Common information
Compatibility
Installation and activation
Release notes
Simple material creation
Generated texture settings
Render nodes
Tile set parameters
Slice editor
Normals workflow
Pattern parameters
Pattern editor
Texture formation mechanism
Polygonal pattern import
Tile ID
Tile random parameter
Bitmap-in-container
Procedural gap
Tile channels settings
Workflow optimization
Common information
QuickTiles is a texture plugin for 3d max. It cuts the texture you set into individual elements, and then reassembles it in the order you specify. It does NOT generate textures from thin air, according to the specified parameters. To use it, you need the original texture sets.
There are two main ways to work. The first is the reorganization of finished tile textures (which have separate elements and seams between them), such as brickwork or paving stones.
The second method is to cut and distribute solid textures, such as concrete, stone, or wood surfaces, into containers.
The entire working process in the QuickTiles can be divided into 3 stages. Adding the original texture and slicing in the Slice Editor, selecting or creating a layout pattern in the Pattern Editor, and setting up details and randomizations in the general texture interface inside the Material editor.
One of the main distinguishing features of QT is that it generates a seamless piece of texture of a certain size, which is set by the user himself. It can't generate an infinite texture, like the procedural Noise or Gradient.
For the best understanding of the instructions for using QuickTiles, we recommend reading the chapters in a row, without skipping additional materials and video instructions.
Compatibility
The Quick Tiles plugin is fully compatible and works in the 3d max version from 2018 to 2024
Currently supported render engines: Vray, Corona, Fstorm*
Working with Fstorm
Due to the complexity and specifics of Fstorm and similar GPU rendering engines, the first version of QucikTiles cannot work with it as directly as with Vray or Corona. Therefore, unlike them, when creating material in Fstorm, QT saves the texture as bitmaps to the hard disk, and then automatically loads them into Mat. editor as FstormBitmap. In this case, the QuickTiles node is not deleted.
To update the textures you should use "Save to plain texture" function. Unfortunately, due to the limitations of Fstorm, the bitmaps will need to be updated manually.
If you use the "Create Material" function, another new material will be created.
Don't try to connect Quick Tiles on one of the FStorm material channels. Put it on an empty Compact mat.editor slot or in an empty Slate mat.editor space
Installation and activation
1. ATTENTION! The plugin requires an active internet connection to work.
2. Run the plugin installation as administrator. The included archive must be located next to the file QuickTiles.exe at the time of installation, to install a new version, or update the libraries
3. Select the versions of 3d max that the plugin will be installed on (from 2018 to 2024)
4. The plugin library is installed in the current user's folder, in the QuickTiles subcategory
4. The plugin library is located in the current user's folder, in the QuickTiles subcategory. All files are downloaded from the plugin interface. Libraries are updated once a week automatically, or at any time, manually, in the About section.
5. After installation, the plugin will appear in the list of textures, in the General tab
6. The free trial period is 14 days. No additional activation or registration is required
7. After 14 days, the plugin will stop working. This means that the test period (or paid subscription period) has expired and requires purchase and activation. Also in About section you can see "Subscription expired" notification
8. When purchasing a subscription on the site, BE SURE to provide a valid email address
9. After purchasing a subscription, click Activate in the About section
10. In the window that appears, enter the same email address that you used for the purchase and click Ok
11. Within a few minutes you will receive an email with a link to activate it
12. After clicking on this link, the plugin will be activated.
13. After restarting 3d max, the plugin will work correctly until the subscription ends.
14. 30 days before the end of the subscription period, the exact number of remaining days will appear in the About section
15. While the subscription is active, the Activation button is unavailable.
Re-activation
16. If you reinstall the plugin on a new computer or make significant changes to the hardware of the current one, perform the activation again according to the standard procedure. The plugin installed on the old computer will stop working.
17. There can be no more than 5 such re-activations for one year of subscription. If you have run out of activations, contact technical support (support@quick-tiles.net) and we will try to find a solution to this problem.
Release notes
QuickTiles 1.2.0.4 (13.05.2024)
Added interface translation into Russian and Chinese
The interface has been slightly changed. Unnecessary buttons have been removed and the organization of parameters has been streamlined
Added the ability to add Noise wherever you can choose a plain color
Added dynamic channels in the procedural gap and bitmap randomization sections. Now only the channels added in the slicer are displayed and processed there.
The large preview is no longer lost when panning or zooming
Added shortcut to open a large Preview - Ctrl+Shift+P
Added shortcut for switching preview channels - Ctrl+Shift+PageUp/PageDown
Added the "Download All" button to the preset library
In the slicer, paneling with the wheel no longer resets the selection of tiles
Added shortcut in the slicer to select all tiles - Ctrl+A
Fixed a serious deep bug that led to accidental crashes. The plugin now works much more stable.
Improved work with old projects with QuickTiles
The Pattern mask channel is now also saved as plain bitmap
QuickTiles 1.2.0.3 (7.03.2024)
Significantly improved stability and performance
Additional optimization of tools and processes has been carried out
The algorithm of the Orientation tool has been significantly improved
The Presets library has been modified for the new algorithm of the Orientation tool
Disabling preview auto-update is now instantaneous
Improved the search algorithm in Presets, Slicer and Pattern Editor
Fixed all known crashes
Increased stability when working with large circular layouts in the younger versions of 3ds max
QuickTiles 1.2.0.2 (12.12.2023)
Slicer:
Fixed an issue with tiles flipped 180 degrees upside down
The HSV window in the slicer is now scaled to fit the screen resolution
Added a crosshair through the middle of a tile in the slicer
Improved algorithm for moving the selected tile to the foreground in the slicer
Fixed missing and inability to select tiles in the slicer and PE after copying
Pattern Editor:
Added a "Set tiling box" button that sets the repeat zone within the PE
General fixes and improvements:
Depth of displacement edge generation made more uniform
Improved shape smoothing algorithm during displacement generation
Improved opening of old scenes
Improved work with Orientation in complex cases
Removed center generation in circular layouts
Scale of Plain texture in tiles is no longer resolution dependent
Scale of Edge distortion effect is no longer resolution dependent
Improvements to interface update in 24 3dsmax when switching between nodes
Fixed artifacts on tile borders
Fixed bug with wrong mask channel size in Corona
Minor and major bug fixes and stability improvements
QuickTiles 1.2.0.0 (10.10.2023)
Loading the library directly from the plugin interface
The size of the installation file is now about 50 MB
Installation is now via EXE, no more unnecessary archives
Auto-updating libraries inside the plugin
Numbering of tiles in the slicer (debug)
A new way to import a Polygonal pattern
Fixed a bug with the node interface freeze in 3ds max 2024
Minor fixes and stability improvements
QuickTiles 1.1.0.1 (4.08.2023)
Version for 3d max2018-2022 fixed
Import of polygonal patterns import simplified
Tile edge distortion fixed
New Orient tool mode - Ctrl+Shift+Click - vertex orientation
Minor fixes and accelerations
QuickTiles 1.1.0.0 (30.06.2023)
Feature added common:
Version for 3d max 2024
QuickTiles Lister - a general list of all QT nodes in the scene + batch processing capability
Added a library of ready-made presets with all material settings.
The displacement is now processed in 16 bits. This makes possible to work with three-dimensional smooth surfaces without artifacts, even in reflections.
The algorithm for generating rounding on the edges of tiles has been completely redesigned. It is now possible to procedurally create the volume of tiles of any shape.
The ability to disable auto-update previews. This greatly speeds up the setup of the material.
In the large preview, the ability to switch between channels and update the preview and material has been added. Functions are called with a right mouse click.
Added tooltips to all parameters in Russian and English
Feature added slicer:
Significantly accelerated autoslice (occurs in 1-2 seconds)
The ability to set a flat color on any channel.
The mechanism of adding individual tiles has been greatly simplified
Added the Outline function - evenly changes the size of the selected tiles
Auto-removal of small garbage tiles during autoslice
Now the history of operations in the third mode works correctly
Feature added Pattern Editor:
When exporting a pattern, the plugin recognizes the IDs set to tiles from 1 to 40
Adjusting the arrow size with the mouse wheel when working with the Orient tool
Small improvements:
At the opening of the scene, the materials are now updated in turn. This speeds up the download and increases stability.
When editing the diffuse channel in the slicer (HSV) - the color of the icon in the main interface will also change
The sizes in the Result size fields do not disappear and change only when you click Update or when you open a large preview
When renaming a QT node, the name is now saved after the scene is reloaded
In the About zone, the exact license period is now displayed (when it is less than 30 days)
A tip for enabling Store to temp has been added to the Update window
Added a warning when deleting sets in slicer and PE
Removed artifact micro seams when setting all seams to 0
The plugin no longer crushes 3d max, due to the lack of Internet
QuickTiles 1.0.9.1 (19.09.2022)
Feature added:
Added the ability to set tile IDs inside the slicer
Added the ability to select all tiles in a given ID by double-clicking in the slicer and Pattern Editor
Added the ability to set the direction of the tiles in the slicer and Pattern Editor
Added icons to the slicer library
Added the ability to drag-n-drop textures between slots in the slicer
Improved:
Improved the ctrl+z mechanism in slicer and PE
Tilt of the displacement follows the direction of the tiles
When textures are lost, their names are saved in the slicer
Significantly simplified polygonal patterns creation
Increased the speed and stability of the plugin
Fixed:
Contrast in Color correct in the slicer now works more accurately
The problem of selection the tiles in PE when scaling the window
Added zoom to the autoslice window and made its original size small
Deformation of tiles when working in a slicer with non-square textures
Slicer crush when creating new tiles
When deleting sets from the library, the very first set was loaded
Small improvements:
Patches have become more square
Added a status window while slicing tiles in the Slicer
Removed the vertical mirroring of the middle part in the Crop/center algorithm
Slightly changed the default plugin parameters
Slightly changed the settings of the base material in V-ray and CoronaLegacy
Generation of tiles in the slicer when slicing in 1 and 2 mode has become more accurate
Removed artifact microgaps when setting all gaps to 0
Library:
File size been optimized
The hue and brightness of some maps are balanced
Added:
Paving long brown 4317
Paving tactile 7145
Wood planks 7543
Paving rounded 4380
Brick grey 4717
Wood planks grey 9351
Paving rounded 4381
Paving salmon 4167
Paving red square 1789
Paving simple colored 7183
Paving park wet 4659
Paving bowtie 5974
Paving fishscale 5198
Paving grassy 6623
Brick red black 7137
Paving brown 4316
Paving rounded red 6174
Paving rounded yellow 6175
Stone tiles old 2731
Shinglas brown 3176
Paving trapeze 9174
Paving sandstone 3030
Paving sandstone 7444
QuickTiles 1.0.8.3 (25.03.2022)
Improved:
Significantly improved operation stability
Significantly increased the speed of material generation
Significantly increased the speed of the Store function
Significantly increased the speed of HSV in the slicer (added multithreading)
Sliced tiles and material are no longer saved in the scene. Now QT does not affect its size
Increased recognition accuracy by disabling map reduction. Now you adjust the size of the bitmaps yourself and can slice them quickly, or slower, but as accurately as possible
Feature added:
Store to temp function – after activation, the material loads faster and can be rendered without a license
Store to scene function – the material is saved to the scene and can be transferred to another computer without additional actions, as well as rendered without a license
Result size is now always displayed in Store modes
Ability to move the library and temp files to another location during installation
Function of quickly reducing maps in the Slicer – now you can use smaller sources, while significantly speeding up the work. No additional disk space is required for these files
Search for source textures in case of loss. Now the plugin searches for them in the libs folder, as well as in the project folder, next to the max file and the maps folder
Fixed:
Bug with rows disappearing during regeneration
Bug with a crash when generating 8K materials
Pattern library – some patterns disappeared in the previous version
Crash when switching previews between channels. If there was no source bitmaps on the channel, there was a crash
Crash when trying to create a material without a selected pattern
Library:
Paving moorish 8179
Paving terrazzo 6178
Paving square 6287
Paving broken 7341
Paving snowy 3387
Paving snowy 3215
Paving grainy flat 3180
Roofing corrida 8762
QuickTiles 1.0.8.2 (18.01.2022)
Feature added:
Interface lock during updating
Fixed:
Patterns display during window scaling
The tile randomization mask did not work on render
Other minor bugs
Library:
Paving old city 5811
Wood ash 6871
Paving origami 6931
Paving antique 7375
Paving rounded 4379
Paving colour 1547
Paving modern 3177
Paving old city 1987
Paving hexagon 1834
Paving grained 1563
Paving rounded 6173
QuickTiles 1.0.8.0 (7.12.2021)
Feature added:
Partial multithreading. The speed of slicing and updating has increased significantly
Added the ability to create non-square patterns
Added the Save all QT to scene function. After activation, the scene can be transferred to another computer. The other user must have the plugin installed. No active subscription require!
Added the ability to render QT materials after the subscription ends (Store must be activated for this)
Improved:
The distribution of aspect groups has been improved and has become neater
In Crop/Center mode, when aspect groups match, the tile switches to Stretch
Large preview works without any restrictions – you can make any zoom and expand to full screen
Updated indicators of container randomization
Small improvements:
The Delete, Ctrl+C, Ctrl+V buttons now work in 2022 max as usual (without Shift)
The gap color on the Roughness channel is now white by default
Removed the Autoupdate button
Added recognition of texture names based on a template from Polygon
Fixed:
The interface on 4K monitors is working properly
Fixed the "thick" seams bug after closing/opening the scene
In PE and Slicer, when clicking on an empty zone, tiles were generated
Fixed crash when copying a QT node
Fixed: QT nodes remained instances after copying
Fixed normals for circular layouts
Fixed crash when enabling circular layout in polygonal patterns
When opening the Slicer, PE and gap color selection windows, the large preview is slightly reduced
Library:
Brick orange 3997
Brick red 6922
Bricks grey 4927
Geomesh 1549
Paving red wet 3164
Paving simple wet 5736
Travertin yellow 7349
Stone blocks 6371
Paving granite 3168
Brick yellow 1383
Paving park 1785
QuickTiles 1.0.7.4
Feature added to slicer:
Contrast correction in HSV
Direction of normals correction
Mark all & Unmark all functions added to Eraser
In the Slicer and PE, shortcuts (Ctrl+C, Ctrl+V & Delete) now works with Shift
Feature added common:
Position of the buttons in Generated texture settings section has been changed
CoronaPhysicalMtl is creates in Corona 7 now
Fixed:
When copying, the QT nodes in any case remained instances
In the slicer, when you press Enter, the plugin offered to reset the settings
Incorrect generation of the gaps normals
Small improvements:
Improved autoslicing
HSV operation in the slicer has been slightly accelerated
Small fixes in the slicer when working with nonsquare textures
Library
Paving park 1785
Paving orange 8742
Brick old red 9439
Paving Tiara 4891
Paving simple 7468
Wood decking 5936
QuickTiles 1.0.7.3
Feature added:
3d max 2022 support
Individual tiles sets loading
Subscription expiration notification. It will appear in the About section 5 days before the subscription end
Improved layout algorithm. Now the plugin tries to take unique source tiles and place same tiles far from each other
New Crop/Center algorithm. Now, for lengthening, the tile can be duplicated 2 or 3 times, and does not scale in height
Fixed problems:
Slicing was not saved to the library if Plain texture was checked
3d max crush when set zero dimensions of base tile or some other parameters. Now generation is disabled is this case
3d max crash when working with QT in the compact editor mode, on the diffuse of the standard material in the Corona render
The plugin didn't work on the last day of the subscription
When saving QT to the bitmap, the texture was generated reflected
Due to the new Crop/Center algorithm, vertical stripes appeared
When copying tiles in the slicer, new tiles appears highlighted now
Library
Paving modern 4789
Paving park 4658
Paving concrete 5891
Rubber tiles 1978
Wood planks 8127
QuickTiles 1.0.7.1
Fixed problems:
No warning message when trying to install plugin with working 3d max
Convert all QT to textures didn't work with non-latin characters
3dmax crush when trying to copy QuickTiles node
Offset tiles appears in slicer when container cross the border line
Copied QT nodes worked as instances
Other minor bugs
Library
Tactile paving 6872
Bowtie paving 5973
Bowtie 2 pattern
QuickTiles 1.0.7.0
Features added:
Slicer zoom
Slicer HSV
Save generated mask to file
Slicer non-square preview
Overlapping tiles autoslice
Non-tiled tiles excluded from autoslice
Select smaller tiles in slicer
Select same aspect tiles in slicer
Group disabling in slicer
Full size texture preview in slicer
Slicer tools hotkeys (Ctrl+1 - Ctrl+6)
Procedural gap channels drag'n'drop
"Update" button hotkey — ctrl+space
Mask creation speed up
Some icons changed
False activating message changed
Fixed problems:
Pattern loss when canceling pattern editor
Source gap size in all patterns
Herringbone interactive pattern regeneration
Minor bugs and crushes
Library
Paving wet 1379
Paving zigzag 6572
Red brick 3761
Red brick 3547
Penrose mosaic pattern
Wind stone 2 pattern
QuickTiles 1.0.6.0
Fixed crush on empty texture viewport show
Fixed 3max 2018 tiles offset with 4K testures
Fixed vertical sliced elements excessive overlap
Fixed slicer second mode now called "Lines"
Fixed crush on mat.editor close/open
Loading accelerated
Fixed edit poly lags in 2021 max
Fixed "Convert all QT to plain textures" same file name issue
Library
Paving simple 3184 texture
Shingles Hex 8174 texture
Wood planks 5102 texture
Simple material creation
Setting up any material in QuickTiles starts with adding the QT node itself. It is available from the list of General textures (1-2) in the Compact and Slate material editor. You don't need to create the material and connect QT on any channel. Add it to any slot in the compact editor or any place in the slate (3).
Then we go to the QT itself. By default, the bets start parameters that are set. The first step in the setup is to add a set of tiles (1) and open the Slice Editor (2).
Slice Editor is a QuickTiles module in which you enter the original textures and specify the borders of the tiles (or that the texture is seamless). For more information about all the module parameters, see the Help section Slice Editor
The input textures are entered in the Input maps zone (1). You need to select the Diffuse channel, and the other channels are recognized and loaded automatically. After that, you can mark up the tiles manually, or recognize them automatically (for more information, see the section Slice editor). We will show a more convenient path now and make recognition based on the Mask channel. Set the value of Gaps (2) to about 0.7 — this will indicate to the recognition module the approximate error when gluing the seams. And click Autoslice (3). Recognition by mask is almost instantaneous.
Also, you can select and add one of the already saved templates from the library (4). After completing the work, click Done (5). At this point, the texture is cut into tiles. The larger your sources and the number of channels, the longer the process will take.
The next step is to select the pattern. You can take one of the templates (1) from the Preset drop-down list, or open the Pattern editor (3) and create a new pattern. Also, for tiles that have original seams, set the width of the procedural seam to 0. This will disable the procedural seam and enable mixing of the original seams (2).
For example, let's create a simple pattern in the Pattern editor. Use the tool to create several tiles (1). Do not forget to reduce the field to the minimum required size (2). After creating the base pattern, you can fill the repeating part with the Fill gaps button (3). You can also select any template from the library. When you finish, click Done (5).
For more the details of the Pattern editor, see the corresponding section.
In fact, our texture is ready. Now we can make various settings in the internal interface, set randomizations, etc. For reference, we have added a light preview of the texture.
When everything is ready, you can set the size (1) and resolution (2) of the output texture piece. We recommend testing the settings on a small size (2x2 meters, 2048 px).
After that, click the Update button (3). At this point, the finished texture is built and written to temp. All changes in the material and on the render will appear only after clicking the Update button. The process of creating a texture can take 2-3 seconds on small resolutions, and 3-7 minutes on top sizes of 16-32K
After completing the process, click the Create material button. The plugin automatically recognizes your render engine (Vray, Corona, or Fstorm), and creates the appropriate material, with the correct configuration. Texture channels will be added according to the source texture.
Other render engines will be added later.
The algorithm for working with Fstorm is different from working with Vray and Corona. See Compatibility/ working with Fstorm
На этом все! Материал создан и готов к настройке. QuickTiles работает с интерактивным рендером как в Vray, так и в Corona, так что можно смело использовать его в процессе. При повторном нажатии на Create material, будет создан еще один материал, так что будьте осторожны.
That's it! The material is created and ready for customization. QuickTiles works with interactive rendering in both Vray and Corona, so you can safely use it in the process. Be careful, if you click on Create material again, another material will be created.
Quick Tiles channel is an auxiliary texture that specifies which QuickTiles channel to feed to the material slot. The fact is that 3d max can't produce more than one output from a single texture. Therefore, in order not to generate and configure each channel of the material separately, we created a scheme in which the main QuickTiles texture feeds all the channels at once, and the QuickTiles channel nodes select and pass on only the necessary one.
The interface of the node itself is very simple:
In the material structure, it is located between the main QT node and the material. In its interface, there are only two parameters — a drop-down list with the names of channels to choose from, and a slot for connecting the main QT texture.
Attention! When connecting normal maps, you do not need to enable gamma correction, since QTC node automatically corrects the gamma.
Generated texture settings
Заголовок окна
This tab contains technical settings that are responsible for the size and resolution of the created texture, as well as buttons for saving and updating textures.
Patch width — width of the created texture in scene units
Patch height — height of the created texture in scene units
Initial size — input for the desired physical size of the created texture
Result size — displays the resulting physical size of the texture. Works only when the enlarged preview is open.
Due to the complexity of the tiled texture formation mechanism and the desire to create a texture in which the tiles will be as close as possible to the size set by the user, it is impossible to accurately get into the size of the patch set by the user. For this purpose, fields of the desired and final size were created. Read more about this in the section "Texture formation mechanism»
Seed — randomization number. Changes the randomization version for the current settings.
Resolution — the resolution of the created texture in pixels.
Update — generates channel textures according to the QuickTiles settings
Create material — creates a material based on the loaded texture channels. The required material type is determined automatically for Vray and Corona.
For FStorm, separate bitmaps are saved and loaded onto the material. At the same time, the QuickTiles node remains in Mat. editor
Save as plain texture — saving the resulting texture to a regular bitmap
Store to temp — saves the QT texture to a special temp file. The next time you open the scene, the texture is not generated, but is read from the file. This significantly reduces the opening time. In this case, the interface is locked — to unlock it, click the Store button again. The created temp file will be deleted.
The materials saved in this way will be rendered even without an active subscription.
Store to scene — saves the QT texture to a scene file (.max). The next time you open the scene, the texture is not generated, but is read from the .max file. This significantly reduces the opening time. This operation increases the size of the scene. In this case, the interface is locked — to unlock it, click the Store button again. The material will be deleted from .max file.
The material saved in this way can be easily transferred from the scene to another computer, and it will also be rendered without an active subscription.
Load preset — load fully configured QuickTiles material from the Preset library
Save preset — save the current QuickTiles material settings to the Preset library
Scene units
Due to the complex technical features of Quick Tiles, we recommend that you work in it as if you are using centimeters as scene units. In this case, the appearance of the quick preview will be more correct.
For example, if you need to create a 2000x2000 mm parquet texture with a board size of 600x60 mm, set the values 200x200 for the Initial Patch size, and 60x6 for the base tile size. When applying to the surface, set the mapping to 2000x2000 mm.
For distributed rendering:
1. Install the Quick Tiles plugin on all render nodes
2. Activation of the plugin on additional computers is not required.
3. Activate the Store to scene function in all QuickTiles materials
4. Done!
Tile set parameters
Заголовок окна
In this tab, you can add sets of tiles and adjust the parameters of their distribution.
Add bitmap tile set — adds an empty set of bitmap tiles
Add color tile set — adds an empty set of single-color tiles
Noise type — choose between a simple uniform mix of tile sets and a custom map. (see examples below)
None field —adding a custom map for mixing sets.
Add tiles — opens the bitmap tile slicing editor (Slice editor, SE).
Bitmap set— here you can specify the name of the tile set selected in SE.
Probability — the frequency of appearance of tiles of this set in the final texture. Works if more than one set is added.
— change the position of the set in the stack by dragging it . The order depends on the position when using a custom distribution map (see the examples below)
— deleting a set.
— duplicate the set.
Tile set id's — opens a window for selecting the ID numbers of the pattern tiles to which this set will be distributed. You can select one or more numbers.
For more information, see the section Tile ID
Сolor set — here you can specify the name of a single-color set.
Diffuse, reflect, roughness... — setting the colors or noise of the set channels. If you leave the color completely black, the channel will not be generated.
Examples of how to use custom maps of the distribution of a set of tiles
Example 1. Noise type — regular, three sets of bitmaps.
Example 2. Noise type — Custom map, Gradient, three sets of bitmaps.
You can use any black and white image as a custom map of the sets distribution. In the final texture, the tile sets will be distributed over a range of grayscale colors according to their position on the stack. The lower the set correspond to the darker image area. And vice versa - the upper sets correspond to the light zones of the user distribution map. In the example, you can see that the yellow bricks located at the top of the stack appeared in the lightest part of the gradient.
Example 3. Noise type — Custom map, Radial gradient, three sets of bitmaps.
Example 4. Noise type — Custom map, Clouds noise, three sets of bitmaps.
Slice Editor
Заголовок окна
The entire process of working in QuickTiles can be divided into three parts: the first — adding the original textures, the second — creating a new layout pattern, and the third — setting up the details and randomizations of the layout.
Slice editor (SE) is a small additional module in which the first stage of work is carried out — adding the original textures and cutting them into separate tiles. Here you can add or change sources, save or extract sets from the library, recognize individual tiles automatically or specify them manually, as well as edit the cutting. It is also possible to import or export the finished slicing
The SE consists of three sections. On the left, in the red zone, there is a library of cuts. Here you can see all the saved and imported cuts by the user, as well as the cuts supplied with the plugin.
In the center, in the yellow zone, is the viewport window, where the selected texture channel and the created slicing are displayed.
On the right, in the blue area, there are settings for slicing and the source texture displayed. Let's see the composition of all the elements in more detail.
Slicing Library
— search by name and tags
Category — select the cut category
Create set from texture — create a new slicing from a solid texture. Resets the interface and all settings.
Create set from individual tiles — creating the cutting of already pre-cut tiles.
Icon of the finished cut saved in the library.
Double-click on the icon - loads the slicing and all settings to SE. A right-click will open the context menu.
Duplicate — duplicates a set in the library
Rename — rename a set in a library
Delete — deleting a set
Save to file — export set (when you exporting the slice, the source bitmaps are written to the file, so you do not need to transfer them separately)
Set custom preview — set a custom icon for the selected set. You can use images of any format, the plugin will reduce it and trim to a square.
Set default preview — resets the custom icon to the standard one.
Slicing and source texture settings
Import tile set — import the ready slicing from a file. When importing, the source bitmaps saved in the slicing file will be unzipped into a folder C:\Users\your_user\QuickTiles\libs
Save (to library) — saving the slicing with the settings to the library. When saving to the library, the original bitmaps are not duplicated, and are loaded from the place where they were originally. Therefore, do not delete or move the original bitmaps used to create the slicing, otherwise the slicing will load empty.
You cannot save or change the source files of the library.
— tools for creating and editing slicing
— slicing creation and editing modes
— Mode 1, the generation of the grid. In this mode, you can create a grid of lines that will be slice a texture and move it away from the edges. Tools and manual editing are not available here.
Preset — choosing a grid pattern — standard or herringbone
Vertical — количество вертикальных линеек
Horizontal — number of vertical lines
Row offset — the distance by which the row is shifted
N row offset — number of offset rows
Usually we need to slice a texture where the original tiles are not under each other, but are offset by a certain distance. For example, bricks are often laid off by 50% every second row, and laminate, with an offset of every second row by 1/3, and every third row by 2/3. The Row offset and N row offset functions allow you to create a grid for such layouts. If you set the offset to 66 and the row number to 2, you will get a grid like in the example. Every second row from the original row will be shifted by 66%, and every first row will be shifted by half of this distance.
Cropping — grid offset from the edges
Top — top edge offset
Bottom — bottom edge offset
Left — left edge offset
Right — right edge offset
— The second mode is manual editing mode of the grid. In this mode, you can manually shift the slicing lines, adjusting to the imperfections of the texture. Some of the tools are available here.
— Move tool. Shifts the horizontal rulers along the entire length of the grid, and the vertical ones in the limits of the two closest horizontal ones.
— Erase tool. Deletes rulers. The horizontal lines are removed along the entire length of the grid, leaving the ones above as vertical lines.
— Cut tool. Adds a new line. To create a horizontal slice, hover over the nearest vertical ruler and you will see a preview. To create a vertical slice, hover over the existing horizontal one.
Functions Preset, Vertical, Horizontal, Row offset, N row offset and Cropping are blocked in the second and third mode.
Returning to the previous mode from the previous ones will cancel all the changes made.
— In the third mode you can edit individual tiles manually. Move the finished tiles, rotate them, remove , cut , etc. All the tools are available here.
Context menu of the tools:
Select smaller — selects all tiles of a much smaller size. Useful when cleaning after autoslice.
Select same aspect — selects all tiles with the same aspect ratio
Select same ID — selects all tiles in the same ID
Mark all — disable all tiles (only for the erase tool)
Unmark all — enable all tiles (only for the erase tool)
— Move tool. Offset the tiles. To select multiple tiles, use Ctrl. You can also use the keyboard arrows to move tiles.
— Rotate tool. Rotates the tiles around the center.
— Scale tool. Stretches the tile by the selected side. The rotated tiles will stretch in local coordinates.
— Erase tool. Turns off the tiles by marking them black. These tiles will not be used in the layout. They can be turned on at any time. Erase+Shift — complete removal of tiles. You can also delete a tile by pressing Delete.
— Cut tool. Cuts the tile vertically. Cut+Ctrl - cuts horizontally.
— Create tool. Creates a new tile.
In this mode, copying tiles via Ctrl+C/Ctrl+V works, as well as steps back via Ctrl+Z.
— Set orient tool. Allows you to set a custom tile orientation.
By default, the orientation of the tiles is set perpendicular to the long side of the container. When you click on the tile once, an arrow will appear showing the default direction.
To change the direction, move the mouse cursor with the left button pressed, just as if you wanted to rotate the tile. At the same time, the direction arrow will rotate in increments of 45 degrees.
To rotate at an arbitrary angle, hold down the Shift.
To align the arrow perpendicular to any face of the container — Alt+Click
To align the arrow in the direction of the specified vertex — Ctrl+Shift+Click
To align the arrow vertically — Ctrl+Click
To reset the direction to default, and remove the arrow — double Click
This function is useful when placing tiles of complex, asymmetrical shape, as well as in cases when it is necessary to observe a certain direction of the tile pattern.
The direction set in the Slicer will correspond to the direction set in the Pattern editor.
*When using the function, it is often necessary to disable random reflection of tiles and switch to Stretch mode in the Bitmap-in-container section.
**After using the Rotate tool, you need to re-set the tile direction.
In the third mode, the drop-down menu works (right mouse button)
Copy - copy the selected tiles. You can copy from one set to another
Paste - paste the copied tiles
Outline - expand or reduce the selected tiles evenly from all sides
Select all - select all tiles
Invert selected - invert selection
Select smaller - select all tiles significantly smaller in size than the current one
Select same ID - select all tiles in the same ID as the current one (same function - double click on the tile)
Select same aspect - select all tiles in the same aspect as the current one
IMPORTANT: create tiles so that the blue area overlaps the tile surface and does not go into the seam.