Notes section

[mattjgerard]

Wishing there was a place to make notes as to particulars of the scene, and notes about post processing. Basically just a notepad somewhere that is embedded in the bip file. I share a lot of my  bip files and would be neat to have a place to jot notes instead of having to have a seperate file.

Small request but would be very handy.

Matt

[DriesV]

Can you identify any particular areas in KeyShot where this would be most useful?

Dries

[mattjgerard]

When packaging a KSP file for archive, we use adobe expierience manager to store all our finals, so it would be nice to have a place to save the AEM ID # for the final image, locations of photoshop files, etc.

Also when creating scene sets (now that I understand how the heck they work making notes for each scene set, as to it use and AEM ID's for each view that was created.

We have set standard materials and environments that we try to use for each product, but as we all know, each one is different, so if an artist has to use a different material or environment for some reason it would be great for the next person that opens the file as to why.

Would be great to note who the players are for each image, the marketing manager, product manager and tech engineer is for each product so if there are questions about the look or useage of the product in a scene we know exactly whom to go hassle about it.

All these could be and have been covered by using just a wordpad document, but wold be nice to embed this into the bip and ksp file. Keeps the archive clean and satisfies my OCD for organization

[Speedster]

I like this idea!  On medical device work I often do the same thing, making notes on a separate doc that may apply to materials, colors, etc. for quick reference.  The FDA required Design History File is becoming insane, but documentation is critical.  SolidWorks has a similar "notes" capability, but it's form based, as to materials, authors, etc.  Maybe something like this?
Bill G

[DriesV]

Why would you want this included in the KeyShot scene? Isn't it common practice to keep separate documents with specifications etc.?
So that also people without access to KeyShot can view them.

@Bill
What specific "notes" capability in SOLIDWORKS are you refering to?

Dries

[Speedster]

What specific "notes" capability in SOLIDWORKS are you refering to?

File > Properties.  The drop down has a long list of subjects that you can enter data, and it remains with the associated file.

I think, at least for me, that being able to embed notes (including stupid stuff like names or contact info) into the .ksp would be great for a simple reason.  I now (having learned my lesson!) ALWAYS close out a KeyShot project with a .ksp Package, and store it off the computer, usually on a thumb in the safe.  This allows me to always have the original materials, backplates, etc. for future client use or changes, regardless of which KS build or upgrade I'm using.  Just a part of due-diligence, like creating a Pack-and-Go in SolidWorks.

Bill G

[DriesV]

@Bill

Ah yes, that makes sense.
I used to use EPDM (now SOLIDWORKS PDM Professional) when I was designing in SOLIDWORKS in my previous job. I thought maybe you were referring to that.

Dries

[mattjgerard]

Yes, this is exactly it, I would love to save the designer, engineer, and drafter info with the ksp files. Yes, we can certainly keep sepearte documentation about the projects, but doing it this way, keeping it within the ksp and bip files is much more elegant and tidy.

It is one less level of file management that I have to, well, manage.

[Speedster]

Very few of my clients use Product Data Management (PDM), usually resorting to often sloppy file management.  The more experienced clients know better, and have implemented a company-wide set of standards.

I think what's happening is that as KeyShot has moved from novelty and limited use into being a mainstream production app across many industries, our needs have evolved with it.  In the medical device industry, which is my primary, documentation is a must, as it is now in many engineering fields.  And above all, I've found that due-diligence, file management and backups are especially critical, as almost without exception the client "will be back" and expect you to remember what the heck you did two years ago.  We've all been down this road!

So in many way, it's the little stuff and efficiency tweaks that really matter, and anything that helps smooth our path is most welcome.

Bill G

[mattjgerard]

And future iterations could include pulling information about products from PIM and PDM systems. It would be awesome to have a database of products that we could punch part numbers into Keyshot and have Keyshot reach out and grab those parts and pull with it all the PIM data.

That's taking it a bit far, but it start with leaving jokes and puns in the Notes section for the next person to find That's what we used to do with our after effects projects.