2021 has began and to begin this year HardOps rolls another version and continues it’s aim for the next level. When this tool was first made I had no idea of what it would become but the aims remain the same. To solve issues and make life easier for users using Blender.
Our tools currently support 2.83 LTS / 2.90 / 2.91 and even 2.92. As long as your version is “up to date” you should be good to go.
When it comes to updating some things never change.
Without further ado let’s jump into what is new!
Videos
There’s always videos for a release. It’s easier sometimes.
Playlists are also a part of each release so as we proceed more videos will be added.
Link Ops
Link ops is the replacement to pizza ops. It is built to become the goto portal for various locations in the HOPS Universe.
The goal with Link Ops was to make banners that had a certain look and feel to generate excitement versus a static list of URLs. I hope users give it a try and check out the various portals for getting around HardOps.
To_Shape 1.5
To_Shape has been an adventure. The aim of V2 was to take all that made to shape great and make it interactive. However, users of less that powerful hardware was not able to have the intended experience. For that reason we went back to the drawing board and now today we present to_shape 1.5.
Lighter but also just as versatile as the V2 version with less graphical overhead and optimized towards speed. The best part is the same controls as V2 remain and a space-bar menu was even added (as of version 987_1).
To_shape can be hard to describe but so often you may want to have a shape the same size as an area or a derived convex hull of a shape combination.
The main reason to also revisit To_shape in the form of 1.5 was to get back the ability to orient shapes according to individual rotations. V2 lacked this and it was a noticeable omission with a few more advanced users.
‘I’ will activate individual which can be useful for situations requiring it. The help is also intended to be as informative as possible to help users get he most out of 1.5.
Decap is also “one roll back” from box giving the familiar behavior of being able to decap a shape without issue and even set up array start and end caps.
EverScroll
Codenamed everyscroll, this was intended to be a unification of the scrolling workflow when it comes to:
- accessing booleans
- scrolling modifiers
- accessing children
There is additional functionality planned for the future but it will require additional time. By consolidating all the scrolls we aim to unify behavior and systems while also moving it forward. The previous system of mod/bool scroll toggle was held together with duct tape and staples and I am excited to see this approach to scrolling finally come to fruition.
As with all scrolling it shows up in the Q menu big 3 as relevant meaning without mods or booleans there is no option to show it in the main Q menu.
To best understand any tool it is best to read the tooltip.
Boolscroll
Boolscroll behaves identical to classic with the same behaviors as before with the addition of also supporting kitops and local mode. This expands on the reach capabilities of boolscroll quite a bit and is the foundation of that new system.
Another benefit of this new scroll is the addition of expanded mode. This means that buttons are clickable and can even be shift + clicked on name to “append to visibility”. There are also buttons to apply that support shift for apply_to which is something I am also quite excited about.
Apply_to is activated with shift + clicking a checkbox in the mod window of the Expanded mode. For users who want to load into expanded mode by default there is also a preference for that.
Alternatively everscroll will launch in FAS mode and then allow for expand on tab.
Shift + Tab will change mode on the fly allowing you to go between them as needed. This brings us to our next point.
Modifier Scroll
Modifier scroll is both a demonstration replay scroller but also a troubleshooting scroll and is built for analysis first. Alot of work has went into each and every scroll and we aim to have them be central to your workflow in both troubleshooting and showcase.
Modifier scroll also showcases the shapes that affect boolean mods as well which is similar to hopstool an the boolean dropdown in the hops button.
Modifier scroll also has an expanded mode which is quite expansive and also has the apply_to functionalities. This means users can apply mods to a region in the stack and even apply mods one by one. Its also quite interesting to apply mods and right click and cancel to go back to an unapplied state. This should allow for more experiemental testing with being able to apply modifiers.
Classic behaviors still remain that were consistent with modifier scroll.
- Ctrl to apply_to a point in scroll with LMB confirm
- Shift to apply_to on a duplicate which removes any kept mods and reverts the main shape back to original state.
The shift one is essential for cases where an applied duplicate is needed for particular things that are form fitting to the relevant work at hand.
These behaviors were mainstays from classic content and I am glad to see them persist into the new year.
Children Scroll
New to this release is Children scroll. This is by no means where we intend to end with everscroll, but a taste of where we intend to go. Children scroll isn’t intended to be a big deal but in a case where you need to select a child this will come through in a pinch. And even supports local mode!
A video was also prepared on everscroll which should be linked up top.
Object Recall
Some modifiers have a parameter for “object”. For example mirror, shrinkwrap, or lattice. When shift clicking a modifier with an object the object in question will be brought to visibility.
This comes in handy for lattices and empties the most since I often need them just for a moment.
Taper / Deform
Taper was added a while back however to remain congruent with boxcutter it needed the ability to wedge as well. While this isn’t the most important thing it can be handy to wedge or taper things post operation or as a step prior to progression.
Care and attention was also given to make it feel as fluid as possible.
When using wedge ctrl + scroll will roll it on the axis at hand. Shift + scroll allows for the wedge to also change similarly allowing for fine adjustment. Mouse move can also adjust the factor on the fly.
Clean Mesh
It has been a while since clean mesh has received any changes or updates which is why I’m happy to announce clean mesh will now keep edit / object mode when instantiated.
Cleanmesh has been a part of hops for a long time and another recent improvement was the wire overlay allowing for the result to be interpreted more readily by the user. Speaking of visibility.
Decimate / Triangulate Wire Display
Decimate and triangulate now display wire overlay which should have been done sooner. This should make it easier to read in object mode.
Wireframe visibility can be adjusted in hops preferences to be more visible or to stay longer.
Select Tool – Quad/Triangulate/Fill
Select tool is a darling in HOPS and is best activated by shift + clicking mark in edit mode. The latest update adds triangulate and quadrilate in the modal and can be handy for geometric conversion however the tool itself is very much conceptual and still a work in progress but its solving capabilities continue to grow.
The following functions have been added to select tool,
- Q – Make Quad
- T – Triangulate
- F – Face (fill face)
There is still more planned to the solving capabilities but I wanted to let it be known we continue to refine these options to a fine point when possible. Stability of course remains our #1 goal.
Merge
Cut-In is a rather unique form of boolean in HardOps and is entirely destructive. New to this round is Merge which allows for a rather different for of boolean reminiscent of a cad application.
This is there to fulfill a particular need that may arise someday but due to its nature it is 100% destructive. It is still worth checking out and can give some interesting results.
Bevel Helper Prop
Ctrl + Shift + B is typically the bevel helper however to attempt to make it more useful to laptop users it became a bit of a multi tool. For users wanting the classic bevel helper it can now be opted back into.
By turning it on the hotkey will unconditionally launch the helper. When it comes to HOPS there is a multitude of ways to connect a boolean. Having this as a pure helper wont damage the intended experience however for laptop users it can be quite useful.
- Bevel Bool Helper prop added to prefs (ctrl + shift + B)
- On allows for only helper
- Off allows for the multi functional mesh uni tool on press
- Boolshape – boolshift
- Bevel helper for selection w/ bevel
- 2 object – interactive boolean operation
- 3 object – slash operation
Last but not least the helper can be easily accessed via the HOPS button in the 3d view.
Voxelization Dyntopo Support
I have been sculpting lately and one of the things I wanted to adjust was the ability to use remesh during dyntopo. I don’t use it alot but i am glad it’s there when I hit it.
Geometry can play a role in it’s performance so do use it with care.
Tip Screensaver
The tip screensaver in HOPS has also been improved and now has preferences for amount of time a tip remains on screen.
Tips were intended to be a nice way for users to find areas of hardOps to get acquainted with.
Small Stuff
The majority of the work done is in small stuff.
- Fix for multiple displacement mod error in 291
- Notification system expanded
- Subtext / Name proper support
- Folder __name__ fix
- Allows for stacking of HOPS versions for comparison
- Array V1 depsgraph bug resolved
- Tips expanded
- Collection lookup support for boolscroll (outdated)
- Wire display fix
- Prefs updated
- Paths area
- Scroller area
- Mirror Bisect overlay improved
- Older Scrolls classic designation
- Spelling Correction for Mod Helper
- Mesh fade inaccuracy bug
- Mirror Support
- Grease Pencil
- 2.91 Bevel Curve API fix
- Duplicate shade solid (shift)
- Selection bug resolved
In Closing
I am of the opinion that HOPS is great the way it is and an experiential amount of work exists in refining each and every system to its best level of performance and interactivity. We have many ideas down the pipe that are bound to change everything for the better and rewrite the fabric of the way we approach our tools. The adventure is far from over but I continue to hope and dream and endeavor for that next level of working. I am thankful for all who continue to participate with this 5 year old project. I hope everyone the best for 2021 and here’s to happy HOPs’in.
– mx2 / TeamC
From Imagination To Creation 