Plasticity 2024.1 | What's New | Raise Degree | xNurbs | MatCaps | MORE

In this video we are going to highlight some of the new and updated features for the recent release of plasticity 24.1.1. Remember we are an affiliate so if you use the code LEAD10 at checkout you get 10% off and it helps the channel out. www.Plasticity.xyz

We can't cover everything that has changed but here is a list of minor and major updates.
1. Minor Enhancements
. Improved the interactivity of the Radial Array command.
. Enhanced accuracy of the midpoint computation for planar face polygons.
. Export dialog now remembers the last used filename.
. Automatically name imported image OBJ files based on the original import filename.
. Introduced a new orbit rotation strategy using the classic tumble turntable approach.
. Extended the TangentCircle command to construct tangents to three curves/edges.
. Added new shaders for isophotes and draft angle analysis.
. Introduced new built-in matcaps and for advanced surfacing workflows.
. Custom matcaps
. New "ultra" faceting preference to enhance surface smoothness in surfacing workflows. Use with caution!
. Command palette now highlights clashing keybindings in red.
. Diagnostic error bodies are now displayed in the Loft and Sweep commands to identify issues like self-intersections.
. PatchCommand now optionally accepts an overbuilt sheet to trim into a hole.
. UntrimCommand has been enhanced to create holes instead of only duplicating.
. ExtendCurve command expanded to accept curves in addition to vertices, extending in two directions simultaneously.
. JoinSheetsCommand can be triggered with one sheet selected, and it will prompt to select the second sheet.
. Shift-x can now temporarily disable undesirable snaps during point picking.
. RebuildCommand expanded to replace smoothly connected edges.
. Introduced new edge snaps .closest, perpendicular, tangent
. New hover snaps for tangent circles and arcs
. New hover snaps where curves and edges intersect the construction plane ,aka "pierces", and axes.
. The measurements panel now displays angles between two edges.
. Outliner's right-click menu includes a new option to create a group with selected items.
. "Plane from selection" now allows using surface cvs to create construction planes.
. Importing OBJ STL files now prompts for unit confirmation.
. Measurements in the lower-right panel can now be clicked to be copied directly to the clipboard.
. ExtendSheet Command introduced an "up to" behavior for extending surfaces.
. Enhanced the STEP export dialog to include options for converting analytic surfaces to NURBS and selecting the STEP version.
. Added a warning for unsaved changes when opening files as well as a indicator dot for unsaved changes in general.
. Simplified the Pipe Command gizmo.
. New obj export option: "inflexion".
. Obj export can now optionally use the current matcap and disable the wireframe. This can be used to check ultra-high-resolution zebras, for example.
. Dimension Command can now resize cylinders
Major Enhancements
. Offset Face command now supports dependent offsets.
. RaiseDegree Command increases surface complexity by converting analytic surfaces to spline and increasing the spline degree.
. Surface CV editing now allows direct manipulation of both trimmed and untrimmed faces.
. Faces with visible cvs now have a "nominal" surface to allow easier edits in the presence of direct editing
. RemoveNominalSurface Command is available in case it needs to be removed
. Introduced TogglePoints command to show hide points on faces, curves, and bodies.
. Added scaling options to the Pipe and Sweep commands.
. Implemented a "Full Round" fillet option.
. "Rebuild" command now can rebuild the surfaces of faces; extend and shrink options allow for easily overbuilding surfaces
Small but Significant Changes
. Dragging CVs of curves and surfaces now aligns with screen space; previously it was parallel to the construction plane
. Enhanced sketch operations to confirm with a single Enter press or single left-click.
Studio-Exclusive Features
. Integrated the xNURBS addon for high-quality surface construction.
. Added support for Rhino 8 imports.
Noteworthy Optimizations
. Enhanced parallelism in OBJ/STL exports.
. Object transformations now bypass refaceting on confirmation for efficiency.
. Implemented 16-bit snorm normals and 16-bit indices where possible to optimize memory usage.