Maxwell Render

Is there any chance a menu hook could be added to the Tools menu, to launch the plugin, so that users of Google Free could still render in Maxwell ?

There are plenty of scripts to output in different formats than manage to achieve this, as well as other renderers (ie Podium) that work from the Tools menu and as such aren't limited to the Pro version.

It's not really bypassing any of the Google limits, as you still can't export to other 3D apps - it's purely for rendering using Maxwell.

Thanks.

Well, when you render you also save an mxs, and therefore you export to maxwell...
Anyway, I'd like this option too!

Ciao, Gio

There are 2 issues here:

- If you want to render in Maxwell you need to export geometry/materials/camera and this is achieved using SketchUp SDK - this component is not available in free version of SketchUp.

- It is possible (but a bit more complicated) to write the whole geometry/material/camera export in Ruby script - if this is done than the export works in free version of SketchUp (some other exports are doing that). However this requires a very significant redesign of the export (basically the original code cannot be used any more) and even more importantly we would have to get an approval to do this from SketchUp/Google - after all it does violate the idea of free SU version to some extent...

To summarize - we are certainly considering this as it would expand the user base for Maxwell but it is not sure if (and when) support for free SU version will be implemented.

I hope this clarifies the issue.

Pavol

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Pavol Elias
Next Limit Team

Thank you for the explanation and clarification. I appreciate the inherent design aspects.

I assumed Google would allow it based on them having several similar plugins listed on their own page that work in the free version, such as Podium and RPS. Also, as Maxwell doesn't allow export in other 3D formats, the script would only be useful to Maxwell owners.

I'll keep my hopes up, such that I may once again be able to use Maxwell directly from a modeller (the only other software I own that has a plugin is Cinema4D, but I only have version 8.5 which is no longer having plugin updates I think).

Michael.