Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rpi!usc!ucsd!nosc!crash!crash!pro-party.cts.com!seanc From: seanc@pro-party.cts.com (Sean Cunningham) Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.graphics Subject: JMan Review: SCULPTURE Message-ID: <1991May18.001616.10800@crash.cts.com> Date: 18 May 91 00:16:16 GMT Sender: root@crash.cts.com (Bill Blue) Organization: Crash TimeSharing, El Cajon, CA Lines: 108 Modeling is what separates the men from the boys when it comes to 3D packages. JMan's SCULPTURE module has one of *the* most powerful interfaces you'll find. What's interesting is that the SCULPTURE module is actually two programs in one: PAINTER and MODELER. JMan's PAINTER module allows you to quickly create 3D volumes of rotation through a process called AUTOSCULPTING. Although just about any modeler available lets you spin or sweep a cross-section to create such volumes, JMan lets you create symmetrical or *asymmetrical* volumes through an intuitive paintbox interface. The PAINTER screen gives you a lores (320x200) workarea, with a toolbox over on the right-hand side of the screen. Here you find a group of common drawing tools (freehand, line, curve, etc.) and gadgets for toggling back and fourth between PAINTER's two workscreens, AUTOSCULPTING, quick rendering, and fifteen banks for IFF brushes used to DECAL your object, or in JMan terms, your SEGMENT. There is also a coordinate window for precise placement of AUTOSCULPTING LINES, decals, etc., and a user-definable palette of twenty-four colors. To create your SEGMENT, you need to draw a SILHOUETTE of its VISAGE (front) and/or its PROFILE (side). This is accomplished through the use of color-coded lines that JMan will follow in the AUTOSCULPTING process. The SILHOUETTE color is used to draw out the basic shape you want, using the second color in the palette, usually black. On top of this SILHOUETTE you draw an AUTOSCULPTING LINE, using the fourth color in the palette, usually red. The AUTOSCULPTING LINE is what controls the symmetry of your SEGMENT. A straight line down the middle will result in a symmetrical shape, while a line with a curve to it ON THE SAME SILHOUETTE will result in a shape completely different. I won't even try to explain how this works, as it takes allot of experimentation. From the manual:"...a set of symmetrical forearm SILHOUETTES could show musculature if the AUTOSCULPTING LINE was curved to one side." To control the vertical complexity of your object, you also need to draw SLICES, or horizontal lines, across your SILHOUETTE using the third color in the palette, usually brown. The SLICES will become horizontal "loops" around the SEGMENT once it's AUTOSCULPTED. After you've drawn your SILHOUETTES, it's time AUTOSCULPT. A click on the AUTOSCULPT gadget gives you a requester asking how complex you wish to make your SEGMENT. This governs how many CONTROL POINTS to use per SLICE. Your choices are FOUR, EIGHT, SIXTEEN, THIRTY-TWO, or SIXTY-FOUR. Under most circumstances, eight CONTROL POINTS will do the job. To see the results, you go up to the menus and choose MODELER SCREEN from the PROJECT menu, or press the [J] key, ala DPaint. MODELER is where you modify AUTOSCULPTED SEGMENTS created with PAINTER, or you can choose to model more intricate surfaces point-by-point. The SCULPTURE screen is hires-interlace (640x400), but due to a careful choice of palette the flicker is next to nonexistent. It presents you with a panel of gadgets across the top, and two windows for SEGMENT views. You can choose from front, right, top, back, left, bottom and perspective views. You're also given gadgets for ZOOM, MOVE, and TURN to control your view, and ROLL, TILT, and SWIVEL to control the orientation of your SEGMENT. You're also give gadgets for scaling your segment along the X, Y and Z planes, and each can be accessed independently of the others. JMan differs from most other modelers (particularly IMAGINE's DETAIL editor) in that it lets you push, pull, mold and modify your object from *any* view, even PERSPECTIVE. And since all modifications take place with the wave of the mouse, there is a definite "tacticity," if you will, to the interface, not unlike CALIGARI. You get near immediate feedback so you know if your move was right or if you've made a mistake...but don't worry, there's a very useful gadget for these instances right up at the top of the screen...the UNDO :) And if you need to make very precise modifications, each of the gadgets has an accompanying text-entry window for coordinates. Creating SEGMENTS from scratch is a fairly straight-forward process similar to polygon modelers. You simply click the ADD gadget, or press [A] and begin placing CONTROL POINTS onscreen. Now you have two points connected by a spline. If you have several points linked by splines that you wish to join together you click on the LOOP gadget and the ends are closed. To aid in the placement of control points, you can turn GRID SPACING on by selecting GRID from the PREFERENCES menu and enter a value for the spacing (default is 20). But instead of a screen full of intersecting lines, which can be confusing at times, you only see their intersection represented by a single dot. This also helps to combat the flicker that thin horizontal lines can cause. From the panel of gadgets along the top of the screen you can select tools to aid in the modeling process. The GROUP tool lets you draw a bounding box around several CONTROL POINTS so that JMan knows that the next tool or function is to affect only these points. Once selected, points may be PEAKed, SMOOTHed, EXTRUDEed, or CLONEed. You can also HIDE selected points if they're in the way. >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> .SIG v2.5 <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< UUCP: ...!crash!pnet01!pro-party!seanc RealWorld: Sean Cunningham ARPA: !crash!pnet01!pro-party!seanc@nosc.mil Voice: (512) 992-2810 INET: seanc@pro-party.cts.com ____________________________________ // | * All opinions expressed herein | HELP KEEP THE COMPETITION UNDER \X/ | Copyright 1991 VISION GRAPHICS | >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>><<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<