IMPORTANT: Canvas requires Minecraft 1.14.4 and Fabric API 0.3.0 build 200 or higher.
If you cannot use versions that recent, then earlier versions should still work, however they will not have many of the newer features and bug fixes.
Known Issues
- Shader support for item rendering is work-in-progress and disabled by default. It mostly works except for directional in-world lighting. This will eventually be fixed.
- Frame rate can drop significantly with HD Lightmap enabled in scenes with mixed translucency (snow, ice, water.)
- For all other issues, see the issues log.
What is Canvas?
Canvas is a rendering library for Fabric mods that offers visual improvements for players, and also implements an API mod authors can use to implement rendering effects that would not be possible with the vanilla renderer.
Hardware Requirements and Performance
Canvas targets moderate to high-end hardware but should work on any PC that supports OpenGL 2.1 and GLSL shaders.
Canvas will almost certainly improve chunk-loading performance vs Vanilla Minecraft. Frame rates may be better or slightly worse, depending on what is being rendered.
Current Stable Features for Players
- Faster chunk loading
- Improved lighting
- Hardcore darkness (terrain only)
- Less foggy fog
Current Stable Features for Mod Authors
- Block models are dynamic when chunks are rebuilt - not necessary to pre-bake all variants
- Item models are dynamic - not necessary to pre-bake all variants
- Emissive materials
- Improved lighting for models with non-cubic geometry
- Multi-sprite materials for borders and blended/composite texturing effects
- Per-quad control over render layer, lighting, shaders and conditions (see below)
Experimental Features (breaking changes are likely)
- Material Shaders - mod authors can define custom shaders for model materials
- Conditional Materials - materials that are only rendered when a global condition is true
- Apply shaders and emissive effects during item rendering
Finding Bugs
I test Canvas on OSX, Windows 10 and Ubuntu 18.04.2. I do not have the means to test on many hardware/OS combinations so bug reports are appreciated. Please include full logs.
In reply to grondagthebarbarian:
I see.... Optifine also has issues with compatibility with Fabric. Fabric also I think has Indigo, it's own renderer. Honestly, I think in order to be compatible, they would have to not be active at one time. You'd have to switch between them if anything.
Maybe your mod could become a competing replacement for optifine instead.
In reply to luckyp3616:
I wrote most of the Fabric Indigo renderer also. It will never officially support Optifine (because so much is out of our direct control) but we will try to improve compatibility when we can.
In reply to grondagthebarbarian:
Because Optifine is closed source, I think you should become an open source alternative to it. Open source mods are the best mods, IMO.
Do you expect different Fabric shader mods to be comparatively much easier to keep compatible?
In reply to forrester_marc:
Yes, when Canvas is "done" mod authors and pack makers should be able to coexist reliably. Canvas is specifically designed to give content creators more control with good compatibility.
However, this does mean "shader packs" will be built differently. Canvas shaders are associated with "materials" associated with model faces, much like textures are currently. So a Canvas shader-pack is simply a resource pack with models that include shader materials.
JMX already makes it possible to create and load such models, however Canvas needs some more work for the shader library to be truly usable. That is the current focus of development. When that is working, I will refocus on aesthetics (lighting) and performance.
it does not work at home crash with other mods
In reply to synapps:
synapps, I'm sorry it's giving you troubles. Please create an issue and include your log with the crash information so that I can try to fix it.
In reply to grondagthebarbarian:
I would like but there is no crash report that is created. it just tells me that the game to crash
In reply to synapps:
What app are you using to launch Minecraft?
In reply to grondagthebarbarian:
I use the original minecraft launcher
In reply to synapps:
Okay. Two things to try:
1) Make sure you have the latest Fabric API in your mods folder. Canvas needs it.
2) In Settings, enable "Open output log when game starts."
You can also see the log by opening the file logs/latest.log with notepad or another text editor.
Edit: also make sure you are using Minecraft 1.14.2 prerelease 2 or later,
In reply to grondagthebarbarian:
I am using [1.14.1] Fabric API 0.3.0-pre build 157a with canvas-0.6.45. because I can not use the latest version of fabric with the other mods: /
In reply to synapps:
Ah, I see. Canvas will not work without 1.14.2 pre-release and Fabric API 165 or higher. There were some big changes in that version of the API that Canvas depends on. Most mods should work on 1.14.2 but if that is not the case for your pack then you'll need to wait until the mods catch up. Sorry.
Edit: I've restored Canvas version 0.5.10 which should work with your current pack/versions. However it does not have many of the new features and bug fixes in 0.6+
FYI: Version 0.6.1.281 will probably be the last significant update to v0.6 because the remaining issues aren't critical and/or will change in version 0.7+. (Unless a new major defect is reported.)
I can't find the right combination of version numbers to install that gets this running. Does anyone have a working MultiMC instance they could upload?
In reply to forrester_marc:
Canvas needs Fabric API 0.3.0 build 165 or higher, available here: [1.14.2 Pre-Release 2] Fabric API 0.3.0-pre build 165
Also, Canvas requires Minecraft 1.14.2 pre-release 2. Unfortunately, there's no way to select that yet so it lists as 1.14.1. I regret the confusion.
Ah, there's a pre-release version of the API, I completely missed that. Working perfectly now, and AFAICT seamlessly compatible with all the 1-14-1 mods too. I was expecting to need to carefully re-introduce those one at a time, but it didn't even blink.
In reply to forrester_marc:
I can't take much credit for that. Asie and the other Fabric API devs have done a fine job setting all this up. It's really something to see this level of compatibility on snapshots. Thank you for giving Canvas a try.
In reply to grondagthebarbarian:
FYI: I always just tag pre-release versions as 1.14-Snapshot.
Canvas 0.6 has been uploaded and should be available any moment now. Note that it requires a very recent version of Fabric API and Loader, plus Minecraft 1.14.2 pre-release.
For anyone who is wondering what's up. Canvas 0.6 should be released "very soon" to fix some existing bugs and offers some new features.