Unfortunately I’m getting a traceback error as soon as I hit connect… this is the message. I’m using 2.64a, win64. Im able to add it, but when I press connect it causes the error above. Just an additional note, I have used this add on successfully in other versions of blender.
this is where the folder is being placed — C:\Program Files\Blender Foundation\Blender\2.64\scripts\addons
A interface from within Blender would definitely be possible, but a web interface would have to come first.
Right now, though, you’ll just have to send me the .bcm code for a material in a private message, or in a reply to this thread.
OSL and Python nodes (don’t know if the latter are for materials) will not be hard to implement at all.
This is unfortunately a problem with where the add-on is looking for data files.
I don’t yet know how to make the add-on check for stuff in the location it’s installed in.
I’ll look into it, but for now there’s a simple way to fix it. Just install the add-on from within Blender instead of manually copying it.
Here is how to fix the problem:
Open the user preferences window (Ctrl + Alt + U), go to “Addons”, and remove “Online Material Library”.
Restart Blender. (This is due to some limitation of Blender which prevents it from updating script paths until restarted.)
Open the user preferences window again, go to “Addons”, and click “Install addon…” in the footer.
Navigate to the directory with the online_mat_lib zipped file, select it, and click “Install addon…”.
Now it will work correctly.
Sorry that was a problem! Again, I’ll check around for ways to detect which folder the add-on’s installed in.
EDIT: This bug has now been fixed and the add-on has been updated with the fixed version.
Thanks Peter… I think I figured out what was the problem. Normally when I download an add on it often comes zipped. Once downloaded, I usually create a filefolder and UNZIP the downloaded file. I then point blender to the .py file when adding the addon
What I found this time, is that is why I was getting the traceback error. When I just went into blender, choose install add on, than browse to the ZIPPED file and picked that… all was good. If I unzipped it and then pointed it to .py file I got the error.
I know in your instructions you actually mentioned the zipped file, but I would have thought it needed to first be extracted. I didnt realize Blender would recognize what it needed when just pointing it to the zipped file.
In any case… Man you really have a winner here… but now you need add lots of new materials. I would first try to go for the very basics that most people need to build a photrealistic scene… for me personally as an example … give me material setups like drywall, stucco, acrylic, shiny and and a more matt type plastics, a couple different concretes, some metals… antique brass, bright brass, brushed and regular aluminum, and a jewelry grade gold,silver. Woods such as treated lumber for decks, a few nice finished woods.
It seems like your trying to do most everything with blender procedural textures, which is cool… but most often I have found image textures is needed to really make it photorealistic. I would not think there would be anything wrong with setting up certain shaders and then have a open node where the user adds their own image textures.
What I discovered when quickly testing this is often you need to UV unwrap sometimes you don’t. Often the scale that has been set up as the default is way off… when I first tried the polystyrene, the scale defaults to 20, when I took that 600 in my scene I was really impressed how realistic it looked. If it is possible to do, you might want to consider adding some kind of user recommendations when they apply the material… like best results if uv unwrapped, or other type of “hints” for them to tweek.
The people who are going to be using this and benefiting from it the most are new and intermediate users to blender and cycles… it is going to be so helpful and time saving for them. More seasoned users can still learn an awful lot by just studying some of the node trees on some of the more elaborate setups you have. I think many of us who spend any time at this site often forget that one of the main reasons people first come to blender is they have no way of going and plunking down 3,000 + dollars for 3ds max, maya or any of the others. Like me, they are friggen amazed when they first start learning this program and see what can be done with it. But with cycles, it’s Achilles heal has always been the complicated node setups for materials (at least for new users). You have really taken a big step in addressing this… so my hats off to you. OK… I’ve rambled enough 
Glad that’s working for you now!
(EDIT: Updated the add-on; the bug that harleynut97 was experiencing is now fixed. Now the add-on supports dynamically detecting its install location.)
You got that right! 
I’m thinking that maybe BlenderNation could help out with a request for materials sometime soon.
I’m planning image textures for the next version, so for now, all textures are procedural.
I have been thinking about that too, but I’m currently working on how that might work.
Thanks for your kind words!
awesome update & well done.
congrats on getting this to contrib
Can you do a library for cycles?
hi, I have a report from a user or error in
linux, openSUSE12.2
error: http://www.pasteall.org/37222
thanks,
ps, I lost the link to the correct preview bmps for cycles 
Great job, and thank you for sharing.
Great idea and job ! Thank You !
This is an amazing resource! Thank you very much for making this.
My only complaint would have to be the lack of “water” in the liquids panel. Other then that, Great work!
It’s an extremely useful that people can use to make their renders look more eye pleasing, or to get that “look” they’ve been looking for.
It’s been a little quiet here over the last month. Peter, has there been any updates since the last update in mid November and curious to find out how the material library is growing?
@PeterCassetta - Adding our own mats is easy enough; it’s not exactly hard to edit the xml file, the only thing tough to do atm, is render the mat on the default item you use; any chance of a copy of that blend file? Working on a white car mat and it’s proving annoying. It would be nice to add the little render pic once I’ve got it done - if it works I can also post the details too.
Great work. This is great to test scenes quickly. Maybe I am wrong, but all the libraries (bundled, release & testing) have the same materials, isn’t it?
hi again, I’m still having issues with osl support, now I can save the mat & load the mat but the node group fails & need to reload the osl externally which looses the settings.
What I’m doing:
save the node tree & script node as osl to my_materials using addon
if osl is internal, I get this error trying to apply:
Just in time for Blender 2.65 comes the latest version of my online material library add-on!
Get it here, download it directly, or, since it’s in contrib now, just go ahead and grab a recent SVN build.
Install and/or enable it through Blender’s User Preferences (Ctrl + Alt + U inside of Blender).
Here’s the list of improvements this version brings:
As noted by Netich, my Testing library does not currently fill its intended role. It was originally the only library, and still contains materials since moved to my Release library. They will be removed eventually when there are enough new materials to populate most of my Testing library’s categories. The Bundled library will not expand beyond 5-7 materials per category, while my Release Library will continue to grow past that level.
By the way, you can find the material preview scene I use here: https://svn.blender.org/svnroot/bf-blender/trunk/lib/tests/rendering/cycles/blend_files/bmps.blend
Thanks for your time! I am happy to say that many bugs were harmed in the making of this release.
Has anyone gotten this to work with the official 2.65 version? Here is what occuring for me.
the last version required me to copy the zip file into the addon file folder and when telling Blender to install from file you pointed it to the zipped file ( not extracted) I’m repeating this but putting the zip file into 2.65 add on folder.
When I go into user preferences …install addon … and point blender to the zip folder, it is there and you can select it …but
you can not find it when searching to check the box to enable.
The error I’m getting from the council is…
Not sure if it is something I am doing wrong… using win 64 bit and 2.65 official
Also one other question… you mention in your post about about a release library… is that available now?
I am having trouble too. I install the zip folder from the user preferences addon menu, and the console says it installs. The problem is there is no new “materials” category and no add on elsewhere to enable. I am using the official 2.65 win 64 installer for blender. This seems like an awesome feature so I can’t wait to get it working =)
I also tired a fresh install with no luck and tried going to the site to download the add on directly.
Whoops, my bad! It was a problem with the uploaded zip file. The online_mat_lib.zip archive should have had a folder named “online_mat_lib” which then contained the add-on files. Instead, it just had the files there.
I’ve corrected the .zip file now (UTC 00:00 13th December), but here’s how to clean up the messed-up unzipped files:
Then just go ahead and download the corrected .zip file; installation will now work as normal.
Sorry again!
P.S. Yes, my Release library is available since version 0.4.
All is working good now Peter, thanks for the quick fix, but more importantly your hard work on this add on… now I hope all the material and node guru’s out there can get you some materials to add to your library.
Thanks! Trying it now =)
