Pretty Poly Editor Documentation

I. PPE Manual - 7. GUI Commands - b. Main GUI Menus

• File:
  The File-menu. For an up-to-date list of the formats we support and some comments about them, see http://plib.sourceforge.net/ssg/non_class.html. At the time fo writing, formats that we can write are *.ssg (the format of plib/PPE), *.ac (of the AC3D Linux-Modeller), *.ase (3DSMAX ASCII EXPORT Version 2.00), *.dxf (AutoCAD format), *.obj (Wavefront format), *.atg (ascii TerraGear; used by FlightGear), *.m, *.off (from GeomView) and *.tri. We can read all those formats also, and additionally *.wrl (VRML), *.mdl (Micro$oft Flight Simulator planes), *.flt (OpenFlight), and last but by no means least *.3ds (3D-Studio-format).
• New:
  This discards the current scene. Later it should ask whether the user wants to save if the scene has been changed.
• Open:
  Opens a File in the formats mentioned above, creating a new scene.
• Quit:
  Exits the program. Later it should ask whether the user wants to save if the scene has been changed.



• Edit:
  You will find options here
• Preferences:
  Here are all the options that are not specific to certain models. For example, you should be able to input favorite grid-modes, independently for ortho-views and perspectives.
  • SetColour of / 3D Cursor: Colour of the (not hidden) gnomon. Default: White
  • SetColour of / 3D Cursor (hidden): Colour of the hidden gnomon. Default: Very dark
  • SetColour of / x 1 grid: Colour of the inner part of the grid. Default: Green
  • SetColour of / x 10 grid: Colour of the medium part of the grid. Default: Blue
  • SetColour of / x 100 grid: Colour of the outer part of the grid. Default: Lilac
  • SetColour of / current Line: Colour of current line. Default: Yellow
  • SetColour of / current Point: Colour of (non hidden) current point. Default: Blue
  • SetColour of / current Point (Hidden): Colour of hidden current point. Default: Cyan (WK: Hmm. Shouldn't it be darker when hidden?)
  • SetColour of / Rubberband box : Colour of the "rubberband box" that you for example get, when you drag the mouse in "select vertices mode". Default: Lilac
  • SetColour of / Polygon highlight: Selected polygons are highlighted by surrounding them with lines of this colour. Default: Yellow
  • SetColour of / Vertex HighLight: Each selected vertex gets a little crown :-) in this colour. Default: White
  • SetColour of / LightSource (ambient): This un-directed light affects all polygons regardless in which direction they face. Default: Medium Gray
  • SetColour of / Background: Colour of the background. Default: Very dark blue
  • SetColour of / LightSource (diffuse): Directed light. Default: White
  • SetColour of / LightSource (specular): The colour of parts of the surface, that reflect the light sources.
    ** ATTENTION ** This is very bright. Often, a third or even half of a sphere are white due to this specular effect. :Default: White
  • Default texture path: Where PPE loads textures that are referenced from models.
  • Default model path: Where PPE loads models that are referenced from other models.
• Macro Debug Mode:
  When macro debug mode is active and you run a macro, then before executing each operation, it displays it to the user. So, this is a "single step mode".


• Help:
• About:
  Displays information about PPE.
• Version:
  Displays the PPE version number.
• View current bindings:
  Displays the current bindings in a HTML browser.
• View Manual:
  Displays this user manual in a HTML browser.