This behavior is controlled by the Refresh Previews plugin option. Material previews can be rendered manually this way, or they may be generated in real-time via Maxwell Fire, updating automatically whenever a material parameter is changed. While a preview is rendering, its current sampling level will be shown in the lower left corner of the image. To render or re-render the preview for the current material, click the Render Preview (small arrows) button, located near the lower right corner of the preview image if the preview is already rendering, clicking this button will cause it to stop. The plugin uses Maxwell Fire to provide real-time material editing. PreviewĪt the top of the material editor, you will find a material preview image, a place to store notes about the material, a drop-down to select the preview scene used by this material, and a slider used to set the target SL (Sampling Level) used whenever this material's preview is rendered. This (toggle) button switches the selected material between its Embedded and MXM modes. Materials may be selected here, or by selecting them in SketchUp. This drop-down provides a list of the materials contained in the SketchUp document. This button is provided as a convenience clicking it simply assigns the current material to the current SketchUp selection. This button toggles the activation state of the plugin's Select Tool. They are cleared when a new document is opened, or when a different material is selected.
These two drop-down lists hold the history of actions which have been executed in the material panel. The Materials panel's toolbar contains the following items: Undo/Redo The material editor interface has two main sub-panels, one which holds the material preview and any notes stored with the material, and a second, which is used to set various physical parameters of the material.
When a material is selected, either by selecting a SketchUp material in the SketchUp materials browser, or by selecting a material from the drop-down at the top of the Materials page, these parameters are made available for editing in the plugin's material editor user interface. Materials in the plugin exist as a set of parameters which are attached to each individual SketchUp material contained in the document.