1.2. Configuration

If the POV-Ray executable file is named povray and is contained in one of the directories specified in the PATH-variable of your system, no further configuration of GroIMP is necessary. This is the case for most UNIX-like systems, but normally not for Windows systems.

Figure 1.1. Configuration of the POV-Ray plugin

Configuration of the POV-Ray plugin

The configuration of the POV-Ray plugin is done in the Preferences panel, see Figure 1.1, “Configuration of the POV-Ray plugin”. In the field "Programme", enter the path to POV-Ray's executable file. For Windows systems, this is typically "C:\Path to POV-Ray Installation\bin\pvengine.exe". The field "Command line" allows you to specify some options for POV-Ray, which may, e.g., influence rendering quality; please consult POV-Ray's documentation. Finally, the option "Use standard output" controls how the rendered image is transferred from POV-Ray to GroIMP: If POV-Ray's standard output is used, the image is transferred continuously, so that a progressive display within GroIMP is possible. Without standard output, POV-Ray writes its output to a temporary file, which is displayed at once after completion of the ray-tracing process. Generally, the method using standard output is preferable; however, there is a bug in (some versions of) POV-Ray for Windows, which corrupts image data in the output. If you see unexpected colours in the rendered image, deactivate this option.

Note

POV-Ray for Windows is equipped with a graphical user interface for editing POV-Ray scenes etc. Unfortunately, this graphical user interface is always shown, even when POV-Ray is only used in batch mode, as is the case for GroIMP. Depending on POV-Ray's configuration, POV-Ray may even keep running after the rendering has completed. If this is the case, add the option /exit in the field "Command line". The option /nr keeps POV-Ray from restoring previous edit sessions, which may reduce startup time.