Can I use this UI with blendShapes or just with the BCS?

It works with every numeric attribute in Maya. This means you can use it with blendShapes, bcs setups, or even transformation attributes.

It seems this is just an update for the DPK_animationInterface. Why did you rename the script to DPK_animUI?

Well, the new script was rewritten from scratch and therefore has a completely different internal organization. The result is, that there could be situations in which you still need the old script. For example, the new undo/redo mechanism heavily relies on a certain command in the DPK_bcs plugin (http://dpk.stargrav.com/pafiledb/pafiledb.php?action=file&id=31) and not everyone will have access to this plugin. Another example is that migrating old setups to the new version is easier when both can run side by side (especially when you’ve changed my code).

By the way, this was a good chance to make the name a little shorter. ;)

I have a setup for your old animation interface. Do I have to build a new setup to use this new script?

No, the animUI will detect old setups and allows you to convert them using the Setup Converter. After this, they will work with both the new and the old animUI. Note that changes you make in one of the two UIs don’t affect the setup of the other. You could reconvert the old setup into the new to apply changes done in the old UI to the new.

Do I need the bcs plugin installed to use the animUI?

The UI also works without the bcs plugin. But without the bcs, the animUI can’t handle undo/redo very well. This means that you’d have to do hundreds of undoes when you want to undo after dragging a slider. With the bcs, everything works as expected, even the preset slider.

Can one attribute be included in two different animUI setups within the same scene?

Yes, this is possible. The object you set up for the animUI doesn’t really control the attributes you configure for it. It just stores pointers (actually connections) so that it can find them.

Is it possible to configure the automatic recognition of left-right attribute pairs?

Sure. There are two possibilities. If you have just one situation that needs a manual correction, simply choose Define Symmetry… from the section list’s right-click menu and edit the pairs.

In case you have a different naming style (e.g. a different language) and want to implement it directly into the automatic matching, you’d need to edit the script file DPK_animUISetup.mel. Around line 100 there are several conversion strings. Simply replace them with your preferred style or language. For example, when you call your left attributes “blahX” and your right “blahY” you’d replace the patterns with this line:

$patterns[$inc] = "X$";    $replace[$inc++] = "Y";

Advanced Info

Note that the “$” in the $patterns string is correct. This is because the $patterns string is used to match a certain portion of the string and the $replace string is used to replace this portion. The “$” simply means that the “X” will only be replaced when it is at the end of the name. See the Maya documentation for the match MEL command for more information on patterns and matching.

To verify your changes, source the script using

source DPK_animUISetup.mel;

and use the Auto Find button of the Define Symmetry window.