Tool for packing & zipping files needed to redistribute custom content

joneienleah

I wanted to make a prodct suggestion I think is long overdo, at least an updated version. Something vendors can use as well as Daz users that just want to organize and package their custom created content. 

So I have been looking for an easy tool to use so I can easily gather and backup all files needed for custom characters I created. I don't plan to distribute them, but wanted to package them like sellers on Daz and Renderosity so that I can easily reinstall them from backed up files if I ever lost the files or needed to do a Daz clean install on a new computer. All of the threads reference Content Gatherer (https://www.daz3d.com/content-gatherer) which seems to be a very old tool but no one else has made anything like this more recently. Since it is an old product and there were references that the creator was no longer with us (on Daz or on Earth, I don't know, don't have the full story here), but there isn't support for it anymore and the way it works seems outdated, not very streamlined. At the moment I am having trouble using the tool to create a list of just the files that are needed for my custom asset and zipping them, instead of my entire Daz content library.

Anyway I am hoping someone will create an updated version of this tool that is easier to use and fully supported. It seems that only a handful of people are using Content Gatherer or they are just manually gathering the files with the necessary paths in order to package for redistribution. But this seems so tedious to do, especially for heavy content creators. Seems their time should be spent more on making great content instead of tedious tasks like packaging. :)

Thanks.

NorthOf45

Try Content Package Assist. The Content Gatherer is good for finding the files if they are scattered all over a library or two, but CPA will pull it all together.

Lissa_xyz

I create a dummy library and list it as the first runtime in my library manager (daz studio saves any /data to the first listed library), and save any content for that project to that library following the same folder structure daz libraries use. At that point I can just zip up the library itself and distribute that.

Succulent Fruit

So basically there is no solution? Its been how many years since Content Gatherer was created, and still no one has a functional tool for compiling models to package? Content Gatherer is absolute garbage, I've never been able to get it to actually weed out the files associated with my model, it always adds every single product in my library to my file list, despite me carefully selecting only the few files associated with the package, and excluding anything else. 

 

And no, doing it manually is not usually possible. I packaged a character I designed for a paying customer, using only the files I knew were associated with the model, and a few hours later he contacted me with a Daz error saying my model was missing associated files that I didn't even know existed. This is a serious issue for people paying real money for products or commisions, as this will anger customers and potentially ruin a seller's reputation. 

 

There NEEDS to be a proper functional tool for compiling dependent files for a package. The fact that Daz devs haven't created or released one is a massive problem. One of many huge problems with the so-called "professional" side of the Daz business, frankly. 

frank0314

A lot of PA's use dummy folders to save everything to so it's all in one place and then you just remove the unneeded folders when it's done. There is no fix all solution that I'm aware of.

Richard Haseltine

Succulent Fruit said:

So basically there is no solution? Its been how many years since Content Gatherer was created, and still no one has a functional tool for compiling models to package? Content Gatherer is absolute garbage, I've never been able to get it to actually weed out the files associated with my model, it always adds every single product in my library to my file list, despite me carefully selecting only the few files associated with the package, and excluding anything else. 

 

And no, doing it manually is not usually possible. I packaged a character I designed for a paying customer, using only the files I knew were associated with the model, and a few hours later he contacted me with a Daz error saying my model was missing associated files that I didn't even know existed. This is a serious issue for people paying real money for products or commisions, as this will anger customers and potentially ruin a seller's reputation. 

Custom files you had created? As frank says, use a separate content directory to save any assets you create and you can just save the presets there, add a read me, and zip it up. If the user has the required content installed then there should be no missing files from other soruces, it is incumbent on you to know what products you are using and to ensure that the client has purchased all the necessary licenses.

 

There NEEDS to be a proper functional tool for compiling dependent files for a package. The fact that Daz devs haven't created or released one is a massive problem. One of many huge problems with the so-called "professional" side of the Daz business, frankly.