Path: utzoo!attcan!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!oscsuna.osc.edu!pixelpump.osc.edu!stein
From: stein@pixelpump.osc.edu (Rick 'Transputer' Stein)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.transputer
Subject: Re: Pixar & transputers? RenderMan on Transputers?
Message-ID: <196@oscsuna.osc.edu>
Date: 24 May 89 13:48:24 GMT
References: <8905241244.AA24229@devvax.TN.CORNELL.EDU>
Sender: news@oscsuna.osc.edu
Reply-To: stein@pixelpump.UUCP (Rick 'Transputer' Stein)
Organization: Ohio Supercomputer Center
Lines: 30
Summary:If you want photorealism, go for it!
Keywords:Renderman, transputers, Pixar Ray Tracing Engine

In article <8905241244.AA24229@devvax.TN.CORNELL.EDU> K312240@AEARN.BITNET (Klaus Kusche) writes:
>
>Has anyone listening to this list any idea how active Pixar (the
>company producing these wonderful computer graphics) is in the
>transputer area???
>
Sure, if you're up for unsubstantiated rumors.  At one time, Pixar
had a project brewing in their laboratory.  It was a 64 Txxx ray-tracing
engine which happened to implement the RenderMan standard.  As I understand
it, the frames for "Tin Toy," an animated short which was given an
Academy Award (Oscar), was entirely computed on this engine.

As far as I know, its still a laboratory system, and isn't planned
on being commericalized.

>Moreover, has anybody heard of (or even better: is anybody working
>on) an implementation of Pixar's RenderMan rendering software on
>transputers (in parallel of course!)?
At one time, I considered implementing RenderMan on transputers for
a project.  However, since I was concerned with scientific visualization
and not glossy photographs (e.g., photorealism), I opted instead for
HOOPS from Ithaca Software.
>Greetings
Que pasa?
>* Klaus Kusche
-=-
Richard M. Stein (aka Rick 'Transputer' Stein)
Concurrent Software Specialist @ The Ohio Supercomputer Center
Ghettoblaster vacuum cleaner architect and Trollius semi-guru
Internet: stein@pixelpump.osc.edu