just several bugs

[losbellos73]

Hej There,

I took a quick look on this software.

Here are some problem I found:

- Units, cm/meter problem, it didnt want to start on meter setup several times on output fuel. It was basically a liqued setup, using fuel channel. (this seemed to happen randomly)
- Sometimes source object polygon id's are randomly switching. (after moving the source geometry in the simulation container?)
- Sometimes cell numbers are not gets updated, only after restarting 3dsmax.
- Most importantly, as I have seen many poeple had this similar problem in the forum, that Some faces of the objects above the liqued are missing
look like real bad bsp tree setup. Unbfourtunately this makes it very unpredictable...
- well, phoenix fd sent my computer few times to blue hell. Completely suddenly. I have no clue whats caused it, its actually a wonder, nothing sent my computer to
the blue screen long-long ago... This is a major problem.
- maybe I misunderstood the concept of gravity in phoenix fd but it doesnt seems to be realistic.

Ideas:

I think it would be excellent if there would be a direct liqued channel, easier to handle / understand. Took me a while to figure out that I could use other chanels
to simulate liqued too. Somehow it isnt obvious. (why would I use temperature channel to simulate liqued?)
If possible to implement Adaptive cell size. I think in theory it could work. I guess some of need of this adaptivity the version 2.0 will fullfill, by the splash.
Displacement in the geomerty mode seems to be slow and not so effecient on bigger (dimension) surfaces.
Better gravity handling to keep liqued togheter more (without using viscosity). I think for a proper liqued simulation time scale also have to be set, things happening too fast.
It might be that the reason is because the whole thing is basically set for smoke/fire. Maybe an other reason to have the params updated when users are switching to 'liqued'.

I hope that there will be demo version of the upcoming version 2 too. Withouth the z problem it would be useful..

Thanks a bunch.
Bye

[Ivaylo Katev]

hi losbellos73,

- Units, cm/meter problem, it didnt want to start on meter setup several times on output fuel. It was basically a liqued setup, using fuel channel. (this seemed to happen randomly)

actually the unit setup is determined by the max, do you mean that phoenix does not observe the general unit setup?

- Most importantly, as I have seen many poeple had this similar problem in the forum, that Some faces of the objects above the liqued are missing
look like real bad bsp tree setup. Unbfourtunately this makes it very unpredictable...

sounds not good could you keep an image in case it happens again? would be really helpful.

- well, phoenix fd sent my computer few times to blue hell. Completely suddenly. I have no clue whats caused it, its actually a wonder, nothing sent my computer to
the blue screen long-long ago... This is a major problem.

my first suspicions are toward the video card. did you have the gpu preview activated when it happened?

I think it would be excellent if there would be a direct liqued channel, easier to handle / understand.

i agree, very probably in the future will be different UI for liquid and gaseous simulations.

Displacement in the geomerty mode seems to be slow and not so effecient on bigger (dimension) surfaces.

if you meant pure geometry mode (with only geometry mode checked) this is almost abandoned concept of rendering. the only reason to keep it is the fact that it exports some render elements not accessible in atmosphere mode.

thanks for the feedback
ivo

[losbellos73]

I think I will be able to reproduce it for you. I will have to install it again though.

[losbellos73]

Here is an image, I will try to up the max file, it is with max 2010x64 but happens on other max too.

[losbellos73]

the image uploader doesnt work...

one of them will work



[img=http://www.freeimagehosting.net/uploads/th.6b4c2b4dec.jpg]

[losbellos73]

download the file from here, hide the trees and unhide the cylinders. Run the simulation with the clylinders and the boxes, hide the cyls, unhide the trees and render.
I tried 4-5 option, Set the bsp tree manually, using optimalized atmoshperic evaluation, ray tracing correction, and max compatible camera, etc. I wonder if there is a solution to this.

http://www.mediafire.com/?n6hdsks1lirsil4

[Ivaylo Katev]

well, the problem is reproducible, thanks for the report!

btw, as workaround you can switch the default geometry to static.

[losbellos73]

your welcome, I am afraid It would run out memory very quickly in big scenes. Anyway this was just a test for a company who want to make animations for some science movies... Thanks for the support.

[losbellos73]

There was one more things I would like to mention.
It would be incredible if the objects inside could have phisichal properties that those can interact with fluid in differnet ways.
There would be a type for only just for collision with the liqued and other types, solids, that can float on the fluid or move on or inside the volume of the fluid.
Just like the trees that have been cut being transported by the river, or an egg that flows in the middle of the fluid but it interacts with it vice-versa.

[Ivaylo Katev]

yes, this should be added at some stage
btw, the bug with the rendering is fixed

[losbellos73]

I am curious, whats was it?

[Ivaylo Katev]

you mean the bug? well, it's related to some conventions that the plugins should observe.

[losbellos73]

I see, I guess you got lucky.

I have an other idea, 500 000 cells are not so much but I already see the impact that it slows down the viewport.

Maybe it would be usefull to have an other method to present the cells in the viewport, because if I set the option to reduce the number of it (preview menu), it first loads all the cells, and then calculates the new view with less cells. I think it would be better to have an option to save it somehow in a different way, (even at simulation time) so that the viewport will not gets slowed down, by either the calculation or the number of cells to draw or just by displaying all the cells.
It would make work less hedeache in the already very sensitive 3dmax window (my goodness)
Thanks.

[Ivaylo Katev]

yes, the only way to have faster preview is to save pre-reduced grid at sim time.

[losbellos73]

I have only one question left, is it possible to render liqued with other renderers? Will be there such option later?