P3DO 2.9 R3 is available

2.9 R3 is the ultimate 2 version series update. I am now working on 3 version series. More on this later.

This update adds significant improvements to 2 important plugins: PoserPython and ZipInstaller.
ZipInstaller Daz Studio support is identical to Poser one. I am really happy with that.
R3 also adds a new plugin: Geezer. A handy uncompression plugin for Poser, Daz Studio and Carrara.

Other improvements to the Organizer make this version a real pleasure to use. I rank 2.9 R3 among the best updates so far. Let me know what you think.

Get P3DO 2.9 R3 from download page

ZipInstaller PoserPython Geezer
	ZipInstaller Partial installation and DUF support Summary of ZipInstaller features. Poser installation / uninstallation DUF installation / uninstallation Single Asset extraction / Partial installation Selection helper tools Destination path renaming 2.9 brings many improvements to the ZipInstaller plugin. Like the PoserPython update in spring it has been a heavy rewrite. The goal of the upgrade is to allow easier customization of the installation. The main being partial installion of figures/props.
	DUF support DUF support in the installer is at the same level as Poser with automatic detection and outline of the destination libraries. Also an icon has been added to the Runtime/Content library combo to distinguish between Poser Runtimes and Daz Studio content libraries. ZipInstaller will of course also install Daz Scipts whatever the DS version. Unfortunately there is not support for references from these files. It means that ZipInstaller doesn't know which files a script is associated with. Hence most of the selection helpers will be of little help.
	Partial installation Want to install only one prop or hair shader from an archive ? Sure, 2 possibilities: Select the Asset then click Select Current Model (toolbar or popup menu). The asset and its references will be selected and all the other files unselected. You may hold the shift key to add to the selection, allowing the partial installation of several assets. An option called Auto-select references when selecting/unselecting models has been added. When you select an asset this does automatically the same as Select Current Model, except it doesn't unselect the rest of the selection. Use Select Current Model to quickly select an asset and auto-select to fine tune your selection. When you unselect an asset the references shared with other selected assets will stay selected. Auto-select can be activated from P3DO Tools menu > Options > Plugins tab or in ZipInstaller own options tab. I highly recommend to activate it, unfortunately it is not by default. A design flaw, sorry.
	Selection helper tools Those 5 helpers will speed up the installation process: Select All Models Select Current Library Select Current model (see above) Auto-select references (see above) Select/Unselect All
	New simplified UI The internal archive path is not shown anymore. Only the subdirectory part in the destination library is shown. The complete destination path is shown in the status bar. Destination path renaming simplified The subdirectory in the destination library may be renamed. The renaming is applied to the current library destination folders. That's all for 2.9. Not so bad, and there is even more coming in the 3.0 pipeline.
	Runtime Manager for Daz Studio, sort of Runtime Manager has been updated to benefit the improvements I did in P3DO for ZipInstaller. Hence Scene Manager is now Daz Studio compliant: You may move, copy or clean a complete DUF scene with references from disk. Directory Manager is not yet. I will work on Directory Manager for DUF after 2.9 R3. It will be available with the 3.0 prequel. Please read below. Scene Manager is available from InDepth toolbar and Tools > Runtimes Manager > Copy/Move Current Scene menu.
	PoserPython This is a repost of the may announcement. Skip to Geezer if you have read that already. Also I am currently studying a "PoserPython" for Daz Studio. If the study is positive, it will be available with the 3.0 prequel. Please read below. Open as Partial pose With the partial dialog you may use any Poser pose as a partial pose, ignore morphs and use a goto pose as a static pose. Partial posing is also applicable to Faces, Hands, Materials, Material Collections and Lights. It is invaluable to pose real life looking faces in a matter of seconds. Partial pose may be called directly from zip files, as simple as: right click, pose it. 2.9 enhancements are: Partial Faces A new expression node has been added to the mouth group. It is gathering all Expressions like morphs. A new ear node has been added to the nose group (the mid face group). For Animals, Elves and other Vulcans I suppose. Actors are now mixed with morphs in their corresponding easy pose groups. Thus the other node may almost always be unchecked. Partial Faces has been tested on V4, LaFemme, Pauline, Ryan and all other legacy Poser figures. Partial Poses Repeating patterns are now automatically detected and sorted in hierarchical order. This applies to fingers, spine, wings, tails, tentacles, chains, ropes,... numbered actors whatever they are. Attached Props / hair / INJ poses now have a separate other parent node. This makes it simple to discard these parts. New context menu command: toggle current without applying to children. Use it to unselect a parent node without applying to the children. For example unselect chest without propagating to the neck and arms. New context menu commands: toggle siblings above/below. This is some kind of multi-select. It pops up on the end nodes. Skeleton hierarchy population tested on a great number of Figures. Including V4, Dawn, LaFemme, all legacy Poser figures and the Poser animals. The skeleton hierarchy in PoserPython is automatic, there's no per figure reference. It is supposed to populate a skeleton properly on any figure. Partial Hands Hierarchy of fingers related to the thumb has been fixed. The fingers were parented to the thumb making partial hand poses a bit painful. Partial Materials Support for Material Collections added. At last (1). Works exaclty like the partial Material.
	Save to Poser Library Following the flash issue on Poser Library Palette I did a review of the "Save to Poser Library" command in order to make sure everything is ok for those using P3DO as a Poser Library Palette alternative. It was/is saving ok, but the save as dialog was a bit messy. Some improvements done, and cleaning of the save as dialog. After using it for 9 months I am now mostly using PoserPython to save my Poser assets. I find it to be a great time saver compared to the Poser Library palette. Here's a summary on how the Save to Poser Library command works: Type - automatically takes into account Poser's Use compression option. Because the Python API is expecting a file format compatible with that Poser option. Include Morph Targets - always shown but only applies to poses (pz2). You may leave it checked/unchecked for other types. Frames - save a single frame or the whole animation (when applicable). I have tested saving for all Poser file formats. Then compared saved items to the same item saved with the Poser UI. They are very similar. The Poser Python API saved file are a bit different from the Library Palette saved ones. That difference is minor though, nothing that could alter the integrity of the file. Saving to Poser from P3DO is a good alternative to the Poser Library Palette. I find it more convenient, but it can be a bit disturbing, because P3DO allows to save anywhere. There is room for more improvements here.
	Geezer Geezer is a new plugin that will unpack compressed Poser, Daz Studio and Carrara files. Geezer makes a copy of the file it has uncompressed. Geezer is accessible from the InDepth toolbar and it is a free tool. If the file is already uncompressed Geezer does nothing (mostly applies to DUF and Carrara files). Compression is not supported yet. Internally geezer already has a working compression tool but the file date time is not properly stored. Then it has been disabled until I fix that.
Misc and fixes Each version I use to say the update includes many other improvements and fixes. This time here's the (almost complete) list from 2.9 to 2.9 R3: All features in the search dialog have been added to the free version. A file size option has been added to the search dialog. Double click on an archived texture in InDepth tree will popup the zoom view. Showing thumbnails when file extension have been swapped on ZIP/RAR. Showing thumbnails when file extension have been swapped on JPEG/PNG. Refresh (F5) on an expanded archive item will collapse to the parent archive. Goto Location in Repository added in popup menu. CopyPath 2.9: copy selection to clipboard added in popup menu. HDR loader speed and fix. A faster reader, and a review of the HDR specifications. Password support for 7Zip archives added. Option to apply locate find to both grids. When looking for a file it will also look in the other grid when not found. Activate this in options dialog > Search tab. Refresh optimization - refresh is now lightning fast and will support large content easily. fix: exception on refresh. Hence the optimization above :) fix: drag and drop exception from Repository to main grid (a 2.9 issue). fix: some minor issues in PoserPython 2.9 partial pose. fix: when double-clicking an archived image from InDepth thumbnail view, view content is not reset anymore. fix: several instabilities from 2.9 have been fixed. Mostly related to InDepth view.
Coming Next on 3.0 3.0 late fall or next winter I am now working on 3.0 on a modern compiler. There is some tedious work migrating the huge P3DO source code. Expecting many crashes, despair, beers, hope, crashes again and final success :) It will take time before I can add features again. I plan to have something running in march. That will be the base for the prequel announced below. The actual 3.0 will require even more work because most UI libraries will be upgraded and other stuff. And of course I have to add new features :) 3.0 prequel this spring or summer I have plans for PoserPython and RuntimeManager for Daz Studio. That can't wait till the end of the year. These 2 plugins upgrade will be available with a prequel version of 3.0 (something between 2.9 and 3.0). This will serve as a test bed for the solution. Your feedbacks will be warmly welcome. 3.0 Licensing Same price, same conditions. Licenses since 2.8 (included) will be valid with 3.0. Stay tuned for 3.0 coming this year :) Yarp