Need to build/animate/render a 3D model on the train? Bored out of your mind at a meeting? Looking for the power of Blender 2.42 in the palm of your hand? Then BlenderPocket 2.42 is just what you were looking for... Blender for your PocketPC!
Salvatore Russo (russose), the main (only) developer of BlenderPocket has released the new version incorporating the latest changes found in Blender 2.42. From the BlenderPocket site:
This new Website not only introduces the new Blenderpocket 2.42, it also introduces a new way to share the BlenderPocket experience. People often ask: “What can I do with BlenderPocket?†or “Is it really serious to make CG with a PocketPC?†I would for sure have failed in writing a 100 pages article on that subject. And I am still discovering what Blender can do with our tiny devices! That's why I built this new Website.
For people browsing from their tiny device, this website has also a "mobile version" for you.
BlenderPocket is running today on Windows Mobile 2003/ 2003SE and Windows Mobile 5. It should not be a so big problem to make it run on other platforms. If you want to port Blender on your "not supported" tiny device, feel free to contact to receive more information.
BlenderPocket is the only mobile version of any professional level 3D program. It demonstrates that open source can lead Blender to places other programs haven't even thought of (or are even capable of going).
48 Comments
Great NEWS! Excellent work russose...
I hope one day, can buy a pocketpc. :(
Hey I wonder how hard it would be to mod this for use on the Nintendo ds. There is already a linux flavor in the works.
And I know it is a long shot, but what if, however limited, the game engine could be used as well??? You may call me a dreamer, but that would stomp nuts!
can we see screen shots ? Is it any different ? Are there less options, or ways the the UI was changed ?
You can see screenshots here...
http://russose.free.fr/BlenderPocket/galerie/browserlb2.php?first=NO&int_nb_photos=25&int_nb_pages=1&int_no_page=1&directory=Screenshoots&lng=en
Well done Russose!
omgosh you guys are kicking total ass
that is awesome
I had a feeling we'd be seeing this before long.
I'll look forward to trying it out on my T-Mobile SDA.
Great work Russose. I've had quick play will it and seems to work okay. I think I need to play around with configuring the hardware buttons as only the Action button does anything. I'm not sure how productive you can be using this software though.
common, this is just silly!
What's missing here is a Youtube video of a running Blender on some tiny device.
You're crazy ^^
Big applause to Salvatore Russo! That's the more crazy embedded device development! With blender's nodes etc...
Well, the next step (challenge!) would be to render Elephants Dream on a pocket device. Or to make an embedded drqueue version!
Well, just jocking :p I really have respect for all this work
Good luck for the future!
This is really cool i tell you, though a bit slow maybe. Heres a screenshoot in 480*640
http://img140.imageshack.us/my.php?image=blenderscreenjp2.png
This is just awesome - seeing that array demo file that came from this computer in that tiny little screenshot, knowing it's running on a handheld sent shivers down my spine. I could imaging a cut-down viewer app like this, but the entire Blender, with everything including the renderer and compositor? Wow.
That is awsome, I never imagined being able to use blender
with a hand held. To bad I don't actually have one because I could get a lot more blendering in while I ride the bus every day.
Now for Yafray for Pocket PC. I use Yafray a lot, and I don't see anything serious being done with Blender Internal (No photon mapping etc.)
It's not as easy to model on my little screen, but It's really cool to be able to show off my work to people on my handheld. Simply amazing!
konrad8ha, I second that notion. I want to see someone playing with it IRL. :D
Hi Guys!
from Neokilly:
"Well, the next step (challenge!) would be to render Elephants Dream on a pocket device. Or to make an embedded drqueue version!"
@ Neokilly:
But i think this shouldn't be a joke with DrQueue!
If your Handheld can go into the web, why not control the results with yourt handheld, if possible? If there's a WiFi Hotspot this was possible, wasn't it?
and another thing: they wouldn't render ED on a single handheld, they would render it with a handheldfarm ;)
@all :-)
now i want a handheld, too... have been directly on the dell homepage to see what costs a handheld with 624Mhz...
f***, at least 385€...
Greetz, Dorian
Awesome thx Russose! Great work!
That's one of the greatest news i read on BN since long.
That's just so cool. Anyone has performance values, like benchmarks or something like this? Perhabs you can render http://www.blendernation.com/2006/06/18/post-your-render-times/ on your PDA. I'm just interested in the results :) I'll try it too i think.
This is indeed cool, but hasn't this capability been around for years? I thought when I was perusing the old Blender site archived at Blender logo history page that there was something about Blender on a handheld.
In any case, very cool!
OK forget my idea ^^ a scene with 13MB on a pda thats no good idea :D
Until now the opening lasts 5min and i think it will last even longer :)
Hi,
Thanks for this nice comments. I first have to be honnest, to make my screenshoots, I took the official test files and they work. But I have to admit that they are not so easy to use because they are designed for a big computer. For example, it take some time (maybe 15 seconds) to calculate the picture of the array modifier screenshoots... Blender is running very good but it will not transform our tiny divice in super rendering computer. It is the same think as rendering elephan dream from a simple desktop computer ;)
I am conscious that pocketpc are a luxurious devices and cost lot of money. But I already
read some articles about pocketpc with linux for 100$. You can also have a look to the GP2 device. I am strongly thinking about a linux version... I would prefer to support a linux fan in making it but if nobody is interested, I will probably put it on top of the todo list.
@mpl: wonderfull screenshoot! I will put it in the website :) That's all done with Blenderpocket or did you use your computer? Now, you can desactivate the virtual keyboard if you don't need it.
Concerning yafray, I don't think the raytracing is so interesting for our tiny devices... they are to slow, even for the internal blender raytracer... it works but take a lot of time to render, like soft body to bake.
Blender already had a pocketpc version but it was for old devices and not open source. But I am sure that at that time, NaN already solved the major problems to make it run on a pocketpc... making my life easier :)
Concerning the video, I already wanted to do it but didn't find time. If someone wants to show the wold how he is using BlenderPocket, I will of course put this video on the website! I will search how can I make video.
Have lot of fun with Blender/BlenderPocket!
Salvatore
Thanks for answering my question.
I look forward to the video. You might post blend files and their render times so people can get a good idea how well or not various scenes perform. Also, it would be cool if someone could work on a model/scene entirely on the PDA and post their results with comments on the experience. This is a cool project.
If I could rotate the orientation of the screen 90% this would be even more useful. I haven't found a way to reach all of the buttons on the menubar.
too bad i doesnt work on a palm handheld ;)
I can see it now. Ad-Hoc wireless render farm. Add a splash of verse integration for extra punch.
Blenderpocket support the screen rotation if your OS can do it. All butons can be reached scrolling the menu bars with alt (be sure that your buttons are all recognized). If you have problems, don't hesitate to post in the forum.
Concerning the performances, I will give you the render time of the default scene in Blender (with the cube) as soon as I will have my pocketpc near me. But a pocketpc will never be a big rendering machine...
Salvatore
@russose
"wonderfull screenshoot! I will put it in the website :)"
Sure you're very welcome though it isn't the best screenshoot, it was just to show blenderpocket running in 480*640.
"That’s all done with Blenderpocket or did you use your computer?"
Im sorry to disappoint you but i made it on my pc and just opened it on my pda. I haven't made anything useful with blenderpocket yet, because i only just finished mapping out the buttons on my pda. With the new hot keys its like learning blender all over again :) So if anyone out there owns a loox n560 and would like to try out BlenderPocket, you might find this useful:
http://www.takaicorp.com/blenderpocket/looxn560.png
Thanks mpl for this picture. I will include it as an illustration in the "installation" article. So people will better figure out what are the button mapping. That's the configuration without button remapping with the hardware_button.txt file? Anyway, that's a very usefull illustration, I didn't found time to make one myself. Thanks :)
For the screenshoots, if you have better ones, feel free to give me the links and I will include them in the screenshoot section.
Now concerning the "performance" people are asking, the render time of the "default cube scene in the original .blend file" rendered as a 200*200 jpg takes 25 seconds (time given by blender).
Salvatore
are you going to incorporate BlenderPocket into the main blender branch itself as a compile option? that way, more people might be interested in coding it... -epat.
Thanks mpl for this picture. I will include it as an illustration in the "installation" article. So people will better figure out what are the button mapping. That's the configuration without button remapping with the hardware_button.txt file? Anyway, that's a very usefull illustration, I didn't found time to make one myself. Thanks :)
For the screenshoots, if you have better ones, feel free to give me the links and I will include them in the screenshoot section.
For the "performance" people are asking, the render time of the "default cube scene in the original .blend file" rendered as a 200*200 jpg takes 25 seconds (time given by blender).
Salvatore
a psp version maybe ?
Hi,
It will be difficult to blend with a psp that has not touch screen... not may to emulate the mouse movment. But I hope we will get a Nokia 770 version working soon :)
Salvatore
I can't see the website.
@Philip
Check again. I see it fine.
should be possible to blend with a psp since it has this *joystick* thingy dunno how to describe it, anyway this joystick is used in sony official webbrowser for psp to emulate a mouse.
Hi,
For the PSP, that can be VERY interesting using Blender since it has a OpenGL ES accelerated hardware. But I don't have this device to give a look or a try. Feel free to post in the BlenderPocket forum if you need some information to develop it. I will try to provide as much information as I can. It is really a priority for me to see Blenderpocket run on other device as Windows mobile. User should be free to run Blender on any device :)
Salvatore
wow - Blender on a pocketPC? I just now found out ;o) , and ....that is just PERFECT!!!!!!! excelent!!!!!!!!
Heh. Now all we need is Blender for the iPhone. :)
Having it for the iPhone or iPod Touch would just be AWESOME!!! It would give me an even better reason to buy one ;)
Marvellous program, of course
We need a VGA-aware version. The PDA hardware is now very powerful (VGA, WVGA, 520Mhz +, 300Mb Storage and RAM, with 1Ghx processors for release in about 6 months)
Ideal for Blenderpocket, but the VGA screens render the program too small to read
Hi,
wh
Hi
Could the last post be deleted ? it is a bad manipulation from me ;)
BlenderPocket is not making any assumption on the screen size, it tried to have the screen size from the OS. The only think that could prevent BlenderPocket to run on a large screen is some buffer sizes that I limited to save RAM memory but if someone has a big screen and meets problems, just post the problem on the forum and I will give a look to find a solution ;) The new version of BlenderPocket will have some optimization especially more dynamic memory allocations...
The Website should be online in few days/weeks with the new version of BlenderPocket ;)
Salvatore
Does anyone still have this up for download?
Hello,
my website hosting BlenderPocket is not maintained anymore. You can download the last version from my Google drive here:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/16RF4hyPooenUCQXKMQ8vTCbTuqREHDn5/view?usp=sharing
As a reminder, it will only work on WindowsCE.
Have fun,
Salvatore
Thanks a lot, Salvatore!
Hi
Is the VGA version of BlenderPocket still available anywhere? I’ve tried the Google docs above on Wayback machine. Trying to run on the Dell Axim x51v Pocket PC. Thank you.
Hi,
Nice to see that after so many years, still some interest here ;) I put the files here:
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/19gm3Dp2b1f1Spyk0v9fcyav5wfY2koUL?usp=sharing
Salvatore
Hi Salvatore
Thank you for your prompt reply and the files!
Amazing to see Blender running on a Pocket PC.
Thanks again.