Difference between revisions of "Main Window User Interface Elements"

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(Created page with "The Terragen user interface (UI) is based around multiple “layouts,” tabs that are accessed through buttons in the top toolbar. Each layout consists of tools and functiona...")
 
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At the very top of the interface is a standard menu bar which includes options for 'File' operations ('Save', etc.), 'Edit' ('Copy'/'Paste' and 'Undo'), 'View' (opening of various windows of specific information), 'Project' (various project-related settings and information), 'Window' (window management), and 'Help'
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Below the tabs on the left is the Node List. This displays nodes which are relevant to the current layout in a hierarchical list format.
(documentation, key reference, etc.). To the left of the 'Layout Tabs' on the 'Top Toolbar' are standard
 
'New', 'Open', and 'Save' project buttons, as well as a button to open the 'Render View' and the '3D Preview'. Below the tabs on the left is the 'Node List' which displays items (nodes) which are relevant to the current layout in a hierarchical list format.
 
 
   
 
   
 
The Node List
 
The Node List

Revision as of 01:14, 19 October 2018

The Terragen user interface (UI) is based around multiple “layouts,” tabs that are accessed through buttons in the top toolbar. Each layout consists of tools and functionality specific to particular aspects of the scene.

The top toolbar and layout buttons

Below the tabs on the left is the Node List. This displays nodes which are relevant to the current layout in a hierarchical list format.

The Node List Just to the right of the 'Node List' is a small 'Shader Preview' window, which generates a realtime preview of the currently selected node, when applicable (not all nodes can be previewed).

The Shader Preview Below the 'Node List' and the 'Shader Preview' is the 'Parameter/Settings Pane', which will display the settings of the node currently selected in the 'Node List'.

The Parameter/Settings Pane In the top-right is the '3D preview', which shows a progressively rendered “realtime” display of the current scene, including all scene elements, terrain, lighting, atmosphere effects, shaders, etc.

The 3D Preview Below the '3D preview' is the 'Node Network' view, which is contextual when viewing any of the specific layouts such as 'Terrain', focusing on the nodes in the default Group corresponding to the current layout (there is also a separate 'Node Network' view which gives you a larger view of the entire 'Node Network' without the '3D Preview').

The Node Network At the very bottom of the user interface is a toolbar that includes the 'Animation Timeline' and controls.

The Animation Timeline (red) & Errors and Warnings Notifications (green) At the far right of the 'Bottom Toolbar' is the 'Errors and Warnings Display' which, when clicked, brings up a window with details on any errors and warnings triggered so far. Next let's explore each section in more detail. Several of the windows in the UI can be resized by placing the mouse cursor between windows where a double-ended arrow appears, and then clicking and dragging. The '3D Preview' and 'Node Network' windows can also be expanded or closed completely with the buttons in the upper-right corners of these windows, which are similar to standard operating system window controls. If you close one of these windows and wish to display it again, use the 'Preview' and 'Node Network' options in the 'View' menu.

In a graphical user interface (GUI) on a computer a toolbar is a row, column, or block of onscreen buttons or icons that, when clicked, activate certain functions of the program.

A single object or device in the node network which generates or modifies data and may accept input data or create output data or both, depending on its function. Nodes usually have their own settings which control the data they create or how they modify data passing through them. Nodes are connected together in a network to perform work in a network-based user interface. In Terragen 2 nodes are connected together to describe a scene.