Path: utzoo!attcan!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!usc!sdsu!crash!pro-graphics.cts.com!bobl From: bobl@pro-graphics.cts.com (Bob Lindabury) Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga Subject: Re: What is best 24bit 3d Anim system under $12,000 Message-ID: <808@crash.cts.com> Date: 1 Dec 89 12:56:24 GMT Sender: root@crash.cts.com Lines: 73 In-Reply-To: message from jandreas@pnet02.gryphon.com > One problem with Renderman is that it doesn't have an interface. Although > programs, such as AutoCad will soon be able to drive renderman. The > macintosh version of SA4D as of yet doesn't have Animation capabilities like > the amiga version, but i was told E. Graham was working on this, along with > adding texturing. Caligari is junk! (PERSONAL + OTHER OPINIONS). JourneyMan > is great, plus a few of the 7 modules are shipping NOW! Turbo Silver has > great rendering, but a lousy cell editor, (BUT THIS IS ALSO BEING CHANGED). > Another program to check out is 3-Tuple, being made by Fred Michell at CBM. > The digital animation production's board is great if we can just get some real > software running. I'm currently working on a ray tracer for it that will > take in Turbo Silver CEll files, and Sculpt-Animate 4D .scene files, and > Render them, using my own renderer, which produces much better pictures than > TS or SA4D. I would take a serious look in to The JourneyMan by Hash > Enterprises, and 3-Tuple by Fred M. who i believe is on USENET! > There are some other packages coming out soon, but they're not very good. > > > UUCP: {ames!elroy, }!gryphon!pnet02!jandreas > INET: jandreas@pnet02.gryphon.com If you are writing a renderer, please make sure not to make the mistake that Sculpt/Animate does by assuming poeple will only be rendering to HAM mode and other Amiga resolutions/colors. I've done and seen several renderings from the Byte by Byte product and I can tell you right now that if you are doing anything over the Amiga resolutions/colors (16-32bit) you are going to have rotten images. Seems they've optimized thier software to render some type of bands in solid colors and then to dither them into smooth shades in HAM. However, when you render out to a 24 bit file, the software does not dither (and shouldn't have to since 32,768 colors are available) but the bands in the image still persist. This is totally unacceptable for a package that costs twice as much as Turbo Silver SV. If Byte by Byte would update their product, I would consider it a useful product. They would have to add mapping and a realistic renderer. Turbo renders quite a bit better than SA 4D but the interface is somewhat of an obstical. The best interface around is Calagari's interface, however, you are right, the package as a whole is junk. It now support direct rendering to a TARGA 16 board through a Bridgeboard but the editor is horrible because you cannot edit points and the Animator is a joke, you're back to text scripts! As for the Interface to TARGA from Sculpt by InterActive Circuits, it's a great package. You can render directly to your TARGA 16 (through a bridge board of course) but the biggest problem still is the horrible renderer you are stuck with in SA 4D. Why spend all that money on all that hardware/software when you are going to end up with (granted, the images are better than Amiga images) rotten images? Byte by Byte doesn't seem to want to support the Amiga anymore and are after the MAC market and the jerks I've spoken to at the company seem to feel that all of us with Amigas are just hackers that can't or will not come up with the money to make any updates to their software worth the effort. Seems that in the long run, you are better off with a 386 platform and one of the readily available image boards (such as TARGA, VISTA, etc.) for doing anything of real consequence in the 3D world. Software for these type of systems are abundant and full featured and relatively easy to use but cost a pretty penny. If you are talking about going the 16bit and above route, this seems to be the answer for now or until someone comes up with a better 3D package. I understand that NewTek should have a new 3D package available soon and from what I've seen so far, the images look reasonable. Of course, if the Toaser is any indication, this one will probably be ready by the year 2000. -- Bob _________________________ Pro-Graphics 201/469-0049 __________________________ InterNet: bobl@pro-graphics.cts.com | ProLine: bobl@pro-graphics UUCP: ..crash!pro-graphics!bobl | CServe: 70347,2344 ARPA/DDN: ..crash!pro-graphics!bobl@nosc.mil | Amer. Online: Graphics3D ___________ ____________ Raven Enterprises - 25 Raven Ave. Piscataway, NJ 08854