Custom SCALING of brushes

[GavJenks]

lksdnvlasdkjfva;sdf Okay I'm pissed. Firefox randomly crashed right before I submitted this. But Ill try to do almost as good of a job explaining:

DESIRED FUNCTIONALITY: A global parameter that allows integer scaling of all brushes. So for instance, instead of the brush algorithms operating on a 1 block scale, they could be made to operate at a scale of 2x2x2 groups of 8 blocks at a time. Sort of like us telling voxelsniper that the world is only half (or twice) the resolution that it thinks it is now.

CODE REQUIREMENTS: Probably, this would require two custom functions: one that overrides bukkit ID and data reading functions, and one that overrides ID and data value writing functions (both only if the scaling parameter is not = 1). The reading function would have an algorithm that averages over the 8 or 27 or whatever blocks in a group, to come up with one "typical" ID and data value. The writing one would paste in more than one block as per scaling, etc. Both could be put in the core, and then integrated into the performers, without brush code changing at all. We would probably also require that VoxelSniper have the OPTION of reading block data from a much more generic format than NBT world files. Some sort of intermediate world format that could import standard NBT type data, but also custom metadata types of inputs, or data from csv files, or almost anything in matrix format, in a less constrained way than now. This would make it already receptive to future bizarre mods, AND as a bonus, it would allow us to do things like directly import 3d models into stencil brushes or whatever. I think I'll make a separate issue for that...

WHY? This is a low priority idea, but one that I think in the future can be part of the next groundbreaking generation of VoxelSniper technology. In addition to 2:1 scale, you could also do 1:2 scale... if you had a client mod or Mojang API or whatnot that allows custom scaled blocks. You could set your brush, therefore, to 1:64 block size scale, and make almost geometrically perfect curves with little or no effort. Or paper thing ropes that are actually the size of ropes, etc. Tiny blocks are murderously difficult to work with by hand, but with the full, automatic support of all sniper brushes, they could become revolutionary.

Essentially, I think that this would be a required feature if VoxelSniper is to continue approaching its full potential: more or less a tool that allows multiplayer, unconstrained creative 3d modeling capabilities. A full, user friendly 3d version of photoshop.

If we could use something as intuitive and easy to learn as voxelsniper to essentially make machinima quality models and builds IN GAME, we would be legends, and the beauty of our work could improve massively.

Again, low priority, long term, daydreamy sort of feature request, but one worth putting in people's minds sooner rather than later, I think.

[itsjoekent]

Maybe add it to Gunsmith?

[GavJenks]

I still have no idea what gunsmith is, other than mike's comment on the gunsmith issue that "it's a voxelsniper API" which could mean almost anything. If there were documentation somewhere, or written descriptions, or a meeting about it, then let me know, and I'll learn about it. I see no forum threads currently.

Otherwise, I can't "add an idea" to a project I know nothing about.