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The tools exist for anyone to add a new render engine.
I'll look into it. I'm not a professional programmer, but I am reasonably competent with Python and can even fake my way with C when I have to. So if there is an API that allows me to add support for a render engine, I'll definitely see if I can do it. If I can make something that works, I'll just give it away to the community for free.
Unlike Cycles, Evee is actually a part of Blenders internal development. So unlike Cycles, which is developed in an external pipline, with an available SDK, Evee does no have an SDK for integration into other products. But it would be possible for someone to add Cycles to DS, which might be a good replacement for 3DL.
For the record, DS uses C++ for development.
... and a slightly modified javascript variant for scripting. It's close enough to normal javascript that any casual jscript programmer wouldn't know the difference. (dazscript?)
Not sure what updates to the scripting environment will be finalized in the 2025.x "evergreen"DAZ Studio versions, but it seems to be moving to standard javascript (npm, ec.) best I can tell, so any integration of cycles, etc. using scripting would likely be verly close to compatbile in the new versions.
best,
--ms
Rather, both Java Script and Qt Script derive from ECMAScript 4 (Ithink there may be a point but the wiki is down) Edit: version info is here https://www.daz3d.com/forums/discussion/comment/9137806/#Comment_9137806
If we're going to be pedantic - and I like accuracy too - I believe javascript occurred first, named like, but completely unrelated to the then-popular java language, purely for marketing hype, and then became popular enough to warrant an ISO or W3M or some standards organzation's attention, at which point I think ECMAscript was born. Could be wrong, but I'm comfortable that anyone who knows javascript and would consider taking taking onthe task of adding a new render-engine to DAZ Studio, would find the DAZ Studio scripts very readable.
And I'll self-correct my current versioning error (above) for the upcoming 'evergreen' DAZ Studio version as being 6.x.x.x, vs the 2025.x I mis-remembered.
cheers,
--ms
Scripting would not be able to add a new render engine the way Iray and 3Delight are added, though it could use DzProcess() to launch an external application and pass it settings http://docs.daz3d.com/doku.php/public/software/dazstudio/4/referenceguide/scripting/api_reference/object_index/process_dz
Hey guys...I goofed. I'm a 100% 3Delight user and I had no idea about the discontinuation of 3Delight in DAZ until just today. I had updated my version of DAZ Studio (now 4.24.0.4) which I only do every once in a while and suddenly noticed the option to render in 3Delight is gone! I came to the forums and then found out why. I never had the chance to back up an older installer. Switching to a different renderer is not an option for me, especially as I'm not trying to create photorealistic renders.
I believe I could uninstall DAZ and reinstall an older version, but is anyone able to help me access an older installer? Or, I found from this thread that I might simply need the 3Delight files? https://www.daz3d.com/forums/discussion/comment/9414701/#Comment_9414701
Is there any way I can get those now?
could try contacting DAZ
I've reached out just now.
This is what happens when you use Close Source software. I love Daz Studio but I have stopped using it because it has a serious limitation! >>> TIME <<< The time is coming when the company stops selling content or get sold and then where are we? It would be nice to find a nice open source way to use our daz content that is not locked so even if Daz goes away we can keep using their great content. I hope Daz has something in mind if we no longer have access to their software. I have been using Blender and KritaAI with CompfyUI to make images. This is faster than Daz Studio but I really enjoyed making the scenes myself in Daz Studio. It just got too hard with the Iray requirements and the way things were bogged down with larger scenes. The crazy high prices of high end video cards is also what is keeping me from buying higher end video cards. I have 2 3090's that I bought for a decent price before the AI crazies started and I also got a 16gb 4060 and a 16gb 5060. You know what I found out? It is better to use what you can get at a decent price than shelling out thousands of dollars for a super high end card that just makes things go faster. Here is some wisdom unless you are using this to make money use what you got and use free open source tools for your hobbies. Good luck.
Unfortunately, we(the forum folk) can't help, as providing a copy of studio, or alternative ways to get a copy, to you, could get us in trouble.
We could have our accounts banned or even deleted. In the worst case, we could face legal issues.
As for DAZ, as they no longer have a contract to distribute, they more than likely can't provide a previous version anymore. I've had this issue with other programs in the past.
In regards to the forum, your previous posts potentially violated TOS, especially if you were asking for a copy of Studio.
I was chastised for suggesting that people always make backups for studio before updating, I was actually scolded for doing that very thing as though it was an insult...
I have never been happy with 3delight, but I understand why some folks will miss it.
Not everybody is on Nvidea GPUs, and I do see an opportunity here.
DAZ should introduce a new render engine, that can replace 3delight. That render engine should be a PBR(enderer), should be faster, have better results on photo realism, and works on any GPU.
Iray is pretty much outdated and Nvidea is now focussing on AI.
No matter, if you are on IRAY or 3delight, we're in the same boat. We are about to loose our hobby in the near future.
Making things worse, is the Windows crisis.
I wouldn't be too sure about that. If DAZ Studio and its site were to be discontinued, there would likely be backlash by a lot of users, which would prompt the creators to keep it running.
Remember in the news recently that Adobe had planned to discontinue offering its Animate program? There was plenty of backlash about it. And guess what happened just hours later? Adobe decided to keep it going.
Just goes to show.
Really bad decision on the part of Daz. 3Delight could do things that Iray simply can't.
I've built up thousands of dollars worth of content since the Studio 2 days that doesn't work correctly any more thanks to this. In fact, the majority of my content is older stuff that predates iray.
I guess I can either go back to Carrara, or see what Poser has to offer? AFAIK, Poser still supports the original Firefly engine and thus still supports Daz "legacy" content.
I don't think we need to worry about losing it. Only that it will become unaffordable. I've been using DAZ since the days of Michael 3 and Victoria 3. But ever since Genesis came out, it's becoming more and more of a money pit. I mean practically every year they release a new version of the Genesis characters, which means content creators have less time to create accessories for the characters before they move on to the latest generation. Which means less content available for each generation and forced upgrades to new generations, etc.
Just look at Genesis 8, for example. There are accessories and morphs for Genesis 8 that are not compatible with Genesis 8.1. And accessories and morphs for Genesis 8.1 that are not compatible with Genesis 8.
Old content with Poser materials will geenrally require work in any application, 3Delight materials will not work in Poser.
It is all very well complaining about dropping 3Delight, but the fact remains that it could not be integrated into DS 2026 (or any version with a newer Qt framework) - asking daz to keep distriibuting 3Delight is asking them to pay a license fee for something that will work only in older versions of DS. You old content is no more compatible with the current version of 3Delight than it is with Iray.
As long as you have the installers for 4.24.0.3 you can still use 3Delight, though it is of course a worry that they may be lost or that an OS update might break them.
Yeah, but those were minor tweeks to material settings. Like maybe changing the specularity, or changing the diffuse color, etc.
As far as 3Delight not working with Qt6, that's fine. My problem is that Daz no longer offers ANY biased render engine at all. They didn't replace 3Delight with anything. They just said "well, we are IRay and Filament only now." And as I said, there are artistic lighting effects that you can achieve in a biased render engine that are difficult or impossible to achieve in a PBR engine. It's not that I'm in love with 3Delight. I just want a biased render engine because it is the only way I can achieve some effects.
Not to put to fine a point on this, but the user base of studio is microscopic compared to Adobe products.
If Daz shut down tomorrow, there's no amount of "backlash" that's going to change that.
In regard to Animate, the only thing the "backlash" did was get adobe to keep selling a dead product.
Development is stopped and it's only going to get bug and security fixes.
I'll give it a year or two, and they'll quitely stop selling it, and nobody will notice.
That's not entirely true. Victoria, in her various iterations, is the most widely used 3D model in the world. She appears in movies, advertising, etc. If Victoria were to disappear tomorrow, I think there would be major backlash.
Daz has not prsented Filament as a replacement for 3Delight - both were present for some time.
Doesn't change the fact that people without a good Nvidia GPU have no path forward outside of hoping they kept an older version of Studio installed. They're paying customers too, ya know?
That would be relevant, if eightiesisenough's comparison was the discontinuation of a certain base figure or program, and not the complete cessation of operations.
If daz3d shut down, there's no amount of online complaining that's going to bring it back.
Even if you do have a decent Nvidia GPU, the fact remains that 3Delight could do things that Iray simply can't. If you are going for artistic design rather than photorealistic design? 3Delight is superior to Iray. Again, I am not totally sold on 3Delight. But the fact that Daz no longer includes any biased rendering engine at all is a problem for me.
Btw, for the record, even on my old AMD APU system, Iray sometimes renders faster than 3Delight because 3Delight gets bogged down with transparencies. Particularly things like hair, fur, and leaves on trees. But render time isn't the issue for me. Again, the issue is that there are things 3Delight could do that Iray simply can't when it comes to artistic renders.
I am curious
can PovRay still be used
https://sites.google.com/site/poseray/home-1
links work
Wow that's a name I've not heard in years... AFAIK the latest versions of POV-Ray do work under windows 11 despite being 10+ years old, so it might be worth a try.
Fun fact: I actually discovered the Daz store while looking for content I could use with POV-Ray for a project for my Computer Graphics class, more than 20 years ago