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From: rnollman@maxzilla.encore.com (Richard Nollman)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga
Subject: Problems with Imagine
Message-ID: <13646@encore.Encore.COM>
Date: 26 Dec 90 19:27:18 GMT
Sender: news@Encore.COM
Reply-To: rnollman@maxzilla.encore.com (Richard Nollman)
Distribution: usa
Organization: Encore Computer Corp, Marlboro, MA
Lines: 44

I recently bought an A3000 and Imagine.  My first experience with
software was a good one (Deluxpaint3) and I was probably spoiled.  My
experience with Imagine has been horrendous.  For months before I
bought my computer, I kept reading about Turbo Silver as the program
to use for rendering.  So when I heard that Imagine was coming out, I
waited, figuring that lots of people out there have been using Turbo
successfully, and that the learning curve would be a little longer
than Deluxpaint.  I was wrong.  I have been working my way through the
first tutorial without much success. The documentation does not agree
with the software in many places.  My local Amiga store verified this
from experiences of other customers who bought the package.  I really
want to use this product, but I need help.  In the first tutorial (the
one that morphs a circular figure into a cube to "demonstrate the
power of Imagine"), I was not able to understand how the camera is
supposed to work.  It really is a pathetic 'feature' of the software.
It is so tiny that I had to strain to see where the little projectile
which I assumed to be the camera lens was pointed.  Then (as the
manual suggested) I tried the Track to Object feature to track the
camera to the object I was supposed to be rendering.  The manual told
me that when I selected DONE from the Stage Editor, the object (the
circular object -- form.1) would appear centered in the perspective window.
The perspective window was empty.  I eventually just dumbly placed the
camera on top of the object in the three perspective windows and that
seemed to work.  But I do not think that is the correct way to Track
to an Object.  Anyway, I ran the wireframe preview and instead of
watching the circular object (form.1) morph over 28 frames to the cube
(form.2), form.1 became a cube in frame 2, leaving the other 28 frames
repeating the shape of the cube (its final form).  I could not figure
out how make a gradual transformation (the manuals were not very
helpful).  Finally, I gave up, accepted the abrupt transformation, and
followed the instructions in the manual to create the animation frames
from the Rendering Screen (menu?).  (At this point I just wanted to
see some kind of rendered image.)  Then it went off and for 20 minutes
or so created the 30 frames.  When it was done, I tried to run the
animation (according to the directions in the manual).  The screen
went black, and that was it.  I had to reboot.  I never saw any
images.  A friend demonstrated Lightwave on the Toaster and by
comparison the user interface was easy and very intuitive.  I am on
the verge of just selling Imagine and waiting for the Toaster to come
out on the 3000 (at least I know that there is someone that can help
me learn how to use it).  If there are other people who have bought Imagine out
there, who have no prior experience with Turbo Silver, I would like to
hear from them.  I am convinced this package has alot of power.  I
just do not know how to get to it.