The Install Manager
I received and installed the Daz 3D Install Manager today but nothing happened no content shows in the install manager and nothing show up in the content library. I did get a warning, "it is strongly recommended that you start with an empty directory" but I had no choice but to point it to my current install library. Neither could I use the proposed C: path on my SSD system. The readme file says that the discussion is in Basecamp where is this Basecamp?
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There is a general discussion about DIM in the Commons. How ever at the moment most of the people who should have received a link to the DIM are PC members, and the main conversation is in the members only forum, and you don't appear to be a PC member.
It is possible that your account has not been set up yet to use DIM, so I will need to wait till someone is available at DAZ 3D who can give further information. DAZ 3D are on UTC-7, so no one will be around for some time.
Commons thread is here http://www.daz3d.com/forums/discussion/16104/
It has been suggested that you may be better to file a support ticket about this.
chohole,
Thank you but after I have read the Commons thread and seen the videos i understand that this is not for me. All though undoubtly a good system I cannot start a again with reinstalling I would be more interested in something to organize my current content!
Take a look at the tutorials link in my signature and follow to the Youtube Video for "DS4 Categories Crash Course" and see if that is closer to what you're after.
What is needed is not something that makes it easier but that makes it more robust. A database, and I speak as one who earned his living for 20 years programming and installing databases, a database is perfect only one day. The day it is installed that is. The second day it is a little corrupt and progressively so every day. The only thing that works over time and different computers is the file system.
I buy a product it comes in a zip file. I unpack the zip file and what do I find? An exe file! Now I am vexed and annoyed. Not only is it more work to do I also have to install god know what to a number of god know where places not to speak of the registry. The registry! Another database and another source of corruption.
The only database that works good enough is the one that updates itself silently in the background from the file system.
I may be new to Daz but I haven't missed, that would be impossible, that the users for years and years have asked for zip files to install. I don't know what that Daz is thinking. Do you think you know better what is good for the customers than the customers themselves?
If you each year make the system more complicated with the best intentions of making everything easier it can only end up one way.
While I can't help you with the database part, I can tell you that it sounds like our situations are similar for DIM. I have an SSD for my OS drive. The actual software doesn't take up that much space. I can't remember, but I think it's something like 22 MB, not bad at all, so it didn't matter that I put it on the SSD. I then directed the zip downloads to go to my backup drive. I believe that's under the settings gear icon in the top left corner. Then I directed DIM to write over my current DAZ3D directory on my secondary drive, not my SSD. It was pretty easy.
I had to choose the following pathway for my secondary drive: E:/Documents/DAZ3D/Sudio/My Library. Originally I chose E:/Documents/DAZ3D and it put all of the main files there, instead of merging with the files already in My Library. So far I haven't had a problem with it, but most of my products were up to date. Of course, I made sure to back up my content database before I did this, but it's working just fine. (I back the content database up regularly by going to the C:\ProgramData\DAZ 3D\Content Management Service\databases and copying those files into a backup location whenever I don't want to lose what I've just categorized. Because it does get corrupted every now and then. There are other ways to back up user data through the program, but I prefer this way)
I didn't want to uninstall my 3rd party freebies, purchases, etc. That would have been a nightmare. So that's why I reinstalled over my original location. But so far, it's working out quite well.
And the upsides are big. It downloads, installs, and uninstalls on its own. That's so much better than before. It's saved me tons of time. :)
If I have 236 products I want 236 folders on my hard disk. Each folder/dir is completely independent accessible from both Daz and Poser(DSON is also installed). The only thing I want fram Daz besides zip files to install is that when I attach a new "base directory", the system shall not only make available that directory but all the other directories that is stored hierarchically under this directory. This is not the case to day. Simple things like this is more important.
I don't understand - you tell Poser or DS where the content folder is, and the relative paths in the library files then take care of locating the items within that folder. If you want all of the folders mapped as content directories that will not give you any useful functionality and may lead to confused paths in saved files.
"If you want all of the folders mapped as content directories"
All, a part, or whatever I want on the spur of the moment. That won't lead to confused paths in fact that is very easy to program and will give you great flexibility.
You have two storing systems. The actual physical storing and the virtual storing. Ideally you should be able to control both and decide both how you want it. And to be able to change it whenever you want. The virtual storing could be handled by an interface looking and behaving the same as the physical. i.e put folders into folders add and delete and so on. Being virtual you can never destroy it.
The database update itself by reading from the file system. The important thing is that whatever you do it should always be KISS. (= Keep It Simple, Stupid)
I think what he's saying is he would like to put each model in a folder (let's call it Content, for clarity's sake).
In there there's a folder called Tuxedo which is all the files the "tuxedo" and a file called Ninja, which is all the files the ninja character needs and so on.
Or you have subfolders of Models, clothes, Backgrounds..whatever.
You tell D3d that your library is the folder "Content". It scans the folder, and builds it's library and away you go.
When you get something new, you put it in "Content" wherever, and D3d updates it's library. You want to delete something, just remove it from Content.
Like how a MP3 software handles a music library. You organize you're MP3s how you want them, and the program displays them they way it's supposed to.
Exactly so Scavenger it feels nice to be understood. In fact I have it like this already -even if I lack the virtual system that should go with it it still gives me control and easy of mind. Perhaps one day I'll write the virtual system myself. You know Kuroyume the author of InterPoser Pro? As I understands it he is writing the next version of InterPoser Pro for Genesis. It will be interesting to see what he comes up with. He is a seasoned developer who would never deviate one mm from KISS.
Vintorix: I saw a thread somewhere here about keeping content on an external drive that seemed to imply that things can work the way you want them to, but I can't find it, and I'm around a week away from understanding what i'm reading here in the first place :-P
edit: http://www.daz3d.com/forums/discussion/14322/ that's the thread..but not the understanding :D
And this post specifically http://www.daz3d.com/forums/viewreply/160909/
Of course it works I use it every day! But just because you have your content on a external hard disk doesn't mean that you are using the mp3 style system of storing content that I am advocating. But without a virtual system to handle it it has some drawbacks. It doesn't bother me because I work a long time on every project but other people might be put off by too much loading and unloading. With the right interface though, it would be only advantages.
Even with Poser you have the same choice. Over time I have seen many examples of all the problems that stems from installing everything in a bottomless pit. But what can I say? "You made your own bed now you have to sleep in it". Harsh words but it is the truth.
DOes this mean we will not be able to install new stuff we buy (or old stuff) if we do NOT use this thing?
I never heard anyone saying that. DAZ are changing all of their installers to ZIP files, but are not finished yet. You can also use the DIM to simply download your ZIP files without installing them. You can then install them yourself.
There is nothing to worry about.
No they have stated from the beginning that DIM is an option, not a requirement.
Sorry, but I must say that this thinking is contraproductive.
If you have about 800 single products like a dress, one unimesh fitting for this dress, two or three texture set packages for this dress and so on and every part is a single main folder than you will search forever.
And if you say "Oh no, I buy only bundles and every bundle is a product (regardless the sub products contained in it)" than you won't need 236 folders. ;-)
But I think, everybody needs a better solution for organisation and choosing which of the hundreds of products he/she has bought/installed will be use for which project. But this could be the Installer only in emergency since for every project a fresh installation is not a real solution.
And the location of the folders? I use "D:\DAZ3D\products" for the bought items, "D:\DAZ3D\database" for the metadata-database and now new "D:\DAZ3D\installers" for the installation files, because I also think that the system disk is not the right place to store a greater amount of content. There is no problem to configure such destination folders in the system, if you do it, directly on the beginning.
with best regards
Thomas G.M. Mainka
(from Germany - please excuse my bad english9