This is the currently planned roadmap for the next weeks and months. The farer away means of course the fewer detail. We are currently in the initial funding stage. Find volunteers, start to organize, create a first working release version …
Initial release:
We need of course first an initial release, with own icons and own name. We don’t want to break copyrights. So that’s the first goal, to port the whole project from Blender to Bforartists. I am already working at this problem.
Hunt for more helping hands:
This one goes hand in hand with the initial release. We need to make our baby public. And we need to search for more volunteers. Which is a bit of a vicious circle somehow. Since you can just attract developers with a working project. On the other hand, a working project needs developers. That’s why the initial release is listed as point one here. We need to have a first version as fast as possible, to show that this project is not just hot air.
Short term development goals:
Short term development is everything that can be done in a relative fast manner and short time period, and improves Bforartists. With a big focus at the usability. Remember, Bforartists is in the first place there to improve the UI and usability. I expect to have more than one relase here. Maybe set some milestones, then make a little release to show progress.
– tackle some of the UI issues that are listed at the Blender wiki. This includes stuff like new hotkeys and LMB select. Note that the plans for new hotkeys is to have an absolute minimum set. So this could be done relatively fast.
– Implement other UI and usability improvements that never made it into Blender. Stuff like a hidable 3D cursor. Of course just when it makes sense, and fits into the concept.
– change all those crazy standard settings that makes no sense. To name the most prominent example: RMB select should become LMB select with the very first release.
– Go through the declined and for approval waiting Blender patches. There are some real jewels waiting for a resurrection.
– Go through the to do lists to find already well defined and planned through goals and see if they fit into our direction. Saves us the planning.
– An easy to use Wireframe colour feature. There is already a system in the wild that uses a modified version of what gets already used for the bones.
– Have a look at the Blender absurdest absurdities log. Quite a few points there are no brainers.
blenderartists.org/t/blender-absurdest-absurdities-log/640472
– Port the Manual. Maybe we can even copy it and reuse it partially for our needs. The Blender manual is under CC0. We need to talk to the Blender developers about this points, as well as other law things.
– Start some first official tutorials in text and video form. For reference have a look at Unity’s learning section for example.
– And of course *Insert your idea here*. As long as it fits into the Bforartists development direction. But don’t overdo here. We are already spreading very thin with just the current goals.
Longer term development goals:
The longer term development goals are all those bigger issues that cannot be done by a fingersnip. This includes the UI redesign.
– Find a legal way to plug in the FBX SDK
– Make the settings recognizing the last used value. It’s nasty to adjust the same settings again and again.
– Implement several object libraries. The need to create every standard shader setup from scratch is plain crazy.
– Redesign the current UI in many areas. A first proposal already exists. And the two parts can be found here and here.
– Create more tutorials in text and video form. For reference have a look at Unity’s learning section for example.
And of course as above *Insert your idea here*
Long term development goals:
– Have a look what enhancements Blender has received in the meantime, and try to incorporate them into Bforartists.
– Remove the now outdated tutorials since the surface has changed dramatically now, and create even more tutorials in text and video form. For reference have a look at Unity’s learning section for example.
– Everything behind the UI UX migration to QT. We will see then.
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I also want to discuss about removing some features. Bforartists is a graphics suite. There is already ways too much on board for my flavour. So i would like to remove the one or another thing.
– Discussion if we keep or remove the Blender Game Engine. Bforartists is a graphics suite. Not a game ide.
– Discussion if we keep or remove Blender Internal Renderer. Yes, it does still a fine job, but it’s a fossil. And having two different renderers with contradicting useage is confusing. It needs already ways too much steps to import a mesh and get it rendered with cycles.
– Discussion if we keep or remove the Video Editor. Half arsed disfunctional implementations shouldn’t be part of Bforartists.
– Talk about the future of compositing in Bforartists. There’s too much freeware around nowadays that does the job much better.
This all should keep us busy for a pretty while 🙂