Mandelbulb3D/Reference/Open

Open tab
The Open tab at the top of the Main Window provides commands to open files stored on disk, and to load formula data from the operating system clipboard.

Open .M3I
The M3I Image + Parameter file is the native format of Mandelbulb3D. It is capable of storing the following:


 * The rendered Image (before Postprocess)
 * The final rendering after all Postprocess options
 * Fractal parameters found in the Formulas window
 * Lighting and shading data in the Lighting window
 * All program settings in the Main window

Settings in other windows are not stored in the .M3I file. For example, the Animation Maker window saves and loads data in its own format, the .M3A file.

.M3I is a binary format and cannot be read or edited by humans.

Open .M3P
The .M3P Parameter file format stores data from the Formulas, Lighting, Postprocessing, and Main windows. It does not store any image data. .M3P is also a binary format, not human-readable.

History
Since .M3P is a binary format that stores parameter data only, file sizes are very small. The small file size makes it possible for Mandelbulb3D to automatically save a history of changes to disk. Inside the Mandelbulb3D installation folder is a subfolder named History. When the Calculate 3D button is pressed, Mandelbulb3D stores the current scene parameters to an .M3P file in the History folder. History files are organized in subfolders by date, and files are named according to the current time.

From Clipboard
Although Mandelbulb3D has no direct support for any human-readable scene file format, the From Clipboard button provides an interface to text documents and makes it easy to share scene parameters online. Users commonly post parameters directly to Internet forums using the Mandelbulb3D Save > To Clipboard button.

To load those parameters into Mandelbulb3D, select all of the text in your browser or text file, copy the text into the operating system clipboard, and then click the Open > From Clipboard button in Mandelbulb3D. Scene parameters are loaded, and ready to be saved to .M3I or .M3P, rendered, or exported.

The following is a code sample of the Mandelbulb3D ASCII output. This is simply the default state of the application, with only the default IntegerPower formula loaded. All of the text must be selected and copied to the clipboard.

Note: the version number at the beginning may not be accurate. This text was saved out from Mandelbulb3D v1.9.9, without a title or filename. The title shown at the end is inherited from the current version of the program.