Cineman rib path?

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On 31/05/2011 at 07:29, xxxxxxxx wrote:

User Information:
Cinema 4D Version:   12 
Platform:   Windows  ; Mac  ;  Mac OSX  ; 
Language(s) :     C++  ;

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Hi,

I would like to know where the standard path is that cinema 4d stores its RIB files for rendering with Cineman. Considering that the user has set "Temp RIB Storage" to Local.

Also I would need to know what the naming convention of the RIB file is. Currently it seems to be "rib.framenumber4digits.rib". Is that correct?

And of course if there are differences between different c4d versions for this.

Thanks

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On 31/05/2011 at 09:38, xxxxxxxx wrote:

A follow up question is: at which point in the pipeline is the RIB writing operation by c4d finished so that I can safely access it and write my own information?

Thanks!

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On 01/06/2011 at 02:05, xxxxxxxx wrote:

The RIB file is written to a \rib subfolder of the user preference folder. See "CINEMA 4D User Folder" chapter of the C++ SDK for info about the user preference folder.

The naming convention is "document name.framenumber(4 digits).rib".

I think it's safe to write to the RIB file after VIDEOPOSTCALL_SUBFRAME has been processed. Btw. you can write directly into the RIB through the RIB Container tag. If you double click the tag you can write to the RIB stream via COFFEE.

This should apply to all CINEMA 4D versions that include Cineman.

cheers,
Matthias

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On 01/06/2011 at 02:33, xxxxxxxx wrote:

Hi Matthias,

thanks for the info!

Yeah I am currently writing into the container tag (it's working just fine really) but I have a lot (I mean really a lot) of data to add and it's kind of slow doing it this way and I would assume writing to the file myself will reduce the overhead and I gain some speed.

Originally posted by xxxxxxxx

The RIB file is written to a \rib subfolder of the user preference folder. See "CINEMA 4D User Folder" chapter of the C++ SDK for info about the user preference folder.

The naming convention is "document name.framenumber(4 digits).rib".

I think it's safe to write to the RIB file after VIDEOPOSTCALL_SUBFRAME has been processed. Btw. you can write directly into the RIB through the RIB Container tag. If you double click the tag you can write to the RIB stream via COFFEE.

This should apply to all CINEMA 4D versions that include Cineman.

cheers,
Matthias

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On 01/06/2011 at 03:37, xxxxxxxx wrote:

I think RIB-archives are your friend in this case.

You could write your data to a RIB-archive using the renderman C API. This archive can be binary, rather than ASCII, which should save on storage and parsing time for large data. (There is a binary/ascii option somewhere in the C api).

Then, in c4d, you can just add a ReadArchive call to your RIB-container tag. If you have _loads_ of data, you could also split it into more than one Archive. This could potentially reduce memory consumption - the DelayedReadArchive command only loads data when it's needed.

Best regards
/Filip

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On 01/06/2011 at 05:46, xxxxxxxx wrote:

Thanks Filip. I will take a look at these options. Sounds exactly like what I need.

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On 08/06/2011 at 18:39, xxxxxxxx wrote:

Another question Matthias if you don't mind. When in the VideoPostData pipeline is the RIB file exactly read out by the external renderer? So when is the last point in the pipeline to write into the RIB?

Is it in VP_INNER or already in VP_RENDER?

Thanks in advance

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On 15/06/2011 at 03:37, xxxxxxxx wrote:

Cineman is creating RIB files after opening call of VIDEOPOSTCALL_FRAMESEQUENCE.

cheers,
Matthias

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On 15/06/2011 at 04:38, xxxxxxxx wrote:

Hmm, I think you misunderstood me. I meant when are the RIB files read by the external renderer, so when is the last point?

German: Was ich meine ist, wann liest der Drittrenderer (z.b. 3Delight) diese RIB dateien aus. Wann ist also der letzte Zeitpunkt wo ich noch die von C4D geschriebene RIB verändern kann und diese Änderungen folglich noch beim Drittrenderer ankommen. Irgendwann ist die RIB ja ausgelesen und änderungen haben keinen Effekt mehr. Und ich möchte gerne wissen wann dieser Punkt erreicht ist, in VP_Inner oder VP_Render?

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On 15/06/2011 at 06:29, xxxxxxxx wrote:

Actually it seems there is no save point to write from a videopost. What happens is that Cineman starts writing the RIB files after VIDEOPOSTCALL_SUBFRAME (open). It then blocks your videopost until it finished rendering the image. Your videopost continues after this with VIDEOPOSTCALL_RENDER (open).

So it looks like the only save way is to go over the Cineman Container tags and own archive files.

cheers,
Matthias

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On 15/06/2011 at 06:37, xxxxxxxx wrote:

oh ok. :-/ Well, that makes some decisions easier.

Thanks for the info!