Assinging multiple images to one object, getting image thumbnails when browsing them

This is for Blender 2.49b. I am using this because the plugin PrPRP does not work with any other version of Blender, and I wanted to learn and master this older version of Blender. I am making a set of tutorials that show the viewer how to make their own ages for Myst Uru Complete Chronicles (Uru CC) and a similar process works for Myst Online Uru Live (MOUL.)

OK, so two issues… I click on Image and browse for an image. In the File Browser window how do I see thumbnails of my images? If there is no way to see thumbnails, can I make the text any bigger?

The other thing is, how to I apply multiple textures, within a single material, on an object? Or should I do multiple materials, each with their own texture? Which way is the best to go, why, and in the case of using multiple textures in a single material, what is the exact correct process?

Also loosely related to this… Should I mark seams for each area that will be using a different material/texture? So I have seams at the bottom and tops of the walls since the wall tops and the floors will be different textures? I was just projecting to view because I found that easier.

I have information on using multiple materials, and will be experimenting.

Thank you for your help.

OK, so two issues… I click on Image and browse for an image. In the File Browser window how do I see thumbnails of my images? If there is no way to see thumbnails, can I make the text any bigger?

No, the preview file browser did not come til later. You r best bet with the 2.4x series is to keep a separate OS browser open to find your file so you can preview and know for sure which one it is.

The other thing is, how to I apply multiple textures, within a single material, on an object? Or should I do multiple materials, each with their own texture? Which way is the best to go, why, and in the case of using multiple textures in a single material, what is the exact correct process?

You can use multiple materials based on face assignment, but your example is hard to demonstrate here since I have only the later version of Blender. Suffice to say there is a limit to how many materials your object can have, but you cn then use multiple objects.

Seams are for unwrapping properly, not really for material boundary. If you are going to need this all as one image/one material, you cna probably find a script in the UV Image Editor in 2.4X versions that can combine your multiple images into one UV map and one image, though it has been years since I remember using it.

Still researching this, but here is what I have so far. First some definitions so we’re on the same page.

Material: Surface data applied to an object.
Texture: Surface data, in this case an image, applied to a material.

It’s just so confusing when people refer to textures as materials, because the two are not the same thing. Blender applies materials to an object, and textures are added inside of materials. You can correct me if I am wrong on this.

So… Using the default scene/cube as an example. Typically it already has a material applied. If it doesn’t I can add one. Then I can add more materials if I want. Each material can have multiple textures. So I assign Material IDs to each face or collection of faces or whatever, and then each material can have its own unique texture, so in this way I can put multiple textures on an object. This method then is using multiple materials to apply multiple textures. However using this method you have to apply a material for every texture you want to add to your object.

My question then is this… Using the default cube, default material, can I apply multiple textures to a single material? Remember, each material can have multiple textures, so it seems like this should be something you can do. But if you can, should you? Why or why not? How exactly do you go about doing this? Are there texture IDs you assign or some other way to associate different parts of an object with the different textures? How do you have multiple textures applied to an object using a single material?

I look for Blender multiple textures in YouTube and I keep finding the first method, that of applying multiple textures to multiple materials. I want to know if that is the best and/or only way to do this, or if there is another way.

Thank you for all your help so far!

One way of achieving what you want might indeed be UV unwrapping your object and using a matching texture - though that’s (technically speaking) not using multiple textures, but rather one texture with multiple “areas”.

The workflow is as this:
Imagine your object as being made out of paper. You cut it open along certain edges (“seams”) and basically lay it out flat in front of you. This will give you a 2D interpretation of your 3D mesh with certain “islands” representing the different parts (“UV layout”). Now you create an image texture that matches the various islands. Man, this is harder to describe than to do… :wink:


Very basic example: This cube has only one material and one texture, but still all 6 sides look completely different.

IMHO this method will offer the greatest flexibility and compatibility when exporting to other apps.

OK, my understanding is that this method is texture painting. Is that correct? And it is related in some way to texture baking, both methods of which are what you typically use for video game.

Thabk you for sharing it. I was aware of this. I just wanted to be clear about multiple textures.

OK, so now I have two texturing methods… I can paint the UVs, either in Blender or by exporting them to Gimp, or I can use multiple materials to apply multiple texture.

Not quite true. If you want to use the blender image editor window and open a file while showing thumbnails you hold down the Ctrl key as you press the Image / Open menu.

I am grateful that is not the case in the 2.6x and up

Status update…

The thumbnail preview is awesome and a big help - again thank you!

I have been messing around with this, watching videos, and have come to an understanding. Please tell me if I am wrong.

Each material in Blender has multiple channels that control how that material appears projected onto an object. In other words, the material is the composite of all the things in its channels.

So what was throwing me here was that materials had all these slots (what I thought of for some reason as texture slots), but they are really channels. They are there so you can put in a texture, its normal map, its ambient occlusion map, its difference map, an any other effect or map you want. You can add something like 10 or 12 or whatever number of channels there are of these.

This means that the only way, outside of texture painting, to get multiple textures projected onto an object is to use multiple materials, and you can change the final appearance of each material, how it is projected on your object, by using each material’s multiple channels.

Is that about right? Do I have it figured out?

Thanks again!

This means that the only way, outside of texture painting, to get multiple textures projected onto an object is to use multiple materials,

No.

A material can have mutiple textures and each texture has their own setting of how they are mapped to the object. An object can have up to 8 sets of UV coordinates and you can specify which UVs you want to use with any particular texture.

If you want to apply a texture just to one particlar set of faces you may find it easier to just use seperate materials