What We Removed in PhotoModeler 6 and Why

There are a lot of powerful new features in PhotoModeler 6 and customers like to buy upgrades and new products that have more capabilities than the previous versions. But we feel it is important to remove from the program too, not just add. What do we remove and why?

We remove 'steps'. In PhotoModeler 6 we removed steps from a number of functions to make them easier to use and to understand. This is done without reducing the functionality. In PhotoModeler 6 we simplified:

• project startup - PhotoModeler 6 has the new Getting Started panel which is displayed when the program first opens so creating new projects and loading recent projects is just one quick click away. We also reduced the number of wizard panes - eg. for a standard project in PhotoModeler Pro 5 there were 10 wizard panes to go through - in the new PhotoModeler 6 that is now 2 panes (just 1 if there is an automatic camera match). There were a total of 45 wizard panes in PhotoModeler Pro 5 and in PhotoModeler 6 there are now just 11 panes.
• importing photos - PhotoModeler 6 has a new Camera Library and when digital photos with EXIF data (common with modern digital cameras) are imported into a PhotoModeler project, the Camera Library is automatically searched and assignment between photo and camera is automatic, thereby removing some manual searching and clicking.
• processing - to convert your markings into 3D, the data must go though a processing algorithm. Starting this processing used to be a manual step, you had to decide when to process (often leaving it too late) and then click on the button. In PhotoModeler 6, processing of both points-based and shapes-based projects happens automatically. One moment you are referencing a point and then next moment you have a 3D project that is oriented and solved.
• opening tables - PhotoModeler 6's new table generator makes opening certain tables take fewer steps (i.e. quality point table).
• measuring - PhotoModeler 6's new Measure pane is no longer a dialog, nor a mode so it takes fewer steps to get measurements (esp. multiple measurements)
• object properties - similar to measurement, Object Properties is a now a non-modal pane so it takes fewer steps to show and change properties (esp. multiple object properties).
• perspective matching - the process of matching a camera position and angle in a 3rd party modeling package, called perspective matching, now takes far few steps and has greater chance of being successful because camera information is now exported in a number of 3D file formats.
• installable UI - in PhotoModeler 6 there is an option to reduce the menus and toolbars to only those tools you use. This reduces the size of the user interface, making it easier to learn and operate.

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