Referencing in Blender ?

[DanielWray]

Refrence modesl?

As in dynamiclly linking an object from another blend file?

I find it very easy to use, compared to other applications i'd say it's top notch :)

If you want to try this, go to append and when you find the model/ object etc (anything can be refrenced) click on link at the bottom and then select the item and click open.

[solagratia77]

Thanks DanielWray
This is the one last thing I needed to find out before I really start learning.
Thanks again.

[CorsairX]

The blender manual wiki article has a pretty good overview of the how-to's and gotcha's:
http://wiki.blender.org/index.php/Doc:Manual/Data_System/Linked_Libraries

[sundialsvc4]

I really can't speak to other programs since I use Blender professionally, but I can say that the "library" system is definitely one of the product's most important (and a very well-developed...) feature. There are a few "quirks," of course, but they're well documented by now.

Briefly... you can very easily either "import" something into your blend-file, or "link" to something in another file. The product is very obviously designed with "linking" in mind... and that, basically, is how you do everything in any real-world project. You can, as far as I know, "link to" anything.

You've got two ways to work with the (say...) "objects" that you have linked: if you really don't need to animate the thing, you can use what's called a "dupli-group," where you put an Empty into your project and associate the linked object with it... move the empty, and you move the object.

The other way is called an animation proxy, and its purpose is to be just that ... a "stand-in" that you can actually manipulate.

Blender was designed, originally, as a professional tool by an animation studio doing video work, and to this day, this heritage is abundantly clear. "Linking" was a fundamental part of the workflow, and it continues to be so today. You must make it your business to understand this feature very thoroughly, and you should get into the habit of using it... right from the very start. You will be very pleased with it.

In every single project that I do, "everything is broken down into layers, and everything in every one of those layers comes from something that is linked." This is the only way that I could possibly stay sane. But it's great: I change something "once, over here," and I k-n-o-w that the change will be effective everywhere. Couldn't do what I do without that. No one could. So, "learn this... learn this well... and base even your earliest work-flows around it." You'll be glad you did. (:argh: I didn't.)

[Alonzo]

:wavey: here you go -> tutorial

http://www.yofrankie.org/tutorial-library-linking/

[CGTalk Moderation]

This thread has been automatically closed as it remained inactive for 12 months. If you wish to continue the discussion, please create a new thread in the appropriate forum.