Get started with MfxVTK¶
To use MfxVTK, you will need the plugin itself as well as a 3D host application that supports the Open Mesh Effect standard.
Get Open Mesh Effect of Blender¶
First, you will need the 3D host. Get the Open Mesh Effect branch of Blender by @eliemitchel on GitHub: https://github.com/eliemichel/OpenMeshEffectForBlender
Binaries for Windows are available, or you can build it yourself. Just follow official Blender build guide.
Get the MfxVTK plugin¶
Download the binaries¶
This is the simplest way to get started. Just download the .ofx
file
with the MfxVTK Open Mesh Effect plugin from GitHub: https://github.com/tkarabela/MfxVTK/releases
MfxVTK binaries are available for Windows and Linux.
Build MfxVTK yourself¶
Tip
Feel free to skip this section if you’re happy to use the GitHub binaries.
You will need Git, CMake and a C++ compiler toolchain (like Microsoft Visual Studio or GCC/Make).
First, build VTK (version >= 9.0), see instructions on VTK wiki.
Use
BUILD_SHARED_LIBS=OFF
to make your MfxVTK binary not depend on VTK shared libraries.Turn off
VTK_GROUP_ENABLE_Rendering
,VTK_GROUP_ENABLE_Web
,VTK_GROUP_ENABLE_MPI
,VTK_GROUP_ENABLE_QT
to make compilation faster.(Optional) Use
VTK_SMP_IMPLEMENTATION_TYPE
other thanSequential
for better performance of some effects.
Then clone MfxVTK from GitHub (note that it has the OpenMeshEffect repository as a submodule):
git clone --recurse-submodules https://github.com/tkarabela/MfxVTK
Build MfxVTK using CMake:
cd MfxVTK
mkdir cmake-build
cd cmake-build
cmake .. -DVTK_DIR:PATH=/path/to/VTK-9.0.1-build # change this accordingly
cmake --build . --config Debug
The plugin is now in your build directory: src/mfx_vtk_plugin/libmfx_vtk_plugin.ofx
.
Use the Open Mesh Effect Modifier¶
Select the default cube
Go to the Modifier properties tab
Click Add modifier… > Open Mesh Effect
Set Plugin path to the MfxVTK
.ofx
file you downloaded (or built)From the Select an effect drop-down menu, pick Sample points (volume)
Et voilà, you’re using MfxVTK!
Tip
Try editing the cube in Edit mode. The points will be updated instantly to fill the new shape!