Amiga Tools 3/Amiga Tools 3.iso/grafik/raytracing/imagine/tips/arc49.txt

Text File | 1994-05-07 | 765.4 KB | 20,409 lines

This is the Imagine Mailing List ([e-mail]) Archive #49
covering messages from Mar. 31. 1994 to May. 01. 1994.
If you have any questions or problems with this file, E-mail Nik Vukovljak
at [e-mail]

Thanks goes to Neil Miller for his efforts in creating the new header stripper
for me.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #1  ***************************************:-)

Subject: anim<>FLIC ??
Date: Mon, 4 Apr 1994 21:11:53 -0500 (EST)
From: [e-mail] (Adam Benjamin)

I need to convert some anims to FLC format.
Before you say "Get MainActor"...
I did and it doesn't work.
I built a 256 color IFF anim-5 and loaded it with mainActor, saved it in FLC
format and tried to play it with WinAAplay.  No Dice.
Any Ideas what my be wrong? the anim was 640x480 42 frames. MainActor gave
no errors or anything, but it crashes the WinAAplayer.

You PC Imagineers out there... What do you use to make FLC files?
I know there is some Shareware program out there but I can't remeber the
name of it.
I have a 486 also, so I can just convert the frames to TGA or GIF if I need to
then build the FLC on the PC.
Any and all info appreciated.  Including names of PD/FD programs for PC/Amiga.



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #2  ***************************************:-)

Subject: RenderWare info
Date: Mon, 04 Apr 94 08:15:00 PDT
From: Stethem Ted              5721 <[e-mail]>

For all those that asked:

RenderWare -> 40,000 polygons per second in Real-Time on a 486-33Mhz. Demo
requires minimum 386SX, 4 Meg RAM, and Windows.

For further information about RenderWare please contact;

Mike King
Director Developer Relations
Criterion Software Ltd.,
England

Tel: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
Email: [e-mail]

Legal Stuff -

These demos are copyright Criterion Software Limited 1993,1994.
Criterion Software grants you a license to use the demos only in
the form as they are supplied.

You are welcome to copy and distribute the demos. You must however
distribute them only as a complete set of demos with this readme,
and all copyright messages unaltered.

RenderWare is a trademark of Canon Inc.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #3  ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Rumor C= USA Gone?
Date: Thu, 31 Mar 1994 13:07:37 -0700
From: "Jeff Wahaus, CAPS, ATL" <[e-mail]>

>This is what M. Halvorson had to say about my concerns re: Impulse's continued
>support of the Amiga...
>"What is this garbage about IMPULSE leaving the AMIGA, we have stated
>about a billion times we have no reason to do so, we have never intended to do
>this and we really get pissed off when people make these dumb ass comments.
>Howmany timeHAMIGA COMPUTER WE WILL MAKE IMAGINE FOR THE AMIGA".  Its hard
>enough to do good
>softwarem but it makes it harder when the very people you are trying to
>support,say thinglcontinue to develop for it.  IS THAT CLEAR?

  Um, no that wasn't very clear.

>Well I had heard he was abrasive...but damm.
>Yo Halvorson-I've been a user since Turbo Silver,followed all the upgrades
>till now-LEGITIMATELY. Imply that I'm a dumb ass again and maybe I'll wait for

  Actually he didn't imply that you are a dumb ass he stated that your
question was dumb ass.  There is a difference and I must admit that I
agree with Mike here.  Why needlessly start rumors or make assumptions?

>your fine program to hit a not so fine pirate board. My question was sincere

  You admit that you would become a thief just because someone thought you
asked a stupid question?  Paraphrased:  "Call me another name and I'll
steal from you!"

>you were out of line with this slam. Do the list a favor and run your email by
>your secratary before posting, hopefully someone could help smooth over the
>rough edges. A spell checker would be helpful too.

  It looks as if you can use some spelling help too.  It's "damn" not
"damm".  "secretary" not "secratary"...

  Let's keep this sort of crap off this list please.  I hope this public
flogging has discouraged you. ;-)

-Jeff-



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #4  ***************************************:-)

Subject: dirtiness
Date: Tue,  5 Apr 94 02:36:00 BST
From: [e-mail]

I have found the Essence textures Pitted and Crumpled to be very effective
at making metallic "dirty" looking surfaces. You can most likely use some
of 2.9's textures, or an altitude brushmap.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #5  ***************************************:-)

Subject: RenderWare
Date: Thu, 31 Mar 94 16:40:00 PST
From: Stethem Ted              5721 <[e-mail]>

  I know this is the Imagine Mailing List but this product deserves some
mention if you have any interest in 3D graphics and animation.  I posted an
article from Electronic Engineering Times a few weeks ago regarding the
development of a very fast C algorithm for 3D animation by Canon.  The
article said the algorithm was going to be incorporated in a new program
called RenderWare.
  Well, I just got the demo version of RenderWare for Windows and it is
unbelievable!  Can you say REAL-TIME animation, lighting change,
texture-mapping? The opening screen has a 3D logo of RENDERWARE spinning
space.  You can move your mouse onto this logo and stop its spin then turn
it all around.  There are three demos included; the Virtual Mall, Scientific
Visualization, and Texture mapping.  In the Virtual Mall, you can go into a
3D building, with brickwall texture on the walls and  marble texture on the
entryway columns, move around and view different objects with different
textures and click with the mouse to find the price.  In Scientific
Visualization, you can plot several 3D functions and apply different
textures to it like Mandelbrot, Wood, Marble, etc.  in REAL-TIME!  And the
object can be rotated, in REAL-TIME!  And you can change the source of the
lighting, in REAL-TIME!  With shading!  In Texture mapping, you have a
choice of several basic objects and several ANIMATED textures.  I applied
the Flame texture to a banana object and animated it.  The flame texture
starts animating immediately and then you can rotate the object in
REAL-TIME!  Real-time animated textures? Yes!
  This is all on a 486/33MHz.  I don't know how much this product is going
to cost but it is going to turn the 3D animation world upside down.  The
quality of the real-time render is as good as, if not better, than a
scanline render in Imagine.  Get a demo copy of this program and see if you
don't agree.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #6  ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re:  anim<>FLIC ??
Date:     Tue, 5 Apr 1994 00:25:22 -0400
From: Jason B Koszarsky <[e-mail]>

>I need to convert some anims to FLC format.
>Before you say "Get MainActor"...
>I did and it doesn't work.

I have the latest version of MainActor and also have problems with it.  I used
Image_Master RT to convert RGB24 files from Imagine to HAM8.  The individual
HAM8 files turned out fine.  But when MainActor assembled the anim, it
had strange fringing problems and other colour problems.  I also had a problem
with a recent HAM6 anim, it had trash on the right side of the screen when
assembled by MainActor but it was fine when assemble with IM_RT.

Jason K>
Cybernetic Expressions


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #7  ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: c= usa gone?
Date: Thu, 31 Mar 1994 17:26:06 -0700 (MST)
From: [e-mail] (Kiernan Holland)

as Paul Wehner said,
<
<This is what M. Halvorson had to say about my concerns re: Impulse's continued
<support of the Amiga...
<"What is this garbage about IMPULSE leaving the AMIGA, we have stated
<about a billion times we have no reason to do so, we have never intended to do
<this and we really get pissed off when people make these dumb ass comments.
<Howmany timeHAMIGA COMPUTER WE WILL MAKE IMAGINE FOR THE AMIGA".  Its hard
<enough to do good
<softwarem but it makes it harder when the very people you are trying to
<support,say thinglcontinue to develop for it.  IS THAT CLEAR?
<
<
<Well I had heard he was abrasive...but damm.
<Yo Halvorson-I've been a user since Turbo Silver,followed all the upgrades
<till now-LEGITIMATELY. Imply that I'm a dumb ass again and maybe I'll wait for
<your fine program to hit a not so fine pirate board. My question was sincere
<you were out of line with this slam. Do the list a favor and run your email by
<your secratary before posting, hopefully someone could help smooth over the
<rough edges. A spell checker would be helpful too.
<

Paul, it will happen, you can count on it. As sure as there is a
ton of new faster platforms coming out, as sure as how unobvious
it may seem, Amiga is dying, but slowly.. I like Amiga's
but their strengths are becoming weaknesses one by one.. The software
businesses will go where they want, and its not thier responsibility
to stick with thier customers through thick-and-thin..

Chances are Impulse will not completely leave the Amiga platform,
besides the users are less likely to dump them
than the PC users... I remember Byte by Byte did this (makers of
sculpt 3d/4d) and moved to the Macintosh platform (where the competition
for 3D packages are awfully strong) but I haven't
heard anything of them since they left the Amiga platform.. In fact,
I think they forfitted...

It is better, I think, to stay with the Amiga for one reason,
Microsoft doesn't have thier damn fingers in this pie.. If you
move to the PC's survival is a matter of playing follow the leader.
With the Amiga's Impulse is relatively safe, but if they fall into
temptation and decide to jump entirely to the PC's, its unpredictable
what may happen..

Kiernan


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #8  ***************************************:-)

Subject: RE: Still Looking for moon data
Date: Thu, 31 Mar 94 21:20:00 PST
From: Stethem Ted              5721 <[e-mail]>

Cedric,
   Maybe I didn't explain clearly enough about using the Applique to create
landscapes.  I start with a color image which I convert to grayscale to
create the Applique object.  Then I take the original color image and use
that as a flat brushmap laid over the Applique object.  The neat thing about
this is the colors of the original overhead view exactly match the contours
of the Applique object.
   I have found using brushmaps produce much better colored landscapes than
trying to combine different textures.  I was just producing an overhead
colored contour brushmap in DPaint and applying that as a brushmap on my
Vistapro landscape objects.  If you haven't tried it, you should because it
produces quite nice results with a lot less time than textures but it
depends on what you are trying to achieve.
 ----------
From: imagine-relay
To: imagine
Subject: RE: Still Looking for moon data
Date: Thursday, March 31, 1994 8:34PM

How do you color your VistaPro or Applique mountains?  I have been getting
pretty good results with the linear texture (or LinearFract with Essence).
I set the base of the mountain to a dark green and use the texture to color
the
top a light beige.  Does anyone have any other suggestions on how to set the

attribute settings to get realistic looking mountains?

Cedric

 --
 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Cedric Chang                Mechanical Engineer               // Commodore
[e-mail]       Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute      \X/  Amiga 3000
 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #9  ***************************************:-)

Subject: Any dogs around?
Date: Fri, 01 Apr 94 01:04:07
From: [e-mail]

I'm looking for an object of a DOG.  If you have one...please let me know.  I
don't have full Internet access so I cannot scan the various sites.

Thanks in advance

-GreG

P.S.  if you have one that you can share...just enclose it (ARC'd, ZIP'd etc)
in a reply.



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #10 ***************************************:-)

Subject: memory
Date: Tue,  5 Apr 94 02:32:00 BST
From: [e-mail]

In my 3000, I have 16 megs on the motherboard, and 16 megs on a PP&S '040
in the co-processor slot. Imagine sees and uses it all, with no problems,
but ADPro only sees the first 16 megs. So the problem with Imagine not
seeing your extra ram may not be with Imagine. I do not need to run Merge-
mem for Imagine to see all my ram.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #11 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: c= usa gone?
Date: Tue, 5 Apr 1994 10:54:50 -0600
From: "Robin Chytil" <[e-mail]>

On Mar 31,  5:26pm, Kiernan Holland wrote:
> than the PC users... I remember Byte by Byte did this (makers of
> sculpt 3d/4d) and moved to the Macintosh platform (where the competition
> for 3D packages are awfully strong) but I haven't
> heard anything of them since they left the Amiga platform.. In fact,
> I think they forfitted...
>
Byte by Byte developped Sculpt 4d on Mac (the version used textures, brush
mapping and so on), and now they have a Software called Envisage 3D, for the
PC. Ever heard of it ? I saw an ad in Desktop Video World.

Robin

--
                                                       \|/
                                                       @ @
---------------------------------------------------oOO-(_)-OOo-----------
Robin Chytil, Staff Engineer            Email: [e-mail]
Silicon Graphics Inc.                Vmail: 5-9389
Mediterranean Distribution Territory        Tel:   [phone]
Lausanne, Switzerland                Fax :  [phone]





IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #12 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Plans to PAR?
Date: Fri, 1 Apr 94 8:20:12 CST
From: [e-mail] (Dale R Rogers)

    I sent a message to Dave White at DPS, but haven't gotten a reply
    as yet.

    With all the talk of non-linear systems coming out for the Amiga
    (Flyer, DB32), are there any plans for the PAR board/software to
    be redesigned to work non-linearly?  It sure would be nice to be
    able to produce realtime transistions between various scenes.

    Dale

        ____________________________^____________________________
        dale r. rogers

        Intergraph Corporation
        Building Design & Management             MailStop: LR24A4
        [e-mail]           Tel: [phone]
                                    .


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #13 ***************************************:-)

Subject: RE: Still Looking for moon data
Date: Fri, 1 Apr 1994 07:47:00 -0700
From: [e-mail] (Lesk)

>Cedric,
>   Maybe I didn't explain clearly enough about using the Applique to create
>landscapes.  I start with a color image which I convert to grayscale to
>create the Applique object.  Then I take the original color image and use
>that as a flat brushmap laid over the Applique object.  The neat thing about
>this is the colors of the original overhead view exactly match the contours
>of the Applique object.
>   I have found using brushmaps produce much better colored landscapes than
>trying to combine different textures.  I was just producing an overhead
>colored contour brushmap in DPaint and applying that as a brushmap on my
>Vistapro landscape objects.  If you haven't tried it, you should because it
>produces quite nice results with a lot less time than textures but it
>depends on what you are trying to achieve.
> ----------

I have seen some talk of Applique and tried it with poor results, every
object no matter what picture I use results in the same thing. I have
gotten better results in vertex but I am still not quite there yet. Have
you worked with pixel3d? I was wondering if it would do something like
this?


                                                Thanks
                                                 Lesk




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #14 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Imagine PC help!
Date: Thu, 31 Mar 94 21:20:55 -0700
From: [e-mail] (Greg Pringle)

  Hi, I'm posting this for someone else. He's having trouble getting
Imagine PC V2.0 to run on a 486DLC motherboard with 2 Megs ram and
no math copro. He's tried several FPU emulators, with no luck.

  He's also tried a clean boot disk, running QEMM, and the dos
memory manager.

  Has anyone gotten Imagine PC running in 2 Megs memory or with a
FPU emulator?

  (I already reminded him about /noxms.. )

   Greg



--
+--------------------------+----------------------------------------------+
| Greg Pringle             |                                              |
| [e-mail] |          "Better dead than smeg"             |
| [e-mail] |                                              |
+--------------------------+----------------------------------------------+


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #15 ***************************************:-)

Subject: RE: Still Looking for moon data
Date: Fri, 1 Apr 1994 10:50:45 -0500 (EST)
From: ecorbin <[e-mail]>

While we're on the subject... is there anyway to make landscape objects from
grayscales-as-altitude maps in Imagine2.0?  Or am I going to have to get
an external program for that?   If so, are there any PD programs that'll
do that specific task?

Earl Corbin
[e-mail]




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #16 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: C= woes
Date: Fri, 1 Apr 1994 10:37:31 -0500 (EST)
From: ecorbin <[e-mail]>

On Thu, 31 Mar 1994, Jason B Koszarsky wrote:

> Subject: Re: C= woes
>
> >Speaking of NEWTEK.  How is this going to affect the Toaster?
>
> Let's just assume C= does die, who has the most interest in the chipset
> technology?  Newtek & HP.  Either one could buy it.  If Newtek does, I
> guess that would be the end of Amiga as I don't think they are big
> enough or interested in maintaining a personal computer line.  They
> would most likely make a toaster box.
>
> This is nothing more than speculation though.
>
> Jason K.

I'm not one to tell rumors as truth, but I heard that NewTek has
_already_ licensed the AGA chips.  That doesn't mean somebody else won't
continue the Amiga, but that's just speculation.  I have to agree,
though.  NewTek would probably just build a Toaster box.


My speculation:

If C= goes under, NewTek will build Toaster boxes, and _maybe_ a
European company will build low-end Amigas.  Hard to tell at this point.
My advice is to not take anything said in the next week _too_ seriously,
be wary of speculation vs. fact, and wait for solid news.  The next week
or two will tell all.


Now to make this post relevant:

Does anybody have any good tips on modelling spacecraft?  I know
everyone has their way of doing things, but do most of you go to your
modeller with a rough idea and work it out as you go, or do you like to
design your models on paper first?

Earl Corbin
[e-mail]





IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #17 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: C= woes
Date:     Fri, 1 Apr 1994 13:30:29 -0500
From: Jason B Koszarsky <[e-mail]>

>do most of you go to your modeller with a rough idea and work it out as
>you go, or do you like to design your models on paper first?

I will usually work it out on paper.  I make several design sketches until
I get a clear idea of what it is I want to build.  For animations I will
also storyboard my ideas.  This is especially helpful when working with
a group.  If I don't know what I'm trying to build then I will usually
waster a lot of time modelling.

Jason K.
Cybernetic Expressions


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #18 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re:  Imagine PC help!
Date:     Fri, 1 Apr 1994 13:39:46 -0500
From: Jason B Koszarsky <[e-mail]>

>He's having trouble getting Imagine PC V2.0 to run on a 486DLC motherboard
>with 2 Megs ram

Doesn't Imagine PC require 4megs min. to run?

Jason K.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #19 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Imagine PC help!
Date: Fri, 01 Apr 94 16:57:58 EST
From: [e-mail]

  I do not believe that there is a version of Imagine PC that will work
without a math coprocessor.  Also 2MB of RAM is an awfully small amount to
run any 3D program.

  The best thing to do would be to upgrade to the DX processor and add 2MB
more RAM.

  I have been running Imagine PC on a 386DX/40 with a math coprocessor, and
4MB RAM (just upgraded to 8MB).  It works pretty well.

     Kurt


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #20 ***************************************:-)

Subject: RenderWare Demo
Date: Fri, 01 Apr 94 17:39:02 EST
From: [e-mail]

  Does anyone know where I can get the RenderWare demo.  The company name and
phone number would be best.

  Kurt


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #21 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Bug in V2.9 States??
Date: 01 Apr 94 02:52:00 -0800
From: [e-mail]

I don't remember if someone already posted this but what the heck is wrong
with "STATES" in V2.9??  I have a grouped object that I'm animating.  I
move/rotates some parts and save each movement in STATES-CREATE-GROUPED.
After I finish all the tween poisitions states I want, I save the object, go
into the Stage editor to test it out...and when I load it in Stage the
individual axises are at the correct positions but the objects have all
randomly moved off the axises in different directions!!!  What the hec is
happening here!?  I tried this several times (all the while when I CREATE
and then look back with SET TO in states, everything looks fine.  I save the
object, then reload it in stage (or even detail editor) and its all
corrupted.
 Anyone know what I'm doint wrong?  Is this a bug?

Thanks in advance for any help.
****************
REPLY:
     Quick guess at this point, but did you pick the main axis every
     time you set a state for the entire group?  It's been a while
     since I worked with states, but I remember setting a state when
     an arm was picked, and in the stage editor the arm's main axis
     moved to the base axis for the entire group.

     Also, Did you select all 3 state buttons (group and 2 others,
     can't remember)?

     Ed


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #22 ***************************************:-)

Subject: DKB3128 question
Date: Fri, 1 Apr 1994 19:03:00 -0500
From: [e-mail] (David Wyand)

Hi All!

I own a DKB3128 with 8megs on board.  I also have 8megs in my A3000T.
Unfortunately, these are split up into two distinct chunks.  Does anyone
know how to merge this memory together (and if it is even possible)?
I thought that rendering guys may have an answer.
Thanx in advance...

                                        -Dave
                                         [e-mail]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #23 ***************************************:-)

Subject: MPEG as Animation Compressor
Date: Fri, 1 Apr 1994 18:42:00 -0500
From: [e-mail] (David Wyand)

Hi All!

What do you guys think of using MPEG as the compression method of choice
on AMINET.  That way we could upload VERY long animations that would
take up less space.  This would also allow us to download these large
animations and still fit them on a floppy (as some of us do).  It would
appear that many MPEG decoders exsit that can convert the MPEG into
still IFFs that could then be remade into standard ANIMs (for real-time
playback).

One flaw that I am aware of (other than the time required to compress
and decompress the MPEG) is that I don't know of a MPEG Encoder.  Does
anyone else??

                                        -Dave
                                         [e-mail]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #24 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: DKB3128 question
Date: Fri, 1 Apr 1994 20:58:53 -0800 (PST)
From: Mike McCool <[e-mail]>

On Fri, 1 Apr 1994, David Wyand wrote:

> Hi All!
>
> I own a DKB3128 with 8megs on board.  I also have 8megs in my A3000T.
> Unfortunately, these are split up into two distinct chunks.  Does anyone
> know how to merge this memory together (and if it is even possible)?
> I thought that rendering guys may have an answer.
> Thanx in advance...
>
>                                         -Dave
>                                          [e-mail]
>
Would whoever responds to Dave's excellent query please do so out in the
open, to the mailing list, rather than as private e-mail.  I have a
similar configuration, that is, 10megs of ram on the 3000's motherboard,
and two more in a separate board in a zorro slot.  I'm thinking of
populating this board with four more megs of ram, but before I do so, I
want to be able to make certain it's all available to Imagine when it's
needed.

    And while I'm on the subject, maybe someone knows what all this
means:  the fast ram on the motherboard registers as 32-bit local public,
but the ram on the zorro board registers as fast ram public 24bit DMA.

    Wha . . . ?




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #25 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: MPEG as Animation Compressor
Date: Sat, 2 Apr 1994 10:07:23 -0800 (PST)
From: Mike McCool <[e-mail]>

Hey David,

    This is a great suggestion--but you also have found the only
drawback:  mpeg encoders are still very much in the programmers' domain.
I got one, off a local Amiga bbs, but it's about as clear as mud.  I
can't begin to fathom how to use it.  I look forward to the responses to
your post, as there has yet to be an encoding algorithm as efficient as
mpeg.  I found a decoder that does what you mentioned, namely, saves out
the frames as individual 24bit iff's.  It's a sweet decoder, by some
German fellow.
    Look for his decoder, and an mpeg's movie he uploaded, called
DragonSong.

On Fri, 1 Apr 1994, David Wyand wrote:

> Hi All!
>
> What do you guys think of using MPEG as the compression method of choice
> on AMINET.  That way we could upload VERY long animations that would
> take up less space.  This would also allow us to download these large
> animations and still fit them on a floppy (as some of us do).  It would
> appear that many MPEG decoders exsit that can convert the MPEG into
> still IFFs that could then be remade into standard ANIMs (for real-time
> playback).
>
> One flaw that I am aware of (other than the time required to compress
> and decompress the MPEG) is that I don't know of a MPEG Encoder.  Does
> anyone else??
>
>                                         -Dave
>                                          [e-mail]
>


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #26 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: DKB3128 question
Date: Sat, 2 Apr 94 11:44:11 PST
From: [e-mail] (Michel J. Brown)

In <[e-mail]>,
Mike McCool <[e-mail]> writes:

>
>     And while I'm on the subject, maybe someone knows what all this
> means:  the fast ram on the motherboard registers as 32-bit local public,
> but the ram on the zorro board registers as fast ram public 24bit DMA.
>
Sounds like you have a ZII memory board in place, IMHO. I don't have an A3000, b
ut
 my  A2500 does have some 32 bit memory, and when it uses the 16 bit chip memory
,
 the slow down *is* noticeable. Try using config and see what your system says i
s
 online in terms of your Zorro expansion cards.
Virtually yours,
Michel
>
>     Wha . . . ?
>




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #27 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re[2]: c= usa gone?
Date: 05 Apr 94 08:09:00 -0800
From: [e-mail]

>Byte by Byte developped Sculpt 4d on Mac (the version used textures, brush
>mapping and so on), and now they have a Software called Envisage 3D, for the
>PC. Ever heard of it ? I saw an ad in Desktop Video World.
>
>Robin

     I received a demo tape and product literature.  It appears to be
     an excellent program, with strengths in motion control, speed of
     rendering and ram efficiency.  Contact Doug Kelly
     [e-mail] for more info.

     Ed


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #28 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: memory
Date: Tue, 5 Apr 1994 11:16:02 -0400 (EDT)
From: Udo K Schuermann <[e-mail]>

[e-mail] writes:
> In my 3000, I have 16 megs on the motherboard, and 16 megs on a PP&S '040
> in the co-processor slot. Imagine sees and uses it all, with no problems,
> but ADPro only sees the first 16 megs. So the problem with Imagine not
> seeing your extra ram may not be with Imagine. I do not need to run Merge-
> mem for Imagine to see all my ram.

That is because Imagine uses small chunks, in the process using up to 32MB
of memory from both boards.  ADPro requires a CONTIGUOUS chunk of memory
for its image buffer.  If you had 32MB on your PP&S 040 (if it can or
cannot have that much, I don't know) then ADPro would "see" those 32MB of
memory and grab those.  You could adjust the priority of the memory chunks
(I'm sure there are tools to do that) so that ADPro grabs the memory on
your PP&S in preference to that on the motherboard; you should see a
speedup in ADPro with that, I think.

 ._.  Udo Schuermann
 ( )  [e-mail]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #29 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: disp180a.zip - handles Imagine PC pictures/anims
Date: Tue, 5 Apr 94 10:36:02 CDT
From: [e-mail] (Thomas Setzer)

Uh, I forwarded the message about this display program to a friend(he's a
PC owner) and this is what he sent back.  Any ideas? (I deleted the original
message, so I don't even know what ftp site this is at)  Anyone have any
luck with this?

-------------begin include--------------

I retrieved the disp180a.zip file off of the net, but after having tried three
unzip utilities, I still can't uncompress the file.  It seems to have been
compressed with some unknown compression technique (something that PKunzip
does not recognize).  Can you help?  Did you try this thing?

----------------------------------------


Tom Setzer
[e-mail]

"And of course, I'm a genius, so people are naturally drawn to my fiery
intellect.  Their admiration overwhelms their envy!" - Calvin


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #30 ***************************************:-)

Subject: RE: anim<>FLIC ??
Date: Tue, 05 Apr 94 07:42:00 PDT
From: Stethem Ted              5721 <[e-mail]>

  You don't mention which version of mainActor you are using.  I haven't
used it much but maybe it is not supporting AGA modes yet which is what a
256 color 640x480 frame would be to the Amiga.
  ImageF/X will do this no sweat.  As for PD on the PC, what you need is
Dave's Targa Animator or more commonly known as DTA.  You should get at
least version 2.0 and I think it is up to 2.08.  It will accept .GIF, .TGA,
.PCX for sure and might even take .TIFF or .BMP and assemble them into .FLI
and .FLC.  It is a very good program especially for PD.
  It is available on many sites, faramir.informatik.uni-oldenburg.de
134.106.1.9 in the incoming/dkbtrace area, as best as I can remember.  Now,
can you tell me of a site for WinAAplay?
 ----------
From: imagine-relay
To: imagine
Subject: anim<>FLIC ??
Date: Monday, April 04, 1994 9:11PM

I need to convert some anims to FLC format.
Before you say "Get MainActor"...
I did and it doesn't work.
I built a 256 color IFF anim-5 and loaded it with mainActor, saved it in FLC
format and tried to play it with WinAAplay.  No Dice.
Any Ideas what my be wrong? the anim was 640x480 42 frames. MainActor gave
no errors or anything, but it crashes the WinAAplayer.

You PC Imagineers out there... What do you use to make FLC files?
I know there is some Shareware program out there but I can't remeber the
name of it.
I have a 486 also, so I can just convert the frames to TGA or GIF if I need
to
then build the FLC on the PC.
Any and all info appreciated.  Including names of PD/FD programs for
PC/Amiga.



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #31 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: anim<>FLIC ??
Date: 05 Apr 94 07:53:00 -0800
From: [e-mail]

>I need to convert some anims to FLC format.
>Before you say "Get MainActor"...
>I did and it doesn't work.
>I built a 256 color IFF anim-5 and loaded it with mainActor, saved it in FLC
>format and tried to play it with WinAAplay.  No Dice.
>Any Ideas what my be wrong? the anim was 640x480 42 frames. MainActor gave
>no errors or anything, but it crashes the WinAAplayer.
>
>You PC Imagineers out there... What do you use to make FLC files?
>I know there is some Shareware program out there but I can't remeber the
>name of it.
>I have a 486 also, so I can just convert the frames to TGA or GIF if I need to
>then build the FLC on the PC.
>Any and all info appreciated.  Including names of PD/FD programs for PC/Amiga.

>From the archives:


Subject: Re: .FLC Players
Date: Thu, 14 Oct 1993 16:40:54 -0700 (PDT)
From: Doug Kelly <[e-mail]>

The BBS I use lists DTA17G.ZIP, Dave's Targa Animator Version 1.7, which
assembles Targa, PCX or GIF files into an animation by the numbers, and
LOOK09B1.ZIP, Look v.0.9 Beta 1, "A very fast .fli and .flc viewer with
mouse and GUI."

     DTA rel 2.0 (7/29/93) is available.  I used it last week to
     create a PC FLI animation.  These anim files seem to be bigger
     than our anim5 format, but I had no problems. I used FLXPLAY to
     play the anim on the PC.

I use DTA (Dave's Targa Animator).  This takes a series of TGA's and
creates a FLC or FLI.  Recent versions have included AVI formats.  I
believe that there is a big revision of it on the horizon, but the latest
I know of is DTA207.ZIP.
***
I've use DTA with success 3-4 times, but you'll need to break the anim
down into frames to use this program.

Ed


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #32 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Spaced out
Date: Tue, 5 Apr 1994 09:21:16 -0800
From: [e-mail] (Brad Molsen)

        Greetings,
I couldn't help but notice after being a member of this mailing list for a
couple of months now, that an awful lot of you when referring to the
subject of your work are dealing with extraterrestrial subject matter. I
ran across something that may help you in the creation of your little
universes. The fellow in the office across the way has all manner of little
space ship models sitting on top of the work station on his desk. What they
are are "MicroMachines" made by a company called Galoob. They are quite
realistic models of the space ships that appear in the various Star Trek
series. Everything from Romulan Warbirds to Klingon Birds of Prey are
availible. Though small, approximately 2"-3" long, they are "authentically
detailed" and should provide a good model to use in the creation of space
ships to populate your universes. Much better than using the freeze frame
on your VCRs or trying to remember a specific ship. They should also work
nicely as a starting point for making your own original ships They come 3
ships to a package and cost locally here in Seattle $4.99. I'm told, for
the person asking about modeling a Borg ship, that they also have one of
these.
        I'm not affiliated with this company at all, I just thought the
info could be of use.
                                        later,
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
        JUST SAY NO, TO GUNS!!!

Brad Molsen c/o  LORAL                          [e-mail]

13810 SE Eastgate Way Suite 500                 [phone]
Bellevue, Wa 98005                              Fax: [phone]



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #33 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: MPEG as Animation Compressor
Date: Sat, 2 Apr 94 12:38:09 PST
From: [e-mail] (Christopher Stewart)

>What do you guys think of using MPEG as the compression method of choice
>on AMINET.  That way we could upload VERY long animations that would
>take up less space.  This would also allow us to download these large
>animations and still fit them on a floppy (as some of us do).  It would
>appear that many MPEG decoders exsit that can convert the MPEG into
>still IFFs that could then be remade into standard ANIMs (for real-time
>playback).

     MPEG would be ok for REALLY long animations so you could at least get
the gist of the sequence but I'd hate to see it as a standard means of
transmission. Playback on a non decoder equipped machine is usually in
160x128 resolution and <12fps. Nasty. When split, the individual frames of
a MPEG look terrible and create weakly animations. Producing the
animations in 352x240 is great but with no availiable decoders the
playback is <3fps. I'm sorry 'bout your floppy problem but, hey, join the
'90's and get a hd <grin>.


>One flaw that I am aware of (other than the time required to compress
>and decompress the MPEG) is that I don't know of a MPEG Encoder.  Does
>anyone else??

     I have an encoder called MPEG1.1 that works great. It's a unix port
and therefore accepts yuv format iput. The package I recieved included
iff24 to ppm and ppm to yuv converters. A bit of a pain as some of the
sequences to be renamed before conversion but I managed to automate the
process. 348 frames in 380k at 11fps, not bad I suppose but consider that
I can play the anim at 60 fps in higher resolutions......

     I don't know where you'd find the encoder, just try archie. I, um,
don't exactly know how to upload to aminet so if anyone would like to
write a little letter to me ;-). I'll upload the mpeg's I've created so far.

                        Christopher

ps. If you can get you hands on the latest AMUC disk-based newsletter
(Greg, you still reading this list?) it includes all the programs and a
mini tutorial (That's the Amiga Users of Calgary).



--
....and if there be some harder, better way    [e-mail]
to salvation than to follow that which we      [e-mail]
believe to be good, then are we all damned.    [e-mail]
   Lord Dunsany, "Dom Rodriguez" (1922).       Join the Animation Sig!


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #34 ***************************************:-)

Subject: MPEG as Animation Compressor
Date: Sat, 2 Apr 1994 22:34:00 -0500
From: [e-mail] (David Wyand)

Hi Greg!

>David,
>  Other limitations are that MPEG comes in two flavors right now
>320x200 & 320x240, thats it.  Nothing higher.

Really.  I didn't know that.  Although it is the perfect size for HAM
playback (at least on non-AGA machines).  Too bad it's not 320x400 :(

Well, that's another nail in the coffin for my suggestion.  Oh well...

                                        -Dave
                                         [e-mail]

PS: Actually, maybe it's not too bad.  Atleast we'ed be able to see some
of the longer, 2Meg animations at the fraction of the size.  I believe
that the ambiance and technique would still be present, which is what I
try to look for (and to steal as many ideas as possible :)
        -Dave


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #35 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: MPEG as Animation Compressor
Date: Sat, 2 Apr 1994 22:47:00 -0500
From: [e-mail] (David Wyand)

Hi Christopher!

>     MPEG would be ok for REALLY long animations so you could at least
>get the gist of the sequence but I'd hate to see it as a standard means
>of transmission. Playback on a non decoder equipped machine is usually
>in 160x128 resolution and <12fps. Nasty. When split, the individual
>frames of a MPEG look terrible and create weakly animations. Producing
>the animations in 352x240 is great but with no availiable decoders the
>playback is <3fps.

It's for long animations that I think it would be perfect :) ! We've
seen lately people uploading multi-meg animations.  For this stuff, I
think MPEG may be the only current solution.  I was not originally aware
of the resolution problem, and I agree on the slow playback (I currently
use my PicassoII board, and the MPEG files do play back slow, and
small).

>I'm sorry 'bout your floppy problem but, hey, join the
>'90's and get a hd <grin>.

Actually, my problem is not that I don't own a Hard Drive (I have a
3000T with a 250MB HD, and a 150MD Removable Bernoulli).  My problem is
that I only have FTP access at the University, which is through IBMs.
My only way of transfering from there to home is by floppy :(  I have
also read recently that a few other Imagineers also have this problem.

>     I have an encoder called MPEG1.1 that works great. It's a unix
>port and therefore accepts yuv format iput. The package I recieved
>included iff24 to ppm and ppm to yuv converters. A bit of a pain as
>some of the sequences to be renamed before conversion but I managed to
>automate the process. 348 frames in 380k at 11fps, not bad I suppose
>but consider that I can play the anim at 60 fps in higher
>resolutions......

I agree that playing back MPEGs is nothing like playing back Amiga ANIMs
(boy, do I like Scala :), but I envisioned this as only a method for
archieving the ANIMs, and for uploading of LARGE ANIMs (the multi-meg
ones).

                                        -Dave
                                         [e-mail]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #36 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: MPEG as Animation Compressor
Date: Sun, 3 Apr 94 04:24:34 PDT
From: [e-mail] (Christopher Stewart)

>Hi Christopher!

     Well howdy!

>>     MPEG would be ok for REALLY long animations so you could at least
>It's for long animations that I think it would be perfect :) ! We've
>seen lately people uploading multi-meg animations.  For this stuff, I
>think MPEG may be the only current solution.  I was not originally aware
>of the resolution problem, and I agree on the slow playback (I currently
>use my PicassoII board, and the MPEG files do play back slow, and
>small).

      I think it's a great way too. I'd love to see Mark's Fred Floaty
uploaded in it's entirety ;-). If a motherboard level decoder ever becomes
availiable for the Amiga (and I know it's been at least partially
developed, perhaps even thought about <grin>) it would be a great method.

>>I'm sorry 'bout your floppy problem but, hey, join the
>>'90's and get a hd <grin>.
>
>Actually, my problem is not that I don't own a Hard Drive (I have a
>3000T with a 250MB HD, and a 150MD Removable Bernoulli).  My problem is
>that I only have FTP access at the University, which is through IBMs.
>My only way of transfering from there to home is by floppy :(  I have
>also read recently that a few other Imagineers also have this problem.

     No dial in lines? I suppose the accounts are just on a local machine.
You, um, um, can ftp through freenet accounts if available in your area.
Mail me for more info. if you have one in your locale. Good news is Fred
Fish will be distributing some larger material through the CD release so
"send him your stuff".

     C='s making gurgling sounds, huh! How much is an Emplant? Ray Dream
Designer and Strata are making me think a little harder. The up side is
that Toasters might get cheap all of a sudden....... (OOH! and on the
imagine mailing list too!). OOTR => Any PC owners get their 3.0 yet?




--
....and if there be some harder, better way    [e-mail]
to salvation than to follow that which we      [e-mail]
believe to be good, then are we all damned.    [e-mail]
   Lord Dunsany, "Dom Rodriguez" (1922).       Join the Animation Sig!


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #37 ***************************************:-)

Subject: RE^2: MPEG as Animation Compressor
Date: Sun, 03 Apr 1994 06:14:37 -0700
From: "Jeff Wahaus, CAPS, ATL" <[e-mail]>

>     MPEG would be ok for REALLY long animations so you could at least get
>the gist of the sequence but I'd hate to see it as a standard means of
>transmission. Playback on a non decoder equipped machine is usually in
>160x128 resolution and <12fps. Nasty. When split, the individual frames of
>a MPEG look terrible and create weakly animations. Producing the
>animations in 352x240 is great but with no availiable decoders the
>playback is <3fps. I'm sorry 'bout your floppy problem but, hey, join the
>'90's and get a hd <grin>.

  You must have an 040 to be getting around 12 fps from an MPEG animation.
With my 25MHz 030 I get about 3 to 5 fps at 160x128 resolution.  At larger
resolutions I'd probablly get about 1 fps.  The 24-bit color of MPEG's
is nice but without some additional horsepower (read: hardware decoder)
the animations will look more like a sequence of crummy stills rather
than an animation.

-Jeff Wahaus-
[e-mail]



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #38 ***************************************:-)

Subject: RE: Bug in V2.9 States...
Date: Sun,  3 Apr 94 17:17:00 BST
From: [e-mail]

Ed, I did pick the entire group when creating/updating states.  I only had
"group" chosen since I wasn't using a texture (for "properties") or chaning
the shape of the objects ("Shape").
 Well I got a work around for it in the mean time (just used the cycle
editor).
 I think the problem was I didn't have the object grouped correctly (in the
correct hierarchy I guess).  I think the problem happend when you move an
axis that may be linked grouped to another part that you already moved. For
example, if I move a foot in a certain position, and then move the knee to
another location, it messes up the location of the foot (after you save it).
Anyway, it was a real pain in the butt, and I had to use the cycle editor
with all new axis grouped together the right way (I guess that was what I
should have been doing in the first place).  Anyway, I still love the cycle
editor because you can perview the cylce and make adjustments to the key
positions right in the editor..unlike states. :-(
 Dave.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #39 ***************************************:-)

Subject: RE: applique function
Date: Tue, 5 Apr 1994 10:59:19 -0700
From: [e-mail] (Lesk)

>Lesk,
>   Even after you explained it to me, I still don't understand what is going
>on with what you are doing.  From what you said, maybe you have the axis
>orientation off by 90 degrees but I don't know how this would happen unless
>you load the primitive plane, rotate it first, then use the Applique

Been there done it, that is in fact how I got at least some change in the plane.


>function.  What I do is load the primitive plane, use the Applique function
>then rotate it 90 degrees, load an axis, join, then go into the attributes,
>rename the object, and apply the color brushmap.

Sure didn't get this far before ... but I did last night. I tried
hamlabplus set to two bitplanes and monochrome (I didn't know this was in
it before), converted a picture of Elvira on a broom (from wuarchive) and
then set the applique size to 50 (that is on the modify axis requester I
believe.) and WOW! I got a fantastic mountain terrain. So I guess the
biggest trouble was that other program just did't get a good greyscale to
work with or something.

>  You will definitely like ImageF/X.  The PD programs are pretty good but
>they just don't compare to programs like ImageF/X and ADPro.  I heard that
>ImageF/X V1.5 will also be able to make MPEG animations with an optional
>saver module (extra $$$).

Well When I looked at adpro I got tired of seeing all the xtra things I
would have to buy to make it do most of the things I wanted. I don't know
that Imagef/x has as good a quality and I have heard cinimorph is not as
good as adpro's morph package, But I can now get the experience I have been
wanting.
Ahhh if only I could add sound to my anims. mmmm anim workshop? show maker?
..... whats next?




                                        Render Ho!
                                           Lesk




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #40 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re[2]: disp180a.zip - handles Imagine PC pictures/anims
Date: 05 Apr 94 12:19:00 -0800
From: [e-mail]

>I retrieved the disp180a.zip file off of the net, but after having tried three
>unzip utilities, I still can't uncompress the file.  It seems to have been
>compressed with some unknown compression technique (something that PKunzip
>does not recognize).  Can you help?  Did you try this thing?

     I just downloaded it yesterday and it unzipped with no problems.
     Did you use BINARY mode transfer?

     Ed


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #41 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Dirtyness
Date: Tue, 5 Apr 94 21:22:50 GMT
From: Andrew Nunn <[e-mail]>

Many thanks to all those who replied to my recent question regarding
dirtying down objects.

Many (most) suggested using Essence I and/or II,although in the past I
have struggled to get just the right values. More experimentation
required here I think.

I did get a reply from Mike Halvorson who suggested I wait a few days
and use the 3.0 Dirt texture. <=World Exclusive ! I guess that will
help the PC users too.

Andrew


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #42 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: anim<>FLIC ??
Date: Tue, 05 Apr 94 16:39:34 EDT
From: [e-mail]

  The PC version of Imagine will make FLC files.  What you do is in the
dialog box to set up resoultion, file type and all that.  Set it up as a FLC
animation in the movie type area.  I forget what exactly it is called I'll
look and let you know.

  VistaPro also come with a utility that will make a FLC animation out of a
series of PCX files, another one that will play ANY FLC animation, and
another that will break ANY FLC into a series of PCX files.  This is good for
breaking apart those cool animation that you download.

  These utilities are copyrighted, but come with VistaPro, which as one of
the best landscape modelers, is something you should have anyway.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #43 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: anim<>FLIC ??
Date: Tue, 5 Apr 1994 17:44:51 -0500 (CDT)
From: Cliff Lee <[e-mail]>

On Mon, 4 Apr 1994, Adam Benjamin wrote:

> You PC Imagineers out there... What do you use to make FLC files?

I use DTA  (Dave's Targa Animator)  Version 2.07beta is the latest.  Been
around a long time.  Handy util.  Converts to/from various formats.
Check it out!



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #44 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: MPEG as Animation Compressor
Date: Sun, 3 Apr 1994 09:41:02 -0700 (PDT)
From: Mike McCool <[e-mail]>

Hey guys, and guyas,

    Get hold of that mpeg viewer, mp.103.  It has an option for
saving out all the frames of an anim as 24bit iff's, which then of cource
can be recombined in a more agreeable (fast) Amiga format.
    A 90k file called DragonSongMPG, when saved out as individual
frames, was nearly nine megs big!  That's compression!
    Now if there were just an en-coder that is as friendly . . .
I'll admit I'm spoiled.  I expect gui's for everything.



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #45 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Imagine 3.0 Sound
Date: Sun, 3 Apr 94 17:20:15 GMT
From: Andrew Nunn <[e-mail]>

Does anyone know if the sound sync feature made it to Imagine 3.0?

Andrew


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #46 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Dirtyness
Date: Sun, 3 Apr 94 17:18:42 GMT
From: Andrew Nunn <[e-mail]>

In a recent magazine interview that I read, Ron Thornton talked about
dirtying down the models that were used for Babylon5. He did not say
specifically how, but my guess would be some sort of fractal grime.
Does anyone have any tips/parameter values for doing this in Imagine?

Andrew


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #47 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: C= woes
Date: Mon, 4 Apr 1994 10:55:32 -0700 (PDT)
From: Mike McCool <[e-mail]>

Hey Dale,

    I'm with you, in the amazed department.  Here we are on the verge
of the release of the 5000, a machine with three separate cpu operations
that are going to blow the lid off this proprietary platform bullshit
we've lived under for nearly ten years now--here we are at such a
juncture, and out comes news of Commodore's bankruptcy?  It's too weird.




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #48 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Real3D vs. Imagine 3.0?
Date: Mon, 4 Apr 1994 14:44:48 -0500 (CDT)
From: [e-mail] (cyberhawk)

How does Imagine 3D compare to Real3D and other raytracing programs?

Andrey Zmievskiy



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #49 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Phil Wolstenholme
Date: Tue, 5 Apr 94 21:12:00 +0000
From: [e-mail] (Paul Rance)

 >
 > The May 94 issue of Amiga World has a really nice image generated using
 > Imagine
 > by Phil Wolstenholme.  Phil, are you out here? REALLY nice pitcher
 > plant
 > textures.  Hmm, wonder if that was an iff wrap.
 >
 > Nice Real3d image too(note the tables color gets affected by the
 > glass).
 >
 > Well, just wanted to mention this, and see if Phil is out here on the
 > list.
 >

Hi Tom,

 I dont know the bloke but he has had quite a bit of press over here in the
U.K. He's designed quite a few albumn covers for a record label called Warp.
He's about to release an "Artificial Intelligence" video on this label feature
computer animations to music (Ambient Techno I imagine). Maybe of interested.

bye,

Paul Rance




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #50 ***************************************:-)

Subject: New features of Imagine 3.0
Date: Tue, 5 Apr 1994 20:46:02 -0500 (CDT)
From: [e-mail] (cyberhawk)

I've been looking for a list of new features in Imagine 3.0 for a long
time, but no luck. Can somebody post it here?



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #51 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: MPEG as Animation Compressor
Date: Tue, 5 Apr 94 04:54:42 MDT
From: [e-mail] (Lowell Lindenbach)

>One flaw that I am aware of (other than the time required to compress
>and decompress the MPEG) is that I don't know of a MPEG Encoder.  Does
>anyone else??

       There should be a public domain MPEG encoder on Aminet somewhere
called mpeg_v1.2a.lha (Stanford MPEG encoder/decoder v1.2 alpha).  This
operates in much the same way as the PD JPEG software.  You basically
convert IFFs to PPMs and then to CYUV format and the MPEG software
goes from there.  It shouldn't be too inscrutable as long as you are
comfortable with the Shell.  Our club newsletter ran a tutorial on the
process from video source to final MPEG and it was fairly straightforward.

--
Lowell Lindenbach    [e-mail]
                     castrov.UUCP!ender!eridanus!lindenbach
                     Fido: Lowell Lindenbach 1:134/27


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #52 ***************************************:-)

Subject: memory
Date: Wed,  6 Apr 94 03:16:00 BST
From: [e-mail]

It's very simple to use all of your ram, no matter how much of it you have.
I find that with 32+2 megs, something like 7 default spheres with a 640x400
bitmap used as an Altitude map for each object will gleefully eat all of my
ram, and be hungry for more. Just pop Imagine into the backround and watch
the WB screen countdown. I have noticed, that when the ram usage is due to
the number and complexity of objects, versus the number of bitmaps, the
difference in ram usage between Trace and Scanline modes can be as high as
30-35 percent. So that with a rendering that leaves about 7+2 megs available
in Trace mode will begin deleting objects and parts of objects in Scanline.
This compares to a ram usage difference of maybe 10-15 percent when doing a
typical "flying logo" rendering.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #53 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: MPEG as Animation Compressor
Date: Sun, 3 Apr 1994 15:02:00 -0400
From: [e-mail] (David Wyand)

>>Hi Christopher!
>
>     Well howdy!

Howdy right back!

>      I think it's a great way too. I'd love to see Mark's Fred Floaty
>uploaded in it's entirety ;-). If a motherboard level decoder ever
>becomes availiable for the Amiga (and I know it's been at least
>partially developed, perhaps even thought about <grin>) it would be a
>great method.

How about some way to automatically transfer MPEGs to the PAR board.
That way they could be played back in all their glory (well, at 320x200,
anyway).

>     No dial in lines? I suppose the accounts are just on a local
>machine. You, um, um, can ftp through freenet accounts if available in
>your area. Mail me for more info. if you have one in your locale. Good
>news is Fred Fish will be distributing some larger material through the
>CD release so "send him your stuff".

Well, there are phone in lines, but I'd have to pay, and downloading
that stuff from the UNIX at 2400baud would be a nightmare! (Time to get
a new modem :)

                                        -Dave
                                         [e-mail]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #54 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: DKB3128 question
Date: Mon, 4 Apr 1994 00:09:55 -0400 (EDT)
From: [e-mail] (William V. Swartz)

Hello gang,

> On Fri, 1 Apr 1994, David Wyand wrote:
>
> > I own a DKB3128 with 8megs on board.  I also have 8megs in my A3000T.
> > Unfortunately, these are split up into two distinct chunks.  Does anyone
> > know how to merge this memory together (and if it is even possible)?

There was a little command called mergemem I used to use on my 1000 in the
1.3 days that would merge the 2 1meg external boards I had into one
contiguous 2mb memory chunk.  As I recall this is only possible if the
memory boards come up at adjacent memory address locations.  Not being a
hardware guru I may not be explaning that well.  As I recall the program was
pd/fd so it may be in the 'net.

  //
\X/ -BiL-
    [e-mail]             (See my 'Imagine'-ary signature below)


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #55 ***************************************:-)

Subject: MPEG encoders (was Re: MPEG as Animation Compressor
Date: Mon, 4 Apr 1994 15:47:19 +1000 (EST)
From: MiKE <[e-mail]>

Hi All

For those of you with access to IBMs, you may want to track down an MPEG
encoder for dos called CMPEG10.zip  (about 25k long)
This program is apparently freeware written by Stefan Eckart
([e-mail]) in june 93.
It uses an input file specifying the files to be mpeg'd and autodetects
the type of file.  Files detected are:
    PPM (pbmplus)
    TGA (16/24 bit targa)
    RAW (Image Alchemy RAW Format)

While this isn't extensive file support, it probably beats splitting
everything into yuv's.

Check in garbo sites for the files. I found it on:
    archie.au /micros/pc/garbo/pc/graphics/cmpeg10.zip

Hope this helps.
MiKE





IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #56 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: MPEG as Animation Compressor
Date: Sun, 3 Apr 94 23:37:09 PDT
From: [e-mail] (Christopher Stewart)

>Howdy right back!

    It's comin' at you again....

>How about some way to automatically transfer MPEGs to the PAR board.
>That way they could be played back in all their glory (well, at 320x200,
>anyway).

     You could just use mp 1.03 to split up the files and direct the
output to whatever device the PAR uses, couldn't you? 'fraid I don't own
one so I can't tinker. I regularly compile an animation and jpeg the
separate frames away (deleting the originals) while an animation is being
rendered (Imagine OOTR) using ADPro's SENTRY. I wonder if that could be used.

>Well, there are phone in lines, but I'd have to pay, and downloading
>that stuff from the UNIX at 2400baud would be a nightmare! (Time to get
>a new modem :)

     Take a look at a Ma$ Wharehous$ ad in one of those other magazines
for a VERY cheap 14.4. My roomate has one hooked up to Ma$ and it works
well. Under $100.00.


    As soon as I figure out this upload thing I'll upload some Mpegs.



--
....and if there be some harder, better way    [e-mail]
to salvation than to follow that which we      [e-mail]
believe to be good, then are we all damned.    [e-mail]
   Lord Dunsany, "Dom Rodriguez" (1922).       Join the Animation Sig!


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #57 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Commodore
Date: Mon, 4 Apr 94 16:51:40 BST
From: Andrew Conway <[e-mail]>

Dear Everybode,
I own an A500 with 3Mb and a 52Mb HD (wow that's shit hot I hear you cry)
but I plan(ned) to buy an A4000T with half a Gb but ol' C= have gone
bust in the US of A. Oh dear,  I thought. However, I was told that
C= australia (already bust), Germany and UK were all separate entities
(like the Borg?) so that since C= UK was doing well (which I can
see with my own eyes in Glasgow, Scotland  - people are
literally queueing up for A4000s here) ... I shouldn't worry.

I also own an IBM 486DX. I haven't bothered getting Imagine for the PC
because, well, I'm not impressed by windows, DOS or the PC version
of Imagine (no multi-tasking) from what I've heard of it... therefore having
to resort to my jet-powered-roller-skate (the PC) does not make me
leap around the room singing. I would love to see C= succeed, so if
anyone with more fiscal sense than I has some brilliant collective
strategy, I'm listening.

On a ray-tracing note, does anyone know how to make a Borg ship?
Using a featureless cube is a start but a little, erm, dull.
Also, I found that lighting a cube was more tricky than I thought
it would be. Spheres are easy because they have a smooth
gradient across their surface but cubes with their nasty sharp
edges and corners tend to look like shield-shaped or squares in bad lighting.

love
Andrew


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #58 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Imagine image in AW
Date: Mon, 4 Apr 94 13:41:22 CDT
From: [e-mail] (Thomas Setzer)

The May 94 issue of Amiga World has a really nice image generated using Imagine
by Phil Wolstenholme.  Phil, are you out here? REALLY nice pitcher plant
textures.  Hmm, wonder if that was an iff wrap.

Nice Real3d image too(note the tables color gets affected by the glass).

Well, just wanted to mention this, and see if Phil is out here on the list.

BTW, my stockbroker always says that stocks go up and down for a reason
 and that you should buy stocks that are going up, not down.  When a
 stock goes down 66+%, its not a good thing.  Also, buying stock probably
 won't "help" C=. Your probably buying stock from some poor sap who bought in
 at 3, not C= themselves.  But, then again, I'm just a software engineer
(fancy term for keypunch), and could be wrong.  But thats my understanding of
it.


Tom Setzer
[e-mail]

"And of course, I'm a genius, so people are naturally drawn to my fiery
intellect.  Their admiration overwhelms their envy!" - Calvin




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #59 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Information about graphics cards
Date: Wed, 6 Apr 94 10:51:42 +0200
From: [e-mail] (user12)

Hello at all people.
I'm an italian user of Amiga.
I would buy an graphics card, there is someone that send me
more information about  cards Picasso and Retina.
which are difference, if there are user of that cards, please give me
sensation of use.

Thank's in advance.   8-)


------------------------------------------------------------
  ||  //     Rino Buonamassa
  || //      Via Cosenza, 23
  ||//       70024 - Gravina ( BA)
  |-/        ITALY
  --         E-mail: [e-mail]
------------------------------------------------------------








IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #60 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Spaced out
Date: Tue, 5 Apr 1994 22:05:48 -0700 (PDT)
From: Mike McCool <[e-mail]>

Great post, Brad.

    And it struck home to me.  It's odd, how I almost hate science
fiction, yet so many of my renderings are off world.  And BladeRunner is
one of my favorite films.

    I guess that's why VistaPro is such a hoot for me.  It's brought
me back to earth.

    I even started working on actual trees last week.  I used all the
new stuff in 2.9.  You know, bend, taper, twist, shear.  It feels good to
go organic for a change.  Though my tree foliage looks more like green
smoke, I am getting there.

    Awfully personal post to throw out here in the open.  'Scuse me
guys, and guyas.




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #61 ***************************************:-)

Subject: c= usa gone?
Date: Thu, 31 Mar 1994 13:15:39 -0500
From: Paul Wehner <[e-mail]>

This is what M. Halvorson had to say about my concerns re: Impulse's continued
support of the Amiga...
"What is this garbage about IMPULSE leaving the AMIGA, we have stated
about a billion times we have no reason to do so, we have never intended to do
this and we really get pissed off when people make these dumb ass comments.
Howmany timeHAMIGA COMPUTER WE WILL MAKE IMAGINE FOR THE AMIGA".  Its hard
enough to do good
softwarem but it makes it harder when the very people you are trying to
support,say thinglcontinue to develop for it.  IS THAT CLEAR?


Well I had heard he was abrasive...but damm.
Yo Halvorson-I've been a user since Turbo Silver,followed all the upgrades
till now-LEGITIMATELY. Imply that I'm a dumb ass again and maybe I'll wait for
your fine program to hit a not so fine pirate board. My question was sincere
you were out of line with this slam. Do the list a favor and run your email by
your secratary before posting, hopefully someone could help smooth over the
rough edges. A spell checker would be helpful too.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #62 ***************************************:-)

Subject: RE: applique function
Date: Tue, 5 Apr 1994 21:53:20 -0700 (PDT)
From: Mike McCool <[e-mail]>

Hey Lesk,

    The tail of one of your posts mentioned adding sounds to anims.
This was the first priority for me, and I wasn't satisfied till I could
do it.  I even bought AnimationStation, a fairly easy means to the end of
sound sync'd anims.

    Then I opened that old AmigaVision stuff that came with my
computer, and whammo.  It's still the best and I mean the best way I've
ever found to sync sounds to specific frames of an anim.

    Maybe this is all old soap to you, and you're talking about some
way of actually encrypting sounds into the anim itself, analogous to the
way sound is lain into the actual tracks of film in a movie.

    But if you need a really friendly and straightforward way of
sounding up your anims, use AmigaVision.  And AmigaVision Professional
even has a freely distributable stand alone viewer with a sound player
built in.




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #63 ***************************************:-)

Subject: GOLD attributes
Date: Wed, 6 Apr 94 16:02:55 +0200
From: [e-mail] (Cristian Gavazzeni - Sorint)

Hi, dear  Ray-Tracers

I'm trying to make a scene with a GOLD object, and i've tried a lot of times
to get the right attributes, but I'm not very satified!
Is anyone aware of the best attributes per a very shiny gold ?
(Sorry for my BAD ENGLISH)

Thanks in Advance!


Cristian Gavazzeni - SUN MICROSYSTEMS ITALY - MILANO -


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #64 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Spaced out
Date: Wed, 6 Apr 94 08:03:42 CDT
From: [e-mail] (Stephen Wilkinson)

[snip]
>     I guess that's why VistaPro is such a hoot for me.  It's brought
> me back to earth.
>
>     I even started working on actual trees last week.  I used all the
> new stuff in 2.9.  You know, bend, taper, twist, shear.  It feels good to
> go organic for a change.  Though my tree foliage looks more like green
> smoke, I am getting there.
[snip]

Hello Mike...

    Good to hear you're getting back to your roots ;^) hahahahahahaha
(gasp) Sorry, I couldn't resist! :)

Stephen

[this msg doen't merit a .sig]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #65 ***************************************:-)

Subject: DXF files
Date: Wed, 06 Apr 94 10:56:30 EDT
From: [e-mail]

Has anyone been able to load a Dxf object into Imagine 2.9 that was created
in 3d Studio Version 3.  All I seem to get is an axis no mater how far I zoom
in or out.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #66 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Envisage 3D
Date: Wed, 6 Apr 1994 09:11:20 -0700 (PDT)
From: Doug Kelly <[e-mail]>

Thanks to Ed Totman for the kind mention of Envisage 3D.  My current
address, [e-mail], is an old one that may disappear anytime.
For best reliability, people interested in Envisage 3D should e-mail me
at

[e-mail]

I'm the PC Product Manager, and will be happy to answer any and all
questions.

Doug Kelly


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #67 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Byte by Byte and the Amiga
Date: Wed, 06 Apr 94 11:16:08 EDT
From: [e-mail]

Kiernan Holland mentioned in 'Re: c= usa gone?'
KH: Chances are Impulse will not completely leave the Amiga platform,
KH: besides the users are less likely to dump them than the PC users...
KH: I remember Byte by Byte did this (makers of sculpt 3d/4d) and
KH: moved to the Macintosh platform (where the competition for 3D
KH: packages are awfully strong) but I haven't heard anything of them
KH: since they left the Amiga platform.. In fact, I think they forfitted...

Dear Kiernan:

Thank you for your concern as to our well being. Byte by Byte Corporation
is very much alive and prosperous.  Leaving the Amiga community was
an extremely heart wrenching decision for myself, Dr. Eric and Cathryn
Graham and the support staff at Byte by Byte.  However, we felt we
could not jeopardize our future by depending on a company bent on self
destruction.  It's a tribute to the tenacity of the Amiga community that
you've kept Commodore alive this long.

Our Sculpt software has consistently been rated as the most powerful
modeling and rendering software on the Macintosh.  Our primary focus
has been on the high end industrial design and architecture segments.
We believe our upcoming 4.0 version of Sculpt will solidify Sculpt's
position as the best 3D modeler and renderer on any platform at any
price.

Byte by Byte additionally offers an integrated 3D modeling, rendering,
and animation software product called Envisage 3D for the MS-DOS
platform.  Envisage 3D is extremely fast, very interactive, and rock
solid.  The list price of Envisage 3D is $995. An Envisage 3D specific
version of the combined Essence I and II procedural textures created
by Apex Software Publishing is optionally available for an additional
$295.

Byte by Byte is still very concerned about protecting the original
investment of our Amiga Sculpt-Animate 4D (SA4D) customers. We
offer SA4D owners full credit for the $495 list price of their SA4D
product towards the list price of either Sculpt for the Macintosh or
Envisage 3D for the PC.  And for a limited time only, Imagine 2.0 or
2.9 users may competitively upgrade to Envisage 3D for $500 without
the Essence texture option or $795 with the Essence texture option.

Thank you for the opportunity to update you on our status.

Best regards,
Scott Peterson
President
Byte by Byte Corporation



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #68 ***************************************:-)

Date: Sun, 3 Apr 94 19:28:51 CDT
From: [e-mail] (cyrus)

Reply to: [e-mail]
Subject: Imagine 3.0
Date: Sun, 3 Apr 94 19:29:12
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>

Seing as I live in the Twin Cities, and how I already have th 2.9 upgrade,
if you send me your questions (i.e. "is xxx feature included", "does xxx
work with yyy")  I'll go get it in person, come home and give them all a try.
I realize that the PC version may be out sooner and all, but for those of you
who still aren't sure about upgrading, or live in a far away land (no, I don't
mean Iowa or California), I would be more than happy to give your scenarios a
run.  Please be as detailed as you can in your questions, i.e. don't simply
ask "does states work properly" or "how does latticize work". While these
questions do need to be answered, you probably have a more detailed response
in mind, and I'm not psychic.
I need the following info:

1. Exactly what function, or combination of functions to use.

2. Under what circumstances to test the function i.e. particles are easy in the
    Detail editor, but much more complicated in Staging, so don't say "how well
    do particles work"

3. What to use of a test object.  Please confine this to primitives, or uuencode

    a SMALL (please read that last word again) copy of a test object or picture.


4. Please post all inquiries before Wednesday, April 6th.  I called Impulse last

    week, and they said that it would not be available until the middle of this
    week.

5. Post the questions PUBLICLY.  I hate getting duplicate mail. All private
    mailings will be either differed until a later date, or ignored.

IF Imagine comes out on or before the 6th I will do my best to test run all of
the questions.  The test-bed machine is an A4000/040/25MHz with 16Megs fast.
I will not run benchmarks, only answer questions about specific features.

IF Imagine comes out on the 7th, well you won't hear about it until Friday or
the weekend, as I have class and then I have to go immediately to work until
12:30 (college, what a drag).

I am doing this as much for my own selfish reasons as much as anything else.
I want to explore the new Imagine, and some of the questions and problems
discussed here are good gateways to other new explorations.  In addition, I
would like to limit as much as possible the classic two line post asking
"how well does bursh tacking work" repeated 18 times.

I will assemble a list of questions and answer them in one big post (hopefully)
unless time is short and I can only get to a few problems.

IMPORTANT:  My e-mail address is: [e-mail], not
dialup-x-xxx.gw.umn.edu, which is my SLIP connection.

Thanks!

    Cyrus J. Kalbrener

        Digital_Cel



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #69 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: MPEG as Animation Compressor
Date: Sun, 3 Apr 94 23:19:35 PDT
From: [e-mail] (Christopher Stewart)

>
>Hey guys, and guyas,
>
>    Get hold of that mpeg viewer, mp.103.  It has an option for
>saving out all the frames of an anim as 24bit iff's, which then of cource
>can be recombined in a more agreeable (fast) Amiga format.
>    A 90k file called DragonSongMPG, when saved out as individual
>frames, was nearly nine megs big!  That's compression!
>    Now if there were just an en-coder that is as friendly . . .
>I'll admit I'm spoiled.  I expect gui's for everything.
>
>
>

This is what I can remember from the Amiga Users of Calgary's
Mpeg tutorial. I've completed the process several times now and have
added what I know. I'd give credit to the author of the original piece
but the archive I was sent didn't include his name. You're gonna need
24toPPM, ppm2yuv, a native image sequencer/processor and the pd. mpeg utility.

        1. Aquire the frames in whatever format you can. Your numerical
           extentions are probably going to be the .00001 etc... type
           but we'll deal with that soon ;-). Don't do all the processing
           on your only copy. Make a backup of the frames.

        2. Scale all the frames to 352x240 (NTSC) through ADPro and FRED
           or some other conversion program. While scaling you can convert
           the numerical extentions to:

                filename.1                        filename.00001
                filename.2                        filename.00002
                filename.10     <==good  bad==>   filename.00010
                filename.146                      filename.00146
                filename.1236                     filename.01236

           I did this in FRED's .iff saver. Just select "???.framenumber"
           as the "replace filename with" option and select 0 as the
           increment.

        3. Convert all the images to .ppm format with 24toPPM and a:

                List >ram:script LFORMAT="24toppm %f%n %f%n.ppm"
                Execute ram:script

           This leaves you with a bunch of files you can delete
           (everything without a .ppm). I used DOPUS's little "s"
           button to select the .ppm files and right-clicked on the
           "all" button to toggle the selection.

        4. Same as above except you use ppm2yuv. Note the "m" instead of
           the "n" in the following. This is to get rid of the .ppm
           extention.

                List >ram:script1 LFORMAT="ppm2yuv %f%m %f%n"
                Execute ram:script1

           You'll find you're overflowing with little .y, .u and .v files
           everywhere. Delete the .ppm files.


        5. To create an MPEG <finally!>:

                MPEG -a 1 -b 750 <filename.> -s <mpegname.mpeg>

          Note that the 750 represents the # of frames and the filename
          gets the "." after it as mpeg just looks for numbers.

          To create a 160x128 MPEG:

        MPEG -a 1 -b 750 -h 160 -v 128 <filename.> -s <mpegname.mpeg>


    This might seem to be some really nasty process but once you've
been through it a couple of times it's really simple. I'd LOVE an encoder
that worked with .iff files but........

    Please direct any questions regarding this post to the Imagine or
Lightwave mailing lists (or one of the usenet groups) as I don't want to
anwser the same question twice ;-).



--
....and if there be some harder, better way    [e-mail]
to salvation than to follow that which we      [e-mail]
believe to be good, then are we all damned.    [e-mail]
   Lord Dunsany, "Dom Rodriguez" (1922).       Join the Animation Sig!


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #70 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: GOLD attributes
Date: Wed, 6 Apr 94 13:32:00 EDT
From: [e-mail] (Jeffrey Goldman)

>
>
> Hi, dear  Ray-Tracers
>
> I'm trying to make a scene with a GOLD object, and i've tried a lot of times
> to get the right attributes, but I'm not very satified!
> Is anyone aware of the best attributes per a very shiny gold ?
> (Sorry for my BAD ENGLISH)
>
> Thanks in Advance!
>
>
> Cristian Gavazzeni - SUN MICROSYSTEMS ITALY - MILANO -
>

    The absolute key for making realistic gold is in the
reflections. With that in mind I usually use a global reflection map
('cause I don't have 2.9 and can't assign reflection maps to
individual objects) that is made up of gradient lines. The lines can
be horizontal, diagonal, vertical, whatever, just as long as they're
smooth gradients. Paint programs that can do gradient fills work well.
An even better tool is a good airbrush.
    The theory behind this is that the gold object is in an
environent of shafts of light. You really have to see the results to
understand how it works.
    As for what the base attributes should be for your object,
just use a goldish/yellow color (try 255,255,90), a reflection of a
lighter gold/yellow (try 255,255,200), no filter, a specular color of
yellowish white try (255,255,220), and a high degree of hardness
(around 200).  I'm doing this all from memory so I can't guarantee the
results with these attribute values. But, remember that the illusion
is in the global reflection map (as assigned in the globals bar of the
stage editor).
    For an even better effect, though costly regarding time, apply
the Essence texture 'Bump' (or equivalent) with large perturbations
and little altitude change. It will give the object a more malleable
look. As if it was sculpted gold. Again, you have to see it know what
I mean.
    For those who want chrome, do the same thing except make the
base attributes derivants of white (meaning take the color out of the
objects). Again, the reflection map should take care of the rest.
    Lastly, if you still aren't getting the effect you want play
with the reflection map (the original IFF picture) as it greatly
affects the final outcome. Another thing to keep in mind is that
non-phonged edges might not appear to be affected at first. If you do
any sort of animation and end up rotating the object you will
definitely see some result.
    As always the above advice may not result in the desired
effect. But, I hope it helps...

                            J.---->

E-Mail: [e-mail]




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #71 ***************************************:-)

Subject: IFF Brushes on twisted surfaces
Date: Wed, 6 Apr 94 11:10:34 -0700
From: [e-mail] (DAVID LEE MCKELL)

    OK, I have been watching and listening to all the IML posters
for two months now and have learned a lot. Thanks ! I have been using
Imagine for about a year now and have been fortunate to have actually
made money creating animations! Cool. (my wife especially thinks that's
cool since parting with the $$ to buy a 4000 and assorted software was
not easy) Thanks Impulse ! So here is my first question for my fellow
Imagineers:

    I have a rectangular plane that I have twisted now want to map a brush
to it and I am having only limited success. If I don't twist it too far
like maybe 10 degress most of my brush appears to map properly. Anything
past that though and I start to lose some of the brush at the lower end of
my rectangle. I have tried scaling up my brush in the axis that represents
the "thickness" of my twisted plane and have also tried using wrap instead
of flat for the mapping scheme but flat seems to work the best. Any  ideas?
If I have'nt explained this clearly enough let me know or just experiment
on your own and you will quickly (hopefully) see what I mean. Thanks !


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #72 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Imagine animation on NBC tonight?
Date: Wed, 6 Apr 94 11:33:45 MST
From: [e-mail] (John R. Spencer)

There's a reasonable chance that an Imagine animation that I've
been working on will be shown on the NBC Nightly News this evening
(Wednesday April 6th).  It's a 10-second, 150-frame movie of the
collision of comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 with Jupiter which will occur
next July, and will be shown, if at all, along with various other
animations relating to the comet crash.  It's a view of the collision
of several pieces of the comet with Jupiter as seen from close to
one of the comet pieces, which rotates and emits gas in the foreground
as it hurtles towards Jupiter.

Technical details:

Imagine 2.0- I'm waiting for 3.0 before I upgrade!

Altitude map used to give the close-up comet piece a rough appearance,
transparency maps used for the gas jets and for the more distant
comet pieces.  The wrap/wrap altitude map had a strong "seam" despite
my efforts to get the map to match exactly at either end (I guess
this is the repeating altitude map bug again- has this been fixed
in Imagine 2.9 or 3.0, by the way?), but I was able to hide the seam by
putting it on the dark side of the comet piece.

Mosaic of Voyager images, obtained from JPL and cleaned up in OpalPaint,
used as a color map to create Jupiter.

Comet trajectories are as accurate as possible: putting them into
Imagine required typing hundreds of numbers into the Action editor.
It sure would be nice to have an AREXX interface or some other way
of doing this automatically!

Rendered in Scanline on an Amiga 3000/25 - the 150 frames
took about 10 hours to render.  "Lens flare" for the flashes as the
comets hit Jupiter were fog objects rendered separately, touched up
in OpalPaint, and pasted onto the appropriate images manually in
OpalPaint after rendering.  These need a little more work but aren't
bad.  Preview with OpalAniMate.

Transfer to video was the hard part.  It involved:

1) Floppy-disk transfer (40 PC-format floppies) to a Unix Sun workstation.

2) On the workstation, conversion from IFF-24 to NRIF (NCAR Raster
Interchange Format) using pbmplus and IDL.

3) ftp of the NRIF files to a friend at the University of Colorado who
had access to professional digital-to-tape equipment.

4) Writing of a BetaCam tape in Boulder, FedExed to NBC in the nick
of time.

After all that, I hope they show at least part of it on the news!
We only found out that NBC was interested on Monday morning, when
the animation was still being developed, so there was barely time
to render an acceptable version and get it off to them.







IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #73 ***************************************:-)

Subject: RE: DKB3128 question
Date: Tue, 5 Apr 1994 13:30:00 -0400
From: [e-mail] (David Wyand)

Hi Stethem!

> Are you aware of the fact that there is a bug in the Buster chip on
>the A3000 which prevents the DMA on the expansion connector from
>working properly?  If you have a Rev. 7 Buster then that may be your
>problem. Then, you will have to get the Rev. 11 Buster.  I have a GVP
>4008 RAM/SCSI board
>on my A3000 daughter board with 8 Megs of RAM, so in addition to the 12
>Megs of Fast RAM, I end up with a total of 20 Megs Fast RAM.  My system
>recognizes the RAM on the GVP board as contiguous memory, no problem.
>Don't know if this is the source of your problem but I have read that
>the RAM on the DKB3128 should be recognized by your system as
>contiguous memory, so maybe the Buster chip is the problem.

I was aware of the bug, but didn't know that it may affect memory
boards.  Does anyone else have any info on this?

                                        -Dave
                                         [e-mail]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #74 ***************************************:-)

Subject:  Dirtyness
Date: Tue, 5 Apr 1994 13:07:00 -0400
From: [e-mail] (David Wyand)

Hi Andrew!

>In a recent magazine interview that I read, Ron Thornton talked about
>dirtying down the models that were used for Babylon5. He did not say
>specifically how, but my guess would be some sort of fractal grime.
>Does anyone have any tips/parameter values for doing this in Imagine?

The best way to do this in Imagine (IMHO) is to use the original Essence
set of textures.  There are a set of Utility textures that allow to
change various things.  VARYABSRGB and VARYRELRGB uses fractal noise to
vary the colours slightly of your object.  My personal favourite is
VARYRELBRIGHT, which also uses fractal noise to adjust the brightness of
the object.  You can enter in a percentage of the amount to vary by.
This makes objects look much more realistic, and so pristine...

                                        -Dave
                                         [e-mail]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #75 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: DXF files
Date: Wed, 06 Apr 94 17:11:13 EDT
From: [e-mail]

  I have found that Imagine sometimes has trouble loading certian DXF file.
The way I found to work around it was to load them into some othe program
that will read and write DXF files, and resave them.  After that Imagine
usually works.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #76 ***************************************:-)

Subject: memory
Date: Tue, 5 Apr 1994 13:34:00 -0400
From: [e-mail] (David Wyand)

>In my 3000, I have 16 megs on the motherboard, and 16 megs on a PP&S
>'040 in the co-processor slot. Imagine sees and uses it all, with no
>problems, but ADPro only sees the first 16 megs. So the problem with
>Imagine not seeing your extra ram may not be with Imagine. I do not
>need to run Merge-mem for Imagine to see all my ram.

I don't have a problem with Imagine seeing my RAM.  Imagine allocates
small chunks, so all of the RAM can be used.  ADPro allocates one big
chunk, so your memory has to be contiguous.  You have the same problem
as me.

Does anyone know if this is a Buster problem, as alluded to in a
previous post?  If so, time to upgrade!

                                        -Dave
                                         [e-mail]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #77 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: DKB3128 question
Date: Wed, 6 Apr 1994 17:46:16 -0500 (EST)
From: ecorbin <[e-mail]>

On Tue, 5 Apr 1994, David Wyand wrote:

> Hi Bill!
>
> >There was a little command called mergemem I used to use on my 1000 in
> >the 1.3 days that would merge the 2 1meg external boards I had into one
> >contiguous 2mb memory chunk.  As I recall this is only possible if the
> >memory boards come up at adjacent memory address locations.  Not being
> >a hardware guru I may not be explaning that well.  As I recall the
> >program was pd/fd so it may be in the 'net.
>
> That program doesn't come with OS2.1, as far as I can tell.  Maybe I'll
> take it from my old 1.3 disks and see if it works.  Thanx
>
>                                         -Dave
>                                          [e-mail]
MergeMem was removed from the OS distribution after 1.3, because of
improved memory-handling in 2.x+ Kickstart.  Or at least I think that's
what my little 'getting started' book for 2.04 said.  While I'm thinking
of that, does anyone know of a good OS reference book for AmigaOS?  I
was going to wait for 3.1 and hope that I got a whole manual with it,
but C='s future is up in the air at the moment, and I'd like to get
suggestions now.  (I'm optimistic, though.)

(when I bought my first 1.3 Amiga, I only got a 'update' book that only
covered the changes from 1.2 in detail.  When I got my second 2.04
Amiga, the same thing happened.  I know there are lots of neat things to
AmigaOS, and I'd like to be able to use them.)

Earl Corbin
[e-mail]




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #78 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Imagine animation on NBC tonight?
Date: Wed, 6 Apr 94 16:37:46 PDT
From: [e-mail] (John T. Grieggs)

> Comet trajectories are as accurate as possible: putting them into
> Imagine required typing hundreds of numbers into the Action editor.
> It sure would be nice to have an AREXX interface or some other way
> of doing this automatically!
>
There is.  It's called ISL.  It only works on 2.0 so far, but that
sounds fine for your purposes.

_john



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #79 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Essence II and Imagine 2.9
Date: Wed, 6 Apr 1994 23:52:57 -0400
From: [e-mail] (Cedric Georges Chang)

Could someone repost or email me how to edit the EssenceII textures so that
they work with Imagine 2.9.

Thanks.

Cedric

--
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Cedric Chang                Mechanical Engineer               // Commodore
[e-mail]       Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute      \X/  Amiga 3000
---------------------------------------------------------------------------


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #80 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Scala with PAR?
Date: Mon, 04 Apr 94 12:51:00 PDT
From: Stethem Ted              5721 <[e-mail]>

  Sorry, this is not an Imagine related question but since there are some
PAR owners/users on this list, maybe you can answer a question for me?  I
don't own a PAR so I can't check this out for myself.  Does the PAR only
playback animations with its own playback program?  Or do you know if Scala
can somehow play back from the PAR?  Or do you know if Scala has/will have
an EX module to do this?
  The reason I ask is that Scala is very versatile, especially with its
wipes and text overlay features, so it would be nice to play back an
animation from the PAR and still be able to set it up with the Scala wipes,
text overlays, and music/sound.  Thanks in advance for any insight you may
be able to provide.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #81 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: MPEG as Animation Compressor
Date: Wed, 6 Apr 94 04:32:07 MDT
From: [e-mail] (Lowell Lindenbach)

>This is what I can remember from the Amiga Users of Calgary's
>Mpeg tutorial. I've completed the process several times now and have
>added what I know. I'd give credit to the author of the original piece
>but the archive I was sent didn't include his name. You're gonna need
>24toPPM, ppm2yuv, a native image sequencer/processor and the pd. mpeg utility.

       The name of the author is Bryan Ewert, a very talented 3d artist trying
to make a living out of this hobby.  The article appeared in the AMUC newsletter

for last month, the first that I edited. :)

--
Lowell Lindenbach    [e-mail]
                     castrov.UUCP!ender!eridanus!lindenbach
                     Fido: Lowell Lindenbach 1:134/27


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #82 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Bite by bite
Date: Wed, 6 Apr 1994 21:57:02 -0700 (PDT)
From: Mike McCool <[e-mail]>

Hey guys, and guyas,

    Didn't you love that good samaritan post from the pres of Bite My
Neck?  I was especially touched by that assurance of his company's agenda
of continued support for all those faithful little Amiga users.  It
brought a lump to my throat to read that he was willing to give us a real
break on his software, provided we agree to abandon a superior platform
for an inferior over-priced Mac or an under-achieving PC.

    It's like, the ship's in danger and these weasils have a license
on all the lifeboats and they'll be more than glad to take us aboard as
long as we throw them our wallets first.

    You see that fabulous movie, DELICATESSEN?  Among the images, there
was a beautiful little prop called a Bullshit Detector.  Well, I'm
afraid mine went off the scale when I read that post from Generalissimo
Bite-me.






IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #83 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: MPEG as Animation Compressor
Date: Thu, 7 Apr 94 02:35:10 PDT
From: [e-mail] (Christopher Stewart)

>>This is what I can remember from the Amiga Users of Calgary's
>>Mpeg tutorial. I've completed the process several times now and have
>>added what I know. I'd give credit to the author of the original piece
>>but the archive I was sent didn't include his name. You're gonna need
>>24toPPM, ppm2yuv, a native image sequencer/processor and the pd. mpeg utility.


>       The name of the author is Bryan Ewert, a very talented 3d artist trying

>to make a living out of this hobby.  The article appeared in the AMUC newslette
r
>for last month, the first that I edited. :)
>--
>Lowell Lindenbach    [e-mail]
>                     castrov.UUCP!ender!eridanus!lindenbach
>                     Fido: Lowell Lindenbach 1:134/27


     Hey! Say Hi! to Bryan for me. He might not remember me as an
ex-exec'er but I'm doing the same schtick. Just starting to make money in
the biz. Not that I'm selling my animation to Disney or anything but
titling and a couple of editing jobs are keeping me busy.....
     You know what'd be REAL nice? I some kind soul would upload the AMUC
discs to Aminet every month. I know you guys make $ on distribution of the
material but it'd be a great service to the Amiga community in general.
     I'd suggest you post the latest Amuc bbs # to the various mailing
lists and groups (at least mail them to me direct). To the Imagine folks
out there: This group has one of the most amazing bbs's and a fantastic
Disc based newsletter (still using V's Reader?). It's worth a look.
Multitasking, windowed bbs'ing. Need I say more?

                        ciao,

                            Christopher



--
"I wish there was a knob on the TV             [e-mail]
 to turn up the intelligence.                  [e-mail]
 There's a knob called `brightness',
 but it doesn't work." -- Gallagher            Join the Animation Sig!


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #84 ***************************************:-)

Subject: 3D ROM ???
Date: Thu, 7 Apr 94 20:53:23 HKT
From: [e-mail] (Wong Kin Ming)

A friend of mine has just bought the 3D ROM from Syndesis, and it is just very d
isappointing.  Can you imagine that you will pay US$200 for a collection of publ
ic domain (available from internet) models plus some so-called custom-made model
s AND 400 funny textures (some of them are as little as 40x40, and most of them
are only 256 colors).

The 3D-ROM is only worth US$30 at most, and if my friend could choose again, I w
ould recommend him to buy the "One Twenty Eight" CDROM from Pixar instead.

Just an advice to those who are considering this piece of CDROM.




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #85 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Reflection Mapping Help
Date: Thu, 7 Apr 1994 08:11:46 -0700
From: [e-mail] (Lesk)

>Hi Lesk!
>

Hi Rosario

>Thus far, you have seemed to be one of the more experienced Imagine 2.9
>users.  And since I can only send mail directly on the internet, and not
>reply or post on the Imagine mailing list, I'm targeting ya!
>
>Hope you don't mind.

Of course not.
I am Flatered But I still consider myself an amature, I am always impressed
by the knowledge here on the IML...


>
>Anyway, have you had any luck with the Reflection Mapping ability of
>Imagine 2.9?  Because it wraps (and doesn't repeat), my maps all have
>very obvious gradient banding (640 x 400 x 16).  Yet the same image in
>Lightwave comes out beautifully. 8^(

Actually this has been discussed quite a bit here on the IML. So far most
have tried to hide the banding on a side that fails appear during the
animation or a corner or sharp edge. I have not heard of a specific
solution to the problem yet, but rumor has it that it may be fixed in 3.0
although I have to admit if 3.0 lives up to all the things we seem to be
expecting it should really rock the boat in the rendering world and do the
dishes. Well I guess we will just wait and see.....

>
>Anyway, I'd appreciate any pointers you can pass my way.  Many thanks!

No problem in fact I think I will send this out to the IML and then I will
try to forward any responses to you that may come out of it.


                                        Good Luck


                                Render Ho!
                                  Lesk




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #86 ***************************************:-)

Date: Mon, 25 Sep 1989 09:38:00 -0700
From: [e-mail]

From: [e-mail]
To: [e-mail],[e-mail]
Subject: Re: Imagine animation on NBC tonight?

>There's a reasonable chance that an Imagine animation that I've
>been working on will be shown on the NBC Nightly News this evening
>(Wednesday April 6th).  It's a 10-second, 150-frame movie of the
>collision of comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 with Jupiter which will occur
>next July, and will be shown, if at all, along with various other
>animations relating to the comet crash.  It's a view of the collision
>of several pieces of the comet with Jupiter as seen from close to
>one of the comet pieces, which rotates and emits gas in the foreground
>as it hurtles towards Jupiter.

     I watched.  If your animation was the one showing the cometary fragments
     with gas jets colliding with the planet - COOL!.  I did not
     notice a seam.  Jupiter's clouds looked great.  Didn't the
     animation have a day/hour readout at the bottom?  How did you do
     that?


     Ed


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #87 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Bite by bite
Date: Thu, 7 Apr 1994 13:15:52 -0400 (EDT)
From: Udo K Schuermann <[e-mail]>

I apologize for posting this publically, but I feel that some people could
benefit from a moment's thought before they post messages such as that from
Mike McCool.  I invite constructive comments/discussion via email.

Mike McCool <[e-mail]> writes:
>     Didn't you love that good samaritan post from the pres of Bite My
> Neck?  I was especially touched by that assurance of his company's agenda
> of continued support for all those faithful little Amiga users.  It
> brought a lump to my throat to read that he was willing to give us a real
> break on his software, provided we agree to abandon a superior platform
> for an inferior over-priced Mac or an under-achieving PC.

Mike, I think you are simply bitter about the fact that the Amiga is not a
mainstream platform and that some companies feel they can make more money
in other markets and thus leave the Amiga for greener pastures.  The Amiga
continues to suffer the image of being the machine of choice for rabid and
irrationally hostile (paranoid) people who hate every other platform.  The
quality of what the Amiga has to offer pales against and is quicly lost if
its users are perceived as the sort of people with which nobody wants to be
associated.  It's an image problem, and you are not helping it one bit.

The best way to keep a company from moving on is to purchase its products,
keep them informed of what you need and what you want, i.e. what you would
pay money for.  Companies are also in business to make money.  If they no
longer make money, they either go belly up or move on.  Byte-by-Byte's
message said that leaving the Amiga was a "heart-wrenching decision" --
this doesn't speak to me of a decision that would have been made if it was
avoidable.  Who knows, maybe they left because of too many rabid flamers.

>     It's like, the ship's in danger and these weasils have a license
> on all the lifeboats and they'll be more than glad to take us aboard as
> long as we throw them our wallets first.

"A license on all the lifeboats?"  Hardly.

I have no association with Byte-by-Byte.  I just get upset by irrational
and rabid flames like that ... Netiquette should apply to mailing lists,
too.

Responses by email, please.

 ._.  Udo Schuermann
 ( )  [e-mail]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #88 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Applique demo anim
Date: Thu, 07 Apr 94 07:52:00 PDT
From: Stethem Ted              5721 <[e-mail]>

Greetings Imagine-Nations,
  Just a notice to say my demo animation of a short flight over the surface
of Mars is up on aminet under gfx/anim/MarsFlyOver.lha.  The 3D landscape
was created using the Applique function and an actual 2D image of the
Martian surface.  It is only 60 frames but I like/use HAM Interlace Overscan
for now so the anim is 5+ Megs Opt-Code 5.  It is not up to NASA quality
flyover animations but then it wasn't done on a multimillion dollar
supercomputer either :^)   Also, if you are interested, I also put up
another short anim called MoonWalk.lha in the same section (2+ Megs).
  If you can't get on wuarchive.wustl.edu, I recommend going to the
wuarchive cdrom backup site, ftp.cdrom.com 192.153.46.2.  It is a lot less
busy than wuarchive, and they have the aminet cdrom's online so if you are
looking for older stuff, it is all there.  There is also a ton of other
stuff archived there.  BTW, aminet is under /pub/aminet.

Live long and render!


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #89 ***************************************:-)

Subject: RE: NBC Jupiter-Comet collision animation
Date: Thu, 07 Apr 94 11:31:00 PDT
From: Stethem Ted              5721 <[e-mail]>

   Rats!  I missed it.  I just got this message from the IML today,
Thursday.  Didn't get the original message either.
  I had heard that NASA had done a computer simulation/animation of the
event and the atmosphere of Jupiter was supposed to "quiver like a bowl of
Jello".  I really would like to have seen how someone's Imagine anim
compared with the NASA anim. Oh well :-(
 ----------
From: imagine-relay
Date: Monday, September 25, 1989 9:38AM

From: [e-mail]
To: [e-mail],[e-mail]
Subject: Re: Imagine animation on NBC tonight?

>There's a reasonable chance that an Imagine animation that I've
>been working on will be shown on the NBC Nightly News this evening
>(Wednesday April 6th).  It's a 10-second, 150-frame movie of the
>collision of comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 with Jupiter which will occur
>next July, and will be shown, if at all, along with various other
>animations relating to the comet crash.  It's a view of the collision
>of several pieces of the comet with Jupiter as seen from close to
>one of the comet pieces, which rotates and emits gas in the foreground
>as it hurtles towards Jupiter.

     I watched.  If your animation was the one showing the cometary
fragments
     with gas jets colliding with the planet - COOL!.  I did not
     notice a seam.  Jupiter's clouds looked great.  Didn't the
     animation have a day/hour readout at the bottom?  How did you do
     that?


     Ed


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #90 ***************************************:-)

Subject: AF disk upgrade...
Date: Thu, 7 Apr 1994 15:54:21 -0400 (EDT)
From: <[e-mail]> (Yoda)

I bought the issue of Amiga Format with the Imagine cover disk, and
had a question about upgrading it to 3.0.  I think the card in the
magazine said to send in the disk with it.  Well, I lost the card.
Will they accept just the diskette and a cheque, or is the card that
came with the magazine mandatory as well?  I think it was 95
Lsterling or thereabouts...
Thanks,
bruce


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #91 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Imagine animation on NBC tonight?
Date: Thu, 7 Apr 94 15:34:09 CDT
From: [e-mail] (Thomas Setzer)

I saw it!!!  I think what I saw was what you discribed!  Not the wavey one,
but the one with several comet pieces ahead of it disappearing in a flash
of light?  Was that it?  Excellent!! Cool!!!! WOW!!! THAT WAS GREAT!

Good job!  Thanks for the tips too.


Tom Setzer
[e-mail]

"And of course, I'm a genius, so people are naturally drawn to my fiery
intellect.  Their admiration overwhelms their envy!" - Calvin

Sorry for the "meatless" post to the IML, but it was a really cool anim, and
it did make it on NBC nightly news....


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #92 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: DKB3128 question
Date: Thu, 7 Apr 1994 12:46:58 -0700
From: [e-mail] (Kent Kalnasy)

At  5:46 PM 4/6/94 -0500, ecorbin wrote:

>MergeMem was removed from the OS distribution after 1.3, because of
>improved memory-handling in 2.x+ Kickstart.  Or at least I think that's
>what my little 'getting started' book for 2.04 said.

Actually, you're correct in what the book said, but I still had use for
the mergemem command even under 2.04.  I was using two 2MB ASDG memory
boards in my 2000 at the time and found that mergemem was still necessary
to get 4MB of contiguous memory, so I continued to use it, even though
it was supposed to be redundant.  YMMV.

If there is no merging possible, mergemem will let you know.  It's
worth trying.  Of course, this was within autoconfig space.  I don't
know how well a 1.3 command will deal with memory outside the 8MB
boundary.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 Kent Kalnasy (speaking only for me)              [e-mail]
 Loral Advanced Distributed Simulation, Inc.             Bellevue, Washington
------------------------------------------------------------------------------




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #93 ***************************************:-)

Subject: MTV Flames
Date: 07 Apr 94 20:55:43 CET
From: [e-mail] (Soren Wind)

I need some help, making flames in Imagine, i want to raytrace the
Heart MTV uses in one of their commercials   Any Ideas' ?

Furtheron, please tell me which FTP sites, that have Imagine
Objects/Pics/Anims/Attributes/ect......

  Soren Wind   -  IZI/ImPACT    __   ___              _
  GFX / 3D Design / Raytrace    \ \ / (_)____  _ __ _| |
  Fidonet Scala  2:230/418.30    \ V /| (_-< || / _` | |    /\\
  Fidonet ATeam  2:230/714.17    _\_/ |_/__/\_,_\__,_|_|__  \\/
  Amiganet : 39:141/104.30      |_ _|_ __  _ __  __ _ __| |_
  E-MAIL ADD1:[e-mail]  | || '  \| '_ \/ _` / _|  _|
  E-MAIL ADD2:  -------------   |___|_|_|_| .__/\__,_\__|\__|tm
  A2K/030/882/9MB/345MB/33Mhz+SVGA Running|_|/fast/ for a *Picasso* *II*

... Cockroaches rule the Earth. Pass it on.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #94 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Bite by bite
Date: Thu, 7 Apr 1994 16:30:30 -0600 (MDT)
From: [e-mail] (Kiernan Holland)

<Mike, I think you are simply bitter about the fact that the Amiga is not a
<mainstream platform and that some companies feel they can make more money
<in other markets and thus leave the Amiga for greener pastures.  The Amiga
<continues to suffer the image of being the machine of choice for rabid and
<irrationally hostile (paranoid) people who hate every other platform.  The
<quality of what the Amiga has to offer pales against and is quicly lost if
<its users are perceived as the sort of people with which nobody wants to be
<associated.  It's an image problem, and you are not helping it one bit.

Ya, Amiga is not a mainstream platform, but at least a good part of its
direction is being indirectly controlled by the users. The Amiga users
are usually much more forgiving towards software developers than users
on other platforms. I'm the black sheep in this case.. I'm just a user
who got used to uing Amiga's and just hasn't been satisfied.. I don't
follow the religion of Amiga users, and agree with the
"Superior Computer" image, its just a bunch of hooey.. A computer is what you
make it..

I've seen great things come from all the platforms, and each one
has its strengths.. Amiga' don't have any better processing power than any
other platform.. Their graphics capabilities are about the same (but some
alternative graphics cards provide less and cost more than PC equivalents).
The Amiga has the makings of a good Object Oriented design environment.
I'm learning about Smalltalk now, and a lot of what I've seen in Amiga
software resembles Smalltalk. The programs are often written in assembly,
supposedly its easier to write asembly for the AMiga than on any other
platform. It is a pre-emptive multi-tasking system.. The sound and graphics
are standard. Most Amiga software is compatible with all platforms (if written
cleanly). It combines a text environment with an icon based environment, makes
me feel like I have more control (and resembles Xwindows with UNIX, but has
a better GUI). Users can add functions to exiting applications using Arexx
(another feature of Object-Oriented design). If you are using an AGA
equiped Amiga, you'll notice that it takes only 8-bits to address
as many as 256,000 colors (I don't believe the sh*t about the 256K from 16 mil.
becuase it doesn't fit-in with the way HAM works) or 2^18 colors, this means
your animations end-up being twice (or even 3 times) as fast as an equivalent
(or almost equivalent) platform sporting an 18-bit graphics card capable of
addressing 18 bits per pixel (also note HAM encoding is naturally a compression

technique). And Amiga's are the most efficient and affordable computers
on the market, for what you get. (The A4000 however, is not.. Have you
seen what Student Deal is like on a PowerPC?? 1700 dollars, and thos
computers can process just as fast as a Pentium..)

<The best way to keep a company from moving on is to purchase its products,
<keep them informed of what you need and what you want, i.e. what you would
<pay money for.  Companies are also in business to make money.  If they no
<longer make money, they either go belly up or move on.  Byte-by-Byte's
<message said that leaving the Amiga was a "heart-wrenching decision" --
<this doesn't speak to me of a decision that would have been made if it was
<avoidable.  Who knows, maybe they left because of too many rabid flamers.

Exactly... but Byte bv Byte left because they hated CBM.. That's what their
Email states.. They left a long time ago too, so it almost doesn't apply
to netters because there were hardly any around when BytebyByte left...
When I started netting/bbsing the ratio of Amiga users was much much less
than it is now, so I suspect any flames that they got would have been over
the phone..


Kiernan Holland
[e-mail]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #95 ***************************************:-)

Subject: PD
Date: Thu, 7 Apr 1994 17:25:06 -0700 (PDT)
From: [e-mail]

I know a lot of people put up anims, pic's etc on the net, and a lot of
us (myself inc.) sell our work.  So my question is, does something placed
on the net, become PD (public Domain) just by placing it there? IE if CNN
came on the the net, grabed your anim and used it in a brodcast.. could
they? because it was "on the net" (say AMINET).


--
-== When Dreams Become Reality ==- Illumine & Illuminati  [e-mail]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #96 ***************************************:-)

Subject: extrude in 2.0
Date: Thu, 7 Apr 1994 22:22:17 -0400 (EDT)
From: [e-mail] (Adam Benjamin)

Greetings all knowing and seeing one..
I bow before you knowledge once again.
(. . . Trying to pour it on, so someone will help me 8-)

What I want is simple,... I want a 3D question mark.  I want a smooth,
round question mark with no sharp edges.
Easy?
I thought so until I tried it.  I can not for the life of me get the EXTRUDE
function to work right.
I made a path in the shape of the question mark, droped a sphere in, and
said EXTRUDE along path, 20 segments.  What I get is 1 sphere at each end of
the path. I think it must be a bug in 2.0 because if I use REPLICATE instead
of EXTRUDE it works, but then I get a bumpy/wavy question mark.
Any ideas for a work around for this??
Anyone got a 'smooth' question mark they want to UU-encode to me??

ADVthanksANCE

(P.S thanks for the pointers to DTA I got V1.8 from Simtel)
Adam B
[e-mail]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #97 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Imagine 3.0
Date: Thu, 7 Apr 1994 22:05:29 -0500 (CDT)
From: [e-mail] (cyberhawk)

Well, I ordered Imagine 3.0, it should be on my doorsteps next week.
Tell me what I should be ready for.

andrey




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #98 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re:  PD
Date:     Fri, 8 Apr 1994 00:54:38 -0400
From: Jason B Koszarsky <[e-mail]>

>does something placed on the net, become PD

Hmm..  I'm not sure about the legality of it.  But I would think that
the author would be contacted for permission.

Anyone know for certain?

Jason K.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #99 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: extrude in 2.0  (?)
Date: Fri, 8 Apr 1994 01:06:10 -0400 (EDT)
From: Wes Parham <[e-mail]>

  Actually, were you using the primitive sphere or the 'perfect' sphere.
  My guess is that one would cooperate and the other might Not...
  $0.02 worth...
  I'll try it after I logoff, tho and email if I have any revelations!
  wes~



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #100 ***************************************:-)

Subject: How to Print?
Date: Fri, 8 Apr 94 00:34:14 CDT
From: [e-mail] (Joseph C. Garner)

   I would like to print out a few pictures from Imagine, but I do not have
a high quality color printer.  Can anyone suggest the best path to take to
do this.  (Buying a printer is not an option.  So that leaves finding
someone who will print them for me.)

  Objective: the highest quality I can get for under $20 per picture.

  What is the best resolution to render the picture?  Of course it would be
in 24 bit color.

  I can go to any format on any platform (IBM or MAC) but I would need to
know  which PD/shareware programs will do the conversions?

Thank you in advance.
Joe
Joseph C. Garner



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #101 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re:  extrude in 2.0
Date:     Fri, 8 Apr 1994 01:01:47 -0400
From: Jason B Koszarsky <[e-mail]>

>I made a path in the shape of the question mark, droped a sphere in, and
>said EXTRUDE along path, 20 segments.  What I get is 1 sphere at each end of
>the path.

You should use a disk to extrude.  If you want the endpoints of your extruded
question mark rounded that you could add half spheres having the same radius
as the disk you used for the extrusion.

Extruding 3D objects along a path, even if it did work, would add TONS of
unnecessary points to your objects.

Jason K.
Cybernetic Expressions


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #102 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: extrude in 2.0
Date: Fri, 8 Apr 1994 09:55:57 -0600
From: "Robin Chytil" <[e-mail]>

On Apr 7, 10:22pm, Adam Benjamin wrote:
> Subject: extrude in 2.0
> What I want is simple,... I want a 3D question mark.  I want a smooth,
> round question mark with no sharp edges.
[...]
> I made a path in the shape of the question mark, droped a sphere in, and
> said EXTRUDE along path, 20 segments.  What I get is 1 sphere at each end of
> the path. I think it must be a bug in 2.0 because if I use REPLICATE instead
> of EXTRUDE it works, but then I get a bumpy/wavy question mark.
> Any ideas for a work around for this??


Extrude is supposed to be used with a curve, drawn in a "plane" perpendicular
to the path (you don't create a plane).
So take a circle (create a disk and remove the center point), put it on the
path, select it, extrude it along the path.
Now, to have it rounded at the end, I would take half a sphere, with the same
number of point than the circle around its equator, the same radius, put it at
the right place and merge.
Got it ?

Robin

--
                                                       \|/
                                                       @ @
---------------------------------------------------oOO-(_)-OOo-----------
Robin Chytil, Staff Engineer            Email: [e-mail]
Silicon Graphics Inc.                Vmail: 5-9389
Mediterranean Distribution Territory        Tel:   [phone]
Lausanne, Switzerland                Fax :  [phone]





IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #103 ***************************************:-)

Subject: re bite by bite
Date: Fri, 8 Apr 94 02:36:19 PDT
From: 08-Apr-1994 0406 <[e-mail]>

    Well Iv'e benn around since the 1000 days. I remember when Byte by
    Byte left the Amiga platform for the Macs. I remember that I felt
    upset about it. I really can't understand their logic about CBM.
    True, what they say is a fact, but they could have kept hanging
    in there. They had code already done(and the Amiga is still going)
    so development cost were mostly behind them. Having been there
    I can tell you what I felt at that time. I was shocked because it
    happend so fast. My thoughts were that they left because they could
    sell there product for four time the price, and there was no
    competition. If they had kept the Amiga version going they would
    have had to justify that cost difference, and at that time the Amiga
    had a clear edge on graphics display and handling. I really never
    missed them because I had opted for Silver instead. Now at that time
    there was no hard feeling involved to sway my mind. I simply opted
    to buy what to me was a better package. Anybody has the right to
    take their product to any platform they wish but at least be upfront
    about it. I don't feel it would have cost them much to maintain
    the Amiga version, I do feel the competition had more to do with
    the bolt than anything else. I had recieved a flier(nice one to)
    about their new product. It looks good and I wish them well in
    their future, I just could not accept the reason stated in their
    recent post. BTW if I geared up to use their product I could buy
    A toaster for my 4000 with what it would cost. I'd be ahead an
    excellent CG, the switcher, the six second realtime playback,
    toaster paint, the frame grabbing, and croma keying capabilities
    and I'd still have 3D modeling capabilities. All this and my
    multitasking also.
                            bill
    PS. I you make a package that competes with Imagine and post
    ads to the Imagine mailing list you will most likely get a
    few flames. I think the posters know this, but feel the
    positive side will offset this. I also feel some flames were
    out of line.
    /* standard disclaimer about me being the only one responsable
     for the above ramblings
    Bill Leimberger Nashua N.H.                */


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #104 ***************************************:-)

Subject: IFF Brushes on twisted surfaces
Date: Fri, 8 APR 94 11:08:27 GMT
From: [e-mail]

>     I have a rectangular plane that I have twisted now want to map a brush
> to it and I am having only limited success. If I don't twist it too far
> like maybe 10 degress most of my brush appears to map properly. Anything
> past that though and I start to lose some of the brush at the lower end of
> my rectangle. I have tried scaling up my brush in the axis that represents
> the "thickness" of my twisted plane and have also tried using wrap instead
> of flat for the mapping scheme but flat seems to work the best. Any  ideas?

 You don't say which version of Imagine you are using, David, but you will need
V. 2.9's states feature if you want to achieve what I think you are describing.

Apply your brushmap to a FLAT plane and create a state and give it a name eg.
FLAT. You can then twist the plane to  the desired shape and create a second
state - call it TWISTED. The important bit is to go into the brushmap requester
and specify FLAT in the Lockstate box - this will ensure that when the plane is

twisted the pixel of the brush will be tacked to the triangles as in the flat
plane. You can then go to the states requestor again and specify TWISTED using
the SET TO button.

Hope this is of some help!

John

BTW, does anybody have a detailed Millenium Falcon model?


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #105 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Imagine 3.0
Date: Fri, 8 Apr 1994 17:29:59 -0700
From: [e-mail] (Lesk)

>> >Well, I ordered Imagine 3.0, it should be on my doorsteps next week.
>> >Tell me what I should be ready for.
>> >
>> >andrey
>>
>>         That next week never comes......
>>
>>
>
>No, really, I want to know...
>

Again I apologize I just could not resist (Bad taste on my part I suppose)

        As I understand it there are two major features bones and the
magnitude of textures. I am sad to hear that the music was left out of this
version.
I think impulse may make a release here on the IML about the new release.
It may help to clarify rather than leaving us guessing. But rest assured
you will hear plenty when it begins to arrive to its users.....


                                Render Ho!
                                   Lesk




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #106 ***************************************:-)

Subject: 3D ROM ???
Date: Thu, 7 Apr 94 18:57:48 -0700
From: [e-mail] (Greg Pringle)

>A friend of mine has just bought the 3D ROM from Syndesis, and it is
>just very disappointing.  Can you imagine that you will pay US$200 for
>a collection of public domain (available from internet) models plus

  I find it very annoying that some companies are profiting off other
people's hard work by charging such outrageous prices for PD material.

>The 3D-ROM is only worth US$30 at most, and if my friend could choose
>again, I would recommend him to buy the "One Twenty Eight" CDROM from
>Pixar instead.

  What's the pixar CD like? How much is it, what formats can you
get the objects in?

  Greg


--
+--------------------------+----------------------------------------------+
| Greg Pringle             |                                              |
| [e-mail] |          "Better dead than smeg"             |
| [e-mail] |                                              |
+--------------------------+----------------------------------------------+


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #107 ***************************************:-)

Subject: GOLD attributes
Date:     Fri, 8 Apr 1994 04:06:52 +0200
From: "Michael Wolf" <[e-mail]>

Hi Cristian, on the 6th of April 1994 at 16:02:55 +0200 you wrote:

CGS> I'm trying to make a scene with a GOLD object, and i've tried a lot of
CGS> times
CGS> to get the right attributes, but I'm not very satified!
CGS> Is anyone aware of the best attributes per a very shiny gold ?
CGS> (Sorry for my BAD ENGLISH)

Well, I had the same problem doing chrome (I guess gold isn't really
anything else than yellow chrome as far as attributes are concerned.)

Try setting you colour and reflection to a light yellow and use a grayscale
diagonal gradient as a global brush (-> Action Editor).  This looks good on
phong shaded surfaces, as well as on moving flat surfaces (you might have
to add two lights or so...).

CGS> Thanks in Advance!

CGS> Cristian Gavazzeni - SUN MICROSYSTEMS ITALY - MILANO -

BTW:  This is my first post to the IML, so forgive any mistakes I made, and
tell me about them !

Ciao,
    Michael


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #108 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Imagine animation on NBC tonight?
Date: Thu, 7 Apr 94 20:44:52 CDT
From: [e-mail] (Stephen Wilkinson)

Any way you might post that anim or a scaled down version on aminet
somewhere?? Since our internet link is via infrequent dialup, I didn't
get the notice until after the thing already aired :( Maybe a small
100x100 mpeg or _anything_ :)

Thanks,
Stephen

____________________________________
Stephen Wilkinson     [e-mail]      "Programming is like pinball. The
Software Engineer                         reward for doing it well is the
LB&M Associates                           opportunity to do it again."
____________________________________
#define OPINION         myown
#define COMPANYOPINION ~myown

      This message created using 87% recycled neuro-transmitters



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #109 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Imagine animation on NBC tonight?
Date: Fri, 8 Apr 94 07:25:44 -0600
From: Steve Koren <[e-mail]>

> There's a reasonable chance that an Imagine animation that I've
> been working on will be shown on the NBC Nightly News this evening
> (Wednesday April 6th).  It's a 10-second, 150-frame movie of the

They did show it.  I don't think they shows all 10 seconds though - at
least here (CO), I saw two clips from it, each about 2 seconds long.
One was while the rock was a long ways from the planet, and the other
was the impact.  But yours was the one they showed as the "teaser"
before the commercial break, also (probably because it was cooler than
the MIT one, which looked rather comical, IMHO - something was horribly
wrong with their outline of Jupiter).

Cool.  Not just anybody can say they got their animation on national TV :-)

  - steve


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #110 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Imagine 3.0
Date:     Sat, 9 Apr 1994 00:20:08 -0400
From: Jason B Koszarsky <[e-mail]>

>As I understand it there are two major features bones and the
>magnitude of textures. I am sad to hear that the music was left out of this

I am dissappointed too about the lack of sound support.  I was looking forward
to it.

Hopefully, we get enough new stuff to justify the 700$ pricetag.

Jason K.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #111 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: How to Print?
Date: Fri, 08 Apr 1994 10:28:40 -0500 (CDT)
From: [e-mail]

>   I would like to print out a few pictures from Imagine, but I do not hav
>a high quality color printer.  Can anyone suggest the best path to take to
>do this.  (Buying a printer is not an option.  So that leaves finding
>someone who will print them for me.)
>
>  Objective: the highest quality I can get for under $20 per picture.
>
>  What is the best resolution to render the picture?  Of course it would b
>in 24 bit color.
>
>  I can go to any format on any platform (IBM or MAC) but I would need to
>know  which PD/shareware programs will do the conversions?
>


Go for the Fargo Primera Thermal Transfer/Dye Sublimation printer.
It provides true 24-bit output at a VERY low price.  I got a flyer
in the mail from Fargo and the sample output is amazing!
They were offering the printer with the dye-sublimation kit for
around $950.  They recommended using the thermal-transfer mode for
proofs at about $0.45 per page and then use the dye-sublimation for
the final at $2.79 per page.



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #112 ***************************************:-)

Subject: 3.0 Information
Date: Fri, 08 Apr 1994 11:13:23 -0400 (EDT)
From: "Andrew P. Vogel" <[e-mail]>

Well, just got off the phone with the guys at Impulse, and they told me some
information about the pending release of 3.0. Read on!!

The 'Bones' function DID make it into 3.0, the 'Sound' thing did NOT make it
into this release... I asked about some other things... Particles are easier,
AGA animation modes work fine now, and there are "well over 100 new textures
between 2.9 & 3.0". The textures, I'm told, are awesome, fast, and really
nice... I heard talk about a DIRT texture on here... Sounds like a winner!

I asked about the manual, and was told that it is good too... He said that the
manual is over 350 pages (353, he said), and is laid out as a reference manual
as opposed to a tutorial-type manual. Written by a professional documentation
author and edited by the gang at Impulse, it sounds like JUST the type of
manual that Imagine needs!

I forgot to ask about improved anti-aliasing and soft shadows in QuickRender
and about the Light Textures that were mentioned here a while ago... Perhaps
someone from Impulse could shed some light (no pun intended) on that?

I asked about something Mike H. had mentioned to me a while ago. He told me
that there was to be a new editor added to 3.0, that was a DIGITIZING EDITOR
or something. This was to be used in conjunction with a piece of hardware that
will allow 3D object digitizing... I didn't hear too much more about that for
a while. I asked the chap on the phone, and he said that the newsletter will
illuminate me on that project... I said that he was being kinda vague, and he
laughingly said, "Yup...". We'll see! That's an exciting prospect...

Oh... As to release dates... He told me that they would begin processing fdo\
(er, FOR) shipping on Monday and Tuesday of next week (April 11 & 12). My
guess is that we'll see the package around the 18th or 19th, unless they use
USMail's Priority Mail to ship them...

Getting close, guys! YAHOO!



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #113 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Imagine animation on NBC tonight? (fwd)
Date: Fri, 8 Apr 1994 09:33:29 -0700 (MST)
From: Christopher Barger <[e-mail]>

I would also be interested in getting a copy.

---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Thu, 7 Apr 94 20:44:52 CDT
From: Stephen Wilkinson <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Re: Imagine animation on NBC tonight?

Any way you might post that anim or a scaled down version on aminet
somewhere?? Since our internet link is via infrequent dialup, I didn't
get the notice until after the thing already aired :( Maybe a small
100x100 mpeg or _anything_ :)

Thanks,
Stephen

____________________________________
Stephen Wilkinson     [e-mail]      "Programming is like pinball. The
Software Engineer                         reward for doing it well is the
LB&M Associates                           opportunity to do it again."
____________________________________
#define OPINION         myown
#define COMPANYOPINION ~myown

      This message created using 87% recycled neuro-transmitters




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #114 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: extrude in 2.0
Date: Fri, 8 Apr 1994 13:32:57 -0400 (EDT)
From: Wes Parham <[e-mail]>

>
> >I made a path in the shape of the question mark, droped a sphere in, and
> >said EXTRUDE along path, 20 segments.  What I get is 1 sphere at each end of
> >the path.
>
> You should use a disk to extrude.
> Extruding 3D objects along a path, even if it did work, would add TONS of
> unnecessary points to your objects.

      Actually, I've extruded HALF a sphere along a path, using 'mirrored'
      ends with success.  Try lopping off the "rear" half of the sphere (do
      it in pick points mode from the right view) and extruding that.  If
      I'm not mistaken, the convex hemisphere will only be repeated at the
      beginning and the end.
    wes~



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #115 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: How to Print?
Date: Fri, 8 Apr 94 13:15:25 EDT
From: [e-mail] (Jeffrey Goldman)

>
>    I would like to print out a few pictures from Imagine, but I do not have
> a high quality color printer.  Can anyone suggest the best path to take to
> do this.  (Buying a printer is not an option.  So that leaves finding
> someone who will print them for me.)
>
>   Objective: the highest quality I can get for under $20 per picture.
>
>   What is the best resolution to render the picture?  Of course it would be
> in 24 bit color.
>
>   I can go to any format on any platform (IBM or MAC) but I would need to
> know  which PD/shareware programs will do the conversions?
>
> Thank you in advance.
> Joe
> Joseph C. Garner
>


    I can't tell from your address, but are you a part of an
educational institution with a decent sized computer departement? You
may have the resources right there.
    I am at Boston Universtiy and we have a very nice continuous
tone die-sublimation printer which I use to print stuff out. BU offers
printing services to university members and non-university members, so
perhaps there's a local university that offers this type of service.
If this option doesn't call a local service bureau or well outfitted
color copy center and ask them where such services exist.
    I've had excellent results printing 24-bit color in a
resolution of 1472x964 (the weird res is because I use DCTV and I just
doubled DCTV's own resolutions). Basically I'd say that for an 8x10
print a resolution of 1200x800 would be fine. If that doesn't look
good just go a little higher. The Tektronics printer we use is a 16.9
million color 300dpi dye-sub printer so it doesn't dither, per se,
like thermal wax printer. In theory every one of the 300dpi could be
an individual 24-bit color. The results are spectacular. I'm talking
photographic quality. You can't see pixels or sharp color gradients.
Everything is smooth and continuous tone. Really great. Because I'm a
part of the university the cost per print is $3.50. I can't imagine it
being much higher for someone outside the university. Again, that's
only in my neck of the woods. Things could be different where you are.
    Hope it helped...

                            J.---->

E-Mail: [e-mail]




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #116 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Imagine animation on NBC tonight?
Date: Fri, 8 Apr 94 12:55:30 CDT
From: [e-mail] (Thomas Setzer)

> before the commercial break, also (probably because it was cooler than
> the MIT one, which looked rather comical, IMHO - something was horribly
> wrong with their outline of Jupiter).
>
>
Actually, there was nothing wrong with the MIT anim.  The reason the outline
was wavey has to do with the purpose of the anim.  The dips in the outline
represent low pressure(or was that high pressure) areas in the atmosphere
of Jupiter.  The waves cause by the impact show the effects the collision
will have on the atmosphere.  You wouldn't actually be able to see the
waves caused by the impact.  I read about all this in Discover magazine
where they had one image from the anim.  Pretty cool stuff.


Tom Setzer
[e-mail]

"And of course, I'm a genius, so people are naturally drawn to my fiery
intellect.  Their admiration overwhelms their envy!" - Calvin


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #117 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: How to Print?
Date: Fri, 8 Apr 1994 11:08:22 -0700 (PDT)
From: [e-mail]

>
>    I would like to print out a few pictures from Imagine, but I do not have
> a high quality color printer.  Can anyone suggest the best path to take to
> do this.  (Buying a printer is not an option.  So that leaves finding
> someone who will print them for me.)
>
>   Objective: the highest quality I can get for under $20 per picture.

Well you did not say how big of a print out or what you need to use them
for. However, you could save them as 24bit (jpeg,TIFF) if you have ADP or
IMAGEFX and then have them made into slides.  from the slides you could
get prints... Or one again take them as a pic format mac's/ibm's can read
and have them printed on a color printer like a FIREY or RAINBOW at
400dpi this can be done for a few bucks a print. However if you want a
LOT of prints, have it color sep'd for about $100 and then color printed
at 2400 dpi+ (this one I'm sure is going to be out of your $$ range though)


Anyone else use other ways to get good prints?

--
-== When Dreams Become Reality ==- Illumine & Illuminati  [e-mail]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #118 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re:  How to Print?
Date:     Fri, 8 Apr 1994 14:56:50 -0400
From: Jason B Koszarsky <[e-mail]>

Try a copying store.  There is one around here called Kinko's.  If you
convert it, & put it on a MAC disk, they can colour print it for you.
I'm not sure of the price but check around for a place like this near
you.

Jason K.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #119 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: DKB3128 question
Date: Fri, 8 Apr 1994 14:52:33 -0400 (EDT)
From: [e-mail] (William V. Swartz)

Earl Corbin inquires:

> what my little 'getting started' book for 2.04 said.  While I'm thinking
> of that, does anyone know of a good OS reference book for AmigaOS?  I
> was going to wait for 3.1 and hope that I got a whole manual with it,
> but C='s future is up in the air at the moment, and I'd like to get
> suggestions now.  (I'm optimistic, though.)

There is an Abacus book: AmigaDos Inside&Out Revised
by Kerkloh, Tornsdorf and Zoller ISBN 1-55755-041-7
that covers 1.2, 1.3, and 2.0 although I'll bet it is
only good thru 2.04 as I saw none of the 2.1 goodies.

Still it is a good reference if you have none.

  //
\X/ -BiL-
    [e-mail]             (See my 'Imagine'-ary signature below)


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #120 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: re bite by bite
Date: Fri, 8 Apr 1994 12:24:49 -0700 (PDT)
From: Mike McCool <[e-mail]>

Thanks, Bill,

    Your post brought home a point I neglected to make in my 'bite
my neck' post, but which I assumed was so obvious it didn't need
emphasizing.  Namely, that the post from B by B was a flagrant Ad for
their product, posted on the mailing list of another product.

    How many blows does it take--even if the hammer's padded--for
people to realize they're being hit on?  (The informal grammar was
necessary to utilize the cliche).

    And if, by categorizing something as 'just a flame' means it's
not relevant, then excuse my bothering.  Maybe that melanoma is just a
spot.



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #121 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Printing Imagine Screen Images (Fargo Printer)
Date: Fri, 08 Apr 1994 12:01:55 -0700
From: "Jeff Wahaus, CAPS, ATL" <[e-mail]>

>>   I would like to print out a few pictures from Imagine, but I do not hav
>>a high quality color printer.  Can anyone suggest the best path to take to
>>do this.  (Buying a printer is not an option.  So that leaves finding
>>someone who will print them for me.)
>
>Go for the Fargo Primera Thermal Transfer/Dye Sublimation printer.
>It provides true 24-bit output at a VERY low price.  I got a flyer
>in the mail from Fargo and the sample output is amazing!
>They were offering the printer with the dye-sublimation kit for
>around $950.  They recommended using the thermal-transfer mode for
>proofs at about $0.45 per page and then use the dye-sublimation for
>the final at $2.79 per page.

  The original poster was looking for a Printing Service not a
printer.  I would be interested in hearing about anyone's experiences
with the above mentioned printer if they posess one.

  If you have the dye sublimation kit installed in the printer can
you specify either through software or front panel controls to
the printer to use thermal transfer or dye sublimation?  What I'm
trying to ask is do you have to rip out the dye sublimation add-on
to use the thermal transfer mode?

-Jeff Wahaus-
[e-mail]



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #122 ***************************************:-)

Subject: NBC Comet Crash Anim
Date: Fri, 8 Apr 94 11:40:01 MST
From: [e-mail] (John R. Spencer)

Thanks for the positive feedback on the NBC animation!  Glad you liked
it.  Because it was produced in such a rush, the first time I even saw
the final version (apart from a lower-resolution OpalAnimMATE preview)
was when it appeared on the news.  I was happy with how it turned out
apart from the lens flares for the impact flashes, which need to be
softer-edged.  That's no problem- playing with the "Gamma" slider in
the OpalPaint "Balance" drawing mode on the flashes before I paste them
into the animation will fix that problem in the next version.

I have ambitions to extend the beginning of the animation, starting
 the animation in a caldera on Io, rendered in VistaPro, fly out of the
caldera with Jupiter looming into the sky, back off from Io (now
rendered in Imagine with a full-disk color map), and then zoom down to
join the comets on their collision course, but don't know when I'll get
the time to do that!

I'd be happy to post a version of the animation, if someone can
tell me how to create an MPEG with PD software, hopefully on our
UNIX workstation as I don't want to have to do that floppy-disk
transfer again in a hurry, and my Amiga hard disk is full.

Comments on the other animations that were shown:

1) The "jello Jupiter" animation was done by the guys at MIT who were
interviewed, with a very sophisticated physical model.  Jupiter looked
wierd because they massively exaggerated small pressure differences on
Jupiter to look like huge height differences in order to see subtle
effects like the impact waves.  This is very effective at showing
the waves but doesn't make Jupiter look very realistic.

2) The billowing eddies were from a supercomputer simulation by Mordecai
McLow, of the effects of the impact on the local Jovian atmosphere.

3) They also showed various time-lapse Voyager movies of the Jovian
clouds.

NBC committed the usual sin of a TV news broadcast, of showing a lot of
images without explanation.  My animation had the advantage of being
immediately comprehensible, but unlike the other animations didn't
contain much in the way of physics, though the orbits were fairly
accurate.

Finally, I'd STILL like someone to tell me if the altitude map
seam bug has been fixed in 2.9/3.0...

John Spencer
Lowell Observatory



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #123 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: PD
Date: Fri, 8 Apr 1994 15:27:14 -0400 (EDT)
From: [e-mail] (William V. Swartz)

RE: The question of PD status of net posts

I would think that this issue would be covered by and readme or
documentation the the work's author cared to post along with the work.  For
example in a readme accompanying an animation, I have seen notices such as:

"This work Copyright 199x by John Doe.  Permission to redistribute for
personaly use (i.e. viewing) hereby granted.  Commercial use or broadcast
prohibited without written permission of author."

I would think that an author could make his work as freely usable or not
usable by simply including a document of his intentions.  How to enforce
this is another question totally.

  //
\X/ -BiL-
    [e-mail]             (See my 'Imagine'-ary signature below)



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #124 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Placing stuff on the net
Date: Fri, 08 Apr 94 16:55:26 EDT
From: [e-mail]

  By just placing stuff on the net does not make it free.  The author always
retains the copyrights, and people still must gain permission for using it in
thier own work.

  Of course this is just theoritical and there is nothing to stop people from
ripping stuff off.

  A good course of action is to always include copyright notices with every
original work placed on any public access area.  Registering good stuff with
the US Copyright office is also a good idea, as this legally makes a
"whatever" your property.

  I do not know the legality of all of this stuff but this should answer your
questions.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #125 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: extrude in 2.0
Date: Fri, 8 Apr 94 21:24:01 GMT
From: Andrew Nunn <[e-mail]>

Hi Adam,

> What I want is simple,... I want a 3D question mark.  I want a smooth,
> round question mark with no sharp edges.
> I made a path in the shape of the question mark, droped a sphere in, and
> said EXTRUDE along path, 20 segments.  What I get is 1 sphere at each end of
> the path. I think it must be a bug in 2.0 because if I use REPLICATE instead
> of EXTRUDE it works, but then I get a bumpy/wavy question mark.

Firstly, if you were trying to extrude the perfect sphere primitive, this
definitely wont work, since if effectively has no points,edges or faces.

Try the following:

Add a primitive faceted sphere of default radius 50 and 24 segments, with
stagger points turned off. Pick points and in the top view, use the drag box
to multipick and delete half the points eg all those above the centre line.
Now extrude this object along the path with Y axis aligned to path and
mirror ends turned on and 20 segments. That should give you what you want
I think.

Andrew


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #126 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re:  PD
Date: Fri, 8 Apr 1994 15:53:33 -0700
From: [e-mail] (Lesk)

>>does something placed on the net, become PD
>
>Hmm..  I'm not sure about the legality of it.  But I would think that
>the author would be contacted for permission.
>
>Anyone know for certain?
>
>Jason K.

Well as I understand it you have to have a readme file either in the dir or
compressed with the item you post. within the readme file you define the
specific requirements legal restrictions and usage of your material. A good
example of this would be to look at any program etc. you find and
uncompress.
The question is of course how ethical are those who get your stuff and use it?
I guess the only way to find out is see if your work shows up somewhere....
but typically I think any company doing something commercially would rather
find the author. If they like the work they would certainly want more or a
veriation therof...




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #127 ***************************************:-)

Subject: AMUC NL was Re: MPEG
Date: Sat, 9 Apr 94 00:28:07 MDT
From: [e-mail] (Lowell Lindenbach)

>     Hey! Say Hi! to Bryan for me. He might not remember me as an
>ex-exec'er but I'm doing the same schtick. Just starting to make money in
>the biz. Not that I'm selling my animation to Disney or anything but
>titling and a couple of editing jobs are keeping me busy.....

    He says hello, and is glad for the publicity. :)  Still using the
Goldstar?

>     You know what'd be REAL nice? I some kind soul would upload the AMUC
>discs to Aminet every month. I know you guys make $ on distribution of the
>material but it'd be a great service to the Amiga community in general.

    We haven't done that since the members pay for the newsletter (althought
I think there is some discussion of it).  We also have a mailout membership
for those so interested.  However, there is a Guest directory on AMUC_Express
(see below) that holds the NL from the previous month or at least it's supposed
to...kinda out of date.  When the next NL is released (Apr 20) I can move this
last NL that has the tutorial on it into that directory(being an asst. sysop I
can do that sort of thing).  The issue also contains a similar tutorial on how
to do JPEG in the PD as well as some interesting articles from the members.
The B disk contains all the PD software you need to do JPEG and MPEG.

>     I'd suggest you post the latest Amuc bbs # to the various mailing
>lists and groups (at least mail them to me direct). To the Imagine folks
>out there: This group has one of the most amazing bbs's and a fantastic
>Disc based newsletter (still using V's Reader?). It's worth a look.
>Multitasking, windowed bbs'ing. Need I say more?

     Before I mention the numbers I have to say that it is a members-only
BBS and you won't get to see the full potential of it unless you are a member.
It also uses a proprietary Term package (ICETerm) that you can download from
the ASCII interface.  I suggest dling it as a Multitasking/GUI term package
is a great change from ASCII.  As I mentioned before, there is a Guest
directory that non-members can have a look through and I shall put the NL in
there as soon as the next one comes out.

AMUC_Express BBS: [phone]  14.4k
                        282-5171    "
                        289-1882  2400
                        282-5224    "

(Its got 7 lines but those should do...)

   If anyone wishes to know more about AMUC or the BBS, just let me know.

BTW, yes we still use Dr.V's Reader :)
--
Lowell Lindenbach    [e-mail]
                     Fido: Lowell Lindenbach 1:134/27


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #128 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: How to Print?
Date: Sat, 9 Apr 94 03:35:19 PDT
From: [e-mail] (Christopher Stewart)

>   I would like to print out a few pictures from Imagine, but I do not have
>a high quality color printer.  Can anyone suggest the best path to take to
>do this.  (Buying a printer is not an option.  So that leaves finding
>someone who will print them for me.)
>  Objective: the highest quality I can get for under $20 per picture.

     You could output to slide pretty cheaply, I get them for under $10.00
each. You can always get hardcopy later. I like to project them against
the wall though, check your local flea market/discount shopper for cheap
projectors.

>  What is the best resolution to render the picture?  Of course it would be
>in 24 bit color.

     I've found that various places give me different resolutions. Call
around.

>  I can go to any format on any platform (IBM or MAC) but I would need to
>know  which PD/shareware programs will do the conversions?

     I give my stuff over in TIFF or Targa. Again, ask your local shop. Be
SURE to phone around though (even better, go in person). The gentleman that
does mine charges the government considerably more for output. I've done a
couple of simple traces for him and now get "discount" rates. Back
scratching works......


                    Christopher



--
"I wish there was a knob on the TV             [e-mail]
 to turn up the intelligence.                  [e-mail]
 There's a knob called `brightness',
 but it doesn't work." -- Gallagher            Join the Animation Sig!


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #129 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Render engine Again.....
Date: 09 Apr 94 15:21:58 CET
From: [e-mail] (Soren Wind)

If Imagine V3.0 will take up 4 megs of ram, i would say that the
Render Engine discussed before would be highly recomended, or ?

I will not be able to render as much as i am now with only 8 megs of
fastram and Imagine takes up to 4 mb of them... :(

Should this be a job for Apex or Impulse ?

  Soren Wind   -  IZI/ImPACT    __   ___              _
  GFX / 3D Design / Raytrace    \ \ / (_)____  _ __ _| |
  Fidonet Scala  2:230/418.30    \ V /| (_-< || / _` | |    /\\
  Fidonet ATeam  2:230/714.17    _\_/ |_/__/\_,_\__,_|_|__  \\/
  Amiganet : 39:141/104.30      |_ _|_ __  _ __  __ _ __| |_
  E-MAIL ADD1:[e-mail]  | || '  \| '_ \/ _` / _|  _|
  E-MAIL ADD2:  -------------   |___|_|_|_| .__/\__,_\__|\__|tm
  A2K/030/882/9MB/345MB/33Mhz+SVGA Running|_|/fast/ for a *Picasso* *II*

... Is that MURPHY perched on my shoulder???


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #130 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Imagine 3.0
Date: Sat, 9 Apr 1994 17:31:09 -0700
From: [e-mail] (Lesk)

>Date: 09 Apr 94 09:17:54 EDT
>From: Mike Halvorson <[e-mail]>
>To: "INTERNET:[e-mail]" <[e-mail]>
>Subject: Re: Imagine 3.0
>
>Lesk,
>
>        And others,  you can if you like post this up to the public forum.
>
>        There are many new features in Imagnie, so many that we have had to
>take
>a few moments out of the getting ready phase to write them down.  You suggest
>that there are two major one, wellllllllllllll,  maybe a few more than that.
>Here is a taste.
>
>        Depth of Field
>        Perfect Anti Aliasing
>        Real Time camera Tracking
>        OBject Constraints
>        Kinnematics
>        Bones  (you mentioned that one but it is the best of any software)
>        Transparency pass through for FOg and Transparent objects for
>Background
>pics
>        over 100 textures
>        Global FX
>        Camera control for Depth of Field
>        Cut copy and paste in the Action editor
>        Full browse for adding images and objects states in the Action editor
>        Pop Morphing
>        Full Spline interpolation
>        Ease in and Ease out between key frames
>        Object spline deformation
>        The Spline editor  (2D for now)
>        State import to add objects to a state
>        Pencil Test in Detail editor
>        Unlimited texture and brush application no more limitation to 4
>        Faster rendering in both AMiga and PC
>        True Lens flare
>        Haze objects
>        Edgless transparency
>
>        and you are right music or sound has been left out due to major time
>constraints and the fact that we are so late we are almost at another version
>of
>Imagine.
>
>        THere are over 200 new features and changes to Imagine.  To say nothing

>about the great new manaul which at over 350 pages is chocked full of
>infromation for those who want to know.
>
>        When we have looked at other product that cost, tens of thousands more,

>like ALias and Wavefront, we think we are giving a great value for the dollar.
>
>        To close I should also say that very soon, Impulse will be releasing
>the
>DIGIMAX, a 3D object digitizer that will retail for under $1000.00 and for
>registered Imagine users there will be  a special price of $500.00.
>
>        We also have some other goodies instore for Imagine as well as new
>products that we won't mention at this time.
>
>        Now the only problem is going to be the wait for everyone to get their
>copy of Imagine 3.0
>
>        Not that anyone cares but we begin shipping on Monday April 11th, it
>will
>take about 10 days to get everyones order out, and then court will be in
>session, you will be the judge and we will all be on vacation, the first one in

>3 years.

Sure looks like you have earned it! Thanks for the good word. Now if I can
just stop drooling for a moment to forward this.......

>
>        Just thought you would like to know, now let everyone else know.
>
>        Mike
>
>


                Thanks Mike


                                        Render Ho!
                                          Lesk




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #131 ***************************************:-)

Subject: DigiMax
Date: Sat, 9 Apr 94 22:27:22 EDT
From: [e-mail] (Jeffrey Goldman)

 To Mr. Halverston (or someone in the know)

    It's good to hear that Imagine3.0 is finally here! You've
definitely been teasing us for long enough :-) I just have a few
questions, however...

    Will Impulse be releasing an official newsletter describing
the official released version of Imagine3.0?

    Along the same lines, when can we hear more about Impulse's
planned object digitizer, the DigiMax (I believe). Will this be
described in a near-future newsletter as well?

    I'm a registered user of Imagine2.0, but I don't have my
registration number immediately handy. Can I just call Impulse's order
line and order the 3.0 upgrade? I'd assume they have some means of
verifying registration...

    Is 3.0 bug-free (within the bounds of reality). If there are
quite a few bugs will Impulse provide patches, fixed versions, etc, to
customers for free?

    Is Impulse considering creating either a dedicated rendering
engine or a network rendering system for future implementations of
Imagine?

    Along the above lines. Is Imagine3.0 optimized for the 68040?
And, will Impulse port future versions of Imagine to the 601 (and
greater) series of RISC Power CPU's?

    Is there any rest for Impulse now that Imagine3.0 is
completed? I hope not too much of a rest ;-)

    Any help regarding the above would be a big help. Thanks...

                            J.---->

E-Mail: [e-mail]



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #132 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Imagine animation on NBC tonight?
Date: Sat, 9 Apr 94 22:10:14 -0600
From: Steve Koren <[e-mail]>

> Actually, there was nothing wrong with the MIT anim.

Except that jupiter had somehow aquired an outline with perturbations a
full fifth of a planetary diameter in height.  Other than that, nothing
wrong at all :-)

(Yeah, I know what they were trying to show, but I think it was *way*
too exaggerated.  It detracted from their point, because all I could
think when seeing it was, "gee, they sure screwed up the planet's
outline there.")

  - steve


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #133 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re:  DigiMax
Date:     Sun, 10 Apr 1994 02:40:11 -0400
From: Jason B Koszarsky <[e-mail]>

>Is 3.0 bug-free (within the bounds of reality). If there are
>quite a few bugs will Impulse provide patches, fixed versions, etc, to
>customers for free?

I think it would be great if Impulse would include a list of known bugs
in a newsletter or post it here.  This would greatly help everyone to
avoid those nasty little creatures.

Maybe a bug list should be maintained as part of the IML FAQ too.

Jason K.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #134 ***************************************:-)

Subject: random object placement utility
Date: Sat, 9 Apr 94 22:00:46 -0600
From: Steve Koren <[e-mail]>

In case it might be useful to anybody else, here is a small ARexx script
I wrote to accomplish random placement of objects (leaves fallen from
trees, snow flakes, etc).  You need to own Vertex.  Load the object(s)
you want to place into vertex, and run the script - it pops up
requesters to ask you for parameters.  Not much to it.  You get to
control the shape of the placement field (flat square, 3D cube, etc),
and how much the objects are rotated randomly along each axis (you might
rotate leaves up to 360 along the vertical axis but only +/- 15 degrees
along the others, so that they mostly lie flat on the ground, but be
resting in random orientations).  The resulting objects can then be
imported back into Imagine for rendering.

  - steve

PS - Vertex seems to be limited to 512 objects, no matter how much mem
you tell it to allocate, so if you want more objects than that, you'll
have to make multiple passes.

PPS - There might be a better way to do this with Imagine 2.9, but I
only have 2.0, so this was all I could think of.  Its better than
placing 1500 objects by hand in the detail or project editor :-)


~~~ cut here ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

/*sys:rexxc/rx

 *****************************************************************************
 *                                                                           *
 * ARexx program to scatter objects in random positions and orientations in  *
 * a given volume of space.                                                  *
 *                                                                           *
 * Author: Steve Koren                                                       *
 * Date  : 09-Apr-94                                                         *
 *                                                                           *
 * This function prompts for the following parameters:                       *
 *                                                                           *
 *    Xspread   = objects will be scattered between +XSpread/2, -XSpread/2   *
 *    Yspread   = objects will be scattered between +YSpread/2, -YSpread/2   *
 *    Zspread   = objects will be scattered between +ZSpread/2, -ZSpread/2   *
 *                                                                           *
 *    Xrot      = objects will be rotated between +Xrot/2 and -Xrot/2        *
 *    Yrot      = objects will be rotated between +Yrot/2 and -Yrot/2        *
 *    Zrot      = objects will be rotated between +Zrot/2 and -Zrot/2        *
 *                                                                           *
 *    Size      = objects will be scaled between 1/Size and Size             *
 *    Copy_cnt  = number of copies of object to make                         *
 *    Seed      = random seed for operation                                  *
 *                                                                           *
 * If you have <N> objects loaded, those <N> objects will be scattered       *
 * randomly over the given volume and with the given orientations.  No       *
 * attempt is made to avoid object overlap.                                  *
 *                                                                           *
 * For example, if you had a leaf object about 32 units in length, you might *
 * scatter copies over a planar surface while keeping the leaves "mostly"    *
 * horizontal as follows:                                                    *
 *                                                                           *
 *    XSpread = 800  YSpread = 0    ZSpread = 800 (flat plane in X/Z axis)   *
 *    XRot    = 20   YRot    = 360  ZRot    = 20  (any horiz rotation, just  *
 *                                                 a little tilt)            *
 *    Size    = 1.3  Copy_cnt= 200  Seed    = 12  (slight resize, 200 objs)  *
 *                                                                           *
 *****************************************************************************/


options results

/* --- Check object count ------------------------------------------------- */

data objs
obj_num=result

/* --- Get parameters ----------------------------------------------------- */

request 500 'Xspread' 500 'Yspread' 500 'Zspread'
if result="RESULT" then do; endd; exit; end
parse var result xspread yspread zspread

request 0   'Xrot'    0   'Yrot'    0   'Zrot'
if result="RESULT" then do; endd; exit; end
parse var result xrot yrot zrot

request 1   'Size'   5   'Copy_cnt'   0   'Seed'
if result="RESULT" then do; endd; exit; end
parse var result rsize n_copies seed
randu(seed)

/* --- Make copies -------------------------------------------------------- */

hott

do i = 1 to n_copies
   deselect all
   'select obje' random(1,obj_num)
   shot 0 0 0

   xoffset=randu() * xspread - (xspread/2)          /* where to move it to */
   yoffset=randu() * yspread - (yspread/2)
   zoffset=randu() * zspread - (zspread/2)

   duplicate xoffset yoffset zoffset 0 0 0 1 1 1 1  /* copy object */
   chot

   if xrot ~= 0 | yrot ~= 0 | zrot ~= 0 then do
      xturn=randu() * xrot - (xrot/2)               /* object rotation */
      yturn=randu() * yrot - (yrot/2)
      zturn=randu() * zrot - (zrot/2)

      rotate xturn yturn zturn
   end

   if rsize ~= 1 then do
      resize=randu() * (rsize - 1/rsize) + 1/rsize  /* object scaling */
      size resize
   end

   show
end

draw
endd



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #135 ***************************************:-)

Subject: ANIM Problems
Date: Sun, 10 Apr 94 14:17:28 EDT
From: [e-mail]

Hi all!  I was making an anim with 2.9, and I ran into a little problem...

First I made a 352x440 24-bit anim (since 2.9 can't do AGA anim's), and it
worked fine.  I just used VT to run it. (24-bit frames!)  The problem came when
I tried to make the same anim in hires, 704x440.  I waited 20 hours for this
anim to finish.  When I played it back with VT, VT said it was 704x440x4.
4 bits instead of 24!  It looked terrible. :(  Has anyone else had this problem?

Does Imagine not like making 24-bit anims in hires???

I do not have ADPro or anything like it.  (I know, how can I do all this 3D work

without image processing?  Well, my first three years using Imagine were on a
stock A500 with 1 meg of ram!)  I'll probably take the 24 bit frames to a friend

and use ADPro to make the anim in AGA.  I just wanted to know if this was a
problem with Imagine or a problem with me. :)

BTW, my local Amiga store owner told me that one of his distributors called him
and said that they would have Imagine3.0 on Monday (11th). :)

Thanx,
Nick             [e-mail]

P.S.  I am using a A1200 with 10 megs and 33Mhz 030/882.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #136 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: imagine 3.0
Date: Sun, 10 Apr 1994 15:03:57 -0500 (CDT)
From: [e-mail] (cyberhawk)

> Want to know what to be ready for?  Many long hours of work!  It may be a bit
> difficult at first...but I just realized AGAIN that Imagine is THE best thing
> around for any price!  I just tried another program...just on the
> scene...claims it's great etc...piece of crap.

That's nice to know...

> I won't mention what it is untill I return the Promotional copy.

Don't forget to tell me what it is, ok?



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #137 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Extrude in 2.0 (update)
Date: Sun, 10 Apr 1994 19:35:59 -0400 (EDT)
From: [e-mail] (Adam Benjamin)

Hey good neighbor!

Thanks for the tips on extruding. Wes and Andrew were right! (Glod star on
both your foreheads!)
The easiest way to create rounded objects was to extrude 1/2 a primitive
sphere and tell it to mirror the ends.  Worked perfectly.
I created a little anim of a bowling alley but with Question Marks instead
of bowling pins. With a little tinkering I got a fairly realistic 'strike'
anim where the question marks get 'bowled' (heh heh) over and a logo drops
down as the little "rack" that clears the lanes.
Thanks Again.
Adam B



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #138 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Amiga plotter drivers
Date: Mon, 11 Apr 94 08:50:00 PDT
From: Richard Morris <[e-mail]>

Dear anyone who can help

I know this isn't a Imagine request but I am hoping someone out there will
be able to help anyway.  I need to output from New Horizons Design Works to
a HP plotter so I can produce large posters up to A0 size.  Design Works
appears to be happy with a page size of A0 but I have never heard of a
system plotter driver.  Has anyone done this before or heard of a plotter
driver for AmigaDos.

Thanks
Richard
[e-mail]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #139 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Hardware trouble
Date:    Sun, 10 Apr 94 23:15 EDT
From: "Kaspar Stromme" <[e-mail]>

System: A500, GVP A530, 4MB 32-bit FAST, 1MB CHIP, 68882, 340LPS Quantum (SCSI)

Problem: System crashes instantly when I attempt to render anything to the
         harddrive. Scenes render successfully to RAM.  Problem occurs
         in Imagine 2.9 FPU.  Integer version works fine.  Crashes always
         lead to 8000 000D or 8000 000E gurus, which indicate illegal FPU
         access.  Same problem also occurs when I render an animation in
         Scenery Animator 4.0.  In addditon, random crashes also happen.
         Random crashes usually implicate INPUT as cause.

         I have tested the FPU in another unit and it did render to the drive
         without any problems.  My guess is that there is conflict between the
         drive and the FPU.  GVP tech is as stumped as I am.  Any ideas are
         welcome.

 Kaspar S


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #140 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: re bite by bite
Date: Sat, 9 Apr 94 13:59:53 MET
From: [e-mail] (Paul Kolenbrander)

Hello 08-Apr-1994 0406,On 08 APR 1994 02:36:19 you said regarding re bite by bit
e:

>
>           Well Iv'e benn around since the 1000 days. I remember when Byte by
>           Byte left the Amiga platform for the Macs. I remember that I felt
>           upset about it. I really can't understand their logic about CBM.
>           True, what they say is a fact, but they could have kept hanging
>           in there. They had code already done(and the Amiga is still going)
>           so development cost were mostly behind them. Having been there
>           I can tell you what I felt at that time. I was shocked because it
>           happend so fast. My thoughts were that they left because they could

>           sell there product for four time the price, and there was no
>           competition. If they had kept the Amiga version going they would
>           have had to justify that cost difference, and at that time the Amiga

>           had a clear edge on graphics display and handling. I really never
>           missed them because I had opted for Silver instead. Now at that time

>           there was no hard feeling involved to sway my mind. I simply opted

I was a Sculpt-Animate 4D user back then and I was very p'd off. I spent a lot
of money on it and there where some serious bugs in there. (ever tried to save
a traced image and discover the disk got full? Say bye, bye to the image) When
contacting Byte by Byte on this, the answer basically was to lump it. And the
next month they where gone. No note, just gone. Leaving me with and expensive
but steadily getting more obsolete, program. I have never even gotten an update
offer from them for the Mac or PC version. I trew Sculpt in the dustbin about
a year ago when I got my A4000/040. As it was totally incompatible... On the
whole, I won't ever buy a product made by them again. H*ll, compared to Byte
by Byte, Impulse is the height of customer support. :-)

So if any Byte by Byter reads this... You know where you went wrong.
--
----------------------- E-mail Only -> [e-mail] -
-- Paul Kolenbrander -- UUEncoded   -> [e-mail] ---
----------------------- C= adspe    -> [e-mail] -
- (ECL042) Amiga&CD32 -------------------------------------------
----------------------- Volume EMPTY is FULL?? Only Amiga... ;) -



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #141 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: imagine 3.0
Date: Mon, 11 Apr 1994 07:27:18 -0700
From: [e-mail] (Lesk)

Greg said....

>Feel free to share this...
>
>Imagine 3.0 will knock your socks off...you get:
>
>- A GREAT true lense flare that takes place in the lense!  Doesn'e get obscured

>by other objects as does Lightwaves...
>
>- Glowing halos around lights
>
>- Bones
>
>- Inverse kinematics (move the foot and the leg follows, bending at the knee)
>
>- Spline interpolated motion
>
>- Enhanced Anti-Aliasing, user definable ray casting up to 255 rays per pixel
>
>- AGA support
>
>- Enhanced deformation tool (this is great in itself)
>
>- Lights:  Point Source & Parallel rays, as well as sperical & rectangular
>
>- Apply feature (select one object, then multi-click others to APPLY the
>  attributes of the first object)
>
>- Set Zone (define small area on screen for test renders)
>
>- More Textures
>
>- A Manual!  :)
>
>- Thats all I can remember right now....ouch, my head is spinning.  <g>
>
>
>-GreG

        Let me get this correct, are you using 3.0 right now?
        If so I am sure everyone would like to hear more....

                                Render Ho!
                                  Lesk





IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #142 ***************************************:-)

Subject: extruding Pixel 3D in Imagine
Date: Mon, 11 Apr 94 03:24:30 PDT
From: 11-Apr-1994 0500 <[e-mail]>

     I spent this past weekend modeling fencepost, and wood moldings.
  The tools used were ADPro, an ES-800c scanner, Pixel 3D pro, Dpaint IV
  and of course Imagine. I happened upon a book at the local library that
  had many examples of moldings, caseings, bulkheads, and all sorts of
  other building supplies. They were of the design used in the early
  1900s. Well I started by scanning in a picket for a picket fence. It
  had a fancy top to it. I took this into Dpaint cut half away and then
  Moved it to Pixel 3d. It came out well in Pixel an I saved it in
  Imagine format. Looked great in the detail editor, however when I went
  to sweep it came out nicely in the front view(like the original scan)
  but lacked depth. No matter How I tried I could not get the lathed look
  I desired. I ended up spinning it in Pixel to get the object. Next I
  scanned in some molding. The moldings were illustrated as end views
  with the part number inside. I scanned them at 400dpi, cleaned them
  up in Dpaint, pulled them into Pixel 3D an smoothed and extruded them.
  Once again they looked great ig the detail editor. however once again
  I had problems. When I went to sixe them to increas the Y lenth they
  became flat objects. I found that if I added an axis an joined the
  molding to the new axis(new axis is parent) I could then modify the
  object any way I wanted. It appears the problem is in the axis coming
  From Pixel 3D. Anybody have any insight into this ? Also if I were to
  joined an axis to the picket half would I be able to spin/sweep it
  in Imagine(using 2.0 for now)? I realize I can spin it in Pixel but
  just as in the extruded objects Yuo end up with objects that act strange
  within Imagine.
                            bill
/* All ramblings are my own and do not reflect the opinions of my employer
 or anybody else
    Bill Leimberger Nashua NH */


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #143 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Printing Imagine Screen Images (Fargo Printer)
Date: Mon, 11 Apr 94 07:17:25 -0600
From: Steve Koren <[e-mail]>

"Jeff Wahaus, CAPS, ATL" <[e-mail]> writes:

> printer.  I would be interested in hearing about anyone's experiences
> with the above mentioned printer if they posess one.

I posted a few largish articles about it in c.s.a.graphics a few months
back, when the printer first came out.  Unfortunately, I didn't save a
copy, otherwise I'd send them to you.  But briefly:

>   If you have the dye sublimation kit installed in the printer can
> you specify either through software or front panel controls to
> the printer to use thermal transfer or dye sublimation?  What I'm

Yes, but you have to change the ribbon also (see below).  It is
controlled by the density setting, so you can set it from preferences,
or override it from a program such as ImageFX (which is a great program
to use for this, since it has built-in VM, and the images for printing
can get *big*).

> trying to ask is do you have to rip out the dye sublimation add-on
> to use the thermal transfer mode?

Yes, you do.  But it takes only seconds.  There is a dye-sub ribbon
which lifts out *very* easily, and you just drop a thermal xfer ribbon
in and close the top.  Total elapsed time: maybe 3 to 5 seconds.

If you want, email me privately and I'll send you more information on
the printer.  It works really well for printing rendered output.  (I
render at 1990x1624x24-bit in Imagine for printing on the Primera).  But
there are some quirks about it too.

  - steve

PS - Anyone know the subscription address for the Aladdin 4D mailing
list?  If so, I'd be grateful if you'd email it to me.  Thanks.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #144 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Compiling a Bug List
Date:     Mon, 11 Apr 1994 10:40:53 -0400
From: Jason B Koszarsky <[e-mail]>

I am in the process of compiling a bug list for Imagine 2.0, 2.9, & 3.0(when
it arrives).  I would appreciate help from the list on this endeavor.  Any
bugs reported will be checked out and I'll ask the guys at Impulse to verify
or give some clarification on them.

The list will be posted here on a semi-regular basis(I'm not sure what this
is yet).

Thanx for your help.

Jason K.

Please try to be very specific when describing the problem encountered.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #145 ***************************************:-)

Subject: A Transparent Question
Date: Mon, 11 Apr 1994 08:37:03 -0800
From: [e-mail] (Brad Molsen)

        Hello all, First off if this has been answered in the past, I'm
sorry. My question is...  does anyone have a good recipe for glass? I tried
Sorens' and also Lesks' soapbubble but, only got some purple derivative
color instead of the glassy look I was hoping for. I tried to tweek out the
purple but, gave up! What I thought I wanted would have more offwhite or
light gray shading. Does the surroundings have a lot to do with it? The
background I was using in this instance was black.
        Again, any light someone could shed on or thru the subject would be
much appreciated.
                                        later,
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
        JUST SAY NO, TO GUNS!!!

Brad Molsen c/o  LORAL                          [e-mail]

13810 SE Eastgate Way Suite 500                 [phone]
Bellevue, Wa 98005                              Fax: [phone]



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #146 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Imagine 3.0 and 3rd Party Gfx Cards
Date: Mon, 11 Apr 1994 11:58:32 -0400
From: [e-mail] (Cedric Georges Chang)

Does anyone know of Imagine 3.0 will be able to support higher resolutions in
the editors using 3rd party graphics cards.  Right now the screens in Imagine
2.9 don't refresh correctly when promoted onto an EGS screen.

Cedric


--
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Cedric Chang                Mechanical Engineer               // Commodore
[e-mail]       Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute      \X/  Amiga 3000
---------------------------------------------------------------------------


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #147 ***************************************:-)

Date: Mon, 11 Apr 94 12:10:20 CDT
From: [e-mail] (cyrus)

Reply to: [e-mail]
Subject: Imagine 3.0
Priority: Urgent
Date: Mon, 11 Apr 94 12:10:41
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>

Well, I'm sorry to say that my request to go in and pick up my copy of 3.0 was
denied pending it's arrival (or more likely non-arrival).  I guess everyone
will find out what is new and cool at the same time I do.  Oh well.

*** THIS MESSAGE IS FROM MY SLIP CONNECTION. REPLY TO ADDR BELOW ***
 __________________________________________________________________
|  Cyrus J. Kalbrener <[e-mail]>                   |
|                                                          +-+     |
|    This space reserved for really important thought----->| |     |
|                                                          +-+     |
|Finger me for PGP pub key:                                        |
|29BA61 1994/03/07 94 55 FC 98 23 E7 1B 6E  3E B7 BA 28 E8 FB 14 F5|
====================================================================


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #148 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Neon lights
Date: Mon, 11 Apr 1994 12:46:26 -0500 (CDT)
From: Cliff Lee <[e-mail]>

I have Imagine 2.9 PC.  Has anyone created a good/realistic neon light?
If so, would you mind uuencodeing me a sample object/attribute.  Please?
I'd be internally greatful :)

Cliff Lee
"Either Eat or Drink; never mix"
[e-mail]
[e-mail]



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #149 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: A Transparent Question
Date: Mon, 11 Apr 1994 11:59:57 -0700
From: "Jeff Wahaus, CAPS, ATL" <[e-mail]>

>        Hello all, First off if this has been answered in the past, I'm
>sorry. My question is...  does anyone have a good recipe for glass? I tried
>Sorens' and also Lesks' soapbubble but, only got some purple derivative
>color instead of the glassy look I was hoping for. I tried to tweek out the
>purple but, gave up! What I thought I wanted would have more offwhite or
>light gray shading. Does the surroundings have a lot to do with it? The
>background I was using in this instance was black.
>
>Brad Molsen c/o  LORAL                          [e-mail]

I think the key to realistic glass is in the reflections.  You need things
for the glass to reflect in the scene otherwise it will look rather
dull.

-Jeff Wahaus-
[e-mail]



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #150 ***************************************:-)

Subject: imagine3.0?
Date: Mon, 11 Apr 94 13:23:44 EDT
From: [e-mail]

In the process of moving from Illinois to Tennessee I have become lost in the
news about imagine. I am a registered owner of Imagine2.0 and had received
imagine2.9 before I moved. Have they released Imagine3.0 for the Amiga and
how about for the PC. Any information would be greatly appreciated.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #151 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: A Transparent Question
Date: Mon, 11 Apr 94 16:44:52 EDT
From: [e-mail] (Jeffrey Goldman)

>
>         Hello all, First off if this has been answered in the past, I'm
> sorry. My question is...  does anyone have a good recipe for glass? I tried
> Sorens' and also Lesks' soapbubble but, only got some purple derivative
> color instead of the glassy look I was hoping for. I tried to tweek out the
> purple but, gave up! What I thought I wanted would have more offwhite or
> light gray shading. Does the surroundings have a lot to do with it? The
> background I was using in this instance was black.
>         Again, any light someone could shed on or thru the subject would be
> much appreciated.

    Well, if you figure glass is transparent then I'd say that the
background has a lot to do with it. Glass always looks terrible
against a black background. Try it against the old checkerboard floor
or something...
    My glass is never always the same (it always depends on the
use), but try the attribute settings:

    Color         255,255,255
    Filter         220,220,220
    Reflect     30,30,30    <---(Play with this)
    Specular     255,255,255
    Hardness     255
    IofRef        1.5

    What makes glass look the way it does is its refraction. Make
sure there's something interesting in your scene to refract.
    If you want slightly colored glass change the filter values to
slightly favor a certain color. Remember that in the strictest sense
glass can't be gray. It's like a light. A light can't be gray, but it
can have less intensity. If you want a "gray" glass turn the filter
values down so that less light is transmitted through the glass. You
might have to play with color values, too. Of course, the only way
you're going to be able to tell if it's gray or not is with a
background...
    I've found that a lot of what happens with transparent objects
occurs in the filtering process, not the coloring, which makes
sense...
    Try making a wine glass and laying it on its side on top of
any surface. The base of the glass should give you some really good
refraction effects...
    Good luck, and I hope this helped somewhat...

                            J.--->
E-Mail: [e-mail]



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #152 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re:  A Transparent Question
Date:     Mon, 11 Apr 1994 16:28:29 -0400
From: Jason B Koszarsky <[e-mail]>

>Does the surroundings have a lot to do with it?

Yep.  Usually when making glass, it will be given reflective values.  If
it is just in a black void, there is not much to reflect except black.

Jason K>


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #153 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Printing Imagine screen Images(Fargo Printer)
Date: Mon, 11 Apr 94 09:37:02 PDT
From: 11-Apr-1994 1129 <[e-mail]>

>controlled by the density setting, so you can set it from preferences,
>or override it from a program such as ImageFX (which is a great program
>to use for this, since it has built-in VM, and the images for printing
>can get *big*).
The latest version of ADO has a routine in the prefprinter that addresses
just this printer. It looks like it will set up for optium results with ea

> trying to ask is do you have to rip out the dye sublimation add-
for each ribbon ect. I use Gigamem with ADPro with excellent results.
I feel ASDG has a better feeling for graphics output than anybody else
in the Amiga marketplace. This just comes from the fact that they have been
at it the longest, and it is their primary business.




                            bill


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #154 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Motion Blur...
Date: Mon, 11 Apr 94 16:56:02 EDT
From: [e-mail] (Jeffrey Goldman)

    Okay, question...

    It's well known that calculating mation blur takes a while and
is really intensive. Since Imagine3.0 doesn't have motion-blur, I've
heard of methods of pseudo-motion blur. I know Steve Worley's
"Understanding Imagine2.0" has a homebrew motion blur method. I was
just looking through an old issue of .info for Amiga (4/92) when I
came across an article reviewing Imagine2.0. At the end of the article
was a review of Worley's book along with a great still of a bowling
ball bowling over pins. I was really impressed with the results.
    I'm wondering how realistic the home-brew method is, and what
special software do I need to create successful motion blur results?
Can it be applied to animation sequences (post-processing each frame)?
How is it done?

    Along totally different lines... I remember something about
some sort of tranparency bug in 2.0, but I've never come across it
before. Has anyone had trouble with more than 4 or 5 transparent
objects (all one behind the other) being transparent?
    Any and all help would be greatly appreciated... Thanks...

                            J.---->

E-Mail: [e-mail]



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #155 ***************************************:-)

Subject: re Extruding in Pixel 3D
Date: Mon, 11 Apr 94 03:43:47 PDT
From: 11-Apr-1994 0525 <[e-mail]>

    My recent adventure in moldings pointed out several aspects of
   developing objects in Pixel 3D(and imagine) I had not run into before.
   After I Load the molding object in Imagine I select all and reduce it to
   A workable size. Then I ungroup, Join and merge. next I sliced the
   molding with a plane to get a 45 degree end. No problem. I cleaned up
   the slice and did a join and merge. Mistake! I was unable to slice the
   other end no matter what I tried. This molding was a double beaded design
   (some others worked fine). Here is how I got it to work. I added two
   plains and roteted each to 45 degrees in the direction I needed. Then
   I joined them in the center. Next I scalled them up and  moved them
   so that the molding was encompassed in the X giving me a knife on
   each end of the molding object. Then I did my slice. I worked mitering
   both ends at the same time. I cleaned up the object, and used it to
   build a nice frame for the top of a wood column.
                                bill
    /* as always anything expressed here is of my own mind an
     does not reflect the opinions of my employer or anybody else
    Bill leimberger Nashua NH.*/


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #156 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: imagine3.0?
Date: Mon, 11 Apr 1994 16:20:47 -0600 (MDT)
From: Roger Straub <[e-mail]>

On Mon, 11 Apr 1994 [e-mail] wrote:

> In the process of moving from Illinois to Tennessee I have become lost in the
> news about imagine. I am a registered owner of Imagine2.0 and had received
> imagine2.9 before I moved. Have they released Imagine3.0 for the Amiga and
> how about for the PC. Any information would be greatly appreciated.

In answer to your question, Imagine 3.0 has not come out on the market as
of yet. Technical difficulties, or something like that. 3.0 for PC would
probably come out later than the Amiga version. 2.0 did.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ben Straub       Hi!
[e-mail]




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #157 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Site-surfing on the net yields vast space image archive
Date: Mon, 11 Apr 94 15:33:03 PDT
From: [e-mail] (Thorne Kontos)

Greetings Imagineers,
     While updating my ever-growing site list for anonymous ftp,
I came across this nasa site with 84 cd-roms on-line. So here it is:

              explorer.arc.nasa.gov 128.102.32.18

Many of these images are in special compressed image formats, but there
is software on line (executables) to do the decompression. Needless to say,
this should keep the hardcore astronomers busy downloading for quite a while.

                                        Thorne K. Kontos
                                        [e-mail]

BTW, if anyone has any lists of their favorite anonymous ftpsites, I'd be
greatful for a copy. Reply via e-mail, please.




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #158 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Amiga Format Imagine Disk
Date: Tue, 12 Apr 94 08:09:00 PDT
From: Richard Morris <[e-mail]>

Hey Bruce,

>I bought the issue of Amiga Format with the Imagine cover disk, and
>had a question about upgrading it to 3.0.  I think the card in the
>magazine said to send in the disk with it.  Well, I lost the card.
>Will they accept just the diskette and a cheque, or is the card that
>came with the magazine mandatory as well?  I think it was 95
>Lsterling or thereabouts...
>Thanks,
>bruce

I stilll have that copy of Amiga Format and it has a coupon in it (page 45)
you have to send in with your 95 pounds to:

Imagine 3 Offer
Future Publishing Limited,
Cary Court, Somerton
Somerset, TA11 6TB

Cheques and postal orders are to be made payable to Future Publishing Ltd.

I suppose the coupon is proof you have the magazine and that is all that is
necessary, there wasn't a card in my copy.  If you haven't got the magazine
anymore I suppose you would have to send the disk to get the upgrade.  If
you get the upgrade okay could you let me know as I was thinking along the
same lines.  Good luck

Richard
[e-mail]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #159 ***************************************:-)

Subject: mobicogs uploaded to Aminet
Date: Mon, 11 Apr 94 21:28:53 GMT
From: Jason Jack <[e-mail]>

Greetings!

Something on the IML last week had me checking the Conform Group to Path
Action Editor option.  It's really excellent! (dna dna dna dna ding!)

I'd love to know if you could do this so easily (or at all) in other 3D
packages.

btw, I haven't got around to uploading cometj2 + the project yet.  I got
distracted...  Think I'll only do the project file.  Where should this go?
gfx/misc?  Advice welcome...

mobicogs.lha is about 1.7MB big.  Here follows the .readme file...

---
Short: Mobius strip of Cogs (Imagine 2.9)
Type: gfx/anim
Uploader: [e-mail] (Jason Jack)
Author: [e-mail] (Jason Jack)

Try to imagine a Mobius strip made from 9 intermeshed cogs.  Now make the
cogs turn each other, make them roll along the strip, and make the flex of
the strip go around the other way.

Done in Imagine 2.9 mainly by using the Conform (Object|Group) to Path
alignment option in the action editor, plus a morphing double looping path,
and a morphing group of cogs.

The path with the twist has to have two loops otherwise the front (or back)
of the group 'falls off' the path.  Make it any size and then scale it in
the Stage until the head cog meets the tail cog.  I used an open path
because I wasn't sure what end behavior a closed path would have.

The group of cogs was morphed by rotating all the odd cogs one way and all
the even cogs the other way.  I used 0, 120, and 240 degrees as I don't
trust 180 degrees.  Likewise for the path.

Morphing cogs and path: I used States for one and traditional actor morphs
for the other.  No reason - they are interchangeable in this case.

Thanks to: the IML, the metals texture, and Mr. Mobius.

Format is 150 frames, HAM, 320x256 - should look okay on NTSC as there is
plenty of border.  Designed on the trusty A2000 and rendered in about 2
hours on the DX66.  Uncompressed size 2045628 bytes.  Global brush map is
a closeup of a piece of pyrite.


Enjoy,
Jay


mobicogs.ham may be freely distributed so long as this readme stays with it.

mobicogs.ham is Copyright (C) 1994 Jason Jack.  All rights reserved.
May not be used commercially without the written consent of the author.

---

Jay
[e-mail]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #160 ***************************************:-)

Subject: JPEG everywhere
Date: 11 Apr 94 22:48:40 CET
From: [e-mail] (Soren Wind)

I've heard a few thing about Pegger...
But i also got a few few questions about it.

How much memory does it take up when i use it ?

If you store a picture with JPEG with 100% quality, is there no loss
at all or will there always be a little difference...

Do i have to buy pegger at all or will Imagine V3 support JPEG images?

  Soren Wind   -  IZI/ImPACT    __   ___              _
  GFX / 3D Design / Raytrace    \ \ / (_)____  _ __ _| |
  Fidonet Scala  2:230/418.30    \ V /| (_-< || / _` | |    /\\
  Fidonet ATeam  2:230/714.17    _\_/ |_/__/\_,_\__,_|_|__  \\/
  Amiganet : 39:141/104.30      |_ _|_ __  _ __  __ _ __| |_
  E-MAIL ADD1:[e-mail]  | || '  \| '_ \/ _` / _|  _|
  E-MAIL ADD2:  -------------   |___|_|_|_| .__/\__,_\__|\__|tm
  A2K/030/882/9MB/345MB/33Mhz+SVGA Running|_|/fast/ for a *Picasso* *II*

... A conservative is one who is too cowardly to fight and too fat to run.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #161 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: 3.0 release date (fwd)
Date: Tue, 12 Apr 1994 19:29:57 +1000 (EST)
From: Nikola Vukovljak <[e-mail]>

This was sent to me by Mike Halvorson a few days ago. I could not access
my account before this time unfortunately, so I'm posting it now.

---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: 30 Mar 94 22:09:11 EST
From: Mike Halvorson <[e-mail]>
To: Nikola Vukovljak <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: 3.0 release date

Nikola and friends,

    Please post once you have read this.

    The probelm with Imagine and memory is one that we have over the years
tried hard to address, in other words we have done our best to make it run in as

littel memory as possible.  However there are all these things that you and
others have wanted and they take memory.  Don't misunderstand, I dont fell
negative about the posts but I did note that some people are worried that the
machine they have wont work properly..  There are going to be some people who
will have to buy more memory to use all of the new features.  WE have tried but
there is no way to keep the monster in the box.  Hopefully people will have the
opportunity to buy memory where needed.  It does seem that the amiga side of
things could get a bit sticky with the situation that CBM is in.

    MIke




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #162 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: MPEG as Animation Compressor
Date: Wed, 13 Apr 1994 01:28:28 +1000 (EST)
From: Nikola Vukovljak <[e-mail]>

> >      I think it's a great way too. I'd love to see Mark's Fred Floaty
> >uploaded in it's entirety ;-). If a motherboard level decoder ever
> >becomes availiable for the Amiga (and I know it's been at least
> >partially developed, perhaps even thought about <grin>) it would be a
> >great method.
>

Well, no motherboard level decoder, but for those who are desparate to
get an MPEG decoder, the makers of the Piccolo board Ing. Buro Helfrich
have released the 'Peggy' MPEG decoder.

Nik.
[e-mail]



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #163 ***************************************:-)

Subject: MPEG Creation and Image FX 1.5
Date: Wed, 13 Apr 1994 01:21:16 +1000 (EST)
From: Nikola Vukovljak <[e-mail]>

There seems to have been a lot of talk lately about MPEG playback and
creation. Well, a Sysop of a BBS here in Sydney (and a good PD
programmer) - Colin Bell, has created a script for Image FX 1.5 that
utilizes the recently released MPEG encoder on the Amiga.

The script needs a few changes here and there in order to be customized
for your application, but I am sure that a lot of you will find it helpful.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------A



Msg#: 3353 (of 3365) - Video & Graphics
Date: 02-Apr-94  13:52:55
From: Colin Bell
  To: All
Subj: mpeg

Heres my rexx script to convert ANIM to MPEG. For ImageFX.

Assumes the file  "mpeg" and "ppmtoyuvsplit" is in DH4:mpeg and that dir is
also used as the work directory so make sure there is heaps of space. :-)
Also hard coded for 12 frames!! Modify as necessary..

/*
 Convert anim file to MPEG
 */

OPTIONS RESULTS

RequestFile '"Enter Source Animation:"'
IF rc ~= 0 THEN EXIT 0
filename = result


RequestFile '"Enter Destination MPEG:"'
IF rc ~= 0 THEN EXIT 0
mpegname = result

SetPrefs Undo Off

DO i = 1

   LoadBuffer filename Force i
   IF rc ~= 0 THEN LEAVE

   Scale 352 240
   AntiAlias 90
   SaveBufferAs PBM "dh4:mpeg/dna."i
   ADDRESS COMMAND 'dh4:mpeg/ppmtoyuvsplit dh4:mpeg/DNAPBM'i'
dh4:mpeg/dna.'i
   ADDRESS COMMAND 'Delete dh4:mpeg/dna.'i
   END


SetPrefs Undo On

 ADDRESS COMMAND 'dh4:mpeg/mpeg -a 1 -b 13 dh4:mpeg/DNAPBM -s "'mpegname'"'
 ADDRESS COMMAND 'Delete dh4:mpeg/dnapbm#?'
EXIT 0

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

There you have it. Enjoy.

Nik.
[e-mail]



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #164 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Imagine animation on NBC tonight?
Date: Wed, 13 Apr 1994 01:46:10 +1000 (EST)
From: Nikola Vukovljak <[e-mail]>

On Wed, 6 Apr 1994, John R. Spencer wrote:

> There's a reasonable chance that an Imagine animation that I've
> been working on will be shown on the NBC Nightly News this evening
> (Wednesday April 6th).  It's a 10-second, 150-frame movie of the
> collision of comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 with Jupiter which will occur
> next July, and will be shown, if at all, along with various other
> animations relating to the comet crash.  It's a view of the collision
> of several pieces of the comet with Jupiter as seen from close to
> one of the comet pieces, which rotates and emits gas in the foreground
> as it hurtles towards Jupiter.

Funny you should mention this, but I watched the news the other day and
saw this animation! Nothing too unusual you'd say, but I am in Australia. :-)

Funny, as I was watching it I kept thinking : 'This looks like an Imagine
anim!' Including the lens flare. :-) I thought that it was the 2.9 Lens
Flare though - didn't think anything else made that kind of lens flare.
No offence - I realise now the time constraints you've had put on you.
Liked the anim BTW.

Nik.
[e-mail]
(Your friendly IML arhivist)



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #165 ***************************************:-)

Subject: C= and the Borg
Date: Tue, 12 Apr 1994 16:05:15 +0000
From: Andrew Conway <[e-mail]>

Dear Mike + anyone who cares to listen,
I've made a new borg object which is an improvement over my
last attempt (not hard admittedly). I tried your idea of wiggling
points all over the surface and adding textures and altitude maps etc...
but it still looked a bit wrong. So, I tried something else...

I took a cube, shrank along its x axis to form a thin slab and removed
two opposite (square) faces to form a square hoop. I copied it several times
and translated the copies along the x axis to form a sort
of square tunnel with gaps in its walls. By copying and rotating this
twice I got a kind a mangled-mesh-type-thing. Since I was fairly
sloppy in putting it together (I moved things around with the mouse) bits
stuck out all over the shop. I just "join"ed this into a single object.
I would then have used your (Mike's) idea of wiggling points about but
I fell asleep....

As an after thought I thought of shrinking the mesh-cube and placing it inside
the original. If I then stuck a light inside it and rendered an animation
in trace mode, you'd get the impression of strucutre inside and
little lights apparently twinkling as it moves,
as it does in "real-life". Unfortunately my hardware is a little er, um,
slow thinking about it was alol I could do....





IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #166 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: PD
Date: Mon, 11 Apr 94 14:25:14 EST
From: [e-mail] (Yury German)

Hi videoman (videoman), in <[e-mail]> on Apr 7 you
wrote:

: I know a lot of people put up anims, pic's etc on the net, and a lot of
: us (myself inc.) sell our work.  So my question is, does something placed
: on the net, become PD (public Domain) just by placing it there? IE if CNN
: came on the the net, grabed your anim and used it in a brodcast.. could
: they? because it was "on the net" (say AMINET).
:

    No they can not. They get get away with it if there is no
identifiers in the picture (name and stuff or initials or a readme file).
But if you want to take a lawyer to them you will still get payed for it.
When you place it on the net people can use it inderectly but they can not
make direct $$$$$ from your picture. I do not know about the legality of
placing the whole archive on CD-ROM but I think if you place the picture
on BBS or an FTP and they do an archive of it on CD-ROM and sell that it
is legal.
--
    _____________________________________________________________________
   |                                                                     |
   |     Yury German                          [e-mail]       |
   | Blue-Knight Productions                  TEL: [phone]        |
   |    [phone]                         FAX: [phone]        |
   |_____________________________________________________________________|



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #167 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: 3.0 release date (fwd)
Date: Tue, 12 Apr 1994 10:52:39 -0700 (PDT)
From: [e-mail]

> It does seem that the amiga side of
> things could get a bit sticky with the situation that CBM is in.
>
>     MIke

Um what does that mean? Ram is Ram why would getting ram be "sticky" with
the CBM "siduation"?  Unless this is refering to something else?


--
-== When Dreams Become Reality ==- Illumine & Illuminati  [e-mail]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #168 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Swallow my heart
Date: 12 Apr 94 16:49:07 CET
From: [e-mail] (Soren Wind)

Nooooooo

I Just spend 3 hours in the Forms editor trying to make a heart....  But with no

success....

If  anyone  of  you are able to tell me how to make one step by step PLEASE do
so, i can't figure out the Forms
editor at all.

Or last posebility...

UUencode/FSEncode me a Heart in E-Mail......  i need one that's for sure.


1 bill thanks in advance......

  Soren Wind   -  IZI/ImPACT    __   ___              _
  GFX / 3D Design / Raytrace    \ \ / (_)____  _ __ _| |
  Fidonet Scala  2:230/418.30    \ V /| (_-< || / _` | |    /\\
  Fidonet ATeam  2:230/714.17    _\_/ |_/__/\_,_\__,_|_|__  \\/
  Amiganet : 39:141/104.30      |_ _|_ __  _ __  __ _ __| |_
  E-MAIL ADD1:[e-mail]  | || '  \| '_ \/ _` / _|  _|
  E-MAIL ADD2:  -------------   |___|_|_|_| .__/\__,_\__|\__|tm
  A2K/030/882/9MB/345MB/33Mhz+SVGA Running|_|/fast/ for a *Picasso* *II*

... She married me for my tag lines.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #169 ***************************************:-)

Subject: RE: C= and the Borg
Date: Tue, 12 Apr 94 15:07:00 PDT
From: Stethem Ted              5721 <[e-mail]>

  The Borg ship is generally in the shape of a cube but it looks like layer
after layer of tangled pipes and tubing.  Have you thought about using the
Latticize function in V2.9 to do this?  Take a primitive plane, say 50x50,
and extrude it by 50 with 50 sections. This gives you a cube with 50x50x50
faces.  Use Latticize with a fairly small value like .05. Make another cube
with 20x20x20 faces, Latticize and scale it so it is slightly larger than
the previous one.  Do this for several cubes with a different number of
faces.  The other thing you can do it give it the more tangled, random look
of the Borg ship is to remove edges/lines in the cube before Latticizing and
rotating various layers by 90 degrees in the X, Y and/or Z axis.  You can
also add different brushmaps and textures to the differenct layers.   I
think this will create a more convincing Borg ship, although it may end up
to be a huge object in memory size.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #170 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: 3.0 release date (fwd)
Date: Tue, 12 Apr 1994 18:10:52 -0700
From: [e-mail] (Lesk)

>> It does seem that the amiga side of
>> things could get a bit sticky with the situation that CBM is in.
>>
>>       MIke
>
>Um what does that mean? Ram is Ram why would getting ram be "sticky" with
>the CBM "siduation"?  Unless this is refering to something else?
>
>
>--
>-== When Dreams Become Reality ==- Illumine & Illuminati  [e-mail]

mmm Interesting But I think this is a bit out of context. When I read the
earlier post I had the impression that as a developer he was more concerned
about his market. I am not to worried about the amiga itself, I am
convinced the usergroups etc. will drag the amiga on no matter what CBM is
doing. And as long as there is a market developers will no doubt be there
selling their goods. So I would not be to concerned about impulse closing
off a good market yet. If I were to toss odds I think I will find my 5000
just around the corner, who knows......

Now to make this a viable post.... anyone had 3.0 arrive yet?


                                                Render Ho!
                                                   Lesk




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #171 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Pegger - Setting the record straight
Date: Tue, 12 Apr 94 17:24:34 PDT
From: [e-mail]

Hello.  My name is Chris Minshall and I work for Heifner Communications
Inc., creators of Pegger.  There has been some unflattering comments
made recently on the IML regarding our software along with some obvious
questions about what it does.  Pegger is a commercial software utility
that allows you to compress your 24-bit images down by a factor of
10-15 times and still be able to load and save them directly from your
favorite Amiga software including Imagine.  Pegger is definately not a
PD hack as one person has suggested but a well designed, user friendly
and system friendly piece of software that was designed originally for
3D animators (which is one of the things that we do a lot of) but it
also useable in so many other different applications.  We currently
support the following file formats: IFF-24, NewTek Framestore, HAM-8, and
DCTV.  We support any Amiga software that will load or save those four file
formats which covers virtually all Amiga software that deals with 24-bit
images.  If anyone has any further questions about Pegger, please call me
at 800-445-6164.  You can talk to either myself or Ivan Moore.

Thank You.
Chris Minshall
Heifner Communications Inc.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #172 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Swallow my heart
Date: Tue, 12 Apr 1994 19:36:45 [phone]
From: God <[e-mail]>

Okay, to make a "Valentine" heart, go into Detail and create a 2D heart shape.
 The copy it a few times, downscale the copys, and skin them together.  Voila.
 Heart.

To make a medically accurate heart..  Hmm, okay.  Go into forms, and create
four distroted spheres.  These will be the Aorta and Ventricles.  You're
creating the inside walls of these when you make the deformed spheres.  So
don't worry if they look like a real heart yet.  Then create a larger
deforemed sphere, about fist shaped (though smoother) and that will be the
actual outside heart.  You may want to build some small 1/3 of a circle flaps
here or in the detail editor for valves.  Okay.  Now go to detail and place
everything.  Nothing is connected yet, so don't worry about the fact that you
have four weird blobs inside a big blob.  Create a token cylender and punch
holes in the ventricles and aorta where the valves belong.  Make sure the
holes between the inner chambers line up (which is why you position them
first) and you can put your valve segments in the newly created holes.  You
may want to join the chambers after you slice them (make sure there are no
gaps if you want this to be medically accurate).  Okay, so you have passages
between the Right Ventricle and Aorta, and between the Left Ventricle and
Aorta.  You should also have holes from all four chambers out of the heart
(that also break through the outer heart wall) and valves at all the openings.
 Now create some cylenders with thickness, and curve them around a bit for the
arteries and veins that lead in and out.  You can refer to any boilogy
textbook for the standard layout of these.  If you want to get really
detailed, make some muscle fiber thingys by creating a slightly concave
cylender and put them in the larger inner chambers, streching from top to
bottom.  Join them to the chambers so you can smooth out where they connect.
Also, add an altitude and color map to the outser surface of the heart for the
cardiac vessels.  Voila.  A heart.  You can create a squished version (if this
is all one object) and morph between the two for beating.  Actually, you'd
need about three versions to morph between for accurate beating, right?
Anyway, you can move the valves around and all sorts of other stuff too and
"take a trip through your heart" if you put on Global fog with a good red
color for blood...  Doing Red cells (a la Fantastic Voyage) to travel along
with you would be a bitch to script though.

    -Paul J. Furio


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #173 ***************************************:-)

Subject: TABLET's for Imagine
Date: 12 Apr 94 21:48:00 CET
From: [e-mail] (Soren Wind)

Is it possible to use a digitizer/tablet with Imagine ?
Proboably Yes, but anyone where Imagine's menus can be installed on the
digitizer?

Names, specs prefered..... i'm very interested, as an old AutoCAD User.


  Soren Wind   -  IZI/ImPACT    __   ___              _
  GFX / 3D Design / Raytrace    \ \ / (_)____  _ __ _| |
  Fidonet Scala  2:230/418.30    \ V /| (_-< || / _` | |    /\\
  Fidonet ATeam  2:230/714.17    _\_/ |_/__/\_,_\__,_|_|__  \\/
  Amiganet : 39:141/104.30      |_ _|_ __  _ __  __ _ __| |_
  E-MAIL ADD1:[e-mail]  | || '  \| '_ \/ _` / _|  _|
  E-MAIL ADD2:  -------------   |___|_|_|_| .__/\__,_\__|\__|tm
  A2K/030/882/9MB/345MB/33Mhz+SVGA Running|_|/fast/ for a *Picasso* *II*

... The banner bore a single word: Excelsior!


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #174 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Neon and Imagine
Date: Tue, 12 Apr 1994 23:15:31 -0500 (CDT)
From: Cliff Lee <[e-mail]>

Anyone have any examples of Neon light objects in Imagine that would work
with Imagine 2.9PC?  If its not alot of trouble, would you mind
uuencoding me a small sample?

Cliff Lee
"Either Eat or Drink; never mix"
[e-mail]
[e-mail]



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #175 ***************************************:-)

Subject: 3D ROM???
Date: Tue, 12 Apr 1994 23:56:50 -0400
From: [e-mail]

(I don't have the software to reply while keeping threads intact, so please
bear
with me. I'll send this as a standalone message)

Pricing is a funny issue. John Foust has written that the vast majority of
people
who complain about his $200 3D-ROM being too expensive are Amiga owners. PC,
Mac
and SGI users are amazed at the low price he's charging for that very CD.
Remember, the CD contains several versions of each object, allowing users of
all
programs access to all objects. Not all objects were originally created using
Imagine; they may be "available from internet", but unless they're in the
right
format, they might as well not exist. Imperfect as they may be, the textures
are
a nice bonus. And the printed manual, showing a small render of every single
object, will save you oodles of time and energy that would've been spent
downloading poorly-labelled files, rendering them, realizing they're not what
you
hoped for, and repeating the process. Do Internet object libraries come with
thumbnails of every file? I didn't think so.

And for those who still think Syndesis' 3D-ROM is too expensive, or an unfair
exploitation of the oppressed modelling masses, I'd like to remind you that
Syndesis is accepting submissions for their 3D-ROM volume II, and that anyone
who
submits an object that finds its way on the disk will receive a free copy of
3D-
ROM volume II. So if you think $200 is a rip-off, just send in a model. Sounds
like a great bargain to me.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #176 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Pegger - Setting the record straight
Date: Wed, 13 Apr 1994 14:06:28 +1000 (EST)
From: MiKE <[e-mail]>

On Tue, 12 Apr 1994 [e-mail] wrote:

> favorite Amiga software including Imagine.  Pegger is definately not a
> PD hack as one person has suggested but a well designed, user friendly
> and system friendly piece of software that was designed originally for

Chris, I was the one who cast aspersions upon your product.  I claimed
that it was similar to a dos patch in it's execution.  I also informed the
original poster that they could use the PD products cjpeg/djpeg to do the
same thing.  A logical extension then is that your program is similar
these PD algorithms working through a dos patch.

Also, in claiming that it was 'PD-like' I in no way inferred that the
design or friendliness was substandard.  I simply meant it seems to be a
combination of a public domain algorithm with an accepted programming
technique (patching the dos calls) and does not warrant my money as a
commercial release. MHO.

MiKE




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #177 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Amiga Format Imagine Disk Upgrade Australia
Date: Wed, 13 Apr 94 16:06:33 EST
From: [e-mail] (Robin Luiten)

I read a post asking about the Imagine 3.0 upgrade from Australia for those
interested I was in contact with a guy down south [ :-) I am in brisbane ] and
this is the info he sent me...

Hope this helps someone...

>From: [e-mail] (Matthew O'Reilly)
>Date: Thu, 17 Feb 94 09:41:09 CST
>
>Hi Robin,
>
> i got the information I wanted, direct from Mike H himself.
>
>If your have the AF imagine disk, you can upgrade for $100 US!!!!, just tell
>them, which version you have, visa number etc.
>
>BTW, if you do upgrade, you better tell them I told you about the deal as
>Mike asked me to "advertise" the upgrade offer.
>
>I'll be sending away for my uprade in the next week or 2 (he said wait about 2
weeks and imagine
> 3.0 will be shipping).
>
>--Matthew

and this one.

>Date: Fri, 18 Feb 94 15:05:51 CST
>From: [e-mail] (Matthew O'Reilly)
>> Do they want the disk mailed to them as proof ?
>
>NO.
>
>> Do you know if they accept Mastercard as well ?
>>
>
>Dont know, but I would suppose they do.
>
>> BTW do you have the Address, one of my friends tried to register his Imagine
2.0
>
>No, but I have the Fax number, 612 425 0701
>

Just ask for the PAL version when upgrading...

Robin
  _-_|\      [e-mail]            /Disclaimer:
 /     * <-- Systems Development (AOTC),   /
 \_.-._/     Telecom East Tower Roma St,  /   C references are NULL && void*
      v      Brisbane, Australia.        /
             WORK: [phone]       /
             HOME: [phone]      /





IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #178 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Forms editor and hearts... (long)
Date: Wed, 13 Apr 94 0:13:09 EDT
From: [e-mail] (Jeffrey Goldman)

>
> Nooooooo
>
> I Just spend 3 hours in the Forms editor trying to make a heart....  But with
no
> success....
>
> If  anyone  of  you are able to tell me how to make one step by step PLEASE do

> so, i can't figure out the Forms
> editor at all.
>
> Or last posebility...
>
> UUencode/FSEncode me a Heart in E-Mail......  i need one that's for sure.


    This is my advice to anyone interested in the forms editor. A
lot of this may be elemantary, but some info might actually be
useful... This might definitely (good grammar?) get confusing... It's
also rather long...

    The forms editor is one of Imagine's greatest features. I find
it's easier to create incredibly realistic things in the forms editor
than with NURBS (ooohhh, imagine a spline based forms editor)...
    Basically, when you create in the forms editor you edit an
object's profile. It's sort of like MRI's (Magnetic Resonance Imaging)

    A Basic Form Example-

    Take a simple example, your thumb. Treat your thumb as if it
were an object on an axis. Say that the Z-axis runs from the base of
your thumb to the tip. The X-axis runs across the top of your thumb.
The Y-axis goes through your thumb. In other words, if your thumb were
an Imagine object it would be oriented as if you were viewing a
painting with your thumb out in front of you...
    First trace the right profile of your thumb. If you want to do
this the extra step way, lay your thumb down on a piece of paper and
trace it for all three views (you'll have troubles with the top view,
so just eye it.). Then, just copy what you see on paper to the screen.
Do this for all three views. What you get is a pretty crude looking
thumb. To get a better looking thumb you have to go in and edit
individual cross-sections. But first...
    Remember that if the object is solid you must have a totally
enclosed profile (the endpoints are separated normally. You have to
place the endpoint points at the same location. An easy way to do this
is to select the cursor lock and lock the endpoints to similar grid
locations).
    In the case of the heart, do the same thing as the thumb...

    What the Forms Editor Really Does-

    It's important to understand what exactly you're doing when
manipulating points in the forms editor, so go back to a simple sphere
(new object and new defaults). Turn on the solid wireframe option and
view the sphere object from the front. Notice how many points are on
your front view profile. You will see that they equal the number of
vertical sections in the wireframe object divided by two. Every point
in an editor view has a twin on the opposite side of the object
(except for the top view). If you add a point in the front view you
will notice that two points are actually added. One on one side of the
profile, and one on the other side. When altering an object's profile
you actually directly manipulate a specific point, but because of the
forms editor's nature it changes other points around it to tween and
smooth the change.

    Editing Individual Cross-Sections-

    Look at a forms object like several horizontal cross-sections
(which are circular by default) connected like skin. Think of the top
view as the cross-section editor. By default only one cross-section
can be manipulated, the top one. It can be considered a controlling,
or key, cross-section. Because it is the only key cross-section
defined on the object then whatever you change will affect every
cross-section below it.
    To have ultimate control of the individual cross-sections you
have to define the cross-section you want to manipulate as a key
cross-section. You do this by selecting '+ KEY' and selecting the
cross-section you want to manipulate (in the front or right view).
When you perform this operation (or 'Select') Imagine will display
which cross-sections have been defined as key cross-sections in red.
At first, you will notice that only the top cross-section is
highlighted in red because no others have been selected to act as key
cross-sections. Make the middle cross-section a key cross-section.
The object now has two cross-sections which can be separately
manipulated as keys. Use 'Select' to pick the cross-section you want
to alter.
    Think of key cross-sections as animation frames. In an
animation you can set an initial postion for an object on one frame
and a final position on another frame. These two frames are now key
frames. When the animation is generated the object's position will
tween between the two key frames. The same process occurs with key
cross-sections.  All non-key cross-sections tween between key
cross-sections.
    Take an example of a salt shaker with a circular top and
square bottom. If you create a circular key cross-section as the top
of the shaker and a square key cross-section for the bottom all the
cross-sections between the top and bottom will blend to form a smooth
transition from cirle to square.
    So now you know how to alter the individual cross-sections.
Remember that you can also delete key key cross-sections. Just be sure
you select the appropriate cross-section. BTW, Imagine tells you waht
cross-section you're manipulating in the upper menu bar. Also,
remember that Imagine's cross-section tween goes from key to key in a
downward order. If there is no key cross-section at the object's base
Imagine will use the next highest defined key section.

    So Where do the Front/Right Views Come into Play?-

    If the top editor edits individual cross-sections then the
front and side view editors locate the cross-sections in space. The
default sphere has all the cross-sections parallel to each other. You
can change the orientation of a cross-section (so that it is not
parallel to the ground) by moving points on the front and right views.
Basically, the front and side view alter an objects overall profile
shape.
    This particular explanation only really works with the default
sphere, but the results can be translated to any object. The front
view controls all the points along the object's x-axis. The side view
controls all the points along the object's y-axis. This effectively
splits the sphere into four sections; a front profile, back profile,
left profile, and right profile.
    In the front view select the right-most point and you'll
notice that it's twin point will be highlighted on the left. These two
points define the right-most and left-most points of one
cross-section. Specifically, these two points represent two outermost
x-axis points on the middle cross-section.
    Similarly, the same two points in the side view control the
farthest points on the y-axis of the middle cross-section.
    You will find that by altering these you alter the orientation
of the cross-section. If you raise the right-most point in the front
view and lower the left-most point the middle cross-section now tilts.

    What Does It All Mean?-

    It's tough to explain exactly how the forms editor operates,
and in particular what alters what exactly. So my greatest advice is
to experiment.
    The easiest way to create object was illustrated in the first
section. Create profiles for the object you want to create. If you
need better form edit the individual cross-section as if you were
manipulating spars on and airplane wing or bulkheads on a boat.
    I can tell you now that only experience can show you what will
go wrong, and believe me something will go wrong. I can only say, keep
things simple. You probably won't understand this now, but try and
keep cross-sections relatively parallel to each other. If this means
adding more cross-sections then do it. You'll find that some really
complex things can't be done with small numbers of cross-sections, and
it's important to realize when you need more...

    I have some pretty good examples of what the forms editor can
do. If there is a request for any of these objects I can post it. The
object files are pretty small; under 10k each. You can load the
objects into Imagine and see how they work yourself. The objects are
mainly human oriented because I'm creating a long form animation with
a human as the main character...

    The results of using the forms editor can be quite
surprisingly realistic...

    Well, that was definitely one of my longer ramblings. I hope
some of it was comprehensible...

                            J.---->

E-Mail: [e-mail]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #179 ***************************************:-)

Subject: re: Imagine 3.0
Date: Wed, 13 Apr 94 03:15:09 PDT
From: 13-Apr-1994 0507 <[e-mail]>

>Well, I ordered Imagine 3.0, it should be on my doorsteps next week.
>Tell me what I should be ready for.
>
>andrey
>
>
>
>
.a long wait
I ordered 3.0 on Monday an asked if I paid the difference if it could be
sent two day mail. The reply was that it would not do me any good because
I was so far down the list it would take 2-3 weeks before I see mine.
Gee I ordered some chairs for the house 8-10 weeks. the first was to
arrive last week the second on the 16th. Haven't seen one yet. Waiting
on 3.0 of PageStream also. A month ago I was told 4-6 weeks. Just the other
day I was told ABOUT 4 weeks. Seem to be this way with everything lately.
I am currently doing wood moldings in Imagine so 3.0 is not really needed
(had to do something to kill time). I am delibertly avoiding anything that
would greatly depend on 3.0.

William G Leimberger
Nashua N.H.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #180 ***************************************:-)

Subject: re: pegger setting the record straight
Date: Wed, 13 Apr 94 04:02:27 PDT
From: 13-Apr-1994 0518 <[e-mail]>

<10-15 times and still be able to load and save them directly from your
<favorite Amiga software including Imagine.  Pegger is definately not a
<PD hack as one person has suggested but a well designed, user friendly

>Oh wow, like this really impresses me.. Like JPEG Version 4.0 can't
>do this.. PS, JPEG V4.0 is not a hack, it was written by members
>of JPEG, the standards group for the image compression itself.
>Also, is Pegger written in Assembly (entirely from scratch) or was
>it derived from the JPEG source code released on the nets not more than two
    Well in all honesty JPEG as a standard it ment to be implemented.
>From my understanding Pegger EXTENDS that standard to make it more usefull.
JPEG 4.0 alone will not get the job Pegger does done. I am planning to get
Pegger for the Amiga. My wife is ill so funds are tight but I can see the
value in it from a functional point. An will pick it us when I can.
 I already have JPEG compression available from ADPRO. An AREXX script
could do it but that involves the overhead of having ADPro running.
Pegger watchs a dir and when it sees a pic(say Imagine anim) it automatically
compresses it. This means one could create an anim that would be impossible
due to constraints on disk avialability. Now this is on the Amiga I don't
really know how it works on the limited dos boxs.

>(Even xv on Xwindows is free and it supports tons more than I've seen for
>100 bucks on the Amiga, I'd like to see somebody port that sucker..)

Come Again! My friend just paid 25-30 dollars for the latest registered xv.
 That is the one that supports embossing ect.

<and system friendly piece of software that was designed originally for
<3D animators (which is one of the things that we do a lot of) but it

>Why don't you just say people who own Video Suites...
>3D animators will not pay 100 bucks for something that just JPEG's
Actually many animators (commercial)I know have gigs of Disk space
and may opt not to bother. I like the thought of accessing my images I
scan(one was 64meg using gigamem) transparently.

>just providing hidden JPEG support is the kind of stuff some programmers
>do for a hobby.

I'd wager a large percent of Imagine users are like me and lack this talent.

<support the following file formats: IFF-24, NewTek Framestore, HAM-8, and
<DCTV.  We support any Amiga software that will load or save those four file
>Why don't you just say "anything related with the Video Toaster"...
More correctly one could say it supports AGA, DCTV, and framestores.

<formats which covers virtually all Amiga software that deals with 24-bit
<images.  If anyone has any further questions about Pegger, please call me

>HAM-8 and DCTV are not 24-bit formats. In fact HAM-8 on a good day,
>could do 24-bit but no one has proved to me that it supports a 24-bit
>pallete and how it can, when the traditional way that HAM mode works
True, but consider these as backward compatable formats that are probably
used more than many 24 bit image capability at this time.
If you have a 1084S moniter and you can have each pixel a different color
(260000+ available ) out of a 24 bit pallet, and ADPro's dithering capability
you are seeing the max your system is capable of anyway.

>would imply 18-bit color. DCTV 3/4bit images are hacks to encode
>NTSC (which is about 2 million colors) in a digital format
>and NTSC is not evenly distributed over the spectrum.
True again, but regardless of it's limitations DCTV is used by many
Amiga owners who can't afford the 24 bit boards.

>And why don't you support Targa or PPM, or MTV. Could it be that
>the only users you have are those that have only minimal experience
>with anything outside of the realm of Workbench, or those that do not
>have any experience in using Amigados or Terminal programs or CD-ROM drives
>or anything that would lead them to some JPEG software other than Pegger.
Well I have an Amiga 4000, a CDRom, an epson ES800-C scanner and most of the
High end Amiga software(been updating since 1000 days). I feel the experience
I have at Imagine, and my other commercial programs a + for me. I also have
access to xv, PPM and other unix hacks . I find myself useing these only
to display my Amiga pics. My amiga is home and that is where my graphic
interest is carried out . I found no use for FBM and am capable of
using it to go through the conversion process if the need arises. I
use ADPro to convert my images and with the Professional pak find it
covers all MY conversion needs. JPEG has been availabel for a long time
Pegger simply makes it more usefull.

<at 800-445-6164.  You can talk to either myself or Ivan Moore.
<
<Thank You.
<Chris Minshall
<Heifner Communications Inc.
<

>Yes, did I say that they'd reply to my Mail?? Well they didn't, but
>I predicted it nevertheless.. They weren't going to let anybody
>jeopardize their income, so they just had to come up on the Imagine list
>advertise (which usually isn't allowed under the rules of the Internet)

    Ya, like this is the only commercial slanted post we've ever seen.
Pegger offers the Imagine user added utility as does Gigamem. Why haven't
you slammed the people that advertise 3D packages that offer nothing of
use the the readers of this list ? If you can use it with Imagine it is
relevent to the list.
Besides whats the big deal, you don't need it anyway and they don't post
daily or anything. If you see it discussed it is often by a user on the
Imagine list, and Imagine related to boot.
                            bill
As always all ramblings are my own an do not reflect the ideas of those
kind enough to allow access to this mailing list

Bill leimberger
nashua NH.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #181 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: 3D ROM???
Date: Wed, 13 Apr 94 08:48:43 EDT
From: David Watters <[e-mail]>

> Pricing is a funny issue. John Foust has written that the vast majority of
> people
> who complain about his $200 3D-ROM being too expensive are Amiga owners. PC,
> Mac
> and SGI users are amazed at the low price he's charging for that very CD.

What a market is used to has a big effect on cost perception.  Considering that
good modeling software for SGI's is easily 10K and up, I can imagine they
feel $200 is a drop in the bucket.  Also you should note that most Amiga
owners paid for the machines themselves, most SGIs are bought with company
or government money.

All of which does not change the fact that the 3DROM is a lot of money
for a collection of PD objects at PD quality.  If they objects I have seen
in all the advertising are amoung the best on the disk, no thank you.

> And for those who still think Syndesis' 3D-ROM is too expensive, or an unfair
> exploitation of the oppressed modelling masses

On the other hand, anyone that releases an object he created into the public
domain and then whines like a baby when someone makes money on it, is totally
clueless.  PD is PD, which means that anyone is free to grab the code or
object you created can MAKE IT THEIR OWN!  You gave up your rights the minute
it became PD.  Freeware and Shareware are a different story.


             _     ___
David    ~  |_|,--'   |@,__
Watters   ~   ( )-_______-()`-

--
David R. Watters ([e-mail])    Cranel Inc. Development & Engineering
"Porsche.  The very name is, to many, the last word in sports cars. Any car
 blessed with these magic seven letters is sure to be the very best. Period!"
                        - Car and Driver, January 1993


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #182 ***************************************:-)

Subject: re: pegger setting the record straight
Date: Wed, 13 Apr 1994 23:44:51 +1000 (EST)
From: MiKE <[e-mail]>

On Wed, 13 Apr 1994, 13-Apr-1994 0518 wrote:

> [name accidently chopped] wrote
> >just providing hidden JPEG support is the kind of stuff some programmers
> >do for a hobby.
>
> I'd wager a large percent of Imagine users are like me and lack this talent.

While it may not be easy enough to do for most people, perhaps if anyone
knows a competent programmer, they could make a request for a program with
similar capabilites.  If everyone on IML payed the shareware fee for such
a prog I'm sure the author would be well rewarded.

MiKE





IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #183 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: c= and the
Date: Wed, 13 Apr 94 06:31:08
From: [e-mail]

Here's a way to add many layers of lattice or piping work with very little
memory...

Apply the DETHSTAR texture to the cube object.  Make the cube 100% filtered.
In the DETHSTAR texture requestor make the BEVEL FILTER 0 (ZERO).  The result
will be a lattice in the shape of the cube.   Several imbedded cubes with
varying DETHSTAR parameters would make a good base to add attitional object
details to.

-GreG



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #184 ***************************************:-)

Subject: software
Date: Wed, 13 Apr 1994 10:12:47 -0400
From: [e-mail]

  Does anyone know where I can get some of the older type of software? Like JFK
,the stuff that came out years ago.
And where is a good place to get just plan new software mail order that is?


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #185 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: c= and the
Date: Wed, 13 Apr 94 16:22:23 BST
From: Andrew Conway <[e-mail]>

>Apply the DETHSTAR texture to the cube object.  Make the cube 100% filtered.

Sounds like an excellent idea but.... where do I find the DETHSTAR texture???



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #186 ***************************************:-)

Subject: RE: C= and the Borg
Date: Wed, 13 Apr 1994 08:00:08 -0800
From: [e-mail] (Brad Molsen)

>  The Borg ship is generally in the shape of a cube but it looks like layer
>after layer of tangled pipes and tubing.  Have you thought about using the
>Latticize function in V2.9 to do this?  Take a primitive plane, say 50x50,
>and extrude it by 50 with 50 sections. This gives you a cube with 50x50x50
>faces.  Use Latticize with a fairly small value like .05. Make another cube
>with 20x20x20 faces, Latticize and scale it so it is slightly larger than
>the previous one.  Do this for several cubes with a different number of
>faces.  The other thing you can do it give it the more tangled, random look
>of the Borg ship is to remove edges/lines in the cube before Latticizing and
>rotating various layers by 90 degrees in the X, Y and/or Z axis.  You can
>also add different brushmaps and textures to the differenct layers.   I
>think this will create a more convincing Borg ship, although it may end up
>to be a huge object in memory size.

        First let me preface the following with this statement. I AM NOT
INTO TOYS, REALLLLLY !!!!!  That said, I don't know what you are using as a
model for your Borg ship but, I was at the store yesterday looking for a
Galoob Micro Machine model of a Romulan Bird of Prey and I saw their
package with the Borg ship in it, I noticed that they also have several
Star Wars packages, one containing a detailed model of Han Solo's
Millennium Falcon.
                                        later,
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
        JUST SAY NO, TO GUNS!!!

Brad Molsen c/o  LORAL                          [e-mail]

13810 SE Eastgate Way Suite 500                 [phone]
Bellevue, Wa 98005                              Fax: [phone]



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #187 ***************************************:-)

Subject: RE:  Restless Heart
Date: Wed, 13 Apr 94 07:25:00 PDT
From: Stethem Ted              5721 <[e-mail]>

Soren,
   There is a very detailed medically accurate heart object digitized by
Mira Imaging that is widely available in .DXF format.  I am not sure but I
think it is in the avalon.chinalake.navy.mil mirrors.  It is even a .DXF
that Imagine V2.9 will import.  You can probably find it on the net hrough
archie.
 ----------
From: imagine-relay
Date: Tuesday, April 12, 1994 7:13PM

Nooooooo

I Just spend 3 hours in the Forms editor trying to make a heart....  But
with
no
success....

If  anyone  of  you are able to tell me how to make one step by step PLEASE
do
so, i can't figure out the Forms
editor at all.

Or last posebility...

UUencode/FSEncode me a Heart in E-Mail......  i need one that's for sure.
1 bill thanks in advance......

  Soren Wind   -  IZI/ImPACT    __   ___              _
  GFX / 3D Design / Raytrace    \ \ / (_)____  _ __ _| |
  Fidonet Scala  2:230/418.30    \ V /| (_-< || / _` | |    /\\
  Fidonet ATeam  2:230/714.17    _\_/ |_/__/\_,_\__,_|_|__  \\/
  Amiganet : 39:141/104.30      |_ _|_ __  _ __  __ _ __| |_
  E-MAIL ADD1:[e-mail]  | || '  \| '_ \/ _` / _|  _|
  E-MAIL ADD2:  -------------   |___|_|_|_| .__/\__,_\__|\__|tm
  A2K/030/882/9MB/345MB/33Mhz+SVGA Running|_|/fast/ for a *Picasso* *II*

... She married me for my tag lines.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #188 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Pegger - Setting the record straight
Date: Wed, 13 Apr 94 09:54:51 CDT
From: [e-mail] (Thomas Setzer)

>
> as [e-mail] said,
> <
> <Hello.  My name is Chris Minshall and I work for Heifner Communications
> <Inc., creators of Pegger.  There has been some unflattering comments
> <made recently on the IML regarding our software along with some obvious
> <questions about what it does.  Pegger is a commercial software utility
> <that allows you to compress your 24-bit images down by a factor of
> <10-15 times and still be able to load and save them directly from your
                                                       ^^^^^^^^
> <favorite Amiga software including Imagine.  Pegger is definately not a
> <PD hack as one person has suggested but a well designed, user friendly
>
> Oh wow, like this really impresses me.. Like JPEG Version 4.0 can't
> do this..

DUH!!! NO!  Geez, Kiernan, try and read the post more closely BEFORE you
sit down to flame someone.

> PS, JPEG V4.0 is not a hack, it was written by members
> of JPEG, the standards group for the image compression itself.

I don't recall reading anything about JPEG V4.0 being a hack?

> Also, is Pegger written in Assembly (entirely from scratch) or was
> it derived from the JPEG source code released on the nets not more than two
> years ago?
Who cares, Pegger is something more than JUST a JPEG compresser.

> <and system friendly piece of software that was designed originally for
> <3D animators (which is one of the things that we do a lot of) but it
>
> Why don't you just say people who own Video Suites...

Thats not what he meant.

> 3D animators will not pay 100 bucks for something that just JPEG's

When did we vote you to be our representitive?

> stuff.. I'd pay 100 dollars if you could put Fractal Compression in or
> write a real-time MPEG Playback routine designed for HAM, but
> just providing hidden JPEG support is the kind of stuff some programmers
> do for a hobby.

Duh, not all 3d animators are programmers, and those who are may not have
the time or desire or knowledge to program it.

>
> <also useable in so many other different applications.  We currently
> <support the following file formats: IFF-24, NewTek Framestore, HAM-8, and
> <DCTV.  We support any Amiga software that will load or save those four file
>
> Why don't you just say "anything related with the Video Toaster"...

What does IFF-24, Ham-8, and DCTV have to do with the Toaster?

>
> <formats which covers virtually all Amiga software that deals with 24-bit
> <images.  If anyone has any further questions about Pegger, please call me
>
> HAM-8 and DCTV are not 24-bit formats.
If your gonna criticize someone about facts, make sure yours are straight
first.
>
>
> Yes, did I say that they'd reply to my Mail?? Well they didn't, but
> I predicted it nevertheless.. They weren't going to let anybody
> jeopardize their income, so they just had to come up on the Imagine list
> advertise (which usually isn't allowed under the rules of the Internet)

I'd say that this guy has every right to join in the conversation and
set any facts straight.  This wasn't a blatant ad, it was, as the subject
states, an attempt to set the record straight.

Whoops, I'm rambling.  Sorry.



Tom Setzer
[e-mail]

"And of course, I'm a genius, so people are naturally drawn to my fiery
intellect.  Their admiration overwhelms their envy!" - Calvin


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #189 ***************************************:-)

Subject: RE: mobicogs uploaded to Aminet
Date: Wed, 13 Apr 94 07:52:00 PDT
From: Stethem Ted              5721 <[e-mail]>

Jason,
  I am trying to understand the Particle feature in Imagine V2.9, and since
you seem to have put it all together in cometj1, I wonder if you could give
me some assistance?  I just want to know how to make a sphere that is
composed of sphere particles.  I guess this is what you are doing in
cometj1.  I am going into the detail editor and adding a primitive sphere
object with the default settings. I then go to the Particle requestor and
picking spheres, applied to faces, and inscribed.  Then I am going to the
Stage editor, setting up the scene, going to the Action editor and picking
the Particle effect.  I have tried all kinds of settings and gotten some
really neat particle things happening but all the particles are triangles
from the face of my sphere object.  I want the particles to be little
spheres.  Can you tell me how to do this?
  BTW, I thought cometj1 was really impressive and just the project for
cometj2 in the gfx/misc area is a good idea to me.  Haven't viewed mobicogs
yet but it sounds really cool and I think there are several people
salivating and drooling to get that type of animation into their
productions.
  I think your readme file is a very good approach to the subject of
copyrighted material.  I believe a recent ruling in a US court stated any
intellectual material was copyrighted if a statement was made to the effect
that it was copyrighted material, and the ruling also concluded that the
intellectual material was implicitly copyrighted anyway but this would be
difficult to prove in a court of law.  Also, the laws regarding copyright
are different from country to country, and I think this is an issue in GATT
to try to arrive at more uniform copyright and patent protection between
countries.  The copyright in the US is defined in the Constitution but the
material on the Internet is accessible around the world where US copyright
laws may not be recognized.  Also, I don't know if this was just an April
Fool's  joke but I heard that a company is claiming a copyright to the
cursor, yeah, the blinking one on every computer screen, and wants royalties
for its use!
< text cut>

>btw, I haven't got around to uploading cometj2 + the project yet.  I got
>distracted...  Think I'll only do the project file.  Where should this go?
>gfx/misc?  Advice welcome...

< text cut>


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #190 ***************************************:-)

Subject: re: pegger setting the record straight
Date: Wed, 13 Apr 94 16:45:10 BST
From: [e-mail] (Kevin Digweed)

** Including message from Bill leimberger (marbls.enet.dec.com!leimberger) **

>  I already have JPEG compression available from ADPRO. An AREXX script
> could do it but that involves the overhead of having ADPro running.
> Pegger watchs a dir and when it sees a pic(say Imagine anim) it automatically
> compresses it.

Are you sure ? This sounds like the 'sentinel' utility that comes with ADPro
to me. I thought that 'Pegger' patches the DOS file handling calls and when
Imagine (or whatever) writes (or *reads*) the file, it is automatically
detected as being of one type and is automatically converted to another type
"invisibly" when being read/written to.

If all you're worried about is making sure that frames written by Imagine are
JPEG'd (ie you don't care about Imagine loading JPEG brushmaps etc) then a
simple ARexx script and an IFF-24 to JPEG converter would save you money over
buying 'Pegger'. Of course, this is already possible with Sentinel/ADPro, but
I would guess that memory would become very tight very quickly.

I would be quite willing to throw something together if anyone is interested
(as Bill mentions, not all Imagine users are going to be programmers, and this
offer is the only thing that makes my post valid ;-).

[Regarding HAM-8]
> If you have a 1084S moniter and you can have each pixel a different color
> (260000+ available ) out of a 24 bit pallet

Not true. There are 64 base colour registers in HAM-8. For a full-screen
picture (of anything other than a smooth colour gradient), they would have to
be used several times. Also, I am sure that HAM-8 does not have full access to
a 24-bit palette. HAM-8 has 8 bitplanes. Two are used up like HAM-6 -
specifying what the remaining 6 actually mean. Those remaning 6 can be used to
modify the absolute value of the red, green or blue component of the pixel to
the immediate left (and storing the result in the current pixel).
Therefore, there is only 18-bits of colour palette *that can be modified*
(3 * 6).
This is complicated (of course), by the fact that the 64 base colour registers
*are* 24-bit - you just can't change all of the bits with "modify" pixels.

Having said that, I think this is pretty irrelevant, as it's *as near as damn
it* a true-colour screen, and not many people could tell the difference (esp.
in an anim). (BTW, this is *my* understanding of HAM-8 - if you know different,
feel free to put me straight ...)

> Bill leimberger
> nashua NH.

Sorry for the wasted bandwith - this is a bit off topic ;-)

Cheers,
Kev.

#include    <standard.disclaimer>


--

Kevin Digweed, 32-bit RTS development.
+-----------------------------------------+---------------------------------+
| Telephone : Switchboard : (0635) 32646  |   Email: arpa : [e-mail] |
|             Direct:       [phone] |          uucp : uknet!mfmail!ked|
+-----------------------------------------+---------------------------------+
| Smail: Micro Focus LTD, 26 West St, Newbury, Berkshire, England, RG13 1JT |
+---------------------------------------------------------------------------+
It's a brave mouse that sleeps in a cat's ear.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #191 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Update 1.0 to 3.x
Date: Tue, 12 Apr 1994 15:38:00 +0200
From: [e-mail] (Andreas Schuett)

----------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                  Berlin, am Di 12.04.1994

Hi folks !

Can anyone tell me, how much the update from Imagine 1.0 to 3.0
will be ?  Please let me know what information is available right now.



Thanks a lot in advance !


Andreas


Fido: Andreas_Schuett%2:2403/32.10         For the carrier pigeon: Dickhardtstr.
42
UUCP: [e-mail]                         12161 Berlin
                                                                   Germany




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #192 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Pegger-I use it
Date: Wed, 13 Apr 1994 12:53:46 -0400
From: Paul Wehner <[e-mail]>

I bought Pegger for under 60 bucks and think it was a *great* buy. True, it
offers the same operations as AdPro, ImageFX, and possibly Rend24 but its far
easier to use, comsumes much less memory to do so and I don't have to slag
through arexx to get going with rendering. I've saved over 6 megs of HD space
by converting 24 bit to jpeg. Peggers Snoop function automatically
decompresses image maps whenever Imagine, Dpaint, or whatever calls for them.
It is very system friendly. I have yet to see its notification requestors
screw up any application I'm running on my 4000/picasso and I use numerous
display modes. It has one of the best manuals I've seen-illustrations, hints
for writing your own arexx scripts, ins & outs of compression etc. The
algorythm may be based on the joint photographics experts blah diddy blah but
it is by no means a "Pd hack." Seldom have I come upon a graphics
program/utility that has been so easy and useful to use. Version 1.3 is a free
upgrade, as was 1.2.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #193 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Pegger - Setting the record straight
Date: Wed, 13 Apr 94 10:52:03 -0600
From: Steve Koren <[e-mail]>

[ham8]
> could do 24-bit but no one has proved to me that it supports a 24-bit
> pallete and how it can, when the traditional way that HAM mode works

HAM8 can display any color in the 24 bit space without changing the
palette.  This is because the lower two bits of each HAM'ed pixel are
maintained from those of the preceding pixel.  However, that means that
at least once, you must have a register pixel setting the lower two bits
to the values you wish.  In practice, this is a very wasteful use of
registers, so also in practice, HAM8 has ~ 18 bit color plus a little
bit of quality since some of the HAM'ed pixels *will* have the proper
LSB's.

As for Pegger, I don't quite see the point.  I have a shell script that
runs in the background while Imagine renders and jpeg's images as they
appear.  Took about 30 seconds to write.  Works fine.  Takes maybe a few
hundred bytes of RAM when its idle.  I build all animations in ImageFX
anyway, which can make OP5 or OP7 anims out of a set of JPEGs.

Anyway, I believe the best framework for a transparent jpegger is the
XPK standard.  It *already* does all the hard work for you, in a system
friendly manner, and it is very extensible to new compressors.  It would
not take very long to write an XPK JPEG compression module, given the
availability of JPEG source code in the first place.  If I ever get some
free time, I'll write one and post it to aminet.  Somebody sending me
public domain JPEG source code that compiles under SAS V6.10 would
greatly increase the chance of that happening.  (I might want such an
XPK compressor, but I don't want it bad enough to go reimplementing JPEG
source code on my own).

  - steve


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #194 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: A4000T's and C=
Date: Tue, 12 Apr 94 17:05:10 EST
From: [e-mail] (Yury German)

Hi Andrew (Andrew Conway), in <4899.9404121506@jupiter> on Apr 12 you wrote:

: If anyone remembers my last mail, I said I plan(ned) to get an A4000T
: primarily to ray-trace with. Despite C='s mess, I would still like to
: get one but I need reassurance...so if anyone out there has an A4000T
: could you reassure me
: (or otherwise) that sinking >2k English Poundingtons (3k dollars)
: is a wise thing to do.

    Andrew My recomendation is to stay away from the 4000T. I have the
4000 and it was the worse mistake I ever made buying it. The machine is
slow and the graphics are not very good.

    My recomendation if you want to get a Rendering Tower with an
Amiga inside. Is get a 3000T and a 040 accelerator and a cheap graphics
card. It will cost you alot cheaper and you will have a better machine in
the longrun with a much more powerful processor then the 4000's have.

--
    _____________________________________________________________________
   |                                                                     |
   |     Yury German                          [e-mail]       |
   | Blue-Knight Productions                  TEL: [phone]        |
   |    [phone]                         FAX: [phone]        |
   |_____________________________________________________________________|



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #195 ***************************************:-)

Subject: AFormat Imagine Upgrade Plea
Date: Wed, 13 Apr 94 12:32:46 CDT
From: [e-mail] (Stephen Wilkinson)

[e-mail] (Robin Luiten) spoke thusly:
[snip]
> >From: [e-mail] (Matthew O'Reilly)
> >Date: Thu, 17 Feb 94 09:41:09 CST
[snip]
> > i got the information I wanted, direct from Mike H himself.
> >
> >If your have the AF imagine disk, you can upgrade for $100 US!!!!, just tell
> >them, which version you have, visa number etc.
> >
> >BTW, if you do upgrade, you better tell them I told you about the deal as
> >Mike asked me to "advertise" the upgrade offer.
[remainder snipped]

What's the real story??? I called Impulse in Minn. and sent AFormat
email.  AFormat said that I received the magazine here in the US after
the offer expired - and Impulse said I could only get the PAL version.
This greatly ticked me off and they were a bit brusque about it
(Impulse, not AFormat). I bought 1.0 a million years ago back when it
was "Super Turbo Silver" and I would love to upgrade. The AFormat deal
sounded too good to be true and so far it has been :) I have two
questions:

1) Can I (in Okla. USA) upgrade to PAL/NTSC Imagine 3.0 with
   that coverdisk version of Imagine? This question is effective
   today, April 13, 1994.
2) We get things relayed from Impulse (Mike H et. al.) via dudes on
   portal. What is their email address (if any) so I can ask them
   these types of questions directly?

I would LOVE LOVE LOVE to upgrade if I misinterpreted their brusqueness.
I would write that $100 check the INSTANT I get an authoritative answer.

Thank you for your bandwidth and your time,
Stephen
____________________________________
Stephen Wilkinson     [e-mail]      "Programming is like pinball. The
Software Engineer                         reward for doing it well is the
LB&M Associates                           opportunity to do it again."
____________________________________
#define OPINION        (myown)
#define COMPANYOPINION (~myown)

      This message created using 87% recycled neuro-transmitters


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #196 ***************************************:-)

Subject: 3D ROM???
Date: Wed, 13 Apr 94 11:53:54 -0700
From: [e-mail] (Greg Pringle)

>a nice bonus. And the printed manual, showing a small render of every single
>object, will save you oodles of time and energy that would've been spent
>downloading poorly-labelled files, rendering them, realizing they're not what
>you
>hoped for, and repeating the process. Do Internet object libraries come with
>thumbnails of every file? I didn't think so.
>
>ROM volume II. So if you think $200 is a rip-off, just send in a model. Sounds
>like a great bargain to me.

  The point is that people did this work with the understanding that it would
be freely available and people shouldn't charge for more than the copying
costs. For the prices charged, it sure seems like someone is making a hefty
profit. And, unless they contacted the authors and recieved permission, they
may be in for some trouble (do people even know if their work is being sold on
this thing?). I suppose their next project is to release all the GNU source
code compiled on different machines with text descriptions for only $499. B^)

  I collected a large amount of objects, catagorized them, and thumbnailed
(a bunch) of them. I wouldn't dream of selling other people's work for a profit
though. In fact, they're available on the AMUC CD-ROM, which I last saw for
something like $11 Cdn. (Anybody from AMUC want to post ordering information..
go ahead).

  (anybody know anything about that Pixar CD?)

  Greg


--
+--------------------------+----------------------------------------------+
| Greg Pringle             |                                              |
| [e-mail] |          "Better dead than smeg"             |
| [e-mail] |                                              |
+--------------------------+----------------------------------------------+


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #197 ***************************************:-)

Subject: What it the upgrade price for 2.0 -> 3.0?
Date: Wed, 13 Apr 94 13:33:25 PDT
From: [e-mail]

Can someone also answer this question.
thanks,


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #198 ***************************************:-)

Subject:  mobicogs reflections
Date:  Wed, 13 Apr 1994 16:58:39 -0400
From: "rob (r.d.) hounsell" <[e-mail]>

Jay,

  I've just viewed mobicogs - very nice!

  I'm interested in what sort of global reflection map you used in the
animation. Can you elaborate?

Thx
Rob
--
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Rob Hounsell                           BNR WAN:  HOUNSELL@BMERHB63          |
| Team Leader: UNIX                      INTERNET: [e-mail]            |
| DMS System Performance Development     PHONE: [phone]                |
| Dept. 7D23                             ESN: 395-2904                        |
| Bell Northern Research                                                      |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------+


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #199 ***************************************:-)

Subject: RE: mobicogs uploaded to Aminet
Date: Wed, 13 Apr 94 21:32:28 GMT
From: Jason Jack <[e-mail]>

Ted,

> Jason,
>   I am trying to understand the Particle feature in Imagine V2.9, and since
> you seem to have put it all together in cometj1, I wonder if you could give
> me some assistance?  I just want to know how to make a sphere that is
> composed of sphere particles.  I guess this is what you are doing in
> cometj1.  I am going into the detail editor and adding a primitive sphere
> object with the default settings. I then go to the Particle requestor and
> picking spheres, applied to faces, and inscribed.  Then I am going to the
> Stage editor, setting up the scene, going to the Action editor and picking
> the Particle effect.  I have tried all kinds of settings and gotten some
> really neat particle things happening but all the particles are triangles
> from the face of my sphere object.  I want the particles to be little
> spheres.  Can you tell me how to do this?

You're doing everything right!.. except you need to ray-trace, not scanline!
The 'sphere' particles are CSG spheres, which is what you want, but CSG
spheres are converted to polys for scanline.  (Why Mike/Scott?  Anyone know
if this is still true in 3.0?)

Now because you need to use trace you may need to get the rendering time
back down ;-)  I have found that to see a Global Brush Map, RSDP needs to be
2 or higher.  Also, add a size bar in frame 1 of GLOBALS and set the size to
0, 0, 0, (this makes Imagine auto-scale the rendering area to encompass the
whole stage and speeds up traces).

I think that puting the light sources close to the scene will help as this
reduces the whole rendering area.  If the parallax bothers you then maybe 2
close in light sources render quicker than 1 far out one?  Don't know -
never measured it.

>   BTW, I thought cometj1 was really impressive and just the project for

Thank you!

> cometj2 in the gfx/misc area is a good idea to me.  Haven't viewed mobicogs
> yet but it sounds really cool and I think there are several people
> salivating and drooling to get that type of animation into their
> productions.

Really?!  Put them on to me...
'Anything considered.  No project too huge.  Reasonable rates.'
;-)

>   I think your readme file is a very good approach to the subject of
> copyrighted material.  I believe a recent ruling in a US court stated any

Well I didn't put anything at all on cometj1, but then that thread started
up here and I thought I'd better put _something_ on mobicogs.  I hope it is
'correct'.  There was an article in AmigaWorld quite some time ago all about
the subject, but I haven't dug it out yet.  Also, imho, mobicogs is even
nicer than cometj1 ;-)

> intellectual material was copyrighted if a statement was made to the effect
> that it was copyrighted material, and the ruling also concluded that the
> intellectual material was implicitly copyrighted anyway but this would be
> difficult to prove in a court of law.  Also, the laws regarding copyright
> are different from country to country, and I think this is an issue in GATT
> to try to arrive at more uniform copyright and patent protection between
> countries.  The copyright in the US is defined in the Constitution but the
> material on the Internet is accessible around the world where US copyright
> laws may not be recognized.  Also, I don't know if this was just an April
> Fool's  joke but I heard that a company is claiming a copyright to the
> cursor, yeah, the blinking one on every computer screen, and wants royalties
> for its use!
> < text cut>

That cursor thing definitely sounds like an April Fool.  Anybody know for
sure?

It would be nice to have a worldwide standard, and a legal process that was
affordable and effective.  Anybody really believe these politician guys
could do something so useful?  And what about Taiwan? didn't they exclude
themselves?

If I put an archive of the mobicogs project onto Aminet and included a
readme with a copyright notice is it infact copyrightable?
I suppose I could copyright the cog object (duhh...) but what about the
staging file?  Makes my head itch...

<shouts> "IS THERE A LAWYER ON THIS LIST?!"


The project for cometj2 will be up shortly :-)

Later,
Jay





               Jason Jack
         [e-mail]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #200 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: c= and the
Date: Wed, 13 Apr 1994 16:07:02 -0600 (MDT)
From: Roger Straub <[e-mail]>

On Wed, 13 Apr 1994, Andrew Conway wrote:

> >Apply the DETHSTAR texture to the cube object.  Make the cube 100% filtered.
>
> Sounds like an excellent idea but.... where do I find the DETHSTAR texture???
>

The DETHSTAR Tex is included with 2.9.




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #201 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Pegger - Setting the record straight
Date: Wed, 13 Apr 94 15:40:42 PDT
From: [e-mail]

There's a real simple way to explain what Pegger does.
If you have a program that can load IFF24 but can't load JPEG files,
Pegger will let it load JPEG files. It's as simple as that.

Brilliance, DPaintAGA, ToasterPaint, and anything else can get
the ability to directly load JPEG image files without their own
developers having to lift a finger. Same goes for saving JPEG
files.

Can Imagine load IFF24 brushmaps? Yes. Can it load JPEG versions
of IFF24 brushmaps? No. Install Pegger and it can.

Do we all understand this now?
There'll be a quiz in the morning. :)

Harv
[e-mail]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #202 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: mobicogs reflections
Date: Wed, 13 Apr 94 23:37:21 GMT
From: Jason Jack <[e-mail]>

Hi Rob,

> Jay,
>
>   I've just viewed mobicogs - very nice!

Thanks!

>   I'm interested in what sort of global reflection map you used in the
> animation. Can you elaborate?

The image is a close up of some sort of pyrite or quartz crystals - hard to
tell due to the minimal depth of field from the macro lens.  Basically, it's
dark in places with some bright white hilites.  I used an approx 280 x 280
24bit IFF, about 200k in size.  It could have been much smaller without any
noticeable loss of quality.  Its an old VLAB scan from some nature program.

The cogs have gold, silver, and copper metal settings.

Curved things that change their angle (relative to the camera) over time
show GRMs the best imho.

Hope this helps,
Jay



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #203 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Update 1.0 to 3.x
Date: Wed, 13 Apr 1994 17:24:00 -0600 (MDT)
From: Roger Straub <[e-mail]>

On Tue, 12 Apr 1994, Andreas Schuett wrote:

> ----------------------------------------------------------------------------
>                                                   Berlin, am Di 12.04.1994
>
> Hi folks !
>
> Can anyone tell me, how much the update from Imagine 1.0 to 3.0
> will be ?  Please let me know what information is available right now.
>
>
>
> Thanks a lot in advance !
>
>
> Andreas
>
>
> Fido: Andreas_Schuett%2:2403/32.10         For the carrier pigeon: Dickhardtst
r.42
> UUCP: [e-mail]                         12161 Berli
n
>                                                                    Germany
>
>

I got mine for $200.




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #204 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: 3D ROM???
Date: 13 Apr 94 19:32:22 EDT
From: John Foust - Syndesis Corporation <[e-mail]>

To: >internet: [e-mail]

[e-mail] (Greg Pringle) writes:
> this thing?). I suppose their next project is to release all the GNU source
> code compiled on different machines with text descriptions for only $499. B^)

There are plenty of companies selling freely distributable data.
Even Canadians do it, like Slackware.  :-)  And I do know of several
companies who've taken GNU source code, enhanced it only slightly,
put it on CD and sold it for $200.  For example, the Congruent ports
of the GNU code to WinNT.

> I collected a large amount of objects, catagorized them, and
> thumbnailed (a bunch) of them. I wouldn't dream of selling other
> people's work for a profit though.

OK, so *you* wouldn't dream of it.  Not only did we dream of it, but
we did it to more than 500 models, made a cross-referenced index to
them all, and printed a manual.  You are welcome to do this yourself,
if you care to invest the capital.

Also, you should be aware of the "dreams" of all the other people on
the Information SuperHypeWay, such as Compuserve, Delphi, GEnie, TCI,
Portal, etc., who are doing gangbuster business promoting their newly
discovered Internet links, now that the teeming hordes want to pay
for all that distilled intellectual effort bring given away on the
net.  Are you telling me we'd be nicer people if we charged you $10
an hour to access the data on the 3D-ROM?




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #205 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: AFormat Imagine Upgrade Plea
Date:     Wed, 13 Apr 1994 19:41:52 -0400
From: Mark B Sachs <[e-mail]>

>[snip]
> What's the real story??? I called Impulse in Minn. and sent AFormat
> email.  AFormat said that I received the magazine here in the US after
> the offer expired - and Impulse said I could only get the PAL version.
> This greatly ticked me off and they were a bit brusque about it
> (Impulse, not AFormat). I bought 1.0 a million years ago back when it
> was "Super Turbo Silver" and I would love to upgrade. The AFormat deal
> sounded too good to be true and so far it has been :)

I would very much like to know, as well. I enjoy using Imagine (am I
a masochist? :-) ) but I simply cannot afford to pay $700 for V3.0,
sorry -- I'd just have to stick with V2.0, even though by all accounts
3.0's new features stomp all over it.

If forced to, I could even live with using the PAL version. (Of course, we
all know that there's no such thing as the "PAL version" or "NTSC version"
any more, as Imagine 3.0 uses the Amiga's Display Database -- right,
Impulse...?)

> I would LOVE LOVE LOVE to upgrade if I misinterpreted their brusqueness.
> I would write that $100 check the INSTANT I get an authoritative answer.

Me too.

-Mark



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #206 ***************************************:-)

Subject: 3D-ROM ???
Date: Wed, 13 Apr 1994 23:10:36 GMT
From: [e-mail]

Kiernan,

     200 dollars,  is adequate,  if you  are a MAuser or a Videographer
     (ya), but for us poor Imagine  users  which  barely  can  afford a
     CD-ROM drive and Imagine, get quite discouraged

Oh, I agree. If you have next to no money, then you can't afford this
disc. Then again, you have little reason to criticize the product. If
you can't afford a VCR, should you put down the latest Sony creation?

If you're strictly a hobbyist, basically anything above PD is too
expensive. You shouldn't complain about it, though. If you get paid to
animate, then time is money. How much time would it take you to
download objects, do a test render, and so on, compared to checking out
the handy-dandy manual included with the 3D-ROM? Wouldn't take much
before you made up the $200 and then some. Most of us on the mailing
list (myself included) are just that, hobbyists, but Kiernan, the world
doesn't revolve around us. Please leave your blinders at the door.

Yes, John Foust has put together a compilation of existing material.
(Although some of the models, like the Viewpoint Siggraph demo set -- I
wonder how easily they can be found) What he's selling with the 3D-ROM,
and he goes to great lengths to point this out in his explanatory text
file, is the _translation_ of those objects into all the formats
supported by InterChange. As Imagine hobbyists we may not benefit as
fully from his endeavour as, say, a Lightwave videographer -- for them,
having all those objects available for their own software is wonderful.

     Oh great,  textures are  a bonus.  Why doesn't  this surprise me..
     Like, how many people have access to a scanner (and a MAC) here??

Can you rephrase that? I don't understand what you mean.

     Do you tell your customers that the images  rendered on  the cover
     are mostly Lightwave objects, and that Imagine object version will
     look pretty sh*tty compared to those. No? I didn't think so..

I haven't seen the cover images, although it would seem apparent to me
that an object translation utility would normally show off samples of
the best software supported. Remember all those game ads, with the 6-
point "xxxxx screens shown" disclaimer at the bottom of the ad? (xxxxx
being whatever computer has the best graphics that year) If Imagine
doesn't render as beautifully as Lightwave, hey, let's lynch Syndesis
and get some of that tension out of our system, right? <g>

     Just another plug, eh? rip-off some then rip-off the rest..

One man's plug is another man's helpful information, as the quasi-
flaming Pegger thread conveniently shows. I have no connection
whatsoever with Syndesis, other than that of being a longtime admirer
of their persistence, versatility, competence and honesty. This mailing
list was designed so that ordinary people be able to share information
they judge interesting with other Imagineers. I did just that. You may
comment on the product being discussed, but accusing me of plugging 3D-
ROM, without any knowledge of my involvement (or lack thereof) with
Syndesis, is unfortunate.


Charles Blaquiere
(no sig yet -- I'm just starting out)

























IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #207 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Essence and Imagine 1.1
Date: Thu, 14 Apr 1994 00:11:42 -0400 (EDT)
From: "Mr. Scott Krehbiel; ACS (PC)" <[e-mail]>

Hi Folks

Can anyone tell me if Essence works with Imagine 1.1 FP?
(yeah, ok, so I'm behind the times..  can't afford the upgrade!)

Thankjs for any help
Scott Krehbiel
[e-mail]



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #208 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Imagine upgrade
Date: Thu, 14 Apr 1994 08:05:35 +0100 (BST)
From: D BROWN <[e-mail]>

On Wed, 13 Apr 1994 [e-mail] wrote:

> I am a little upset at the last mail I got from the list. It said you can
> upgrade to 3.0 from the Amiga Format cover disk for $100. Well, several
> months ago I paid 95 UK pounds (about $150). This, to me, anyway, doesn't
> sound very good.
>
>                         regards,
>
>                         Stephen.

I got hold of Imagine this way too, I recieved a 2.9 version and a note
saying version 3 will be sent ASAP. So providing V3 does arive on our
door step We have purchased a copy of Imagine for 95 quid. I think thats
not bad considering we didnot have to purchase V1 or V2.

    I am eagerly awaiting V3 (but am also poise to write to Amiga
Format just in case it desn't)

    Darren




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #209 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Swallow my heart
Date: Thu, 14 Apr 94 10:56:55 BST
From: [e-mail] (Kevin Digweed)

** Including message from Soren Wind **
> Or last posebility...
>
> UUencode/FSEncode me a Heart in E-Mail......  i need one that's for sure.

Hi. I knocked a very simply heart up last night in Caligari's modeller (very
very simple when you've got organic deformation :-)

Anyway, Caligari only writes it's own format, LightWave format or VideoScape
(GEO) format. I tried loading each into Imagine, but it didn't like any of them
(it was worth a try ...).
If you can convert from one of these, let me know and I'll send you it (I'd
send you all three now, but that's 24K lha'd).

Cheers,
Kev.

--

Kevin Digweed, 32-bit RTS development.
+-----------------------------------------+---------------------------------+
| Telephone : Switchboard : (0635) 32646  |   Email: arpa : [e-mail] |
|             Direct:       [phone] |          uucp : uknet!mfmail!ked|
+-----------------------------------------+---------------------------------+
| Smail: Micro Focus LTD, 26 West St, Newbury, Berkshire, England, RG13 1JT |
+---------------------------------------------------------------------------+
It's a brave mouse that sleeps in a cat's ear.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #210 ***************************************:-)

Subject: RE: mobicogs uploaded to Aminet
Date: Thu, 14 Apr 1994 09:15:49 -0400 (EDT)
From: Udo K Schuermann <[e-mail]>

> That cursor thing definitely sounds like an April Fool.  Anybody know for
> sure?

I cannot claim to 'know for sure' but I have heard from numerous sources
over the years, most of which I consider reliable, that someone owns a
patent on the process of displaying a cursor on the screen which is always
visible, regardless of colors, bit patterns, etc. by XORing the cursor
image with the region it covers.  It is this concept that is patented to
the best of my knowledge.
    Ingenious, probably, when it was first thought of, but pretty old
by today's standards.

And no, I have never heard this referred to as an April Fool's joke.

> If I put an archive of the mobicogs project onto Aminet and included a
> readme with a copyright notice is it infact copyrightable?

I'm no lawyer (gee, I'm full of disclaimers today, huh?) but from what I
understand, putting a copyright message such as "Copyright 1994 by Udo
Schuermann, All rights reserved" on your work, in a prominent manner (in
the case of images, it would probably have to be visible on the image) will
assure you a copyright, although(!) only registered copyrights may have a
real chance of standing up in a court of law.  I don't REALLY know about
this; I'm just putting together various things I've read over the years, so
take all this with a grain of salt.

I don't know enough to give any usable suggestions with regard to object
and staging file copyrights ... I'd advise you to put prominent messages
about copyrights and ownership in the IFF files ("AUTH" or "(C) " chunks)
and hope that nobody is ruthless enough to steal your stuff.

 ._.  Udo Schuermann
 ( )  [e-mail]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #211 ***************************************:-)

Subject: 3DROM ?? Poorly TRANSLATED models
Date: Thu, 14 Apr 94 21:36:20 HKT
From: [e-mail] (Wong Kin Ming)

It's me again.  I have just taken one model from the 3D-ROM into 3DS, and it is
the DC 10, well, it took me more than 10 minutes to correct the model to use it.
  First of all, all normals are REVERSED !!!!  I think every one will suppose a
model come with a extension .3DS should have material (simple ones) attached, un
fortunately, all materials are set to "FLAT", so the model looks so ugly that my
 friend told me better not to use it. (Actually he bought this CD ROM :P).

Obviously, the publisher of the CDROM used their own model translator to create
various formats of model (I am not sure).  Such "Reversed Normal" implies ......
 the quality of their translator too.  I am not going to attack the publisher bu
t when someone charging $200 for such a product, I think I have the right to cha
llenge the disk's quality.

I remember that someone suggested that if people are not satisfied with the 3D-R
OM or its price-tag then he/she may submit a model ..... hum,hum what's the inte
ntion of this ???  To prolong the sales of such unreasonably priced CDROM ?  Peo
ple putting things on the net want other people to enjoy them with zero intentio
n of making money.  However, there are guys who collect PD stuffs and sell them,
 then this is the problem.  Anyway, there are good guys who sell PD stuffs with
reasonable price, like Walnut, SUN user group etc.  US$30 for a CDROM packed wit
h source code is really a big deal but a CDROM with price tag US$200 which conta
ins unfiltered content is disappointing.

About the question that "Most people who feel 3DROM expensive are Amiga users",
this is very questionable.  We are using 5 different platforms here, machine fro
m US$1,500 to US$20,000, I still feel the 3DROM is unreasonably priced.  Animati
on people buy things with a measuring unit of "QUALITY" not "QUANTITY", I don't
feel the statue of liberty from ViewPoint (US$600) is expensive but I do feel th
at 3DROM is very expensive.

Lastly, I suggest everybody who needs simple models better goto "avalon.chinalak
e.navy.mil" to collect them, and save your 200 bucks on other more reasonably pr
iced and better software.  To name a few .... ShowPlace on Mac, Elastic Reality
on Mac, Morph + on Amiga, Real3D, Imagine 3 or IPAS programming toolkit for 3DS.


Happier RENDERING !

PS: The publisher refused the request of returning the CDROM for money back, the
 reason is there is "SOFTWARE PIRACY".  Gee, who is the pirate ?  C'est la vie.





IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #212 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Making Imagine Run Faster
Date: Thu, 14 Apr 1994 10:22:51 -0400 (EDT)
From: "Mr. Scott Krehbiel; ACS (PC)" <[e-mail]>

I saw a message posted a LONG TIME AGO (it's been a while since I've
checked my mail)  about pulling the workbench forward to speed up
rendering.   I'm still using 1.3, so I use "oneplane" to cut WB down
to (you guessed it) just one bitplane.   it seems to speed things up,
but I haven't measured the difference yet.   if you want it measured,
bug me and I'll try it.   Oh, and after going to one plane, pull WB
to the front, also.

By the way, a one bitplane workbench is UGLY!!   I wonder if I could
design alternate icons that would look good in 1 plane, then write a
script to switch icons.....     pipedream alert!!

Scott Krehbiel
[e-mail]



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #213 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Newly Born
Date: Thu, 14 Apr 94 07:36:07 -0700
From: [e-mail] (Ed Totman)

    From: "Ryan Johnson"                              <[e-mail]>

    Sorry to be a dunce everyone, but I've limited Internet knowledge
    and have a simple question:

    How do I log into the Archival site?

    I have a full time conection.

    Ta.

    RJ.


ftp  to  ftp.wustl.edu

the path: /pub/aminet/gfx/3d

Email me if you have questions.

The files are named arc-43.lha through arc-46.lha.  There used to be
more.  Anybody know where they are?


Ed


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #214 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Essence and Imagine 1.1
Date: Thu, 14 Apr 94 13:52:56 GMT
From: "Glenn M. Lewis - ICD ~" <[e-mail]>

Scott> Hi Folks

Scott> Can anyone tell me if Essence works with Imagine 1.1 FP?
Scott> (yeah, ok, so I'm behind the times..  can't afford the
Scott> upgrade!)

Scott> Thankjs for any help Scott Krehbiel [e-mail]

    Yes indeedy...  Essence and Essence II work just dandy with
the FPU versions of Imagine 1.1, Imagine 2.0, and Turbo Silver SV.

                            -- Glenn



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #215 ***************************************:-)

Subject: C= Buyout Rumor
Date: Thu, 14 Apr 94 07:32:00 PDT
From: Stethem Ted              5721 <[e-mail]>

   There are very strong rumors from Europe that Commodore has been bought
out by Sony.  If you didn't know already, Sony bought Psygnosis last year
and Sony reps were swarming aroung the CD32 booth at the World of Commodore
in Toronto last year.  This would all make sense since Sony is a leading
supplier of CD-ROM drives and owns a movie studio (forget which one MCA or
Universal or another one).  Have you ever heard about vertical integration?
  Right now, Sega and Nintendo are sharing a $10 billionUS home video game
market.  I saw a company report that said Nintendo has about 9,000 employees
with sales in excess of $5 billionUS with very little capitol equipment
overhead.  If you can't figure this out, it translates to sheer profit.
 Sony has been rumored to be developing a home video game machine but is
behind Sega and Nintendo in development and it would make sense for them to
slap a Sony label on the CD32, sell that for a year or two while developing
their super game machine.
   Sony also has strong alliances with MicroSoft and Hewlett-Packard.  Have
you heard about HP PA-RISC?  Maybe there will be an Amiga 5000 with PA-RISC
processor, PCI bus, DSP sound, and most important of all, Amiga OS!
  In case you don't think this has anything to do with Imagine, go take a
look at Labyrinth of Time for the CD32.  Terra Nova and Brad Schenk did
almost all the graphics with Imagine.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #216 ***************************************:-)

Subject: RE: mobicogs uploaded to Aminet
Date: Thu, 14 Apr 94 07:18:00 PDT
From: Stethem Ted              5721 <[e-mail]>

Jason,
   Sure enough, going to raytrace made all the particles what they should
be, ie spheres, cubes, etc.  Now how did you know this?  Did you get a more
complete copy of the the V2.9 "manual" or did I miss reading this or did you
just happen upon it?
Anyway, thank you for the tip!  I also am curious about this in V3.0, if it
will still have to be done in Trace?  Particle animations will take longer
to produce then.
  Viewed mobicogs last night. Wow! Really neat little animation.  It appears
this method would resolve some of the threads in the past about moving
chains and tank treads.
   As for actual people interested in 3D productions, I don't know that
many.  I don't know if you get Bill Nye, the Science Guy on your local PBS
station but I do know a guy that is doing some CGI on the show although he
is doing strictly 2D animation.  He says they are looking for somebody to do
3D flying logos and other things.  Don't know how much it pays but probably
not much.  I am trying to put together a demo tape to send over to him and
see if there is any interest.
  Oh, yeah, gears are no problem for me. 3D Studio has an IPAS for making
all kinds of gears except for worm gears.  That would probably be an
interesting project, though.
 ----------
From: Jason Jack
To: TedS; imagine
Subject: RE: mobicogs uploaded to Aminet
Date: Wednesday, April 13, 1994 9:32PM

You're doing everything right!.. except you need to ray-trace, not scanline!
The 'sphere' particles are CSG spheres, which is what you want, but CSG
spheres are converted to polys for scanline.  (Why Mike/Scott?  Anyone know
if this is still true in 3.0?)

Now because you need to use trace you may need to get the rendering time
back down ;-)  I have found that to see a Global Brush Map, RSDP needs to be
2 or higher.  Also, add a size bar in frame 1 of GLOBALS and set the size to
0, 0, 0, (this makes Imagine auto-scale the rendering area to encompass the
whole stage and speeds up traces).

I think that puting the light sources close to the scene will help as this
reduces the whole rendering area.  If the parallax bothers you then maybe 2
close in light sources render quicker than 1 far out one?  Don't know -
never measured it.

               Jason Jack
         [e-mail]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #217 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: 3D ROM???
Date: Thu, 14 Apr 94 10:40:12 CDT
From: [e-mail] (Thomas Setzer)

> [e-mail] (Greg Pringle) writes:
> > this thing?). I suppose their next project is to release all the GNU source
> > code compiled on different machines with text descriptions for only $499. B^
)
>
> There are plenty of companies selling freely distributable data.
> Even Canadians do it, like Slackware.  :-)  And I do know of several
> companies who've taken GNU source code, enhanced it only slightly,
> put it on CD and sold it for $200.  For example, the Congruent ports
> of the GNU code to WinNT.
>
You know the saying..."Two wrongs don't make a right" or is that "left".

> > I collected a large amount of objects, catagorized them, and
> > thumbnailed (a bunch) of them. I wouldn't dream of selling other
> > people's work for a profit though.
>
> OK, so *you* wouldn't dream of it.  Not only did we dream of it, but
> we did it to more than 500 models, made a cross-referenced index to
> them all, and printed a manual.  You are welcome to do this yourself,
> if you care to invest the capital.

I do have to agree that it sounds like you've done a substancial amount
of work to these models(thumb nails, conversions, index, etc) to warrent
you making a profit.  Did all the people who contributed get a free disk?
Were they informed of their contribution?
>
> Also, you should be aware of the "dreams" of all the other people on
> the Information SuperHypeWay, such as Compuserve, Delphi, GEnie, TCI,
> Portal, etc., who are doing gangbuster business promoting their newly
> discovered Internet links, now that the teeming hordes want to pay
> for all that distilled intellectual effort bring given away on the
> net.  Are you telling me we'd be nicer people if we charged you $10
> an hour to access the data on the 3D-ROM?
>
Do they have to pay for internet access?  The companies such as Delphi, GEnie,
etc, I mean.

BTW John, you've been quiet lately.  Busy?  Or just not interested in this
list anymore?

To make this (slightly) relevent... Anyone recieve 3.0 yet?


Tom Setzer
[e-mail]

"And of course, I'm a genius, so people are naturally drawn to my fiery
intellect.  Their admiration overwhelms their envy!" - Calvin



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #218 ***************************************:-)

Subject: 3d objects
Date: Thu, 14 Apr 94 09:40:49 -0700
From: [e-mail] (Ed Totman)

Have you compiled a list of 3d objects with addresses available on the
internet that you could share with me?  If not I'll start my own.

Ed


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #219 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Imagine????
Date: Thu, 14 Apr 1994 12:04:04 -0700
From: [e-mail] (Lesk)

Speaking on Imagine, I used to be on this cool mailing list that talked
about how to do neat things in Imagine that I never would have dreamed of
myself.


        mmmmm I wonder where it went............


                                                Render Ho!
                                                  Lesk




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #220 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Syndesis CD-ROM
Date: Thu, 14 Apr 94 11:50:29 MDT
From: "Mark Allan Fox" <[e-mail]>

Greetings:

    A while ago I sent in a reader service card to DeskTop
Video world and one of the things about which I received
information was the Syndesis 3D-ROM.

    They sent me a pamphlet with thumbnails of 70% of the
objects in the collection.  (This is the same thing you'll see in
the inside back cover of 3D Artist, Issue #13.)

    In my opinion the vast majority of these objects are just
crap.  Some of the objects are good.  (There's a couble of good
cars, jets, an ATV, a railway car, a cool looking gangster type
guy, a TIE-fighter, and a good one of the King Tut mummy cover
things.)  I'd say that about 8% of the 70% of the objects I see
are usable (there's 440 on the page).  Just understand that the
92% of the objects left are not very good at all, some are really
bad, REALLY BAD.  I mean you'd sooner see me playing pick-up
sticks with my but-cheeks then using these objects in an
animation, let alone paying 200 bucks to let them sit on my
shelf.

    I actually think the 3D-ROM is just being used as a plug
for their object conversion software (InterChange Plus).

    Please, don't take my opinion as yours.  If you want to
see the pamphlet I received, try sending a reequest via snail
mail to:

        Syndesis Corporation
        235 South Main St.
        Jefferson, WI 53549
        [phone]
        [phone] FAX


    Now shut up about Syndesis 3D-ROMs already.


                M. A. Fox

                [e-mail]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #221 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: What it the upgrade price for 2.0 -> 3.0?
Date: Thu, 14 Apr 1994 16:37:47 -0600 (MDT)
From: Roger Straub <[e-mail]>

On Wed, 13 Apr 1994 [e-mail] wrote:

> Can someone also answer this question.
> thanks,

In the last issue of Impulse Graphics World, the Impulse newsletter, the
upgrade was listed as $100.




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #222 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: 3d objects
Date: Thu, 14 Apr 1994 16:49:31 -0600 (MDT)
From: Roger Straub <[e-mail]>

On Thu, 14 Apr 1994, Ed Totman wrote:

>
> Have you compiled a list of 3d objects with addresses available on the
> internet that you could share with me?  If not I'll start my own.
>
> Ed

I don't know of one at this point in time, but if anyone does, or makes
one, please tell us about it.




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #223 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Labyrinth of Time
Date: Thu, 14 Apr 1994 19:09:14 -0500 (CDT)
From: [e-mail] (cyberhawk)

I have heard that Imagine was used to produce the game "Labyrinth of
Time". Is that true? If so, then I have to say that it's the best
program for the price.



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #224 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Axis to grind!
Date: Thu, 14 Apr 1994 13:58:31 -0800
From: [e-mail] (Brad Molsen)

        Hello all, I have an Imagine question to ask!!! No really... no
flames, no ads, no sh*t; a real type user question. (Kind of nostalgic, heh
Lesk!)
         Anywhere my question is, is there any way to move just the axis of
an object without going to the tranformation submenu and use tranlate,
position, etc. It would be nice if one could just drag that sucker around
like an object. Even in its' own bounding box it would be much easier to
manipulate than to have to resort to the above mentioned submenu. Oh I can
make it go where I want it with the transform method but, rarely in just
one visit to the transform requester.
                                As always thanks in advance,
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
        JUST SAY NO, TO GUNS!!!

Brad Molsen c/o  LORAL                          [e-mail]

13810 SE Eastgate Way Suite 500                 [phone]
Bellevue, Wa 98005                              Fax: [phone]



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #225 ***************************************:-)

Subject: RE: mobicogs uploaded to Aminet
Date: Thu, 14 Apr 94 19:53:43 GMT
From: Jason Jack <[e-mail]>

Ted,

>    Sure enough, going to raytrace made all the particles what they should
> be, ie spheres, cubes, etc.  Now how did you know this?  Did you get a more
> complete copy of the the V2.9 "manual" or did I miss reading this or did you
> just happen upon it?

2.0 manual?  Understanding Imagine?  I can't remember where.  Maybe in the
FAQ?

My 2.9 manual was 25 pages each numbered twice. 2525 pages? right...

>   Viewed mobicogs last night. Wow! Really neat little animation.  It appears
> this method would resolve some of the threads in the past about moving
> chains and tank treads.

Thanks!  Yes, good idea - chains will be real easy :-)  I wonder if there is
a way to prevent the actual objects deforming, only moving and aligning them
correctly..?  Will play...

>    As for actual people interested in 3D productions, I don't know that
> many.  I don't know if you get Bill Nye, the Science Guy on your local PBS
> station but I do know a guy that is doing some CGI on the show although he
> is doing strictly 2D animation.  He says they are looking for somebody to do
> 3D flying logos and other things.  Don't know how much it pays but probably
> not much.  I am trying to put together a demo tape to send over to him and
> see if there is any interest.

Thanks for the info!  I'd love to do something like that!  Unfortunately I
think there are a few hundred others nearer to the project than me that
could do it.  Right now I'm in London, and the weather sucks.  I suppose I
_could_ do it by modem ;-) or even email ;-) !  Wouldn't that be cool? -
roll on Digital Mega-Freeway...

>   Oh, yeah, gears are no problem for me. 3D Studio has an IPAS for making
> all kinds of gears except for worm gears.  That would probably be an
> interesting project, though.

So - could you do the same thing in 3DS?  And, what's a worm gear look like?

Bye,
Jay



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #226 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re:  C= Buyout Rumor
Date:     Thu, 14 Apr 1994 16:35:45 -0400
From: Jason B Koszarsky <[e-mail]>

A friend told me that he saw an article in USA Today, earlier this week,
about Commodore being bought out by InfoTech.  I haven't seen the article
so I can't provide any verification on this.  Is InfoTech part of Sony?

Jason K.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #227 ***************************************:-)

Subject: GEEZZ!! Enough ROM stuff, already!
Date: Thu, 14 Apr 1994 16:05:17 -0400 (EDT)
From: "Andrew P. Vogel" <[e-mail]>

OKAY! Enough! I'm calling it! That's all! It's a wrap! The thread, and any
discussion about the Syndesis 3D-ROM product are declared DEAD! Please don't
post any more about them, or if you feel the need to, please take it to EMail
or somewhere else.

Let's all remember that this is the _IMAGINE_ mailing list...

Just kinda honks me off that the past 2 days, the discussion has been almost
entirely about the darned 3D-ROM...

Let's let it die, shall we?



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #228 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Syndesis 3D-ROM
Date: 14 Apr 94 19:58:41 EDT
From: John Foust - Syndesis Corporation <[e-mail]>

To: >internet: [e-mail]

"Mark Allan Fox" <[e-mail]> writes:
> bad, REALLY BAD.  I mean you'd sooner see me playing pick-up
> sticks with my but-cheeks then using these objects in an

So let me get this straight: it's more worthwhile to spend hours
cruising the Internet and rendering the models yourself, than to get
a CDROM from us?  And you were able to judge the "quality" of the
models on the disc based on 1/4 inch square greyscale renderings on
our flyer?

I'd love to learn how to quantify the "quality" of a model.  Sheer
numbers of points and polygons tell you nothing.  Suitability of
purpose is entirely in the eyes of the beholder.  Some people want
1,200 triangle humanoids to place in the background of their
Acropolis, others want so much detail you can see the hair under the
arms.

The only answer I've come up with is "The more objects you have to
populate your electronic worlds, the better."  Yup, 500 objects are
not enough.  I think people would have much more fun with 3D modeling
programs if they had zillions of example objects.

To reiterate, we didn't go to the Internet to get
these models.  By now, some of them have showed up there, sometimes
courtesy of the conversion we provide on the 3D-ROM, of course.

We *did* exercise some judgement about the models on the disc.  We
thought we'd culled the crap in the first round.  There were megs and
megs of objects we didn't use.  In fact, I can't think of a single
object unique to the Avalon Internet site, for example, that we used
on the 3D-ROM.  We had a complete backup tape of the site, and
frankly, we thought the models were of lower quality than the stuff
we were finding on Amiga BBSes.

The reality of the Syndesis 3D-ROM is that it accurately reflects the
modeling skills of the 3D user base that gives their objects away.

As such, it's probably very representative of what you'll find on the
Internet, an Amiga BBS, a 3D Studio BBS, or among the dusty floppies
on the desks of the readers of this list.  No, I don't think these
models are as nice as Viewpoint's.

To put it another way, anyone running a commercial modeling company,
say, Viewpoint, will be making very nice models, but they won't be
giving them away, either, and they will place restrictions on what
you can do with their models.

We do give away free discs.  It's really easy to get the next one for
free, no charge at all, no shipping, no handling, nada.  Go ahead,
make my day, force me to spend money on you.  Any complaints about
the price of our disc are really, truly out of line, I think.

So here I am, debating wankers who aren't skilled or interested
enough to contribute one (presumably great) model in order to get our
next disc for free...  Please, put up or shut up.  We're not forcing
you to buy our disc.

The models we're received for the next edition of the 3D-ROM are of
higher quality than the first disc, I think.  I hope to get more demo
models from the commercial modeling companies, too.

Enough already?  Nah, I find these discussions much more exciting
than reading failed subscribe and unsubscribe requests, or messages
that start out saying "I know this isn't Imagine-related, but I
thought y'all might know...", or rumors about when Imagine 3.0 might
really ship, or how to run a PAR, or ...




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #229 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Labyrinth of Time
Date: Thu, 14 Apr 94 19:03:41 PDT
From: [e-mail]

>I have heard that Imagine was used to produce the game "Labyrinth of
>Time". Is that true? If so, then I have to say that it's the best
>program for the price.

This is absolutely a true fact. Brad Schenck ([e-mail])
created virtually all of Labyrinth's fantastic graphics with
Imagine. What he didn't make in Imagine he created in DPaint (some
non 3D stuff such as the save-game screen and etc.). He also
made heavy use of ADPro to post-process the zillions of Imagine
generated frames.

Brad created every model in Labyrinth, a process that took him
nearly if not more than two years of intense work. He's a living
master of Imagine.. I visited his home a few times while he was
working on renderings for Labyrinth and watched him crank out
some objects as he leaned back in his computer chair and held a
conversation with me. Truly a remarkably talented guy.

BTW, an enhanced version of the 50's Diner you see in Labyrinth is
available from Brad's company, "Terra Nova Development" and through
Amiga dealers, in both Imagine and LW object formats.

Harv
[e-mail]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #230 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re:  Axis to grind!
Date:     Thu, 14 Apr 1994 22:43:31 -0400
From: Jason B Koszarsky <[e-mail]>

>is there any way to move just the axis ofan object without going
>to the tranformation submenu and use tranlate,

You can click the SHIFT button ON on the bottom of your screen and
then click the MOVE button.  The SHIFT restricts moves, rotations, &
scaling to the axis only.

If you use the keyboard short-cut, use a upper-case 'M' to move only
the axis.

Jason K.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #231 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Axis to grind!
Date: 15 Apr 1994   03:07:43 GMT
From: Michael Comet <[e-mail]>

>          Anywhere my question is, is there any way to move just the axis of
> an object without going to the tranformation submenu and use tranlate,

    To move, rotate, scale an axis....pick the object, and then instead of
hitting m,r or s,  press the SHIFT key and M,R or S at the same time.
That's it!



--
+-------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Michael B. Comet [e-mail] CWRU Software Engineer/Graphics Artist |
+-------------------------------------------------------------------------+



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #232 ***************************************:-)

Subject: 2 Brush Wrapping Questions
Date:    Fri, 15 Apr 94 00:36 EDT
From: "Ryan Johnson"                              <[e-mail]>

I have a 320x320 iff24 image that I want wrapped around the lower
part of a bottle as a label.

I have selected flat x wrap z and edited the axis to the correct
height.

Whaddya know, it worked.....BUT the image goes all the way around the
bottle, is it possible to specify a limited distance to wrap?

Last but not least.  Is it possible to TILE a brush over an object?

BTW: I am using version 2.0

Thanks - Ryan.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #233 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Axis to grind!
Date: Thu, 14 Apr 1994 21:27:51 -0700 (PDT)
From: Mike McCool <[e-mail]>

Hey Brad,

    Great synchrony.  I was just doing this very thing last night, at
our local amiga user's group meeting.  I'd imported an iff into the
detail editor, and its axis ended way the hell out in the air.  I ended
up adding another axis, where I wanted it.  Then I picked all, then
merged it.

    Bingo.  The off-yonder axis disappeared, and my axis was inside
where I wanted it.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #234 ***************************************:-)

Subject: RE: mobicogs uploaded to Aminet
Date: Thu, 14 Apr 1994 21:53:34 -0700 (PDT)
From: Jeremy White <[e-mail]>

On Thu, 14 Apr 1994, Jason Jack wrote:

>
> 2.0 manual?  Understanding Imagine?  I can't remember where.  Maybe in the
> FAQ?

Where can you get the FAQ?  Please be specific, I have to use ftpmail.....

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Time flys like an arrow, fruit flies like a bananna. - G. Marx

----------------------------------------------------------------------------



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #235 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Axis to grind!
Date: Thu, 14 Apr 94 20:45:09 -0700
From: [e-mail] (Greg Pringle)

>        Hello all, I have an Imagine question to ask!!! No really... no
>flames, no ads, no sh*t; a real type user question. (Kind of nostalgic, heh

  <gasp> B^)

>         Anywhere my question is, is there any way to move just the axis of
>an object without going to the tranformation submenu and use tranlate,

  Try Shift-M to move, and Shift-R to rotate.


 Greg


--
+--------------------------+----------------------------------------------+
| Greg Pringle             |                                              |
| [e-mail] |          "Better dead than smeg"             |
| [e-mail] |                                              |
+--------------------------+----------------------------------------------+


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #236 ***************************************:-)

Subject: RE: Axis to grind
Date: Fri, 15 Apr 94 13:17 BST-1
From: Stephen Loughran <[e-mail]>

>         Anywhere my question is, is there any way to move just the axis of
>an object without going to the tranformation submenu and use tranlate,
>position, etc. It would be nice if one could just drag that sucker around
>like an object. Even in its' own bounding box it would be much easier to
>manipulate than to have to resort to the above mentioned submenu. Oh I can
>make it go where I want it with the transform method but, rarely in just
>one visit to the transform requester.
>                                As always thanks in advance,

    to move, rotate or scale JUST the axis of an object, press
<SHIFT> and theM,R or S key... this only affects the axis and not the
object..

    steve



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #237 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Labyrinth of Time
Date: Fri, 15 Apr 1994 08:40:04 -0700
From: [e-mail] (Lesk)

>BTW, an enhanced version of the 50's Diner you see in Labyrinth is
>available from Brad's company, "Terra Nova Development" and through
>Amiga dealers, in both Imagine and LW object formats.

This would'nt be the 50's diner that we were all invited to help work on
but never saw would it?

>
>Harv
>[e-mail]




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #238 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Axis to grind!
Date: Fri, 15 Apr 1994 08:38:26 -0800
From: [e-mail] (Brad Molsen)

>        Hello all, I have an Imagine question to ask!!! No really... no
>flames, no ads, no sh*t; a real type user question. (Kind of nostalgic, heh
>Lesk!)


    Well, from the response I got, apparently I missed something in the
manual!! Thanks for the gentle responses, I could have been made to feel
like the guy who asked where the words go when you erase a chalkboard!
        But, wasn't it nice to have a user question for a change.
Incidently, I bet there's just a few people on this list who are running to
their mail boxes when they get home lately.
                                Thanks again,
                                        The Dithering Idiot
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
        JUST SAY NO, TO GUNS!!!

Brad Molsen c/o  LORAL                          [e-mail]

13810 SE Eastgate Way Suite 500                 [phone]
Bellevue, Wa 98005                              Fax: [phone]



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #239 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Imagine????
Date: Fri, 15 Apr 1994 09:23:09 -0700
From: [e-mail] (Lesk)

Thanks for all those who replied and would like to hear more about 3.0

Andrew said....
snip snip....

>Yeah, me too... Damn thing turned into a Pegger Debate Section. What a pisser.
>3.0 any day now, eh?
>
>Can hardly wait!

Yeah amen! I would really like to know more about some of the new features like

  >OBject Constraints
  >Kinnematics
  >Bones  (you mentioned that one but it is the best of any software)
                I wonder what the diff is between these two? (Kinn&Bones)

  >Transparency pass through for FOg and Transparent objects for Background pics

  >Global FX
  >Camera control for Depth of Field
  >Full browse for adding images and objects states in the Action editor
  >Pop Morphing
                This one really seems strange I am dying to find out about this.

                Stethem asked about it earlier and I am hoping for more info.

  >Full Spline interpolation
  >Ease in and Ease out between key frames
                Do you think this means varation in motion between objects?

  >Object spline deformation
                I have an imagination and in there I do weird things with this..



  >State import to add objects to a state
  >Pencil Test in Detail editor
  >Haze objects
                I wonder if this will solve my gazeebo troubles?

  >Edgless transparency


                        Well needless to say there are some things of real
curiosity here and I am really anxious to figure them all out....



                                        Thanks for the reply Andrew
                                                render Ho!
                                                    Lesk





IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #240 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: A4000T's and C=
Date: Thu, 14 Apr 94 18:37:18 MET
From: [e-mail] (Paul Kolenbrander)

Hello Yury German,On 12 APR 1994 17:05:10 you said regarding Re: A4000T's and C=
:

>           Andrew My recomendation is to stay away from the 4000T. I have the
> 4000 and it was the worse mistake I ever made buying it. The machine is
> slow and the graphics are not very good.

Being the owner of both an A3000 and a A4000/040, I can agree on most points.
If I'd bought my Piccolo 24bit GFX card before I had the A4000,  I would most
likely not have bought that A4000. It's a nice machine if you upgrade from an
A2000 or older. But an A3000(T) has all the features of the A4000 but the AGA
chipset. (And has an excellent SCSI on board)  But the lack of AGA is easy to
overcome by getting a decent $500 GFX card like the Piccolo.  In the A3000 it
outperformed my A4000/040 easily... And processor-wise one can get 040 boards
for the A3000. The only major drawback of the A3000's is the fact it uses ZIP
sockets for it's memory.  Almost forcing you to get a memory board,  as these
ZIP's are difficult (not to mention expensive) to obtain...

--
----------------------- E-mail Only -> [e-mail] -
-- Paul Kolenbrander -- UUEncoded   -> [e-mail] ---
----------------------- C= adspe    -> [e-mail] -
- (ECL042) Amiga&CD32 -------------------------------------------
----------------------- Volume EMPTY is FULL?? Only Amiga... ;) -



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #241 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Labyrinth of Time
Date: Fri, 15 Apr 1994 11:22:13 -0700
From: [e-mail] (Lesk)

>>
>>>BTW, an enhanced version of the 50's Diner you see in Labyrinth is
>>>available from Brad's company, "Terra Nova Development" and through
>>>Amiga dealers, in both Imagine and LW object formats.
>>
>>This would'nt be the 50's diner that we were all invited to help work on
>>but never saw would it?
>>
>>>
>
>Nope.. it's a set of completely Brad-created objects used in
>Labyrinth.
>
>Harv

Cool I would like to see it sometime. Is there a demo or anything? I have
no cd-rom.



                                        Render Ho!
                                           Lesk




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #242 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Labyrinth of Time
Date: Fri, 15 Apr 94 09:19:00 PDT
From: Stethem Ted              5721 <[e-mail]>

Harv,
   Thanks for the interesting, inspirational post.  Brad Schenck has to be
one of the living legends of Amiga graphics.
   Since you are so close to Terra Nova, maybe you can help me out?  I just
viewed the Magic Lantern demo on aminet a couple of days ago and I WANT THAT
PROGRAM!  The demo does say it is directly available from Terra Nova.  Since
distributors get volume discounts, their price is usually a little lower
than list.  However, I have been unable to find any software distributor
listings in Amiga Whirld that carry Magic Lantern.  Can you tell me which
distributors are carrying it?  Thanks for any assistance you may be able to
provide.
 ----------
From: imagine-relay
To: imagine
Subject: Re: Labyrinth of Time
Date: Thursday, April 14, 1994 7:03PM

>I have heard that Imagine was used to produce the game "Labyrinth of
>Time". Is that true? If so, then I have to say that it's the best
>program for the price.

This is absolutely a true fact. Brad Schenck ([e-mail])
created virtually all of Labyrinth's fantastic graphics with
Imagine. What he didn't make in Imagine he created in DPaint (some
non 3D stuff such as the save-game screen and etc.). He also
made heavy use of ADPro to post-process the zillions of Imagine
generated frames.

Brad created every model in Labyrinth, a process that took him
nearly if not more than two years of intense work. He's a living
master of Imagine.. I visited his home a few times while he was
working on renderings for Labyrinth and watched him crank out
some objects as he leaned back in his computer chair and held a
conversation with me. Truly a remarkably talented guy.

BTW, an enhanced version of the 50's Diner you see in Labyrinth is
available from Brad's company, "Terra Nova Development" and through
Amiga dealers, in both Imagine and LW object formats.

Harv
[e-mail]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #243 ***************************************:-)

Subject: RE: mobicogs uploaded to Aminet
Date: Fri, 15 Apr 94 19:59:04 GMT
From: Jason Jack <[e-mail]>

> Where can you get the FAQ?  Please be specific, I have to use ftpmail..=
=2E..

I've got FAQ #4, dated 29 September, 1993.  Can't remember where I got it=
=2E..

FAQ #3 is in Aminet (wuarchive.wustl.edu or your local mirror) in
/pub/aminet/gfx/3d/Imagine_FAQ_3.lha but it is dated 7/5/93

Could the keeper of the FAQ please upload #4 to Aminet please.  I'll do i=
t
if you want.

btw, how about updating it? some of the stuff in the IML in the last few
months could be added.

See you,
Jay



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #244 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Labyrinth of Time
Date: Fri, 15 Apr 94 12:49:18 PDT
From: [e-mail]

>
>This would'nt be the 50's diner that we were all invited to help work on
>but never saw would it?
>

No, it's not. Brad created all the Labyrinth objects and his
Diner set is derived from and enhanced from those objects.
He's not re-selling anyone else's creations. He's selling his
own creations.

Harv
[e-mail]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #245 ***************************************:-)

Subject: C= Buyout Rumor update
Date: Fri, 15 Apr 94 11:23:00 PDT
From: Stethem Ted              5721 <[e-mail]>

  I called Commodore USA headquarters in Westchester, PA and couldn't get a
human answer.  So, I talked to the authorized C= dealer in this area.  He
had just talked to their distributor in Florida.  The official word is that
C= has NOT been bought out yet, but several, about 3, outside companies were
inquiring about buying C= out.  The distributor said no one within C= is
allowed to disclose the names of those companies.
  The production/shipment of the A4000T is up in the air, may or may not
happen.  Part of all this uncertainty is that Commodore is an international
company so different policies are applied to different divisions.  The
dealer gave me a "for instance": the CD32.
  CD 32's were being shipped to Canada but authorized C= dealers in the US
were not being allowed to import them from Canada to sell in the US.
 However, non-authorized C= distributors in the US were getting CD 32's from
Canada and reselling them in the US.  This dealer I was talking to  was very
frustrated by this since he is an official authorized dealer for C=  and
couldn't get CD32's and his unauthorized competitor up the street was
selling CD32's like crazy.  He is now receiving authorized CD32's although
they are coming to C= US through C= Canada and being relabeled C= US!
 Apparently, the way it works is that the C= division has to buy the
hardware to sell, and since C= is not selling well in the US, the US
division cannot compete with the Canadian division for distribution. Go
figure...
  I asked him about the Sony buyout rumor and he said that has been going
around for quite awhile and is  FALSE.  He said that is one fact about what
is going on that could be disclosed with certainty.
  The dealer recommended reading the Wall Street Journal because if C= is
bought out, it will be in there.  Also, C= is back on the NYSE active
trading although the stock is still in the mud.
   Sorry for taking up non-Imagine related bandwidth but I wanted to clear
up my earlier post.  Now, back to rendering ...


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #246 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Labyrinth of Time
Date: Fri, 15 Apr 94 16:47:12
From: [e-mail]@ra.msstate.edu (Dan Murrell Jr.)

Stethem Ted         5721 said on Apr 15 :

> than list.  However, I have been unable to find any software distributor
> listings in Amiga Whirld that carry Magic Lantern.  Can you tell me which
> distributors are carrying it?  Thanks for any assistance you may be able to
> provide.

Ted, Anti-Gravity Products is selling it for $55, taken from last month's
Video Toaster User...



                    __
Sent from Danimal's AmiTCP-ing Amiga 500// Amigas!/Saturday morning Wrestling/
  Dan Murrell Jr.   IRC's Danimal __  /// James Taylor/Pink Floyd/Roger>Dave!/
    [e-mail]      \\\/// Imagine/Essence/AmiTCP/AMosaic/3Dgfx/
   http://www.msstate.edu/~djm2    \XX/ ImageMasterRT/Wavefront under-achiever



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #247 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Axis to grind!
Date: Fri, 15 Apr 1994 15:33:17 -0600 (MDT)
From: Roger Straub <[e-mail]>

On Thu, 14 Apr 1994, Brad Molsen wrote:

> Is there any way to move just the axis of
> an object without going to the tranformation submenu and use tranlate,
> position, etc.? It would be nice if one could just drag that sucker around


Actually, as mentioned in the tutorial manual of 1.1, you can drag the
axis of an object around by holding down the SHIFT key and pressing M.




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #248 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re:  Imagine Upgrade Prices
Date:     Fri, 15 Apr 1994 19:15:45 -0400
From: Jason B Koszarsky <[e-mail]>

>I like Imagine but if the upgrade price is going to be $200 for current
>version 1.1 owners then I will be happy to stick with version 1.1.
>So how about it Impulse?  Version 3.0 upgrade for $100 to owners of any
>version of Imagine.  That sounds like fair pricing to me. ;-)
>
>-Jeff Wahaus-

If you don't think the changes from 1.1 to 3.0 are worth 200$ then you
better crawl out of your cave.  200$ is more than a fair price for
the upgrade you'd be getting.

700$ is a steep price if you're starting out on 3.0 but if you got a version
1.1 or 2.0 from somewhere you could save a lot via the upgrade offer.

Jason K.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #249 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Imagine FAQ
Date: Fri, 15 Apr 94 19:40:07 EDT
From: [e-mail]

I am looking for the Imagine FAQ.  But I can only recieve regular e-mail.
Help!!!


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #250 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Retina & ADPro
Date: Fri, 15 Apr 94 21:28:13 CDT
From: [e-mail] (Joseph C. Garner)

I just picked up a copy of ADPro v2.5.  I was hoping to use it with my
Retina 24bit display board.  (And Imagine.)  But it requires retina.library
ver 4.XX or above.
Bummer, but I only have ver 3.8.  Is there a site that has the version I
need or do I have to go to the company for a time wasting upgrade?

Thanks.

Joseph C. Garner




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #251 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Retina & ADPro
Date: Fri, 15 Apr 94 21:28:13 CDT
From: [e-mail] (Joseph C. Garner)

I just picked up a copy of ADPro v2.5.  I was hoping to use it with my
Retina 24bit display board.  (And Imagine.)  But it requires retina.library
ver 4.XX or above.
Bummer, but I only have ver 3.8.  Is there a site that has the version I
need or do I have to go to the company for a time wasting upgrade?

Thanks.

Joseph C. Garner




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #252 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Magic Lantern Availability
Date: Fri, 15 Apr 94 23:31:44 PDT
From: [e-mail]

Ted Stethem writes:

>   ....I just
> viewed the Magic Lantern demo on aminet a couple of days ago and I WANT THAT
> PROGRAM!  The demo does say it is directly available from Terra Nova.  Since
> distributors get volume discounts, their price is usually a little lower
> than list.  However, I have been unable to find any software distributor
> listings in Amiga Whirld that carry Magic Lantern.  Can you tell me which
> distributors are carrying it?  Thanks for any assistance you may be able to
> provide.

  You can certainly order Magic Lantern from Creative Computers; if your local
dealer orders stock from Micropace he or she will be able to get it for you
also.  I also know that Safe Harbor has been selling the program, and I'd guess
that several of the other mail order houses are also.  You might call their
order lines and ask.
  ________________________________________________________________________
 | ______________________________________________________________________ |
 || ______  _ __  _______                          ______  _ __  _______ ||
 || \  __ \/ __ \/ __   /    Bradley W. Schenck    \  __ \/ __ \/ __   / ||
 ||  \ \ \/ /  \/ /  / /   Terra Nova Development   \ \ \/ /  \/ /  / /  ||
 ||  / /_/ /\__/ /\__\ \    Ventura,  California    / /_/ /\__/ /\__\ \  ||
 || /_____/\____/\______\                          /_____/\____/\______\ ||
 ||______________________________________________________________________||
 |________________________________________________________________________|



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #253 ***************************************:-)

Subject: cmtj2imp.lha uploaded to Aminet
Date: Sat, 16 Apr 94 09:09:49 GMT
From: Jason Jack <[e-mail]>

Hi all,

The project file for cometj2 made it onto Aminet last night.  Probably take
a few days for all the mirrors to get it.

Here is the readme...

Short: Imagine 2.9 project file for cometj2
Type: gfx/misc
Uploader: [e-mail] (Jason Jack)
Author: [e-mail] (Jason Jack)

13th April 1994, London, England

Readme file for cmtj2imp.lha
----------------------------

Contents:
  pt3.imp       - Imagine project directory
  pt3.txt       - this file

pt3.imp is the Imagine 2.9 project for an anim called cometj2.  cometj1 was
posted up on Aminet - the readme is at the end of this file.  cometj2 is
very similar; I changed the camera path, changed the particle spheres to
multicolored spinning particle tetrahedrons, and doubled the frames.  I was
trying to blow up a 28MB 486... next time I'll use dodecahedrons ;-)

Please - no private mail.  All questions/comments/flames to the Imagine
Mailing List (details at the end of this file).  Share and enjoy :-)

Notes:

1) This project file will run equally well on an Amiga or on a PC.
   Amiga: assign R: to where the pt3.imp dir is
   PC:    subst R: to where the pt3.imp dir is

2) Save memory by changing the particles to spheres and ray-tracing it.  Set
   the RSDP down to 2, add some reflectance and a global brush map - looks
   good.

3) Save memory by reducing the number of faces, and the emission
   percentages.

The 'random' motions seen in cometj1 are less obvious here.  To get a better
view try freezing the peanut in space and watch the head from within the
tail.

I am definitely not a particle guru - the trick with the states and the
effect on particles was a result of a failed experiment plus some further
trial and error.  Mad scientist mode.  Yes, I have a machine in the corner
that goes <!>BZZzzzzpt<!>  (Must get around to rendering that ;-) )

4) Particles affected by [state] translations of their parent go all flat
   and wierd when the z-axis crosses the xy-plane.  Its like the poles of
   the z-axis define the height?  You can see that peanut.6 only moves
   slightly.  Increasing this will stir things up :-)

5) You'll notice that there is an initial 'cloud' of particles that is
   noticeably denser than the continuous stream that comes off after.
   It seems that emitting particles _all_ emit on the first frame (a guess).



Enjoy,
Jay



pt3.imp may be freely distributed so long as this readme stays with it.

pt3.imp is Copyright (C) 1994 Jason Jack.  All rights reserved.
May not be used commercially without the written consent of the author.
Applies to stills and animations created using pt3.imp

---

Readme file for cometj1
-----------------------

[deleted for just this posting]

---

Copied from the Imagine Mailing List intro
------------------------------------------

[how to join - deleted for just this posting]



Bye,
Jay


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #254 ***************************************:-)

Subject: re: 3D Rom ???
Date: Sat, 16 Apr 1994 11:01:09 -0400 (EDT)
From: [e-mail] (William V. Swartz)

I usually don't jump into these things but Blaq! stated his argument so
eloquently I just had to post my agreement with him, and with Foust's.

I consider the products that compile archives of information and files a
major resource.  These people deserve to not only make enough money to pay
for these efforts, but to profit from them so that they may buy groceries
and pay bills to continue providing our market with product.

Personally I do not own 3Drom, yet, so I can not review it as it seems so
many that also do not own it do.  I do hope to get in on version two if I
can get a worthy object put together so I do wish than John continues with
this excellent project.  Just think how many months it would take yourself
to complete this task.  I'd also like to take this opportunity to say that
it really steams me to see people bitch about something when they haven't
got a clue.  Just because you can't afford something doesn't give you the
right to bad mouth it.

Off soapbox, returning to my listening for Imagine tips.

  //
\X/ -BiL-
    [e-mail]             (See my 'Imagine'-ary signature below)


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #255 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: C= Buyout Rumor
Date: Fri, 15 Apr 94 19:00:19 MET
From: [e-mail] (Paul Kolenbrander)

Hello Stethem Ted              5721,On 14 APR 1994 07:32:00 you said regarding C
= Buyout Rumor:

>    There are very strong rumors from Europe that Commodore has been bought
> out by Sony.  If you didn't know already, Sony bought Psygnosis last year

Well, to be exact, the rumor states its either Sony, Philips or HP. But
there is an equally strong one stating CBM is restructuring in a deal with
it's creditors to keep afloat...

> in Toronto last year.  This would all make sense since Sony is a leading
> supplier of CD-ROM drives and owns a movie studio (forget which one MCA or
> Universal or another one).

They also own CBS. Or should I say Sony Music.

>    Sony also has strong alliances with MicroSoft and Hewlett-Packard.  Have
> you heard about HP PA-RISC?  Maybe there will be an Amiga 5000 with PA-RISC
> processor, PCI bus, DSP sound, and most important of all, Amiga OS!

If and when Sony picks up CBM, it will most likely be for the AAA chipset and
CD32. For use in games consoles. Not for the Amiga line. They will most likely
drop it. The same goes for Philips. If there has indeed a takeover taken place,
HP is most likely one to keep the Amiga line alive. And develop it...

--
----------------------- E-mail Only -> [e-mail] -
-- Paul Kolenbrander -- UUEncoded   -> [e-mail] ---
----------------------- CBMNET adsp -> [e-mail] -
- (ECL042) Amiga&CD32 -------------------------------------------
----------------------- Volume EMPTY is FULL?? Only Amiga... ;) -



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #256 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: 3DROM
Date: Thu, 14 Apr 1994 11:26:58 PDT
From: [e-mail] (Scott Pack,SQA)

Hi All,

Well I've heard a lot of beefing about the 3DROM.  Just to give you a idea
of a *high value* product - Virtual Realities Labs is shipping PC Vista Pro
3.0 on CD.  But that's only the beginning.  The CD includes virtually every
landscape they sell (including all of Mars), plus MakePath, VistaMorph, PD
animation and image viewing programs, some sample animations and sounds,
etc.

The price - $80.00!!!

Now I'm not plugging VistaPro or VRL, but I did like the price of the CD -
so much so that I bought a multimedia upgrade kit for my PC!

-Scott
[e-mail]



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #257 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Labyrinth of Time
Date: Sat, 16 Apr 94 13:08:00 PDT
From: Stethem Ted              5721 <[e-mail]>

   Thank you for the leads.  I just didn't see any ads in AmigaWhirld
specifically for Magic Lantern but when I called, several places had it.
 The price stated from Anti-Gravity Products was for V1.0.  And they didn't
have any in stock.  Also, they wanted $8 for shipping, kind of steep IMO.
 So, I went elsewhere.
  And to Brad Schenck ---  "I'M NOT WORTHY,  I'M NOT WORTHY!!!" and I mean
that, really :^)
 ----------
From: [e-mail]
To: Stethem Ted       5721
Cc: imagine
Subject: Re: Labyrinth of Time
Date: Friday, April 15, 1994 4:47PM

Stethem Ted              5721 said on Apr 15 :

> than list.  However, I have been unable to find any software distributor
> listings in Amiga Whirld that carry Magic Lantern.  Can you tell me which
> distributors are carrying it?  Thanks for any assistance you may be able
to
> provide.

Ted, Anti-Gravity Products is selling it for $55, taken from last month's
Video Toaster User...

                                        __
Sent from Danimal's AmiTCP-ing Amiga 500// Amigas!/Saturday morning
Wrestling/
  Dan Murrell Jr.   IRC's Danimal __  /// James Taylor/Pink
Floyd/Roger>Dave!/
        [e-mail]       \\\///
Imagine/Essence/AmiTCP/AMosaic/3Dgfx/
   http://www.msstate.edu/~djm2    \XX/ ImageMasterRT/Wavefront
under-achiever



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #258 ***************************************:-)

Subject: particles
Date: Sat, 16 Apr 1994 14:04:15 -0700 (PDT)
From: Mike McCool <[e-mail]>

Hey guys, and guyas,

    Firstly, thanks to that thoughtful soul who pointed out that to
get particle effects to show up as something besides triangles, we need
to do a full trace.

    But specifically, I'm trying to make a block of tofu particalize
into smaller cubes.  And I've gotten it to do so nicely.

    My query is, how come, even before the Particles FX frame has
even arrived yet in the anim, my tofu cube already has all these facets?

    I want it to start out looking like a cube, not some cubist
representation of a cube.  How do I do dat?

    As ever, thanks in a trance.



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #259 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Where, Oh where is my 3.0?
Date: Sat, 16 Apr 94 18:11:13 EDT
From: [e-mail] (Paul Marino)

Speaking of upgrades:

It's April 16th -  Do you know where your 3.0 is?

I remember a post last week saying that Impulse would start
shipping the 11th of April.

Has anyone received theirs yet?

Just inquiring...

Your friendly NYC Imagineer,
Paul Marino
([e-mail])


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #260 ***************************************:-)

Subject: imagine 3.0
Date: Sun, 17 Apr 94 07:07:35 EDT
From: [e-mail]

If Impulse started to ship 3.0 on Monday I am sure that someone out there
must have received theirs by now, unless they are shipping by snail or
tortoise.a


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #261 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Imagine upgrade prices
Date: Sat, 16 Apr 1994 05:18 EDT
From: [e-mail]

I just received some email from Mark Sachs stating that Impulse is letting
N. American who have the Amiga format cover disk upgrade to Imagine 3.0
for $100. Maybe Impulse has decided to change its policy.

                               Scott Corley

[e-mail]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #262 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: A4000T's and C=
Date: Sat, 16 Apr 94 15:13:25 MET
From: [e-mail] (Paul Kolenbrander)

Hello Michel J. Brown,On 15 APR 1994 23:42:10 you said regarding Re: A4000T's an
d C=:

> Excuse me, but have you ever seen an A4000T? I have, and IMHO, if you have, yo
u
> wouldn't have said what you did. From what I saw, the tower version is what th
e A4000
> should've been from the beginning. It actually *uses* burst mode! Then it has
not one,
> but *TWO* video slots! Also, it sports a 40MHz '040, and is blindingly fast, f
aster than
> say, a 66MHz Pentium, IMO. Not only all this, but it even has four full ISA bu
s slots, as
> well as five ZIII slots, and *NO* ZIII bus contention for DMA! Other features
include

Excuse me? I've manned the CBM booth at the CeBit last month. And there where 3
A4000T's there. But none of them had a 40MHz '040. The tower is basically a
standard A4000 with an extra videoslot and an A4091 integrated on the mother-
board. With the same 25MHz 040...

> both a SCSI II fast/wide host adapter, and an IDE host adapter. Finally, as is
 the case
> with the A3000, it even has flicker fixer technology added (and there was much

> rejoicing!) So, being now fully informed, what would you say about the new A40
00T? I

Flicker fixer technology added? The one flickerfixer technology I have seen
inside these A4000T's is the standard DBL modes. Now what was that about being
'fully informed'?


--
----------------------- E-mail Only -> [e-mail] -
-- Paul Kolenbrander -- UUEncoded   -> [e-mail] ---
----------------------- C= adspe    -> [e-mail] -
- (ECL042) Amiga&CD32 -------------------------------------------
----------------------- Volume EMPTY is FULL?? Only Amiga... ;) -



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #263 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Object Thumbnails...
Date:     Sun, 17 Apr 1994 16:10:00 -0400
From: [e-mail] (David Wyand)

Hi Jeff!

>No they don't but that's a great idea.  Lets start including a small
>rendering, say no bigger than 320x200x4, of every object we submit
>to the internet.  These thumbnails could also be uploaded to a separate
>directory.  This would make object browsing much easier.

Hey, I think that's a great idea!  A small, maybe greyscale pic of any
objects uploaded.  That's especially a great idea for those REALLY BIG
objects.  Everyone else agree?

                                        -Dave
                                         [e-mail]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #264 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Editing a path.
Date: Mon, 18 Apr 94 10:16:51 EST
From: [e-mail] (Graeme Mc Donough)

Hi all

I am one of the people who enjoys playing around with Imagine as a hobby.
One of the things that I could not grasp, is the editing of a path.
Shure I can make things move around, but I dont know how to play around
with the
path that is generated or make a path for something to follow.

Can any of the resident guru's reply on this please.






/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-SUN
Graeme Mc Donough,
INTERNET: [e-mail]  (postmaster)
                                                                        ///
Monash University                                                      ///
Dpt of Earth Sciences                                                 ///
Clayton, Melbourne                                                \\\///
Victoria, AUSTRALIA 3168                                           \XX/
PHONE: [phone]
/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-TWIRL





IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #265 ***************************************:-)

Subject: No 3.0 yet
Date: Sun, 17 Apr 1994 20:26:06 -0500 (CDT)
From: Cliff Lee <[e-mail]>

I was one of the first to get 2.9 (PC Version).  I have not recieved 3.0
yet, but will post as soon as I get it.  Who knows it might be in my
mailbox at work even as I type...  Naaaaaahhh.


Cliff Lee
"Either Eat or Drink; never mix"
[e-mail]
[e-mail]



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #266 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: What it the upgrade price for 2.0 -> 3.0?
Date:     Sun, 17 Apr 1994 20:07:10 -0700
From: "Steve \"Vis\" Lopez" <[e-mail]>

>
> In the last issue of Impulse Graphics World, the Impulse newsletter, the
> upgrade was listed as $100.
>

Say, how often does this come out?  How does one get it?  I am a
registered user of 2.0 and I've never seen it...  Am I supposed to be
seeing it?

Steve.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #267 ***************************************:-)

Subject: re:Imagine Upgrades
Date: Mon, 18 Apr 94 03:07:43 PDT
From: 18-Apr-1994 0451 <[e-mail]>

Geez,
    Enough Already. I have seen Turbo Silver, had to pay 35.00 to get
 Turbo Silver SV(never sold thru stores), and have had every upgrade since
 then. I just ordered 3.0. So it's hard to picture many that have shelled
 out more(just on the program, no t shirts ect) than me. Meanwhile I have
 gotten use out of Imagine almost every day, and enjoyed most of it. So
 I can't really complain. I really don't care if the UK users got a better
 deal because I got my worth out of my initial investment a long long time
 Ago. As for upgradeing from 1.1, well everybody(I know there are a few)
 has had the chance to upgrade along the road. I just recently turned an
 offer down to upgrade another product. I year from now I may regret it.
 I got this offer in the mail at mid month, and HAD until the 31st to send
 In a check. Well that I felt was unreasonable. Every upgrade to Imagine
 Has had improvements that were well worth the price. I like to think my
 upgrade expences were what made 3.0 possible.
                            bill


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #268 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Understanding Imagine 2.0
Date: Mon, 18 Apr 1994 10:11:22 -0400 (EDT)
From: "Mr. Scott Krehbiel; ACS (PC)" <[e-mail]>

Hi peoples

I figure that you all are enjoying your wonderful Imagine 3.0, right?
so you don't really want that old copy of Understanding Imagine 2.0, right?
.....wrong?

Well, I'm looking for a copy of the Worley book and I'm having no luck.

Anybody have an old copy they'd consider selling?

thanks
Scott Krehbiel
[e-mail]



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #269 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Newly Born
Date: Tue, 19 Apr 1994 01:32:27 +1000 (EST)
From: Nikola Vukovljak <[e-mail]>

>
> the path: /pub/aminet/gfx/3d
>
> Email me if you have questions.
>
> The files are named arc-43.lha through arc-46.lha.  There used to be
> more.  Anybody know where they are?


All the other archives are on wurchive.wustl.edu in:

/systems/amiga/boing/video/imagine/archive

and /systems/amiga/boing/incoming/imagine


New archives are being uploaded to Aminet as I don't seem to have access
to upload to the incoming directory.

Nik Vukovljak

(Your friendly IML archivist)




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #270 ***************************************:-)

Subject: AFormat Upgrade answered.
Date: Mon, 18 Apr 94 14:20:25 CDT
From: [e-mail] (Stephen Wilkinson)

I helped start this huge thread, but I've stayed out of the brushwars
waiting for an authoritative answer. I have received the answer, and
permission to post! So here it is...

I own 1.0 of Imagine. In public response on the IML to a message from
[e-mail] (who said that he was told by Mr. Halvorson
that he could upgrade the AFormat version), I asked if I could upgrade
from the AFormat version (which I also own) for US $100.00. I received
the following message from Mr. Halvorson:

> Date: 13 Apr 94 18:54:47 EDT
> From: Mike Halvorson <[e-mail]>
> To: "INTERNET:[e-mail]" <[e-mail]>
> Subject: AFormat Imagine Upgrade Plea
> Content-Length: 258
>
> wilks
>     SO send the check and you can get the upgarde for 3.0, no problem we
> would love to have your business and are excited to see new users come into th
e
> club.
>
>     Mike Halvorson
>
>     Sen you check to my attention also include 3.00 for Ship and Handle
>
>     Se ya

Since I'm kind of a stickler about attributions, I then asked for his
permission to post his reply, which I received saying:

> Date: 14 Apr 94 18:02:36 EDT
> From: Mike Halvorson <[e-mail]>
> To: "INTERNET:[e-mail]" <[e-mail]>
> Subject: Re: AFormat Imagine Upgrade Plea
> Content-Length: 74
>
> SUre do it.  Be my guest, it is public knowledge or it should be.
>
>     Mike

Hopefully, this will end this thread in a happy way. I am releived that
they were so open to my request and I have signed, sealed and delivered
my check for US $103.00 to them as of today. Sorry for the long delay,
but I wanted to wait for permission to post... Kind of a character
flaw :)

Stephen
____________________________________
Stephen Wilkinson     [e-mail]      "Programming is like pinball. The
Software Engineer                         reward for doing it well is the
LB&M Associates                           opportunity to do it again."
____________________________________
#define OPINION        (myown)
#define COMPANYOPINION (~myown)

      This message created using 87% recycled neuro-transmitters


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #271 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: What it the upgrade price for 2.0 -> 3.0?
Date: Mon, 18 Apr 1994 15:06:30 -0600 (MDT)
From: Roger Straub <[e-mail]>

On Sun, 17 Apr 1994, Steve "Vis" Lopez wrote:

>
>
> >
> > In the last issue of Impulse Graphics World, the Impulse newsletter, the
> > upgrade was listed as $100.
> >
>
> Say, how often does this come out?  How does one get it?  I am a
> registered user of 2.0 and I've never seen it...  Am I supposed to be
> seeing it?
>
> Steve.

Well, Steve, it used to come out every 4 months or so, but I haven't
recieved one for about a year and a half. When did you register?




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #272 ***************************************:-)

Subject: CAD programs
Date: Tue, 19 Apr 1994 08:16:44 +0100
From: [e-mail] (Marina Daniels)

What CAD programs on the Amiga are compatible with Imagine 2.0?

Marina

Marina Daniels                          |Red Cross Blood Transfusion Service
[e-mail]              |40 Melville Street
Information Technology Officer          |Hobart Tasmania Australia 7000
                                        |Phone [phone] Fax [phone]
______________________________________________________________________________





IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #273 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Australian Upgrade Price
Date: Tue, 19 Apr 1994 08:16:02 +0100
From: [e-mail] (Marina Daniels)

I have only just joined the mailing list - everyone appears to be
discussing the upgrade price in US dollars versus Pounds.
I live in Australia anda have a copy of Imagine 2.0 from the Amiga Format
magazine. For what price could I upgrade to Imagine 3.0?
If this is not possible could I get Imagine 3.0 cheaper by purchasing an
old version of Imagine?
Could someone please give me an APPROXIMATE cost of these options in
Australian Dollars?

Marina

Marina Daniels                          |Red Cross Blood Transfusion Service
[e-mail]              |40 Melville Street
Information Technology Officer          |Hobart Tasmania Australia 7000
                                        |Phone [phone] Fax [phone]
______________________________________________________________________________





IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #274 ***************************************:-)

Subject: BCD and the FC24
Date: Tue, 19 Apr 1994 01:11:37 -0400 (EDT)
From: Wes Parham <[e-mail]>

  Just a quickie:  To anyone successsfully using the BCD2000A edit
  controller and Impulse's Firecracker24, please send me mail.  I'm curious
  to know how much script-dancing I'll have to do to edit with that
  particular combination.  Is it worth the hassles that they might bring?
  wes~



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #275 ***************************************:-)

Subject: DEM files (sorry about this)
Date: Tue, 19 Apr 1994 10:42:47 +0200 (MET DST)
From: Lars Sandberg TBA <[e-mail]>

I will begin this with deep excuses for bringing up DEM talk in this post,
But the thing is that a while ago (quite a while actually) an address was
dumped in this list and now when i was looking for it i nnotice that a part
of my mailbox is corrupt (i know its my fault that i didn't save the mail
to a file but...), anyway i was wondering if there is any kind soul who
knows the address and wants to share it with me (the address has a HUGE
amount of DEM's from all over the world).

The other thing i want to discuss is HOW to convert those DEM's into
DEM's that are readble by vista (because the size of a file that i DID
get home was 33k compressed with lha and 8.8 Mb uncompressed i think that
these DEM's are binary or somthing).

Anyone who knows anything about the above, PLEASE mail me (i dont wanna get
the blame for disrupting the mailing list).

[e-mail]

*Imagine forever*


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #276 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Essence
Date: Tue, 19 Apr 94 10:34:50 BST
From: Andrew Conway <[e-mail]>

To all people who use Essence.
Whenever I try to use the subtle and delicately flavoured textures
of Essence, I end up with rather grotesque red and green checks all
over my object. Am I doing something REALLY stupid or does it
need silly amounts of memory or FPU versions?
Thanks in advance from any help
Andrew


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #277 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Looking for Robots
Date: Tue, 19 Apr 1994 07:38:47 -0400 (EDT)
From: [e-mail] (Adam Benjamin)

Hi all,
I have a need for a Robot, (or a strong human) I have the RobotCop
object, are there more?  I'm looking for FD objects, this is for a free
job I am doing. (I'm not good enough to make money at this yet 8-)
pointers to FTP sites and object names apprecieted.
There aren't any decent human models (male) in the FD are there?

Thanks
Adam B
[e-mail]



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #278 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Looping essence textures
Date: Tue, 19 Apr 1994 07:42:47 -0400 (EDT)
From: [e-mail] (Adam Benjamin)

Hi Again,
I seem to recall some descusion about this but I can't find it now.
Nor did I find it in the Essence manuals, but feel free to point me to
it if it is in there someplace.

I want to make a looping anim with the essenceII Wave or even Ripple
water texture.  How would you go about setting up the textures so you can
loop the output smoothly?

Thanks Again.
[e-mail]



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #279 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Essence
Date: Tue, 19 Apr 94 06:53:46 -0600
From: Steve Koren <[e-mail]>

> Whenever I try to use the subtle and delicately flavoured textures
> of Essence, I end up with rather grotesque red and green checks all

This is explained in the manual.  This is Essence's version of an error
code, since it has no other way to let you know.  See the manual for
what they all mean.

  - steve


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #280 ***************************************:-)

Date: Tue, 19 Apr 94 14:24:44 BST
From: [e-mail] (MR. R.L.COLLIER)

Sounds like you may benefit from purchasing the CycleMan objects and/or
the newer Humanoid man.  These are male and female full humans developed
for the cycle editor.  ALL limbs etc. can be moved down to fingers and toes.
Facial expressions are also possible.

Hope this helps!

Rich.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #281 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Essence
Date: Tue, 19 Apr 94 10:10:51 CDT
From: [e-mail]

>
> To all people who use Essence.
> Whenever I try to use the subtle and delicately flavoured textures
> of Essence, I end up with rather grotesque red and green checks all
> over my object. Am I doing something REALLY stupid or does it
> need silly amounts of memory or FPU versions?
                                  ^^^^^^^^^^^^

    Essence requires the FP version of Imagine.  The ugly checks
are Essence's way of telling you that you made a mistake, either
entering unusable parameters or, I presume, trying to use Essence
with the INT version of Imagine.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #282 ***************************************:-)

Subject: RE: re:3d Studio problems
Date: Tue, 19 Apr 94 07:30:00 PDT
From: Stethem Ted              5721 <[e-mail]>

Greg,
   The 3D-Studio Mailing List consists of three addresses: the request site
to subscribe/unsubscribe, the mailing list itself, and the admin address.
 To subscribe, the address is:  [e-mail].  You
should be able to subscribe by sending email to the address with a one line
request: subscribe <user name> [e-mail] or get help
on subscribing by sending email with a one-line: help 3d-studio and send it
to [e-mail].
   There is a 3D-Studio directory on wuarchive under the msdos main
directory.  Also, the central site for 3D-Studio objects is on the
avalon.chinalake mirror (some really good objects there BTW).
   You will probably be disappointed with the 3D-Studio Mailing List because
for the past month, 95% of the messages have been from people not knowing
how to subscribe/unsubscribe or bitching about not knowing how to
subscribe/unsubscribe or blaming the administrator for setting up a system
that doesn't subscribe/unsubscribe properly, etc, etc, etc, ad nauseum.  I
have to wonder about PC users sometime?
   Well, good luck.  Now I hope we can get back to Imagine since it makes 3D
Studio look pretty sick.
 ----------
From: imagine-relay
To: imagine
Subject: re:3d Studio problems
Date: Monday, April 18, 1994 11:29PM

>>documentation mentions being able to change the swap drive, but I can't
>>how to do it?  Also during rendering I get an "Invalid Normal Array"
error.
>>What is that?  Is it symtamatic of an incorrect swap drive, an incorrect
>
> I don't know why your posting this in the Imagine mailing list instead of
> the 3d studio mail list, but I have seen this error on the

 Err.. I asked a week or two ago if anyone knew about a 3d studio mailing
list or FTP site, and the only responses I got were from people who also
wanted to know.. care to enlighten us? Thanks..

> graphics.animation newsfeed before...most people who said they get this
type
> error usually have a cracked version of 3DS (not registered with dongle).
> If the version you are running is a hacked version, then this is why..if
> not, then I'd post on the 3D Studio mailing list.

  I found 3DS to be pretty quirky about the swap drive (a lot so under 2.0).
If I remember right, it used a hidden file that doesn't get deleted in some
cases, and I think there's a separate program to run to change the swap
drive, but I might be remembering wrong.

> Dave

  Greg



 --
+--------------------------+----------------------------------------------+
| Greg Pringle             |                                              |
| [e-mail] |          "Better dead than smeg"             |
| [e-mail] |                                              |
+--------------------------+----------------------------------------------+


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #283 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: What it the upgrade price for 2.0 -> 3.0?
Date:     Tue, 19 Apr 1994 18:55:37 +0200
From: [e-mail] (Stephen Bowman)

Hi everyone.

Just quoting someone here (can't remember who - sorry, dead function)

> > > In the last issue of Impulse Graphics World, the Impulse
> > > newsletter, the upgrade was listed as $100.
> > >
> >
> > Say, how often does this come out?  How does one get it?  I am a
> > registered user of 2.0 and I've never seen it...  Am I supposed to be
> > seeing it?
> >
>
> Well, Steve, it used to come out every 4 months or so, but I haven't
> recieved one for about a year and a half. When did you register?

I've been registered with Impulse since Turbo Silver days (certainly a
few years now), and now have Imagine V2.9 - the last issue I have is
Winter 92/93.  It must have died a sudden death back then.  Which is a
pity, 'cause it was interesting reading.  Has anyone ever received an
issue since then?

BFN,

Steve.

--
[e-mail] (Stephen Bowman)


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #284 ***************************************:-)

Subject: 3D Studio Mailing List
Date: Tue, 19 Apr 94 10:54:28 MDT
From: "Mark Allan Fox" <[e-mail]>

Greetings,

    First off to all the people who are posting to the IML
trying to find out about general graphics subjects, (ie. What's
the address for the 3D Studio Mailing List?) I think you would
have much better luck with one of the comp.graphics,
comp.graphics.algorithms, comp.graphics.raytracing, or
comp.graphics.animation.  Come on guys, I'm tired of seeing posts
beginning with I know this isn't Imagine realated but ...

    Now to find the answer to your problems check out the
Computer Graphics Resource Listing FAQ at rtfm.mit.edu
[18.70.0.209] in the directory pub/usenet/news.answers.  Its
archived as graphics/resources-list/part[1-4].  There's a mail
server on that machine. You send a e-mail message to
[e-mail]  containing the keyword "help" (without
quotes!) in the message body.

You can see in many other places for the Listing. See
the item:

0. Places to find the Resource Listing

for more information.

    I've never used the mail option but it might work.

    Now if all that still doesn't work you can try EMAILing
me.  If I'm in a good mood I'll EMAIL you the info you need, but
I really would recommend getting the FAQ as it gives you the
addresses of about 9 graphics related mailing lists (REAL3D,
Lightwave, Toaster, etc.)

    Let's try and keep the IML about Imagine.


                M. A. Fox
                [e-mail]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #285 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Imagine 3.0 AMIGA
Date: Tue, 19 Apr 1994 13:03:54 -0400 (EDT)
From: "Andrew P. Vogel" <[e-mail]>

Boy, am I ever depressed.

I just called Impulse to check on the status of my order, and was told that
Imagine 3.0 for the Amiga will be shipping in a 'couple days' (where have I
heard that before?). They'll be shipping it via First Class Mail, but I was
expecting to have it by the end of this week, and it doesn't look like it will
be here by then.

It's odd, too, that the IBM version is shipping... Impulse started as an Amiga
based company. Hopefully, that's not changing, and the DOS version went out
first because it's not so hard to program those inferior machines... 8-)

Bummed me out for the whole day, I'll tell ya...

-andrew vogel



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #286 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Essence
Date: Tue, 19 Apr 94 12:42:12
From: [e-mail]@ra.msstate.edu (Dan Murrell Jr.)

Andrew Conway said on Apr 19 :

> To all people who use Essence.
> Whenever I try to use the subtle and delicately flavoured textures
> of Essence, I end up with rather grotesque red and green checks all
> over my object. Am I doing something REALLY stupid or does it
> need silly amounts of memory or FPU versions?
> Thanks in advance from any help
> Andrew
>
>

Yes, that's Essence's rather neat way of telling you errors.  You must
have the FPU version of Imagine running.

Dan

                    __
Sent from Danimal's AmiTCP-ing Amiga 500// Amigas!/Saturday morning Wrestling/
  Dan Murrell Jr.   IRC's Danimal __  /// James Taylor/Pink Floyd/Roger>Dave!/
    [e-mail]      \\\/// Imagine/Essence/AmiTCP/AMosaic/3Dgfx/
   http://www.msstate.edu/~djm2    \XX/ ImageMasterRT/Wavefront under-achiever



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #287 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Essence
Date:     Tue, 19 Apr 1994 14:52:00 -0400
From: [e-mail] (David Wyand)

Hi Andrew!

>To all people who use Essence.
>Whenever I try to use the subtle and delicately flavoured textures
>of Essence, I end up with rather grotesque red and green checks all
>over my object. Am I doing something REALLY stupid or does it
>need silly amounts of memory or FPU versions?
>Thanks in advance from any help

Looking up in the trusty Essence manual (which I hope you have) I see
that Red and Green Checks means that your using the INTEGER version of
Imagine.  Essence textures require the FPU version.  There is no way
around this.  Look under the section entitled Error Messages for a full
listing.

                                        -Dave
                                         [e-mail]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #288 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Imagine 3.0 AMIGA
Date: Tue, 19 Apr 1994 14:12:16 -0500 (CDT)
From: Cliff Lee <[e-mail]>

On Tue, 19 Apr 1994, Andrew P. Vogel wrote:

> Boy, am I ever depressed.

Being an Amiga owner I understand... <G>

> It's odd, too, that the IBM version is shipping... Impulse started as an Amiga

> based company. Hopefully, that's not changing, and the DOS version went out
> first because it's not so hard to program those inferior machines... 8-)

Not so odd.  The development tools are stronger in the DOS world (There
are benifits to the number of people having the machines).  The same
thing happened with Imagine 2.9.  It has been known that Impulse develops
on DOS machines and ports to the Amiga.  So it should not be a surprise
that the DOS version would be finished first.

I can't speak for Impulse, but I'd bet that their Amiga days are numbered
(even though they have voiced the contrary).  Its a simple matter of
profit (aahhh a profit deal...).  The HUGE DOS market is looming out
there like a CASH COW that has recently discoverd "multimedia" and is
dying to jump into anyting that looks remotely "cool".  If Impulse tries
just a little, they will find themselves easily outnumbered with DOS
users.  Once that happens (ie Impuse seeing that they major $$$ coming
are from the DOS world) how long do you think it will take for them to
stop dealing with the Amiga world.  About as long as it took Byte-by-Byte
I'd bet...

This week's PC Week magazine has an interesting comment, I'll quote :

Despite assumptions of rational buying behaivior, technology acqusition
is just as susceptible to the whims of fashion and relative "coolness" as
any other consumer-products industry.  Why else would obviously superior
solutions like NeXT and the Amiga (not to mention the PCJr!) have failed
to win wide acceptance?" Page 134 PC-Weel April 18 1994 Jim Louderback.

My long winded point is that it doesn't matter which machine is
superior/inferior.  Because it has nothing to do with quality. What
matters is making the software do what its supposed to do.

Cliff Lee           [e-mail]
"You can always make up a class,
 You can never  make up a party!"



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #289 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Programming Imagine
Date:     Tue, 19 Apr 1994 15:14:00 -0400
From: [e-mail] (David Wyand)

Hi All!

I remember reading that all of the texture and FX specifics will be
released for Imagine 3.0.  How can I go about getting these (Mike,
Scott)??  I have some interesting ideas...

                                        -Dave
                                         [e-mail]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #290 ***************************************:-)

Subject: AMUC CD-ROM
Date: Fri, 15 Apr 94 12:09:45 MDT
From: [e-mail] (Lowell Lindenbach)

>  I collected a large amount of objects, catagorized them, and thumbnailed
>(a bunch) of them. I wouldn't dream of selling other people's work for a profit

>though. In fact, they're available on the AMUC CD-ROM, which I last saw for
>something like $11 Cdn. (Anybody from AMUC want to post ordering information..
>go ahead).
>
>  Greg

     If anyone is interested in the AMUC CD-ROM I would be quite happy to
send them info on ordering it.  From what I've seen so far I don't think it
would be a good idea to post what would be considered an advertisement on the li
st.
Let me just say that the CD is a very extensive collection of what comes
through the nets to our BBS in Calgary.
     If you're interested just drop me a line or two.

--
Lowell Lindenbach    [e-mail]
                     Fido: Lowell Lindenbach 1:134/27


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #291 ***************************************:-)

Subject: supporting actor
Date: Tue, 19 Apr 94 14:11:37 PDT
From: "Steve McLaughlin" <[e-mail]>

Hi, now that I have Imagine, what can I buy for it?
What's the best supporting software that you can't do without?
or hardware?
I'll offer to keep a list of descriptions, recommendations, etc.,
of supporting products.  I'll tally up the results and post them.
Can someone start off with Essence?
Thanks!
Steve McLaughlin


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #292 ***************************************:-)

Subject: IML-FAQ #5 - April 19, 1994
Date: Tue, 19 Apr 1994 10:53:55 -0400
From: [e-mail] (Michael B. Comet)

Here is the new FAQ everyone has been asking for.  I suppose we'll
have more things to add once 3.0 arrives.

Enjoy!

Mike Comet
[e-mail]


+======================================================================+
|                         Imagine Mailing List                         |
|                      FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS                      |
|----------------------------------------------------------------------|
|                             Compiled By                              |
|                           Michael B. Comet                           |
|                              Steve Mund                              |
|                            Mark Oldfield                             |
|                             Dave Wickard                             |
+======================================================================+

        This is the Frequently Asked Questions posting for the Imagine
Mailing list.  This posting is sent every so often to answer general
questions that users of the 3D rendering software, Imagine by Impulse
Inc. may have.  It is aimed toward all users, especially newcomers to
the program.

        If you find any errors or have answers to other frequently asked
questions that you would like to have included in this posting, please
send e-mail to: [e-mail] (FAQ List).

        - Mike C.

========================================================================

Last Update   : April 18, 1994 Monday
Issue Number  : 5
What's New    : Section 1, No 1.   Added more magazines and archive info
                Section 5, No 1.   Postscript problems in Spline Editor
                Section 7, No 12.  Help with FOG
                Section 7, No 13.  Widescreen rendering
                Section 7, No 14.  Rendering particle Spheres
                Section 8, No 4.   Soap Bubble Attribute
                Section 8, No 5.   Spaceship Panel attribute
                Section 8, No 6.   Using the wrinkle texture
                Section 9, No 4.   Hex edit for high res video change
                Section 9, No 5.   What are particles?

------------------------------------------------------------------------

CONTENTS:
=========

    SECTION 1 - Support Products/Sites
         1] Imagine related: References/Help Books/Magzines/ftp sites.
         2] How do I reach Impulse?
         3] What is the Imagine Mailing List and how to get it?

    SECTION 2 - Modeling and Detail Editor
         1] How do I brushmap a ground plane?
         2] How do I make glass?
         3] The Slice command doesn't work or gives me errors.
         4] How can I make a room so that the walls don't have cracks?
         5] When I select a group of points in the DETAIL editor, all I
            can do is drag them...not ROTATE or SCALE interactively.
         6] List of common Index of Refractions
         7] How do you make mirrors?
         8] How do I make "metals" and what are some good gold
            attributes?
         9] Is there a quick way to add faces to my object without
            using the Slice command?

    SECTION 3 - Forms Editor
         1] After a Forms Editor object is loaded into the Detail Editor
            and manipulated, it won't reload into the Forms Editor.

    SECTION 4 - Cycle Editor
         1] I made this animation sequence in the Cycle editor, but when
            I set it up in the stage/action editors, the motion of the
            overall object isn't there!

    SECTION 5 - Spline Editor
         1] I tried to import a Postscript font but I got a "Vector not
            found" error.  What does this mean?

    SECTION 6 - Animation, Stage Editor and Action Editor
         1] Even though I move an Object/Camera/Light to a new
            POSITION/ALIGNMENT/SIZE in the STAGE editor, Imagine seems
            to 'forget' what I did!
         2] How do I use the Grow Effect?
         3] How do I use the Tumble Effect?
         4] How do you get something to roll (at the right speed!) while
            following a path?
         5] When I move a Tracked Camera in the STAGE editor, it doesn't
            realign and draw the Perspective view correctly!
         6] When I increase the number of frames in an animation I find
            my scene gets mangled in the first frame.  Why?

    SECTION 7 - Rendering and the Project Editor
         1] Why do objects render fine in Scanline, but disappear in
            Trace?
         2] I have a problem with Filtered objects/fog and the Global
            Backdrop!
         3] My animation frames look fine, but when animated, they have
            the "crawly" effect.
         4] What situations, parameters, attribute values, etc. require
            the most trace rendering time?
          5] How do I get rid of the "Jaggies?"
         6] How can I figure out pixel aspect for a given resolution?
         7] When making a disco ball effect, will a SPHERICAL light set
            at 255 be bright enough to cause visible spots on the
            surfaces in a scene?
          8] How long should it take to do a full trace picture with
            perhaps one transparent glass on a Amiga 3000/25? Is 4.5 hrs
            too much?
         9] Is there any particular format that Imagine prefers?  Ham?
            32 Color?  EHB?  24 bit 1000 x 1000?
        10] I would like to use conical light sources with my rendering,
            is there anyway "see" in wireframe where the light will fall?
        11] How important is lighting for a rendering, and is there any
            "preset" method used to get good results?
        12] Help with Fog, How do I use it and how does it work?
        13] How can I render in Widescreen/Letterbox format?
        14] I selected Spheres for my particle object, but all I get is a
            polygonal shape!

    SECTION 8 - Essence Settings and Other Attributes
         1] Electrical Arc                  (Essence)
         2] Veined Marble                   (Essence)
         3] Rough marble/rock               (Essence)
         4] Soap Bubble                     (Imagine 2.0 and higher)
         5] Spaceship Panels                (Imagine 2.9 and higher)
         6] Bark, mountain, stone effects   (Imagine 2.9 and higher)

    SECTION 9 - Miscellaneous
         1] What the heck is BTW, IMO and other weird abbreviations...
         2] Rendering and refresh times are MUCH too slow, even with an
            accelerator. Are there any Basic tricks or hints to help?
         3] How long will before my renderings aren't ugly anymore?
         4] Hex edit for Imagine - High Res video mode change Amiga only
         5] What are Particles?

    CLOSING - Closing statements and Disclaimer

========================================================================
                   SECTION 1 - Support Products/Sites
========================================================================

1] Imagine related: References/Help Books/Magzines/ftp sites.

  REFERENCES AND HELP BOOKS:

    "Imagine 2.0 User Manual", Impulse Inc, 1992.
                   (Yes....read the manual!)

    "The Imagine Companion", David Duberman, Motion Blur Publishing,
         1991

    "Understanding Imagine 2.0", Steven Worley, Apex Software
         Publishing, 1992.

  MAGAZINES:

    These are some good graphics magazines, most of which focus on the
Amiga computer.  If anyone has some other suggestions please post them
to the FAQ list!

    "Amazing Computing for the Commodore Amiga" aka "Amazing Amiga"
    P.O. Box 2140
    Fall River, MA 02722-9969 USA
    (508) 678 - 4200
    (800) 345 - 3360
    (508) 675 - 6002 (FAX)
          (A general Amiga computer magazine, focusing more on how
    to, hints and tips, programming, reviews of software and
    hardware(less ads and more meat than AW))

    "Amiga Video/Graphics Magazine"  (formerly AVID)
    365 Victor Street
    Suite "H"
    Salinas, CA 93907
    (408) 758 - 9386
    (408) 758 - 1744 (FAX)
        (A general Amiga computer magazine, focusing on both
    hardware, software, utilities and graphics)

    "Amiga World"
    P.O Box 595
    Mt Morris, IL 61054-7900
    (800) 827 - 0877
    (815) 734 - 1109
        (A general Amiga computer magazine, focusing on both
    hardware, software, utilities and graphics)

    "AV Video"
    701 Westchester Ave
    White Plains, NY 10604
    (800) 800 - 5474
    (914) 328 - 9157
    (914) 328 - 9093 (FAX)
        (An audio/video and computer magazine.  Has articles about all
    types of video and graphics applications including the Amiga and
    Video Toaster)

    "Computer Artists"
    P.O. Box 2649
    Tulsa, OK 74101-9632
        (A magazine specifically for computer artists.  Articles on
    software and methods from Amigas, PC's and MAC's)

    "Computer Graphics World"
    P.O Box 122
    Tulsa, OK 74101-9845
    (800) 443 - 6632
    (918) 835 - 3161 ext. 400
    (918) 831 - 9497 (FAX)
        (A general computer graphics magazine focusing on the
    latest technology from PC's to SGI's)

    "Video Toaster User"
    21611 Stevens Creek Blvd.
    Cupertino, CA 95014
    (800) 322 - 2834
        (A magazine focusing specifically on NewTeks Video
    Toaster device.  Nothing related to Imagine, but some more neat
    pictures to look at!)

  FTP SITES:

    There is now a new ftp site set up for Imagine related items
including pictures, animations, tutorials, objects, and help files such
as previous postings from the list, and this FAQ at:

    wuarchive.wustl.edu
    in the  /systems/amiga/boing/video/imagine

        Under this directory are the following sub-directories:
        art
        archive
        anims
        objects

        Note:  New files cannot be sent directly here.  Instead send
any new files you wish to upload into the same directory:

    /systems/amiga/boing/incoming/imagine

        Files here will/should eventually get moved to the proper
location by the ftp site administrator.  Don't forget to send a text
file explaining the data you uploaded, and where it should be placed.

    The archives are kept by Nik Vukovljak.  They can be found in the
archive subdirectory listed above, and in the incoming/imagine
directory.  New archives may also be posted to aminet.

    Aminet can be reached on the same FTP site (wuarchive.wustl.edu)
under /systems/amiga/aminet.  Numerous other sites also have the aminet
directories.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

2] How do I reach Impulse?

    Impulse Inc.
    8416 Xerxes ave. North
    Brooklyn Park, Minnesota 55444
    USA

    [phone]
    [phone]
    FAX: [phone]

------------------------------------------------------------------------

3] What is the Imagine Mailing List and how to get it

    (From the Imagine Mailing List Sysop, Dave Wickard)

        The Imagine Mailing List is a wide variety of Amiga computer
artists sharing friendship and knowledge. The main thrust of the List is
the Imagine renderer. Subjects discussed though have varied widely.
There are discussions of Imagine and it's competitors, Imagine wish
lists for future versions, 3D rendering principles in general, single
frame recording techniques and many more.

        With first day users thru battled scarred veterans  :-)  there
is someone at your level of knowledge on the List. We are always glad to
see questions from every level of user. So often a simple and seemingly
embarrassingly easy question will lead to an interesting comment on a
related topic.

    New products, both hardware AND software, are discussed as to their
relationship with Imagine and Amiga 3D rendering.

    Names of Amiga luminaries dot the list, and often join in to lend
their insights without the usual "noise" of a USENET newsgroup.

    There are over 300 individual sites receiving the Imagine Mailing
List, and they include many networks, BBS systems, user groups, and
individual computer artists from literally around the globe.  We share
one thing.  Interest in each other's work with Imagine.

    YOU can get the Imagine Mailing List. All you need is access to
Internet mail. Simply mail to the following address:

         [e-mail]

and in your subject line, enter the word "subscribe".

    If you are reading this from a Commercial System, ask the
Amiga Coordinator to set up an Imagine Mailing List area that
everyone can read.

========================================================================
                  SECTION 2 - Modeling and Detail Editor
========================================================================

1] How do I brushmap a ground plane?

    The problem with brushmapping a ground plane is that the ground
itself is off 90 degrees in relation to its' axis for proper brush
placement.  (Add a primitive plane, a ground and compare them).  The
following will properly set a ground wrap:

         1) Add a ground object, select it, go into attributes, select a
            brush to use.
         2) You will now be in a requestor for the type of brushmap and
            placement etc...
         3) Select TRANSFORM AXIS
         4) Click on ALIGNMENT and set X = -90.  Leave Y and Z at 0
         5) Click on SIZE and leave X = +640.  Set Y = +2, Z = +400
         6) Click on POSITION and Leave X = -320, Y = -200. Set Z = +1
         7) Click on PERFORM.
         8) If you want the brushmap to repeat forever click REPEAT.
         9) Click OKAY.

        Your brushmap will now be placed correctly.  You can of course
resize it on the X/Z axis if you wish for scaling purposes.

        Basically step 4 re-rotated the brush axis properly and 5 and 6
fixed the size and position which Imagine screws up since it thinks it's
brushmapping on the other axis.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

2] How do I make glass?

        You can use the following Attribute setting for a default glass:

                   RED  GREEN  BLUE   VALUE
    COLOR          0    0      0      *
    REFLECT        0    0      0      *
    FILTER         255  255    255    *
    SPECULAR       255  255    255    *
    DITHERING      *    *      *      255
    HARDNESS       *    *      *      255
    ROUGHNESS      *    *      *      0
    SHININESS      *    *      *      0     (Very important see below!)

    PHONG = ON
    INDEX = 1.50
    FOG LENGTH = 0.00

    This should give you glass.

    One thing many people get confused by is:

         1) Shininess must be set to ZERO.  If you set this to anything
            but 0, the FILTER setting will not work.  This is just the
            way Imagine works since FILTER usage assumes shininess
            automatically.
         2) No background.  To get glass, you need surroundings.  If you
            render a glass cup on a pure black screen, you'll probably
            just see the highlights.  Adding global colors for Scanline
            and Ray Trace will give your object something to refract.
         3) Ray Trace.  To get refraction of surrounding objects
            exactly, you need to Trace, though scanline WILL approximate
            refractivity.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

3] The Slice command doesn't work or gives me errors.

    Due to the complexity of doing a 3D slice, sometimes Imagine gives
errors, or actually crashes during this operation.

    Things to do if you plan on using this function are:

         1) Save _ALL_ currently loaded object BEFORE trying to slice.
         2) If you get an error, move one of the objects slightly and
            try again.  Moving one of them may yield a working slice.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

4] I'm making a house which has many rooms and thus many walls, what is
    the best way of adding walls to the house so that they leave no
    cracks in the corners ?

        Three possible methods ---

        1. You can design your walls to be nice dimensions like 100
           or 1024 instead of 383.38. Place your axis at the corner
           of each wall. Then, to get seamless joints, use "snap to
           grid" in the project editor which will instantly adjust
           your walls to a perfect fit (If wall lengths are multiples
           of the grid line spacing).

        2. Create a 2D outline of the floorplan and extrude it up.
           Then simply pop a ceiling and floor on it.  The floorplan
           could be created either in Imagine or even a paint program
           and then auto-traced.  This means you will have to bust up
           a few polygons to add the windows and doors, but that is a
           minor task if you have a complex floorplan.

        3. A cheesy option is to make your walls too big. Then
          INTERSECT them. You get a mess BEHIND the wall, but if you
          don't look there, you'll never see it.


      wall 1           |
     ------------------+--
               \|/     |
      bug-eyed O.O     | wall 2
        monster v
                       |
                       |
      camera X

------------------------------------------------------------------------

5] When I select a group of points in the DETAIL editor, all I can do
   is drag them... it doesn't let me ROTATE or SCALE that clump of
   selected points.

        Imagine will let you move selected points, as well as rotate
and scale them. The limitation is that you cannot do this interactively
in Version 1.1 or earlier by using the mouse: The Transform command does
the manipulation. The picked points can be translated, scaled, rotated,
and positioned INDEPENDENTLY of the rest of the object. Rotations and
scalings all use the object's axis a reference point.  Absolute
positioning will move the FIRST point you pick to the location you
choose, and the rest of the picked points will be translated an equal
amount.  Interactive dragging is accomplished using the "drag points"
mode.

        Note: Versions 2.0 and later support interactive point editing.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

6] List of common Index of Refractions (and not so common too!)

         (All items except Vacuum are in alphabetical order)
         (STP = Standard Temperature and Pressure)

         MATERIAL                      Index
         -------------------------------------
         Vacuum ...................... 1.00000 (exactly)

         Air (STP).................... 1.00029
         Acetone ..................... 1.36
         Alcohol ..................... 1.329
         Amorphous Selenium .......... 2.92
         Calspar1 .................... 1.66
         Calspar2 .................... 1.486
         Carbon Disulfide ............ 1.63
         Chromium Oxide .............. 2.705
         Copper Oxide ................ 2.705
         Crown Glass ................. 1.52
         Crystal ..................... 2.00
         Diamond ..................... 2.417
         Emerald ..................... 1.57
         Ethyl Alcohol ............... 1.36
         Flourite .................... 1.434
         Fused Quartz ................ 1.46
         Heaviest Flint Glass ........ 1.89
         Heavy Flint Glass ........... 1.65
         Glass ....................... 1.5
         Ice ......................... 1.309
         Iodine Crystal .............. 3.34
         Lapis Lazuli ................ 1.61
         Light Flint Glass ........... 1.575
         Liquid Carbon Dioxide ....... 1.20
         Polystyrene ................. 1.55
         Quartz 1 .................... 1.644
         Quartz 2 .................... 1.553
         Ruby ........................ 1.77
         Sapphire .................... 1.77
         Sodium Chloride (Salt) 1 .... 1.544
         Sodium Chloride (Salt) 2 .... 1.644
         Sugar Solution (30%) ........ 1.38
         Sugar Solution (80%) ........ 1.49
         Topaz ....................... 1.61
         Water (20 C) ................ 1.333
         Zinc Crown Glass ............ 1.517

------------------------------------------------------------------------

7] How do you make mirrors?

        The trick with mirrors (or especially chrome-like objects) is
not setting the attributes of the mirror correctly, but making sure that
the environment is set up so something will be reflected into the
camera.

        If a mirror is TOO reflective, the mirror can actually become
invisible!  This is because the mirror's own flat glass/metal flat
coloring is overwhelmed by all the reflected light.  You see a PERFECT
reflected image, so the object itself isn't shown.  This is especially
true with flat mirrors.

        Some attributes that give a nice mirror polish:

                       RED  GREEN  BLUE   VALUE
        COLOR          150  150    150    *
        REFLECT        200  200    210    *     (a bit of a blue tint)
        FILTER         0    0      0      *
        SPECULAR       255  255    255    *
        DITHERING      *    *      *      255
        HARDNESS       *    *      *      255
        ROUGHNESS      *    *      *      0
        SHININESS      *    *      *      0

        PHONG = ON
        INDEX = 1.00
        FOG LENGTH = 0.00

------------------------------------------------------------------------

8] How do I make "metals" and what are some good gold attributes?

        One thing you can do to make your objects look more like metal
is to give them a specular setting close to the main color of the
object, but higher in intensity.  One mistake is to often make the
specular a pure white.  This makes objects look more like plastic than
metal.  For example, if you are trying to make gold, don't make the
specular pure white, but try a bright yellow or yellow/orange creame
color.

        Another problem is that many metals reflect the world.  For
example a chrome ball is pretty much just a shiny mirror.  Thus, if you
want to make realistic metals you will need to at least simulate
reflection. This can be done by adding a global reflect map, doing a
true ray trace or even just setting sky colors in the stage editor.


        You can use the following Attribute setting for a default gold:

                       RED  GREEN  BLUE   VALUE
        COLOR          205  205    80     *
        REFLECT        180  160    125    *
        FILTER         0    0      0      *
        SPECULAR       255  255    160    *
        DITHERING      *    *      *      255
        HARDNESS       *    *      *      255
        ROUGHNESS      *    *      *      0
        SHININESS      *    *      *      0

        PHONG = ON
        INDEX = 1.00
        FOG LENGTH = 0.00

        This should give you something close to gold.  Note that the
reflect values are fairly high.  You may wish to lower them to see how
it would look if you don't have anything to reflect etc...

------------------------------------------------------------------------

9] Is there a quick way to add faces to my object without using the
   Slice command?

        Here is a neat trick to add faces.  This method works best with
an object that is basially concave (such as a circle).

        1] Make the outline of your object, i.e.: points and edges.
        2] Extrude the object a distance away.
        3] Pick all the points that were just made...i.e.: The ones
           that now comprise the back face.  Using Bounding box
           selection would probably be helpful.
        4] Choose Join!
        5] Translate the now 1 pt back on the Y axis by the distance
           you extruded from, and position the point somewhere in the
           center of the object.

        The object is now a solid faced object with all faces connected
to one point on the center, just like the primitive disk object.

========================================================================
                       SECTION 3 - Forms Editor
========================================================================

1] I was working in the forms editor on an object, and loaded it
    into the detail editor for modification.  However, I can't seem
    to be able to get it back into the forms editor!  Help!

        Simply put, you cannot load objects saved from the detail editor
back into the forms editor.  The reason is the forms editor requires
a specified object structure which the detail does not.  Thus, saving
an object in the detail editor loses that information.

        When you work with the forms editor is recommended that you keep
a spare copy of the FORMS OBJECT saved separately from any detail
object. In this way you can then go back and make modifications in the
forms editor.

========================================================================
                       SECTION 4 - Cycle Editor
========================================================================

1] I made this really great animation sequence in the cycle editor,
    but when I set it up in the stage/action editors, the motion of
    the overall object isn't there!

        When using the cycle editor, Imagine only remembers changes in
size, position, and so on in relation to the main parent.  Thus, if you
make a change to the parent object, it gets forgotten.  What this means
is if you make a nifty robot jumping cycle, and make it in the cycle
editor so the robot actually move up etc... all that will be remembered
is the changes to the legs, arms and anything OFF of the PARENT.  The
overall rotations and movements to the main object will be gone.

        Two solutions exist.  One is to simply make those changes in
the stage editor each time you need to.  The second is to group a plain
axis before you start to your object.  (ie: Make the parent have a Null
link).  Then, you can rotate everything by rotating the main child
grouped right under this null axis.  This way you aren't moving the
"parent", and everything will be remembered.

========================================================================
                       SECTION 5 - Spline Editor
========================================================================

1] I tried to import a Postscript font but I got a "Vector not found"
   error.  What does this mean?

        There are a couple of different formats of Postscript files.
If Imagine doesn't like one, it will pop up this or other errors.  In
that case you will either have to use another Postscript file, or find
a software package that will convert it from that format to one Imagine
will load.

========================================================================
          SECTION 6 - Animation, Stage Editor and Action Editor
========================================================================

1] Even though I move an Object/Camera/Light to a new
   POSITION/ALIGNMENT/SIZE in the STAGE editor, Imagine seems to
   'forget' what I did!

    All objects must have timelines split wherever there is a change in
position, alignment or size.  If you do not set this up, Imagine will
forget the changes no matter what.

    Rather than going back and forth to the ACTION editor and adding
timelines, you can have Imagine automatically create the timelines
properly so everything tweens as normal.  There are the "Position Bar",
"Alignment Bar" and "Size Bar" commands under the OBJECT menu in the
STAGE editor.

    So, if you have just gone to a frame and are making a new POSITION,
ALIGNMENT or SIZE for an object (or camera or light) to tween to, press
RIGHT AMIGA and 7/8/9 respectively.  Or use the respective bar commands
from the OBJECT menu.  This will extend or put a 'split' in the timeline
for you (you can check this in the ACTION editor).  Also, don't forget
to "Save Changes"if you want to keep the motion!

------------------------------------------------------------------------

2] How do I use the Grow Effect?

        To use the grow effect, create an object in the DETAIL editor
that you wish to have 'extrude' over time.  Create a spline path as
normal in the detail editor.  This will be the path the object extrudes
along during the animation.

    GROUP (not join) the object with the PATH AS THE PARENT.  If you do
not make the path the parent, it will not work.  To do this, select the
path, then hold shift and select the object, then select group.  Save
your GROUP for loading in the animation.

    Finally, add the effect in the ACTION editor for the grouped object.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

3] How do I use the Tumble Effect?

    The tumble effect is used to tumble 1 or more objects during an
animation.  To tumble an object, create your object or objects in the
DETAIL editor.  Still in the detail editor add an axis.

        Group (not join) the AXIS to all the objects you want to tumble
with the AXIS AS THE PARENT.  Then load the GROUP into the STAGE/ACTION
editor and add the effect as normal.

    NOTE: The reason for the null object (axis) as parent is that
Imagine does not TUMBLE the PARENT, just the children.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

4] How do you get something to roll (at the right speed!) while
   following a path?

        Getting an object to spin (like a plane doing a barrel roll) is
easy- you align to path, then set Y rotation to be from 0 to 360 and it
will do a complete spin. This is not in the right direction for a
rolling ball, though. [Annoying feature- you can't say from 0 to 720 for
two spins, or 0 to 3600 for ten.] To get it to roll I created a second
path, which was basically a larger copy of the first, so the first path
was just inside of the second path. I had an axis (a track) follow this
new, outside path, then used "align to object" to make the sphere point
to the axis.

        Thus, as the ball moved along its path, one end (the positive Y
axis direction) was always pointed at right angles to the direction of
motion.  Is this clear? Now using the "initial Y angle" and "final Y
angle" I set them to 0 and 360 and it rotated as it rolled. As a special
effect, I raised the "track path" a little in the Z direction so the
sphere looks a little bit like a top rolling around, since the spin axis
was not horizontal anymore.

        An alternative would be to make a cycle object, rolling around
the X axis.  This is equally valid, but I did it this way first.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

5] When I move a tracked Camera in the STAGE editor, it doesn't realign
   and draw the Perspective view correctly!

    If you have Imagine 2.0 or higher, press RIGHT AMIGA and the K key
together, or select "Camera (Re)track" from the OBJECT menu.  This will
make the camera repoint to the track from the new position and will
redraw the perspective view.

        If you have an older version of Imagine (or if you just want to)
you can press RIGHT AMIGA and the C key or select "Goto" from the FRAME
menu.  Go to the current frame you are already on which will cause
imagine to redraw everything.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

6] I have found that after creating a scene in the Stage editor, and
    then deciding that I want an animation and adjusting the highest
    frame count, my scene gets mangled in the first frame.  Why?

        Well, it seems to me that this will happen if you don't split
your channel bar from the first frame (where you want stuff to be
exactly) to the second frame. I usually setup my scenes so that I have
the first frame all set as it should be and then I do my transformation
from frames 2-whatever. In this way, the first frame is ALWAYS where
it's suppose to be no matter what changes I make in the remaining
animation.  If you look at your channel it should have a break between
frames 1 and 2 and then be continuous (if that's the way your animation
works out) from 2 on.

========================================================================
               SECTION 7 - Rendering and the Project Editor
========================================================================

1] Why do objects render fine in Scanline, but disappear in Trace?

    There are 2 possible causes for this.
         1) You are running out of RAM
         2) You objects are outside of the World Boundary

    To check #1 (for the Amiga), pull down The Project editor after you
start a render during the initialization phase.  Click once on the
Workbench backdrop and you should see how much RAM you have on the top
of the screen.  As Imagine starts to render, this will decrease.  If it
becomes close to 0, chances are, that's your problem.  To solve that,
buy more RAM.

    The other possibility is that the objects are outside of the world
boundary.  The world boundary is basically a box in which your objects
are placed.  When you enter the STAGE editor, you are placing objects in
this "virtual box" whose center is 0,0,0.

    When you Trace, Imagine clips ALL objects that fall outside of the
box.  The size of the world boundary is set in the ACTION editor.  In
this editor, there should be an item named GLOBALS.  Whatever numbers
are set in the SIZE timeline becomes the size of the box so that it lies
from +/- Value for X,Y and Z.  The default is no information present,
which Imagine assumes is +/- 1024 units for all 3 coordinates.

        Thus to fix this problem you can:
         1) Scale your entire scene to fit inside the +/- 1024 size
            boundary
         2) Add a size line and set the X,Y,Z to the values you need
            (This can be found by using "coordinates" in the STAGE
            editor and moving the cursor around to find the values)
         3) Add a size line and set the X,Y,Z sizes to 0,0,0.  This will
            force Imagine to calculate the world size for ALL frames
            based on where objects are for the FIRST frame.  This is
            important since if your objects move farther out during
            subsequent frames, you will have to set the size manually
            (see 2 above) since it will now be outside the computed
            boundary, and thus clipped.

    Note: The world boundary has no effect in Scanline rendering.
    Note: Setting the World Size to 0,0,0 regardless of problems will
          usually DECREASE Trace times!

------------------------------------------------------------------------

2] I have a problem with Filtered objects and the Global Backdrop!

        For some reason, clear or glass like objects will not be clear
when used with a backdrop.  To get around this render with "genlock sky"
and then use an image processing program to composite the rendered image
onto the background pic for each frame.  Fog objects have a similar
problem.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

3] I have created an animation (Hurrah!) and when I look at each of
    the individual frames, they look just as I thought they might.
    However, when I animate them, anywhere I have applied the
    "roughness" parameter, surfaces look animated...with lots of
    "crawling" effect on them. What gives?

        Roughness should NOT be used on objects that will be animated.
(Unless of course, the "crawley" effect is what you're after). This is
caused by a bug in the roughness algorithm. One of the main work-arounds
suggested, is by using a very small or fine bump-map. Another work-
around is to create a DPaint (or for that matter ANY IFF) multi-gray
shaded screen and apply it as an altitude map.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

4] What situations, parameters, attribute values, etc. require the most
    trace rendering time?

        The list is long: reflections and refractions increase rendering
time significantly, anti-aliasing (0 longest)-BTW this you must edit in
the .config file and resolve depth (also in .config file), number of
polygons, camera position (obliqueness), size of brush maps and even the
numerical entries of solid textures, resolution, display and render
modes etc etc.

        The big ones are refraction, edge level(antialiasing, reflection
(along with "depth") and #of polygons. Pretty well in that order too.
Remember that a higher refraction index is longer rendering time also.
And yes the scale of the object means a LOT. Imagine uses something
called an *Octree* to calculate the scene.  This is related to the world
size setting which is also discussed here in article number 1 above.
The difference can go from *hours* to minutes, so scale your scene by
the size you make your world.  You can select everything in the scene
(including camera and lights) and scale it interactively.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

5] How do I get rid of the "Jaggies?"

        The .config file for anti-aliasing defaults to 30. This is ok,
but not great. The best is 0 and final rendering should always be 0. So
you must edit this file every so often (before opening Im) or build a
front end on the work bench (requires programming knowledge, though).
BTW, the anti-aliasing is EDLE in .config file.

    {for those unfamiliar with the term jaggies - they refer to the
way lines drawn by computers tend to haved a jagged or stair stepped
appearance, instead of a smooth continuous line.  This is usually found
more in low resolution images.}

------------------------------------------------------------------------

6] How do I figure out the pixel aspect for a certain resolution
    display?  I am rendering a picture to be displayed on a macII
    at 1024x768.  Does anyone know the formula or is it device
    dependent?

        Pixel aspect ratio depends both on the aspect ratio of the
display device (your monitor) and the resolution that fits onto that
screen. Most monitors use a 4 x 3 aspect ratio so that to achieve square
1:1 pixels, the resolution must also be 4:3. 1024 x 768 will achieve
this as well as 640 x 480. The Amiga typically uses a non-square aspect
ratio of about 1.2:1 such as 320 x 200, 640 x 400, 768 x 480, etc. So
the pixel ratio can be found using...

  (horiz res. / horiz display size) : (vert res. / vert display size)
If your monitor has a 4:3 aspect, you should have 1:1 pixels.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

7] When making a disco ball effect, will a SPHERICAL light set at 255
    be bright enough to cause visible spots on the surfaces in a scene?

        No, I bet that a light of 255 won't work too well. So crank
it up to 2000!  Lights are not limited to 255 (It is logical that lights
can be as bright as they want).  Values above 500 or so are pretty
severe; they cast strong shadows, like a very sunny day. Above 3000 or
so and it looks like you're world is lit by nuclear weapons.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

8] I have a Amiga 3000/25.  How long should it take to do a full
    trace picture with perhaps one transparent (nearly) glass?
    Does 4.5 hours sound reasonable to you?  I am running the
    floating Point version of Imagine.

        The floating point version of Imagine uses inline floating point
code for maximum speed.  It does not use the libraries.  I suspect that
the non-FP version uses the libraries, just in case. You can probably
SPEED UP your trace time SIGNIFICANTLY by scaling up the whole scene in
the stage editor (see question 4 above!). A trace time of 4.5 hours on a
3000/25 definitely a "wee bit" on the high side for a scene as simple as
you describe.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

9] Is there any particular format that Imagine prefers?  Ham?
    32 Color?  EHB?  24 bit 1000 x 1000?

        The best is a 24-bit image, of course. Anything works, but the
color range of a 24-bit will beat the tar out of a 16 color any day.
Exceptions would be objects with a few discrete colors, like a red,
white, and blue flag. Then a 24-bit and a 4 color image are equal in
quality. Note that Imagine converts them all to 24-bit internally,
though- the memory goes down equally for a 100 by 100 4-color as it does
for a 100 by 100 24-bit.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

10] I would like to use conical light sources with my rendering,
     is there anyway "see" in wireframe where the light will fall?

Note: In imagine 2.9, the ability to turn on 'Light Lines' was added in
    the Stage editor.  The following describes another way to 'see' the
    light in the Stage editor before this feature was implemented.  Of
    course you can still use this in 2.9 and above.

        For conical lights, the X-axis size determines the radius of the
light beam at the distance set at the Y-axis.  This if a light has a X
size of 50, and a Y-size of 200, the light would have a circle with the
diameter of 100 units at a distance of 200 units from the light's axis
itself.

        You can use this information to create a conical light object in
the detail editor.  By creating a wireframe light, you can then load the
light in and actually "see" and resize it to get an idea for the lights
size.

        Add a primitive cone object.  Then position the axis of the cone
such that it is at the exact tip op the cone object.  Finally rotate and
resize the cone's axis so the Y axis extendes to the end of the cone
and the x-axis (which should allready be set okay) has the diameter of
the cone.

        The above can be done in 4 steps using the transformation
requestor, make sure that the "transform axis only" box is checked
in steps 2,3 and 4:

          1] Add a primitive cone with default values.
          2] Set the Position on the axis -100 on the Z-axis.
          3] Set the axis alignment to -90 on the X-axis.
          4] Set the axis size to X=50, Y=100, Z=50.


    Front or side view of cone:      Z---X
                                    /|\
                                   / | \
                                  /  |  \
                                 /   |   \
                                /    |    \
                               +-----|-----+
                                     Y

        Once this is done you will now have a cone object with the
axis set correctly to be a light.  It is not yet however a light source.
Go into the attributes requestor for the object and click on the box
labeled "light".  In here is a standard light box just like those in
the action editor.  Click on conical, and set the color and other options
as you wish.

        At this point you must remove any faces from the object.  If you
do not do this, when you render the object will will have a white cone.
Simply go into "Pick Faces" mode and then "Select All" of the faces and
finally "Delete" or "Cut" them.  You will now have a wireframe cone light.
Save this object.

        From now on, you can load this as a normal object into you
renderings and resize, scale and move the light around as you wish.  The
only drawback to this method is that to change light parameters such as
color or shadows, you must re-edit the object in the detail editor and
then resave it.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

11] How important is lighting for a rendering, and is there any "preset"
     method used to get good results?

        Lighting in computer graphics is a very important element in
creating images.  It takes a while of experimenting with different types
of lights and settings to get good results, but there is one basic setup
that can also be used as a starting point.

        The basic approach is one used for lighting real world video
scenes.  It is known as a "3 point" light setup since it involves 3
light sources.

        The first light source named the "key" light is the main light
for the scene.  It is usually placed about 45 degress above and to the
side of the camera.  This provides overall light so you can see your
objects etc...

        The second light is known as the "back" or "top" light.  Place
this light above and slightly behind the center of your scene.  In video
this is used to show highlights on a persons hair so you can tell where
the back of their head is.  In this case, it provides a similar function
so that you can see the back parts of objects.  This is typically set at
about 2 times the key lights intensity, though for computer graphics a
setting equal to or less than that of the key is usually enough.


        The final light is the "fill" light.  This is usually placed
at a 45 degress angle below and to the side of the camera so that it
is on the opposite side of the "key" light.  This light should be dim
and possible colored and diffused to give some illumination to any part
of the scene not covered fromt the other lights.  For rendering this
means lowering the intensity and or making the light "diminish in
intensity".

        With this setup there should be an improvement over any
rendering using just one light.  As a test setup a ground and a
stationary object.  (The typical chrome ball with cool highlights on a
checkered ground works well here)  Render once scene with just one light
(the key light only).  Then add the other 2 or more fill lights and re-
render it.  There should be a big difference.

       Also, don't forget that lights can be colored, can cast shadows
and can be "conical spotlights".  All this can be used to give greater
value to your scene.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

12] Help with Fog, By J. Koszarsky

    Fog isn't too bad once you get the hang of it.  There are a couple
problems to be aware of though.  Overlapping fogs will cancel each other
out wherever they overlap.  Fog objects should be closed objects.  If
you have a tube be sure to close the ends up.  And when you scale your
object up or down you should be aware that the fog length will not scale
with your object, I found this very annoying.

    Imagine you have a 100x100x100 cube and you make it a fog object.
What does the fog length mean?  If you make your fog length 50 units and
then move a non-fog object into the fog, once it goes beyond 50 units
you won't be able to see it anymore.  50 units is the point at which an
object inside the fog will be totally obscured by that fog.  If you
shorten the length to say 25 then the fog will become more dense.
Making the length larger creates a less dense fog.  If the length is
greater than 100 then you will be able to see objects on the other side
of the cube.

    Using global fog in the Stage/Action editors is similar but it is
applied everywhere, like an infinite plane.  You can however control the
heights(Z) where the fog begins & ends.  So if you wanted fog in a grave
yard you could tell it to start at the ground level and end as high as
you want, depending upon what your are looking for in your scene.  The
fog length works the same as with objects.  If it is set to 100 units
then any object in your scene that is beyond 100 units will be hidden in
the fog.  For a very subtle fog I sometimes set my length to 2048 or
greater, this is very thin.

    There is another annoying feature of fogs.  It looks great when used
for making atmosphere on a planet but it will illuminate the entire
planet, no matter where the light source is placed.  So you can't get a
dark side if you have the fog around the entire planet.  You can get
around this by using a half sphere fog for the atmosphere and aligning
it to your lightsource.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

13] How can I render in Widescreen/Letterbox format?

        Besides making for some neat looking animations, this will also
lower rendering times.  For a render that would normally be 768x482 or
so, make it 768x380.  Leave the ratio just as it is (6:7).  Any where
from 380-330 or so will look pretty good.

        Remember though that Imagine will still show the entire normal
view of the animation in the Stage editor's preview window.  This means
that while you can see objects at the top of the screen here, they might
actually be cropped in the final rendering.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

14] I selected Spheres for my particle object, but all I get is a
    polygonal shape!

        In order for you to get spheres in the particle object you will
have to render in Ray Trace, not Scanline.  Otherwise you end up with a
faceted sphere of only a few polygons.

========================================================================
            SECTION 8 - Essence Settings and Other Attributes
========================================================================

1] Electrical Arc  (Essence)

        Here's how to make an electrical arc between two rods, like
something out of Frankenstien's lab.

    1] Start with a plane with 255 R,G,B on Color and a light blue
       (or whatever color you want the arc to be) in Filter.
    2] Use Ringfract as follows:
         Set the Z axis to point out of the plane, (rotate 90 on X)
         Low Trans Start=30      Low Trans Width=5
         Hi Trans Start =40      Hi Trans Width =5
         Set the color to 0,0,0 for RGB.
         Leave other settings at defaults
       Place the axis of Ringfract in the middle of the bottom edge of
       the plane.
    3] Now use Swapcrf to swap the color and filter values. Do this by
       setting all parameters to 0, and then setting the following
       values to 1:
         Filt -> N Color = 1
         Refl -> N Refl  = 1
         Color -> N Filt = 1

        Now when rendered, there should be something similar to an
electrical arc (or maybe some sort of plasma).  To have the arc grow,
rotate the Ringfract axis on X up or down so that the plane and cylinder
do not intersect at 90 degrees.  If you animate this it looks like the
arc gets taller until the arc breaks (i.e. the plane no longer
intersects Ringfract's cylinder in a curve, but instead in two lines).

        Also setting the plane to bright will make it look correct
in dim scenes.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

2] Veined Marble  (Essence)

        The veinedmarble texture is used twice, once for large, widely
spaced veins.  The second use is for finer, closely spaced veins.

        For veined green marble set the object color to 40,80,40 for
Red Green and Blue respectively. The texture veins are a gray-green
color.

  Text#1   Text#2    Parameter        Text#1   Text#2    Parameter

  800.0    300.0    Initial Scale       4.0      5.0      Turbidity
    7.0      7.0    # of Scales         0.9      0.98     Color Level
    0.4      0.4    Scale Ratio       120.0    120.0      Color Red
    0.6      0.6    Amp Ratio         150.0    150.0      Color Green
    0.4      0.4    Time Ratio        120.0    120.0      Color Blue
    0.0      0.0    Time                0.0      0.0      Fade 0..1
    1.0      1.0    Sharpness           0.0      0.0
   20.0     10.0    Vein Spacing        0.0      0.0

        Rotate the second texture 45 degrees around the X and Y axes
with respect to the first texture.  You may want to rotate the first
texture as well.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

3] Rough marble/rock   (Essence)

        This uses 2 textures, one for a main color variation, and
the other for the bump/roughness.  This is very effective for creating
stone surfaces.  Try these settings on a primitive plane.

    Object Attribs   R   G   B    Value
        Color     = 136 118 128
        Specular  = 153 134 132
        Dithering =                255
        Phong = On
        All others at 0.

    Texture 1:  fractalcolor       Texture 2:  bump
        Parameter        Value        Parameter        Value

        Initial Scale       15        Initial Scale       5
        # of scales         5         # of scales         4
        Scale Ratio         0.4       Scale Ratio         0.5
        Amplitude Ratio     0.4       Amplitude Ratio     0.5
        Time Ratio          0.4       Alt. Adjust         3
        Time                0         Fade 0..1           0
        Base->1 Trans       0.3       Axis placement left at default
        1->2 Trans          0.6
        Color 1 End         1
        Color 1 Red         70
        Color 1 Green       60
        Color 1 Blue        60
        Color 2 Red         255
        Color 2 Green       240
        Color 2 Blue        240
        Fade 0..1           0
        Axis placement left at default

        When rendered an off gray stone will be created.  Great for
caverns, dungeons and so on.  Just slap it onto the walls or columns
to give it good-ol' natural look.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

4] Soap Bubble (Imagine 2.0 and higher)

    COLOR  REFLECT  FILTER  SPECULAR
    R 250    10      192      255
    G 215    10      162      245
    B 225    10      133      238

    Dithering     Hardness    Roughness  Shiniess  Index of refraction
        0        245 (Or less)     0         0            1.08

    Then Add a Pastella Texture with the following data in each column:

    102.333374   100.00
      0.0          0.0
    255.0        255
      0.0        180
    100.0         80
      0.0        110
    255.0          0.0
    100.0          0.0

Now, try render it, and remember to put a object behind, and try to make
several copies, and make a complete bubble bath!

------------------------------------------------------------------------

5] Spaceship Panels  (Imagine 2.9 and higher)

        This uses the RADWIND, TUBEWIND, or RECTWIND textures to create
multicolored spaceship panels:

    - Add a primitive sphere with it's default values.
    - Apply the RADWIND texture (or other 2 textures depending on the
      shape of your object)
    - Make these adjustments to the texture variables:

Column One     Two
      ____    ____
       1       210       *These params will will give you panels that
       3       210        are randomly colored from the two color ranges
      60       210        defined in column two.
       0       190       *Play around with some of the variables to get
       1       190        the effect right for you.
       0       190
       0        -1
       0         0

------------------------------------------------------------------------

6] Bark, mountain, stone effects (Imagine 2.9 and higher)

        This uses the WRINKLE texture.

    - Add default cylinder and CLOSE the TOP
    - Select the top edges of the cylinder and MAKE SHARP
    - Apply the WRINKLE texture and render.
        This will look like bark around the cylinder....play with the
        noise functions to adjust the look of the bark.

Now make these changes to the Texture:

Column One     Two
       ___     ___
       0.5     150      * This will look like the sides of a mountain
       0.5     150        around the Cylinder.  On the top of the
      10.0     150        cylinder it will look like granite.
       1.0      20      * When applied to organic objects the vertical
       0.5      50        faces will have the rivulets, the horizontal
       0.0      20        faces will be granite-like.
       0.0       0      * Try changing the first three variables in
       1.0       0        Column one to 10,10,1 respectively.  The
                          resulting look will make the cylinder look
                          like a core sample around the cylinder, while
                          the top of the cylinder will have a marble
                          like quality.

========================================================================
                        SECTION 9 - Miscellaneous
========================================================================

1] What the heck is BTW, IMO and other weird abbreviations...

    BTW is an abbreviation for "By The Way".
    IMO is an abbreviation for "In My Opinion"
    IMHO is an abbreviation for "In My Humble Opinion"
    IML is an abbreviation for "Imagine Mailing List"
    :) is a sideways smiley face
    :( is a sideways frowny face
    ;) is a winking-eye face  etc...

------------------------------------------------------------------------

2] My rendering times and even my refresh times in the editors are
   much MUCH too slow, even with an accelerator. Is there any
   basic tricks or hints that are often overlooked that might help
   me out?"

        Always be sure to MERGE your objects. This eliminates multiple
faces, points and lines. Some objects have a VERY large number of these
and it can slow your times down by up to 1/2!

------------------------------------------------------------------------

3] When does one get good enough so that they don't render ugly
    pictures!

        Practice with a simple objects (to cut down trace time) over and
over and over.  Varying lighting & color etc.  This will allow you to
get the effect you want which is only a technical problem.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

4] Hires Video modification for Amiga Imagine From James R. Walker

***Note:  The following explains how to modify the actual executable
    file of Imagine.  Do this at your own risk!  If you have any
    problems or end up trashing your copy of the program it is your
    own fault.  It is highly recommended that you make a backup copy
    of the program before you mess with it.

Ok, here's how it works... (If you don't have an Amiga, don't do this!)

Get a filezapper type program. (NewZap DPU FileZap Hex etc...)

Look up your version of Imagine on the chart below.

Edit the executable at the bytes indicated in the chart. The block #s
and byte #s are shown in decimal.  The hex numbers in parenthesis are
the hex versions of the block numbers.  The bytes to modify are, of
course, in hex.  Replace the resolution you find there with the
resolution you want.  Then save the new file. (I don't have to remind
you to keep a backup of Imagine on hand!)

Notice that Imagine automaticly doubles the vertical resolution for use
in interlace mode.  So, if you want vertical resolution of 462 then you
must tell it to give you 231.  (231 = 00E7 in hex)

 Imagine Version # Horizontal                   Vertical

FP       1.1     Block 393 ($189)             Block 83 ($053)
                 Bytes 220 & 221              Bytes 162 & 163
                 From  02    80               From  00    C8
       (Example: To    02    BC = 700 in dec)(To    00    E7 = 231 dec)

FP       2.0     Block 497 ($1F1)             Block 95 ($05F)
                 Bytes 328 & 329              Bytes 250 & 251
                 From  02    80               From  00    C8

INT PAL  2.0     Block 500 ($1F4)             Block 94 ($05E)
                 Bytes 124 & 125              Bytes 42 & 43
                 From  02   80                From  01   00

FP  PAL  2.0     Block 497 ($1F1)             Block 95 ($05F)
                 Bytes 388 & 389              Bytes 244 & 245
                 From  02    80               From  01   0

INT      2.9     Block 1561 ($619)            Block 119 ($077)
                 Bytes 486 & 487              Bytes 480 & 481
                 From  02    80               From  00    C8

FP       2.9     Block 1529 ($5F9)            Block 95 ($05F)
                 Bytes 82  & 83               Bytes 168 & 169
                 From  02    80               From  00    C8

FP  PAL  2.9     Block 1529 ($5F9)            Block 95 ($05F)
                 Bytes 146 & 147              Bytes 162 & 163
                 From  02    80               From  01    00

Impulse told me, in the past, that Imagine is made to run ONLY on a
640 x 400 screen.  I was told that if I changed it, I would do so at my
own peril.  I pass this information on  to you.

One Final Note:  Imagine PC users have a whole different program than
Amiga users.  This modification will not work on the PC version.  I
would guess that a simmilar modification for the PC version would be
more complicated, given that VGA modes are more complicated than Amiga
modes.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

5] What are particles?  (Note: Particles were add in Imagine 2.9)

        There are a couple of different meanings and interpretations of
what particles and particle animation software should do.  In general,
a particle is an object, or point in 3D space that is then controled by
parameters mimicking real world physics.  For example, take a point in
3D and apply motion to it as if it were under gravity.  The result
would be it would move downward increasing in speed.  So you can use
particles to simulate wind, exploding, melting and other things that
move points in different ways.

        Particles can also be objects or simple polygonal shapes rather
than just points.  In imagine, you can make a 'particle object' by
modeling a normal object with faces.  Then, using the particle requestor
in the Detail Editor, specifiy that all faces/polygons of the object be
replaced by cubes, spheres, tetrahedrons and so on...or even other
objects.  When you go to render the object, each face will be replaced
with the particle you have chosen.

        This means in Imagine, you can make objects created out of many
'particles' even though you don't use any particle type of motion.  This
is true since you could now take that object, and just animate it
normally using standard key frame techniques and so on.

        However, Imagine does have a new method for applying the motion
control over these particle objects, (or even normal objects, since it
will simply affect the faces).  In the Action Editor you can now use the
particle effect.  This lets you specify how the particle/faces of the
object will be affected over the course of an animation.

        In general, particle systems allow one to simulate complex
motion easily.  They allow one to create many particle objects and to
have their motion defined by mathmatical properties.

========================================================================
                CLOSING -  Closing statements and Disclaimer
========================================================================

        Hopefully this document is useful to people out there.  Once
again, if there is anything you want added/changed/deleted, please
e-mail as listed at the top of the document.

    What follows is a small disclaimer so no one gets sued for
information that is harmful or accidentally incorrect or misleading.
(If you find a mistake...please send e-mail so it can be fixed!).

      Disclaimer: There is no guarantee regarding any information
                  presented in this document.  The information may not
                  be correct, useful or helpful.  The reader accepts ALL
                  responsibility for actions pertaining to reading this
                  document regardless of consequence.

========================================================================
END OF IML-FAQ


--
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Michael Comet, [e-mail] - CWRU, Software Engineer/Graphics Artist |
| Computer Graphics/Animation! - Liquid Vision SIG (go liquid),  Freenet   |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------+


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #293 ***************************************:-)

Date: Wed, 20 Apr 1994 15:41:23 +1000
From: [e-mail]

Hi there...Here's an imagine related post with no ?'s :>

I recently worked on an interesting project.  I wanted realistic photos of
car crash simulations, so I digitized a few intersections and freeways,
rendered automobile and truck movements using a genlock for object/camera
placement and scaling, then used the genlock background option in
action/global and transfered the files to adobe photostyler on a 24bit pc
for compositing.  Looks pretty good.  I cannot post the pics yet because
they may be used in an upcoming issue of a magazine, just thought I would
share a basic description of the technique.

It's easier and faster to generate an animation of a vehicle (or anything
else I guess) and display the animation through a genlock device, although
accuracy of object placement is more difficult.  You don't have to wait for
all the background stuff to render.


Enough rambling for now...

Ed


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #294 ***************************************:-)

Date: Wed, 20 Apr 1994 16:16:13 +1000
From: [e-mail]

In a message of 19 Apr 94 Andrew Conway wrote to me:

 AC> From Andrew Conway <[e-mail]> To
 AC> [e-mail]

 AC> To all people who use Essence.
 AC> Whenever I try to use the subtle and delicately flavoured textures of
 AC> Essence, I end up with rather grotesque red and green checks all over my
 AC> object. Am I doing something REALLY stupid or does it need silly amounts
                                  ^^^^^^^^^^^^^
er.. yes. :) What you're getting are error messages from the texture. The
colors mean different errors, consult the manual for details.

 AC> of memory or FPU versions? Thanks in advance from any help
 AC> Andrew

 AC> --- UUGate v0.30[OS/2]
 AC>  * Origin: Internet gateway (cindy) (2:200/427.3)

/Dan ([e-mail])


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #295 ***************************************:-)

Date: Wed, 20 Apr 1994 17:24:19 +1000
From: [e-mail]

hi,

you asked:

> What's the best supporting  software (for imagine) that you can't do without?

essence
vertex - a really good object editor
humanoid - if you need human-like figues
interchange or pixel 3d - for converting to/from other object formats

later,
dave


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #296 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: supporting actor
Date: Tue, 19 Apr 94 16:43:28 PDT
From: [e-mail] (David Monachello)

> What's the best supporting software that you can't do without?
> or hardware?
> I'll offer to keep a list of descriptions, recommendations, etc.,
> of supporting products.  I'll tally up the results and post them.
> Can someone start off with Essence?
> Thanks!
> Steve McLaughlin
>

essence and humanoid (if you need human-like figures)

vertex


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #297 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Imagine 3.0 AMIGA (fwd)
Date: Tue, 19 Apr 1994 22:05:33 -0500 (CDT)
From: Cliff Lee <[e-mail]>

Below is the response that Mike Halvorson sent me in response to my recent
post concerning Impulse and The future of Amiga.  He has asked me to post
it publically.  I'd like to say that I did not intened to insinuate that
Impulse would drop the Amiga community.  I did intend to say that if
Impulse tries just a little, they will find themselves more DOS-centric
than Amiga-centric.  Something that I believe the Amiga community will be
rather uncomfortable with.  But it is the direction of things.  Good bad
or whatever.  It is best that Impulse develop a strong version of Imagine
in the DOS environment.  A version that is fully compatible with the Amiga
version and third party utils.  (Something I believe you are in the
process of doing)  That way Amiga users have OPEN doors, rather than lost
oppourtunities.  That way as the Amiga market deteriorates the 90% of
30,000 users database can have a place to go.

Cliff Lee           [e-mail]
"You can always make up a class,
 You can never  make up a party!"

---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: 19 Apr 94 18:49:24 EDT
From: Mike Halvorson <[e-mail]>
To: Cliff Lee <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: Imagine 3.0 AMIGA

Cliff,
    Your points are well taken and well presented.  However you are right
that you can not speak to our efforts or for what we are doing.  INdeed we have
been snooping around the DOS market and it is just like the AMiga market full of

people who want to do everything they can with their computer, some of them even

want to do what Imagine does.

    There is however one central point that it seems no matter how hard we
scream this no one listens.   We have over 30 thousand users on our data base,
most of them are owners of an Amiga, over 90%.  Why for the love of whatever
would we throw all these people out the door just so we could start over and do
what we have done in another market.

    From a monetary stand point this is the kiss of death to do what some
have suggested and that is to DUMP and RUN to another computer.  Dumb idea.

    We will continue to develope for the AMiga as long as our data base asks
us to do so.  WE could care less what CBM does, now, in the past or in the
future.

    We do want to grow that data base and we do not see that coming from the
AMiga market.  It is apparently not going to grow too much over the next few
years unless some other company buys them or unless they do something
spectacluar like,  wake up.  This is not going to happen.

    So for those who own an Amiga.  we will keep doing what we have done and
that is to support out user base.  This is why it has taken so long to get 3.0
out. we had to do it on 2 machines and make the software AMIGA compatible on
both platforms,.  We now have a cross compiler that makes the code move quickly
from one to the other.

    We arent going anywhere, I suggest that the AMiga user is going to move
before we do, and when they do I hope that we have Imagine for what ever
computer they buy.

    Please post to the public.

    Thanks for your comments.

    Mike Halvorson




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #298 ***************************************:-)

Date: Wed, 20 Apr 94 08:45:31 BST
From: [e-mail] (MR. R.L.COLLIER)

Well, I can see that your comments Mr Cliff Lee may well start a somewhat
heated discussion.  I would just like to point a couple of things out:-

1. The HUGE DOS market is looming out there like a CASH COW that has recently
discoverd "multimedia" and is dying to jump into anyting that looks remotely
"cool".

-Multimedia only recently discovered on the PC???  Oh dear.



2.Impulse to drop the Amiga over the PC for graphics development??

-I dont think so.  The Amiga is now stronger than ever on the 3d graphics
scene.  I will not go into details about SeaQuest, Babylon5, Star Trek,
Quantum Leap etc. etc..



3."obviously superior solutions like NeXT and the Amiga"

- No comment



4.Failed to win wide acceptance???

- See 2.(add Industrial Light and Magic etc..)


One final point is that I feel now the release of the Amiga 5000 is getting
closer (Oh yes, it IS coming!!) (with features PC owners can only dream of due
to having to stay compatible with base memory limitations etc. etc.) that
impulse will not drop Amiga support.  But when it is released (next summer?)
the 3d market will be well and truly stolen.  (especially if the CPU
surrounding hardware rumours are true eg. Hardware polygon engine, realtime
3d texture mapper etc. with a central risc chip which will be windows NT
compatible, yes running both Amiga and PC software!)

Oh and now that board has been released (I forget the name) that allows you
to plug in RISC chips in parallel giving a max to 1200 (yes thats 12 HUNDRED)
mips for a total price of much less than that of a Silicon Graphics Indigo
and yet more power than a cray.

On this point I rest my case.

Rich.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #299 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Looking for Robots
Date: Tue, 3 Jan 117 11:29:08 -0700
From: [e-mail] (Greg Pringle)

>Hi all,
>I have a need for a Robot, (or a strong human) I have the RobotCop
>object, are there more?  I'm looking for FD objects, this is for a free
>job I am doing. (I'm not good enough to make money at this yet 8-)
>pointers to FTP sites and object names apprecieted.

  I took a look, and there's a set of three robot cycle objects
called "CYCLEOBJ.LHA". I think I got it off aminet. It's 345133 bytes,
$15 shareware fee requested by [e-mail]

>There aren't any decent human models (male) in the FD are there?

 You might want to do a search for babem, batman, gorillaman, headobj,
humanbody, and jugbot. There's also a good human model on the first
impulse object collection (commercial).

   Greg



--
+--------------------------+----------------------------------------------+
| Greg Pringle             |                                              |
| [e-mail] |          "Better dead than smeg"             |
| [e-mail] |                                              |
+--------------------------+----------------------------------------------+


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #300 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: DEM files (sorry about this)
Date: 20 Apr 94 10:00:07 EDT
From: John Foust - Syndesis Corporation <[e-mail]>

To: Imagine

[e-mail] (Graeme Mc Donough) writes:
> None of these were readable by vista. Any one else find this problem??

Vista has its own proprietary format for DEMs.  Officially, they call
it "Vista binary DEM".  As the name implies, it's binary, compact,
and compressed using both delta and run-length, and contains lots of
extra info like all the settings in Vista.

The United States Geological Survey (USGS) digital elevation map
format is entirely different.  That's what you find on the Internet,
unless otherwise noted.  I believe VRLI distributes a utility that
converts USGS DEMs to their own format.

All sysops of BBSes, Avalon- memorizers, and commercial networks all
please chime in with the usual plugs / assistance ...
I found them on CompuServe in VRLI's section in the Graphics
Vendor A forum, under the names MCNV.LZH for the DOS version, and

DEM2S.LHA for the Amiga version 'DEM2Scape'.





IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #301 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Wavefront converters
Date: 20 Apr 94 10:05:37 EDT
From: John Foust - Syndesis Corporation <[e-mail]>

To: Imagine

Regarding these objects from Avalon, yes, a lot of them have garbage
in them.  It's entirely possible that they have stray polygons or
illegal configurations in them.

Before the preparation of the Syndesis 3D-ROM, we had a backup tape
from the Avalon site.  We'd thought we'd want to use some of the
objects on our CDROM, but I can't think of a single object we got
from Avalon.  They weren't as high of quality as what we found on,
say, the Studio Amiga BBS.  (ICYW, we got the Viewpoint models
straight from Viewpoint, with their permission.)

Unless you've established that the junk doesn't reside in the
original object, you can't blame anyone's conversion.

(Please, go ahead and blame Pixel Pro, though, :-), they're full of
acknowledged bugs that they don't fix.  In fact, we've had customers
who've said that Axiom told them to call Syndesis when they reported
translation bugs in Pixel Pro.  And can anyone confirm if Axiom has
been, uhm a bit hard to reach these past few weeks?)

As for Imagine's "bad edge" error messages, yes, those come from
degenerate triangles.  Impulse has not been forthcoming about the
details of every case in which these errors are reported.  The Amiga
and PC versions report these messages *differently* on the same
object.  There are many undocumented assumptions in the Imagine format.

We're very good about tracking down reproducible bug reports.  This
may mean sending the object to us on a disk.  Without a bug report,
we can't fix the problem.  We *always* give a stack of suggestions on
telephone tech support if we can't pin down the problem immediately.
We *always* give free bug fix upgrade disks when you've spotted a
bug.




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #302 ***************************************:-)

Subject: DEM answers
Date: Wed, 20 Apr 1994 09:56:15 -0500 (EST)
From: Wesley Jacocks <[e-mail]>

   I thought I would try to help on a few DEM problems.  By the way, I do
think this does have relevance to Imagine because the scenery generated
with Vistapro from DEM files can be imported into Imagine and used as
great backgrounds.  I have found a massive number of DEM files that I
believe cover the whole country (USA) at the USGS Gopher or by FTP at
resdgs1.er.usgs.gov /dems.  All the files are compressed and first need
to be uncompressed.  After that is done, you now have DEM files in the
USGS format that are not Vistapro compatible.  You now need to run the
Vistapro utility program "MCNV" to convert the USGS DEM files to Vistapro
format.  If you have the new Vistapro CD ROM, the MCNV program on there
allows you to combine multiple USGS DEM files together to make a massive
contiguous block of smaller Vistapro DEM files.  I have done this for a
block of 8 USGS DEMs covering almost all of West Virginia and a large
part of western Virginia.  Depending on the area I then want to view, I
set my DEM size to the appropriate number and load in the region I want
to see.  I have to tell you that the results are amazing.  I am a person
into hiking those mountains and the above technique has allowed me to
look at the mountains I have hiked from about any perspective.  I have
even taken a Vistapro image and used it as the background and reflection
map for a spinning Logo I was playing around with in Imagine.  The result
was very impressive.

   Wesley


On Wed, 20 Apr 1994 [e-mail] wrote:

> >I will begin this with deep excuses for bringing up DEM talk in this post,
> >But the thing is that a while ago (quite a while actually) an address was
> >dumped in this list and now when i was looking for it i nnotice that a part
> >of my mailbox is corrupt (i know its my fault that i didn't save the mail
> >to a file but...), anyway i was wondering if there is any kind soul who
> >knows the address and wants to share it with me (the address has a HUGE
> >amount of DEM's from all over the world).
> >
> >The other thing i want to discuss is HOW to convert those DEM's into
> >DEM's that are readble by vista (because the size of a file that i DID
> >get home was 33k compressed with lha and 8.8 Mb uncompressed i think that
> >these DEM's are binary or somthing).
> >
> >Anyone who knows anything about the above, PLEASE mail me (i dont wanna get
> >the blame for disrupting the mailing list).
>
>
> I actually got most of the dem files from one of the places on the internet
> and tried to use them in vista.
> None of these were readable by vista. Any one else find this problem??
>
>
>
>
>
> /-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-SUN
> Graeme Mc Donough,
> INTERNET: [e-mail]  (postmaster)
>                                                                         ///
> Monash University                                                      ///
> Dpt of Earth Sciences                                                 ///

> Clayton, Melbourne                                                \\\///
> Victoria, AUSTRALIA 3168                                           \XX/
> PHONE: [phone]
> /-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-TWIRL
>
>
>
>




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #303 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Imagine 3.0 AMIGA (fwd)
Date: Wed, 20 Apr 1994 08:26:21 -0700
From: [e-mail] (Lesk)

>Cliff,
>        Your points are well taken and well presented.  However you are right
>that you can not speak to our efforts or for what we are doing.  INdeed we have

>been snooping around the DOS market and it is just like the AMiga market full
>of
>people who want to do everything they can with their computer, some of them
>even
>want to do what Imagine does.
>
>        There is however one central point that it seems no matter how hard we
>scream this no one listens.   We have over 30 thousand users on our data base,
>most of them are owners of an Amiga, over 90%.  Why for the love of whatever
>would we throw all these people out the door just so we could start over and do

>what we have done in another market.
>
>        From a monetary stand point this is the kiss of death to do what some
>have suggested and that is to DUMP and RUN to another computer.  Dumb idea.
>
>        We will continue to develope for the AMiga as long as our data base
>asks
>us to do so.  WE could care less what CBM does, now, in the past or in the
>future.
>
>        We do want to grow that data base and we do not see that coming from
>the
>AMiga market.  It is apparently not going to grow too much over the next few
>years unless some other company buys them or unless they do something
>spectacluar like,  wake up.  This is not going to happen.
>
>        So for those who own an Amiga.  we will keep doing what we have done
>and
>that is to support out user base.  This is why it has taken so long to get 3.0
>out. we had to do it on 2 machines and make the software AMIGA compatible on
>both platforms,.  We now have a cross compiler that makes the code move quickly

>from one to the other.
>
>        We arent going anywhere, I suggest that the AMiga user is going to move

>before we do, and when they do I hope that we have Imagine for what ever
>computer they buy.
>
>        Please post to the public.
>
>        Thanks for your comments.
>
>        Mike Halvorson



Mike; very Well Written, as a user of Imagine It is good to see these kinds
of replies, I get the strong feeling you are here to support your users
(period regardless of machine). This is very different from your earlier
posts. I am thinking there must be a lot of confidence at impulse these
these days in your product. It makes very anxious to see 3.0


                                                Render Ho!
                                                   Lesk




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #304 ***************************************:-)

Subject: RE:  DEM's again!
Date: Wed, 20 Apr 94 08:32:00 PDT
From: Stethem Ted              5721 <[e-mail]>

 The biggest sites for USGS DEM's are spectrum.xerox.com IP 192.70.225.78
under /pub/map/dem and resdgs1.er.usgs.gov IP 130.11.52.55.  There are also
several Vista DEM's at wuarchive.  Also, I understand Vista has released a
CD-ROM with the entire planet of Mars plus most of the Earth in Vista DEM
format.
   VistaPro reads USGS DEM's directly but you do have to select load USGS
DEM to read it in.  I believe older Vista may have required a utility called
USGStoDEM which is in the PD.
   The reason USGS DEM's are huge is because they are NOT binary.  They are
ASCII.  If you have VistaPro and the DEM is not being totally read in, it is
because you don't have enough RAM.  Get more RAM.
   This was all discussed on the IML a couple of months ago.  Thanks to the
people that provided the information previously.  It is not about Imagine
but I appreciated getting the sites for the USGS DEM's.
   OK, now who wants to chat about their first 1800 frame bones animation
done with Imagine V3.0?
 ----------
From: imagine-relay
Date: Wednesday, April 20, 1994 12:30AM

>I will begin this with deep excuses for bringing up DEM talk in this post,
>But the thing is that a while ago (quite a while actually) an address was
>dumped in this list and now when i was looking for it i nnotice that a part
>of my mailbox is corrupt (i know its my fault that i didn't save the mail
>to a file but...), anyway i was wondering if there is any kind soul who
>knows the address and wants to share it with me (the address has a HUGE
>amount of DEM's from all over the world).
>
>The other thing i want to discuss is HOW to convert those DEM's into
>DEM's that are readble by vista (because the size of a file that i DID
>get home was 33k compressed with lha and 8.8 Mb uncompressed i think that
>these DEM's are binary or somthing).
>
>Anyone who knows anything about the above, PLEASE mail me (i dont wanna get
>the blame for disrupting the mailing list).


I actually got most of the dem files from one of the places on the internet
and tried to use them in vista.
None of these were readable by vista. Any one else find this problem??





/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-SUN
Graeme Mc Donough,
INTERNET: [e-mail]  (postmaster)
                                                                        ///
Monash University                                                      ///
Dpt of Earth Sciences                                                 ///

Clayton, Melbourne                                                \\\///
Victoria, AUSTRALIA 3168                                           \XX/
PHONE: [phone]
/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-TWIRL





IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #305 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Imagine V3.0 & Amiga
Date: Wed, 20 Apr 94 07:56:00 PDT
From: Stethem Ted              5721 <[e-mail]>

   I figure I am going to get 2 to 3 highly productive years from Imagine
V3.0 with all its new features (drool, slobber, smack  :^) and my
accelerated Amiga.  As much as Cliff wants to dream, Imagine is running much
better on the Amiga than it is on the PC or MS-DOG or whatever you call
those kludged-up Klone boxes.  For raw clock speed, the 486DX2/66 or
486DX4/100 or Pentium whatever is pulling ahead.  But face it, the memory
management sux big time.  Maybe you can run Imagine at twice the speed on
your 486DX2/66 as compared to an '040/33.  But then, as a MiracleSoft user,
can you be in the Stage Editor, start a test Make Animation on a 1000 frame
animation, click out and go fire up ADPro to do some image processing for
that Background or Global brushmap you are going to use in your Project  or
maybe even firing up Scenery Animator to generate the background scenes,
then click back in and run your test animation to see if you need to adjust
something before you commit to hours of rendering?  The simple answer is NO!
 The one all important gadget that is missing in the MicroSlug version of
Imagine is that  multitasking button.  Which is faster, to be able to do
several jobs at once or one job at a time?
  So what are you superior Klone guys using for virtual memory for your
really large Imagine projects?  Is Share in config.sys working for you?
 Gee, we poor Amiga saps can only use Gigamem seamlessly with Imagine.
 Let's see, the other day I had Gigamem allocate 100 Megs for an Imagine
project.  I was only rendering a walk-through of the entire Aztec city of
Tenochtitlan.  But if I had a Klone, I could just buy more RAM.  Let's see,
$40 per meg, 100 megs, yeah, that's only $4000.  But then all PC guys are
rich.  Look at Uncle Billy!  But then, I don't recall any Intel machines
having 100 Meg RAM boards.  Here we are again, poor Amiga guys, all we can
do is get a DKB3128 for the Zorro III slot and have 128 Megs of contiguous
RAM.
  BTW, did you see that Motorola and IBM rolled out the PowerPC 604
processor this week?  Pentium P54C rates at 1 SPECint/MHz and PowerPC 604
rates at 110 SPECint/MHz.  Seems that the days of the 286/386/486/Pentium PC
may be numbered also.  Like I said, two to three years ....


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #306 ***************************************:-)

Subject: DEMS etc.
Date: Wed, 20 Apr 1994 13:53:25 -0400
From: Paul Wehner <[e-mail]>

FTP xerox.com and resdgs1.er.usgs.gov have a number of USGS Dems available for
transfer. There is an amiga program called MCNV (or similiar) that converts
these files to binary VP Dems. The dems from the ftp sites uncompress to
*huge* files(+4 megs) so mucho ram is needed. The conversion program I believe
is available on VP's bbs-forgot the number unfortunately.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #307 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Imagine : PC vs Amiga
Date: Wed, 20 Apr 94 14:45:05 EDT
From: [e-mail]

  I'll admit that it is nice to be able to be rendering in the background
while doing some image processing and playing an animation.  Amiga's do that
well.  I have to do it at seperate times on my PC.

  But, I can sit down at my PC (a 386DX/40mhz with 8MB RAM and a math
coprocessor) and in twenty minutes set up a scene, render 10 different
quickrenders, and render 4 frames of 640x480 scanline.  On the accellerated
A3000 and A4000 Amiga's at school it takes me five hours.

  It is all a matter of speed.  Please don't argue MIPS, or MHZ, or RAM, or
anything else.  Everything from Imagine, to Vista Pro renders many times
faster on my PC, and I don't have a high end machine either.

  While it may be neater to have ten different tasks running at the same
time.  It isn't very effecient, nor is it cost effective.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #308 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: DEM files (sorry about this)
Date: Wed, 20 Apr 94 12:22:44 PDT
From: [e-mail]

Vista Pro (for the Amiga) versions 3.0 and newer canload
USGS ASCII DEM format directly, with no pre-conversion to
Vista's compressed DEM format required.

Note that many of the USGS ASCII format DEM files found on
the Internet will be in .Z compressed format. Naturally,
these'll need to be un-.Zd before Vista can load them.

Harv
[e-mail]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #309 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Damn
Date: Wed, 20 Apr 1994 14:29:34 -0500 (CDT)
From: Cliff Lee <[e-mail]>

Damn.  This has degenerated into a typical "Amgia is better than <insert
anything you wish here>" contest.  Not my intention.  All I'm trying to
say is that it is in the best interest of the Amiga users of Imagine that
Impulse develop a strong DOS version of the program.  That way there will
be a large deal of cash in the company and thus continued development
(for both platforms).

Stethem Ted and MR. R.L.COLLIER   have gone into a great deal of detail
about why the Amiga is a better platform that DOS.  Granted.  I'll give
it to you.  Believe it or not I'm an Amiga fan.  I have always liked the
multiple interface operating system (both a CLI and Workbench).  You are
preaching to the Choir.

To put some info in this...  I still have not recieved my Imagine 3.0
yet.  Eagerly awaiting.  Anyone recieved it yet?

Cliff Lee           [e-mail]
"You can always make up a class,
 You can never  make up a party!"



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #310 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Wavefront converters
Date: Wed, 20 Apr 1994 13:52:30 -0700
From: [e-mail] (Lesk)

>We're very good about tracking down reproducible bug reports.  This
>may mean sending the object to us on a disk.  Without a bug report,
>we can't fix the problem.  We *always* give a stack of suggestions on
>telephone tech support if we can't pin down the problem immediately.
>We *always* give free bug fix upgrade disks when you've spotted a
>bug.

Does this mean to only the individual who found it, or to all registered
purchasers of the product?


                                                Render Ho!
                                                   Lesk




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #311 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Looping essence textures
Date: Wed, 20 Apr 94 14:00:48 -0600
From: Steve Koren <[e-mail]>

> I want to make a looping anim with the essenceII Wave or even Ripple
> water texture.  How would you go about setting up the textures so you can
> loop the output smoothly?

For the fractal noise based textures, there is no really good way to
loop them.  The best you can do is do a crossfade - set two textures,
one initially starts at 0% and one at 100%.  At the middle, both are
50%.  The starting point of one is the ending point of the other.  This
lets you avoid a jump at the end of a looping anim.  But it still
suffers from the problem that the texture is "blurred" in the middle.

OTOH, for non-noise periodic textures, you should just be able to loop
by making sure you end at the same relative point in the texture cycle
as you began.  Render 1 more frame than you need for your anim, to avoid
a duplicate frame at the start/end point.

  - steve


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #312 ***************************************:-)

Subject: 2.9 question (and: mobicogs uploaded to Aminet)
Date: Wed, 20 Apr 94 14:10:21 -0600
From: Steve Koren <[e-mail]>

Just got around to viewing mobicogs last night.  Very cool!!  Also looks
pretty good for just being in HAM6.

I also have a question for those of you who have 2.9.  In 2.0, you can
make an object in the detail editor, and if you load it into the stage
editor 10 times you get 10 individual copies of the object's data.
Someone mentioned to me that in 2.9 you can make an object in the detail
editor, and load it multiple times into the stage editor such that the
object data is only stored once.  The other copies have their own
position, size, and alignment vectors, but point to the original polygon
data from the first.  This would be a *wonderful* feature to have in
cases where you have big objects (many thousands of polygons) and want
to have many copies of them in your render.

  - steve (doesn't have 2.9 but looking forward to 3.0) k


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #313 ***************************************:-)

Subject: RE:  DEM's again! or vist-pro mailing list
Date: Wed, 20 Apr 1994 14:11:33 -0700
From: [e-mail] (Lesk)

To the new vist-pro mailing list.....

>
>I actually got most of the dem files from one of the places on the internet
>and tried to use them in vista.
>None of these were readable by vista. Any one else find this problem??
>

Now that you have them...
Where do you get vista-pro?
What is it and how much is it for the Amiga?
Why would I want it? what does it do?

>
>
>
>
>/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-SUN
>Graeme Mc Donough,
>INTERNET: [e-mail]  (postmaster)
>                                                                        ///
>Monash University                                                      ///
>Dpt of Earth Sciences                                                 ///
>
>Clayton, Melbourne                                                \\\///
>Victoria, AUSTRALIA 3168                                           \XX/
>PHONE: [phone]
>/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-TWIRL




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #314 ***************************************:-)

Subject: state of the IML
Date: Wed, 20 Apr 94 14:17:50 -0600
From: Steve Koren <[e-mail]>

Seems to me that recently there has been more NON-Imagine related
traffic on the IML than actual Imagine related things.  We have
questions about 3D Studio, PC/Amiga flame wars, postings about the
financial status of C=, and you name it.  The S/N ratio has gotten so
low that I've been tempted to unsubscribe.

I wonder if it might not be useful for us all to make an effort to stick
to Imagine topics?

On that note, here is mine.  I have recently found a manner for moving
objects back and forth between Imagine and Aladdin by way of Vertex.
You can't directly load either's files into the other.  But if you load,
say, an Aladdin object into Vertex, you can save as an Imagine object
and load into into Imagine for rendering.  It works the other way, too.
However, Vertex doesn't directly read Aladdin objects.  Instead, save as
a .GEO (videoscape?) file.  Those can be read into Aladdin.  The Imagine
detail editor has strengths that Aladdin doesn't have, and vice versa,
so this is a pretty useful technique.

Unfortunately, you loose any attribute info, so you can't go back and
forth a lot.  But it is useful as a one-shot deal.

  - steve


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #315 ***************************************:-)

Subject: RE:  DEM's again! or vist-pro mailing list
Date: Wed, 20 Apr 94 12:52:00 PDT
From: Stethem Ted              5721 <[e-mail]>

Hi Lesk,
  You haven't heard of VistaPro?  You can get it practically anywhere, I
think it is about $60 from Creative Computers (I am not recommending them as
a source, just an example of where you can get it - youch, almost every
statement has to be qualified here or the flames erupt!).  It is basically a
stand-alone 3D landscape renderer; you can't do anything with it except
render DEM landscape files with the addition of clouds, rivers, lakes,
trees, snow.  You cannot import 3D objects into it and you cannot export the
trees from it.  There are ways to animate flyovers and things but requires
another program to do that if you want to automate the process.
   Why would you want it? Hmmm...depends.  It is good for producing
landscape backgrounds.  Then, it will also import USGS DEM's which you can
then export as Turbosilver objects which can be directly imported into
Imagine (look, I used the "I" word!).  Depends if a realistic representation
of a 3D landscape is important to you or not.
  Not trying to get off the subject of Imagine, just trying to help people
get their questions answered and move on.
 ----------
From: Lesk
To: Stethem Ted              5721
Cc: imagine
Subject: RE:  DEM's again! or vist-pro mailing list
Date: Wednesday, April 20, 1994 2:11PM

To the new vist-pro mailing list.....

>Now that you have them...
Where do you get vista-pro?
What is it and how much is it for the Amiga?
Why would I want it? what does it do?





IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #316 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Vista DEM's on internet
Date: Wed, 20 Apr 94 13:58:15 CDT
From: [e-mail] (Stephen Wilkinson)

Somebody who's email addr got removed by our braindead mailer said:

[snip]
> >to a file but...), anyway i was wondering if there is any kind soul who
> >knows the address and wants to share it with me (the address has a HUGE
> >amount of DEM's from all over the world).

My "list 'o' neat places" has these that might be relevant...

spectrum.xerox.com        ; vista DEM files?
glis.cr.usgs.gov        ; telnet as 'guest' "Global Land Info. Sys"
resdgs1.er.usgs.gov        ; lotsa DEM files in /DEM
avalon.chinalake.navy.mil    ; lotsa 3d stuff here
ames.arc.nasa.gov     ; Lots of NASA stuff/pix (texture maps!)
explorer.arc.nasa.gov   ; 87 CD's on line? pix/astronomy (texture maps!)

> >The other thing i want to discuss is HOW to convert those DEM's into
> >DEM's that are readble by vista (because the size of a file that i DID
> >get home was 33k compressed with lha and 8.8 Mb uncompressed i think that
> >these DEM's are binary or somthing).

Compressed, these files _are_ quite small since they are often very
repetative. And the 8.x Mb filesize is correct for an average ASCII
DEM.

> I actually got most of the dem files from one of the places on the internet
> and tried to use them in vista.
> None of these were readable by vista. Any one else find this problem??

Nope. They work great... I have not found any really neat ones yet, but
I'm open to suggestions :) What's really cool is to load 'em into Imagine
and do fly-thru's with the X-29 object... I did that with the M1-A1 obj
that Scott was kind enough to convert for me (Thanks Scott!) and the
results were great.

Stephen
____________________________________
Stephen Wilkinson     [e-mail]      "Programming is like pinball. The
Software Engineer                         reward for doing it well is the
LB&M Associates                           opportunity to do it again."
____________________________________
#define OPINION        (myown)
#define COMPANYOPINION (~myown)

      This message created using 87% recycled neuro-transmitters


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #317 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re^2: Wavefront converters
Date: 20 Apr 94 17:26:19 EDT
From: John Foust - Syndesis Corporation <[e-mail]>

To: Imagine

Lesk writes:
> Does this mean only the individual who found it, or to all
> registered purchasers of the product?

It means any registered user who requests it.  It would not
be cost-effective to send it to everyone for every minor
patch.



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #318 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Trees to Imagine with vertex
Date: Wed, 20 Apr 1994 16:07:11 -0700
From: [e-mail] (Lesk)

Hi Imaginuts;
        Yes Amiga's Pc's or whatever We are all nuts! anyway on to the
question.....


        I saw a while back someone mention using vertex and making or
building their own leaves and then putting them into imagine. Going to
imagine is easy enough, but I would like to learn more about the leave
thing.

        question two; I got some info back from Stethem about vista but I
am confused about all the conversation about it. Why not get a platt map
and use the applique function to generate the landscape that way? after
playing with that function (applique) I found it was really fun to use
pictures off the net and then with the applique make a terrain. The one
with elvira on a broom made a great Arizona desert terrain (Thanks Elvira!)
Wow I hope she replies!!!


Thanks for any info.

                                        Render Ho!
                                          Lesk




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #319 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Imagine 3.0 FAQ
Date: Wed, 20 Apr 1994 17:22:20 -0500 (CDT)
From: [e-mail] (cyberhawk)

It seems that I lost my copy of Imagine FAQ. Could someone mail it to
me or tell me where I can get it from?

Andrey



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #320 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Imagine V3.0 & Amiga
Date: Wed, 20 Apr 94 17:11:16 PDT
From: [e-mail]


> From: Stethem Ted
> To: IML <[e-mail]>
> Subject: Imagine V3.0 & Amiga
> X-Mailer: Microsoft Mail V3.0
            ^^^^^^^^^


> For raw clock speed, the 486DX2/66 or 486DX4/100 or Pentium whatever is
> pulling ahead.  But face it, the memory management sux big time.

This is a valid point. Imagine does its own memory management, which was
a poor decision from a technical standpoint, but perhaps can be
justified with time-to-market concerns. It is certainly my hope that future
versions of Imagine will behave well enough to work under Windows NT or
Chicago. Best, of course, would be if it became a full-fledged Win32 app.
That would solve all the problems of video drivers and memory management.


> But then, as a MiracleSoft user, can you be in the Stage Editor, start a
> test Make Animation on a 1000 frame animation, click out and go fire up
> ADPro to do some image processing ...[omitted]  The simple answer is NO!

As a Windows NT user, I take full advantage of multitasking that is
technically superior to the Amiga's.  (It cannot be denied, however, that
the Amiga had multitasking much earlier than any other desktop platform.)
I can use the DOS version of VistaPRO under NT and bring the results into
Adobe Premiere or Photoshop, or do whatever else I may please,
simultaneously. It's just Imagine that's uncooperative.


> So what are you superior Klone guys using for virtual memory for your
> really large Imagine projects?  Is Share in config.sys working for you?
> Gee, we poor Amiga saps can only use Gigamem seamlessly with Imagine.

The best solution is to have VM in the operating system, like Window NT
or Unix or even Windows 3.1 has. (Share has nothing to do with VM.)


> But then, I don't recall any Intel machines having 100 Meg RAM boards.
> Here we are again, poor Amiga guys, all we can do is get a DKB3128 for the
> Zorro III slot and have 128 Megs of contiguous RAM.

Often it's a bad idea to have ram on a board because of bandwidth
considerations. The ZIII is a pretty darn good bus, so it's not so
much of an issue. Most x86 machines put the ram straight on the
motherboard (same as the A3000) and run the memory bus at the processor
clock rate. Older x86 machines top out at 16 or 32 meg, but 64 and
128 meg is getting pretty common (as a maximum, not as a configuration.)
We have a machine here with 256 meg installed for testing how well our
apps work with lots of ram.

Again, if Imagine worked better with Windows, it would be a non-issue.


> BTW, did you see that Motorola and IBM rolled out the PowerPC 604
> processor this week?  Pentium P54C rates at 1 SPECint/MHz and PowerPC
> 604 rates at 110 SPECint/MHz.  Seems that the days of the
> 286/386/486/Pentium PC may be numbered also.  Like I said, two to three
> years ....

I'm going to give you the benefit of the doubt here and assume this is a
typo. Certainly the PPC 604 is not 110 times faster than a P54C! 1.10
times faster might be about right. In comparing the earlier P5 to the
PPC 601, *Motorola* figures showed the PPC as slightly *slower* for
SPECint. (PPC SPECfp was ~50% faster than Pentium, though.)

The suggestion that "the days of the [x86] are numbered" is laughable.
But strong competition from Apple/Moto (I don't count IBM as strong)
will be nothing but good for the consumer, whichever platform he/she
chooses. They sure have their work cut out for them, though.

As for the future of Imagine, I'm really hoping that Impulse moves the
x86 version to Win32. The beta copy of Real3d I have is a Win 32 app.
Of course, they screwed it up by linking statically to the thunking
library so that even though it's a 32 bit program, it won't run under
Windows NT. I can't imagine what Win16 library they thought was so
important.

It would be a fair amount of work for Impulse to rewrite the user interface
code, but it would solve a lot of their memory management and driver
problems. Since Microsoft is phasing out all 16 bit applications and
operating systems, counting on the future of DOS seems like a mistake.

Any comments from those in the know re: Impulse?


                        Marshall


PS. As an OS guy from way back I've always really liked the Amiga and
it's architecture, though I don't have much use for my A3000 these days.
I hope the A5000 makes a big splash, but the competition is pretty stiff
these days!




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #321 ***************************************:-)

Subject: DEM file converters
Date: Wed, 20 Apr 94 16:20:47 MDT
From: [e-mail] (Lowell Lindenbach)

>>The other thing i want to discuss is HOW to convert those DEM's into
>>DEM's that are readble by vista (because the size of a file that i DID
>>get home was 33k compressed with lha and 8.8 Mb uncompressed i think that
>>these DEM's are binary or somthing).

>I actually got most of the dem files from one of the places on the internet
>and tried to use them in vista.
>None of these were readable by vista. Any one else find this problem??

     Some addresses:  spectrum.xerox.com
                      ftp.wustl.edu
                      telnet glis.cr.usgs.gov  or  telnet 152.61.192.54

     (thanks to the helpful people on this list for providing those...
      I dunno...should this be a part of the FAQ for all the times it
      gets covered?)


  As far as using these DEM files in Vistapro you will need a program that is
available on the aminet(don't know where, sorry).  The name is mcnv3.lha and it
converts ASCII DEM files over to VP format.  I believe it was put out by the
makers of VP themselves.

--
Lowell Lindenbach    [e-mail]
                     Fido: Lowell Lindenbach 1:134/27


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #322 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Re^2: Wavefront converters
Date: Wed, 20 Apr 1994 20:32:06 -0700
From: [e-mail] (Lesk)

>To: Imagine
>
>Lesk writes:
>> Does this mean only the individual who found it, or to all
>> registered purchasers of the product?
>
>It means any registered user who requests it.  It would not
>be cost-effective to send it to everyone for every minor
>patch.

I request it....

        Well.... unless I already have the latest version that is.
        I just know of several problems concerning dxf transport mentioned here
        (IML or pc vs amiga node whatever it is today!)and have had a couple of
        them show up. and thought there would be general upgrades (a case of
        patience VS Flame).

                                        Render Ho!
                                           Lesk




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #323 ***************************************:-)

Subject: RE: State of the IML
Date: Thu, 21 Apr 94 02:46:37 PDT
From: 21-Apr-1994 0440 <[e-mail]>

>On that note, here is mine.  I have recently found a manner for moving
>objects back and forth between Imagine and Aladdin by way of Vertex.
You can't directly load either's files into the other.  But if you load,
>say, an Aladdin object into Vertex, you can save as an Imagine object
Well I just recieved Vertex 2.0 last night. Alex did a great job responding,
as I just ordered it last thurs or fri. However in all honesty I haven't
been able to model anything in Alladin since I got it. I need to upgrade
it to 4.0 someday!

I have done somethings in one Night with Vertex that I've neve been able to
do before(thanks Alex). It is a very good third party support package for
Imagine
                            bill


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #324 ***************************************:-)

Subject: re <none>
Date: Thu, 21 Apr 94 02:26:47 PDT
From: 21-Apr-1994 0400 <[e-mail]>

>    You know I have been hush hus about this for a long time... but I
>can not do it anymore. I think the Amiga Format / Impulse deal sucks. Why
>is it that we in the U.S. Have to pay for all our versions. Hell I might
>just go out and pirate the next few versions (Too bad I already ordered
>3.0) just because people in other countries do not have to pay for it.
>Ofcourse someone is going to come back and say that you do not get the
>manual with those disks... well the manual is useless anyway so who cares.
Come on Yuri, Back when we bought silver for $400.00 we did so because
it was the best 3D modeler around. You mean to say if you could do it all
over again you would save the $400.00 and wait until 1993 to start enjoying
3D modeling ?? In just the last month we have had the discussion of another
company that has left the Amiga Marketplace. While the AF deal did not leave
me with a warm and fuzzy feeling I figure if it helped Impulse then so what.
If maybe I had just spent retail to by 2.0 and this came about I may feel
different. BTW your statement about pirating 3.0 seem out of form for you,
and the manual for 3.0 may well be worth it:-). As long as the upgrades have
offered the level of increased performance as they have in the past I'll
pay. Sometimes life is not fair but we get up and live every day, and hopefully
appreciate it anyway. I ordered 3.0 and never had 2.9 so for me the wait is
very long. I Imagine(pun intended) when you fire up 3.0 you'll feel better in
no time at all:-).

>And if Impulse is reading this think about what I am saying... I am sure I
>am not the only one who got a little bit (or as I am currently getting
>more and more) pissed off and am considering just using your future
>versions without paying. After all if I was in Europe I could do it
>anyway.

 I can see how you feel but, Two Wrongs have never made a right. I also paid
 for every piece of software I use(own) and feel on the strength of 3.0 Impulse

 could have done better for themselves. After all the list is around $700.00.
 Now it is time to see if the stratgy has paid off or if they shot themselves
 in the foot. Meanwhile it is nothing more than an interesting drama to me.
 FWIW you and I and those like us are the only reason 3.0 is around. I'll
 bet we both buy or food every day while the guy in front of us is getting
 a free lunch.
                                bill




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #325 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Studio Amiga, Thumbnails, and my LD Bill
Date: Wed, 4 Jan 117 17:32:55 -0700
From: [e-mail] (Greg Pringle)

  Re: the thumbnails idea.. sounds great, but how about 24 bit jpegs.
You can crunch em down to about 3-4K if you set it to 10-20% quality,
and they still look good.

  Studio Amiga - is anyone else grabbing Imagine objects from there?
The IML archive is dead - nothing since '93. How about posting some
of the newer stuff from SA.. I've got about 30 objects I can send up
but don't have time to add descriptions/thumbnails. Any volunteers?

  Greg



--
+--------------------------+----------------------------------------------+
| Greg Pringle             |                                              |
| [e-mail] |          "Better dead than smeg"             |
| [e-mail] |                                              |
+--------------------------+----------------------------------------------+


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #326 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Imagine Paths - Problem with duplicates
Date: Thu, 21 Apr 94 02:16:00 -0600
From: [e-mail] (Danny Ceralde)

Has anyone who has extensively used the 'paths' feature of Imagine to
produce lengthy animations ever encountered a problem with saving and
loading these objects in the stage editor?

Problems I have encountered when working with multiple paths in an
animation included:
(1) A path that I worked on and saved previously may all of a sudden
disappear from the dir where I save all the path objects, thereby
forcing me to save a copy elsewhere (using DirOpus) for just-in-case.

(2) I may sometimes have a path object listed twice or three times in
the requestor window!  If I do a 'dir' command from the shell the files
look ok, but sooner or later I start getting corruption on my harddrive.
It's really disconcerting to see the same path object appear twice in
the requestor - it should be impossible but it happens.  (Impulse: Will
we ever see Standard Requestor Windows in upcoming versions?)

Hardware setup includes Trumpcard Pro, Quantum drives, GVP 030, Zeus 040
in a 2000.  It's the eventual drive corruption if I continue saving
greater than 10 path objects that bugs me.  Anybody have the same
experience or solution?



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #327 ***************************************:-)

Subject: WARS AND RUMORS OF 3.0
Date: Thu, 21 Apr 94 08:19:50 CDT
From: [e-mail] (Dave Wickard)

                                  April 21, 1994


Hiya Imagineers!   :-)

This morning brought the following mail to my box.
It was requested that I forward the whole shebang to you.
This, I am doing here. In it's entirity.

-Dave


------------------------------------------------------




From: Mike Halvorson <[e-mail]>

Ladies, Gents and those who have too much time on thier hands.

    Some of you are spending way to much time worrying about whos car is
faster or whos computer is better or whatever it is that you are babbling about.

STOP IT.

    There are no doubt other lists where you can bitch about things to your
hearts content.  While I do not control this list, I have less and less time to
check it out and see if there is something that I can do to help people.

    Indeed Imagine 3.0 is winging its way to thousands of you, while others
wait to see what amazing things we have stuffed into that little disk (s).
There will be many questions, there will be many suggestions there will be even
some complaints.  Please hone your writing talents so that we can together
address these issues.

    Many of you will be having long, late nights, doing much drooling and
hooping, as I have done over the last year.  Some of you I suppose will try your

best to find out that something is amiss in Imagine.  Maybe the same folks that
need to beat their chests and claim which computer is better and all that stuff.


    I think that this IML is great, and many of you seem to be willing to
help others who dont get this thing or the other.  Keep that attitude.  If you
have an Amiga, great use it, abuse it, throw it down the stairs, if you have a
PC, use its, abuse it, throw it out the window.  BUT for heavens sake realize
that YOU are the key to what is happening here, not the computer, not even the
software,  because neither of these things can do anything at all without your
involvement.  So get involved, have a great time, scream at us about new things
that you want, complain about something that does not work right or work the way

you want it.  But please rise above this enzyme driven commentary about
computers and whos is better.

    So, for the next few days, I will be working my buns off getting these
packages out the you, and hope that all of you enjoy what we have done.


    Your computer is good, cause it is the one you have,  the other ones are
good to because that is the one the other guy has.  Now lets get on to more
important things.

    Have fun, and render your self crazy....


    Yeah thats the ticket,  he was rendered crazy by his computer which he
dearly loved, but one day it turned on him, bit his legs off and now he is just
a shell of his former self...



    Mike Halvorson
    Package man..................Where is that tape gun.....



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #328 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Let's Make A Deal
Date: Thu, 21 Apr 94 08:42:38 CDT
From: [e-mail] (Dave Wickard)

Note: This mail is being forwarded. For response, please note
the address/account noted in the post itself.
Please be certain all IML mail is properly addressed to:
[e-mail]
----------------------------------------
To: [e-mail]
From: [e-mail] (Ed Oats)
Organization: ElectriCiti, San Diego, CA, USA
Date: Wed, 20 Apr 1994 18:52:26 PST
Subject: Let's make a deal

Let's make a deal. Don't bash my platform just because you bought something
different or you feel your machine doesn't get good press, our your spouse,
significant other, etc. is hacked off at you for spending all your time at
your PC (read personal computer, platform generic).

Don't Trash the vendor product or question their business methods. Tell
them what you want is a reasonable manner. If they deliver it, buy it. If
not, abstain. Vendors are in business to enhance the profitability of their
company. They long term way to do this is meet consumer demand. They don't
owe any charity work or to any particular user, platform, etc. This blurb
provided for those who seem to have fallen asleep in junior high economics
discussions.

If the product in question is the subject of the list, and you really hate
it and have nothing good or constructive to say about it (telling someone
their product is trash is not considered constructive critcism), then maybe
buy something different that will amke you happy, unsubscribe here, and
join their list.

Maybe after all that, we can use this list to ask and answer questions
about Imagine and closely related subjects. Then, benefiting from the
collective knowledge, we can make some art, or if not, some money from the
latest flying logo.

It would be very nice to get a little higher S/N ratio here. I'm pretty
sick of reading a bunch of tripe to find an ever more rare morsel of
knowledge. Yes, the net is cheaper than Cserve, but the quality of Imagine
discussion there is a hell of a lot better.

I've wasted enough bandwidth, let's make a deal and all stop doing it.

I eagerly await the flame noise about your right to say any damn thing you
please. Yes you have that right. I will just either unsubscribe or identify
you one by one for the kill file.

To those who genuinely come here for Imagine purposes, I apologize. I also
have sympathy for you.

Ed


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #329 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Imagine 3.0 Features
Date: Thu, 21 Apr 94 08:19:56 CDT
From: [e-mail] (Stephen Wilkinson)

I am an owner of 1.0 and the AFormat 2.0 version. I've got some
questions about 2.9 and above... I'd like to know what some of you
folks on the PCvAmigaVista3dStudio list can tell me about the "States"
editor (?) I've seen cometj1 and read that he used this states thing.
Seems like the cycle editor, but I don't really get the gist of it :)
And while I'm at it.. Anybody have any ideas on what kind of Kinematics
3.0 will have? Gravity? Collisions?

Just Curious,
Stephen
____________________________________
Stephen Wilkinson     [e-mail]      "Programming is like pinball. The
Software Engineer                         reward for doing it well is the
LB&M Associates                           opportunity to do it again."
____________________________________
#define OPINION        (myown)
#define COMPANYOPINION (~myown)

      This message created using 87% recycled neuro-transmitters



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #330 ***************************************:-)

Subject: re: Dems again
Date: Thu, 21 Apr 94 07:43:25 PDT
From: 21-Apr-1994 0933 <[e-mail]>

>It really sounds like what I have been playing with in 2.9 called applique
>you take a picture of your house from the air, or get a platte map and it
>will extrude along a 3rd axis creating a great landscape. I don't think it
>is as accurate to the actual terrain but I am not doing geological research
>either....

Well Vista uses the DEM files, So this would mean that you could build an
anim of flying thru the grand canyon, and then using ADPro to compile
the pics, have your 3D jet from Imagine do the fly thru. While Imagine
will import bitmaps, Vista Pro gives you much better controll over the
process. Aladdin comes with a pic showing the Enterprize blowing away
a mountian top. Well the mountian was actually a dem of Mount St. Helens
after she erupted. If you want to render 3D landscapes to use as a back-
ground pic Vista does it well. In all fairness Scenary Animator also offers
similar capabilities, and allows toy to load a 3D object right into the scene.
it needs a .GEO format I think. I own both and use VP more.
````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
                                bill


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #331 ***************************************:-)

Subject: supporting software for Imagine
Date: Thu, 21 Apr 94 08:57:00 -0600
From: Steve Koren <[e-mail]>

> Hi, now that I have Imagine, what can I buy for it?
> What's the best supporting software that you can't do without?

IMHO, the single most essential thing for Imagine is Essence.  Get them
both (there are two volumes).  They're quite affordable.  Trust me, you
will wonder how you ever got by without them.

After that, Vertex is useful to augment the detail editor.  The detail
editor is really pretty good, but there are some things it doesn't
handle very well.  Vertex compliments it rather nicely, and you can
write ARexx scripts to do automated things that would take eons in the
detail editor.  Whenever I use Imagine, I almost always run it and
Vertex at the same time, so I can flip back and forth between them.  The
only trouble is that if I make, say, a tree in Vertex, I have to save it
on disk, and then load it into the detail editor.  It would be cool if
you could copy to the clipboard from Vertex, and just paste the object
into Imagine (or vice versa).  The clipboard handles IFF's, which
Imagine's objects are stored as, so it would work with a bit of effort
from both vendors.  iffparse.library will write to the clipboard with
the same ease as a file.

Lastly, an image processor of some sort.  Personally I think ImageFX
blows away the competition.

  - steve


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #332 ***************************************:-)

Subject: FW: Imagine V3.0 & Amiga
Date: Thu, 21 Apr 94 07:30:00 PDT
From: Stethem Ted              5721 <[e-mail]>

  Look, this thing got started because a PC owner got on here and started
attacking the Amiga.  If you notice, this is usually how most PC vs Amiga
flame wars get started.  A PC owner gets on what used to be a primarily
Amiga forum and starts attacking the Amiga.  I don't want to see the
degeneration of a public forum into platform wars bickering but it sure
brought a lot of people out of the woodwork!  Where is everybody when the
topic is Imagine?
  For the sake of the IML, which is the best 3D Mailing List I've seen so
far (probably get flamed for this comment), I am forwarding this message
from Mike H. and putting the matter to rest.  As for all the people that
directed me to lighten up, maybe you should take your own advice! QED (Quod
erat demonstratum or, in this case, Quit, Ended, Done :^)
 ----------
From: Mike Halvorson
To: Stethem Ted              5721
Subject: Imagine V3.0 & Amiga
Date: Wednesday, April 20, 1994 5:42PM

Ted,
        WHile it is apparent that you like your AMiga and rightfully so, the
question is not which machine is better, the question is this, is there
going
to
be support for your machine 12 months from now.  It does not look good.  The
PC
is just another computer, and for that matter so is the Amiga.  So much
silicon
and wire and a few traces of gold.

        YOU are the reason the computer is good, not the other way around.
 NO
matter how great the OS if you cant use it then the computer is crap.  I
like
the Amiga but I really like that when I tell the pentium to start a 3000
frame
animation I can go away for a day and come back and its all done.

        You use your computer for MANY tasks, I use it for one thing, in
most
cases, and that is to render.  I dont do much word processing, and less data
base management than you can imagine.  SO beleive it our not, I am accessing
CIS
and the NET on my color Macintosh Classic computer, its cute, and cuddly and
its
very cheap and its and antique and its a great machine for what I do with
it,
and that is download and upload and do the Electronic Highway thing.

        Dont defend the AMiga, it is a great computer and it speaks for
itself,
but look who is behind it, they cant even pay their bills, not good news.
Today
is not what is at stake it is the next day, and what the next day brings, no
one
knows except those guys in that special secret room working on the new
Master
Blaster CPU.  Geez.

        Mike



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #333 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Imagine upgrades
Date: Fri, 22 Apr 1994 01:47:49 +1000 (EST)
From: Nikola Vukovljak <[e-mail]>

On Thu, 14 Apr 1994 [e-mail] wrote:

> Here's the deal regarding upgrades to Imagine 3.0 .
>
>
>   If you live in the US or Canada and own Imagine 1.0 or 1.1 the upgrade to
> Imagine 3.0 is $200 (American) while the upgrade from Imagine 2.0 to 3.0
> is $100 (American). If you live in Europe (including the UK) and bought
> the Amiga Format coverdisk version of Imagine 2.0 the cost of the upgrade to
> Imagine 3.0 is 95 British pounds. Neither Americans nor Canadians are eligible

> for the upgrade to Imagine 3.0 from the the cover disk version.
>
>
>   If you North American Imagine owners think this is unfair, well you are
> right. Anyone who payed the regular price for Imagine 2.0 (approx $250 street)

> from a dealer or mail order house has gotten shafted as the Europeans got the

More blabber deleted.....

Well, I have had well and truly enough of this crap on this mailing list.
Just grow up will you!
I really do not care what your opinion of what is right and what is wrong
as far as Impulse's actions!
This thread and those mentioning the Syndesis CDROM and Pegger are
boring, totally uninformative and therefore by definition of this list
(which was formed in order for Imagine users to share the experience
gained by using the product) completely useless.

Your use of stereotypes (American users buy ALL their programs, Europeans
PIRATE them all, Australians... - where's that ?) shows poor taste and
ignorance.

So please, refrain from posting to the list if you do not have anything
useful to say. For your info, the things you have mentioned have been
gone over and over again on this list more than once.

Most of the people on this list have had Imagine for quite a while and
it has been worth to them the money spent on it.
As far as the new users go, I am happy to welcome them to our ranks!

Nik Vukovljak

(IML archivist - and Boy are the archives filling up with useless stuff
these days! - and that is after culling!)



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #334 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Imagine question.
Date: Thu, 21 Apr 1994 14:05:41 -0500 (CDT)
From: Cliff Lee <[e-mail]>

Ok, so enough "Caca de Toro".  How does one go about creating realitic
neon lights using Imagine?

Cliff Lee           [e-mail]
"You can always make up a class,
 You can never  make up a party!"



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #335 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Let's Make A Deal
Date: Thu, 21 Apr 1994 11:41:31 -0700 (PDT)
From: Mike McCool <[e-mail]>

Hey guy,

    Thanks, and thanks again, for your sensible post.  I'm a relative
newcomer to the IML, and in just the few months I've been on, the number
of relevant and useful posts has begun to drop so far below the mass of
other frankly useless ones, I've begun to wonder if my subscription to
the list was the kiss of death.

    This seems to happen whenever I subscribe to a magazine, too.  It
immediately turns to dust.

    I learned more about Imagine in the first two weeks I was on IML
than in all the two years I've been using this fabulous program.  But
lately all I'm learning is to be embarrassed at being a member of this
so-called human race.

    Thanks, for restoring my faith.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #336 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Particle techniques
Date: Thu, 21 Apr 94 10:48:00 PDT
From: Stethem Ted              5721 <[e-mail]>

  Has anybody been really experimenting with particles yet?  I am trying to
achieve some effects but they might not be possible within the confines of
the Particle effect.
   Primarily, I like the Rain effect.  I have that working and understand it
pretty well.  But, I want to try to get it to "Rain" sideways in the
X-direction but I can't seem to get it to do that.  I make a sphere object
in the Detail Editor, apply spherical particles to it and test it out in the
Stage Editor.  I have no problem getting the particles to rain down in the
 -Z direction.  I figured I could go back to the Detail Editor, transform my
axis so the Local Z axis is pointing in the Global X direction and it would
rain sideways.  But when I go back to the Stage Editor, the particles still
rain down in the Global -Z direction (straight down).  I have also tried
taking the particle object and rotating it, default axis and transformed
axis, in the Stage Editor, used the save Alignment command, and it still
rains downward.  Maybe, since this is the Rain effect, it is not meant to
rain except in a downward direction.
   I am also wondering if it is possible to somehow get different particle
sizes intermixed.  I am starting to think this may not be possible with a
single object but maybe with a grouped object, it can be done.  I haven't
tried this one out yet though.
  Also, it appears to me that the gravitational parameter only applies to
the whole object and not to the particles themselves.  If I use a negative
gravitational value, the net effect is the particle object floats upwards
and the particles maintain their relative postions WRT the primary object.
 I was hoping the gravitational parameter was affecting the particles.
  I've gotten some really good tips here and I know there are some really
talented guys out there.  So, if you can help me out, thanks in advance.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #337 ***************************************:-)

Subject: cmtj2imp announce?
Date: Thu, 21 Apr 94 22:34:27 GMT
From: Jason Jack <[e-mail]>

Hi

I put up cmtj2imp.lha onto aminet gfx/misc and posted some details to the
IML a few days ago.  I never saw my posting, and I've had zero feedback.
Did it make it?

Bye,
Jay



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #338 ***************************************:-)

Subject: mobicogs glitch horror - film at 11
Date: Thu, 21 Apr 94 23:19:18 GMT
From: Jason Jack <[e-mail]>

Hi

Well at least 4 people have seen mobicogs now.  Anybody spot the glitch?  I
put the camera in the best place to miss it...

btw, I have a flc version - any interest PC people?  (and where do flcs go?
someone said Simtel to me... where is it and what are the upload rules?)


News for the trivia-flamers : Syndesis just posted the full blurb on the
3DROM on the lightwave mailing list.  Will be interesting to see the
reception there...


Let's stick to Imagine : cool anims, neat textures, great objects, these
things and more.  imho, if you have _contributed_ to the IML (eg. added to
the world sum of Imagine knowledge) then you have right to color your
postings with vaguely-non-related things.  Otherwise, take it somewhere
else.


Anybody get 3.0 yet?

Jay


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #339 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: FAQ and neon lights
Date: 21 Apr 1994   23:32:26 GMT
From: Michael Comet <[e-mail]>

> Ok, so enough "Caca de Toro".  How does one go about creating realitic
> neon lights using Imagine?
>

    Actually, if anyone has figured this out, please send me copy.
This is a problem I haven't had time to work on and that would be good
for the FAQ.

    BTW, in case ypu missed it, FAQ #5 went out 2 days ago or so.  Some
how the subject line got erased on the way, so hopefully everyone didn't
delete it!

    Render on!

Mike C.
[e-mail]


--
+-------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Michael B. Comet [e-mail] CWRU Software Engineer/Graphics Artist |
+-------------------------------------------------------------------------+



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #340 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Imagine SCALA
Date: Fri, 22 Apr 94 09:08:27 EST
From: [e-mail] (Graeme Mc Donough)

Hi all

I have generated an animation with Imagine and I have used SCALA
to set the sounds and animations together. Finally for my own personal
videos. But I would like to give out these animatinos and I have a probelm,
SCALA. I can give out the animation but whoever gets the animation and
tries to run it, has to have the SCALA dongle to see it run.
The question is:-- is there anybody who knows a conversion or is there
anybody who has scala and would like to have a look ?????




/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-SUN
Graeme Mc Donough,
INTERNET: [e-mail]  (postmaster)
                                                                        ///
Monash University                                                      ///
Dpt of Earth Sciences                                                 ///
Clayton, Melbourne                                                \\\///
Victoria, AUSTRALIA 3168                                           \XX/
PHONE: [phone]
/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-TWIRL





IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #341 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: cmtj2imp announce?
Date: Thu, 21 Apr 1994 19:14:06 -0600
From: [e-mail] (Gary Beeton, [e-mail])

>I put up cmtj2imp.lha onto aminet gfx/misc and posted some details to the
>IML a few days ago.  I never saw my posting, and I've had zero feedback.
>Did it make it?

Jay,

Its up.  I saw it there!  Just been too intimidated to try to download and
render (don't think I have enough HD left :)


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #342 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Question!!(surprised?)
Date: Thu, 21 Apr 1994 20:56:34 -0500 (CDT)
From: "Glenn R. Wilson" <[e-mail]>

Hi Imagineers!!!

Yeah, this is a message with a question.  I am tired of the crap that has
been on the list each day for a while, but maybe we have the point that
it isn't worth anything but trouble by now, right?  Well, I am almost as
tired of the messages telling us to get OFF OUR HIGH HORSES......
I got the message, people and here is a question for you.
I have used Imagine 3.0 to render a 2 min. animation which wasn't that
easy for me since I am fairly new to all of this.  Well, I did this for a
presentation for my college prof. and would like to add a few sound
effects for it.....possibly a CD-rom sound file.  I love sound effects,
don't we all?  It is possible I missed a feature on Imagine since it is
the first time I have used it and have only had it for 2 months.  Any help?
Thanx and Render HO!!!!
Glenn Wilson
[e-mail]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #343 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Particle Effects for a Gunshot...
Date: Thu, 21 Apr 94 20:49:59 MDT
From: "Mark Allan Fox" <[e-mail]>

Greetings:

    I've been working on an animation for a long while now,
and I've reached the point where my ambition outstrips my RAM.

    Anyways I'm still working on the modelling right now but
I need a good gunshot effect.  I was thinking that the particle
effects might come in handy here.

    I haven't really given this much though yet but I think
it would be great if everyone could have access to this sort of
effect.  So lets try and get some brainstorming going on here.

    My ideas so far:

        -lots and lots of particles (perhaps
        transparent), probably spheres.
        -probably use the particle explode effect
        (constrained to fit a narrow cone).
        -slight negative gravity effect (on the
        particles).
        -proper placement of a small lens flare for a
        that short flash that comes with a gunshot.
        -perhaps a fairly dim red-orange light source
        placed just outside the gunbarrel (would need to
        have the light flash on and off quickly).


                Off to experiment,


                M. A. Fox
                [e-mail]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #344 ***************************************:-)

Subject: imagine scala.....
Date: Fri, 22 Apr 1994 22:49:05 +1000
From: [e-mail] (Peter Charuk)

greame,
I have Scala in sydney. And would be interested in seeing your animation.
Scala is very useful for joining Imagine animations. I use it exclusively
for interactive work using animations. Are you using the latest version of
Scala?? (300)



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #345 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Imagine Upgrades
Date: Thu, 21 Apr 94 20:57:57 PDT
From: [e-mail]

You know, when I was a kid I bought a G.I. Joe action figure.  The very next
week they came out with the G.I. Joe with life-like hair and Hasbro wouldn't
let me buy the upgrade at a discount I had to buy a whole new doll!

Then the next year, they came out with a G.I. Joe with kung-fu grip and I
had to pay full price for that one too!!  My friend Joey bought the kung-fu
grip G.I. Joe for just $12.00 but I had to pay $12 in addition to the $10
I paid for the first G.I. Joe and the $11 I had to pay to get the life-like
hair G.I. Joe.

Hasbro sucks.

Don DeCosta           |The nice thing about sanity is|  VM/Nomad2
[e-mail]   |you can lose it more than once|  Amiga/Imagine


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #346 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Imagine!!
Date: Fri, 22 Apr 94 10:30:11 BST
From: [e-mail] (MR. R.L.COLLIER)

    ***************************** IMAGINE *************************


Well, now that discussion is over..

Here are a couple of sugestions for Imagine upgrade preferences...

1. Standard ARP requester.
2. Default projects drawer?  Its a pain having to go to my
   Files:Imagine/projects draw because Imagine is in Creative:Graphics/Imagine
   and defaults to that dir.
3. Default directories for Effects, Textures, Attributes and Objects.


I feel all these would be helpful as every time I bring up a requester for a
texture etc. I have to chug back to my files partition.

Cheerz for listenin

Rich.



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #347 ***************************************:-)

Subject: mobicogs glitch horror - film at 11
Date: Thu, 21 Apr 94 23:58:32 -0700
From: [e-mail] (Greg Pringle)

>btw, I have a flc version - any interest PC people?  (and where do flcs go?
>someone said Simtel to me... where is it and what are the upload rules?)

  Is it 24 bit? Send it up! Simtel isn't directly accessible from the net,
only it's mirrors are. Uploading rules look like they'd take a lawyer to
decipher, but I seem to remember something about full moons, sacrificing
virgins, and using 12 byte kermit packets via telnet.

  You might be better off sending it to the msdos graphics section of
wuarchive, or else sticking it in the IML archive. This is in the
amiga section, but there are amiga players for FLC's aren't there -
(at least for AGA?). Then again, why not just MPEG it.

>the world sum of Imagine knowledge) then you have right to color your
>postings with vaguely-non-related things.  Otherwise, take it somewhere

  Off topics posts are one message. Then you get tons of people publicly
responding to flame bait like platform bashing. Then, you have to wade
through a second wave of postings whining about the lack of content(?)

>Anybody get 3.0 yet?

  Not me.. I was wondering if anyone knew if the PC version will support
24 bit graphics, hires editing screens, run under windows, or come with
a version optimised for 486/586 cpu's?

>Jay

  Greg



--
+--------------------------+----------------------------------------------+
| Greg Pringle             |                                              |
| [e-mail] |          "Better dead than smeg"             |
| [e-mail] |                                              |
+--------------------------+----------------------------------------------+


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #348 ***************************************:-)

Subject: RE: Imagine SCALA
Date: Fri, 22 Apr 94 21:20:00 PDT
From: Stethem Ted              5721 <[e-mail]>

Sorry about this non-Imagine post but I did try to send this message by
direct email and got a Mail Delivery Error user not found.  I don't know any
other way to get a response back to Graeme.  Please, just delete this
message before your blood pressure reaches boiling point.
************************************************************

Graeme,
  I have SCALA and I would be interested in taking a look.  If you .ZIP or
.LHA your script and files and uuencode it over to my email address, that
would be cool.
  Don't know if you saw my post about Magic Lantern V1.5 but it is an
animation editor with the ability to synchronize stereo sound with animation

frames and it has a freely distributable player.  I don't know much more
about it than what the demo readme file says (the demo is in aminet under
gfx/anim/ML-HAM6.lha or -HAM8 for AGA plus others for Retina, Spectrum, and
Opal).  If you haven't seen it yet, it is worth a look.  I have ordered it
and expect it in a few more days.  If you are interested, I could let you
know more about it when I get it or maybe I will try to send a demo
animation up to
aminet.
  SCALA is a very cool program but putting the dongle protection on the
player was kind of crappy.  It makes it necessary to carry your computer
around to show your work unless you just stick with videotape.

 ----------
From: imagine-relay
To: imagine
Subject: Imagine SCALA
Date: Friday, April 22, 1994 9:08AM

Hi all

I have generated an animation with Imagine and I have used SCALA
to set the sounds and animations together. Finally for my own personal
videos. But I would like to give out these animatinos and I have a probelm,
SCALA. I can give out the animation but whoever gets the animation and
tries to run it, has to have the SCALA dongle to see it run.
The question is:-- is there anybody who knows a conversion or is there
anybody who has scala and would like to have a look ?????




/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-SUN
Graeme Mc Donough,
INTERNET: [e-mail]  (postmaster)
                                                                        ///
Monash University                                                      ///
Dpt of Earth Sciences                                                 ///

Clayton, Melbourne                                                \\\///
Victoria, AUSTRALIA 3168                                           \XX/
PHONE: [phone]
/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-TWIRL





IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #349 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Question!!(surprised?) -- IMAGINE 3.0????
Date: Fri, 22 Apr 1994 07:56:33 -0500 (CDT)
From: "Glenn R. Wilson" <[e-mail]>

SORRY DID NOT MEAN 3.0.!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
2.0 is the version.
I appologize for the error, I was talking to someone while I was writing
and we were talking about 3.0.  SORRY.
(still like help, though)
thanx again.
glenn



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #350 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Imagine!!
Date: Fri, 22 Apr 94 05:20:58 PDT
From: 22-Apr-1994 0659 <[e-mail]>

>Well, now that discussion is over..

>Here are a couple of sugestions for Imagine upgrade preferences...

>1. Standard ARP requester.
    ARP, no I think we should push for ASL. ARP was nice in it's day but
    with 2.1, 3.0 it is nat needed. Just request that developers use the
    published Amiga Style Guide.

>2. Default projects drawer?  Its a pain having to go to my
>  Files:Imagine/projects draw because Imagine is in Creative:Graphics/Imagine
>  and defaults to that dir.
 I,m not sure I follow you here. Of course until I see 3.0 this may be a moot
 subject. I have a drawer projects on one of my HD's and have it assigned
 as PROJECTS. When I start a project I use that as a location. I don't mix my
 Applications with my output. I keep all my Applications on the defalt work:
 and never write the output to that drive. I'm lucky in that I have another
 drive so I don't have to mix data with apps. Regardless an Assign statement
 should eliminate this problem.

>3. Default directories for Effects, Textures, Attributes and Objects.
 As above the same should apply. I do keep Essence ect in the Imagine drawer
 and when I elect to load a texture, attribute I see them in the Imagine
 drawer . An assign may work here also because for objects I keep them on
 the other disk also.

>I feel all these would be helpful as every time I bring up a requester for a
>texture etc. I have to chug back to my files partition.
 I need to look at this again. I never pay much attention to these things.
 As I said when I open up a texture it goes to my Imagine drawer(I have
 Assign Work:Imagine  Imagine: in my user startup(I think the syntax is right))
 So If I do a "dir Imagine:" I get the directory for Work:Imagine"
 So textures would be assign textures: Work:Imagine/textures. Now when you
 want to copy something to Work:imagine/textures you simply type
 copy "filename" Textures: Am I missing something here ?
 Also the standard file requester can look at Drawers, and Assignments. So
 if you click on Assignments Textures: comes up just as if it was it's own
 device.
                                bill







IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #351 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Essence
Date: Fri, 22 Apr 94 04:01:03 PDT
From: [e-mail] (Christopher Stewart)

     Hey all!

    I'm trying to pull off a transition for my IV24 using Imagine and
Essence. What I want is a 000 plane to "swirly cloud kinda thing" over a
period of frames. Clouds, no problemo (BLOBC). Making the WHOLE image non-000
is a problem. I have to key the transition over a cut so I need to
completely fill the screen with swirly bits. Can anyone give me a clue as
to the parameter settings to pull this off? I've used the EXPLODE function
on a flying plane and a couple of other fx and textures for transitions.
Anyone have any good ideas? As long as they start off Black, fill the
screen and end up that damn non-colour, Great! The transition has to fade
up and down though so none of that "texture reverse" thing can happen. I'd
like to call this a contest but don't have any prizes ;-). I'll send 2.5
hours of raw "fat bangers in makeup playing rock star" footage to anyone
who sends me a good transition NOT!~ <grin>.

                        Christopher

ps. It's for a KISS tribute band's demo (hell, they have money ;-) so if
you have any REALLY tacky ideas, don't be shy, we're trying to ham it up
for them...

pps. I've got a client willing to pay for eyeball footage. He wants to
stick a screen in front of his shop and have this eyeball rotating
around. I've been sitting here with the camcorder in my face for ages now.
Try it, it's tough! I'm just gonna loop a 10 minute spot six times, what a
strange way to make money......

                        Christopher



--
"I wish there was a knob on the TV             [e-mail]
 to turn up the intelligence.                  [e-mail]
 There's a knob called `brightness',
 but it doesn't work." -- Gallagher            Join the Animation Sig!


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #352 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Looking for clothes
Date: Sun,  3 Apr 94 22:30:43 +0200
From: [e-mail] (Anders Lattermann)

I'm looking for clothes for my Humanoid humanobjects. They are so naked...

Anyone know where to find?

/Anders Lattermann

FidoNet:  2:201/411.24              ! PointBreak - Bg-St-Maurice - France
AmigaNet: 39:164/100.24             !     A3000/14/105 + SQ88C & 17xSQ800
InterNet: [e-mail] !  I feel the need, the need 4 speed!


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #353 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Imagine!!
Date: Fri, 22 Apr 94 10:27:43
From: [e-mail] (Dan Murrell Jr.)

22-Apr-1994 0659 said on Apr 22 :

>
> >2. Default projects drawer?    Its a pain having to go to my
> >  Files:Imagine/projects draw because Imagine is in Creative:Graphics/Imagine

> >  and defaults to that dir.
>  drive so I don't have to mix data with apps. Regardless an Assign statement
>  should eliminate this problem.

Yes, that's all fine and good, but the point of having default directories
is so you can let someone else use your files, or move them to another
machine that either doesn't have our assigns (PC's don't, do they?), or
has your assigns set  to something that isn't Imagine related.

>  So textures would be assign textures: Work:Imagine/textures. Now when you
>  want to copy something to Work:imagine/textures you simply type
>  copy "filename" Textures: Am I missing something here ?

Yes. :)

Dan


                    __
Sent from Danimal's AmiTCP-ing Amiga 500// Amigas!/Saturday morning Wrestling/
  Dan Murrell Jr.   IRC's Danimal __  /// James Taylor/Pink Floyd/Roger>Dave!/
    [e-mail]      \\\/// Imagine/Essence/AmiTCP/AMosaic/3Dgfx/
   http://www.msstate.edu/~djm2    \XX/ ImageMasterRT/Wavefront under-achiever



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #354 ***************************************:-)

Subject: imagine!!
Date: Fri, 22 Apr 94 08:56:56 PDT
From: 22-Apr-1994 1053 <[e-mail]>

>----Imagine.CONFIGand etc. For example:

>DEFOBJDIR    OBJECTS:
>DEFPRODIR    PROJECTS:
----end


>Hope that helps illuminate a little bit.
Sure does, I like that! I guess I just don't pay to much attention to these
things. I never got around to changing colors on my WB, much less bothered
to modify the Imagine config file.
                            bill






IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #355 ***************************************:-)

Subject: wrapped altitude maps
Date: Sat, 23 Apr 94 07:58:03 GMT
From: Andrew Nunn <[e-mail]>

I recently wanted to apply a reptile skin like altitude map to an object
I'm working on. I wanted to draw a specific pattern, as viewed in the
front view, and then let it wrap around my object, with constant depth.
At last, with 2.9 its possible, and gets around the "Y axis used for two
things" limit of 2.0.

Take the object, that you want to altitude pattern map, and create two
STATES. The first 'default' is the objects real shape. Create a second
state 'flat' and Scale the Y dimension by .0001 a couple of times. Now
select the 'flat' state and apply the brush map. Set flat x/z, altitude
and set the lock state to 'flat'. The Y axis can now be changed to add
the depth setting.

Andrew


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #356 ***************************************:-)

Subject: re imagine!!
Date: Fri, 22 Apr 94 08:52:12 PDT
From: 22-Apr-1994 1046 <[e-mail]>

>Yes, that's all fine and good, but the point of having default directories
>is so you can let someone else use your files, or move them to another
>machine that either doesn't have our assigns (PC's don't, do they?), or
>has your assigns set  to something that isn't Imagine related.
Well I see the problem now. I really don't know how the PC handle such
things. So Impulse would have to as you say hardwire defaults into the
program. I'm so used to assigns ect I don't think much about it. I have
loaded some stuff and then when it fails to quickrender I had to go and
modify the file in the failing requestor. Will Imagine install on the PC in
the same place for all PC's ?
Another thought is to use ISL to change the necessary data.

                                bill


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #357 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Vistapro/DMS
Date: Fri, 22 Apr 1994 09:44:36 -0800
From: [e-mail] (Brad Molsen)

                Hello all, Is the Vistapro software the same that was
referred to in the DMS discussions of late. Also is Vistapro a good scenery
generator
to use with Imagine. Is it compatible with 2.0?
                                        TIA,
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
        JUST SAY NO, TO GUNS!!!

Brad Molsen c/o  LORAL                          [e-mail]

13810 SE Eastgate Way Suite 500                 [phone]
Bellevue, Wa 98005                              Fax: [phone]



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #358 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: 3.0's features...
Date: Sun,  3 Apr 94 20:46:44 +0200
From: [e-mail] (Anders Lattermann)

I would like that Imagine could trigger some program when it's done rendering.
Like it's now, I often have to flip scrren to see if it ready or not.

A "boing", screenflash or some words from the speech-synth, would be great.

/Anders Lattermann

FidoNet:  2:201/411.24              ! PointBreak - Bg-St-Maurice - France
AmigaNet: 39:164/100.24             !     A3000/14/105 + SQ88C & 17xSQ800
InterNet: [e-mail] !  I feel the need, the need 4 speed!


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #359 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Particle techniques update
Date: Fri, 22 Apr 94 07:58:00 PDT
From: Stethem Ted              5721 <[e-mail]>

  I went back and investigated the particle effect a little more yesterday.
 Found out a few things that answered some of my own questions.
  Apparently, the Rain setting does not allow the particle object to be
rotated in the Stage Editor so it doesn't look like it is possible to make
it "rain" sideways.  However, Emissions does allow this and appears much
like the Rain setting.
  Also, I found out the Gravitational parameter does affect the actual
particles in Rain and Emissions.  And as somebody already informed me, to
make the particles emit sideways (along the X-axis), the Gravitational
parameter  has to be 0, which works for me.
  It appears that the Gravitational parameter affects the different settings
in two different ways; it affects the particles for Rain and Emissions and
affects the object for the others.  I haven't verified this completely and
it looks like I will need a little matrix table to keep things straight, at
least for myself.  I think a little matrix will also be handy because some
particle settings can be used with others e.g. Emissions with Taper but some
are stand-alone.
  I found out the Particle effect works fine with grouped objects.  I took
one sphere and gave it a chrome attribute and gave another one a shiny red
paint attribute, grouped them, and did a small quarter-screen Trace
animation and it looked pretty neat.  There is a mixture of shiny particles
from the chrome sphere and red particles from the red sphere, so it looks
like a stream of glinting particles.  This is going to open up all kinds of
things for me, like the transporter effect in Star Trek and cavitation
bubbles in water.
   Particle objects also track to path just like any other object except you
have this particle thing going on with it.  I haven't actually experimented
with this yet but it should also do that Conform to Path technique others
have pointed out and used with great success.  I have already done a test
animation where there is a swirling cloud of particles in the distance, and
as it approaches the camera, takes on a coalescing look and then implodes
into a solid object, while the whole thing is rotating.  Looks really cool.
  Hey, Impulse, you get one attaboy from me on this effect! (Yeah, so
what...that and $2 will buy you a tall single latte'.)


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #360 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Its Here !!
Date: Fri, 22 Apr 94 13:43:33 EDT
From: [e-mail]

Friday 22nd 1:45 PM.  3.0 (PC version) finally arrived via first class mail.
The only problem is that I have to be at work in 45 min.  All of o sudden I
think that I am starting to feel ill.  Na better not do that.  When I get
home from work tonight I will tear into it and let you all know what I think.



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #361 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Imagine and Windows NT
Date: Fri, 22 Apr 94 13:53:04 EDT
From: [e-mail]

  Does anyone have any experience using Imagine under Windows NT?  How well
does is work?  Is it faster or slower than under DOS?
  How about Chicago (Windows 4.0), will it work with that?


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #362 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Less transparent water
Date: Sun, 10 Apr 94 23:49:17 +0200
From: [e-mail] (Anders Lattermann)

I'm doing a beach scene, where I want the water to be less transparent - but
still looking like water.

I'm using the "water-attribute" as ground and a plane with "sand-attribute"
for the beach.

I've tried glass with fog, no succes, I've tried glass with some shininess, no
succes neither.

Anybody got some tips?

/Anders Lattermann

FidoNet:  2:201/411.24              ! PointBreak - Bg-St-Maurice - France
AmigaNet: 39:164/100.24             !     A3000/14/105 + SQ88C & 17xSQ800
InterNet: [e-mail] !  I feel the need, the need 4 speed!


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #363 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: cmtj2imp announce?
Date: Fri, 22 Apr 1994 13:04:34 -0700
From: [e-mail] (Kent Kalnasy)

At 10:34 PM 4/21/94 +0000, Jason Jack wrote:
>Hi
>
>I put up cmtj2imp.lha onto aminet gfx/misc and posted some details to the
>IML a few days ago.  I never saw my posting, and I've had zero feedback.
>Did it make it?
>
>Bye,
>Jay

Yes, and I'm rendering it as we speak.  Pretty cool so far!  Thanks.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 Kent Kalnasy (speaking only for me)              [e-mail]
 Loral Advanced Distributed Simulation, Inc.             Bellevue, Washington
------------------------------------------------------------------------------




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #364 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Shininess or formlessness
Date: Tue, 12 Apr 94 22:28:46 +0200
From: [e-mail] (Anders Lattermann)

I've got a project where some objects (like the camaro.new car) gets to shiny.

I've experimentet alot with different light parameters (brighter/weaker,
bigger/smaller), different placement and so on.

I've also tested different attributes settings. When I get it less shiny it
looks dead and formless.

Anyone care to explain how these things relate?

/Anders Lattermann

FidoNet:  2:201/411.24              ! PointBreak - Bg-St-Maurice - France
AmigaNet: 39:164/100.24             !     A3000/14/105 + SQ88C & 17xSQ800
InterNet: [e-mail] !  I feel the need, the need 4 speed!


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #365 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Version 3.0 arrives!
Date: Fri, 22 Apr 1994 13:35:14 -0700 (PDT)
From: Mark Boulding <[e-mail]>

Came back from lunch, and there it was on my desk with its
neon orange label: Imagine 3.0 for the PC.

Lucky for me, my fiancee is going out with her friends tonight--
I'm cancelling all plans to mess around with my new toy.

I have it!  I have it! I'm mad! MAAAAAD! Aha-ha-ha-ha-ha!

BTW, manual is a significant improvement over 2.0.

Mark

--
+===================================================================+
| Mark Boulding c/o FB&T      | Internet: [e-mail]    |
| 750 17th St., NW, Ste. 1100 | CIS: 72401,2400                     |
| Washington, DC 20006        | AOL: boulding    GEnie: M.BOULDING  |
+===================================================================+



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #366 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Imagine and the 040
Date: Fri, 22 Apr 1994 11:59:30 -0700
From: "Jeff Wahaus, CAPS, ATL" <[e-mail]>

  I just recently upgraded from an 030 to an 040 processor and have
discovered that Imagine v1.1 will crash and die unless I disable
the CPU's CopyBack cache.  (Optimized for the 040 "from the begining",
yea right.)

  Can someone tell me if higher versions of Imagine have this same
problem?  Can you run with the 040's CopyBack cache enabled?
If you can what version are you using?

-Jeff Wahaus-
[e-mail]


P.S.  I think a good way to deter nonrelevant posts and increase
the signal to noise ratio on this list is for everyone to reply
directly to the perpetrator with a e-mail stating your distaste
for their nonrelevant post.  Perhaps when someone receives several
hundred e-mail saying "shut up" they won't continue to post such
trash.  Also this keeps all of the "shut up" e-mails off the list.




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #367 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Particle techniques update
Date: Fri, 22 Apr 1994 16:15:07 -0600 (MDT)
From: [e-mail] (Kiernan Holland)

<  I found out the Particle effect works fine with grouped objects.  I took
<one sphere and gave it a chrome attribute and gave another one a shiny red
<paint attribute, grouped them, and did a small quarter-screen Trace
<animation and it looked pretty neat.  There is a mixture of shiny particles
<from the chrome sphere and red particles from the red sphere, so it looks
<like a stream of glinting particles.  This is going to open up all kinds of
<things for me, like the transporter effect in Star Trek and cavitation
<bubbles in water.

Wanna know something?? The transporter effect in star trek was done by
superimposing the image of the person being transported on a movie
taken from a glass of water filled with sparkles spinning around...
No kidding!!  So using particles in Imagine isn't too far off, actually
the computer equivalent, probably better too since you could zoom up on
particles. Does Imagine 2.9 (or 3.0?) allow blurring of particles like
in some popular particle animations (like the waterfall??) Does anyone
have some animations on the nets?

Also has anyone converted the rexx script from the current issue of Amazing
Computing that does blurring effects?? If not, I'll enter it myself..
If so, does it work well?? I'm going to code it in myself anyway
because it kinda helps me learn about languages when I enter things
in myself..

Well, see ya later...



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #368 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Essence Textures
Date: Fri, 22 Apr 1994 16:32:09 -0700
From: [e-mail] (Lesk)

>To:     [e-mail]
>Subject: Essence Textures
>From:   [e-mail] (Rosario Salfi)
>Date:   Fri, 22 Apr 1994 15:32:00 -0400
>Organization: CRS Online  (Toronto, Ontario)
>
>Hi Lesk!  I hope you won't mind, but I hope you can forward the next two
>messages to the IML on my behalf (but give me some credit though, eh?
>8^)
>

No problem I am looking forward to trying them out they look great!

***************************************************************************
*
*       I am going to send a seperate email message called
*                       Textures part II
*       Since there are quite a few and those who pay a fee to
*       download can decide wether to get them or not.
*
***************************************************************************

>After checking out the Imagine FAQ, I decided to contribute my custom
>made Essence parameters to the IML.  Some of them are really cool, so
>make sure you give them a try!  I've included descriptions about them,
>so no one should be lost.  Render away, Lesk!
>
>Paul Thompson


Hey Fellow Imagineers!

After reading the Imagine FAQ and discovering that very few people have
either developed attribute files using Essence I & II or are too lazy to
share them, I would like to share some of my attribute files with the
IML.

I am a freelance 3D animator in Toronto, Ontario.  I've been working
with Imagine since it was known as Turbo Silver.  My hobby is looking at
what the high end systems are doing, then trying to re-create the effect
in Imagine.

I hope you all get some use out of these attributes, though I'm sorry to
say you'll have to type them in, since I don't have FTP.

Gentlemen...start your rendering!

CARPETING
I've used the crumple texture to create a shag carpeting look in a
room I was rendering.  The results are pretty good, and will hold up
well even close up.  You can even apply a colour brushmap to a plane
with the carpeting texture applied to it, to get a wonderful persian
rug look.

Texture: Cru




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #369 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Textures part II
Date: Fri, 22 Apr 1994 16:44:05 -0700
From: [e-mail] (Lesk)

To:     [e-mail]
Subject: .
From:   [e-mail] (Rosario Salfi)
Date:   Fri, 22 Apr 1994 15:51:00 -0400
Organization: CRS Online  (Toronto, Ontario)


>I hope you can forward the next two
>messages to the IML on my behalf (but give me some credit though, eh?
>8^)
>
>        Paul Thompson
         ^^^^^^^^^^^^^

You Bet thanks for sending it to us I think I will be trying these out for sure.

Thanks again Paul;



CEILING TILE
This texture, applied to a soft, white-to-light-grey coloured plane
gives you those ceiling tiles you find in office buildings everywhere.
If you're not doing a close up, you can also use the GRID texture to
apply the metal latticework that holds the whole thing up.

Texture: Pitted
Initial Scale: 1
# of Detail Scales: -4
Small Detail Pow: .3
Bump Adjust: .1
Pit Trans Start: .4
Pit Trans End: .425
Zit Trans Start: 2
Zit Trans End: 2

Texture: Polkabump3
Dot Size: 1
Average Spacing: 1.5
Bump Adjust: -1
Colour Red: 50
Colour Green: 50
Colour Blue: 50
Filter Red: -1
Filter Green: 0
Filter Blue: 0
Rand Size Vary: .25
Rand Fade Vary: 0
Rand Bright Vary: 0
Center Att Fade: 0
Edge Att Fade: 0




POROUS BONE
Every once in awhile you're mucking about with textures and you come up
with
something that really freaks you out, because you had no idea you'd get
something like this.  Well, this is what happened when I came up with
the Porous
Bone texture.  It looks much like a cross section of bone, but with some
experimentation, you can change it to sponge, tissue, etc.  Play with
it!

I set the initial colour of the object to RGB 60,60,60.

Texture: Fleck3
Feature Scale: 4
T1 Colour Start: -0.2
T1 Colour End: 0.5
T2 Colour Start: 0.5
T2 Colour End: 0.6
Rand Bright Vary: 0.5
Ledge Level Start: 0.4
Ledge Level End: 0.6
Ledge Slope: 0.1
Ledge Bump Adj: -0.6
Plate Bump Adj: 0
Density Vary: 0
Colour Red: 150
Colour Green: 150
Colour Blue: 150



CARPETING
I've used the crumple texture to create a shag carpeting look in a
room I was rendering.  The results are pretty good, and will hold up
well even close up.  You can even apply a colour brushmap to a plane
with the carpeting texture applied to it, to get a wonderful persian
rug look.

Texture: Crumple
Largest Feature Scale: 5
# of Detail Scales: 3
Small Scale Pow: 1.1
Bump Adjust: .5
Crumple: .25
Random Convex %: 1



FireCharcoal
This texture uses 3 Essence textures in combination to achieve a unique
look:
glowing embers.  I've had great success using it on a plane in a fiery
pit (with
cycleman gingerly walking across the glowing coals 8^)  I've had even
better
results applying it to a slightly deformed cone that also had some
flames
flickering from it (used in a torch scene).  The results always impress
my
friends, who comment on the fire and the glowing embers more than the
rest of
the scene!

You must remember to set the object's Bright button.

I set the object's colour to 255,120,70.

Texture: BlobC
Initial Scale: 10
# of Scales: 5
Scale Ratio: 0.4
Amplitude Ratio: 0.4
Time Ratio: 0.4
Time: 0
T1 Start: 0.15
T1 End: 0.45
T2 Start: 0.55
T2 End: 0.95
T1 Sharp: 0
T2 Sharp: 0
Colour Red: 255
Colour Green: 75
Colour Blue: 0

Texture: Fleck2
Feature Scale: 8
T1 Colour Start: -.10
T1 Colour End: 1.1
T2 Colour Start: 2
T2 Colour End: 2
Rand Bright Vary: 0
Ledge Level Start: 1
Ledge Level End: 1
Ledge Slope: 1
Ledge Bump Adj: 1
Plate Bump Adj: 0
Density Vary: 0
Colour Red: 60
Colour Green: 60
Colour Blue: 60

Texture: Fleck2
Feature Scale: 6
T1 Colour Start: -0.1
T1 Colour End: 1.1
T2 Colour Start: 2
T2 Colour End: 2
Rand Bright Vary: 0
Ledge Level Start: 1
Ledge Level End: 1
Ledge Slope: 1
Ledge Bump Adj: 1
Plate Bump Adj: 0
Density Vary: 0
Colour Red: 60
Colour Green: 60
Colour Blue: 60



CRACKED MUD
I've used this texture in a fiery landscape scene off-world.  It's
perfect for
some alien planet, where the temperatures soar in the daytime and drop
to well
below freezing at night.  Can anyone say 'Mercury'?  Anyway, I'm still
not
perfectly happy with the look, so feel free to experiment some more, but
post
some good results back, eh?

The object colour is set to a near-black, an RGB value of about
20,20,20.  This
is so that if you decide to genlock or composite the scene, the cracks
won't be
genlocked or composited.

Texture: Fleck3
Feature Scale: 10
T1 Colour Start: -1
T1 Colour End: 0.5
T2 Colour Start: 2
T2 Colour End: 2
Rand Bright Vary: 0
Ledge Level Start: 0
Ledge Level End: 0.25
Ledge Slope: 1
Ledge Bump Adj: -0.6
Plate Bump Adj: 0.55
Density Vary: 0
Colour Red: 200
Colour Green: 120
Colour Blue: 0





TERRAZZO
For this texture, I used a combination of 3 different Fleck1 textures,
each one
of a different size and colour.  The result is a terrazzo flooring that
is
commonly found in foyers.  Make the surface reflective, and you have an
impressive scene.

The object is the base colour of the floor.  In my case, it was a
fleshy-salmon colour RGB 245,125,90.

Texture: Fleck1
Feature Scale: 5
T1 Colour Start: 0.5
T1 Colour End: .95
T2 Colour Start: 2
T2 Colour End: 2
Rand Bright Vary: 0.6
Ledge Level Start: 0.1
Ledge Level End: 0.9
Ledge Slope: 0
Ledge Bump Adj: 0
Plate Bump Adj: 0
Density Vary: 0.5
Colour Red: 60
Colour Green: 130
Colour Blue: 0

Texture: Fleck1
Feature Scale: 7
T1 Colour Start: 0.5
T1 Colour End: 0.95
T2 Colour Start: 2
T2 Colour End: 2
Rand Bright Vary: 0.4
Ledge Level Start: 0.1
Ledge Level End: 0.9
Ledge Slope: 0
Ledge Bump Adj: 0
Plate Bump Adj: 0
Density Vary: 0.4
Colour Red: 180
Colour Green: 140
Colour Blue: 100

Texture: Fleck1
Feature Scale: 6
T1 Colour Start: 0.85
T1 Colour End: 0.9
T2 Colour Start: 2
T2 Colour End: 2
Rand Bright Vary: 0.85
Ledge Level Start: 0.1
Ledge Level End: 0.9
Ledge Slope: 0
Ledge Bump Adj: 0
Plate Bump Adj: 0
Density Vary: 0.2
Colour Red: 225
Colour Green: 225
Colour Blue: 225





ROUGHNESS
I use this texture whenever I want to give something a rough look.
Depending on
the specularity, hardness, and shininess, you can make anything from a
simple
landscape to the surface of a boulder.  If you soften the crumple a
little and
colour the object brown, it makes great chocolate for chocolate bars!

Texture: Crumpled
Largest Feature Scale: 5
# of Detail Scales: 3
Small Scale Pow: 1.1
Bump Adjust: 0.25
Crumple: 0.67
Random Convex: 0.25





ROUGH GRANITE
I wanted some kind of texture that looked like rough granite, the kind
that
cinder blocks are made of.  You can actually apply it to many granite or
concrete surfaces that are not polished for a pretty good effect.  I
suppose you
could even apply it to a sidewalk, but I'm still working on how to
recreate the
many other surface textures that sidewalks have (try adding the Stucco
texture
for some interesting sidewalk effects).  Anyway, see what it can do for
you.

Texture: Pitted
Initial Scale: 1
# of Detail Scales: -4
Small Detail Pow: 0.5
Bump Adjust: 0.1
Pit Trans Start: 1
Pit Trans End: 1
Zit Trans Start: 0.6
Zit Trans End: 0.625





PAVED
This was my attempt at a decent asphalt roadway.  Almost every animation
that
I've seen involving a roadway of some sort used a very obvious repeating
brushmap which, to me, seemed a little too commonplace.  So I came up
with this
combination of three textures: Pitted and two sets of Fleck3.

I set the colour of the object, which is the asphalt, to RGB 50,50,50.
The
Fleck colours give the variety and depth, so feel free to adjust them to
your
liking.  Highway roads, for example, have much more subtle colour
variations,
while paved flat surfaces such as outdoor parking lots, have much more
variation
in colour.

Texture: Pitted
Initial Scale: 1
# of Detail Scales: -4
Small Detail Pow: 0.5
Bump Adjust: 0.05
Pit Trans Start: 1
Pit Trans End: 1
Zit Trans Start: 0.6
Zit Trans End: 0.625

Texture: Fleck3
Feature Scale: 2
T1 Colour Start: 0.89
T1 Colour End: 1
T2 Colour Start: 2
T2 Colour End: 2
Rand Bright Vary: 0.2
Ledge Level Start: 1
Ledge Level End: 1
Ledge Slope: 0.25
Ledge Bump Adj: 0
Plate Bump Adj: 0.25
Density Vary: .015
Colour Red: 200
Colour Green: 200
Colour Blue: 200

Texture: Fleck3
Feature Scale: 2
T1 Colour Start: 0.65
T1 Colour End: 0.75
T2 Colour Start: 2
T2 Colour End: 2
Rand Bright Vary: 0.2
Ledge Level Start: 1
Ledge Level End: 1
Ledge Slope: 0.25
Ledge Bump Adj: 0
Plate Bump Adj: 0.25
Density Vary: 0.15
Colour Red: 160
Colour Green: 160
Colour Blue: 165





PAINTED WALL I
I use the Pitted texture (actually, the zits portion of the pitted
texture) to
give just a slight inconsistency to walls.  This gives them a much more
realistic look.  The best results are when you are modelling walls
painted with
a glossy enamel.  In this case, crank the specularity and shininess up,
and give
it a good hardness value for a tighter highlight.

Texture: Pitted
Initial Scale: 0.5
# of Detail Scales: -4
Small Detail Pow: 0.25
Bump Adjust: 0.005
Pit Trans Start: 1
Pit Trans End: 1
Zit Trans Start: 0.6
Zit Trans End: 0.625


PAINTED WALL II
You can also use the pitted portion of the Pitted texture with good, but
slightly different, results.  Just crank up the Bump Adjust a little
bit; my
setting is at 0.09




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #370 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Still trying...
Date: Sat, 16 Apr 94 11:05:57 +0200
From: [e-mail] (Anders Lattermann)

A friend of mine tried to get the IML-archives for me, since I get internet
through a gate, I can't get to them.

The machine he used a VAX, screwed something up and all the archives are
unreadable. He said that if he could get the "IP" address for "ftp.wustl.edu",
it would probably work.

Anybody have it?

/Anders Lattermann

FidoNet:  2:201/411.24              ! PointBreak - Bg-St-Maurice - France
AmigaNet: 39:164/100.24             !     A3000/14/105 + SQ88C & 17xSQ800
InterNet: [e-mail] !  I feel the need, the need 4 speed!


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #371 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Still trying...
Date: Sat, 23 Apr 94 7:07:43 CDT
From: The Doctor <[e-mail]>

The IP address for wuarchive.wustl.edu is

128.252.135.4

----
Bruce Murray
[e-mail]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #372 ***************************************:-)

Subject: To all animators....
Date: Sat, 23 Apr 94 16:21:57 BST
From: Andrew Conway <[e-mail]>

Dear All,
I've got money and I have the desire to animate....
what hardware is required for decent frame rates in animation. For
long animation fast disk access is essential, from what I've seen
of an IDE A4000, the frame rate is OK when RAM is in use but when
GigaMem steps onto the stage things become jiddery juttery and a bit slow.
I was greatly attracted to the A4000T with its SCSI-II controller but
is it fast enough for this purpose and what's the situation like on PCs
with non-IDE controllers both in performance and price?
Ofcourse I hope to be using Imagine 3.0 to create anims but
how about software to process anims after the frames are generated (
on whatever platform).
NB I DO NOT WANT TO START AN AMIGA-PC DEBATE, I'VE USED
(AND OWN) BOTH TYPES OF MACHINE.
If folk could just tell what they've got and what they think of it - good
AND bad I'd be extremely grateful. It might be an idea just to communicate
off the Mailing List unless lots of other folk are interested in the same things

I've asked.
thanks in advance Andrew.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #373 ***************************************:-)

Subject: 3.0
Date: Sat, 23 Apr 94 12:16:34 EDT
From: [e-mail]

3.0's antialiasing is a lot better than 2.9's but it is very s...l..o...w...
About 5 times slower in a test trace of a simple plane.  It also does not
seem to work in scanline mode.  Mike, if you are listening and I am wrong
please let me Know.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #374 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Building Trees
Date: Sun, 24 Apr 94 00:13:40 EST
From: [e-mail] (Matt Jackson)

Hi,
   I'm not sure if this is really useful to the Imagine community but here
goes.

The following just appeared on the rayshade mailing list and does produce
some good looking trees.

At the moment it only builds files in rayshade format but with a bit of
tweeking it should be able to do TDDD (Real Soon Now ... :-) )

There is no documentation with the programs so you are on your own.

Both of the attached programs compile with SAS 6.51 with only a couple of
prototype warnings.

Important safety tips:

tree.c : The 'Levels' variable gives the number of levels the tree branches
         to, therefore, change the default from 7 to about 3 or 4 or else
         you end up with data files > 2M.


leaves.c : The 'Number' variable gives the number of leaves that are
           scattered around on the ground under the tree. Change the default
           from 800 to what ever you think is reasonable.


Good Luck,
          Matt.
----

Matt Jackson               "...talk about the cutting edge of high
[e-mail]    technology all you want, but remember,
Bendigo,Victoria,Australia  someone's got to hold the knife..."


----- CUT HERE -----
Date: 21 Apr 94 15:01:00 GMT
Original-From: whservh!sw (Stuart Warmink [phone])
Errors-To: [e-mail]
Remailed-Date: Thu Apr 21 11:09:53 EDT 1994
From: [e-mail] (Stuart Warmink [phone])
To: [e-mail]
Subject: tree generating algorithm - enjoy!
Status: RS

Hi fellow ray tracers!

In the spirit of "share and enjoy" I am enclosing a simple scene that
illustrates a tree generating program I whipped up a couple of days
ago.  No doubt the program could be improved and/or modified to make
different shape trees by changing some of the parameters and/or by
changing the final step in which the "branches" are added to the "trunk".

Also, in order to make life easier for me I let RayShade worry about all
the axes tranlations and rotations etc.  This made for easy math on
my part but does mean slower tracing time since the tree can not be
made up as a grid containing lots of separate objects.

The scene also use the output of the "leaves.c" program to generate a
bunch of leaves on the ground below the tree.

The shar file includes:

- tree.ray    The RayShade input file
- tree.c    Compile with -lm option and pipe output to "tree.def.ray"
- leaves.c    Compile with -lm option and pipe output to "leaves.def.ray"
- lawn.uu    A uuencoded file containing "lawn.jpg".  Convert to your
        favourite file format for use as the texture file, see tree.ray


On a separate subject, is it just me or is weedeater off-line these days?
I was planning to put an interesting "dungeon" scene I generated there
but have been unable to ftp to weedeater for the last couple of weeks.
Is there another machine with an writable "incoming" directory?  Anybody
planning to maintain a WWW page with RayShade image files so that we can
compete :-) with the POV ray tracer?  I have a bunch of images that have
gone down well here at work, including reg/blue stereo ones that I would
gladly make available for such a page.

Stuart Warmink
[e-mail]

>--------------------------- cut here -----------------------------------<

#! /bin/sh
# This is a shell archive.  Remove anything before this line, then feed it
# into a shell via "sh file" or similar.  To overwrite existing files,
# type "sh file -c".
# The tool that generated this appeared in the comp.sources.unix newsgroup;
# send mail to [e-mail] if you want that tool.
# Contents:  tree.ray tree.c leaves.c lawn.uu
# Wrapped by sw@static on Thu Apr 21 10:24:33 1994
PATH=/bin:/usr/bin:/usr/ucb ; export PATH
echo If this archive is complete, you will see the following message:
echo '          "shar: End of archive."'
if test -f 'tree.ray' -a "${1}" != "-c" ; then
  echo shar: Will not clobber existing file \"'tree.ray'\"
else
  echo shar: Extracting \"'tree.ray'\" \(1525 characters\)
  sed "s/^X//" >'tree.ray' <<'END_OF_FILE'
X/*
X * tree.ray
X *
X * Simple scene to show output of "tree.c" and "leaves.c"
X *
X * Stuart Warmink, April 1994
X * [e-mail]
X *
X * Feel free to use and/or distribute for non-commercial purposes
X * as long as this header remains with this file.
X *
X */
X
X#define HAVE_LAWN_MAP    1
X
X/*---------------------------------------------------------------------------*/

X
Xsurface grey                /* trees are really grey! */
X    ambient    0.15 0.15 0.15
X    diffuse 0.3 0.3 0.3
X
Xsurface leaf_green            /* or Falls colours, here */
X    ambient    0.3 0.15 0
X    diffuse 0.6 0.3 0
X
Xsurface grass_green            /* if lawn.mtv is not av. */
X    ambient    0 0.15 0
X    diffuse 0 0.3 0
X
Xsurface back                /* so that image mapping */
X    ambient 0.5 0.5 0.5        /* results in good brightness */
X    diffuse 1 1 1
X
X/*---------------------------------------------------------------------------*/

X
X#include "tree.def.ray"
X#include "leaves.def.ray"
X
Xobject grey tree
X
Xobject leaves
X    translate 0 0 5
X
X#ifdef HAVE_LAWN_MAP
Xplane    back    0 0 -0.001    0 0 1
X    texture image /home/gamma/sw/prog/ray/textures/lawn.mtv
X        map planar smooth
X        scale 300 300 300
X#else
Xplane    grass_green    0 0 -0.001    0 0 1
X    texture bump 0.7 scale 2 2 1
X#endif
X
X/*---------------------------------------------------------------------------*/

X
Xbackground    0 0 0.7            /* not used, but you never know... */
X
Xlight    0.9    directional    220 100 250
Xlight    1.2    ambient
X
X/*---------------------------------------------------------------------------*/

X
Xeyep    1000 2000 2000
Xlookp    -100 0 350
Xfov    26
X
Xsample 2
Xscreen 1152 900                /* or similar ratio */
END_OF_FILE
  if test 1525 -ne `wc -c <'tree.ray'`; then
    echo shar: \"'tree.ray'\" unpacked with wrong size!
  fi
  # end of 'tree.ray'
fi
if test -f 'tree.c' -a "${1}" != "-c" ; then
  echo shar: Will not clobber existing file \"'tree.c'\"
else
  echo shar: Extracting \"'tree.c'\" \(3145 characters\)
  sed "s/^X//" >'tree.c' <<'END_OF_FILE'
X/*
X * tree.c
X *
X * Generates RayShade objects to define a tree to standard out
X *
X * Stuart Warmink, April 1994
X * [e-mail]
X *
X * Feel free to use and/or distribute for non-commercial purposes as long
X * as this header remains with this file and any changes are specifically
X * noted as such.  Any other use requires the author's permission.  This
X * program is supplied "as is" and the author can not assume responsibility
X * for any actions resulting from the use of this program.
X *
X */
X#include <stdio.h>
X#include <math.h>
X
Xmain()
X{
X
X    /* pre-set variables (could add command-line overrides, if req.) */
X    int SplitsPerNode    = 3;
X    int Levels        = 7;
X    double NodeLength    = 0.7;
X    double NodeRadius    = 0.6;
X    double BaseRadius    = 20;
X    double BaseLength    = 250;
X    double BranchAngle    = 35;
X    double LeafRadius    = 5;
X    int seed        = 345678;
X
X    int l, n, b;
X    double scale, length;
X
X    double drand48(), pow();
X    double randomise();
X    int power();
X    void    srand48();
X
X    srand48( seed );
X    printf( "\/\* tree.def.ray - produced by tree.c; \
X    seed=%d \*\/\n\n", seed );
X
X    printf( "name branch\n" );
X    printf( "\tcone    %f    0 0 0    %f 0 0 %f\n",
X        BaseRadius, BaseRadius * NodeRadius, BaseLength );
X    printf( "\t\ttexture bump 0.6\n" );
X    printf( "\t\t\tscale 3 3 40\n\n" );
X
X    for ( l = Levels; l > 0; l-- )
X    {
X        for ( n = 1; n <= power( SplitsPerNode, l-1 ); n++ )
X        {
X            printf( "name node_%d_%d\n", l, n );
X            printf( "list\n" );
X            for ( b = 1; b <= SplitsPerNode; b++ )
X            {
X                printf( "\tlist\n" );
X                scale = pow( NodeLength, (double)l );
X                scale = randomise( scale, 30 );
X                printf( "\t\tobject branch\n" );
X                printf( "\t\t\tscale %f %f %f\n",
X                    pow( NodeRadius, (double)l ),
X                    pow( NodeRadius, (double)l ),
X                    scale );
X                if ( l == Levels )
X                {
X                    printf( "\t\tdisc leaf_green %f 0 0 0  0 0 1\n",
X                        LeafRadius );
X                    printf( "\t\t\tscale  %f %f 1\n",
X                        1 + 0.4 * drand48(),
X                        0.7 + 0.2 * drand48() );
X                    printf( "\t\t\trotate %f %f 0 %f\n",
X                        drand48(), drand48(),
X                        drand48() * 30 );
X                    printf( "\t\t\trotate 0 0 1    %f\n",
X                        360 * drand48() );
X                }
X                else
X                {
X                    printf( "\t\tobject node_%d_%d\n",
X                        l+1, b + ( n -1 ) * SplitsPerNode );
X                }
X                printf( "\t\t\ttranslate 0 0 %f\n", BaseLength * scale );
X                printf( "\tend\n" );
X                printf( "\t\trotate 1 0 0 %f\n",
X                    randomise( BranchAngle, 50 ) );
X                printf( "\t\trotate 0 0 1 %f\n",
X                    (b-1) * 360. / SplitsPerNode +
X                    randomise(360. / SplitsPerNode, 30 ) );
X            }
X            printf( "end\n\n" );
X        }
X    }
X
X    length = randomise( BaseLength, 30 );
X    printf( "name tree\n" );
X    printf( "list\n" );
X    printf( "\tobject branch\n" );
X    printf( "\t\tscale    1 1 %f\n", length / BaseLength );
X    printf( "\tobject node_1_1\n" );
X    printf( "\t\t\ttranslate 0 0 %f\n", length );
X    printf( "end\n" );
X}
X
Xdouble
Xrandomise( input, percentage )
X    double input;
X    int percentage;
X{
X    double    variation;
X
X    variation = input * (double)percentage / 100;
X    return( input + variation * ( 2 * drand48() - 1 ) );
X}
X
Xint
Xpower( input, pow )
X    int input;
X    int pow;
X{
X    int    val = input;
X
X    if ( pow == 0 ) val = 1;
X    else if ( pow > 1 )
X        while ( --pow > 0 )
X            val *= input;
X    return val;
X}
X
END_OF_FILE
  if test 3145 -ne `wc -c <'tree.c'`; then
    echo shar: \"'tree.c'\" unpacked with wrong size!
  fi
  # end of 'tree.c'
fi
if test -f 'leaves.c' -a "${1}" != "-c" ; then
  echo shar: Will not clobber existing file \"'leaves.c'\"
else
  echo shar: Extracting \"'leaves.c'\" \(1796 characters\)
  sed "s/^X//" >'leaves.c' <<'END_OF_FILE'
X/*
X * leaves.c
X *
X * Generates RayShade objects to define a bunch of leaves to standard out
X *
X * Stuart Warmink, April 1994
X * [e-mail]
X *
X * Feel free to use and/or distribute for non-commercial purposes as long
X * as this header remains with this file and any changes are specifically
X * noted as such.  Any other use requires the author's permission.  This
X * program is supplied "as is" and the author can not assume responsibility
X * for any actions resulting from the use of this program.
X *
X */
X#include <stdio.h>
X#include <math.h>
X
Xmain()
X{
X    /* pre-set variables */
X    double LeafRadius    = 5;
X    double Number        = 800;
X    double Radius        = 500;
X    int seed        = 1234;
X
X    int n;
X    double x, y, r, angle, h;
X
X    double drand48(), sqrt(), sin();
X    double randomise();
X    void    srand48();
X
X    srand48( seed );
X    printf( "\/\* leaves.def.ray - produced by leaves.c; \
X    seed=%d \*\/\n\n", seed );
X
X    printf( "name leaves\n" );
X    printf( "grid 15 15 1\n" );
X    for ( n = 1; n <= Number; n++ )
X    {
X        do
X        {
X            x = randomise( Radius, 20 ) * ( 2 * drand48() -1 );
X            y = randomise( Radius, 20 ) * ( 2 * drand48() -1 );
X            r = sqrt( x*x + y*y );
X        }
X        while ( r > randomise( Radius, 20 ) );
X
X        printf( "\tdisc leaf_green %f %f %f 0  0 0 1\n",
X            LeafRadius, 0, 0 );
X        printf( "\t\tscale  %f %f 1\n",
X            1 + 0.4 * drand48(), 0.7 + 0.2 * drand48() );
X        angle = drand48() * 30;
X        printf( "\t\trotate %f %f 0 %f\n", drand48(), drand48(), angle );
X        printf( "\t\trotate 0 0 1    %f\n", 360 * drand48() );
X        h = LeafRadius * sin( angle / 180 * 3.1415 );
X        printf( "\t\ttranslate %f %f %f\n", x, y, h );
X    }
X    printf( "end\n" );
X}
X
Xdouble
Xrandomise( input, percentage )
X    double input;
X    int percentage;
X{
X    double    variation;
X
X    variation = input * (double)percentage / 100;
X    return( input + variation * ( 2 * drand48() - 1 ) );
X}
END_OF_FILE
  if test 1796 -ne `wc -c <'leaves.c'`; then
    echo shar: \"'leaves.c'\" unpacked with wrong size!
  fi
  # end of 'leaves.c'
fi
if test -f 'lawn.uu' -a "${1}" != "-c" ; then
  echo shar: Will not clobber existing file \"'lawn.uu'\"
else
  echo shar: Extracting \"'lawn.uu'\" \(5925 characters\)
  sed "s/^X//" >'lawn.uu' <<'END_OF_FILE'
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XM +QJE:_=;\*CG;W"]E?T)X[@W2_9'&%B(,9 [C/7]:987*1Z@64'& JCT-1:
XM?_Q^O_O?T-0VO_'V/^N@_G5M6C?R_4UY5>WD7!$[7P(8>;D;L]"=Q(_3%3W,
XMUN=-7:I#+N&?I21?\A-O]]:JR?\ 'A^,G\Q417,U?^MR;\RU&1@NP9QR_P R
XM^WI5NU?:BQ72[T9P&V]<$U6B_P"6'^Y4S?>3_?7^=5,E/5(2\+L91$  7"KG
XMJ".G]:EC,H6XEFVE4**H [\$U$_\7_7>K#_\>-W_ -=5_E5-)6_KL-Z)^G^0
XMR9Q<2 (H6)6W>^1_]:H(KJ-#. OS/@IZ#KG^E26O1OQ_E6>O^N'T/\ZMQ45H
X&0G>+/__9
X
Xend
END_OF_FILE
  if test 5925 -ne `wc -c <'lawn.uu'`; then
    echo shar: \"'lawn.uu'\" unpacked with wrong size!
  fi
  # end of 'lawn.uu'
fi
echo shar: End of archive.
exit 0



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #375 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Imagine!!
Date: Fri, 22 Apr 94 18:55:47 MET
From: [e-mail] (Paul Kolenbrander)

Hello MR. R.L.COLLIER,On 22 APR 1994 10:30:11 you said regarding Imagine!!:

> Well, now that discussion is over..
> Here are a couple of sugestions for Imagine upgrade preferences...
>
> 1. Standard ARP requester.

Are you mad? :-) ARP is old and totally 2.1/3.0 incompatible. Why use ARP
if one has ASL available from 2.04 and higher versions of the OS?

> 2. Default projects drawer?  Its a pain having to go to my
>    Files:Imagine/projects draw because Imagine is in Creative:Graphics/Imagine

>    and defaults to that dir.

Very good point. Seconded.

> 3. Default directories for Effects, Textures, Attributes and Objects.

This one too. It oughta be simple to program. Just store the path spec
for the last time you used the requester in a variable and provide it
on the next call. Minimum effort, maximum comfort. :-)

--
----------------------- E-mail Only -> [e-mail] -
-- Paul Kolenbrander -- UUEncoded   -> [e-mail] ---
----------------------- C= adspe    -> [e-mail] -
- (ECL042) Amiga&CD32 -------------------------------------------
----------------------- Volume EMPTY is FULL?? Only Amiga... ;) -



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #376 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Looping textures
Date: Sun, 24 Apr 94 00:11:00 UTC
From: [e-mail]

A fairly easy way to have textures loop seamlessly is to make several
copies of the object with the texture axis in a different position in
each copy. I try to have the axis move in a circular motion during an
animation, with the last frame's texture axis being in the same position
as the first frames, relative to the object position.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #377 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Anims and sound
Date: Sun, 24 Apr 94 00:16:00 UTC
From: [e-mail]

I have not used Magic Lantern, but Anim Workshop 2.0 from Axiom will allow
you to not only synch an IFF8SVX file to a particular frame, but will also
allow you to pad individual frames with a variable number of jiffies, so
that you can "fine-tune" the anim for perfect sound to lip movement, for
example. It does this by imbedding extra control info into the anim file,
along with the sound file. It comes with a freely distributeable version
of Show that can read this extra information. These anims can also be played
with View, Viewtek, etc. but the synching info is not read by these programs.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #378 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Looking for clothes
Date: Sat, 23 Apr 1994 19:17:34 -0600 (MDT)
From: [e-mail] (Kiernan Holland)

as Anders Lattermann said,
<
<I'm looking for clothes for my Humanoid humanobjects. They are so naked...
<
<Anyone know where to find?

That sounds like an oportunity for some third party developer
to take advantage of.. It is the most logical, glad you thought of it because
I surely wouldn't have... Hmmmmm... so how about it, anyone know of any.



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #379 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Imagine 3.0 features
Date: Sat, 23 Apr 1994 23:20:13 -0400 (EDT)
From: [e-mail]

Good evening!

Can anyone give me a list of features for Imagine 3.0? Impulse is out of
flyers and won't have any for several weeks. I'd really like to make a
decision by then.

I really want LightWave, but that's out of the picture for now. I would
appreciate a brief comparison of features between Imagine 3.0 & Impulse.
Any feedback will be greatly appreciated.

This list has been a great help in deciding to consider Imagine. I wasn't
even considering it originally, due to lousy manuals/poor customer support/
lack of desirable features...but reading the postings here at least lets me
know that there is a wide base of users that are willing to share thier
experiences and help solve problems.

Thanks, in advance, for the feedback!

***** Paul *****

Snappy tagline under construction...watch this space for future witicismY>W
~.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #380 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: mobicogs glitch horror - film at 11
Date: Sat, 23 Apr 94 20:45:16 GMT
From: Jason Jack <[e-mail]>

Hi Kent,

> >Well at least 4 people have seen mobicogs now.  Anybody spot the glitch?  I
> >put the camera in the best place to miss it...
>
> Well, I got it and unarced it successfully, but when I go to show it, I
> get rather strange displays.  I tried viewing it using MainActor, but the
> pallette shifts with each frame, producing intense strobing.  I tried
> viewing it with ShowAnim, but the top half of the screen gets garbled.
> What program do you use to show Mogicogs?  Thanks.

Nice glitch!   But not what I meant...

Try using an anim player that can handle anims with unlocked palettes.
ViewTek is PD and very good.  Find it in Aminet gfx/show/ViewTek20.lha

Good luck,
Jay


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #381 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: mobicogs glitch horror - film at 11
Date: Sat, 23 Apr 94 21:20:47 GMT
From: Jason Jack <[e-mail]>

Hi Greg,

>
> >btw, I have a flc version - any interest PC people?  (and where do flcs go?
> >someone said Simtel to me... where is it and what are the upload rules?)
>
>   Is it 24 bit? Send it up! Simtel isn't directly accessible from the net,
> only it's mirrors are. Uploading rules look like they'd take a lawyer to
> decipher, but I seem to remember something about full moons, sacrificing
> virgins, and using 12 byte kermit packets via telnet.

flcs 24 bit?  is it possible?  I can do 8 bit ones.  I've found that most PC
flc players prefer locked palettes (I tried both).

I think I should put up the locked palette version onto Aminet.  It's 2.8MB
uncompressed.  I've had one other interest.  I'll try and get it there soon.

It's a full moon soon.  All I need now is a 12 byte kermit packetiser... :-)

<howl>
Jay


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #382 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re:  Anims and sound
Date:     Sun, 24 Apr 1994 02:17:49 -0400
From: Jason B Koszarsky <[e-mail]>

The latest version of MainActor(1.5) now has sound support.  I just
DLed it from wuarchive.wustl.edu, system/amiga/aminet/gfx/edit/

I haven't tried it out yet though.

Jason K.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #383 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: CAD programs
Date: Sun, 24 Apr 1994 22:41:59 +1000 (EST)
From: Nikola Vukovljak <[e-mail]>

On Tue, 19 Apr 1994, Marina Daniels wrote:

> What CAD programs on the Amiga are compatible with Imagine 2.0?
>
> Marina

Both DynaCadd and GFX-CAD 3D will save their objects as Imagine files.
As to where to get hold of these... Not sure as far as Australia goes.

Nik.
[e-mail]



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #384 ***************************************:-)

Subject: 3.0 amiga version
Date: 03 Jan 00 22:01:27 -0800
From: [e-mail] (Lance Miller)

     As to the question of where is Imagine 3.0.  I spoke with Impulse on
Tuesday (19 april) and they stated that the amiga version will be shipping in 1
week.  They were busy shipping the IBM version at the time.
     One more question, I have limited access to Internet so I don't have the
FTP capability of you'all to get these animations that you make for experiments
and demos.  Any ideas on how I can aquire some of these?  How do I get a hold
of this place I keep hearing about (wuarchive)?  I think that is the place you
keep talking about uploading to.
     Thanks in advance.

Lance Miller 1:203/699                                      \|/
[e-mail]                     @ @  Jethro :)
--------------------------------------------------------oOO-(_)-OOo------------
Via DLGMail @ 1:203/699.0

--
  Internet  : [e-mail]
  Disclaimer: The views of this user are strictly his/her own.
  Sacramento Public Access Mail Systems
  Problems?  Mail [e-mail]



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #385 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Australian Upgrade Price
Date: Sun, 24 Apr 1994 22:44:21 +1000 (EST)
From: Nikola Vukovljak <[e-mail]>

On Tue, 19 Apr 1994, Marina Daniels wrote:

> I have only just joined the mailing list - everyone appears to be
> discussing the upgrade price in US dollars versus Pounds.
> I live in Australia anda have a copy of Imagine 2.0 from the Amiga Format
> magazine. For what price could I upgrade to Imagine 3.0?
> If this is not possible could I get Imagine 3.0 cheaper by purchasing an
> old version of Imagine?
> Could someone please give me an APPROXIMATE cost of these options in
> Australian Dollars?

>From what I have been told by a couple of friends just send in 95 pounds
(i.e. International Money order or whatever they expect - in pounds) and
that is pretty much all there is to it.
A friend has already got his. BTW, I live in Sydney.

Nik.
[e-mail]



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #386 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Looping essence textures
Date: Sun, 24 Apr 1994 23:21:10 +1000 (EST)
From: Nikola Vukovljak <[e-mail]>

On Wed, 20 Apr 1994, Steve Koren wrote:

>
> > I want to make a looping anim with the essenceII Wave or even Ripple
> > water texture.  How would you go about setting up the textures so you can
> > loop the output smoothly?
>
> For the fractal noise based textures, there is no really good way to
> loop them.  The best you can do is do a crossfade - set two textures,
> one initially starts at 0% and one at 100%.  At the middle, both are
> 50%.  The starting point of one is the ending point of the other.  This
> lets you avoid a jump at the end of a looping anim.  But it still
> suffers from the problem that the texture is "blurred" in the middle.
>
> OTOH, for non-noise periodic textures, you should just be able to loop
> by making sure you end at the same relative point in the texture cycle
> as you began.  Render 1 more frame than you need for your anim, to avoid
> a duplicate frame at the start/end point.
>

You are describing the way to do it like in the Apex newsletter ? Hmm,
while the method sounds good in practice it doesn't work. At least not
with the Caustics texture. I tried everything that Steve suggested in the
newsletter (i.e. like your description above), and then some more ideas,
and I couldn't stop it from either jumping or stuttering half way through
the anim (not at the end frames).

Real bummer. Had to end up making a ping-pong effect. Not as nice but the
client was still happy.

Still, can either Steve or Glenn shed some more light on this topic ?

Nik.
[e-mail]



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #387 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Looping essence textures
Date: Sun, 24 Apr 1994 09:16:43 -0700
From: [e-mail] (Daniel T. Edwards)

I had the same problem with the caustics texture.  It would jump a few
times during a 100 frame anim.  The problem isn't the technique.  I
wrote Steve Worley about it; he said I could change the T1 and T2
to be something other than a whole number.

Like T1= 1.0023  T2= 10.0034

I guess this forces Imagine to round-off every frame.  Also, It might be just
as important to do the same thing to the Texture Size variable.

I haven't used Imagine in a couple of months, so forgive any inacurices(sp).
 ____________________________________________________________
/                                                            \
| Amiga 2000                James R. Walker                  |
| 2MB Chip             [e-mail]            |
| 24MB Fast    ______________________________________________|
| 130 MB Hard /                                              |
| 68040 33Mhz |Yes there is a Dayton, Nevada.  I live there! |
\____________________________________________________________/


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #388 ***************************************:-)

Subject: This ATT came in later...
Date: Sun, 24 Apr 1994 10:08:34 -0700
From: [e-mail] (Lesk)

>To:     [e-mail]
>Subject: .
>From:   [e-mail] (Rosario Salfi)
>Date:   Fri, 22 Apr 1994 23:39:00 -0400
>Organization: CRS Online  (Toronto, Ontario)

Again This was from Paul. Thanks Paul!

>
>Composite Stone
>I modelled this texture after the stonework in the foyer of my apartment
>building.  The choice of colours if awful, of course.  Interior design
>in the
>60s was, in my opinion, somewhat lacking.
>
>Texture: Fleck1
>Feature Scale: 1
>T1 Colour Start:  0.6
>T1 Colour End: 1
>T2 Colour Start: 1
>T2 Colour End: 1
>Rand Bright Vary: 0.4
>Ledge Level Start: 0
>Ledge Level End: 0
>Ledge Slope: 0
>Ledge Bump Adj: 0.6
>Plate Bump Adj: 0
>Density Vary: 0.125
>Colour Red: 180
>Colour Green: 180
>Colour Blue: 180
>




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #389 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Imagine and the 040
Date: Mon, 25 Apr 1994 02:24:37 +1000 (EST)
From: Nikola Vukovljak <[e-mail]>

On Fri, 22 Apr 1994, Jeff Wahaus, CAPS, ATL wrote:

>   I just recently upgraded from an 030 to an 040 processor and have
> discovered that Imagine v1.1 will crash and die unless I disable
> the CPU's CopyBack cache.  (Optimized for the 040 "from the begining",
> yea right.)
>
>   Can someone tell me if higher versions of Imagine have this same
> problem?  Can you run with the 040's CopyBack cache enabled?
> If you can what version are you using?
>
I found this problem with 2.0 when I got my A4000. The solution, once
discovered was simple. You have to load all modules of Imagine when it is
started. i.e. set Load modules option to T rather than F.
At least this worked in 2.0. try that in 1.1.

Nik.



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #390 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Announcement from Apex: New Products Currently Shipping!
Date: Sun, 24 Apr 1994 12:36:10 -0700
From: [e-mail] (Steve Worley)

Please note, the following text is a commerical software announcement,
but is quite relevant to this users of this mailing list.  Our
announcements have been eagerly received here in the past, but I'm
putting this header on the text to show that this message is not
posted blindly.

---------------------------------------------------------------

Apex Software is proud to announce a major update in its Essence
library of algorithmic surfaces for Imagine. This includes both an
upgrade of the current two libraries of Essence textures as well as a
totally new program.

The new updates of Essence (to version 3.0) make the textures
significantly more useful, increasing both the speed and abilities of
the textures. Some of the new features added are faster fractal noise
(about a 200% increase in speed), seperate 030/040 versions, an
attribute library and demonstration pictures for Volume I (similar to
the one included with Volume II), minor bug fixes, compatability with
Turbo Silver, Imagine 0.9, 1.0, 1.1, 2.0, 2.9(beta), and 3.0, an extra
manual addendum, and the addition of alpha channels. This last ability
is particularly exciting, as it allows you to control the strength of
a texture using another texture or a brushmap. You might use fractal
noise to turbulently blend two organic surfaces together, or make a
smooth gradient of rock changing into molten lava.

These updates are particularly useful when used with the more
significant new release from Apex: FORGE.

Forge is a brand new, stand alone program which runs independently of
(and does not require) Imagine. It allows you to load any of the
Essence textures and preview them in color. You can edit the texture
parameters using sliders INTERACTIVELY, watching the pattern change as
you move the sliders. You can apply textures in multiple layers,
including loading and saving Imagine-format attribute files. You can
also render the textures out as antialiased image maps, saving them as
IFF24, JPEG, or TIFF files in order to use them in ANY 3D program, not
just Imagine.

Since the main drawback of using textures is the long design cycle to
determine settings for custom surfaces, Forge becomes an essential
utility for all Essence users. Previously, textures were edited by
typing raw parameter values into a requester in Imagine, saving the
object, rendering a test image, displaying the result, then returning
to the attribute editor to refine the numbers. With Forge, the design
process is reduced to simply sliding a gadget and watching the change
take place. It truly is a revolution in texture design. We promise!

Forge's Major Features

o Interactive color preview of up to nine texture layers at once.
  The preview is in a resizeable window which can be zoomed or panned.

o Slider control of texture parameters, with numeric ability as an
  option.  There is no need to guess parameter ranges or type numbers,
  just move the slider and immediately see the change to the texture.

o Loading and saving Imagine-compatible attribute files.

o Rendering of antialiased, full 24-bit image maps ready for direct use
  in ANY 3D program. Image size is not limited by memory, and can be
  saved as IFF24, JPEG, or TIFF files.

o A variety of view and output modes, including flat projections,
  spheres, and different mapping modes. Seamless tilable surfaces can
  be produced, as well as pre-distorted "spherical maps" which when
  wrapped in a 3D program produce undistorted, seamless

o Full ANIMATION support, including start and end keyframing. This
  includes on-screen animation previews and rendering image sequences.

o Surfaces can be lit or unlit, with visible bump mapping or not.  Maps
  can optionally be rendered as greyscale (useful for bump mapping.)

o Completely stand-alone. Imagine is not required.

o Texture layers can be isolated to refine a certain texture, then
  reactivated for the final output. Textures can be added, copied,
  reordered, or dropped independently.

o Support for Firecracker, EGS, Picasso II, Opalvision, and other 24
  bit displays. The interface itself runs in 4-bit Amiga modes, or 8-bit
  for AGA and boards such as the Picasso II with RTG.


I have uploaded a screen shot of Forge's interface to Portal (it is
currently in the new Amiga uploads directory, and Aminet (where it
will eventually go into biz/demo probably, but is currently invisible
in the "new" directory). The file name is ForgeScreen.lha.

--

We plan on sending out a newsletter to all of our users hopefully
within a week, but this announcement will probably get to many people
first.

The details you want to ask: All three pieces of sofware are CURRENTLY
SHIPPING: this (quietly) began on Friday April 15. The Essence Volume
II upgrade (from 1.0 to 3.0) is FREE, and will be sent with the
newsletter. The Volume I upgrade costs $29. If you wish to order Forge
directly from Apex, the price is $29 ($60 retail). Essence Volumes I
and II are $85 each direct ($140 retail). A bundle of Forge and both
volumes costs $175.

You can contact Apex by calling 415-322-7532, sending email to
[e-mail], or writing Apex at 405 El Camino Real Suite 121,
Menlo Park CA 94025, USA.



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #391 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: 3.0 amiga version
Date: Sun, 24 Apr 1994 20:28:48 -0700 (PDT)
From: Mike McCool <[e-mail]>

Lance,

    This is in response to your query about ftp's, and not having
access.  I get the feeling a bunch of us are in this boat, and all these
posts about everyone's fab demos are really making our mouths water.

    Uuencoded versions of a small piece of an anim or a frame or two,
or best of all an MPEG'd version, might fit into an under-100k chunk,
which might fit in one of these IML posts. (One anim I know of, whose
individual 24bit frames saved out to over nine megs, crunched down to a
measly 75k MPEG file.  I know uuencoding makes bigger files.  But it's a
way, for those of us who have the will).

    And quickly guys and guyas, if this is e-mail illegal or
something, shut me up before I put my other foot in it.  It's just the
only way I can think of for us marginal net droids to get a taste of all
these goodies.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #392 ***************************************:-)

Date: Mon, 25 Apr 94 08:38:33 BST
From: [e-mail] (MR. R.L.COLLIER)

maybe I should explain more clearly.  What I mean is not an assign but a DEFAULT

drawer so when you do an 'Open Project', the file requester opens in the
directory specified without having to type ANYTHING.  Ie

as bill said, couple of lines in config:-

DEFOBJDIR    Files:Imagine/Objects
DEFPRODIR    Files:Imagine/Prpjects


    Load Imagine
    Select Project - Open
    File requester opens in Files:Imagine/Projects not the
    usual of the Imagine directory.

Are we clear now?


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #393 ***************************************:-)

Date: Mon, 25 Apr 94 08:54:17 BST
From: [e-mail] (MR. R.L.COLLIER)

Woops!!  Tip of the slongue there.  I actualkly meant the ASL as I have a 4000
and think it is a MASSIVE inmprovement.

(ARP - duh, Stupid)

Rich


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #394 ***************************************:-)

Date: Mon, 25 Apr 94 09:02:18 BST
From: [e-mail] (MR. R.L.COLLIER)

A while ago, I wrote a Direct-From-Hard drive anim player for the Amiga.  The
anims (DPaint style ANIM files NOT IMAGINE!) would play at a VERY respectable 25
 fps from hard drive with a transfer rate of about 300k/sec (A1200 with 127MB se
agate (Crap!)).  I now have a 4000/30 with two 80MB quantums with a transfer of
just under a meg.  The program was improved a little and single sound samples co
uld be attatched to frames in an anim using a 4-track sample/frame editor.

The only floor in the program (there always is one) is that it will not do AGA
anims (as yet!!!).  There are three programs, an Anim Only player, the main
editor and a stand alone anim+sample player.  One problem I did find however
is the imagine multiple pallette animations buggered it up!!

Oh well.

Anyone interested, give me a shout and I may go back hunt down the program.

Rich.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #395 ***************************************:-)

Subject: re still Trying
Date: Mon, 25 Apr 94 02:10:31 PDT
From: 25-Apr-1994 0405 <[e-mail]>

>The machine he used a VAX, screwed something up and all the archives are
>unreadable. He said that if he could get the "IP" address for "ftp.wustl.edu",

>it would probably work.
    Well I  pull stuff over to my VaxStation 3100 all the time. here is
 what happens. The Vax wants to see everything in stream linefeed format.
 I the file in question was in fixed length you need to convert it to see
 it properly on the Vax, if it is ok on the Vax you may need to convert
 it to fixed length before taking it home. (I just messed this up this
 past weekend). I use a utility written by a guy here at work.

                            bill


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #396 ***************************************:-)

Subject: re imagine!!
Date: Sun, 24 Apr 94 18:38:33 -0700
From: [e-mail] (Greg Pringle)

>>Yes, that's all fine and good, but the point of having default directories
>>is so you can let someone else use your files, or move them to another
>>machine that either doesn't have our assigns (PC's don't, do they?), or
>>has your assigns set  to something that isn't Imagine related.
>loaded some stuff and then when it fails to quickrender I had to go and
>modify the file in the failing requestor. Will Imagine install on the PC in
>the same place for all PC's ?

   Actually, you can use the SUBST command on dos, which works like
assign, but only with one character (the driver letter).

   So, you could have the filename "G:RACECAR/decal.iff", and it would
work on the amiga with "assign g: dh1:imagine", and on the PC with
"subst g: c:\imagine". The only problem might be with the pathname
(RACECAR/decal), but I think imagine might flip the '/'s around.

  Greg


--
+----------------------------+--------------------------------------------+
| Greg Pringle               |                                            |
| [e-mail]   |          "Better dead than smeg"           |
| [e-mail] |                                            |
+----------------------------+--------------------------------------------+


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #397 ***************************************:-)

Subject: forbid() and the rest...
Date: Mon, 25 Apr 1994 12:43:25 +0100 (BST)
From: Didier Malenfant <[e-mail]>

About disabling the system to improve render-time here's my personal
experience :

I actually use both the forbid() and disable() calls before a very time-
consumming program I made and the gain in time is negligeable. Like
mentionned before if you limit the processes running and especially the
number of windows opened you get best results. The only way to get anything
better would be to disable the system totally and hit the hardware and this
means no workbench and no-multitasking.

BTW, unlike mentionned before a call to forbid() shouldn't crash any 'well
written' application (os-friendly) but I still but I'm not convinced it would
provide any great improvement in rendering-time.

Now to my question : Does anyone knoes if there's any mortorbike (and
especially motor-cross bikes) objects available anywhere ?

Didier...

---
Didier Malenfant|359 Oxford Gardens,Stafford,ST16 3JH,England|[phone]
[e-mail]|[e-mail]|bs47c::en2bidm
A1.2k/030/882/6MB/40MB/50Mhz+MSync|HP9000-300/020/881/16MB/600MB/HP-UX/CONSOLE


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #398 ***************************************:-)

Subject: re comet2 project by [e-mail]
Date: Mon, 25 Apr 94 13:50:54 BST
From: Waland J F <[e-mail]>

I set everything up correctly (as far as I know), but when I try
to render it comes up with 'too many faces' for the particle FX.

(I've got 12 meg of ram so I don't think it is a problem).

Anyone want to tell me how to fix it so that I can try it out???
(I haven't used 2.9 much as I got 2.0 via Amiga Format - the learning curve
of 2.0 is bad enough with a manual, never mind without!)

jon


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #399 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Imagine3.0
Date: Mon, 25 Apr 1994 14:49:16 +0200
From: [e-mail] (Sebastien PERKINS)

To all lucky PC owners who already have imagine3.0 :

have certain known bugs in 2.0 and 2.9 been fixed in 3.0 ? I'm thinking about :

- csg sphere in scanline mode.
- fog and transparency problems.

also, what are the new textures like ?

and so on and so on !!!

sorry, but it's seems sooo long waiting for only a few more days for the amiga v
ersion !!!

keep the faith !


Seb


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #400 ***************************************:-)

Subject: ftpmail
Date: Mon, 25 Apr 1994 08:51:14 -0400 (EDT)
From: [e-mail] (William V. Swartz)

To Lance, and others:

I spent some time without ftp access and discovered the wonderful world of
mail servers, or, ftpmailers.  What these let you do is send a mail message
to a processing site that will go get the file you want, uuencode it, and
cut it up into little pieces for emailing to you.  Saves our mail boxes here
on the list from filling up with unwanted encoded files too.

I don't have a list of all the mail servers but one to get you started is at
[e-mail] but this one is busy and may take a few days to get
back to you.  Send it a message with the word HELP in the body for
instructions.  Watch comp.sys.amiga.misc for posts of recent uploads to the
Aminet, that way you'll know what your file and pathname are.

This will help get all you guys and gayas with email only access into the
world of file transfer.  It may be slow, but it does work.  Get your
uudecode utils in order!

  //
\X/ -BiL-
    [e-mail]             (See my 'Imagine'-ary signature below)


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #401 ***************************************:-)

Subject: re imagine!!
Date: Mon, 25 Apr 1994 10:26:29 -0400 (EDT)
From: Udo K Schuermann <[e-mail]>

>    So, you could have the filename "G:RACECAR/decal.iff", and it would
> work on the amiga with "assign g: dh1:imagine", and on the PC with
> "subst g: c:\imagine". The only problem might be with the pathname
> (RACECAR/decal), but I think imagine might flip the '/'s around.

Nice idea, Greg.  Actually, using forward slashes (/) would work both on
the Amiga and under MS-DOS because MS-DOS accepts the forward just like the
backward slash (don't try it at the COMMAND.COM prompt; COMMAND.COM is
really really stoopid(TM) -- try it in any application program that lets
you enter a filename.)

Sooooo, using forward slashes should work on all relevant systems.  Now all
we have to worry about are systems with networks installed.  G is my main
network drive here at work ...

 ._.  Udo Schuermann             Wings taped on a horse's back
 ( )  [e-mail]         does not a Pegasus make ...


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #402 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: 3.0 amiga version
Date: Mon, 25 Apr 1994 09:18:30 -0400 (EDT)
From: Udo K Schuermann <[e-mail]>

Mike McCool <[e-mail]> writes:
> or best of all an MPEG'd version, might fit into an under-100k chunk,
> which might fit in one of these IML posts. (One anim I know of, whose

A *FAR* more economical way would be for the creator of such anims to make
the MPEG versions available on a per-request basis, rather than flooding
the mailing list with it.  There have been numerous posts on how to make an
MPEG movie, so that shouldn't be too big a hurdle.
    I happen to have all the conveniences of a well-connected and
well-supplied site (ftp, lynx, wuarchive nfs-mounted, etc) and suspect that
I'm by far not the only one.

 ._.  Udo Schuermann
 ( )  [e-mail]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #403 ***************************************:-)

Date: Mon, 25 Apr 94 09:03:12 -0600
From: Steve Koren <[e-mail]>

> Woops!!  Tip of the slongue there.  I actualkly meant the ASL as I
> have a 4000 and think it is a MASSIVE inmprovement.

I believe Impulse has stated that they'll use the ASL requester in 3.0.
(Hurray for Impulse, and thanks for listening!)  Hopefully soon that
Imagine 2.0 file requester will be but a dim memory...

  - steve


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #404 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: wrapped altitude maps
Date: Tue, 26 Apr 1994 00:28:00 +1000 (EST)
From: Nikola Vukovljak <[e-mail]>

On Sat, 23 Apr 1994, Andrew Nunn wrote:

> I recently wanted to apply a reptile skin like altitude map to an object
> I'm working on. I wanted to draw a specific pattern, as viewed in the
> front view, and then let it wrap around my object, with constant depth.
> At last, with 2.9 its possible, and gets around the "Y axis used for two
> things" limit of 2.0.
>
> Take the object, that you want to altitude pattern map, and create two
> STATES. The first 'default' is the objects real shape. Create a second
> state 'flat' and Scale the Y dimension by .0001 a couple of times. Now
> select the 'flat' state and apply the brush map. Set flat x/z, altitude
> and set the lock state to 'flat'. The Y axis can now be changed to add
> the depth setting.
>

Why do you scale the Y dimension by .0001 a couple of times ? Won't that
make things very, very thin ?

What you are saying above BTW, means that Y-axis of the first-real object
is just set to engulf the object and then the one in the second object
actually controls the depth ?
This sounds cool if I understood correctly.

Nik.
[e-mail]



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #405 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Is it just quiet...
Date: Mon, 25 Apr 94 12:54:40 CDT
From: [e-mail] (Dale R Rogers)

    ... or have I been taken off the list?  I haven't received Imagine
    mail in about 3 weeks.  BTW is 3.0 for the Amiga out yet?  I was out
    of town for a week, so I'm behind in the latest news.

    Dale


        ____________________________^____________________________
        dale r. rogers

        Intergraph Corporation
        Building Design & Management             MailStop: LR24A3
        [e-mail]           Tel: [phone]
                                    .


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #406 ***************************************:-)

Subject: nff->imagine converter
Date: Mon, 25 Apr 1994 19:51:17 UTC+0200
From: Manuel Perez Ayala <[e-mail]>

Hello everybody:

I write from Spain. A short question.

Somebody knows a public domain program for convert from nff file
format to Imagine?. I know the T3D software convert from Imagine to
nff, but not vice versa (as I know).

Excuse my bad english. Thanks an advance.

Manuel Perez Ayala
Educative Technology Dptment.
Educational Sciences Institute
University of Extremadura
Spain


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #407 ***************************************:-)

Subject: AnimPlayer
Date:    Mon, 25 Apr 94 14:14 EDT
From: "Kaspar Stromme" <[e-mail]>

You say your player does 25fps from a crappy harddrive. But what screenmode are
you talking about? I want to play back DCTV anims (736x240 or 736x480; 8 or 16
colors) from the HD.
I've used Viewtek, but it's not very quick, and very jerky. Also tried Biganim,
which seems to run a lot faster second time around, but it leaves garbage
on the screen from previous loops making it unusable.
Kaspar S


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #408 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Bite by bite
Date: Mon, 25 Apr 94 16:10:44 EDT
From: David Watters <[e-mail]>

>> [e-mail] (Kiernan "Known Expert" Holland) writes:
> <... fifty lines of meaningless drivel, beginning with broad
> statements that somehow become a launching pad for Kiernan's
> view of the Known Universe... >

It's often a fresh change from your "Holier than thow" posts.

> Heaven forbid!  They made a BUSINESS DECISION that didn't bolster the
> Amiga market?  Why, don't they know they're supposed to sacrifice,
> and devote their time to our cause in an altruistic manner, because
> the Amiga is the most needy charity around!

Amiga Shmiga.  They *Fucked* customers.  I don't care if I use a DOS box
or a Cray, they *Fucked* me by selling me a program that didn't work (The
only accurate non-raytracing mode (scanline painting) would not render an
anim when a take was loaded (which is required to render an anim)), and
left me out to dry, ignoring pleas for a fix.

> Who does Byte by Byte think they are?  What do they think they're
> doing, charging more in a market that appreciates their usable
                                                          ^^^^^^ GACK!
> software, their readable manuals, their intelligent demo tapes, their
> tech support?

Byte by Byte is getting pounded in Macland and they couldn't deserve it
more IMHO.

> Don't they know anything?  In the Amiga market, you can be very
> successful making 3D products chock full of bugs, complemented with
> quirky interfaces, and no tech support

You describe Sculpt 4D very well.

--
<3> David R. Watters ([e-mail]) Cranel Inc. Development & Engineering
[D] "Porsche.  The very name is, to many, the last word in sports cars. Any
(O)  car blessed with these magic seven letters is sure to be the very best.
     Period!"  Car and Driver, January 1993 | Infinet - CMH's Internet gateway!



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #409 ***************************************:-)

Subject: mobicogs glitch revealed!
Date: Mon, 25 Apr 94 21:26:12 GMT
From: Jason Jack <[e-mail]>

Nobody mailed me on this.  Guess I'll have to keep the $1M prize for another
time...

The teeth between the head and tail mesh incorrectly.  Look close, you'll
see it.

Sorry for the major yawn factor...

Jay



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #410 ***************************************:-)

Subject: cmtj2imp reduction technique
Date: Mon, 25 Apr 94 21:13:37 GMT
From: Jason Jack <[e-mail]>

Hi all,

My apologies for the current state of cometj2.imp...  Right now it wants A
LOT of RAM - certainly more than 12MB.  Oops.  This was supposed to help
all, not only the RAM happy people...

(I do get the sense that some have not read the helpful text file I
included... but never mind :-) )

I thought it would be a simple matter to reduce the number of faces/points
BUT not so... the States feature gets in the way!  Delete faces|points and
you lose the states info...

There are 2 solutions :-

1) start afresh. (recommended! have fun!)

2) do the following...

- load peanut.6 into the detail editor
- select it, hit States and delete both states ('entire state')
  (you'll have to do this twice)
- select Pick Faces or Pick Points
- use the Pick Range facility and use a suitable Step value
  (eg 2 for Faces will pick 50% of the faces
      4 for Points will pick every 4th point)
- Delete what you have selected
  (how little RAM you have determines how much you must delete)
- go back to Pick Groups (or Objects)
- do States -> Create,  accept 'DEFAULT', and set the datatypes to just
  'Shape' (and OK)
- select Pick Points
- Pick All
- Rotate all the points in Z by not much (say 15 to 30 degrees)
  likewise for X and Y axes
  (you can do all 3 in one go)
- OK and go back to Pick Groups (or Objects)
- do States -> Create, and call it '2', and set the datatypes to just
  'Shape' (and OK)
- and save it as peanut.6

I found that selecting Points Step 4 leaves a blob that will render in
approx 4MB RAM (free after Imagine is loaded).

Setting the particles to spheres and tracing reduces the required RAM to
2.2MB!  Quite some saving.  And It looks cool too :-)  You only lose the
spinning particles effect.


Hope this helps.
Jay



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #411 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: wrapped altitude maps
Date: Mon, 25 Apr 94 20:03:19 GMT
From: Andrew Nunn <[e-mail]>

Nikola Vukovljak wrote:,

>>I recently wanted to apply a reptile skin like altitude map to an
>>object I'm working on. I wanted to draw a specific pattern, as viewed
>>in the front view, and then let it wrap around my object, with constant
>>depth.At last, with 2.9 its possible, and gets around the "Y axis used
>>for two things" limit of 2.0.
>>
>>Take the object, that you want to altitude pattern map, and create two
>>STATES. The first 'default' is the objects real shape. Create a second
>>state 'flat' and Scale the Y dimension by .0001 a couple of times. Now
>>select the 'flat' state and apply the brush map. Set flat x/z, altitude
>>and set the lock state to 'flat'. The Y axis can now be changed to add
>>the depth setting.

> Why do you scale the Y dimension by .0001 a couple of times ? Won't
>that make things very, very thin ?

Yes, the crux is that the object view from above be flat. By creating the
flat version and brush tacking the map to the flat state, means that it
will stretch around the full width state like a skin. A good analogy
here is imagine drawing vertical lines across a party rubber balloon when
it is deflated. The balloon would be flat.When the balloon were inflated,
the lines would move to stretch around the surface, and eventually form
rings, hoops,checks whatever covering the surface.


> What you are saying above BTW, means that Y-axis of the first-real
>object is just set to engulf the object and then the one in the second
>object actually controls the depth ?

The object axis size is not important, but the brush axis size is. The
brush axis size will define how deep the altitude map scores into the
surface. If the size is set to say 5 when the object is flat, the
balloon will appear to have lines 5 deep running around it when inflated.

> This sounds cool if I understood correctly.

It does work quite well. I could mail a little uuencoded sample jpeg to
requesters (too early for aminet).

Andrew


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #412 ***************************************:-)

Subject: RE: Imagine SCALA
Date: Tue, 26 Apr 94 09:14:57 EST
From: [e-mail] (Graeme Mc Donough)

Hi all

I went home and had a look at the first SCALA anim I wanted to push out
onto the net,
and unfortunately the size of the anim is too big (35Mbytes). Some people
on Wuarchive would get cranky at that. So I will send the first one just
with all of the Imagine directory that I used to create the anim. I must
say this that the characters that are used were snaged by a frend of mine
who is just as stupid as me in using time animating just for the hell of
it.
But anyway I will anounce the deposit when I get it on the Net.
I have decided to make another change on that piece to make it look better,
so I will spend a few more days playing around with it first.
I will leave it up to you people to do your own rendering.

Hear from you or me soon


P.S.
There is one anim I will have to send out onto the net with SCALA.
It is called the DIE DEMO. I will get that out soon.

P.P.S
As to the person who asked about SCALA MM300. No I am not using that, I am
using
SCALA MM200 and I am getting an upgrade soon.



/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-SUN
Graeme Mc Donough,
INTERNET: [e-mail]  (postmaster)
                                                                        ///
Monash University                                                      ///
Dpt of Earth Sciences                                                 ///
Clayton, Melbourne                                                \\\///
Victoria, AUSTRALIA 3168                                           \XX/
PHONE: [phone]
/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-TWIRL





IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #413 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: your mail
Date: Tue, 26 Apr 1994 10:31:13 +1000 (EST)
From: Nikola Vukovljak <[e-mail]>

On Mon, 25 Apr 1994, Steve Koren wrote:

>
> > Woops!!  Tip of the slongue there.  I actualkly meant the ASL as I
> > have a 4000 and think it is a MASSIVE inmprovement.
>
> I believe Impulse has stated that they'll use the ASL requester in 3.0.
> (Hurray for Impulse, and thanks for listening!)  Hopefully soon that
> Imagine 2.0 file requester will be but a dim memory...
>
>   - steve
>
If that, and the display database are supported, I will be very, very happy!
Imagine as it is doesn't promote properly to Piccolo, and I suspect EGS
Spectrum as well. (Picasso anyone ?) - I need to hit Redraw everytime I
move, rot, or scale the object  as the grid dissapears- bummer.
I really want to use Imagine on 1024*768! (Retina works and a friend is
running it at 1280*1024!! - on a 20 inch screen).

Nik.



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #414 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Forge/Essence 3.0
Date: Mon, 25 Apr 1994 23:01:11 -0400 (EDT)
From: "Andrew P. Vogel" <[e-mail]>

Well, I spoke with Steve Worley today, and ordered The Forge along with the
Essence 3.0 upgrade. I cannot wait for it! He's sending it USPS Priority Mail,
and it should be here Wednesday.

That'll be nice... I spoke to Impulse today, and they said that my copy of
3.0 should be going out on Tuesday, so hopefully, by the end of the week,
I'll have both Imagine 3.0 _and_ Essence 3.0/Forge.

Full report of The Forge once it's here...



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #415 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Bending tubes and cones
Date: Wed, 27 Apr 1994 01:24:04 +1000
From: [e-mail] (Peter Charuk)

I am using Imagine 2.9 on an A4000. Can anyone explain to me why the BEND
deformation does not affect a tube or a cone???? It works OK with other
primitives, spheres, planes,etc.

The deformation will interact with the cone/tube but will not take when you
hit the spacebar. I am trying to make some plumbing. Any ideas!!!!



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #416 ***************************************:-)

Date: Tue, 26 Apr 94 08:49:03 BST
From: [e-mail] (MR. R.L.COLLIER)

Kaspar S:-

I am afraid I have not tried an anim of that res but I will chuck one
together tonight and let you know tomorrow.  It will support that kind of res bu
t I do not know what the frame rate will be like.  It does not
pause after every 5 or so frames like a lot of others do as it displays
DIRECT from hard drive, not like others which load a couple of hundred
k, play it then load a couple of hundred more etc..  All I have to do
now is see if I can hunt the bugger down!  I will definately have it
somewhere, now where did I put it......

steven c:-

I never actually got around to releasing my player cos I was too busy
with work etc and after a short time forgot all about it.  In fact
until you guys were talking about buganim etc on here.  I can confirm
that it is faster than big anim as I remember trying it on a 320*256
vist anim.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #417 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Imagine V3.0 Bug List
Date: Tue, 26 Apr 94 04:56:00 UTC
From: [e-mail]

I hope nobody is offended by the title of this post.  I do appreciate the
work done by the folks at Impulse for Version 3 of Imagine.  They have done
an outstanding job in providing many professional features in a begginer to
intermediate 3d animation package (at a VERY low cost).  So before spouting
off on the new bug list for V3.0, I do want to thank them for providing such
a great 3d animation package!

I was one of the lucky PC users to receive V3.0 on Friday.  I played with it
over the weekend and found a few problems.  I called Impulse today and told
a rep what I found in hopes that the Amiga version would be fixed or later
versions of the PC version could be updated without re-distribution of
another "fix disk".  The rep on the phone didn't sound to pleased that I was
ALREADY reporting problems with V3.0.  I'll call back later this week to
hear if they have actually done anything about it. (hopefully someone from
Impulse is reading this and can forward to the appropriate person(s)).
 I would also appreciate if any of the other PC users of V3.0 please test
these out and see if you have the same problems (I really hope I'm wrong and
just aren't doing something right).

IMAGINE.EXE dated 4/19/94 11:47am

Biggest problem (highest visability) is that the fog objects broke.  I can
not get ANY object to exhibit the FOG ATTRIBUTE.  To make sure I wasn't
doing something right, I loaded a fog object I made in V2.9 and it didn't
work either. Basically fog objects don't render at all (come out
blank/totally transparaent.

Since fog objects don't render (I tried in trace mode also), the 4 new "FOG"
textures also don't work.  Bummer, they really sounded cool.  I guess they
would work under V2.9 but I haven't tried yet.

There are several new "LITES" textures, but they are not documented in the
TEXTURES.TXT file or in the book.  How do you use these things?  I tried the
softedge.itx texture for soft edged shadows but didn't notice any
difference.  I guess I'm not using it right (well how would I know how to
use it correctly ;-).

The EFFECTS.TXT file is missing completely from the IMAGINE PC disks!  There
are a couple new effects and I also don't know how to use these!  The only
way I knew there was SUPPOSED to be an EFFECTS.TXT file was that the book
said so.  The new LENSFLAR effect looks GREAT!...I guess that means I'm
using it right ;-)

The new antialiasing doesn't work in SCANLINE mode.  This is NOT a bug the
rep told me.  Its only to be used in trace mode.  I tried it out and its so
slow, you wouldn't want to use it in scanline anyway (usually for speed).  I
guess its best for making those traced still pictures.

What ever happened to shadow casting in scanline mode!?  Didn't I read
something from Mike Havarson on the IML about this making it in 3.0?  The
rep told me they didn't have enough time to add it in.  I was MAJORLY bummed
about this.

The new manual has (the now Impulse traditional) typos and formatting errors
galore.  You can tell it was rushed.  But I would have to say its a ton
better than the other one.  They really did a nice job here.

My only other complaints are that they did NOT satisfy the advertised
features in the mailing newsletter (which I based my buying decision on).
Ok, ok, even if I knew about the things that didn't make it I still PROBABLY
would have bought it.  But they should be more careful about promising more
than they can deliver.  This could be considered false advertising.  Makes
me wonder what they did during all that extra time (5 months since the
intial release date of end of November 93).  And they debited my credit card
back in December!

Anyway, here is a list of items they advertised but didn't make it in V3.0:

  - sounds support (Mike told us this wouldn't happen in 3.0 at the
beginning of the month...I thank him for that...but he didn't tell us the
other items below that didn't make it).

  - kinematic movements (I looked everywhere in the manual for this and
fooled with the cycle editor and didn't see this anywhere).

  - Keyboard Macros (again looked everywhere and didn't see it...please
someone tell me I'm wrong on any of these!  I want these features!)

  - Hierachy controls and pop-up action bars in the stage editor (again no
where to be found).

  - Magnetism in the forms editor (I didn't really care about this option
anyway ;-)

  - Field Rendereing (I didn't undertand this anyway...just make twice as
many frames and make the actions half as fast...but I didn't see anything
about this in the manual or anywhere else).

  - Alpha Channel Support (I thought I read something about this in the
manual but looked just now and can't find it anywhere).

  - Shadow Casting in Scanline Mode (already mentioned above)


Aside from my "miss-list" directly above, I hope someone from Impulse fixes
the fog attribute bug, and minor documentation bugs (missing info on
textures and effects).  I don't want to see them wasting money on a fix disk
if they can possibly correct it now (during shipment of 3.0 to the rest of
the PC users and soon to the Amiga users).

And for those who wish to flame me (for some reason), be gentle, as I burn
easy ;-)

Dave Kamalsky - Stamford CT.






IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #418 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Forge/Essence 3.0
Date: Tue, 26 Apr 1994 07:46:29 -0700
From: [e-mail] (Lesk)

>Well, I spoke with Steve Worley today, and ordered The Forge along with the
>Essence 3.0 upgrade. I cannot wait for it! He's sending it USPS Priority Mail,
>and it should be here Wednesday.
>
>That'll be nice... I spoke to Impulse today, and they said that my copy of
>3.0 should be going out on Tuesday, so hopefully, by the end of the week,
>I'll have both Imagine 3.0 _and_ Essence 3.0/Forge.
>
>Full report of The Forge once it's here...


You are really going to like forge! It is very nice to be able to set up a
texture so quickly and even render it and animate it over time then save
the set of picts to be used as brushmaps or just mixed in your animation.
(Note "animation")

the ability of using the sliders for adjusting your texture makes it very
easy to tweak until you get just exactly what you want and then save them
as att's for input to imagine. In using this, I discovered I had some
misconceptions about some of the textures. This rapidly cleared those up
and resolved some problems I have had designing certain things for a long
time.

This in itself may not be the end all program of programs but rest assured
it is very much like having that puzzle all finished except that last peice
and now you have just found it.

The report given by Steve about this product is dead on accurate. When you
get the program go back and read that review, There are features that will
suddenly make sense that are not easily described.


                                                Render Ho!
                                                   Lesk




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #419 ***************************************:-)

Date: Tue, 26 Apr 94 14:21:36 BST
From: [e-mail] (MR. R.L.COLLIER)

gowdy:-

As far as I know its 8 meg FAST (2*4 M Simms) with 2 Chip on top of that.

Maybe I should have said 10 meg???

Have to ring this bloke back as details unclear.  May be able to get one for
less than 1000!!!!


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #420 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Imagine V3.0 Bug List
Date: Tue, 26 Apr 94 09:47:58 CDT
From: [e-mail] (Thomas Setzer)

How is the bones feature?  Sounds like you did quite a bit of exploring this
weekend, and I appriciate the bug reports(that sucks), but how about a review
of the good and working features?  Heres the check list:

>        Depth of Field
>        Perfect Anti Aliasing
>        Real Time camera Tracking
>        OBject Constraints
>        Kinnematics
>        Bones  (you mentioned that one but it is the best of any software)
>        Transparency pass through for FOg and Transparent objects for
>        Background pics
>        over 100 textures
>        Global FX
>        Camera control for Depth of Field
>        Cut copy and paste in the Action editor
>        Full browse for adding images and objects states in the Action editor
>        Pop Morphing
>        Full Spline interpolation
>        Ease in and Ease out between key frames
>        Object spline deformation
>        The Spline editor  (2D for now)
>        State import to add objects to a state
>        Pencil Test in Detail editor
>        Unlimited texture and brush application no more limitation to 4
>        Faster rendering in both AMiga and PC
>        True Lens flare
>        Haze objects
>        Edgless transparency


Tom Setzer
[e-mail]

"And of course, I'm a genius, so people are naturally drawn to my fiery
intellect.  Their admiration overwhelms their envy!" - Calvin


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #421 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Imagine V3.0 Bug List
Date: Tue, 26 Apr 1994 08:06:33 -0800
From: [e-mail] (Brad Molsen)

Dave, I hope no one flames you. I think you handled your observations very
tactfully. I for one, hope that with some of the items you mentioned that
it was just that you weren't using the tools properly and someone from
Impulse will help you. I have to say that the fog thing is a REAL BUMMER
and I hope if it is buggy they fix it. Fog has a lot of uses.
                                Nuff said,
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
        JUST SAY NO, TO GUNS!!!

Brad Molsen c/o  LORAL                          [e-mail]

13810 SE Eastgate Way Suite 500                 [phone]
Bellevue, Wa 98005                              Fax: [phone]



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #422 ***************************************:-)

Subject: RE: Bending tubes and cones
Date: Tue, 26 Apr 94 08:39:00 PDT
From: Stethem Ted              5721 <[e-mail]>

  Your tubes and cones will have to have multiple Sections.  If you want
really smooth bends, you will need many sections.
 ----------
From: imagine-relay
To: imagine
Subject: Bending tubes and cones
Date: Wednesday, April 27, 1994 1:24AM


I am using Imagine 2.9 on an A4000. Can anyone explain to me why the BEND
deformation does not affect a tube or a cone???? It works OK with other
primitives, spheres, planes,etc.

The deformation will interact with the cone/tube but will not take when you
hit the spacebar. I am trying to make some plumbing. Any ideas!!!!



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #423 ***************************************:-)

Subject: re Imagine V3.0 Bugs
Date: Tue, 26 Apr 1994 12:55:42 -0400
From: "Paul Wehner" <[e-mail]>

I predict that we'll all be comparing file sizes of the executable as a way
of ensuring the least bug ridden version of 3.0-(deja vu w/ 2.0)
I'm very bummed about the broken fog, it adds alot to my stuff. Kinematic
movements would've been very cool. I'm betting that'll be one of the first of
the "$100 quarterly upgrades" Impulse offers us all 6 months from now-:)
Can't wait to read the manual-I'm shure itl'l be mouch imporved-8> At least
they hired someone this round. Now that the Forge is shipping I hope Steve
Worley will bless us with Understanding Imagine 3.0 soon.
Can anyone give a rundown on the new textures-most cool, most unusual, biggest
parameter requestor, etc.? Has the prefs editor been added to?
thanks, Paul Wehner


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #424 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Wrapped altitude maps
Date: Tue, 26 Apr 94 15:53:00 +0000
From: [e-mail] (Paul Rance)

In a message of 23 Apr 94 Andrew Nunn wrote to :

 AN> I recently wanted to apply a reptile skin like altitude map to an
 AN> object
 AN> I'm working on. I wanted to draw a specific pattern, as viewed in the
 AN> front view, and then let it wrap around my object, with constant depth.
 AN> At last, with 2.9 its possible, and gets around the "Y axis used for
 AN> two
 AN> things" limit of 2.0.

 AN> Take the object, that you want to altitude pattern map, and create two
 AN> STATES. The first 'default' is the objects real shape. Create a second
 AN> state 'flat' and Scale the Y dimension by .0001 a couple of times. Now
 AN> select the 'flat' state and apply the brush map. Set flat x/z, altitude
A AN> and set the lock state to 'flat'. The Y axis can now be changed to add
 AN> the depth setting.

Nice one Andrew, this works a treat. How did you manage to figure this one
out. By luck or alot of head scratching :-)) Is this the technique you used
on your  vr.jpg6 picture (the dinosaur picture)? I thought perhaps it was a
combination of textures.


Paul R



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #425 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Bending tubes and cones
Date: Tue, 26 Apr 1994 13:06:04 -0500 (CDT)
From: Cliff Lee <[e-mail]>

On Wed, 27 Apr 1994, Peter Charuk wrote:

> I am using Imagine 2.9 on an A4000. Can anyone explain to me why the BEND
> deformation does not affect a tube or a cone???? It works OK with other
> primitives, spheres, planes,etc.

Its been my experience that you need some intermediate points in your
tubes/cones.  Instead of using the primative, try extruding a circle
several steps.  Then deform it.  It should give you what your are
expecting.

Cliff Lee           [e-mail]
"You can always make up a class,
 You can never  make up a party!"



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #426 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Imagine Attributes
Date: Tue, 26 Apr 94 16:35:29 EDT
From: [e-mail]

 I am using version 2.0 on the PC and I can't figure out how to apply those
*.atr (attributes) that come with the program.  Are they textures, or brushes
or what?

  Thanks for any help anyone can give!


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #427 ***************************************:-)

Subject: upload announcements?
Date: Tue, 26 Apr 1994 12:36:03 -0700 (PDT)
From: Mike McCool <[e-mail]>

Hey y'all,

    Among the very polite responses to my lame post suggesting we all
bombard IML with uuencoded demos's of our work (so non-ftp'ers could have
access), there was a note from someone who suggested ftp-mail servers.
I've connected with one, thanks to you.

    In my zeal, I deleted your post, once I'd copied the
[e-mail] address.  You mentioned a newsgroup in the
comp.sys.amiga.*  area where I could check for ftp addresses of uploads
pertinent to Imagine.  Could I ask you to post that again?

    I may have found the area already, and there just aren't any posts
right now.  But I can't find a thing about any of these demo's everyone's
talking about.  I want to at least have accurate address strings, when I
make my first mailserver request.

    Thanks in a trance.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #428 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: subscribe
Date: Tue, 26 Apr 94 14:06:45 CDT
From: [e-mail] (Thomas Setzer)

Ok, who posted the IML posting address as where to subscribe?  If you are
going to advertise the IML address, advertise it as:

[e-mail]

IS THAT CLEAR!!!!!!!!

Also, on another note...

  No, file attachments are NOT a good idea, uuencode if you must(I'd rather you
didn't).  Not everyone has the ability to handle file attachments(and I would
guess most of us don't want them, esp smilefaces).  ftp if you can, look into
ftp by email if you can't, resort to uuencode by PRIVATE email if you must.

Sorry if I sound a little harsh, just tired of spending an hour cleaning out
my mailbox every morning.

HEY, YOU GUYS WITH 3.0!! HOW IS BONES? Anyone wanna upload an anim(ftp
preferably:) Depth of field? Is this one in there?


Tom Setzer
[e-mail]

"And of course, I'm a genius, so people are naturally drawn to my fiery
intellect.  Their admiration overwhelms their envy!" - Calvin


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #429 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Odd Edges
Date: Tue, 26 Apr 94 11:41:50  GMT-2
From: [e-mail] (Soren Wind)

WHAT TO DO ?

In Imagine V2.9 running a Integrity Check,ie.  :

Object :LEG, face 98 has inconsistent edges

How do i fix these problems... ?

Running them through Vertex, after i did that, Imagine said that there was not
enough ram left ?

  Soren Wind   -  IZI/ImPACT    __   ___              _
  GFX / 3D Design / Raytrace    \ \ / (_)____  _ __ _| |
  Fidonet Scala  2:230/418.30    \ V /| (_-< || / _` | |    /\\
  Fidonet ATeam  2:230/714.17    _\_/ |_/__/\_,_\__,_|_|__  \\/
  Amiganet : 39:141/104.30      |_ _|_ __  _ __  __ _ __| |_
  E-MAIL ADD1:[e-mail]  | || '  \| '_ \/ _` / _|  _|
                                |___|_|_|_| .__/\__,_\__|\__|tm
  A2K/030/882/9MB/345MB/33Mhz+SVGA Running|_|/fast/ for a *Picasso* *II*

... What problem are we trying to solve here?

-- Via Xenolink 1.90


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #430 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Imagine V3.0 Bug List
Date: Tue, 26 Apr 1994 12:36:53 -0500 (CDT)
From: [e-mail] (cyberhawk)

> Biggest problem (highest visability) is that the fog objects broke.  I can
> not get ANY object to exhibit the FOG ATTRIBUTE.  To make sure I wasn't
> doing something right, I loaded a fog object I made in V2.9 and it didn't
> work either. Basically fog objects don't render at all (come out
> blank/totally transparaent.

Ditto here. I tried to make a fog object and it came out totally
black.

> Since fog objects don't render (I tried in trace mode also), the 4 new "FOG"
> textures also don't work.  Bummer, they really sounded cool.  I guess they
> would work under V2.9 but I haven't tried yet.

I know... Those textures sound so cool...

> There are several new "LITES" textures, but they are not documented in the
> TEXTURES.TXT file or in the book.  How do you use these things?  I tried the
> softedge.itx texture for soft edged shadows but didn't notice any
> difference.  I guess I'm not using it right (well how would I know how to
> use it correctly ;-).

Don't have this file.... :(

> The EFFECTS.TXT file is missing completely from the IMAGINE PC disks!  There
> are a couple new effects and I also don't know how to use these!  The only
> way I knew there was SUPPOSED to be an EFFECTS.TXT file was that the book
> said so.  The new LENSFLAR effect looks GREAT!...I guess that means I'm
> using it right ;-)

I thought that if the file was missing, then they would be explained
in the book, but no... Besides, TEXTURES.TXT was badly formatted.

>   - sounds support (Mike told us this wouldn't happen in 3.0 at the
> beginning of the month...I thank him for that...but he didn't tell us the
> other items below that didn't make it).

I don't have much use for it, but still...

> kinematics

Where is it?!! I bought it, you can say, almost for this feature,
and it's not there.
>   - Keyboard Macros (again looked everywhere and didn't see it...please
>   - Alpha Channel Support (I thought I read something about this in the
> manual but looked just now and can't find it anywhere).
>
>   - Shadow Casting in Scanline Mode (already mentioned above)

That would be nice...

> textures and effects).  I don't want to see them wasting money on a fix disk
> if they can possibly correct it now (during shipment of 3.0 to the rest of
> the PC users and soon to the Amiga users).

Yeah, but what about us who already got it? How are we going to use
fog objects and the other stuff?

Andrey Zmievskiy



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #431 ***************************************:-)

Subject: FLC version of mobicogs uploaded
Date: Wed, 27 Apr 94 00:28:08 GMT
From: Jason Jack <[e-mail]>

Hi all,

mobicflc.lha  is on Aminet in gfx/anim.

It is the same as mobicogs.lha but a FLC (locked palette).

Jay


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #432 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Missing Docs in V3.0
Date: Tue, 26 Apr 1994 16:17:03 -0500 (CDT)
From: [e-mail]

Greetings,

This is Scott again.  Sorry I haven't been more active on the IML and
haven't been answering any mail lately - We've been really swamped.

Included in this post are two text files that were missing on the PC install
disks.  One is the documentation for the two new global FX, and the other is
the documentation for the new lighting textures.  My apolagies for taking up
the bandwidth with such a long post, but I know some of you probably need it.

I don't have the time or the patients to try and get this stuff up on ftp,
so if any of you would like to do so, it would be appreciated.
thanx...   see ya later...    sk...

=======================================================================
<globalfx.txt>

Global Lens Flare

Synopsis:

This FX emmulates the artifacting that occurs when a bright light reflects
around inside of a real-world camera lens.  This artifacting is affected by
imperfections in the lenses, the shape of the camera's iris, and by the
different coatings on the lenses.


Requester:

Halo Around Light Sources       :   This flag lets the effect put a fuzzy
                                    halo around the light in the image.  The
                                    size of the halo is set by the light's Z
                                    axis size.  This emulates the
                                    imperfections or dirt/fog on the first
                                    lens of the camera.

Number of Round Lenses          :   This sets the number of round shaped
                                    flares that will be created by each light
                                    (although, all the flares may not be
                                    visable because they are being cast
                                    outside of the film plane).  This flare is
                                    what would be caused by a camera with a
                                    perfect iris.  There are some cameras that
                                    have enough parts in them that they
                                    approach a nearly circular iris.

Number of Octagonal Lenses      :   This sets the number of octagon shaped
                                    flares that will be created by each light
                                    (although, all the flares may not be
                                    visable because they are being cast
                                    outside of the film plane).  Octagon
                                    shaped flares are created by cameras with
                                    octagonal iris'.

Min/Max Flare Intensity (0..1)  :   These parameters set the the range of
                                    intensities for the flares.  An intensity
                                    of 1.0 means that the imagine will be
                                    totally occluded by the flare.

Min/Max Flare Size (0..1)       :   These parameters set the range of sizes
                                    for the flares.  The numbers represent the
                                    flare size as a fraction of the image
                                    width.

Flare Spacing Adjustment        :   This parameter adjusts how close to the
                                    center of the image the flares will be
                                    packed (sort of a position control).

Fraction w/o Edges (0..1)       :   In a real camera, the complex of lenses
                                    often consists of both concave and convex
                                    lenses.  The idea is that convex lenses
                                    create flares with "hotter" (more intense)
                                    centers, and that concave lenses have
                                    hotter edges (I may have these turned
                                    around, but the idea is the same).  Flares
                                    w/o Edges are flare with hot centers and
                                    flares with edges are flares with hot
                                    edges.  The intensities themselves come
                                    from the ranges allowed by the Min/Max
                                    Flare Intensity parameters.

Random Number Seed              :   This seed value allows you to effectively
                                    change lenses without having to change all
                                    the other parameters you've set up.

Restrict to far/near side of center :   These flags are used to say, "I only
                                    want lens flares to show up between the
                                    lightsource and the center of the
                                    screen."  Some lenses appear to do this,
                                    so these flags let you control it.


Things to keep in mind to get the most out of this FX:

Lights that are behind the camera will not flare.  Lights will flare when
they are beyond the field of view of the camera, but once they are behind
the camera, there is no way they could cast light directly into a lens and
therefore, stop flaring.

A real camera has an iris with only one shape to it.  The flares take on the
shape of the iris, so using both round and octagonal flare together may look
"fakey" to a purist.  If you're shooting for photo realism with lens flare,
stick to just round or just octagonal lenses.

The lens flares that occur in real cameras tend to be much smaller the the
default values in this FX.  These defaults in this FX are set up so that the
flares can be easily spotted while testing.  Some lenses do give very large
flares, but you may want to make the effect a bit subtler by making them
smaller and less intense.

The size, position, and color of the lens flares is only is only barely
controllable by the user.  You are able to set limits on the size and
intensities of the flares, you are able to control how tightly packed the
flares are and where they are with reference to the center of the image, and
you can approximately control the colors of the flares by using colored light
sources.  All the specifics about what each individual flare looks like is
determined randomly within the FX, and the only control you've got is by
changing the random number.  When a photographer purposly wants to use flare
for dramatic effect, the only control he/she has over the look of the flares
is done with filters and by changing whole lenses.  By changing the random
number, you are effectively changing to a new lens that may have the
coatings and lens types you need to get just the right effect.


===========================
Global Haze

Synopsis:

This FX will key off of a specific color in an image and blend that color
outward from wherever is is found.  The idea is that bright objects can be
given an apparent glow or halo by telling the FX to look for the color of
the bright object.  The Start and End values in this FX allow it to animate,
so you can make something flare up during an animation.  The speed of this
FX is very dependant upon image size and upon the radii set in the
requester.  It will slow way down if you choose to have large radii on a big
image.


Requester:

Start/End Haze Radius           :   This sets how far the halo emminates
                                    from the edges of the key color it picks
                                    up.  The radius is measured in pixels,
                                    but more specifically, it is actually
                                    measured in pixel widths (this may be
                                    important to those using output devices
                                    with eccentric aspect ratios).  The
                                    Start/End values let you animate the
                                    radius size during the progress of the
                                    animation.

Start/End Haze Intensity        :   This sets the maximum intensity that the
                                    halo will have in pixels adjacent to the
                                    key colored pixels.  The Start/End
                                    values let you animate the intensity
                                    during the progress of the animation.

Haze Key Color Red/Green/Blue   :   These are the Red, Green, and Blue color
                                    gun values that the effect will look for
                                    and haze outwards from.


Things to keep in mind to get the most out of this FX:

The radii of the haze in this effect is measured in pixels - not image size.
It is not resolution independant, and will not look the same on two
different size images unless you change the radius of the FX in the new
image.  If you get an effect you like, and do another picture that is twice
as wide (in pixels), you have to make the Start/End radii twice as big as
you did to get the same effect you did in your first image.

The effect keys specifically off of the color in the Red/Green/Blue
parameters.  On the edges of objects, pixels are antialiased and the FX may
not exactly pick up the outer edge of the bright object you're lookin for.
This is more noticable in lower resolution images and if objects get very
small.

============================================================================

<litetex.txt>
Light Textures

=============================

FrnchWin - French Windows Light Texture
Type:  All Lights

This texture, applied to a light, will make the light look as if it were
cast through a french window, or any window with regular, rectangular panes
of glass.

Num Vert/Horz Panes :   These parameters set the number of planes of glass
                        that the terxture will show if applied to a
                        rectangular light source.
Vert/Horz Shad Adj  :   These parameters adjust (apparently) how thick the
                        wood would be between each pane of glass in the
                        window.  The numbers are a fraction of the size of
                        the pane.  A value of .5 whould give a piece of
                        glass with half shadow and half light.
Penumbra Adj        :   This parameter sets the size of the light's penumbra
                        (soft shadow) as a fraction of the amount of light
                        showing.

=============================

SoftEdge - Soft Edge Lighting Texture
Type:  Round Shape and Rectangular Lights

This texture, when applied to a shaped light, adds a penumbra to the light
so the edges of the light aren't as sharp as they usually are in imagine.
This makes the lights look as if they are being cast from further away.

Penumbra Adj        :   This parameter sets the size of the light's penumbra
                        (soft shadow) as a fraction of the amount of light
                        showing.
Noise 1 and 2       :   These parameters allow you to add noise to thei
                        penumbera area of the texture so you can get a more
                        grainy penumbra instead of a smooth gradiant.

=============================

Strobe - Strobe Lighting Texture
Type:  All Lights

Strobe if an animated light texure that morphs a light cyclically from one
color to another.  This is not the harsh flash that happens with a real
strobe, but a more gradual cycling of the light.

Strobe Cycles       :   This parameters sets how many times the light will
                        cycle from color 1 to color 2 in a single animation
                        cycle (or texture morph depending upon how you want
                        to look at it).
Light Color 1 and 2 :   These a are the two colors that the light will cycle
                        between.
Dist Travelled      :   This is the animation position tween control
                        variable.  To animate this texture you have to morph
                        between two lights with this texture on them.  Set
                        up all the texture parameters to be the same, but
                        have the Distance Travelled set to 0.0 in one and
                        1.0 in the other.  Morph these two lights, and that
                        is one animation cycle.

=============================

VenLite - Venitian Blind Lighting Texture
Type:  All Lights

This texture, applied to a light, will make the light look as if it were
cast through a venitian blind.

Number of Shadows   :   This is the number of slats that are in the venitian
                        blind that would cast shadows if the light was a
                        rectangular light source.
Shadow Sz Adj       :   This parameter adjusts the size of the shadow (how
                        open or closed the blind is).  A value of .5 will
                        give a light that is half occluded by the slats in
                        the blind.
Penumbra Adj        :   This parameter sets the size of the light's penumbra
                        (soft shadow) as a fraction of the amount of light
                        showing.
Noise 1 and 2       :   These parameters allow you to add noise to the
                        penumbera area of the texture so you can get a more
                        grainy penumbra instead of a smooth gradiant.






IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #433 ***************************************:-)

Subject: galleryq.lha uploaded to Aminet
Date: Wed, 27 Apr 94 00:33:39 GMT
From: Jason Jack <[e-mail]>

Hi renderers!

While your waiting for your copy of Imagine 3.0 to arrive checkout my latest
dropping in Aminet gfx/anim.

Here is the readme...


Short: Ray-traced gallery. Droid runs-morphs-to-walk past animations.
Type: gfx/anim
Uploader: [e-mail] (Jason Jack)
Author: [e-mail] (Jason Jack)


10 of my earlier anims mounted on the gallery wall.  A droid runs into the
scene, slows to a walk, and exits.  Ray-traced with 2 shadow casting light
sources and a nice polished marble floor using Imagine 2.0.

This is an example of two cycle objects morphing.  The key frames and
positions for the walk and run cycles are the same.  You can probably spot a
foot sliding, a disadvantage of having a linear system.

The droid was originally a single object that came as a bonus with the
Future design disk.  I split him up and taught him to move ;-)

Format is 176 x 144 x HAM, 120 frames.  Uncompressed size is 1583054 bytes.

The nice thing about this anim is that you have to watch it at least 11
times...


Enjoy,
Jay


galleryq.ham may be freely distributed so long as this readme accompanies
it.

galleryq.ham is Copyright (C) 1994 by Jason Jack.  All rights reserved.
Must not be used commercially without the written consent of the author.



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #434 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Odd Edges
Date: Tue, 26 Apr 1994 18:21:36 -0700
From: [e-mail] (Lesk)

Hi Soren;

>WHAT TO DO ?
>
>In Imagine V2.9 running a Integrity Check,ie.  :
>
>Object :LEG, face 98 has inconsistent edges
>

I got as many stupid requesters as I did errors did you have to sit and
click all those error messages away?

>How do i fix these problems... ?
>
>Running them through Vertex, after i did that, Imagine said that there was not
>enough ram left ?

I Had this problem as well, I ran them back through interchange plus and
that seemed to work.

                                                Render Ho!
                                                   Lesk




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #435 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Was looking forward to...
Date: Tue, 26 Apr 94 23:25:27 EDT
From: [e-mail] (Paul Marino)

Well after reading Dave Kamalsky's report on Imagine(PC) 3.0 bug/MIA list,
I can only feel that this report will also reflect the bug/MIA list
for Imagine on the Amiga. (although I hope it doesn't)


                                HOWEVER:

**** DISCLAIMER: This posting is made prior to receiving 3.0(Amiga) *****



I am EXTREMELY disappointed in the lack of the magnetic option
in the forms editor.

Having almost always used this editor for modelling (regardless where
I eventually rendered) I was really looking foward to the newest release.

I'm sure 3.0 will make me very happy in other aspects but I hope this
function makes it to 3.1.

Your friendly NYC Imagineer,
Paul Marino.




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #436 ***************************************:-)

Subject: re:3.0 bugs
Date: Tue, 26 Apr 94 23:41:30 EDT
From: [e-mail]

Just played around with fog objects in the PC version of 3.0 and did not have
any problems.  Just be sure to give it a color and a fog length.  I even
added a brush map to the fog object and it worked as expected( in trace mode,
did not try it in scanline).  I agree that the manual omits some things
also(lites textures, PC SVGA modes, ect).  I really wish we had the scanline
shadows.  Well, back to more testing.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #437 ***************************************:-)

Subject: SUBSCRIBE!
Date: Tue, 26 Apr 1994 21:53:31 -0600 (MDT)
From: Jeremy Williams <[e-mail]>

   I just wanted to write a quick note to see if I could be put on your
mailing list of new news etc...
   By the way, is it possible to send mail to this address in order to ask
questions about some of the new features in Imagine 3.0 that seem to be
undocumented?  Is so that would be great.

            Thank You in advance,

                [e-mail]


P.S. Imagine 3.0 is a fantastic upgrade, I have the version for the PC and
I love it!  Thanks for the great enhancements!





IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #438 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Price for services rendered
Date: Wed, 27 Apr 94 00:10:28 EDT
From: [e-mail]

     This message is for those of you doing graphics/animations
perfessionally, or anybody who gets paid for what they do.
     I am starting up a small computer graphics company.  We plan on doing
alot of animations, for a wide variety of businesses.  But I have no idea of
what to charge for these services.  I have heard of a low of $100.00 per
rendered second.  Does that sound right?
     Does anyone have a formula for figuring out what to charge?  Or at least
can someone point me in the correct direction.

  Thanks

      Kurt


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #439 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Imagine v3.0 bug
Date: Tue, 26 Apr 94 23:01:59
From: [e-mail]

 > Biggest problem (highest visability) is that the fog objects broke.
 > I can
 > not get ANY object to exhibit the FOG ATTRIBUTE.  To make sure I
 > wasn't
 > doing something right, I loaded a fog object I made in V2.9 and it
 > didn't
 > work either. Basically fog objects don't render at all (come out
 > blank/totally transparaent.

They aren't really broke.  You need to have a backdrop OTHER than the default
worl background.  A fog object in 3.0 only appears when it's in front of
something, or consumes something.  If you want to see the fog shape itself, it
must be rendered or ray-traced in front of some other object in the backdround.
 This may or may not be a bug...depending on the reasons for the change.


 > There are several new "LITES" textures, but they are not documented
 > in the

Apply the texture to a light object.  The resulting shadows will be the type of
the texture you select.


 > The EFFECTS.TXT file is missing completely from the IMAGINE PC
 > disks!  There are a couple new effects and I also don't know how to use
 > these!

Ok....lensflare Global Effect.  Create a Light and select it's Lensflare Check
box.  Apply the Global effect to the GLOBALS timeline.  Voila...lenseflare when
rendered. And it DOES animate very well.

HAZE global effects.  HAZE affects only BRIGHT objects.  Create a sphere, make
it bright.  Apply the HAZE effect to the GLOBALS timeline.  Render...get a
HAZE.

 > AntiAliasing

Yep...it will only look better in RAY-TRACE mode.  Yes, it _is_ slow.  Change
the number of rays that are cast from the Pref editor.  The default is 255 rays
per pixel.  Lower that untill you get a comfortable speed to quality ratio.

>Inverse Kinematics

It's in there...just not in the manual.

The Menu options are in the states Menu.  They are FREEZE, RELEASE, RELEASE
ALL, and CONSTRAIN.   Create three spheresas such:

    O           O             O

Group them like this:  O          O----------O
then:                  O----------O----------O
                     Base       Joint        Tip

Be in object mode.  Select the BASE and FREEZE it. Play with that New Gadget
Box...pretty straight forward.  Do the same for the other two objects in order
to set their constraints.  RELEASE the Joint & Tip.  Select CONSTRAIN.
  Select the TIP while in object mode, move it, the Joint should act
accordingly.  I think the above steps are correct.  I have only played with it
so far.  Impulse has mentioned that they will be providing a supplemental text.

Hope This Helps!

-GreG



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #440 ***************************************:-)

Subject: imagine 3.0
Date: Wed, 27 Apr 1994 09:07:02 +0200
From: [e-mail] (Sebastien PERKINS)

what on earth is all this ? no kinematics, no shadow mapping, no macros ?????

i mean, 3.0 would be worth its gold just for these 3 extras !!!

i might recall that impulse said in the 2.9 addendum that shadow mappings and ki
nematics WILL be included ...... whats up then ?

anyway that's enough talk about it, i'll just wait and see what the amiga versio
n looks like, if anybody remembers the differences between 2.0 on amiga and pc w
e COULD be surprised ! But then maybe not ...

Thank god Apex are still supporting Imagine ! I think i'm gonna order forge and
 essence 3.0 soon, very soon ...

OK i don't want any flames, i just want to know what is and isn't in 3.0 ...


Seb


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #441 ***************************************:-)

Subject: anyone know
Date: Wed, 27 Apr 1994 01:47:20 -0700 (PDT)
From: "David Scott" <[e-mail]>

ok so I'm behind the times.... I have Imagine 1.0 (ooo aahh and antique)
and I'm interested if there is an upgrade to either 2.0 or 3.0 if so how
much?  Also anyone know of a wholesaler for Imagine?  Mine dosn't seem
to think it's important enough to carry (at least thats what the sales
rep told me)..




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #442 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Real 3D and Imagine Newsgroups?
Date: Wed, 27 Apr 1994 02:47 EDT
From: [e-mail]

There is an effort being made to take the LightWave and Studio 3D mailing
lists and create newsgroups out of them. I'm wondering if there's enough
interest in the Imagine and Real 3D mailing lists to do this as well.
Having received a total of 70 messages from both groups within a 24 hour
period, I think there's enough volume to warrent Imagine & Real 3D
newsgroups. What do the rest of you think?

                               Scott Corley


[e-mail]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #443 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Forge & Imagine
Date: Wed, 27 Apr 94 3:10:31 MST
From: [e-mail] (Aaron Bryson)

Steve (Apex),

  Can you tell me if Forge will load Imagine textures ?

          - Aaron

--
Aaron Bryson                                   Bull/ESD/ESE/G8Eng/DS/SMP
Bull HN Information Systems                    InterNet: [e-mail]
13430 North Black Canyon Highway               Voice:           [phone]
Phoenix, AZ 85029                              FAX:             [phone]
WWW:<a href="http://bobcat.az05.bull.com/Bull/People/Bryson/personal.html"></a>


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #444 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Imagine on usenet...
Date: Wed, 27 Apr 1994 12:30:51 +0100 (BST)
From: Didier Malenfant <[e-mail]>

The only thing I could think of to object to IML going on news is for people
like me who don't have access to the news (thanks to our system managers who
say it's not university's course related). Would it still be possible to get
the information thru IML ?

Didier...
[e-mail]|[e-mail]
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Didier Malenfant|359 Oxford Gardens,Stafford,ST16 3JH,England|[phone]
A1.2k/030/882/6MB/40MB/50Mhz+MSync|HP9000-300/020/881/16MB/600MB/HP-UX/CONSOLE
"Dans les videotheques tes calipetes desuetes sont classees au rayon obsolete"


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #445 ***************************************:-)

Subject: 3.0 antialiasing
Date: Wed, 27 Apr 94 07:33:09 EDT
From: [e-mail]

Any one that has also has received 3.0 try rendering just a checkerboard
ground using the new antialaising.  I gave up after 15" when only about 3%
was done.  Something must be wrong here Impulse, are you all sure that there
is not a quicker way of doing this?  How does 3d-Studio give its users
perfect antialaising in no time(scanline).  If it is do to their scanline
only rendering then why doesn't Imagine offer this in scanline mode.  With
respect to antialaising there must be two ways to "skin a cat" and Imagine
must be using a dull butter knife.  Sorry if I offended anyone but the new
antialaising rendering times are unacceptable.  Impluse, if you are listening
please try to fix this.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #446 ***************************************:-)

Subject: RE:Imagine 3.0 Bug List
Date: Wed, 27 Apr 94 05:12:00 UTC
From: [e-mail]

>From [e-mail] Tue Apr 26 19:22:06 1994

>> There are several new "LITES" textures, but they are not documented in th
 >> TEXTURES.TXT file or in the book.  How do you use these things?  I tried t
 >> softedge.itx texture for soft edged shadows but didn't notice any
 >> difference.  I guess I'm not using it right (well how would I know how to
 >> use it correctly ;-).
 >What other new LITES textures are there? For that matter, how about a listi
 >of _all_ textures included with 3.0... That would be really ncie for those
 >of us chomping at the bit...

Drew, there are a lot of new textures in 3.0 and I don't want to list
 them all.  Here were a few cool sounding ones that should wet your
 appitite:
  Fakely - simluate that cool effect you see with Oakly sunglasses!
  Terra - simulates basic landforms!
  BmpBrnch - soft-edged and bumbed vein like patterns or branches
  Hardwood - much more complex wood texture
  BeamMeUp - animated texture!!  you guessed it!
  DancSpark - animated texture! Dancing plasma spark

Here is a list of the "Lites" textures..
  Caustics
  Frnchwin
  Purphaze
  Softedge
  Strobe
  Venlite

The new EFFECTS..
  Sway
  Spike
  Baloon
  Global effects: Haze, and Lensflar

Looks like a lot of time was spent adding these new textures and effects.
 My hats off to the "texture guy" (was this Scott?) reading the IML...

There are still more neat stuff that I haven't gotten into yet, so I
 won't spoil any more surprises.  (To Tom: Haven't tried bones yet, but the
 "depth of field" works great...a little slower but understandably so).

Dave Kamalsky - Stamford, CT





IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #447 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Forge & Imagine
Date: Wed, 27 Apr 1994 07:58:41 -0700
From: [e-mail] (Lesk)

>Steve (Apex),
>
>  Can you tell me if Forge will load Imagine textures ?
>
>          - Aaron
>
>--

Hi Aaron;
        I am sure steve will respond, but here is what I have learned so far.
It will have a couple of error mesages and say some parts are missing. Then
it will go ahead and load and try to make the texture work anyway. for the
most part I have had reasonable success with this but sometimes it gets
confused and does not know quite what to do. the metals was the funniest
try it....




                                Render Ho!
                                   Lesk




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #448 ***************************************:-)

Subject: 3.0 question(s)
Date: Wed, 27 Apr 1994 10:44:46 -0400 (EDT)
From: "Andrew P. Vogel" <[e-mail]>

Hi everyone... I've been enjoying reading about the new changes/features and
things in 3.0.

One quick question... Did the option for loading objects into States make it
in? You know, where you could load a SnapShot object into a state object? This
is something I've got great use for, and hope it made it in.

I was sorry to hear that keyboard macros didn't make it in, but really excited
about the new textures, the kinematics, bones, and all that... I am REALLY
anxious for it to arrive!

Someone tell me this - what does the packaging look like? Nice box, etc?

Have any Amiga folks received their copies yet? If so, please discuss the
Amiga-specific features...

Thanks!
-drew vogel



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #449 ***************************************:-)

Subject: re: Imagine V3.0 Bug List
Date: Wed, 27 Apr 94 05:10:00 UTC
From: [e-mail]

I received a note from Mike Halvorson stating he is looking into my
 mentioned problems.  He also said any documentation that didn't get
 included can be uploaded here on the IML. (Just before sending this
 to the IML I see Scott posted the missing info...thanks Scott).

For the most part, things like Field Rendering, Keyboard Macros, and
 Shadow Casting were pulled because of problems or it was to slow.  Mike
 said we would be seeing something soon about the Field Rendereing (some
 free software to handle this)... The idea of popup action bars in Stage
 changed..  I still don't know about Alpha support or Magnetism in Forms
 editor (but I really didn't care about those anyway).  The Kinematic
 Movements DID make it (just didn't make the manual)..its inculded with
 the bones function.

My only regrett is that they did not communicate these changes to us either
 via the IML here, or even an addendum, or note with the package.  I
 basically had to find out on my own what did/didn't make it from the
original
 announcement (thus my post to let you all know).  I suggested to Mike to
make
 an addendum stating whats new/changed between V2.0 and 3.0 (or even 2.9 to
 3.0).  So that way we wouldn't have to read the entire manual over again
 (even though it is so much neater and easier to read! ;-)

Although my previous post focused manily on the negative aspects of 3.0,
 there are still some AWSOME new textures and effects that I can't wait
 to play with!  I also haven't tried out BONES and hope to learn more about
 the various other enhancements.  I'm replying to another post about the
 textures and will mention some of these neat things on there.

Hopefully we will hear something from Mike/Impulse soon about the fog objects
 problem.

Dave Kamalsky - Stamford CT




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #450 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Too short animations...
Date: Wed, 27 Apr 94 12:58:32 +0200
From: [e-mail] (Cristian Gavazzeni - Sorint)

Howdy imaginers !

 I have a problem..yeah.. a very big problem: I can't afford to expand my Ami
to 18Mb of RAM , unfortunately Raytracing is my hobby, not my job!
Anyone is aware of animplayers and sound-digitizers that are able to read-write
-play animations and/or digitized sounds from the harddrive, using the main
(fast+chip) memory as a cache for a real-time effect ?
(Please tell me if I'm saying a lot of craps).
I'm sure that you Multimedia-people can show me the right way.

Thanks in advance

           Chris


Cristian Gavazzeni - SUN MICROSYSTEMS ITALY - SUNService - Technical support -
E-Mail: [e-mail]







IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #451 ***************************************:-)

Subject: forge demo?
Date: Wed, 27 Apr 1994 11:26:43 -0400 (EDT)
From: <[e-mail]> (Yoda)

Will they be releasing a demo version of forge?  Say, one that could
only load one texture that came with it/was compiled into the
program?  I wouldn't mind playing with it before making a purchase
decision... (poor student whose work term is almost over and realizes
he has nothing saved... :) )

Bruce


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #452 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Image fx and IMP
Date:    Wed, 27 Apr 94 14:06 EDT
From: "Kaspar Stromme" <[e-mail]>

Re: the anim problem

You can't put the full name in the requester; ex: pic.0001 will not work.
Instead put pic.  and use the from/to requester to selects what frames you
want.
Once you master this thing you'll appreciate it's power. I currently send
finished frames to IMP, then scale and render them to DCTV format; all
automatically while Imagine renders.
Supposedly any function from ImageFx can be used in IMP, although some are
trickier than others. (crop f.ex requires you to enter really strange numbers;
not whatyou'd think)
BTW: I agree gvp is hard to deal with.
kaspar s


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #453 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Forge & Imagine
Date: Wed, 27 Apr 1994 11:27:04 -0700
From: [e-mail] (Lesk)

>        Lesk, How about putting some of your "Forged" textured objects into
>your folder, for others viewing and inspiration.

Not a bad Idea..... give me over the weekend though as I am swamped with
midterms right now.  (Ahhhh! returning to school who's idea was that
anyway..)

 By the way when you said
>"funniest" above, did you mean funny ha ha or funny peculiar.

Nah just mixed up it has sliders for things that do not exist...

 Do you think
>Essences I & II /Forge is worth the bucks?

I think it was the best bang for the buck I have seen! I am very happy with
this product and the great support it offers.

Incidently, Kent Kalnasy talked
>to Steve W. yesterday and he is coming out with an Understanding Imagine
>3.0.

Well Brad I think Mr. Worley is going to get more of my money very soon......



                                                Render Ho!
                                                  Lesk




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #454 ***************************************:-)

Subject: 3.0 antialiasing
Date: Wed, 27 Apr 1994 13:04:12 -0400 (EDT)
From: "Andrew P. Vogel" <[e-mail]>

> From [e-mail] Wed Apr 27 11:46:16 1994
> From: [e-mail]
>
> Any one that has also has received 3.0 try rendering just a checkerboard
> ground using the new antialaising.  I gave up after 15" when only about 3%
> was done.  Something must be wrong here Impulse, are you all sure that there
> is not a quicker way of doing this?  How does 3d-Studio give its users
> perfect antialaising in no time(scanline).  If it is do to their scanline
> only rendering then why doesn't Imagine offer this in scanline mode.  With
> respect to antialaising there must be two ways to "skin a cat" and Imagine
> must be using a dull butter knife.  Sorry if I offended anyone but the new
> antialaising rendering times are unacceptable.  Impluse, if you are listening
> please try to fix this.
>
I've read that you can set the number of rays down from 255, which is the
default. If you send out 255 rays/pixel, that will CERTAINLY slow things down.
Try editing it till you find a nice speed/quality ratio.



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #455 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: imagine 3.0
Date: Wed, 27 Apr 94 12:30:26 -0700
From: [e-mail] (Ed Totman)

>what on earth is all this ? no kinematics, no shadow mapping, no macros ?????
>
>i mean, 3.0 would be worth its gold just for these 3 extras !!!

This is not directed to any one person but to all who post:

    PLEASE explore all menus/options extensively before posting that
an option is not included or is "broke".  I appreciate the preliminary
review but I would prefer a more skeptical tone such as "I couldn't
find..." rather than "it isn't there".  As posted recently, kinematics IS
included and will be documented soon I'm sure.


off my box...

Ed


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #456 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Bones & Textures
Date: Wed, 27 Apr 1994 12:40:31 -0700 (PDT)
From: Jeremy White <[e-mail]>

Has anyone successfully gotten the new bones feature to work?  I messed
around with it last night with no success.  What should this feature do?

I also have an object with 2 different textures for 2 different stats.  I
set the lock state requestor for each seperate state, but I get both
textures anyway.  Any ideas?

BTW - 3.0 is great, well worth the upgrade if you haven't done so yet.
      The truecolor feature alone made me very very happy.

-Jeremy White

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Time flys like an arrow, fruit flies like a bananna. - G. Marx

----------------------------------------------------------------------------



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #457 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: 3.0 question(s)
Date: Wed, 27 Apr 1994 12:35:35 -0700 (PDT)
From: Jeremy White <[e-mail]>

On Wed, 27 Apr 1994, Andrew P. Vogel wrote:

> Hi everyone... I've been enjoying reading about the new changes/features and
> things in 3.0.
>
> One quick question... Did the option for loading objects into States make it
> in? You know, where you could load a SnapShot object into a state object? This

> is something I've got great use for, and hope it made it in.

Yes it did make it in and it works well.  I haven't tried to load objects
with different numbers of points and faces, I suspect that this won't
work.

I was rendering an animation of growing mushroom and had to previously
morph the stages in the animation.  States loaded all of the mushrooms
created in the forms editor, as well as taking care of some nasty
artifacts I got when I rendered the morph.


----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Time flys like an arrow, fruit flies like a bananna. - G. Marx

----------------------------------------------------------------------------



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #458 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: galleryq.lha uploaded to Aminet
Date: Wed, 27 Apr 1994 13:00:03 -0700 (PDT)
From: Mike McCool <[e-mail]>

On Wed, 27 Apr 1994, Jason Jack wrote:

> Hi renderers!
>
> While your waiting for your copy of Imagine 3.0 to arrive checkout my latest
> dropping in Aminet gfx/anim.
>
> Here is the readme...
>
>
> Short: Ray-traced gallery. Droid runs-morphs-to-walk past animations.
> Type: gfx/anim
> Uploader: [e-mail] (Jason Jack)
> Author: [e-mail] (Jason Jack)
>
>
> 10 of my earlier anims mounted on the gallery wall.  A droid runs into the
> scene, slows to a walk, and exits.  Ray-traced with 2 shadow casting light
> sources and a nice polished marble floor using Imagine 2.0.
>
> This is an example of two cycle objects morphing.  The key frames and
> positions for the walk and run cycles are the same.  You can probably spot a
> foot sliding, a disadvantage of having a linear system.
>
> The droid was originally a single object that came as a bonus with the
> Future design disk.  I split him up and taught him to move ;-)
>
> Format is 176 x 144 x HAM, 120 frames.  Uncompressed size is 1583054 bytes.
>
> The nice thing about this anim is that you have to watch it at least 11
> times...
>
>
> Enjoy,
> Jay
>
>
> galleryq.ham may be freely distributed so long as this readme accompanies
> it.
>
> galleryq.ham is Copyright (C) 1994 by Jason Jack.  All rights reserved.
> Must not be used commercially without the written consent of the author.
>
Hey Jay,

    Here's a good opportunity to start that "alternative service for
those of us who don't have ftp access."  Any chance of your uuencoding
this demo of yours, and e-mailing it (PRIVATELY, of course) to any of us
who request it?

    I realize this is like asking you to put whipped cream on top of
the pastry you're already offering us for free--but there's beginning to
be a substantial crowd of us who feel like we're fenced out.

    Thanks, Jay.





IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #459 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Imagine Attributes
Date: Wed, 27 Apr 1994 15:19:06 -0600 (MDT)
From: Roger Straub <[e-mail]>

On Tue, 26 Apr 1994 [e-mail] wrote:

>  I am using version 2.0 on the PC and I can't figure out how to apply those
> *.atr (attributes) that come with the program.  Are they textures, or brushes
> or what?
>
>   Thanks for any help anyone can give!

In the Attributes window, there is a button at the bottom labeled "Load".
Try that.




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #460 ***************************************:-)

Subject: MultiplePalletsAndMainActor
Date: Wed, 27 Apr 1994 13:46:26 -0700 (PDT)
From: Mike McCool <[e-mail]>

Hey y'all,

    Some nice person last week pointed out that the latest version of
MainActor had sound synching capability.  I grabbed a copy, and it's great!

    Problem: it doesn't handle Imagine's multiple pallets.  This is
going to degenerate to lameness when I ask:  is there anyway to lock the
pallet in Imagine.  I usually opt for Render 1st when that pallet
requester pops up at the beginning of a render.  Am I doing this wrong?
Should I pick Render All.  I assume render first means render the first
pallet and then lock all the other pallets to this one.

    MainActor doesn't like this.  And it's so EASY to loop sounds
with.  It puts AmigaVision in the dark.  If there is any way to truly
lock pallets in Imagine, will you cybernoids reveal it?

    And thanks, in a trance.



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #461 ***************************************:-)

Subject: 3.0 antialiasing
Date: Wed, 27 Apr 94 12:52:23 -0600
From: Steve Koren <[e-mail]>

> is not a quicker way of doing this?  How does 3d-Studio give its users
> perfect antialaising in no time(scanline).  If it is do to their scanline
> only rendering then why doesn't Imagine offer this in scanline mode.  With

I don't know about scanline mode, but antialiasing (as the term is
usually used) has the effect of simulating higher spacial resolution
than you actually have.  Typically, you *can't* do it in "no time".
There is always some time cost for increasing spacial resolution, but
the cost may be less for scanline than for raytrace.  Most raytrace
renderers cast multiple rays per pixel and average them to accomplish
antialiasing.

I've seen a lot of 3D rendering packages, and I've never seen one that
could antialias with *no* time cost.  Some of them had a form of
antialiasing in which they did edge detection, and applied a slight blur
convolution in the region of the edges.  This can be done without
rendering at a higher resolution internally, but it really isn't the
same thing and the results aren't nearly as good.  If you know of
another way to do it without a time penality, I'm sure Impulse would be
glad to learn of it.  3DS may be only antialiasing in the region of
edges, which wouldn't slow them down as much.  OTOH, there are times
when you *want* antialiasing in the middle of objects if you have a lot
of detail there.  Ideally I suppose it would be a per-polygon flag you
could set.

> antialaising rendering times are unacceptable.

If you need that amount of antialiasing, you might try just rendering at
4X or 9X the res you need (2X horiz and 2X vert) and converting down to
your target resolution with a decent image processor, which would
antialias also during the conversion.  But I bet that won't be any
faster than letting Imagine do the antialiasing for you, and may
actually be slower.

  - steve


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #462 ***************************************:-)

Subject: 3.0 Amiga??
Date:     Wed, 27 Apr 1994 17:28:11 -0400
From: Jason B Koszarsky <[e-mail]>

I came across an annoying bug in 2.9.  I have various CYCLE objects
that have FASTDRAW selected in their attributes.  In 2.9 these objects
are no visible in the perspective views.  But you can see an invisible
outline of said object in perspective if there is something behind it.

I had a stage set up with a mech walking across the scene.  I can see
where the mech should be but it isn't draw in.

Can someone that has 3.0 check this out and see if it was corrected?
I did report it to Impulse.  This was with the Amiga version btw.

Also, does anyone know if 3.0 Amiga will ship with versions optimized for
030s & 040s?  I'm glad to see that Steve Worley has made 030 & 040
optimized versions of Essence.  I hope Impulse will follow suit.

Jason K.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #463 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Well, it's finally over (C=)
Date: Wed, 27 Apr 1994 18:40:14 -0500 (CDT)
From: Cliff Lee <[e-mail]>

On Wed, 27 Apr 1994, Devon Miller wrote:

> Today, April 27, 1994 Commodore Business Machines closed their US operations.

And Nixon was buried.  How Ironic.  Imagine that!
                                    ^^^^^^^ see its Imagine related...


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #464 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Forge
Date: Wed, 27 Apr 94 19:59:05
From: [e-mail]

To all PC users of Imagine!!!!

FORGE will not be available for the PC for quite some time as I understand it
from Steve Worley.

However, rest assured that there will be a similar texture previewer available
for BOTH Amiga & PC users!!!!  It WILL work 100% with all of Imagine 3.0's
included textures, as well as 3rd party textures that conform to the 3.0
texture specs.

Cost?  How about....nothing!  :)   Unless things change, it will be a free
utility to supplement Imagine 3.0.  And again, it will be a stand alone
product.

Thought you'd like to know.  <grin>

-GreG



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #465 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Price for services rendered
Date: Wed, 27 Apr 94 19:03:08 PDT
From: [e-mail]

>     This message is for those of you doing graphics/animations
>perfessionally, or anybody who gets paid for what they do.
>     I am starting up a small computer graphics company.  We plan on doing
>alot of animations, for a wide variety of businesses.  But I have no idea of
>what to charge for these services.  I have heard of a low of $100.00 per
>rendered second.  Does that sound right?
>     Does anyone have a formula for figuring out what to charge?  Or at least
>can someone point me in the correct direction.

   Kurt,

Although many people seem to like to specify the cost of animation in
$/second, you really can't logically do that. It assumes that all
animations are equal, and they just are not. Consider the difference
between a simple flying logo, made by scanning a business card, extruding,
assigning a few attributes, and rendering. Then consider a very involved
"Tuesday Night at the Movies" type thing, with detailed buildings on a
street, with cars and people, flying shiny, reflective, transparent,
refractive things, etc, etc. Obviously this is going to take a lot more
time to create the objects, set up the attributes, set up the lighting, and
a lot more time per frame to render.

The best way to figure these things out is to figure out how much all the
steps are worth. Figure out how much per hour you will charge for your time
for modelling and scene design, how much for your computer's time for
rendering, how much to get the finished frames to tape, and any other
incidental costs.

     <ELF> - Eric J Fleischer,MD - Dr Gandalf
     [e-mail]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #466 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Too short animations... (fwd)
Date: Wed, 27 Apr 1994 19:52:48 -0700 (MST)
From: Christopher Barger <[e-mail]>

>Subject: Too short animations...
>Howdy imaginers !
>
> I have a problem..yeah.. a very big problem: I can't afford to expand
>my Ami to 18Mb of RAM , unfortunately Raytracing is my hobby, not my job!
>Anyone is aware of animplayers and sound-digitizers that are able to
>read-write
>-play animations and/or digitized sounds from the harddrive, using the main

I use a PD utility called "BIGANIM" to play large anims directly from the
harddrive.  I believe that it's on AMINET.







IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #467 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Imagine: PC and Amiga versions
Date: Thu, 28 Apr 94 13:18:27 EST
From: [e-mail] (Ganga Varatharajan)

Would anyone who has compared the two versions (preferably V3.0)
please comment on the differences between the PC and the Amiga
versions in terms of
    - speed for 'hobbyist' usage, though I wouldn't want to
        wait around for hours to see some results.
        (say dx2/66 vs an accelerated a1200)
    - additional equipment (I am thinking of display cards) to get
        decent anims which can be put on to video (home VHS or S-VHS).
    - features
    - interface with other software, if any.

As you may have guessed I have neither software, nor the hardware.
I had Turbo Silver on an A2K about 5 years ago, but gave it up because
of lack of support here in oz. I am interested in getting back into it again -
hence the request for this info.
Thanks.

Ganga.

PS: I am not interested in PC vs Amiga comparisons, just Imagine on the
2 platforms.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #468 ***************************************:-)

Subject: distributed rendering
Date: Thu, 28 Apr 94 00:14:19 EDT
From: [e-mail]

  Is it possible in one of the newer versions of Imagine PC to do distributed
rendering?  What I am thinking of is the way that 3D Studio can slave out
rendering tasks over a network, using one station as a master.

  I have an opportunity to get, for next to nothing, about 10 '386
workstations, that I would like to stack in the corner and just let them
render.

  Is Imagine PC capable of this?  How about working on a network?  Will it
run OK from a server?

  Thanks


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #469 ***************************************:-)

Subject: MainActor sound syncing
Date: Thu, 28 Apr 94 13:19:00 PDT
From: Richard Morris <[e-mail]>

To the person who said they had a copy of MainActor with sound syncing.

Where did you download it from as I would like to have a play with it.

Thanks
Richard
(Bunbury, Australia - [e-mail])


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #470 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: galleryq.lha uploaded to Aminet
Date: Wed, 27 Apr 1994 20:49:43 -0700 (PDT)
From: Mike McCool <[e-mail]>

On Wed, 27 Apr 1994 [e-mail] wrote:

> have you tried mail servers?  you send mail saying what you want, and
> it gets uuencoded and mailed to you...
> bruce
>
Hey Bruce,

    Thanks for your post.  And yes, as of this week, I have access to
an ftp mail server.  That's why I keep posting the IML, asking for
SPECIFIC mail strings, so I can ask for EXACTLY the right thing, with all
the correct syntax in place.

    Maybe I'm being more cautious than necessary, but it seems that
most of the announcements of demos uploaded to Aminet, etc, give only a
fragmented or partial address.  I don't want to start out on the wrong
foot with my ftp mail server by asking for something incorrectly.




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #471 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Forge and Essence 3.0
Date: Thu, 28 Apr 94 05:47:00 UTC
From: [e-mail]

As I have been beta testing Forge for several months, and now have the final
release and manual, I'd like to share some observations. Forge is a stand
alone renderer for the Essence library of textures. Forge will work with the
Impulse textures somewhat, but if you are serious about your graphic output
then you'll want the Essence textures. Forge has two main uses, the first,
for non-Imagine users, is the ability to generate bitmaps and series of bitmaps
in 24bit color and 8bit grayscale. These can be used for mapping in those 3D
programs that support Altitude, reflection, displacement, color, and trans-
parency mapping. This means you can use these images in Lightwave, Real3D,
and other software that has that capability. Videographers would use Forge
for backrounds, alpha channel transitions, and the like. With Forge, it is
trivial to generate sequences of animated clouds, various water surfaces,
and just about anything you can think of. Forge comes with several hundred
predefined attributes, giving you a great starting place for you own creations.
For Imagine users, you can do all of the above also, but for myself, I find
Forge to be a great surface generator. It is much, much faster to work up a
surface in Forge that it is to render,change a parameter, re-render, re-tweak,
and so on. That is because in Forge's interface is revolutionary. In the
upper left corner of the screen is the (default) sphere that your texture is
loaded onto. You can also have flat and cylinder views in the preview window.
You can look at these from the top, side, or bottom. But the beauty is, this
window is constantly being updated. As soon as you make a color or any other
parameter change iwith the texture sliders, the change is shown immediately
in the preview window. I can Imagine that many people will never get any
farther than this, just loading, changing, tweaking textures, for days and
days on end. It really is that addictive. If you have and AGA machine, or a
RTG board or some other type of AGA emulation, this preview is in 8bit color.
If you have something like a FC24 as I do, there are supplied arexx scripts
to send the preview out to that board in full 24bit color. For ECS users,
the choice is 4bit hi res grey or color. With my setup, a FC24 on a second
monitor, I do not find it to be much of a hindrance. But I am sure the instant
feedback on an AGA machine is great. Forge writes several formats of 24bit
files, including JPEGs and TIFFs. You have total control over the image size
and aspect ratio. You can specify beginning and ending parameters for textures
for an animated sequence. This program is loaded with lots of very useful
features, more than I am going to try to cover here.
    There is one new feature concerning the new texures that will grab the
hell out of all the serious Imagine users on this list. And that is the new
Essence upgrade allows for the use of Alpha channels on the surface of objects!
So you could load black and white checks texture first, load a crumpled
texture last, and sure enough, the crumpled would only show on the white
squares. Using bitmaps and some of the utility textures from Volume I, the
bitmaps can be the alpha channel. This is very powerful stuff, folks. And,
just like the manual says, because the Impulse texture requester was not
designed for alphas, it will tak a little gray matter on the users part to
get the hag of it. But the results can be spectacular. This alpha channel
works with altitude textures and bitmaps also, so you could, say, design an
alien reptile like hand with the Scales texture on the top, and have it
smoothly change to the soft palm skin underneath.
   These alpha channels can be used in Forge also for generating bitmaps.
And, remember, Forge can write Attribute files for Imagine objects.
   As far as prices go, the upgrade costs are very reasonable, but you'll
have to call Apex for a dollar amount. Also remember, Forge is about useless
without Essence. But now we Amiga users have a tool similar to Kai's
Power Tools. but it's cheaper, doesn't require Photoshop, does sequences of
frames, and is much, much cooler. So give Steve a call today, and cut your
project developement time in Imagine in half, plus have lots of fun doing
it.
  BTW, I am not an Apex employee, I just know a breakthrough graphics product
when I see it.....Later..........Bill Graham


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #472 ***************************************:-)

Date: Thu, 28 Apr 94 08:37:03 BST
From: [e-mail] (MR. R.L.COLLIER)

With regard to Jason Jack who wrote on 27 Apr

[SNIP]

> Short: Ray-traced gallery. Droid runs-morphs-to-walk past animations.
> Type: gfx/anim
> Uploader: [e-mail] (Jason Jack)
> Author: [e-mail] (Jason Jack)
>
>
> 10 of my earlier anims mounted on the gallery wall.  A droid runs into the
> scene, slows to a walk, and exits.  Ray-traced with 2 shadow casting light
> sources and a nice polished marble floor using Imagine 2.0.
>
> This is an example of two cycle objects morphing.  The key frames and
> positions for the walk and run cycles are the same.  You can probably spot a
> foot sliding, a disadvantage of having a linear system.

[SNIP]

In Imagine 3.0's Action Editor is there an Ease In - Ease Out function??
I am wondering if this can be used to "ease out" the cycle objects cycle
speed from a walk to a run.  I know that the movement of running is different
to that of walking but the anim would be smoother I am sure.  I have not
yet seen the anim but am going by what was said about foot sliding.

Rich.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #473 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Texture Libraries
Date: Thu, 28 Apr 1994 01:08:15 -0700 (PDT)
From: [e-mail] (Kim Thomas)

I'm writing an article for a magazine about Texture/Background libraries,
and am looking for recommendations. If you have a favorite Texture
package, send me the product name/manufacturer and I'll check it out.
Please send me this information at my address ([e-mail]) and
don't post it to the list, as not to clutter up everyone's mailbox. I can
post a summary later if anyone's interested. Thanks.

Dave Thomas
Moving Pixels
Glendale, CA
[e-mail]




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #474 ***************************************:-)

Subject: PC Version Fog problems...
Date: Thu, 28 Apr 94 04:06:00 UTC
From: [e-mail]

I received another note from Mike Halvorson today, stating that there IS
something wrong with the Fog Attribute.  Basically you get no fog object
unless you also have a ground loaded in the sceen.  I tried it out and yup I
now have my fog object (great now I can try out some of those fog
textures!).  He said this had something to do with Alpha Support so you
could see the backdrop through transparent objects.   Mike also said that
the Amiga version will not have this problem, and the PC version will be
fixed real soon.

Now lets get down to some serious rendering! ;-)
 Dave Kamalsky - Stamford, CT.




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #475 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Bones & Textures
Date: Thu, 28 Apr 1994 04:50:53 -0700 (PDT)
From: Jeremy White <[e-mail]>

On Thu, 28 Apr 1994, Matthew O'Reilly wrote:

>
> >
> > On Thu, 28 Apr 1994, Matthew O'Reilly wrote:
> >
> > >
> > > Jeremy,
> > >
> > >
> > > please tell me what the truecolour feature is, I havent heard anything abo
ut it.
> > >
> > >
> > > > BTW - 3.0 is great, well worth the upgrade if you haven't done so yet.
> > > >       The truecolor feature alone made me very very happy.
> > >             ^^^^^^^^^
> >
> > Truecolor is 24 bit color for all of us PC users.  16 million colors, no
> > dithering necessary.  It also supports 15k colors in 800x600 mode (the
> > mode that I use the most.)
> >
>  Yes, but doing what? the imagine editors or the final output? Whats
> the use of truecolour in a wireframe editor (detail, stage etc), if output
> imagine has always had 24bit output.

24 bit color helps alot during quickrenders and small raytraces.  Since
no dithering is involved, you can see much more detail in a small
rendering (I do 200x150 previews all the time.) Before I had to leave
Imagine, load windows, and view my quickrenders there if I was concerned
about small details and color shading.

>
> I dont know what the PC (v2.0) gui looked like, but the Amiga version pretty
> much sucked. (all gold edges, 3d buttons on 2d looking background etc.
>
>
> Is the Imagine 3.0 GUI more professional looking?

No, its about the same.  I dunno, I kinda have grown accustomed to the
interface.  Some of the more common pulldowns have changed their location
(i.e. attributes) and this makes it quite a pain.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Time flys like an arrow, fruit flies like a bananna. - G. Marx

----------------------------------------------------------------------------



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #476 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Imagine: PC and Amiga versions
Date: Thu, 28 Apr 1994 04:56:20 -0700 (PDT)
From: Jeremy White <[e-mail]>

On Thu, 28 Apr 1994, Ganga Varatharajan wrote:

> Would anyone who has compared the two versions (preferably V3.0)
> please comment on the differences between the PC and the Amiga
> versions in terms of
>     - speed for 'hobbyist' usage, though I wouldn't want to
>         wait around for hours to see some results.
>         (say dx2/66 vs an accelerated a1200)

>From what I gather Imagine running on my 486dx33 is subjectively faster
then running on my friends 3000, but not much.

>     - additional equipment
> (I am thinking of display cards)
> to get decent anims which can be put on to video (home VHS or S-VHS).

Well, 24 bit cards for the PC are dirt cheap ($150-$200) but that doesn't
help you much when you want to go to tape.  I personally use a toaster to
run a single-frame recorder.

>     - features

Identical as far as I can see.

>     - interface with other software, if any.

Of course the amiga version can multitask, and run Essence and scripts.


----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Time flys like an arrow, fruit flies like a bananna. - G. Marx

----------------------------------------------------------------------------



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #477 ***************************************:-)

Subject: MultiplePalletsAndMainActor
Date: Thu, 28 Apr 94 07:54:44 -0600
From: Steve Koren <[e-mail]>

>     Problem: it doesn't handle Imagine's multiple pallets.  This is
> going to degenerate to lameness when I ask:  is there anyway to lock the
> pallet in Imagine.  I usually opt for Render 1st when that pallet

I think there is a button for that.  But here's a tip: always render to
24 bit still frames, and compose them into an animation later on with
something like ImageFX (IMP).  If you are making something less than a
24 bit animation, such as 256 colors or HAM8, you'll get much better
results from a dedicated image processor than if you let the renderer do
it for you.  (Try it both ways and you'll see what I mean).  I think
this holds true for most 3D programs.

If storage space is an issue for the 24 bit files, you can have IMP (or
the associated thing from ADPro) sit in the background and wait for the
Imagine frames to appear on disk, and convert them into either an anim
or color-reduced still frames as they appear (or even shove them off to
tape).

  - steve


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #478 ***************************************:-)

Subject: distributed rendering
Date: Thu, 28 Apr 94 08:03:02 -0600
From: Steve Koren <[e-mail]>

>   I have an opportunity to get, for next to nothing, about 10 '386
> workstations, that I would like to stack in the corner and just let them

I bet you'd be better off with 2 or 3 486s, especially if the 386s don't
have 387s.  But anyway...

>   Is Imagine PC capable of this?  How about working on a network?  Will it
> run OK from a server?

I think almost any renderer can do this if you are willing to do a
little bit of manual setup work.  In Imagine there is a requester for
selecting which frames you want to render - you can set a skip count
(the last number of the three, I believe).  Just point all the computers
at the same project.  Computer one renders frames 1, 11, 21, etc.
Computer two renders frames 2, 12, 22, etc.

  - steve


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #479 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Real 3D and Imagine Newsgroups?
Date: Thu, 28 Apr 94 08:14:51 -0600
From: Steve Koren <[e-mail]>

> >interest in the Imagine and Real 3D mailing lists to do this as well.
> >Having received a total of 70 messages from both groups within a 24 hour

I think this (turning the IML into a newsgroup along with the toaster,
LW3, etc., newsgroups) is a good idea.  The traffic on the IML is big
enough now that news is a much better medium for it than email.  It'd
also get rid of the huge number of "subscribe"/"unsubscribe" messages
posted to the list.  If it was a moderated group, it would also cut down
on the non-Imagine related posts ("well its finally over", all the
Amiga/PC flame wars, this message, etc.)

  - steve


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #480 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Piccys Uploaded...
Date: Thu, 28 Apr 1994 15:15:38 +0100 (BST)
From: "Alex..." <[e-mail]>

Ok guys,

While I wait with nervous anticipation for Imagine 3.0 I thought I may as
well upload a couple of my Imagine pics to the Aminet.  They are:

    BumpyPots.jpg - a 1024x768 24 bit JPEG of 3 pots on a nice cobble
            floor.  All the textures on the pots and the ground
            were done using altitude maps rather than textures.

    Interior.jpg  - a 1024x768 24 bit JPEG of a building interior.  My
            main aim here was to get the lighting as realistic
            as possible.  Kind of a radiosity look using ray-
            tracing if you like *;o)

Both the files are uploaded as .lha's with a doc in the archive giving a bit
of background info and a short .readme.

They were uploaded to:

    src.doc.ic.ac.uk
    /pub/aminet/new

but should make their way round the aminet over the next couple of days.
If you can't find them by ftp I also uuencoded then, split then and sent
them to the 'alt.binaries.pictures.misc'

If you get a look at them please give me a shout with any comments.
Regards,
    Alex...

%-----\|/------------------- #include <.siggy.h> --------------------------%
%    (o o)     [e-mail]         -=* Retina's Rule *Bo) *=-  %
%-oOO-(_)-OOo- CSE Student @ Warwick Uni. UK  "All opinions are just mine" %


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #481 ***************************************:-)

Subject:  Amiga release date?
Date:  Thu, 28 Apr 1994 09:28:44 -0400
From: "rob (r.d.) hounsell" <[e-mail]>

Folks,
>
> Since then I've found out that V3.0 is not due for release until August.
> So comparisons of the latest versions would be appreciated.
> Also the list prices of both would be helpful.

  What?? I thought the Imagine 3.0 for Amiga was due a week or so after the PC
version.

  Tell me this (the August date) ain't true!!!


Rob
--
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Rob Hounsell                           BNR WAN:  HOUNSELL@BMERHB63          |
| Team Leader: UNIX                      INTERNET: [e-mail]            |
| DMS System Performance Development     PHONE: [phone]                |
| Dept. 7D23                             ESN: 395-2904                        |
| Bell Northern Research                                                      |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------+


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #482 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Real 3D and Imagine Newsgroups
Date: Thu, 28 Apr 1994 22:56:07 +1000 (EST)
From: Nikola Vukovljak <[e-mail]>

Well, time to voice my opinion. Some of you may know me as the IML
archivist.
Anyway, if this became a newsgroup I could not guarantee to be able to
keep the archives of the IML, firstly because some messages may be
deleted off the system before I had a chance to read them, and secondly,
because saving the messages off the newsgroups is a lot harder than from
my mailbox.

So, the I vote No to this proposal.
If a concencus is for a newsgroup however, as stated above, the IML
archives may change.

Nik.
[e-mail]



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #483 ***************************************:-)

Subject: CD object, anyone?
Date: Thu, 28 Apr 1994 10:48:43 -0400 (EDT)
From: <[e-mail]> (Yoda)

Just read an interesting idea on comp.graphics.raytracing... anyone
ever make a realistic-looking CD object on any system, or know where
to get one?  Seems like a difficult surface to get.  Also, put about
ten of them together and view them from the side against a light.
Would it be possible to get the same kind of effect?

bruce


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #484 ***************************************:-)

Subject:      Super Smooth Animation (CLARISSA)
Date:         Thu, 28 Apr 94 17:10:33 EST
From: "R. Luettgens" <[e-mail]>

Hi,

there's a great program here in germany called CLARISSA for what
they call SSA (Super Smooth Animation). Every frame of the animation
can have its own colour palette. It can load single frames as well as
animations and converts it to its own SSA format.
The speed you get is incredible compared to any player i've seen so
far. It also plays from harddisk and supports virtual memory to work
on large or many animations.

Theres also a standalone player with it.
As to my knowledge its also distributed in the US now. If there
is interest i can list some more features and details.

Cheers,

Roland


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #485 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Real 3D and Imagine Newsgroups
Date: Thu, 28 Apr 1994 13:39:41 -0700 (PDT)
From: Mike McCool <[e-mail]>

I second Nik's NO vote, for a newsgroup.



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #486 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Imagine: PC and Amiga versions
Date: Thu, 28 Apr 94 09:19:04 -0700
From: [e-mail] (Ed Totman)

>Earlier today I asked:
>
> Would anyone who has compared the two versions (preferably V3.0)
>> please comment on the differences between the PC and the Amiga
>> versions in terms of
>
>Since then I've found out that V3.0 is not due for release until August.
>So comparisons of the latest versions would be appreciated.
>Also the list prices of both would be helpful.
>
>Thanks.

    V3.0 of what?  Some users have already received Imagine 3.0 PC,
and the amiga version is shipping or will be soon.




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #487 ***************************************:-)

Subject:      Attributes for Imagine PC 3.0 ?
Date:         Thu, 28 Apr 94 17:08:36 EST
From: "R. Luettgens" <[e-mail]>

Hi,
does someone have a serious collection of attributes to be
used with the PC version of Imagine 3.0, my disks only have
one attribute file on it.

Cheers,

Roland


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #488 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Followup: Well, it's finally over (C=)
Date: Thu, 28 Apr 94 11:21:29 EDT
From: [e-mail] (Devon Miller)

| I guess we knew it was coming, but it's still a shock.
|
| Today, April 27, 1994 Commodore Business Machines closed their US operations.
| The West Chester facility has been closed down and the employees there have
| been terminated.

Further info:

The company has kept a skeleton crew to wrap up operations.  They expect to be
pink-slipped in a few weeks.  Terminated employees received no severence pay.
(That really sucks!)  More details as they become available.

Devon Miller



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #489 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: <none>
Date: Wed, 27 Apr 94 18:38:51 MET
From: [e-mail] (Paul Kolenbrander)

Hello [e-mail],On 26 APR 1994 09:00:19 you said regarding <none>:

> How can you get an 8meg A4000?

Buy another 4MB JEDEC SIMM to plug into the socket. This way your 4MB Fast
Mem will double to 8MB. In case of an A4000/040 remove the 2 1MB fast Mem
SIMM's and replace by 2 4MB ones.

Happy hacking. :-)
--
----------------------- E-mail Only -> [e-mail] -
-- Paul Kolenbrander -- UUEncoded   -> [e-mail] ---
----------------------- C= adspe    -> [e-mail] -
- (ECL042) Amiga&CD32 -------------------------------------------
----------------------- Volume EMPTY is FULL?? Only Amiga... ;) -



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #490 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Motorbike objects...
Date: Thu, 28 Apr 1994 16:06:18 +0100 (BST)
From: Didier Malenfant <[e-mail]>

I don't think a previous message I sent about this got thru to the list..

if it has, I'm very sorry..... If not : Does anyone know where I could find
motorbike objects ? especially motor-cross bikes....

You can reply to me direct if you don't want to fill the list.......

Didier...
[e-mail]|[e-mail]
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Didier Malenfant|359 Oxford Gardens,Stafford,ST16 3JH,England|[phone]
A1.2k/030/882/6MB/40MB/50Mhz+MSync|HP9000-300/020/881/16MB/600MB/HP-UX/CONSOLE
"Dans les videotheques tes calipetes desuetes sont classees au rayon obsolete"


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #491 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Conform to path
Date: Thu, 28 Apr 1994 09:50:07 -0700 (PDT)
From: Jeremy White <[e-mail]>

I am working on an animation of a fish swimming.  I created the fish in
the forms editor and was going to use "conform to path" to create 3
states of animation and then ping pong between them (1,2,3,2,1,2)
----  see below.

(Top view of ascii fish)

             o
1.   \______/       2.  =-------o   3. /------\
                                               o

1. swishing left
2. swishing straight
3. swishing right

I have been trying to use conform to path with no luck.  My fish always
gets streatched in the wrong direction.  What positions do the axis' of
the path and object have to be in???  How can I make the path the same
length as the fish?  (If I do get the fish to bend along the path, I
usually get some path left over.... i.e.  The length of the path is
longer then the fish.)

I hope this message in not as confusing to you imagine gurus as it reads
to me......

Thanks for any advise.

-Jeremy White
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

IS IT SAFE? - Marathon Man

----------------------------------------------------------------------------



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #492 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Wrapped Altitude Maps
Date: Thu, 28 Apr 94 12:30:00 +0000
From: [e-mail] (Paul Rance)

Hi Andrew,

 >
 > No, that picture doesnt use the method. It is as you say a texture
 > combo,
 > 2.9 agate and leather. I'm now up to vr.jpg10, which has the alt mapped
 > body. Over the BH weekend I'll probably get the leg and arm mapping
 > done.

I hope your going to animate it with the new bones function in v3.0 :-)

 >
 > Sorry I haven't contributed directly to the discussions on Activa
 > lately,
 > but the qwk mail upload thing on the BBS disappeared, and I cant figure
 > out any other way to upload mail.

No probs, the imagine echo is backboned now so you can pick it up from any fido
bbs, it gets quite a bit of mail now from europe,canada and australia and home
of course.

 >
 > I hope that these stories of missing 3.0 features and bugs are untrue.
 > Andy Jones will be unsufferable.
 >

:-)) well Real3d had its flaws when it first appeared. So you have to expect
Imagine 3 to have a few. At least it looks like fog objects work after all.
I'm just  waiting to hear from an Amiga user that has v3.0 so I know mines on
its way.



Paul



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #493 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Attention Imagine PC users.
Date: Thu, 28 Apr 94 12:57:35 EDT
From: [e-mail]

Reply to: [e-mail]

I need some advise..
I have both a 486 and an A4000/40 and I am really thinking about selling
off my 4000.
DON'T reply if you can't keep from comparing the two systems.. that is
NOT my question.

My questions are...
Does the PC version of Imagine load any other type of objects (other than
imagine format)
Has anyone gotten it to run under OS/2 ??
I don't want to spend all the money from selling the 4000 on software
That's my biggest sticking point right now. I will miss
Scenery animator and Imagemaster.. What are PC equivelents? (that don't
cost a fortune?)
I keep thinking I could get a scanner or color printer with the money from
my 4000, but... I don't know...  This is a big step.  Any and all advise
appreciated.
PLEASE REPLY TO [e-mail]  NOT to this vnet.ibm.com address!!!



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #494 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Image fx and IMP
Date: Thu, 28 Apr 94 14:54:06 EDT
From: Mark Thompson <[e-mail]>

Kaspar Stromme <[e-mail]> writes:
> Supposedly any function from ImageFx can be used in IMP, although some are
> trickier than others. (crop f.ex requires you to enter really strange numbers
> not whatyou'd think)

You can make it alot easier by not even bothering with numbers. Just use
macro recording to create an ARexx script of your desired operations and
then execute that macro in IMP. To do this, hit <esc> and type:
learn t:macro.ifx (or use any filename you like) in the window that pops up.
Then perform all the operations you wanted performed by IMP including all
your scaling, cropping, color balancing, etc. When finished, enter "learn
stop" into the window and your macro will be saved. Then in IMP, just put
rx t:macro.ifx on the process line and it will be executed for every image.
No numbers needed and its extremely easy. I even setup hot-keys to do the
macro recording functions for me with a single button press.
%~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~%
%      `       '        Mark Thompson                 CONCURRENT COMPUTER  %
% --==* RADIANT *==--   [e-mail]        Principal Graphics   %
%      ' Image `        ...!uunet!masscomp!mark       Hardware Architect   %
%     Productions       [phone] [phone]   & General Nuisance   %
%                                                                          %
 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #495 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Real 3D and Imagine Newsgroups
Date: Thu, 28 Apr 94 14:41:05 CDT
From: [e-mail] (Dale R Rogers)

|
|Well, time to voice my opinion. Some of you may know me as the IML
|archivist.
|Anyway, if this became a newsgroup I could not guarantee to be able to
|keep the archives of the IML, firstly because some messages may be
|deleted off the system before I had a chance to read them, and secondly,
|because saving the messages off the newsgroups is a lot harder than from
|my mailbox.
|
|So, the I vote No to this proposal.
|If a concencus is for a newsgroup however, as stated above, the IML
|archives may change.

    judging by the response of this message, there seems to be a
    debate going on as to whether the Imagine mailing is to become a
    newsgroup.

    I vote no.  I do not have the capability to post to UseNet.

    Dale

|
|Nik.
|[e-mail]
|



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #496 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Vs 3.0 for the Amiga
Date: Thu, 28 Apr 94 14:32:46 CDT
From: [e-mail] (Dale R Rogers)

    Excuse me for asking... but I haven't been receiving Imagine
    related mail for about 3-4 weeks.  What's going on in the Imagine
    world?

    o How does v3.0 look for the Amiga?

    o How is Forge?  I saw something about it on the Lightwave mailing
    list.

    o Is Commodore still in business?


    Sorry for the barrage of questions; especially if they have
    already been answered.

    Dave -  Thanks for reinstalling my account.



    Dale


        ____________________________^____________________________
        dale r. rogers

        Intergraph Corporation
        Building Design & Management             MailStop: LR24A3
        [e-mail]        Tel: [phone]
                                    .


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #497 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: MultiplePalletsAndMainActor
Date: Thu, 28 Apr 1994 16:01:17 -0700
From: Tim Salazar <[e-mail]>

You can use Rend24 to covert your RGBs to other formats including animations.
It will lock the palette for you. Verses IMP on ImageFX (same author) it will
operate small in the background and wait for the rendered individual files,
then convert it to an anim, delete the original and wait for the next file.
This really conserves hd space and doesnot comsume much ram.

Just wish that IMP did the same. It waits for all the files to be written
then converts and deletes them.

Tim  [e-mail]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #498 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Super Smooth Animation (CLARISSA)
Date: Thu, 28 Apr 1994 18:33:04 -0500
From: [e-mail] (Chris L. Everett)

>
>Hi,
>
>there's a great program here in germany called CLARISSA for what
>they call SSA (Super Smooth Animation). Every frame of the animation
>can have its own colour palette. It can load single frames as well as
>animations and converts it to its own SSA format.
>The speed you get is incredible compared to any player i've seen so
>far. It also plays from harddisk and supports virtual memory to work
>on large or many animations.
>
>Theres also a standalone player with it.
>As to my knowledge its also distributed in the US now. If there
>is interest i can list some more features and details.
>
>Cheers,
>
>Roland

We here at Spectronics distribute ClariSSA in North America.  If you have
any questions, you can contact us at [phone], or e-mail us at
[e-mail].



--
Chris Everett               |  This is an emergency, this is not a test.
Spectronics Int'l USA, Inc. |  Had this been an actual test, you would
Champaign, Illinois         |  have been instructed to bring a number
[e-mail]     |  two pencil.  Heh heh m - That wuz cool.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #499 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Conform to path
Date: Thu, 28 Apr 1994 20:12:18 -0500 (CDT)
From: [e-mail] (cyberhawk)

What do conformations do, especially conform to path? I read the
manual, but it did not make much sense.

Can somebody explain it to me?



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #500 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Real 3D and Imagine Newsgroups
Date: Fri, 29 Apr 94 11:59:55 EST
From: [e-mail] (Robin Luiten)

I have full access to news and I also vote NO to making the imagine mailing list

a news group.

Robin



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #501 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: MultiplePalletsAndMainActor
Date: Thu, 28 Apr 94 20:24:49 -0600
From: Steve Koren <[e-mail]>

> It will lock the palette for you. Verses IMP on ImageFX (same author) it will
> operate small in the background and wait for the rendered individual files,
> then convert it to an anim, delete the original and wait for the next file.

I tried Rend-24 once, but could never get it working reliably.  It'd
convert a few frames and then crash.  (I think ImageFX does a better
job anyway).  I think it just didn't like OS3.0.

> Just wish that IMP did the same. It waits for all the files to be written
> then converts and deletes them.

Try the "Wait for source frames" checkbox gadget.  That'll do what you
want, if I understand what you want correctly (which I might not).  Its
also got a "lock palette" button for making anims with locked palettes.
The coolest thing though is that you can apply any ImageFX operation (or
combination thereof) to every frame you process.  Handy for lots of
things...

  - steve


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #502 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Imagine and Real 3D Newsgroups
Date: Thu, 28 Apr 1994 23:17 EDT
From: [e-mail]

I'm the person who suggested that the Imagine and/or Real 3D mailing lists
be turned into to newsgroups. So far, from the email I've seen here on the
IML and in mail sent to me personally, there seems to be just about an even
split between the people who want to create a newsgroup and those who want
to keep things as they are.

Considering this, and the fact that quite a few people dont have access to
newsgroups directly and would thus not be able to use the group I guess
I should withdraw my suggestion to make the IML into a newsgroup. Unless
other people feel differently and want to take up the cause themselves.
It sure would be nice to have access to Kill files and the other benefits
of a newsgroup though.

                                Scott Corley


[e-mail]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #503 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Earth Stuff
Date: Fri, 29 Apr 94 00:47:04 CDT
From: [e-mail] (Joseph C. Garner)

Someone asked about an Earth Object.  I'm not sure who, as I've deleted the
letter
But I did come across this on.

uceng.uc.edu

In the directory. . .

 /pub/wuarchive/graphics/graphics/objects/earth

Were the following directories, some of which might have useful items.

Earth_Images
Earth_Topo
Earth_Totography
Geology
geology
World_Map


Hope this helps,
Joe

Joseph C. Garner




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #504 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: CD object, anyone?
Date: Fri, 29 Apr 94 02:43:56 -0600
From: [e-mail] (Matthew J. Feifarek)

Hi Yoda (Yoda), on Apr 28 you wrote:

> Just read an interesting idea on comp.graphics.raytracing... anyone
> ever make a realistic-looking CD object on any system, or know where
> to get one?  Seems like a difficult surface to get.  Also, put about
> ten of them together and view them from the side against a light.
> Would it be possible to get the same kind of effect?

I don't have 3.0/2.9 yet, but shouldn't that fakely tex do something
like that?  It is supposed to give an oakly sunglasses like look.

This could be a job for renderman. :)
_______________________________________________________________________________
 Matthew J. Feifarek         University of Wisconsin Madison - Art Department

                              "All children are geniuses untill they are
 [e-mail]    de-geniused by education" -R.Buckminster Fuller



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #505 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: imagine 3.0
Date: Fri, 29 Apr 94 01:50:06 -0600
From: [e-mail] (Matthew J. Feifarek)

Hi Ed (Ed Totman), on Apr 27 you wrote:
>
>     PLEASE explore all menus/options extensively before posting that
> an option is not included or is "broke".  I appreciate the preliminary
> review but I would prefer a more skeptical tone such as "I couldn't
> find..." rather than "it isn't there".  As posted recently, kinematics IS
> included and will be documented soon I'm sure.
>
But, just think...
If something is actually implemented on a fundamental level (as something like
inverse kinematics or bones should be -- not add ons) then should it be so
hard to find that he can't do it without the manual?

If people can't *find* these KEY features, let alone figure out how to use them,

I'd take it as a bad sign about how they are implemented.

As an example... Technically imagine supported easing on v2 with the move along
path thing... but how easy is that to find/use?  Also, "keyframing" as
implemented in the cycle editor.

Impulse has always had its own way of doing things (altitude vs. bump)...
sometimes that turns out great for us; sometimes not.  We shall see.
_______________________________________________________________________________
 Matthew J. Feifarek         University of Wisconsin Madison - Art Department

                              "All children are geniuses untill they are
 [e-mail]    de-geniused by education" -R.Buckminster Fuller



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #506 ***************************************:-)

Subject: AnimFX
Date: Fri, 29 Apr 94 08:47:58 BST
From: [e-mail] (MR. R.L.COLLIER)

****** I got the subject back!!! (didnt I?) *******

Right guys, I have found the source code for AnimFX but it is the
one with the shitty GUI.  I will see if I can patch it together
at the weekend (as it was never finished) and I will put a demo
anim with a couple of FX somewhere for you all.

(Can anyone take a file attachment and put it on the archive for
me as I do not have FTP/Internet.  Also FTP-Mail has taken 2-days
to get a listing of the root directory!!).  The player is finished
but the editor is not, I will let you know as soon as it is finished.


Rich.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #507 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Imagine and OS/2
Date: Fri, 29 Apr 94 03:28:00 UTC
From: [e-mail]

 >From: [e-mail]
 >Has anyone gotten it to run under OS/2 ??

IMAGINE/PC will not work under OS/2 (in a dos box).  It cannot run in DMPI
mode.  I've even tried running in a VDM DOS Box with DMPI turned off
 (which means no multitasking) and it still will not run.  Have to dual-boot
 to normal dos.
 Dave Kamalsky - Stamford, CT.








IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #508 ***************************************:-)

Subject:      ClariSSA
Date:         Fri, 29 Apr 94 10:39:23 EST
From: "R. Luettgens" <[e-mail]>

Hi,

ClariSSA has a configurable interface similar to ADPRO 2.5. You load
an animation or frames, do all kind of transitions between frames or
animations etc. In a window showing a vertical bar for each frame, you
can see where your animation is critical (large differences between frames)
you can select certain frames and apply a different compression technique
to optimize the speed.

I'll get an animation off aminet and convert it to SSA and put it back
with the player and you can see yourself what i mean with speed.

Here they sell it for around 300 US$ (the professional version), but if
you do animation, you should get it. I have used it with DCTV and the
results are great.

I'll post more about it on monday as well as the animation in SSA.

Cheers,
Roland


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #509 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: MultiplePalletsAndMainActor
Date: Thu, 28 Apr 1994 22:38:08 -0700 (PDT)
From: Mike McCool <[e-mail]>

On Thu, 28 Apr 1994, Tim Salazar wrote:

> You can use Rend24 to covert your RGBs to other formats including animations.
> It will lock the palette for you. Verses IMP on ImageFX (same author) it will
> operate small in the background and wait for the rendered individual files,
> then convert it to an anim, delete the original and wait for the next file.
> This really conserves hd space and doesnot comsume much ram.
>
> Just wish that IMP did the same. It waits for all the files to be written
> then converts and deletes them.
>
> Tim  [e-mail]
>
Thanks, Tim, for your post.  And if you use Rend24, you might try this
little trick I discovered. I found another little anim building shareware
utility called BuildAnim.  It seems to make smoother anims than Rend24.
But its' strictly a build/split utility, so I convert, lock-pallet and
dither all my 24bit frames with Rend24, then let BuildAnim do the
combining.

    Try it, see if it doesn't yield slightly better-looking anims.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #510 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Imagine Companion 2.0
Date: Fri, 29 Apr 94 03:10:59 PDT
From: [e-mail]

I've been getting a few inquiries about The Imagine Companion 2.0,
so I'll leave one last general message here. There are a _few_ copies
left, and they're available for $29.95 postpaid from:
Motion Blur Publishing
915A Stambaugh St.
Redwood City, CA 94063

Send check or money order. For further info, call 415-364-2009.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #511 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Other possibilities...
Date: Fri, 29 Apr 1994 22:38:21 +1000 (EST)
From: Andrew Buttery <[e-mail]>

Hi All!

I have to agree that the amount of mail IML is generating is getting a
little out of hand.. so how about the following alternitive...

    imagine_help@email...
    imagine_news@email...
    imagine_amiga@email...
    imagine_PC@email...
    imagine_Disc@email...

These would be 5 (please suggest others) "sub-groups" that you would post
your message to and when you subscribed you could specify which
sub-groups you wished to recieve.... I myself would probably only want
news & amiga as I don't have a large quota and if I don't collect every
2-3 days (it seems to have been worse the past week though) my mailbox
overflows..

I realise that this would mean more work for Dave - but perhaps we can
work out a way to automate it... then again with all the "Subscribe"
and "Unsubscribe" that appear at imagine@email.. instead of
imagine-request@email... maybe this too is doomed to failure...

          -Andrew.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #512 ***************************************:-)

Subject: probs with textures in imagine 2.9 (AMIGA)
Date: Fri, 29 Apr 94 14:22:11 BST
From: Waland J F <[e-mail]>

Hi, I'm having prob. with some of the textures in 2.9...

I can't get many of them to display.

for example the dethstar texture has no effect when used as suggested in the
textures.doc ('apply to primative sphere using all defaults and bake until
rendered'). The example textures in the FAQ (version 5) don't work either.

Any problem is that when I set up some attributes, save the object, then
look at the attributes again, all (apart from 'texture' & 'brush') have been
turned off. The values are still there if you click on the button, but
otherwise appear unused.

are these bugs or just me????

jon


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #513 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Forge/Essence update!
Date: Fri, 29 Apr 1994 08:11:06 -0400 (EDT)
From: "Andrew P. Vogel" <[e-mail]>

Just received my copy of the Forge and Essence I & II updates (thanks for the
quick turnaround, Steve!), and they're AWESOME!

I tried Forge with some of Impulse's textures, and Forge didn't read them
properly, although many of the Impulse textures WOULD render in Forge, but the
sliders aren't calibrated. Hopefully, Steve will figure out a way to make
Forge work with Impulse's textures too... I find myself using a lot of the
Impulse textures in conjunction with Essence textures.

All 3 packages (Essence I, II, Forge) come with Installer scripts (and
Installer, for that matter) to make installation a breeze. One thing I did
notice is that if you request the textures to be named with the .ITX exten-
sion, it won't properly delete/overwrite existing Essence textures without the
.ITX textures. No biggie - I just deleted IMAGINE:Essence and re-installed.
Worked fine...

Also, Apex included a TON of new attribute files (over 100 more, I know for
sure... Probably higher than that, even), and sample JPEGS for Essence I. The
JPEGs are high-quality, and very clear and easy to look at.

As far as Forge goes, it is really nice. The screen updates are fast enough.
I LOVE being able to see the textures render, and see the effect my changes
have.

I think this is a really useful tool, and it seems to be an extremely well-
written program. The manual(s) are brief, but good. I would have liked to see
some tutorials about Alpha channelling... The examples in the manuals are
sufficient, but alpha'ing is a complex thing, and could stand a step-by-step
walk-through, I think...

Ah yes... Alpha channeling! I played with it a little bit last night, just
before bed (VERY hard to tear myself away from Forge!), and was able to make
a checkerboard with marble textures limited to the white areas... Very slick.
The implementation is (admittedly) somewhat convoluted, but, HEY, it works!

To anyone who is serious about raytracing using ANY Amiga software, GET THE
FORGE! It's a GREAT tool, and a wonderful compliment to Imagine.

I don't work for Apex, nor am I affiliated in any way (well, I _did_ buy Steve
lunch once, but that's another story). I'm just a happy customer.

-andrew vogel



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #514 ***************************************:-)

Subject: IMAGINE 3.0... THE FINAL WORD
Date: Fri, 29 Apr 94 08:28:55 CDT
From: [e-mail] (Dave Wickard)

Greetings Imagineers!  :-)

This morning saw the arrival of the following in my mailbox.
It's a note from Mike Halvorson (president of Impulse for those of you
who aren't familiar with the name) regarding the shipping status
of Imagine 3.0 for both the Amiga and the PC platforms.

Enclosed is the message in it's entirity.

--------------

    TO all Imagine users on Planet Earth as well as all outposts where from
time to time it seems some of you live. 8').  (some not all)

    As of today, April 29th  1994  all US and Canada order for Imagine PC and
Amiga are on their way to you.  They have been shipped by Priority Mail.  While
the post office says they will be there in two days, if they are anything like
us on delivery times you might see the software in 14 years.  On the other hand
most likely you will see Imagine in 2 days or less.
    For the users not in the US and Canada, your orders will be leaving on
Monday of next week by DHL, they will get to you sooner than by mail.  We have
held them form the mail system because we wanted to give you better service.
    Now the challenge begins:  Imagine has had an interesting history and
exciting future.  I have said on this forum many times that it is not the
software that makes great users it is great users that make the software, so I
am depending on each of you to dig and and find out what we have done.

    I realize that there will be those who try and find the mistakes or bugs
first, thats cool, we want to know what we missed and we more importantly want
to make sure we fix the problems as fast as we can.

    I must caution all of you however that the changes in Imagine are not
just some silly little cosmetic changes, they are serious changes that took us,
as all of you know, more time to do right that we anticipated.

    Some things were left out, but not for long.  WE have already begun to
start the next rev of the software.  So if you miss something that you felt you
could not live without, hang in there, we know about it and will add these and
more features than you can IMAGINE.

    Our success depends on your satisfaction with Imagine, and this is a two
way street.  You need to tell us what you want and we need to do our best to
make it happen.  However we want things in the code as well.  Things that you
never mentioned you wanted or needed.  Try out the deformation tools, they are
so full of cool that they deserve several sleepless nights all unto themselves,
I know I have had a few.

    Depth of Field, this is so amazing.  Other software attempts to do this
but they dont do the REAL thing, the DOF in Imagine is REAL, it takes a bit
longer to render this function but it looks great.

    I also realize that there has been some controversy over Apex and their
textures and them not working with 2.9, they work with 3.0.  But, we have
included over 100 textures that will delight you if you take the time to make
them part of your creative arsenal.

    I truly hope that for each of you the wait that is now over will have
been worth it. There have been many times when I wanted to ship the code but
knew that it just did not meet up to the expectations of you the user.  It was
not an easy decision to wait, I am glad we have and I am sure that you will be
also.

    Take your time, learn all you can, it wont happen in one night or on
month,  you need to ask questions, share you findings, and make Imagine as good
as you can.  Meanwhile we will be back here in the dungeon, banging the keys,
making new code and then probably telling you that we have just TWO MORE WEEKS
for the next rev.  8>>>>>>'>

    There are new products as well as the CONSTANT UPDATE program just around
the corner.  You will all be getting this years first newsletter as well, in a
couple of weeks  (geez I cant beleive I said that)  The introduction of the
DIGIMAX the first high performance, low cost 3D digitizer is a reality and you
will be able to get one soon.  (OK pretty soon)

    I will be here everyday, getting my mail, looking for problems and trying
my best to answer questions directed to me.  So will others from IMpulse, Scott
Kirvan, Troy Barlow, Zack Knutson, Arv and Larry Halvorson.  We are all very
willing to be as much help as we can.

    In closing this note, I want to als challenge each of you to see the
positive in what you find, we really dont work well with blatant negative
comments.  Dont get me wrong, we like a good flaming just as much as the next
guy.  But from time to time it gets very personal here on the IML and we arent
much for that kind of backward activity. Impulse is not on some high mountain in

an Ivory Tower.  WE are users just like you, we are lucky that we get to make
some of the products that you use, and we appreciate your support,.

    Finally, ( I just cant shut up)  With the demise of Commodore, at least
for the moment, I want everyone to know that Impulse is not affected in any way
by what has happened, YOUR Amiga is still a great computer and we will continue
to make products for it as long as there are people with Amigas.  Sure some day
we will all have something different, but for now, this is what we have to work
with and work with it we will.

    We will keep an eye to the future and will make sure that the Power PC
does not pass us by or any other new box that might come onto the market.  The
Amgia was once the new guy on the block, there is another just around the
corner, you know the one that does real time ray tracing...............

    Enjoy, and like always, we really are listening...

    Mike Halvorson and The Gang at Impulse......

    SO when is 4.0....... SOme one shoot that guy.....8')>




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #515 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Imagine 3.0 - is Amiga version out ?
Date: Fri, 29 Apr 94 14:43:40 CDT
From: [e-mail] (Dale R Rogers)

|
|Ok, the Amiga version was supposed to start shipping on Wed ( 1 week
|after PC version).
|So, have any of you guys in the US got it yet ?

    I ordered mine today.  the guy I talked to on the phone said it
    should go out Mon or Tues of next week.

    I'll let you know.

    Dale


        ____________________________^____________________________
        dale r. rogers

        Intergraph Corporation
        Building Design & Management             MailStop: LR24A3
        [e-mail]        Tel: [phone]
                                    .


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #516 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Image fx and IMP
Date: Fri, 29 Apr 94 10:51:25 EDT
From: Mark Thompson <[e-mail]>

Lesk <[e-mail]> writes:
> >macro recording to create an ARexx script of your desired operations and
> >then execute that macro in IMP.
> Mark! Whoa, I originated the question and I would really like to know is
> this a function of image/fx or is this a seperate program to develop arexx
> routines?

It is part of ImageFX and it is one of my favorite features. I wish every
program that used ARexx allowed such a capability. But if you are using
the default.keys file that is shipped with IFX1.5, you will note that
there are hot keys setup already for doing macro recording. Just look at
the file with a text editor. I forget what key sequence it is, possibly
<shift><3>, but I have assigned my own version to function keys.

> How do I get the wave to work in post?

Not sure what you mean. Are you talking about automating the wave distort
effect? If you want the parameters of the wave distort to change over
a sequence of frames, it could be tricky because I'm not sure how you
would get different values into your script on each pass (1 pass per frame).
That may require that you write your own ARexx to drive the sequence
rather than using IMP. That is what you must do in ADPro to accomplish the
same thing.

Anyone else know how one would increment values for various function
parameters in scripts that are called once per frame by IMP? Would
you have to store the current values into a temp file for each frame
or is there an easier way?
%~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~%
%      `       '        Mark Thompson                 CONCURRENT COMPUTER  %
% --==* RADIANT *==--   [e-mail]        Principal Graphics   %
%      ' Image `        ...!uunet!masscomp!mark       Hardware Architect   %
%     Productions       [phone] [phone]   & General Nuisance   %
%                                                                          %
 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #517 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: MultiplePalletsAndMainActor
Date: Fri, 29 Apr 1994 08:51:08 -0700
From: Tim Salazar <[e-mail]>

Steve Koren writes, in respect to ImageFX IMP:

Try the "Wait for source frames" checkbox gadget.  That'll do what you
want, if I understand what you want correctly (which I might not).  Its
also got a "lock palette" button for making anims with locked palettes.
The coolest thing though is that you can apply any ImageFX operation (or
combination thereof) to every frame you process.  Handy for lots of
things...


IMP's "Wait for source frames" checkbox gadget waits for all the frames
of your animation to be created then does its operations on them. I
hoped myself that it would work like Rend24 since it was by the same
author. Rend24 also is small in the background leaving ram to do image
mapping and objects in the render program. Rend24 will scale the frames
and convert to various formats. Also on Rend24 make sure with AGA you
were using the latest version 1.05a.

Tim  [e-mail]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #518 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Imagine 3.0 - is Amiga version out ?
Date: Sat, 30 Apr 1994 01:31:38 +1000 (EST)
From: Nikola Vukovljak <[e-mail]>

Ok, the Amiga version was supposed to start shipping on Wed ( 1 week
after PC version).
So, have any of you guys in the US got it yet ?

Nik.

(IML archiving is a Full Time JOB!)



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #519 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: MultiplePalletsAndMainActor
Date: Fri, 29 Apr 1994 08:59:39 -0700
From: Tim Salazar <[e-mail]>

Mike McCool wrote:

And if you use Rend24, you might try this
little trick I discovered. I found another little anim building shareware
utility called BuildAnim.  It seems to make smoother anims than Rend24.
But its' strictly a build/split utility, so I convert, lock-pallet and
dither all my 24bit frames with Rend24, then let BuildAnim do the
combining.

        Try it, see if it doesn't yield slightly better-looking anims.

Mike,
This will still take the 24bit room on the hard disk. Have you tried to
make the anim with Rend24. Then split and rebuild with BuildAnim? This
might have the same result with a conservation of hd space. Then again
the delta compression might get in the way.

Tim


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #520 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: MultiplePalletsAndMainActor
Date: Fri, 29 Apr 1994 10:35:28 -0700 (PDT)
From: Mike McCool <[e-mail]>

On Fri, 29 Apr 1994, Tim Salazar wrote:

>
> Mike,
> This will still take the 24bit room on the hard disk. Have you tried to
> make the anim with Rend24. Then split and rebuild with BuildAnim? This
> might have the same result with a conservation of hd space. Then again
> the delta compression might get in the way.
>
> Tim
>
Hey Tim,

    I'll give this a shot.  I got into doing it the way I described
only as a kind of cheat, to tweak more speed out of the engine, by having
Imagine render to Ram.  I'd just have Rend24 grab the frames in 24bit as
they were generated, and move them into a partition on the hd, and delete
them from source, so Ram wouldn't get filled up.

    The one thing I don't like about this method is that the frames
aren't 24bit anymore, they're just regular interleaved bitmap pics.  I'll
try your method, see if the resulting rend24 anim splits into 24bit pics
again when I feed it into BuildAnim.

    Thanks, Tim.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #521 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Super Smooth Animation (CLARISSA)
Date: Fri, 29 Apr 1994 13:05:04 -0500
From: [e-mail] (Chris L. Everett)

>> We here at Spectronics distribute ClariSSA in North America.  If you have
>> any questions, you can contact us at [phone], or e-mail us at
>> [e-mail].

>Hi Chris, I have a question, is this program for AMIGA or IBMC ?
>
>If amiga, please post some more details.cost, performance etc.

Sorry...it's for the Amiga.  I've sent you a press release via e-mail.  I
didn't know if it was okay to post one to the IML or not.  I can send it
to anyone interested, or post it here if the moderator gives his approval
(it's about 3K).

- Chris


--
Chris Everett               |  This is an emergency, this is not a test.
Spectronics Int'l USA, Inc. |  Had this been an actual test, you would
Champaign, Illinois         |  have been instructed to bring a number
[e-mail]     |  two pencil.  Heh heh m - That wuz cool.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #522 ***************************************:-)

Subject:  So, is Amiga Imagine 3.0 shipping?
Date:  Fri, 29 Apr 1994 09:38:28 -0400
From: "rob (r.d.) hounsell" <[e-mail]>

Folks,

  So, can anyone confirm if Imagine 3.0 for the Amiga is shipping? Really
shipping? Like, being sent out the door? I've received some mail that indicates
it is!

  I thought that information like this would be posted to the list (?) Maybe I
missed it, in which case, I appologise for wasting bandwidth!

Blitzkrieg (tanks in advance)

Rob
--
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Rob Hounsell                           BNR WAN:  HOUNSELL@BMERHB63          |
| Team Leader: UNIX                      INTERNET: [e-mail]            |
| DMS System Performance Development     PHONE: [phone]                |
| Dept. 7D23                             ESN: 395-2904                        |
| Bell Northern Research                                                      |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------+


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #523 ***************************************:-)

Subject: star corona anim
Date: Fri, 29 Apr 1994 15:01:40 -0500
From: Kent Miller <[e-mail]>

 Hi, I was wondering if anyone could give me some suggestions on
how to go about making a star with an animated corona. I want a
large sphere shaped object with a gaseous wave animated along the
edges to simulate solar flares and etc. I thought of making a second
sphere and make it have a light fog attirbute and then maybe using
the ripple effect but not sure if that would work.
Any suggestions out there?



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #524 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Forge and object sizes...
Date: Fri, 29 Apr 94 17:13:56 EDT
From: [e-mail] (Jeffrey Goldman)

    Quick question...

    I've always had the trouble of configuring algorithmic
textures to look just right while taking into account the size of the
object I'm applying the texture to.
    Forge's "instant" feedback sounds terrific for getting the
right look, but how do you know that those values will look the same
given the scale of an object?
    For instance (I'll take a way oversimplified example), say you
you use Forge to get a checkerboard that looks "just right". Not
exactly a texture that would need to be tweaked by Forge, but... How
can you tell whether the results will look good on a square of
20x20x20 units. What happens if you use the same results on a square
of 100x100x100 units?
    You see what I'm getting at? Generally the Initial Scale gives
the texture its "look" in comparison with the size of an object. On a
sphere with a radius of 50 units a texture with an Initial Scale of 10
is going to look drastically different from the same texture applied
to the same sphere with an Initial Scale of 100...
    Perhaps I've already answered my own question... The only
thing you really have to worry about after getting the "look" down is
the Initial Scale when applied to an object... Someone want to back
that up? What happens with transition textures?

                            J.----->

E-Mail: [e-mail]




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #525 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Forge & Imagine
Date: Thu, 28 Apr 94 10:43:15 EST
From: [e-mail] (Yury German)

Hi Aaron (Aaron Bryson), in <[e-mail]> on Apr 27
 you wrote:

: Steve (Apex),
:
:   Can you tell me if Forge will load Imagine textures ?
:
:           - Aaron

    Aaron yes it will load them and render them although they are not
the proper textures and can not be modified to the degree of Apex
Textures. I have tried with a few textures and they looked OK but did not
have the extra's
   -------------------------------------------------------------------
          Yury German                    [e-mail]
      Blue Knight Productions         [e-mail]
    Graphics Design, 3D Animation     [e-mail]
       CD-ROM Development                  [phone]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #526 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Missing Docs in V3.0
Date: Thu, 28 Apr 94 10:38:40 EST
From: [e-mail] (Yury German)

Hi kirvan (kirvan), in <[e-mail]> on Apr 26 you wrote
:

    I hope you have the bug fixes in the 3.0 version you are shipping
out. I am going to call to make sure but just wanted to know.
   -------------------------------------------------------------------
          Yury German                    [e-mail]
      Blue Knight Productions         [e-mail]
    Graphics Design, 3D Animation     [e-mail]
       CD-ROM Development                  [phone]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #527 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Forge/Essence update!
Date: Fri, 29 Apr 94 15:04:02 PDT
From: [e-mail]

I must take a moment to second Andrew Fogel's glowing mini-review
of Forge. This is, indeed, a wonderful program and a joy to use.
Hell, it's just plain fun as one of the most radically NEAT pieces
of eye-candy I've seen since... well since Bruce Dawson released
Mand2000.

I've told Steve (Worley) that Forge reminds me somewhat of the
fascination I had with interactive exhibits at the Museum of
Science & Industry when I was a kid. As an incorrigible button-
pusher and knob-twirler, Forge appeals to that instinct in me.

This is definitely a worthwhile investment, kids. I can't imagine
(see? I worked that word into this post afterall ;-) anyone who's
even slightly interested in high quality computer graphics
who would not enjoy Forge.  Get it.


Harv
[e-mail]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #528 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Forge/essence up
Date: Fri, 29 Apr 94 19:29:40
From: [e-mail]

 > I tried Forge with some of Impulse's textures, and Forge didn't read
 > them properly, although many of the Impulse textures WOULD render in
 > Forge, but the sliders aren't calibrated. Hopefully, Steve will figure
 > out a way to make Forge work with Impulse's textures too.

Actually, what needs to be done is to have APex's textures work the way
Impulse's textures work.  If forge doesn't work with Imagine's stock 100+
textures then FORGE is broken.

-GreG



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #529 ***************************************:-)

Subject: FORGE!!!!!!
Date: Fri, 29 Apr 94 16:56:17 PDT
From: Scott Lundholm <[e-mail]>

Hi All,

     I just got my Essence I & II upgrades and FORGE in the mail yesterday,
thanks Steve for the FAST delivery time (mailed Wed, arrived Thur), and after
18+ hours of mind-bending extasy, I had to quit (collaps). If you have not
yet ordered FORGE and the Essence upgrades from Apex do it now! FORGE is
absolutely INCREDIBLE!!!! Nuff said, I need sleep :-)


Disclaimer: I am in no way associated with Apex, I'm just a VERY satisfied (and
tired) customer.

                                                 Scott Lundholm

 *----------------------------------------------------------------------------*
 | Amiga 500/030 at 38Mhz w/68882 at |    Email [e-mail]    |
 | 50Mhz, 8Meg of 32-bit RAM, Bodega |                 N6GMJ                  |
 | Bay w/105M,450M, & 1G Hard Drives,|HAM radio operator, Electronics junkie, |
 | HP PaintJet, 16" HP Programmable  |Computer Nerd, 3D Rendering Enthusiast, |
 | Multisynch w/Retina 24bit card.   |  and graphics fanatic!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  |
 *----------------------------------------------------------------------------*


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #530 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: MainActor sound syncing
Date: Fri, 29 Apr 1994 20:03:03 -0600 (MDT)
From: Roger Straub <[e-mail]>

On Thu, 28 Apr 1994, Richard Morris wrote:

>
> To the person who said they had a copy of MainActor with sound syncing.
>
> Where did you download it from as I would like to have a play with it.
>
> Thanks
> Richard
> (Bunbury, Australia - [e-mail])

MainActor 1.5 is available at wuarchive.wustl.edu in the directory
/systems/amiga/aminet/gfx/edit/MainActor1_5.lha.




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #531 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Forge/Essence 3.0
Date: Wed, 27 Apr 94 12:13:31 EST
From: [e-mail] (Yury German)

Hi Andrew (Andrew P. Vogel), in <[e-mail]> on Apr
 25 you wrote:

: Well, I spoke with Steve Worley today, and ordered The Forge along with the
: Essence 3.0 upgrade. I cannot wait for it! He's sending it USPS Priority Mail,

: and it should be here Wednesday.
:
: That'll be nice... I spoke to Impulse today, and they said that my copy of
: 3.0 should be going out on Tuesday, so hopefully, by the end of the week,
: I'll have both Imagine 3.0 _and_ Essence 3.0/Forge.
:
: Full report of The Forge once it's here...
:

    Andrew I will give you a little review now :-)
First of all there is a little picture of the interface on Aminet
/biz/demo/ForgeScreen.lha which will show you what it looks like.

As steve said it is real time in fact I am runing it now on the 4000.
The Prefs of the program let you specify the The Interface and Render
Priorities the Aspect Ration of Interface and options to close the
rendering screen and display a workbench meeter. You can also change the
background color of the interface which is grey and suits me just fine.

You can load textures and Attributes in to 9 places for recombining
textures. You can set all the features of the texture including the zoom
in to the textures, Lamp Light and Ambient Light. You can display texture
in 2 4 and 8 bits (looks great in 8 bits on my machine). The display is
almost instanteneous. In fact I will give some ideas about the speed on a
stock 4000 with 20 megs of Ram a little farther down.

It has the ability to change views of the texture Including 3 Flat views,
3 Sphere views, Sphere map , cylinder map and Repetition map.
You can specify the shading from None to Diffused to Diffused and Specular
for all those funky effects (although Specular maps might not be so great)
The lighting can be specified from a few places (and randomized as well).

It has full support for AREXX with the ability to be able to pass through
the sequences to Image FX or ADPro or any other program supporting Arexx.
Unfortunately since Imagine does not support it it will be impossible to
really use this feature. Lightwave on the other hand might be able to put
the arexx to good use and not only in the Lightwave but as Backgrounds for
Toaster as well.

The program supports the rendering via arexx to cards Picasso, EGS, FC24
and Opal and I am sure more can be selected as well. I do not have a 24
bit card so I could not use this. But the screen looks like it can display
on most of those cards as well.

You can also set up animations directly from Forge so that you can have
animating textures that look real real good. There is a special display
caled storyboard display that lets you see the textures as well as a
little anim preview window on the bottom of the screen that shows up.

You can change any thing you want within the texture including the base
color the grids the aspect ration the X size and everything. For the quick
display window (what I call the preview window) you have a few options
which is X2 /2 ReSpect Mas Spect and Mas Size. The performances and use of
each window will depend on your system.

Now for the speed tests.
Just to preface I am using the 3.0 textures made for the 040 systems which
are released as an upgrade as well. So your times may varry.

The first texture is FractalColor obviously one of the textures that takes
up alot of rendering. I rendered it for the previe as a XY Sphere, Diffuse
 Rendering, Top,Fron-Right Lights and 8 Bit Display. HEre is the preview
times in each on an 040 system

Max Size = 25 Seconds
Max Spect = 20 Seconds
X 2 Which is a small window was almost instanteous at around 5 to 10
seconds

Now all these were drawn instanteously so you could see the effect and
then they were antialiased for best look within that time. So basically
you get a rough Idea of the texture as you drag the bar and once you like
what you see it will render for you.

Now for the real test.... Rendering the Texture. I used the same frame
with different settings.

Now the greatest thing is that Forge gives you and estimate in minutes
seconds of how long the frame will take to render.

So here we go - The resolution is 256 x 256

        Estimate

No antialising = 1:40
Low -            3:35
Medium          5:30
High -          7:32
Severe -     10:40
extreme -     18:48


    The real rendering times were a little longer (a few seconds)
allowing for disk write is the reason.

Overall this is a great program and is a must for Lightwave and a definate
need for Imagine. It is alot easier to preview a texture this way then to
render it a few hundred times in Imagine.

    Oh Yeah if you are wondering what the texture created... It was
simple it created a nice round word with a blue color (base color) and
random islands of Green, red and brown. In other words perfect for
wrappint on a sphere to make a great world. It might be also great to use
the greyscale render provided here or just convert it to be able to do a
altitute map which should look amazing. Oh well back to playing :-)

TO STEVE: Steve yes I stopped playing with Emplant for a day to play with
your program :-) Thanks Great program!! Can not wait for Lightwave
Textures :-)

With this program I might just switch to Lightwave now and not wait for
Imagine 3.0 to come to my door (it was released half a month ago but still
have not seen it and no one has it for the amiga yet???? )
   -------------------------------------------------------------------
          Yury German                    [e-mail]
      Blue Knight Productions         [e-mail]
    Graphics Design, 3D Animation     [e-mail]
       CD-ROM Development                  [phone]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #532 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Forge and Object size
Date: Sat, 30 Apr 94 02:52:00 UTC
From: [e-mail]

Try loading the finished attribute onto a "dummy" object, then scaling
that object to the size of your target object in Imagine's Detail editor.
Save the attribute file from the dummy, load it onto your object, and
you're ready to render.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #533 ***************************************:-)

Subject: imagine->HamLabPlus
Date: 03 Jan 00 22:09:58 -0800
From: [e-mail] (Lance Miller)

 Hello all,
     A while ago someone helped me out in putting together a script on how to
convert Imagine files to other formats via HamLabPlus using an AREXX script.
Unfortunatly my HD crashed recently and I lost all my personal scripts.  Can
someone please help me out again?
     Thank you in advance.

Lance Miller 1:203/699                                      \|/
[e-mail]                     @ @  Jethro :)
--------------------------------------------------------oOO-(_)-OOo------------
Via DLGMail @ 1:203/699.0

--
  Internet  : [e-mail]
  Disclaimer: The views of this user are strictly his/her own.
  Sacramento Public Access Mail Systems
  Problems?  Mail [e-mail]



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #534 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re:  star corona anim
Date:     Sat, 30 Apr 1994 01:49:26 -0400
From: Jason B Koszarsky <[e-mail]>

Try using a radial fractal texture on a simple plain.  The texture can
be coloured & animated as necessary.  Make the Y-axis of your plane
perpendicular to the plane's surface.  This is so you can ALIGN your
corona plane to track the camera. This way you can rotate in any direction
around the sun and the plane will always be facing you.  As long as it is
animated correctly you shouldn't notice that it is a plane at all.

Jason K.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #535 ***************************************:-)

Subject: ShowToaster Arexx for Forge
Date: Sat, 30 Apr 94 00:39:58 PDT
From: [e-mail]

Here is a script I wrote with TRexx to display the Forge render to the
Toaster Frame buffer and therby out to the program monitor.

Hope you like
/*
** ShowToast.rexx
**
** $VER: ShowToast.rexx 2.1.2 (13.12.93)
** Written by Ben Gibson
** ARexx script generated by T-Rexx Professional 2.1.3
*/

signal on SYNTAX
signal on BREAK_C
signal on HALT

options failat 200

Switcher = 'ToasterARexx.port'    /* address Switcher's ARexx port */

if ~show('L','rexxsupport.library') then
    call addlib('rexxsupport.library',0,-30)
if ~show('L',Switcher) then
    call addlib(Switcher,-1)

say pragma('directory',"Toast:Toaster")

if ~show(port,Switcher)                /* if the Switcher is not around, */
then                                /* then start it up. */
    do
    if EXISTS('VideoToaster') then
    do
        say 'Starting up the Toaster Switcher...'
        address command 'Run >NIL: <NIL: VideoToaster'
        address command 'WaitForPort ToasterARexx.port'
        if ~show(port,Switcher) then
        do
            say 'Could not start the Switcher'
            exit -1
        end
    end
    else
    do
        say "Can't find Switcher!"
        DELAY(150)
        exit -1
    end
end

TS=show(port,Switcher)

say 'Begining execution...'

Begin:

Address "FORGE.1" PAUSE
Address "FORGE.1" SHOWSTATUS "Dumping Preview..."
Address "FORGE.1" DUMPPREVIEW "RAM:picprev.iff"
IF (rc=0) then DO
Trap = Switcher(TOSW)
Switcher(MDV1)
TRAP = Switcher(LRGB,'Ram Disk:picprev.iff',0)
TDelay(0,0,2,0)
Trap = Switcher(TOWB)
Address "FORGE.1" UNPAUSE
Address "FORGE.1" SHOWSTATUS
address command  'delete Ram:picprev.iff'
/*a35*/RETURN

/*  End of the command list  */

say 'Exiting...'
exit 0

halt:
syntax:
    ERC=RC
    OPEN(ErrorOut,'RAM:T-Rexx.errors','W')
    ERR=SIGL-52
    WRITELN(ErrorOut,ERR' - Error in script -' SourceLine(SIGL))
    CLOSE(ErrorOut)
    if TS then Switcher(TOWB)
    address command 'type RAM:T-Rexx.errors'
    DELAY(125)
    exit 10

break_c:
    if TS then Switcher(TOWB)
    say 'Execution halted by Ctrl-C'
exit 10


TDelay:
arg hours, minutes, seconds, frames

    total=0

    if hours > 0 then total=(hours * 60 * 60 * 50)
    if minutes > 0 then total=total + (minutes * 60 * 50)
    if seconds > 0 then total=total + (seconds * 50)
    if frames > 0 then total=total + ((frames + 1) / 50 * 100)
    if total > 50 then total=total % 1
    if minutes > 0 then total=total - (100 * minutes)

    do while total >= 50
        say '08'x
        Delay(50)
        total=total-50
    end

    if total > 0 then Delay(total)
return 0



-----------------------------------Cut Here-----------------------------------

I just wanted to say that TRexx is a great program and so is Forge. And
even though I know next to nothing about programing but Arexx is a breeze. :)

Ben Gibson


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #536 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Bones & Textures
Date: Sat, 30 Apr 1994 11:12:54 -0400 (EDT)
From: Andrew McDonald <[e-mail]>

You can't actually morph textures using states. If anyone else has gotten
this to work, I'd love to know how. I tried to create an anim of the new
rain texture in 3.0 using states. Nothing happened until I went to a
standard morph between two copies of the object with different texture
settings.




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #537 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: 3.0 antialiasing
Date: Sat, 30 Apr 1994 11:22:05 -0400 (EDT)
From: Andrew McDonald <[e-mail]>

On Wed, 27 Apr 1994, Andrew P. Vogel wrote:

> I've read that you can set the number of rays down from 255, which is the
> default. If you send out 255 rays/pixel, that will CERTAINLY slow things down.

> Try editing it till you find a nice speed/quality ratio.

I have the new antialiasing set to 100, which is pretty fast, IF you
don't use a lot of the new textures. This setting is still better than
the old antialiasing, but there are still some visible jags. Problem is,
I have a seen rendering on a 486/66 at 640x480 and each frame is taking
40 minutes (trace). I'm using rain, marble, mosaic and dirt textures. If
I drop all but the rain texture, render times drop to about 15 minutes
per raytraced frame.

3DS is faster with better antialiasing, but it's a RAM hog, very little
support for algorithmic textures, everything is an add-on, placing image
maps is a real pain, and has fewer options than Imagine. However, booleans
are much more reliable.



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #538 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: star corona anim
Date: Sat, 30 Apr 1994 11:34:09 -0500 (CDT)
From: Cyrus J Kalbrener <[e-mail]>

To: Kent Miller <[e-mail]>
Reply to: [e-mail]
Subject: Re: star corona anim

Hi Kent,


>  Hi, I was wondering if anyone could give me some suggestions on
> how to go about making a star with an animated corona. I want a
> large sphere shaped object with a gaseous wave animated along the
> edges to simulate solar flares and etc. I thought of making a second
> sphere and make it have a light fog attirbute and then maybe using
> the ripple effect but not sure if that would work.
> Any suggestions out there?

I have done this using 1 shpere, 3 disks and 2 Essence textures.

First I used varyabsrgb to create changes subtle changes on the suns surface
between white hot and light yellow.

Then I used a disk for the corona rotated the oject axis so that the y axis was
perpendicular to the surface of the disk and added the cylindturb texture with
the z axis extending perpendicular from the surface of the disk.
I used cylindturb because I could translate the texture along it's z axis to
create the illusion of movement much more effectively than radialturb.

I then added another disk and placed it less than 1 unit behind the first.  I
then applied the radial Impulse texture to create the glare around the sun.

I then applied radial to another disk, this time making it black to blot out
the stars behind the corona that would show through the glare ( it looks
pretty unrealistic without it).

I made sure all objects were bright, and I parented the second and third disks
to the first.  I saves the sun itself as one object, and the corona group as a
second object.  I the stage editor I tracked the corona to the camera so that
it would always be perpendicular to the camera ( only good if the camera is
moving a little bit).

If you want the staging and object files, I'd be glad to encode the files and
send them off to you.  I'll jpeg an example pic and up it to aminet, too.

I hope this is helpful!


        Cyrus J. Kalbrener

                Digital_Cel

                        "...To Render:  By Any Means Necessary!!..."

Finger me for PGP pub key:
29BA61 1994/03/07 94 55 FC 98 23 E7 1B 6E  3E B7 BA 28 E8 FB 14 F5




IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #539 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Forge & Essence & Stuff
Date: Sat, 30 Apr 1994 13:57:58 -0400 (EDT)
From: Lamar Milligan <[e-mail]>

    Hello there!  I am new to this list, only having received a
couple hundred posts in the last couple days |->.  But I am interested in
Forge and Essence, of which I am hearing much about.  What are they, and
how does one go about getting em?

    Thanks, [e-mail]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #540 ***************************************:-)

Subject: star corona anim
Date:     Sat, 30 Apr 1994 16:22:00 -0400
From: [e-mail] (David Wyand)

Hi Kent!

> Hi, I was wondering if anyone could give me some suggestions on
>how to go about making a star with an animated corona. I want a
>large sphere shaped object with a gaseous wave animated along the
>edges to simulate solar flares and etc. I thought of making a second
>sphere and make it have a light fog attirbute and then maybe using
>the ripple effect but not sure if that would work.
>Any suggestions out there?

Essence textures are perfect for this!  What you do is make a sphere
(for the main part of the star).  Apply FRACTALCOLOUR to it with oranges
and yellows (you know, sun colours).  The create a disk slighly larger
that the sphere (the size that you want the corrona to be).  Then apply
FRACTALCOLOUR (for the corrona colouring) and CYLINDTURB.  Set the
CYLINDTURB filter at 255 on all guns, and set up the transition distance
to be something like the radius of the sphere.  Make the transition
width the distance from the sphere radius to the outer edge of the disk.
 Voila!  Instant sun!  Now animate the textures, and you'll have a
terrific looking sun, with a moving corrona.

If you don't have Essence, get it (and Forge!!).
Hope this all helps!

                                        -Dave
                                         [e-mail]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #541 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Nebular Texture
Date: Sat, 30 Apr 1994 16:42:54 -0400 (EDT)
From: Andrew McDonald <[e-mail]>

I've just been playing with the Nebular texture to create a little
animated smoke. Works great, and I just thought some of you with 3.0
might make some use of this info.

Remember to render fog objects in front of a background object, and that
this texture will apply to the area bounded by the texture axis, not the
entire object. Scale the texture axis to affect the shape of the fog.

General Notes:

Noise 1 seems to affect the quality of the swirls. Higher
numbers adjust the thickness and reduce the transparency. Noise 2 affects
color transitions, color intensity of nebular color as set in texture
requester, and color mixture, or grain. Grain appears as a very
pointillated surface, as if there are thousands of dots of color rather
than a smooth gradation or defined boundaries between object and nebula
colors. Higher numbers of Noise 2 intensify the nebular color and increase
grain.

Fog length and the 'T' value work together to determine amount and
density of the fog appearing on the object. For stills I would set the 'T'
value between .6 and .8, object fog length at .1, and adjust the 'Fog
Length at T' to get the right density of fog. I would use the 'T' value
combined with some of the noise values to create a fluctuating fog, or
even to morph from a dense fog to one very nearly dissipated.


A nice, swirly smoke might use the following attributes in the nebular
texture requester. I used these on a sphere primitive with diameter of
300, so use that number as a reference to fog length.

Object color:
R:150
G:150
B:175

Object Fog length:
.1

Nebular attributes:
Fog Length at T:500
T:.8
Noise 1 Magnitude:5.0
Noise 1 Velocity:1.0
Noise 2 Magnitude:.2
Noise 2 Velocity:10.0
R:150
G:100
B:225


The texture axis forms a square completely inside the sphere object,
whose corners touch the inside surface of the sphere.

Have fun.
Andrew.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #542 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Forge and object sizes...
Date:     Sat, 30 Apr 1994 16:32:00 -0400
From: [e-mail] (David Wyand)

Hi Jeffrey!

>You see what I'm getting at? Generally the Initial Scale gives
>the texture its "look" in comparison with the size of an object. On a
>sphere with a radius of 50 units a texture with an Initial Scale of 10
>is going to look drastically different from the same texture applied
>to the same sphere with an Initial Scale of 100...
> Perhaps I've already answered my own question... The only
>thing you really have to worry about after getting the "look" down is
>the Initial Scale when applied to an object... Someone want to back
>that up? What happens with transition textures?

Essence textures are made to look nice on the default primitive: ie, the
default plane or sphere.  Save your world shattering attribute file and
in Imagine, apply it to a default plane.  In Imagine, if you scale an
object, its texture attributes also get scaled.  Your example of a
checkerboard could just be scaling a default primitive plane to the size
you want (applying the texture before you scale, of course).

A more sneaky way of doing this, and it especially works if your trying
to apply you amazing texture to a nonplane or nonsphere object, is to
load in your object and this newly created default plane at the same
time (with your attribute applied to the plane).  Now scale up the plane
so that it is the approximate size that you want the texture to be.  Now
save the plane's attributes and load them into your fancy object.
Voila!  You now have your object cover with the amazing textures that
you set up in Forge, and at the scale that you want!

I know that a couple of the above sentences are convoluted, so just let
me know if you don't quite understand...
Hope this helps...

                                        -Dave
                                         [e-mail]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #543 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: Bones & Textures
Date:     Sat, 30 Apr 1994 18:18:35 -0400
From: Jason B Koszarsky <[e-mail]>

I've tried morphing textures in 2.9 using states and couldn't get it to
work.  I haven't received 3.0 yet so I can't try it there.

Jason K.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #544 ***************************************:-)

Subject: 2.9 Trouble
Date: Sat, 30 Apr 94 18:12:11 EDT
From: [e-mail]

Yeah, I know.  Why is someone complaining about 2.9 when 3.0 will be here in a
few days?  Well, I don't have a few days.  The project I'm working on is due
Monday. :(  Has anyone else come across this problem...

    I'm rendering many frames for an animation.  There are 6 brushmaps in the
whole picture.  About half of the frames come out with one of the brushes
missing.  The same brush is missing in all the frames, and it isn't the second
half of the frames either.  It is pretty random.

    I thought this sounded like a memory problem, but I have 10 megs of ram.
I took the project to my local Amiga store and ran it on a A4000 with 22 megs,
and I got the same results.  If I did the frames one at a time and reset the
machine between renders, _sometimes_ it would come out OK.  What's even
stranger is that a week ago I rendered the anim on my 10 meg machine in hires, a
nd it worked!  Although, I need lo res to speed up the anim.

Can anyone help???  I even tried removing one of the other brushes with no
luck.  Is this just a 2.9 problem with brushmaps????

Nick

[e-mail]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #545 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Searching Sunglasses object
Date: Sat, 30 Apr 1994 12:28:28 +0200 (MET DST)
From: [e-mail] (Christian Gottschling)

Hello,

I`m searching for a nice object of sunglasses. Do YOU have such
an object on your harddisk?

Christian Gottschling(germany)            PublicKey via          _
      [e-mail]             SendPubKey          _ //
      Student of Biomedical Engineering                       \X/

.... WindowsNT, from the people, who brought you EDLIN.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #546 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Texture morphing and States
Date: Sun,  1 May 94 02:26:00 UTC
From: [e-mail]

It is possible to morph an objects texture(s) and shape while having the
texture stay "tacked" to its assigned polys. It is done not by morphing
States, but using a hybrid method of defining States and morphing two
or more separate objects ala Imagine 2.0 and earlier. Say, for instance,
you were morphing a sphere to a cube made in the Forms editor. The Sphere
object would have one State defined, let's call it Main, and Main would
be entered into the Lockstate field. Object 2, the Cube object, would also
have had a Main State defined as a sphere, with the same texture parameters,
colors, etc. But it would also have a second State defined, named Box for
this example. So you are actually morphing two separate objects, but both
have the same Lockstate defined for the same initial shape. In actuality,
this can be difficult to accomplish, as Imagine 2.9 will not allow you to
reload a Forms object after a State has been defined, nor is there a
facility to "Load" a State from one object to another. I have been using
Morphus's Metamorph event to accomplish this (thank God for multitasking)
but it should be possible to "Snapshot" an object out of Stage and get the
same or similar effect. Just remember, two different objects, but with the
same Lockstate. Hope this helps..............Bill Graham


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #547 ***************************************:-)

Subject: 3.0 Amiga is Here!
Date: Sat, 30 Apr 94 20:41:33 PST
From: [e-mail] (Sam Worf)

Imagine 3.0 Amiga arrived in my mailbox a few hours ago, and there are bits of
cardboard strewn about in a direct line to my computer. :) I've been playing
with it for a while, and, since I assume a few of you must have recieved it
today too, I have some questions to ask.

Where is Motion blur documented in the manual (if anywhere)? I can't find it
in any obvious place in the program(the subproject screen, the FX drawer, the
camera bar).

How do I apply the LensFlare FX? The globalfx.txt file doesn't explain where
to put the FX bar. Applying it to GLOBAL gives an error: "Improper F/X type
(Globals -vs- Object)" Applying it to either the camera or a lightsource
generates two errors: "can't find camera" and "Effect: LensFlar.ifx failed" in
both cases, and the object the effect is applied to no longer appears in the
stage editor(althouh I can pick it with the Find Requester).

On to some first impressions:

The manual is a definite improvement. The grammar is a little shaky, and the
Contents directs you to the wrong page a few times, but otherwise a good
job... EXCEPT: WHY IS THE INDEX ONLY THREE-AND-A-HALF PAGES LONG? This is a
350 page manual! That rates at least a 10 page index. Understanding Imagine
2.0 is 200 large pages, and it has an 8 page index.

The new antialiasing doesn't seem to slow rendering down that much: A default
polygon sphere rendered at 640x960 in trace mode with one shadow casting light
took 18m30s with Edge level set to 0 and rays-per-pixel set to 255. The same
scene took 2m25s to render at 320x200. I'm just eyeballing it, but that seems
a bit faster than 2.0.

NO ASL SCREEN/FILE REQUESTERS!

That's something that needs to go on the top of the list for the next update,
along with a better preferences editor. It is unchanged from 2.0, besides a
few new options.

So. With that, I'm off to try out Depth of Field...

+--------------------------------------------------------+
|I'm sorry, but on my world I had a nice home, and a good|
|job with prospects, and I  get angry at the thought that|
+-----------------\ my life suddenly /-------------------+
|  A4000/40/1.2GB  \----------------/  PAR/TBC-IV/U-220  |
| [e-mail] > SAM  J. WORF < [e-mail] |
|   GEnie:S.WORF   /----------------\ Cmpu$rv:72411,3573 |
+--------------------------------------------------------+
|consists  of  sitting  in  sewage-filled  models  of  my|
|own  ear, being  patronized by a  lot of demented birds!|
+--------------------------------------------------------+


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #548 ***************************************:-)

Subject: the new global lens flair
Date: Sat, 30 Apr 94 23:20:03 -0700
From: [e-mail] (Ed Totman)

Forgive me if this was discussed recently, my mbox crashed Sat.

I have not had luck with the new global lens flair.  When I load it or
haze in the action editor, global, f/x line I get an error message
saying that it is an object f/x.  I loaded from the effects/global
directory.  So when I load the same effect on an object f/x timeline
instead of global, I get an error message that says camera not found.

Anybody get this to work?

Ed


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #549 ***************************************:-)

Subject: re:3.0 Amiga is Here!
Date: Sun, 01 May 94 06:24:44 EDT
From: [e-mail]

Is your OLDA set to F(alse) in the prefs editor?  If it is set to T(rue)
which is the default setting on the PC version, Imagine is using the old AA
and the rays per pixel setting is not used.


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #550 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: probs with textures in imagine 2.9 (AMIGA)
Date: Sun, 1 May 94 13:01:59 BST
From: Waland J F <[e-mail]>

> JW> Hi, I'm having prob. with some of the textures in 2.9...
> JW> I can't get many of them to display.
>Are you using the integer version of 2.9? The textures will only work on the
>FP version, but this is fixed in 3.0.

[blush] yup My fpu is waiting for a fatter wallet...


jon


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #551 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Re: 3.0 Amiga is Here!
Date: Sun, 01 May 1994 07:12:51 -0700
From: "Jeff Wahaus, CAPS, ATL" <[e-mail]>

>
>Imagine 3.0 Amiga arrived in my mailbox a few hours ago, and there are bits of
>cardboard strewn about in a direct line to my computer. :) I've been playing

[much stuff deleted]

>NO ASL SCREEN/FILE REQUESTERS!

  This is a real bummer.  So are you stuck with a 640x400 16 color screen?
How many times have we asked for these 2 small features?

  So is there support for 256 colors?  HAM-8?  Third Party 24-bit Cards?

Really Bummed,

-Jeff Wahaus-
[e-mail]


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #552 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Compatibility between Imagine 3.0 & 2.9
Date: Sun, 01 May 1994 11:17:30 -0400 (EDT)
From: [e-mail]

Hello Imagineers!

I recently received my 3.0 update, installed it, copied a project I
created in 2.9 (along with objects, etc.) and then attempted to render
a frame. Imagine immediately went to the DOS prompt and displayed a
message "Remember what you just did and then call Impulse". After some
'fooling' around I have it to the point of being able to load either the
first frame or the last frame (and render) into the Stage Editor, but none
of the intermidiate frames (2,3, etc.). I have tried this with several 2.9
created animations with the same results. I have 32 megs of memory on a
PC compatable 486DX2/66. I have been using this configuration successfully
on 2.9 for some time. I can create a multiframe animation under 3.0 with
no problems. Has anyone tried this? Is 3.0 backward compatible with 2.9?
I will call Impulse in the morning but hope some of you may have some
info on this.

Thanks in advance,

Larry J. Jacobs
Arts & Algorithms
Tampa, FL


IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #553 ***************************************:-)

Subject: Too short animations...
Date: Sat, 30 Apr 94 22:57:39
From: "Richard Willkomm" <[e-mail]>

Cristian Gavazzeni - Sorint wrote in a Mail about "Too short animations...":

>  I have a problem..yeah.. a very big problem: I can't afford to expand my
> Ami
> to 18Mb of RAM , unfortunately Raytracing is my hobby, not my job!
> Anyone is aware of animplayers and sound-digitizers that are able to
> read-write
> -play animations and/or digitized sounds from the harddrive, using the
> main
> (fast+chip) memory as a cache for a real-time effect ?
> (Please tell me if I'm saying a lot of craps).
> I'm sure that you Multimedia-people can show me the right way.

I know there are a number of tools, PD or Commercial, that allow quite
good Harddisk playback of Animations and Sound. I'm not sure there is
one that does both at the same time. Since Raytracing is just your
hobby I assume you don't need broadcast quality or an empty bank
account. First thing you gotta do is determine a animation format,
meaning size/resolution/# of colors. It's quite obviuos that you can't
playback 734*586*HAM8 from HD in full 25fps. Try something like
320*274*HAM (or HAM8). It gives you the widescreen format and if your
machine/harddisk is fast enough you can obtain quite good results with
Clarissa, Magic Lattern, Biganim, or Scala MM.

Greetings

**********************************************************************
*                    | Richard Willkomm  ----- The Ray Freak-----    *
*                    |                                            -- *
*  ########  ####    | A500/GVP-HD+/030-33/882-50/9Mb/213MB      --  *
*      #   # #       | Gfx Co-Sysop The Hell BBS The Hague Holland   *
*      # ##  ###     | [phone]                          --    *
*      #  #  #       | e-mail : [e-mail]  --   --     *
*      #   # #       | NLA_net: 14:101/103.2              -- --      *
*                    | AMY_net: 39:153/108.2               ---       *
*                    |                                               *
**********************************************************************



IMAGINE ARCHIVE MESSAGE NUMBER #554 ***************************************:-)

Subject: minimum requirements
Date: Thu, 28 Apr 94 00:44:24 EDT
From: [e-mail]

  What are the minimum requirements needed to run Imagine 3.0 for the PC?

     -processor (obviously one with a FPU is needed)
     -RAM (the more the better of course)
     -video card/monitor (VGA? I only plan on using the Project Editor)
     -a local hard drive (I want to network several togather)
     -anything else?

  Also does anyone know how Impulse feels about network use?  I am a single
person, but I want to do distributed rendering.  Do they have rules on this?

  I know I can just call them and ask but they always seem to be closed by
the time I get a chance to call them.  (I am on the west coast).

  Thanks