• Mariusz Cechosz

  15 days ago

  The add-on is fantastic! A great purchase. There are still a few things that could be improved:

  It would be great to have something similar to a Chamfer but from the bottom, to help with shape creation. Also, having side selection options like Vertex selection in the First Bevel would be awesome if it worked similarly in the Second Bevel, not just top/bottom.
  The most important improvement would be making shape creation more intuitive. Currently, creating from different directions causes faces to overlap. It would be better if it worked more like shape creation in the Grid Modeler add-on.
  Additionally, if possible, it would be helpful to add a bevel at the junctions where shapes/boolean objects connect. I'm not sure if this is achievable, but I wanted to share ideas that would make this add-on a perfect 10/10.

• 

  Rudy MICHAU

  15 days ago

  Hello Mariusz,
  thank you for your message and for sharing your idea 😁
  I never thinked Chamfer from bottom could be useful it's why it's only from the top 😅
  About other point, it's already possible :
  - you can freely draw shape with the "shape" drawing type.
  - you can add a bevel at junctions by clicking on "add bevel" in the pie menu
  Do not hesitate to join the Discord to ask question and share improvement ideas.

  Have a nice day, Rudy
• R

  2 months ago

  Very easy to learn and intuitive tool. Must have for modeling!!

• msj

  2 months ago

  As well as buying a powerful, accessible and constantly evolving addon, you'll also have access to top-notch support via Rudy's discord.

  He is quite active there : always ready to help users of his various products, he regularly produce (video'd or written) custom mini-tutorials (which was my case, at least twice -- and the most recent being a "how to" that did not even involved Fluent at all).

  I'm not a very good Blender user, yet I use it in my work.
  Fluent is a great to, making the creation of hard surface models really easy, even tho I don't use it regularly which prove how easy it is to use it and create stuff with.

  Go for it, you won't regret it :)

• Jarek Dudziński

  3 months ago

  It's incredible tool - in youtube videos only... In practice - very unintuitive interface and 'modes' (like it was created for another app, not for Blender, although I'm not sure which, I was working with many different ones through the 20+ years in 3D and none comes to mind). Also, after moving to Blender 4.x versions I have a lot of problems / crashing / ... Basically stopped using at all after few tries of incorporating this to my main workflow.

• 

  Rudy MICHAU

  3 months ago

  Hello Jarek,
  of course, if you change your Blender version, you need to download the Fluent version accordingly.

  About interface, it's precisely because the interface and its principles are the same everywhere that the vast majority of users appreciate the addon for its ease of learning.

  I invite you to contact me to find out if you've followed any tutorials and if there's anything that doesn't seem intuitive to you so that you can help improve the tool.

  Have a nice day.
• Darren Evans

  6 months ago

  We all have a finite number of hours in our life and this fabulous tool helps you save time and avoid frustration when spending some of that time in Blender. The cherry on top is that it makes it much more fun too.

• freddy10003

  8 months ago

  I can see how this would be an awesome plugin. I'm not great yet in blender and still figuring out the tool. But even for the pipes and grill features alone it's worth it. I'm sure I haven't realised it's full potential. You do have to be pretty meticulous with button pressed but I think this will become more natural in time. The discord is very helpful and I've already made good use of pipes and it produces lovely bevels really quickly. There is a lot in here. I'm happy with it and seeing the benefits already. It does take a bit of getting used to but I can already see it's potential.

• R Brown

  10 months ago

  Although I'd love to give Fluent Power Trip a higher rating for all that you can do with it, I have to give it a dismal 2-star rating because I think the interface is truly awful (examples below) and it crashes in isolation and sometimes takes Blender 4.02 with it. The latter happened (again) five minutes ago after simply creating an object and applying First Bevels that it clearly didn't appreciate. This should never happen! I'm a retired software developer with decades of experience. I know making an interface bulletproof is a lot of work but it has to be done. I don't think Fluent is anywhere close.

  Examples of interface issues:
  1. Selecting Rectangle mode and drawing the shape using one L-click and Spacebar creates a rectangular path, rather than a filled-in shape. Nice. Selecting the Circle mode only creates a filled in circle; no circle path is possible. Huh???
  2. A R-click is used to bring up the drawing grid on faces. It's also used to validate settings, which is a recipe for endless frustration. It's very easy to think you're in a drawing mode where you can add a grid but when you're not, instead of a grid, you get bounced out with a validated object. I'm sure even experienced users encounter this annoyance.
  3. While changing the thickness and offset of an object by moving the mouse, the numeric values appear on the LHS of the screen. If you try to enter the values using the number keys, as soon as you enter a single digit, moving the mouse afterwards can still be used to change the thickness and offset but their on-screen numeric values are no longer updated.
  4. Many aspects of the interface are totally foreign to Blender, which would be fine if there was a reason but I don't see one. Example: to select a vertex (e.g. to choose the location of a bevel), you hover the mouse over the vertex and press X, which is Blender's Delete hotkey. To deselect all Fluent vertices, X is also used, unlike anything built into Blender.
  5. The Esc key works in ways I wouldn't have expected. Let's say you've just entered Creation mode then accidentally added the grid using an erroneous R-click. Does Esc help? Nope. It actually bumps you out of Creation mode and exits Fluent. If you're setting the thickness and offset of a rectangle, I'd expect pressing Esc to back me out to the point I'm drawing the rectangle. Nope, it validates the rectangle as a flat object. I've yet to figure out when Esc can be used to abandon an operation. Sometimes it can; sometimes it cannot--which is an example of my biggest frustration with the Fluent interface, i.e. it's just not consistent.
  6. Some parameters are set by dragging the mouse such as the grid resolution and object thickness and offset. I think this approach should never be used because the changes are limited by the window size. As soon as the mouse is beyond Blender's window, the parameter being edited is stuck at the value when the mouse crossed the window border. And, to make matters worse, many parameters can only be set this way, i.e. they can't be entered using the numeric keys (e.g. the grid resolution).
  7. To continue the above, another issue is repeatedly moving the mouse in and out of window focus does not guarantee the same parameter value at the moment of crossover. I'm not sure why this occurs--maybe it's just a timing issue--but it just goes to show why the process is flaky.
  8. Minor details: the scaling icon for the grid is not the same as the scaling icon for objects. Again, another inconsistency.
  9. I swear I've seen objects move in opposite directions based on the -1 to +1 offset scale, i.e. sometimes a positive value moves an object upward; sometimes it moves the object down.
  10 When editing a Fluent object, there are options on the RHS to scale and rotate the object but not to offset it along an axis. Of course, the object can be offset outside of Fluent but it can also be scaled and rotated outside of Fluent as well. All three modes should be available within Fluent to be complete (so you don't have to jump in and out unnecessarily).
  11. Selecting the Dimensions icon to edit the scale of an object brings up a 3D widget. The red and green knobs at the end of the axes enable the object to be scaled along the X and Y axes. The blue knob, presumably for scaling along the Z axis, does nothing.

  And all the above is only a partial list of things I've found annoying after only a handful of hours trying to learn Fluent. I've been making notes for myself because it's impossible to remember all the quirks but the more I write, the more I get frustrated.

  Overall, I think Fluent functionality is very good in the sense that it has features to greatly simplify modelling but it desperately needs a complete interface overhaul so that it's much easier to learn and use, which means becoming consistent in all of its modes of operation as well as with Blender conventions. For instance, I'd aim to have have input fields for every numeric parameter, possibly in a pop-up table such as the one for a newly added cube, and have icons appended to the T-panel for choosing modes of operation.

  Hope this is helpful.
  Audios

• 

  Rudy MICHAU

  10 months ago

  Hello,
  I'm sorry to hear that you're not happy with the interface that's usually hailed as Fluent's strong point.

  I'm very close to my users and all you have to do is contact me to suggest improvements and get information on how to use the addon, in addition to the tutorials available.
  I'm everyday on Discord and quikly answer to everyone.

  0. The first bevel is a basic function, here since the first day and and no bug reported form thousand of users. If you have an error, thanks to share me the python error message, the Blender and Fluent version used.
  1. Thanks for the suggestion, it's not a bug I simple didn't add this ability. I will add it, good idea.
  2. I thinked it was obvious that if nothing is drawing you can't set...nothing
  3. It's normal. Entering the value remains the priority until you press enter. This avoids losing your entry if you inadvertently move the mouse.
  4. There's a simple reason for this. Clicking is already used to bring up the menu, so it can't be used for selection.
  5. The escape key has long been a subject of debate, and I've noticed over the years that nobody expects the same thing from this key. The choice is as follows: the escape key cancels the current operation and returns to the previous step. In the case of drawings, let's imagine you want to draw a rectangle and your drawing doesn't suit you. Simply press the R key again to re-draw the rectangle as many times as you like.
  6. It's why I add ctrl/shift key to change speed. Each paramter uses the horizontal move, it's why Fluent is easy to use for many people, consitent workflow. At least, that's what I try to maintain as much as possible.
  7. Fluent is an addon, not a new Blender build. Fluent works in the Blender environnement and need to use Blender API and events. To use a Blender addon, yes, the mouse have to be in Blender window.
  8. Not the same icone for same function ? Maybe you didn't read correctly these buttons. Each "scale" button has the same icon. About the object maybe you refer to "dimension" button. It's why it's not the same icone, not the same name.
  9. It's the normal solidify modifier of Blender behavior. It's depend if you cut or add.
  10. You already can do that. Press G. In Fluent G and R still available to move and rotate the object. You can read it in the documentation and hear that in tutorials, or ask to know.
  11.Excuse me but this widget doesn't have a Z axis ! One more time, which Fluent version do you use with which Blender version ?

  The last point, and the first, raises a number of questions. The function you mention simply doesn't exist, and the bevel problem, if it did, would be worth countless returns.
  Please contact me for a constructive discussion.

  Have a nice day.
• damarez

  10 months ago

  genius addon I can not blender without it

• Nirupam Saren

  12 months ago

  great boost in work

• Rafaele Marcoli

  12 months ago

  It’s very rarely that I put a maximum of 5 stars.
  I have been using 3D not so long ago. Fluent has helped me a lot with complex objects and with the results I got, I can go above the frustration (that could let me down) thanks to the super intuitive side!

  The community and especially the creator is always present and fast to answer my questions on discord!
  A tool is good, but a solid community ( English/ French) that expects in return the satisfaction of helping you, is even better! Basically I can advise him, even to the beginner!

  For me, Fluent Stressless modeling Tool/ Fluent Materializer reconciled me with 3D
  ...
  C'est ultra rare que je mette le maximum d'étoile, mais touchant à la 3D depuis peu de temps, fluent a pu me consoler avec les objets très complexes, et aux vues des résultats que j'obtiens, je passe au dessus de la frustration qui pourrait me faire lâcher grâce au côté super intuitif !

  La commu et surtout le créateur est limite tout aussi présent et rapide qu'une i.a 24h/24 pour répondre à mes questions sur le discord !
  Un outil, c'est bien, mais une commu solide ( Anglais/Francais) qui n'attend en retour que la satisfaction de t'aider, c'est encore mieux ! En gros je peux le conseiller, même au débutant !

  Pour, moi, Fluent modeling Tool / Fluent Materializer m'a réconcilié avec la 3D

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