. This will create Output and Diffuse nodes. Now, when back in Blender render, check which images are used on Texture tab. If you click on texture slot selected image will be shown in UV editor - take image icon near the image name on UVeditor status line and drag into Node editor - this will create Image Texture node with already selected image in it. Connect as desired.
Nodes in blue are actual material; red - original images, green - combined and resized image, 128x512.
Thanks to eppo and lkariShinji for the excellent input/assistance. Eppo - I followed everything until you “put me on my own” :>) (Connect as desired). I’m still at the point of following tutorials, so I wasn’t able to figure out how to connect the various texture pics.
LkariShinjl - the sage isn’t the “star” of the image, so your suggestion probably works best here. I know how to add an image as a plane, and it will be in the background.
Thanks again to both of you for helping!!