Gradient Input

Gradient Input update needed:

SDK

Add "Gradient Input" Class to SDK.
Add an "Empty"-Type/Class under the "Gradient" type of control so that programmers can create new gradient types (http://vbulletin.newtek.com/showthre...437#post211437)

New ones - Surfacing

Surface Tangent Slope supports negative slopes by mirroring the positive slope values (http://amber.rc.arizona.edu/lw/newshades)
Surface Normal Slope uses the slope of the surface normal vector rather than the surface's tangent. It also supports negative slopes, but using the normal's slope gives a continuous gradient for an input range of -1 to 1 (http://amber.rc.arizona.edu/lw/newshades)
Edge Angle (http://vbulletin.newtek.com/showthre...threadid=10743)
Vertex Angle (http://forums.newtek.com/discus/messages/2/16066.html)
Vertex Acessibility (http://forums.newtek.com/discus/messages/2/24881.html)
U Value (http://forums.newtek.com/discus/mess...tml?1032296532)
V Value (http://forums.newtek.com/discus/mess...tml?1032296532)
Distance "Super Duper" (http://forums.newtek.com/discus/messages/2/24881.html)
Distance to polygon edge
Distance to surface border
X Modeler Distance to Pivot Point + Y Modeler Distance to Pivot Point + Z Modeler Distance to Pivot Point: referring to the absolute Modeler Pivot (http://vbulletin.newtek.com/showthre...532#post195532)
Distance to Pivot Point X axis + Distance to Pivot Point Y axis + Distance to Pivot Point Z axis: create a gradient that is cylindrical around the specified axis (http://vbulletin.newtek.com/showthre...538#post196538)
Orientation to camera (http://forums.newtek.com/discus/messages/2/6255.html)
Polygon Size (http://forums.newtek.com/discus/messages/2/27372.html)
Polygon Displacement (http://vbulletin.newtek.com/showthre...205#post150205)
Polygon Speed (http://vbulletin.newtek.com/showthre...205#post150205)
Edge blending away (http://forums.newtek.com/discus/messages/2/4290.html)
Smoothing Angle (http://forums.newtek.com/discus/messages/2/27372.html)
Bump Displacement (http://forums.newtek.com/discus/messages/2/25029.html)
Selection Sets of Verts or Polygons / Independent geometry interactive vertex pre-lighting (http://vbulletin.newtek.com/showthread.php?t=28584)

New ones - Illumination

Glossiness Angle (http://forums.newtek.com/discus/messages/2/11542.html)
Specularity Hotspot (http://forums.newtek.com/discus/messages/2/11542.html)
Projection Gyzmo (http://forums.newtek.com/discus/mess...tml?1032296532)
Illumination Falloff (http://forums.newtek.com/discus/messages/2/3434.html)
Occlusion/Acessibility (http://vbulletin.newtek.com/showthre...light=gradient)
Cavity: create instant dirt in objects based in the lows and highs of the geometry (http://vbulletin.newtek.com/showthre...threadid=22239)
Overall light distribution/radiance
Global Illumination (http://vbulletin.newtek.com/showthre...light=gradient)
Light/Shadow (you have this type of behavior in max with one of the blur plug)
Gradient that on basis of the light that strikes a surf. sets the luminosity ( http://forums.newtek.com/discus/messages/2/17972.html)
Overall Light Intensity (absolute Light Intensity)
Light Intensity (absolute single Light Intensity)
Surface Light Intensity (http://vbulletin.newtek.com/showthre...light=gradient)
Light: Falloff Distance/Intensity
Global Shadow Density/Intensity (previously: Shadow Density)
Self Shadow Density/Intensity
Received Shadow Density/Intensity
Shadow changes intensity of shading based on: distance to casting object & distance to camera & distance to light & distance from shadow center (http://vbulletin.newtek.com/showthre...light=gradient)
Real Ortho projection (when I look thrue a distant light for example)

New ones - Particles

Particles: Particle age
Particles: Vertex Proximity
Particles: Polygon Proximity
Particles: Surface proximity
Particles: Part proximity
Particles - Birth Rate: "Parent Particle Age" and "Parent Particle Speed" for Nozzle's Parent-Emitter (http://vbulletin.newtek.com/showthre...threadid=24114)

New ones - HyperVoxels

HyperVoxels: Volume Thickness (http://forums.newtek.com/discus/messages/2/38716.html)
HyperVoxels: Volume Smoothness (http://forums.newtek.com/discus/messages/2/38716.html)
HyperVoxels: Particle Age % (http://forums.newtek.com/discus/messages/2/22330.html)
HyperVoxels: Particle Distance
HyperVoxels: Particle X Distance
HyperVoxels: Particle Y Distance
HyperVoxels: Particle Z Distance
HyperVoxels: Particles Global Distance
HyperVoxels: Particles Global X Distance
HyperVoxels: Particles Global Y Distance
HyperVoxels: Particles Global Z Distance
HyperVoxels: Vertex Proximity
HyperVoxels: Polygon Proximity
HyperVoxels: Surface proximity
HyperVoxels: Part proximity
HyperVoxels: Particle Density
HyperVoxels: Particles Global Density
HyperVoxels: Particles Global Speed
HyperVoxels: Particles Global Weight
HyperVoxels: WeightMap

New ones - Bones

Bones: Enhancement to bone limits (http://vbulletin.newtek.com/showthre...light=gradient)

New ones - Fog

Fog: Elevation that could control the thickness of Fog according to the distance from the ground (http://vbulletin.newtek.com/showthre...light=gradient )
Fog: Distance gradient changing hue (http://forums.newtek.com/discus/messages/2/2130.html)
Fog: Angle gradient changing the hue (http://forums.newtek.com/discus/messages/2/2130.html)
Surface: Fog Affected (when a surface is affected by fog)
Surface: Fog Density (when a surface is affected by fog - report Fog Density)
Surface: Fog Color (when a surface is affected by fog - report Fog Color)

New ones - Misc.

MD Gradients (http://forums.newtek.com/discus/messages/2/21024.html)
Custom inputs (linking gradients via expressions to other parameters such as volumetric density)
Blur, Soft and Sharp Gradient (http://forums.newtek.com/discus/messages/2/6983.html)
Blending image (http://vbulletin.newtek.com/showthre...light=gradient and http://forums.newtek.com/discus/messages/2/1274.html)
Speed Dissolve (http://forums.newtek.com/discus/messages/2/25029.html)

Fixes:

BUG - Layout Pivot Point: if you move the Pivot in Layout the new position isn't take in account by "Distance to Pivot Point" Gradient (http://vbulletin.newtek.com/showthre...threadid=17770)
Distance: they should be "-x" -> "+x" (actually "0" -> "x")
Bump: it shuold be "-1" -> "1" (actually "0" -> "1")
Slope: it shuold be "-1" -> "1" (actually "0" -> "1")
Angle: 0 -> 360 Range

Updates:

Node-based Gradient builder (http://vbulletin.newtek.com/showthre...261#post167145)
Gradient that uses the values of a vertex map, to drive the size of a prodedural texture (http://vbulletin.newtek.com/showthre...080#post175785)
Custom Gradients using an Image (http://vbulletin.newtek.com/showthre...581#post167261)
Incidence Angle that go over 90 degrees (http://forums.newtek.com/discus/messages/2/11110.html and http://forums.newtek.com/discus/messages/2/11043.html)
Smoothing: be able to edit the Spline or Linear interpolation between keys
Gradients modifiable by Expressions
Animated gradients / Keyframe gradient parameters with envelope (http://vbulletin.newtek.com/showthre...light=gradient and http://vbulletin.newtek.com/showthre...threadid=13057)
Gradients editing in Graph Editor
Ability to move more keys simultaneusly would really help out (http://vbulletin.newtek.com/showthre...light=gradient)
"Fit All" button would be nice too when you accidently scale the keys out of view
"Save / Load / Replace" to easily share Gradients between some different projects.
Gradient Presets
Gradients Tiling (http://forums.newtek.com/discus/mess...tml?1032296532)
Save Gradients as bitmap (http://forums.newtek.com/discus/mess...tml?1032296532)
"Color Map" Gradient (http://forums.newtek.com/discus/messages/2/4290.html)
Gradients work on selective textures in other channels as well as values of other channels (http://forums.newtek.com/discus/mess...tml?1032296532)

Thanks goes to Karmacop, fxnut, Mylenium, Matt, evenflcw, marko, Doug_M, Red_Oddity, Gui Lo, Capt Lightwave, spirosa, ingo, Emmanuel, paulhart, Luís Santos, stib, wacom, Nitisara, Earl, Valter, UnCommonGrafx, Nemoid, badllarma, crusaderx, Amadeus0 and many others!

Thread "freezed" (09-10-2004)
waiting up till the next LW's major release (8.X)!