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Announcements

v2 released!

v2 is a fundamental re-write of Freebird's code, to allow new features to be developed much faster (than before). It also adds a few new features like the ability to pose/edit bones of armatures, use your mouse while using VR, and edit mesh elements. The behavior of a few existing features have been changed, in response to user feedback.

Finally, it improves the basic infrastructure to allow faster feedback and improvement: access to crash/app logs, 1-click update button, optional auto-updates, and an Early Access feature for those who like to closely guide the development while taking a bit of risk with stability!

All of these set the foundation for a faster rate of improvement and better responsiveness to user feedback. Thanks for your continued encouragement and patience, I genuinely appreciate it!

Get started with Freebird!

New features

  • Pose Armature Bones - Change the pose of armature bones in POSE mode. Grab the bones using the trigger button on the controller with the Select tool, and drag the bone(s) around to change the pose.
  • Edit Armature Bones - Delete or move armature bones in EDIT mode. Use the Select tool to select and drag bones, or the Erase tool to erase bones.
  • Use the mouse while inside VR - Enable Sync headset with desktop viewport inside the Freebird Settings menu. This will let you use your mouse to select objects while staying inside VR. It will display a laser pointer in VR, indicating where your mouse is pointing at on the desktop screen.
  • Delete elements in EDIT mode - Delete mesh vertices/edges/faces and curve points in EDIT mode.

Better infrastructure

  • Debugging logs - Easy access to crash and application logs, to help report and investigate problems. If you're reporting a problem with Freebird, sharing these logs will help a LOT in identifying the problem. These logs reside only on your PC, they are not transmitted anywhere, and do not contain any personal information. These logs can be accessed from Freebird's preferences panel (inside Edit > Preferences > Addons > Freebird), by clicking the Open Crash Log or Open Current App Log buttons.
  • 1-click update - 1-click button to update Freebird to the latest version. You no longer need to manually download the new zip file and install - it will be done for you with one click of the button.
  • Auto update - (optional) Enable Update automatically (in Freebird Settings) to automatically update to the latest version of Freebird when Blender starts. This update will happen in the background, so it won't slow down Blender while starting.
  • Early Access - (optional) Enable Early Access (in Freebird Settings) to get the latest features as soon as they are ready. These features may be less stable, but this will help guide the development very closely, through your testing and feedback. Once the new features have been tested and considered stable for most Early Access users, they will be released to everybody.
  • Lots of automated tests - Over 950 automated tests cover different aspects of Freebird, to improve Freebird's reliability and stability while you're working on your projects.

Changes to existing features

The UI will be changing frequently for a while, since the project is still in early development. I apologize if the changes cause you any inconvenience. If it is really bothering you, please let me know on the #ideas-and-feedback channel on the Discord Server or email me.

  • Undo/redo is now performed by pushing the joystick left/right on the alternate hand.

  • New behavior: 1-click clone by grabbing an object (with the squeeze button), and then pressing the Clone button on the main controller.

    You can press the Clone button multiple times (while grabbing) to create multiple objects while moving the controller (i.e. one object per click). This is useful for quickly creating several copies at different locations.

Freebird v1 released!

Freebird allows you to use a VR headset with Blender, to create and edit content inside regular Blender.

Get started with Freebird!

Major features

  • Start VR button inside Blender - Switch to VR editing (and back) seamlessly using an easy Start VR button inside Blender.
  • Select Tool - Select and move/rotate/scale objects intuitively in 3D using the VR controllers. You can also select and move vertices/edges/faces in EDIT mode. Keep the trigger on the alternate hand pressed to toggle the selection (i.e. unselect existing selections, or add items to existing selections). You can also click outside all the objects and drag through multiple objects to select them.
  • Pen Tool - Draw lines in 3D using the VR controller. This draws NURBS curves, which you can edit. Use Pipe to make fat pipes, and the Straight line option to draw a straight line/pipe.
  • Shape Tool - Draw primitive shapes (cube, sphere, cone, cylinder, torus, monkey) using the VR controller.
  • Hull Tool - Draw volumes quickly using the VR controller. This is very helpful for expressing shape ideas quickly with rough volumes.
  • Erase Tool - Erase objects using the VR controller.
  • Clone Tool - Clone selected objects, and use 1-click clone for quickly creating lots of clones in different locations around the scene.
  • Edit Mode - Move vertices/edges/faces in the EDIT mode.
  • Bevel/Inset/Extrude - Edit mesh vertices/edges/faces by beveling or insetting or extruding them.
  • Quicktools - Press the Quicktools button on your main controller, and move left or right to quickly switch between the Erase and Select tool. This helps you stay in the creative flow, without needing to look at the menu each time.
  • Hand preference - Choose Left-Handed or Right-Handed, and the UI will adjust to suit your hand preference better.
  • Mirror - Display in Blender's desktop view what you're seeing inside VR. This is useful when you're communicating your idea with someone.
  • Sync with viewport - Use the keyboard and mouse to control the VR camera, and vice-versa also use the VR controllers to control the desktop view.