A brief introduction to Blender

# Blender v2.4x series

1. About
2. Package Contents and Install
3. Getting Started:

1. Running
2. First steps, The 3d View

4. Resources
5. Troubleshooting
6. (FAQ) A few remarks

## 1. About

Welcome to the world of Blender! The program you have now in your hands is a free and fully functional 3D modeling, animation, rendering, compositing, video editing and game creation suite. It is available for Unix-based (Linux, Mac OS X, etc.) and Windows systems and has a large world-wide community.

Blender is free to be applied for any purpose, including commercial usage and distribution. It's free and open-source software, released under the GNU GPL licence. The full program sources are available on our website.

For impatient readers, here the two most important links:

www.blender.org the main website
wiki.blender.org the documentation website

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## 2. Package Contents and Install

This is what you should get from a downloaded Blender package:

- The Blender program for some specific platform;
- This text, with links and the copyright notice;
- A basic set of scripts, including importers and exporters to other 3d formats.

The latest version for all supported platforms can always be found at the main Blender site, along with documentation, sample .blend files, many scripts, plugins and more.

If you are interested in the development of the program, information for coders and the CVS repository with the sources can be found at the developer's section of the site.

### Installation notes:

Installing is mostly a matter of executing a self-installer package or unpacking it to some folder. Blender has a minimum of system dependencies (like OpenGL and SDL), and doesn't install by overwriting libraries in your system. There are also some extra files needed for a good install, like an antialiased font and standard python scripts, but these are optional. Typically these will go to your HOME/.blender/ directory. Below you find instructions for it per OS.

Windows: the .exe installer handles registry of file types for you. The .zip download has a .blender directory included, which can be manually copied.
The directory .blender is located by Blender while checking the following list:
- whether environment variable HOME exists,
- or, if environment USERPROFILE exists, and the installer has created there the Application Data\Blender Foundation\Blender\ directory,
- or it uses the .blender directory from the installation directory (where blender.exe resides)
Also note that Blender comes with two dll files, which have to reside next to blender.exe.

Linux, FreeBSD, Irix, Solaris: after unpacking the distribution, you can copy the .blender directory from it to your home directory.

OSX: the .blender directory is in Blender.app/Contents/Resources/. This is being located by default. If you like to alter some of the files, copy this directory to your home dir.

Other settings:
There are many paths you can set in Blender itself, to tell it where to look for your collections of texture and sound files, fonts, plugins and additional scripts, besides where it should save rendered images, temporary data, etc. If you're only starting, there's no need to worry about this now.

Python:
Some downloaded scripts may require extra Python modules not shipped with Blender. Installing the whole Python distribution is a way to solve this issue for most cases except scripts that require extensions (3rd party modules), but we are starting to add more modules to Blender itself so that most scripts don't depend on full Python installs anymore. This is mostly about Windows, in other platforms Python is usually a standard component nowadays, so unless there's a version mismatch or an incomplete py installation, there should be no problems.

Even if you do have the right version of Python installed you may need to tell the embedded Python interpreter where the installation is. To do that it's enough to set a system variable called PYTHON to the full path to the stand-alone Python executable (to find out execute "import sys; print sys.executable" inside the stand-alone interpreter, not in Blender). To check which Python was linked to your Blender binary, execute "import sys; print sys.version" at Blender's text editor), it's probably 2.5.something -- only the two first numbers should have to match with yours.

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## 3. Getting Started

Blender's main strength is at modeling, animating and rendering 3d scenes, from simple cubes and monkey heads to the complex environments found in videogames and movies with computer graphics (CG) art.

Rendering is the process of generating 2d images from 3d data (basically lit 3d models) as if viewed by a virtual camera. In simple terms, rendering is like taking a picture of the scene, but with many more ways to influence the results. Blender comes with a very flexible renderer and is well integrated with the open source YafRay package. There are also scripts to export to other popular third party renderers like Povray and Renderman compliant ones. By animating the data and rendering pictures of each successive frame, movie sequences can be created.

In compositing a set of techniques is used to add effects to rendered images and combine these into a single frame. This is how, for example, artists add laser beams, glows and dinosaurs to motion pictures. Blender also has builtin support for video sequence editing and sound synchronization.

The game engine inside Blender lets users create and play nifty 3d games, complete with 3d graphics, sound, physics and scripted rules.

Via scripting the program's functionality can be automated and extended in real-time with important new capabilities. True displacement mapping, for example, is now part of the core program, but before that it was already possible using scripts. Since they are written in a nice higher-level programming language -- Python in our case -- development is considerably faster and easier than normal C/C++ coding. Naturally, they run slower than compiled code, but still fast enough for many purposes or for mixed approaches like some plugins use.

### Running:

Depending on your platform, the installation may have put an icon on your desktop and a menu entry for Blender. If not, it's not hard to do that yourself for your favorite window manager.

But for more flexibility, you can execute Blender from a shell window or command-line prompt. Try "blender -h" to see all available options.

Blender saves data in its own custom binary format, using ".blend" as extension. The default start-up configuration is saved in a file in your home directory called .B.blend. To save your changes to it, click on File->Save Default Settings or use the Control+u shortcut directly.

### First steps:

This is the point where we stop and warn newcomers that 3d Computer Graphics is a vast field and Blender has a lot of packed functionality. If you already tried to run it and fell victim to the "too many buttons!" syndrome, just relax and read this part of the F.A.Q.

Hoping the explanations helped, let's start Blender and take a look at it. At the top header you can see the main menu. Under "File" you'll find entries to save, load and quit. If someone ever messes with your workspace and you can't find your way around: use the menu File->Load Factory settings.

Blender's screen is divided in "areas". Each of them has a top or bottom header and can show any of the available builtin applications (called "spaces", like the 3d View, the Text Editor, etc). If you started with a default configuration, there should now be three areas:

- A thin strip at the top where you can see the header of the User Preferences Window (its header is also Blender's main menu);
- A big one in the middle with the 3d View, where you model and preview your scenes;
- A smaller at the bottom with the Buttons Window, where you add and configure most of your scene data.

These are the three most important spaces, at least when you are starting. At the left corner of each header you can find the "Window Types" button, which is like the "Start" buttom of many desktop environments. Clicking on it lets you change what is shown in that area.

Highly configurable workspace

Blender's interface has been considerably improved for the 2.3x series. Besides the goals of exposing functionality via menus and adding tooltips for all buttons, there are even more ways now to change your workspace.

As before, areas can be resized, subdivided in two or joined; headers can be moved to the top or bottom of an area or hidden completely. Just experiment to find out how, it's trivial. Hint: the mouse cursor changes to a double arrow when it is over the inter-area edges.

There should be a button with "SCR:" in the top header. It has some preset workspaces that can be tried now for a tour of the possibilities. When you change your current setup to something worth keeping, that same button has the option to save the new screen.

Since version 2.30 Blender lets users define new color themes that can also be shared with others when saved in the default startup .B.blend file.

The User Preferences space has many options there that you may want to tweak, like turning button tooltips on/off, setting paths, etc. Just remember to save your configuration if you want to keep it for the next session). Since these preferences are not saved in regular .blend files, the presets will retain working even when loading files from others. Note however, that the arrangement of the UI itself - its screens and windows - are always saved in each file.

### The 3d View:

Mouse buttons and the toolbox

Pressing the SPACEBAR or Shift+a while the mouse pointer is inside a 3d View space will open up the toolbox. The toolbox gives you faster access to many functions, like adding new objects to your scene, editing their properties, selecting and so on.

This is how the mouse buttons work in this space:

- Left button: anchor the 3d cursor in a new location -- it defines where your next added object will appear, among other things.
- Right button: selection. If you hold it and move, you can move the selected item around.
- Middle button: 3d space rotation or translation -- choose which one in one of the User Preferences tabs.

Combinations of mouse buttons and Shift or Control will give you additional options like zooming, panning and restricted movement. 3d scenes can be seen from any position and orientation, but there are some default ones you can reach with Numpad buttons or the "View" menu in the 3d View's header.

Edit Mode

When you want to edit the vertices of a mesh, for example, it's necessary to select the object and enter "Edit Mode", either using the 3d View header "Mode" button or by pressing TAB on your keyboard (press it again to return to object mode).

And this was only the beginning ...

The above guidelines should have given new users enough to start playing with the interface. The next section lists online references that can actually teach about 3d and this program, but it's a good idea to spend some time just playing with Blender, looking at menus and finding what mouse actions do in each space.

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## 4. Resources

- www.blender.org - the general site, with documentation and downloads
- www.blenderartists.org - the main user community web site
- projects.blender.org - the project's site

This short presentation is meant to guide newcomers to Blender through their very first steps, giving directions to where you can find the resources you will need. We can't teach you 3D in these few lines of text, that would take a lengthy book.

Irc users are invited to try #blenderchat on irc.freenode.net .

There are also local Blender community sites in some countries, that should be listed at the Community section of the main site.

If you are a coder wanting to get in touch with Blender development, a good read is the "Get Involved" page at www.blender.org. A good way to start is to follow the mailing lists for a while and check bug reports, to see if you can fix one. On irc.freenode.net: #blendercoders you'll find many active developers, here also the weekly meetings take place.

### Other useful links

In the realm of open-source cg programs, it's a pleasure to mention other great projects that can help you achieve your visions. Note that these programs are completely independent from Blender and have their own sites, documentation and support channels. Note also that this list is not complete and should be updated on future versions of this text.

The Gimp
  The mighty GNU Image Manipulation Program. In 3d work it is a valuable resource to create, convert and, of course, manipulate texture images. It is also useful for work with rendered pictures, for example to add 2d text, logos or to touch-up, apply factory or hand-made effects and compose with other images.

#### Renderers:

YafRay
  A currently inactive but very impressive program. Blender has builtin support for it.
Povray
  One of the best and most popular renderers in the world. There is a script to export Blender scenes to be rendered with it.
Renderman-compliant: open-source: Aqsis, Pixie. Closed-source: 3delight.
  The Renderman spec was created by Pixar years ago to define both a standard and powerful representation of 3d data for renderers and the expected quality of the renderization itself. Think about 3d art from some movie -- it was much probably created by Pixar's own Photorealistic Renderman (PRMan) renderer. This is a good site to learn more: The Renderman Academy. Neither Pixar nor its products are affiliated with Blender.

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## 5. Troubleshooting

If something isn't working, please read this entire section before looking for help.

- General start-up and usage problems
- Video card blues
- Scripts
- The Bug Tracker

### General start-up and usage problems

If the program crashes or something isn't working properly, try running Blender in debug mode: execute it as "blender -d" from a command prompt. This might give some info about what is wrong. There are also other options that might be useful, "blender -h" lists all of them.
Most likely an immediate crash is due to Blender's need for a compliant and stable working OpenGL.

### Video card blues

Although OpenGL is cherished as an excellent cross platform library, the enormous growth of different 3D cards have made this a complicated affair for Blender. Unlike other programs - or 3D games - Blender utilizes OpenGL for its entire GUI, including buttons and pulldown menus. That means also the 2D options for OpenGL should work good, something easily ignored or badly tested by 3D card manufacturors, who target more at the latest SFX features for new 3D games.
In general Blender performs very well on 3D cards from renowned brands, such as NVidia, ATI or 3DLabs.

### Scripts

To be sure that some functionality is scripted: all scripts in Blender can be accessed from the "Scripts" menu in the Scripts Window's header, even if the same functionality is also in another menu somewhere. If you see an entry in one of the submenus there, it refers to a script. Please don't report problems with scripts to the bug tracker or other normal Blender channels. You should find the author's site or contact email in the script's text itself, but usually the Python & Plugins forum at Blenderartists.org is used for posting announcements, questions, suggestions and bug reports related to scripts. It's the recommended place to look first, specially if no site was specified at the script's window or source file(s).

If some or all scripts that should appear in menus are not there, running Blender in debug mode can possibly inform what is wrong. Make sure the reported dir(s) really exist.

### The Bug Tracker

If you really think you found a new bug in Blender, check the Bug Tracker entries at the projects site and if it was not reported yet, please log in (or register) and fill in detailed information about the error. A small .blend file or script (if it is a problem with the Blender Python API) showcasing the bug can help a lot.

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## 6. (FAQ) A few remarks

1. Quick tips.
2. What's up with the interface?
3. How good is Blender? How does it compare to other 3d programs?
4. Something doesn't work, what do I do?

### Quick tips:

Rendering: to see something when you render (F12) an image, make sure the scene has a camera pointing at your models (camera view is NumPad 0) and at least one light properly placed. Otherwise you'll only get a black rectangle.

Setting texture map input to "uv" in the Material Buttons window is not enough to assign a texture image and uv data to a mesh. It's necessary to select the mesh, enter edit mode, indicate face selection mode (modes can be accessed in the 3d view's header), load an image in the UV/Image Editor window and then define a mapping (or unwrapping). Only then the mesh will have uv data available for exporting.

If you want the fastest possible access to Blender's functionality, remember what a wise power user wrote: "keep one hand on the keyboard and the other on the mouse". Learn and use the shortcuts, configure your workspace to your needs.

### What's up with the interface?

Blender uses a couple of innovative paradigms in the UI, not following more common, somewhat standard rules for user interfaces. In the past years several of our interface concepts have been adopted in more programs though, especially using a configurable non-overlapping subdivision layout and the paradigm to never block the UI from working by offering all editors and options in parallel.
Typically free programs offer easy-to-use interfaces for large audiences. Blender however is, like other high-end 3D tools, meant to be a powerful production tool for professionals and 3D enthusiasts, for people who are dedicated to become 3D artists with enough time and motivation to master the software.
This also has its origins in the 90ies, when Blender was born as an in-house studio tool, optimized to speed up daily heavy work, and not to please everyone. But it's true that you can consider Blender's interface to be not very newbie-friendly. Luckily you only have to learn it once, and once you get the basics it'll feel like 2nd nature!

Blender also has been considerably improved since the 2.3x series, exposing most functionality via menus, adding panels, color "themability", tooltips for all buttons and internationalization support. This is an ongoing effort or, better, a goal to keep the best ideas in Blender's design while expanding and making it more user-friendly.

Too many buttons!

Again, 3D Computer Graphics is a vast and fun field. If you're only starting, Blender can seem daunting, specially because of all its packed functionality. Don't let that upset you, there is no need to care about all those buttons right now -- or ever.

There are basic things all users should learn early up:

- Start the program and access the main menus;
- Find and configure user preferences;
- Basic scene set-up: how to add and transform (move, scale, rotate) lights, cameras and objects;
- Create and link materials to objects, at least to color them;
- Render your scenes.

One hour is enough time to assimilate and practice that before going on with basic mesh editing and texturing, for example. There are many different areas to learn about. Taste, interaction with other users and your main interests (game art, rendered stills, movies) will guide you and define the skills you'll want to master. Then it goes like a spiral: practice something for a while, study and find about new tricks or whole new areas, practice a little more and so on. Soon you'll become pleased to have all those buttons to play with. A few more months and you'll probably be back asking for more ...

### How good is Blender?

If you ever get the impression that it's not possible to create great looking or complex works with Blender, rejoice -- you are just plainly uninformed, as browsing blender.org galleries and community forums can easily confirm.

### How does it compare to other 3d programs?

In short: it takes considerable dedication to become good, no matter which program you work with, as long as it is good enough not to get in your way. Blender has, like the others, its strong and weak points.

Compared to commercial alternatives, Blender misses some features and isn't as "newbie-friendly". It doesn't come packed with "one-click" or "wizard" functionality, where you get much faster results in detriment of flexibility and value. It also isn't bundled with tens of megabytes of sample models, texture images, tutorials, etc. (which only partly explains how Blender can fit in such a small download).

Thankfully, these are relatively minor shortcomings. Many of Blender's modeling, animation and rendering/compositing features are up-to-par with the industry standards. The pace at which features are being added or polished in Blender is impressive, now that it's a well stablished open source project. We get daily feedback from professionals and studios using Blender, and results from the Blender Foundation's Open Movie/Game projects such as Big Buck Bunny and Yo Frankie! have set a reference standard for what a program like Blender can achieve. More: through plugins and scripting, many repetitive or otherwise cumbersome tasks can be made trivial. But plugin and script authors go further, teaching Blender new tricks, from importers and exporters to more advanced "applications".

About goodies, there are many places where you can get them (check resources). Besides the many available Blender books, the main site and blenderartists.org are the best ones to start. For free texture images, a simple search for "free textures" should bring many results, just pay attention to their licenses if you plan to release your work later.

Commercial packages might make it easier for newbies to produce nice looking material, but only another newbie would praise the results. There's a huge difference between what a skilled artist and someone poking at buttons and using presets can accomplish.

Last but best of all: Blender is open-source, free for all to use, study and improve.

Thanks for reading, we hope you enjoy Blender!

Document version 1.1, Sept 2008

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