Absurd file size when using dForce / Use Timeline
I was testing some new items tonight when it took a really long time to save a file. Suspecting a problem, I checked the file and found that it was around 130MB for just a single G9 in the base t shirt and shorts and a dForce strand hair that I happened to have used. After some testing, I determined that this problem happened when I dForced the hair with Start Bones from Memorized Pose / Frames to Simulate - "Animated (Use TImeline Play Range)" set. (If I used the same hair on the same figure and simulated it with Start Bones from Memorized Pose / Current Frame, it produced a 4MB file.)
I would assume that the "Animated (Use TImeline Play Range)" had been set earlier when I was using dForce Assistant and had forgotten to switch it back.
Now that I know this can/does happen, I can avoid it or fix it in the future. Anyone know why this happens?
Comments
I never thought about it, but with a timeline, a scene file needs to store the data for every frame instead of one frame.
dForced geometry data of each frame are saved within DUF file. The more frames you used with Simulation, the bigger the DUF file size will be.
To avoid this issue, you can export the simulated result at the last frame to OBJ. Clear the sim result, then import OBJ to the dforce item as a Morph.
Does an obj export include the change made through a weight mapped push modifier ?
I think it does, as long as the vertex positions change.
I'm still sort of a newbie. Are the step-by-step instructions for this easy? Maybe there's an existing thread on that.
I didn't need that simulation method at this moment, but I do occasionally use dForce Assistant and the timeline, particularly for clothing and chairs or other situations like that, as in here:
Of course i would want to save it when done, and if I can avoid wasted space, that would be great.
I went back just now and checked the .duf file for this girl-on-horse image from March 2023 (I had no particular reason to look at the time), and found that it was much larger than most, but not 130MB as in the item that led to this question.
Jay Versluis has a video on how to do it (with a simple simulation, but it should work on any object):