Radial Material Picker: Documentation

Overview

Radial Material Picker is an addon designed to accelerate and simplify material assignment in Blender. By presenting your materials in a handy radial menu, it reduces the time spent scrolling through long lists and streamlines everyday tasks.

Features

• Radial Menu for quick, visually guided material selection
• Customizable Hotkeys to integrate smoothly with your current workflow
• Works in Multiple Modes (Object, Edit, and Sculpt)
• Automatic Slot Management to keep your scene organized

Installation

1. Download the Addon
   Save the radial_material_picker.zip file to a known location on your computer.

2. Install via Blender Preferences

   • Open Blender and go to Edit > Preferences.
   • Select Add-ons from the sidebar.
   • Click Install... and navigate to radial_material_picker.zip
   • Select it and click Install Add-on.
   • Enable the addon by ticking the checkbox next to “Radial Material Picker”.

3. Verification
   Once enabled, you should see “Radial Material Picker” listed in your Add-ons with a description and preferences you can adjust.

Usage

Basic Material Selection

1. Press and Hold Your Assigned Hotkey (default: M) to open the radial material menu in the 3D View.
2. Hover Over a Material icon to preview its name.
3. Left-Click on the icon to assign that material to your selected object or faces (depending on your current mode).

Note: By default, the addon polls your entire scene’s material list. Materials hidden or not assigned in your object’s material slots can still be assigned through the radial menu.

Mode Compatibility

• Object Mode: Instantly assign the chosen material to all selected objects.
• Edit Mode: If specific faces are selected, only those faces will receive the chosen material. If no faces are selected, the material is assigned to the entire object.
• Sculpt Mode: Similar to Object Mode, materials are applied to the active object.

Customizing the Hotkey

1. Go to Edit > Preferences and find Radial Material Picker in the Add-ons panel.
2. Expand the add-on's preferences to see the Hotkey Settings.
3. Click the Press a key... button to start listening for input.
4. Press your preferred key
5. Select any combination of modifier keys (Ctrl, Shift, Alt) if desired.
6. Click Apply to confirm the new hotkey mapping.

Tip: If you accidentally pick the wrong key, press the X icon next to “Press a key...” to cancel and try again.

Material Slot Management

When you assign a material in Edit Mode:

• The addon searches for that material in the object’s material slots.
• If it’s not found, the addon adds a new material slot automatically.
• After assignment, any unused material slots can be cleaned up automatically, keeping your scene tidy.

Troubleshooting

• No Materials Detected
  Make sure you have at least one material in your Blender file. The radial menu will skip system materials like “Dots Stroke.”

• Radial Menu Not Appearing
  Ensure the addon is enabled, and check the hotkey settings. Also confirm you’re in the 3D View and in Object, Edit, or Sculpt mode.

• Material Assignment Fails
  If you see an error, switch to Object Mode, re-select your object, and try again. You can also verify that the material is valid (not broken or missing nodes).

Tips & Best Practices

• Use a consistent naming convention for your materials to quickly find what you need in the radial menu.
• If you have a large number of materials (25 or more), the picker automatically scales to ensure all items remain visible.

Version Information

• Addon Version: 1.0
• Blender Compatibility: 3.0+ (optimized for 3.6 and above)

Changelog (1.0)

• Initial release of Radial Material Picker
• Introduction of advanced drawing methods for newer Blender versions
• Support for quick assignment in Object, Edit, and Sculpt modes
• Enhanced material preview and auto-management of material slots