======Flamingo nXt 5======

Flamingo nXt 5 is an update to Flamingo which integrates with the built-in rendering features in Rhino 5. This is currently a work in progress version.

[[http://www.rhino3d.com/download/flamingo/5/evaluation|Download Flamingo nXt 5 Evaluation version.]]

You can join the technical discussion about this beta here: [[http://discourse.mcneel.com/c/rendering/flamingo|Flamingo Discourse Forum]]

=====Installation=====
  *Flamingo 5 Beta requires a previous version of Flamingo nXt to be installed.
  *Rhino 5 Service Release 12 is required to run Flamingo nXt 5. 
  *After downloading and running the RHI installer, start up Rhino.
 
=====Startup notes=====
This version of Flamingo features an interface which is integrated with the Rhino 5 rendering tools. This made several necessary changes to the rendering interface. At this time it is important to find the Flamingo interface when first starting up Flamingo:
  * The Flamingo control panel can be found under the //Render Pulldown > Flamingo nXt 5 > Show Control Panel//
  * The Flamingo nXt tab contains Flamingo specific controls:
    * Sky
    * Lighting Manager
    * Custom Lighting controls
    * Render Options
  * Once in the control panel, right-click in the tab area and select the panels:
    * Libraries
    * Environment
    * Groundplane
    * Etc....

=====Feature notes=====
  * The Viewport Render Preview mode has been improved.
  * Material mapping is done through the Rhino mapping interface.
  * Decals are placed using the Rhino decal interface.
  * Integrated into the Rhino rendering panels:
    * Sun Control
    * Ground Panel
    * Lights
    * Material Library Panel
    * Material Editor
    * Drag and Drop Materials
  * Safe Frame is supported.
  * Custom Meshing is supported. This includes:
    * Curve Piping
    * Displacement
    * Edge Softening
    * Shut Lining
  * New Hybrid Render Engine trying to take the best of the default and pathtrace engine in one. 
  * Flamingo RT preview window shows a quick rendering of the current model.