Experiment: flatter strands API by davepagurek · Pull Request #8314

Experiment: flatter strands API by davepagurek · Pull Request #8314 · processing/p5.js

Thanks for this @davepagurek !

A few thoughts:

If the hook returns a new value as output, you can assign to the .result property of the hook

After fiddling with the sketch a little, I'm wondering if there's a more p5-feeling alternative for assigning .result? Though there's the begin/end pattern in framebuffer, I'm not remembering anything like .result = anywhere.

getFinalColor.begin()
let myNewColor = mix(
  [1, 1, 1, 1],
  getFinalColor.color,
  abs(dot(myNormal, [0, 0, 1]))
);
getFinalColor.set(myNewColor);
getFinalColor.end()

Is one idea, what do you think?

Should we auto-alias get*-prefixed hooks, like getPixelInputs, to pixelInputs so it reads more clearly in this form?

Not sure I understand this, is the code below interpreting the alias idea correctly?

baseMaterialShader().modify(() => {
  let myNormal = sharedVec3()
  
  pixelInputs.begin()
  myNormal = pixelInputs.normal
  pixelInputs.end()
  
  finalColor.begin()
  finalColor.result = mix(
    [1, 1, 1, 1],
    finalColor.color,
    abs(dot(myNormal, [0, 0, 1]))
  );
  finalColor.end()
});

If yes, then I support it, because it more closely matches the begin/end pattern on framebuffer.

Rather than accessing properties on the hook itself, e.g. getPixelnputs.normal, should we make a global inputs that aliases the hook within its begin/end so you could write inputs.normal? ...

Same here, is the code below interpreting the alias idea correctly?

  let myNormal = sharedVec3()
  
  getPixelInputs.begin()
  myNormal = inputs.normal // is this what you meant?
  getPixelInputs.end() // if so, is begin/end here this needed?
  
  getFinalColor.begin()
  getFinalColor.result = mix(
    [1, 1, 1, 1],
    inputs.color, // does this make sense too or no?
    abs(dot(myNormal, [0, 0, 1]))
  );
  getFinalColor.end()
});

Putting it together, it seems much more p5-like:

let myNormal = sharedVec3()

pixelInputs.begin()
myNormal = inputs.normal
pixelInputs.end()

finalColor.begin()

let myNewColor = mix(
  [1, 1, 1, 1],
  inputs.color,
  abs(dot(myNormal, [0, 0, 1]))
);

finalColor.set(myNewColor);
finalColor.end()