The new filter is said to replace the old Input Channel selection on most maps. Users of the Pro edition can also use support for specular-glossiness workflows for generating PBR materials, with new Diffuse to Gloss and Diffuse to Specular Color maps.
For those of you unfamiliar with the tool, ShaderMap is an image texture and map generator for 3D artists. It lets artists generate maps from source images, 3D models and light scan photo stacks. “Each map is generated by a plugin. There are a number of default map plugins provided with the ShaderMap installation including: displacement from diffuse, albedo from diffuse, normal from displacement, ambient occlusion from 3D model, displacement from 3D model, normal from normal, and more,” states the description.
