FlexSim 7 Beta 2

A second Beta version of FlexSim 7 is available. Most of the bugs found in the first beta have been fixed. Hopefully this will be the last beta before the final release in a week. If you would like to check out the new features and help us test it, you can get it from the Account section of the website.

If you installed the first beta, you will need to uninstall it before installing this one.

Please post any bugs/issues you find (please no new feature requests) to this thread.

Release notes can be found with the previous beta announcement.

If I create a model with a Dashboard in version 6.0.2, it will not always become accessible in version 7 Beta 2.

If I close out of the Dashboard in version 6, save the model, and open the model in version 7 I can go through Statistics->Dashboards and the Dashboard will appear with the name Default and I can open it. If I keep the Dashboard open in version 6, save the model, and open it in version 7 Beta 2 I cannot find the Dashboard by going through Statistics->Dashboards.

I can't remember if there is another way to open a Dashboard (in either version), so I have not tested opening it any other way.

1. I always get an error in multiple places with this beta and the shadow view:

The function texshadow is not recognized.

2. In the shadow gadget are three links to the following files

C:\1to_go\wrinkle maps\ambient\t2.jpg
C:\1to_go\wrinkle maps\ambient\t2.heightmap.jpg
C:\1to_go\wrinkle maps\ambient\t2.normalmap.jpg

Those files and directories don't exist. What function have those files?

3. In the standard model view all .skp-files look pale (or grayed out with pale colors). In the shadow view the colors look normal.

4. In the standard model view .skp-files have color interactions with selected objects.

I've added a "few" pictures to show point 3 and 4.


P.S.: I'm using the 64-bit version.

Just a few points:

• How do I get to all the shadow options that were accessible from the right click menu in the previous beta?
• Also I have noticed an issue with turning shadows off when the model is running. I get a white mark left behind where the shadow was last drawn and also a funny white overlay of the old visual tool. Re-opening the view does not appear to fix this (see attached image).
• Exploring code from breakpoints window now works, but the title only displays the trigger name. It would be helpful if this displayed theobject name as well (like when you open the trigger from an objects properties). It is really confusing if you open multiple tabs from here that are the same trigger but different underlying objects.

Mark

Mark, try createview("VIEW:/standardviews/shadows/ShadowGadget");

Thanks Jason,

That brings up the window however most of the sliders now no longer have any effect, for example I can't find a way to move the position of the light source.

Is this window meant to be accessible anymore? Or is there a different way to edit the settings?

Thanks

Mark

You can edit the position of the first light source in 'more view settings'.

Some more feedback:

1. 3D textures on flowitems
It seems that to browse for a 3D texture does change the filename in the edit field only, but not the actual node in the tree. Selecting one of the pictures from the drop down list works though as does using the sample tool. For objects from the library the browse functionality seems to work fine.

2. Docking Parameter GUIs
Is there a reason why parameter GUIs can't be docked? It would be nice for the model control GUI to allow for docking.

3. Find Objects tool
If you click any object displayed in the results list, you get a warning in the Compiler Console:
Warning VIEW:/active/MainPanel/BackPanel/SplitterXPane/SplitterYPane/FindObjects/objlist>eventfunctions/OnSelect line 1 Invalid type for parameter 1 in call to get(). Expecting type node. Type is num.

Just small things though.

Thanks

Ralf
FlexSim

FlexSim 7 supports the *.wrl format (as in v6), but could it be precised in the release notes and when we browse for a 3D shape that it supports only VRML V1.0 format ?



We saw several FlexSim end-users trying to import *.wrl 3D shapes as it is displayed in the list of available formats, but actually *.wrl VRML V2.0 cannot be imported in FlexSim.

Had a short look into it. Where is the shadow option gone?

Sebastian,

The shadow option is now in the right panel Quick Properties of your 3D view.

Originally Posted by Carsten Seehafer

1. I always get an error in multiple places with this beta and the shadow view:

The function texshadow is not recognized.

When/where do you get this error?

There is no more "shadow view". If you have a shadow view open from the previous beta, close it.

Originally Posted by mark.gormley

Is this window meant to be accessible anymore? Or is there a different way to edit the settings?

That window is meant to not be accessible anymore. As we finish refactoring the shadow functionality, those settings should not need to be modified by a user. Shadows should just work properly without configuration.

Originally Posted by Carsten Seehafer

2. In the shadow gadget are three links to the following files

C:\1to_go\wrinkle maps\ambient\t2.jpg
C:\1to_go\wrinkle maps\ambient\t2.heightmap.jpg
C:\1to_go\wrinkle maps\ambient\t2.normalmap.jpg

Those files and directories don't exist. What function have those files?

Those were a test that wasn't finished and has been removed. The "shadow gadget" was a temporary dev tool that made it into the beta. It shouldn't actually be used anymore.

Originally Posted by Carsten Seehafer

3. In the standard model view all .skp-files look pale (or grayed out with pale colors). In the shadow view the colors look normal.

4. In the standard model view .skp-files have color interactions with selected objects.

I've added a "few" pictures to show point 3 and 4.


P.S.: I'm using the 64-bit version.

Thanks for pointing this out. I've fixed the paleness and color spillage for the final release.


In testing various files to determine the cause of the color issue, I found another issue with the SKP reader with regards to normals in version 7. In order to compile 64-bit, we had to revamp the way the sketchup reader worked. This revamping had some adverse effects on certain files and beneficial effects on others. So some existing files might draw differently (sometimes better, sometimes worse) in the new version depending on how their normals are configured.

Also, importing skp takes longer to read the file than other formats. On the plus side, we can import collada files in version 7, and most files on Google Warehouse have collada versions in addition to the skp files. Collada files read in more quickly and render more appropriately.

Sketchup got purchased by another company who has a new SDK that we could potentially use in the future to improve the importer, but we don't have time to revamp it again for this release.

Originally Posted by Phil BoBo

When/where do you get this error?

It looks like that the installation of the new FlexSim 7 Beta wasn't correct. (I've uninstalled the old beta with the system control and installed the new beta with the install wizard.) I haven't had those new view options and every object in the view caused this error...

Now I've uninstalled the new beta again with the system control, delete all leftover files and make a new install with the wizard. The errors are gone and the view menu is correct.

Maybe the wizard messed something up, I don't know

To reproduce this exception:

• open a new model
• drag and drop a MultiProcessor
• click on Reset

The "Text" that I enter for a dashboard control is not saved and returns to "Static Text" whenever the model is saved, closed and reopened.

When I click on Generate Report in Reports and Statistics, I get a "COM Error: Class not registered" and the report does not appear.

To further Cloutier's post. Button Text and Hover Hint Text do not save either.

Image, Font, Link, OnPress save correctly.

Otherwise I'm very happy with the addition of Model Input widgets in Dashboards with user friendly means to customize and link. It could all be done before with GUIs but the new way is so much faster. Well done! I look forward to more in future.

The conveyor legs using Shaders are inconsistent. The last conveyor added to the model has transparent legs and all other conveyors have "dynamic snowy" legs. I wonder how many others see the same.

I have a GeForce GTX 670M on the default settings.

I see the same issue as Kris on the conveyor legs.

Also if you watch a conveyor while shadows are on then the rollers seam to move up and down in a line as the model is running. There also appears to be some white dotted lines on the edge of the rollers, so maybe the texture just isn't quite fitting properly.

Another issue I have noticed is that when i have shadows switched on then I always seam to have some connection ends showing black (rather than red or green like normal).

These are always the connections made to the last object in the model space. They go back to red if I switch shadows off.

I have the 64-bit version of Flexsim and a GeForce GTX 650Ti if that helps.