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Content Library pane came first and it shows only those files that can be directly loaded from it, none of the other file types you mentioned can be applied through it, it is not meant to be a general explorer type window.
I dunno, I'd think "production" is when you'd be least likely to use Content Library.
I get that you have control over what shows up, to some extent, but when Content Library fails to show stuff that's in a folder, that is loss of control from my perspective. Windows Explorer shows everything in a folder. Content Library doesn't. How is that "complete control"?
And Smart Content automates the entire process and shows all your DAZ content, icons and everything. Presumably you can tweak the database to put stuff in the correct location, so why isn't that "control"?
Seems like Smart Content, plus Windows Explorer together are "complete control"
Sorry guys, I'm just not understanding what you find so awesome about Content Library.
@ebergerly
The regular content tab reads folders. What you place there it reads. What you change it reads. This is control. The smart content reads from the PostgreSQL DB. If the DB fails for any reason you're stuck. You have no direct control over it. The same is for the DAZ Connect thingy vs manual install.
But my way of working is just to get the high security and reliability that is needed in production. You may not need them at this level. So if you're happy your way it's fine.
I must be missing something really basic here, because everyone keeps saying it's awesome because it reads stuff in folders. Maybe we have different versions of D|S, but a lot of what I place in the folders read by Content Library doesn't show up in Content Library:
Nothing shows up in Content Library to indicate those files exist. That's all content, or content-related.
Anyway, it looks like we're just coming from different perspectives, so I'll drop, and just scratch my head.
"Related" isn't close enough, whether you measure in horseshoes or hand-grenades. Content Library shows content files that you can load directly into a scene; the file types you've listed aren't content files, they're (with exceptions*) files that are never meant to be directly loaded into a scene, they're referred by lines of data in the content files.
* Those exceptions; .txt files (which DAZ doc files don't use anyway) are irrelevant to a D|S scene, and .3ds files have never been a format supported by D|S anyway (if you want to use a .3ds file, you have to convert it to a format like .obj).
I load JPG into scenes all the time. I load PNG into scenes all the time. I load HDR into scenes all the time.
Heck, at least it could show a little icon telling me it exists. But nothing.
Anyway, I'm clearly in the minority on this so I'll drop it.
I don't think you need to "drop it because you're in the minority." It's just that there's a disconnect between what you think you should be seeing and what others are accustomed to seeing. It's a difference in perspective, and nothing more. That's my sense of the conversation so far, anyway. I urge all to be patient. I'm thinking miscommunication is happening because too many assumptions are being made. For example, you rebutted Spotted Kitty's response - which was correct - because you "load jpgs and pngs into scenes all the time." Well that's not technically true; you can't load a jpg all by itself into a scene. You can apply a jpg to the surface of an object loaded into the scene, but that's not the same thing. For example, you load a primitive plane object into a DAZ scene and apply a jpg to it to give the appearance of a movie screen. You're right. You can't see the jpgs in the Content Directory (because DAZ can't load them as is so what's the point of putting them there?). But when you select the plane and go to the Surfaces tab, you click the image map for the Diffuse or Base Color channel and open a dialog to browse to the image you want. But if you keep Microsoft Office documents in the same folder as your desired image, they won't show up because DAZ can't load those as surface properties. Make sense?
So yes, if you expect the Content Pane to function as Windows Explorer, you'll be disappointed. But why would it? What do you expect would happen if the Content Pane displayed your Word documents? If you clicked one, would you expect DAZ to display it for you?
No, I get it, I just don't see the point of the Content Library. If you install DAZ and non-DAZ (like Renderosity) content the way you should, it appears in Smart Content. If it doesn't fit into the strict "content" category like I described (JPEG's, etc.), then the only thing that recognizes it ALL is Windows Explorer. And Explorer even gives you preview icons.
So why would I want something whose only differentiation is that it reads OBJ's? And moreover, it doesn't give a preview icon of OBJ's, etc, like some Explorer-type applications designed for graphics folks (like P3DO Explorer) that actually give you a preview image of your OBJ mesh.
I'm *guessing* that what people like is the ability to get away from the database associated with Smart Content, and would rather manually set up their folders, filled with strict "content", rather than use the Smart Content way of sorting.
And that's fine, and after all the times I'm searcing thru Materials...no Shaders...no Shader Sets...and so on, I can start to understand how they might want to define the categories.
I use the Content Library exclusively because I know where everything is. (It's right where I put it, because I do manual installs only.) Frankly I see the Smart Content function as redundant and unreliable. Granted, it did take me a long time to figure out why Shaders are listed under "Shader Presets" and not under an object's properties, but now it makes perfect sense to me. As it will to you once you get accustomed to how Content is supposed to work (and jettison any preconceptions). It all comes down to personal preference. Its advantage is that it never malfunctions because the metadata is incorrect. I hope that helps :)
Are you sure? Those fiels can be loaded into image-mapped proeprties, of which there are many, but I'm not aware of a way to simply load them into a scene without picking a target property.
So, compared to Smart Content, do you make an entire list of personalized directories for Content Library to refer to? And you install to those manually? And you keep all your non-content (texture images, etc.) in a separate location?
And I guess that means you can't use the DIM to automatically do the installs?
Maybe I just don't have enough content for it to make a big difference for me yet. Yeah, often I have to hunt for stuff because it's not where it should be (or at least I *think* it should be...), but re-arranging it manually seems like more trouble than it's worth.
I don't start from scratch; I start with the basic file structure DAZ already uses. It goes: My DAZ 3D Library/Animals (/Environments) (/Light Presets) (/People) (/Props) (Render Presets) (/Shader Presets) etc. There are others in there too, but DIM will install all content in that directory. But it will do so in the way that the vendors packaged it, and therein lies the rub. Most vendors try to do things more or less the same way. Some don't. Others try but fall short. Others do it the way the've always done it since Poser was new, before DAZ spun off on its own. If the Vendor misspells a directory like People/Genesis 3 Female(s) instead of the proper Genesis 3 Female, then DIM will create the parallel directory just like it was told. And then you, the user, have to know that if you're looking for this specific item, it'll be in its own misspelled file path. It happens. Plus, vendors add many layers of unnecessary subdirectories. For example, they tend to organize their packages by Vendor name so that all their products are together. It makes perfect sense if you're a vendor - but it doesn't work for me as a user. If I'm looking for a clothing outfit, I expect to find it under the name of the clothing outfit, not under the name of the vendor that I might or might not have noticed when I bought it. So instead of My DAZ 3D Library/People/Genesis 3 Female/Clothing/Vendor/Clothing Item/Materials/Iray (and possibly other extra subdirectories like Props with ITS own Materials folder with nothing but Iray and 3Delight folders in THAT), I simplify it. My DAZ 3D Library/People/Genesis 3 Female/Clothing/Clothing Item Vendor Name File Type (if obj or cr2 or pp2)/Iray. I do the same for all the directories I use, like /Environments and /Shader Presets (which is the same as the older /Shaders, so I combined the two). /Props was particularly cumbersome. And yes, I had to reconstruct my entire library for that to work. A few days of effort for me, but you know what? I haven't lost ANYTHING since. Not once. Whereas before, I never knew where even to LOOK. And Smart Content was no help. Frustrating in the extreme.
I also didn't know, that half the things I was accumulating were either obsolete but still importable (like .cr2), incompatible with DAZ (like .3ds), designed for obsolete figures like Dawn, Dusk, and Victoria 4, or usable by import only (like .obj). No wonder I couldn't find anything. But not having that problem every time I go looking for a prop I know I have but can't find allows me time to learn how to use DAZ for real. And that's worth a lot. Does that make sense?
It's an effect of the way the categories are set, but sometimes it's better to use the Content Library view - for example, with some shader sets where there may be a folder for the base, the folders for additions that should be applied after the base and perhaps in a sequence. The Content Library also provides a starting point for categorisation, and baseline check for troubleshooting.
"And you install to those manually? And you keep all your non-content (texture images, etc.) in a separate location?"
Yes, and Yes. Two images are attached, showing the contents of the separate hard drive I have just for DAZ content. They are:
1) I:\DAZ (my own personal organization)
2) I:\Users (duplicated from the default DAZ Studio organization and tweaked to suit my needs)
I have DIM install to 1) when I use DIM - rarely. Most of the time the Manual Download is part and parcel of Manual Install, so I get to tell it where I want it. I also tell DAZ Studio's CMS database to link to location 2) instead of its default. I download the .zip or .rar file to 1), then unpack it there and organize it so matches the structure of directory 2). I can be more specific about my install process if you're curious. It's easier than it sounds. Once it's organized, I just drag it over and delete the remnants from 1).
But I also keep all my image files in 1) that I use on the characters I create. (Ok, so like comics!) My own opacity maps for clothing items, bump maps, etc. But so far, I also don't create my own models. If I did that, I imagine I'd need a whole 'nother workflow and file structure. This suits me for now.
Smart Content pane will only show content that has associated meta-data support files. Content from other site often don't have the support files and will not appear in the Smart Content pane making it far less useful than the Content Library pane.