New Users
Get started and learn the ropes!
A:M Forum Rules
GENERAL FORUM GUIDELINES
The A:M Forum is for technical support and the sharing of tips and ideas between users/prospective users of Hash software. It is moderated constantly by technical support representatives.
DO'S!
-Ask questions about the software.
-Assist other users... everyone was new at this once.
-Inform people of your version/platform when asking for help.
-Share resources; tutorials, models, textures, tips and techniques (link to useful websites).
-Post links to your work, or where your art is being used online (on websites, in games, toons', etc.)
-Search the A:M Forum and FAQ. The question you are about to ask may have already been answered.
-Organize and inform others about user groups, IRC chats, image and animation contests, job opportunities, etc.
-Discuss what you are working on and let everyone know about magazine reviews and articles that relate to your projects.
DON'TS!
-Do Not be rude or disrespectful or mean to other forum members in any way. Personal attacks will be removed.
-Do Not post bug/crash reports to the list (send bug/crash reports to http://www.hash.com/reports.
-Do Not complain about forum content. Complaints or suggestions can be sent directly to hash@hash.com
-Do Not reprimand other forum members for violating forum rules, that's the moderators job, which (unless you are a moderator) you are not.
-No complaining or whining on the forum or distribution of misinformation.
-No flames of any kind.
-No Off Topic posts. (Posts in the Off Topics section should be related to A:M in some form or fashion or benefit the A:M community as a whole).
-No soliciting of any kind without prior approval.
-No threads or comparisons related to other 3D Applications.
-No "Wish list" or feature requests, they should be sent to www.hash.com/reports for categorizing and prioritization (User requests define the future development of the software).
-No "me too!" posts
-No discussion of Hash Internal Affairs (finances, advertising, PR.)
-No posting of private email to the forum unless permission of the author is granted. (Private correspondence should remain private)
-No very general questions like: "how do I make a good 3D model" make your questions as complete and concise as possible.
If you have questions as to whether it's appropriate, send it to: support@hash.com, We'll be happy to let you know whether it is, or is not appropriate.
User Led Forum Considerations
Firstly and foremostly, please remember this is Martin Hash's forum and that it is every A:M User's primary resource for information about A:M. In order to remain relevant we need everyone's continuing support and interest.
Secondly, understand there is a distinction between A:M (the program) and the A:M forum. There are some topics and issues that are outside the scope of this forum and most can be deduced by reading through the forum guidelines. These include such things as Hash Inc internal policies, business practices, trade secrets, and specific plans for the future not yet publicly released. Each of these would be fascinating topics of their own but are better reserved for private communications with a representative of Hash Inc.
Related to the second, is purchasing, customer service and other areas outside the purview of the common user who may have no interest in such things; subjects relating to money exchanging hands are beyond the scope of the A:M Forum and often can lead to conflicts of interest between users and/or Hash Inc. (If Hash Inc cuts you a deal on volume purchasing it's really no one else's business). Likewise, individual complaints about a product or service are best remedied by going direct with Hash Inc representatives empowered to make decisions. Please allow them them the time necessary to resolve your specific issue and consider the cost of customized solutions.
This last area is likely the source of much confusion because many see the A:M Forum as the official outlet for Hash Inc... and it is. But the forum is not designed for conducting business and private matters best resolved by going to Hash Inc directly. Similarly, bug reports are best resolved by entering them directly into the A:M Reporting system.
Many problems can be easily addressed at the user level just by asking fellow users in the forum. If someone at Hash Inc suggests the forum as a source, it is very likely a problem can be easily resolved. For tougher issues there is even more reason to take the issue directly to the source... you don't want the issue discussed... you want it resolved quickly.
Finally, remember that we want to pass this forum on to future moderators and generations of A:M Users in the absolute best condition possible. A:M is just that good a program and is worthy of our consideration.
Thanks for making the A:M Forum a great community.
4,155 topics in this forum
-
- 5 replies
- 528 views
In the customize window, all the selections (tool bars, etc) remain until changed except for the scheme. If I want to change it to something else (I quite like the Bordeaux) I have to do it every time I open a project. Is this the way it is designed?
Last reply by bubba, -
- 2 replies
- 612 views
Thank you to everyone for there help these past few weeks. and a happy New Year. simonMessage.mov
Last reply by HomeSlice, -
- 4 replies
- 556 views
I followed the instructions - and this is what happens. I think this may be happening because there IS NO master0.lic file - because I deleted it. I checked. I am using version 16.rc1. How long is my code good for?
Last reply by bubba, -
- 9 replies
- 879 views
Is it possible to limit the rotation of bones at the set up stage so that they do not exceed the natural limits of the human form and, if so, does anyone have a list of the angle limits ? On the setup I have at the moment it is possible to move some bones in the wrong dimension and I have to go back and reset them afterwards. For example: In the fingers, the base of the finger can move in all three dimension ( XYZ). The mid section and the finger tip can only rotate in the z dimension - forwards and backwards. The hope is to setup a rig I can use in future projects. Thank you in advance. regards simon
Last reply by Simon Edmondson, -
- 15 replies
- 1.6k views
I have created an action that rotates an object 90 degrees. The problem is that it always starts from the zero azimuth If it is not a too advanced subject is there any to have the start of the action to be from where the front of the action is facing? Then, I could rotate the object 90 degrees from there.
Last reply by bubba, -
- 8 replies
- 709 views
I have installed the splitpatch plugin by Yoda_64 and when I select a patch(s) to split there is no splitpatch option in the wizards submenu. I'm using AM 15OJ+ on an ImacG5
Last reply by robcat2075, -
- 5 replies
- 694 views
Please help refresh my memory - since I am just learning A:M - is it possible to draw a bounding box around (with the Right Mouse Button) in the Choreography window same as in the Model window?
Last reply by HomeSlice, -
- 1 follower
- 6 replies
- 685 views
Now that I am starting back with AM I have forgotten some hot keys. Here is one I need. At a cp you can have different bias on either side of the cp. What is the hot key that breaks it into? Steve
Last reply by Fuchur, -
- 4 replies
- 532 views
When using the rotate tool, it rotates in steps of 5°, is the a key that can override this rotate snap angle? For I'm quite happy with the rotate snap and all, but there are situation I don't want it and I find it a bit to much trouble going in to the settings tab to turn it off.
Last reply by HomeSlice, -
- 9 replies
- 748 views
Is there a way to set part of the camera view to render(only an area of the image). Thanks in advance for any assistance.
Last reply by NancyGormezano, -
- 1 reply
- 411 views
So i just saw that there are updates for v15. If I download the latest update, will that also include all the fixes from previous updates or not?
Last reply by Fuchur, -
- 0 replies
- 430 views
Now I finally understand why you do a half of a model a lot easy to work with.
Last reply by tbenefi33, -
- 14 replies
- 1.6k views
Almost Christmas and already Christmas cards are landing on my doormat and I expect I’ll find some digital Christmas e-card in my email box any time soon. So instead of building my own e-card online with often pairs with unwanted e-mails I thought why note create my own digital Christmas card created with AM. Quick easy and simple... or at least I initially thought it would be easy... I’m expecting it’s not a whole lot of work, but for someone who is still learning never done any kind of animating before it’s really time consuming and a challenge. The idea is, White background/ground, Render 1 or 2 Christmas balls, hanging from a branch, shadow cast o…
Last reply by wildcard, -
- 1 follower
- 17 replies
- 791 views
Is there an auto-save option in A:M?
Last reply by bubba, -
- 6 replies
- 463 views
I have learned to use the Duplicator wizard to make duplicate objects that are in a straight line. But what do I use to create, let us say six objects in a circle?
Last reply by HomeSlice, -
- 2 replies
- 372 views
In the project I'm working on, I want to set up a follow spot for the figure as it leaps about. I tried to set up an aim at constraint on the spotlight body but it didn't seem to follow the target, even though that was selected under properties. Could someone kindly explain how to achieve this? Working in the latest iteration on an I mac. Thank you in advance. simon
Last reply by Simon Edmondson, -
- 28 replies
- 2.2k views
Having issues creating the simcloth effect. I followed the instructions in the AM book, set up the force and turbulence. And yet when I clicked on simcloth simulate, nothing happens. I've looked for video's but there are usually non applicable. Or they are about what do do after creating all the stuff. Do you guys know a link that will show how to work in AM vrs 13 with Windows xp sp2? Meaning that when they go to a link that I should see the same link in my project as well Thank ya -Sean
Last reply by Sean delgatto, -
- 3 replies
- 625 views
Hi All, Anyone know if it's possible to use AO or Fake AO and maintain nice reflections like this video clip? Thanks in advance! ao_reflections.mp4
Last reply by new guy, -
- 6 replies
- 625 views
Hi guys .... I bought the amazing Jenpy's Fake/Fast AO too, but I can't put it to work.. A:M is crashing when it's being aplied ( after softening pass ).. If I model a simple ball it renders correctly ... but A:M crashs using complex objects ( characters, cars...etc...etc ) Windows 7 64 bits A:M v16 beta 5 / 64 bits check the video... FIXED in 1.03 thanks Jenpy bmw.mp4
Last reply by robcat2075, -
- 1 reply
- 373 views
I buried this question in another question so I thought I would bring it to the fore-front. So how do I recover from an Auto Save? I don't think it is the Revert command because the auto saved file names are different. Do I just navigate to the Backup folder and select the last file?
Last reply by robcat2075, -
- 3 replies
- 546 views
I’m having some issues with an “Ork” flag banner I’m creating. The banner is hanging from a “T” shaped pole similar to the following image. On top of the banner I will be modeling a skull with hair tied in a very long ponytail sticking out on top slightly backwards. But for now, it`s a sphere with one patch with a very dense amount of hair. The banner (or Cloth) I’ve under control, the pole is setup as deflector and the cloth will not pass through it. The hair on the other hand I don’t seem to be able to control From time to time, it will pass through the sphere or pole but most of the time it`s looking ok. But it’s piercing through the banner like it isn’…
Last reply by HomeSlice, -
I did a search for the extension 3ds but did not find any reference. Can this file be opened in A:M, or converted so it will open in A:M. If so, how?
Last reply by bubba, -
- 4 replies
- 506 views
i am stilling using V13. how can i copy an action sequence in AM so that i can ve a duplicate of my work in other frames.
Last reply by robcat2075, -
- 4 replies
- 442 views
I tried putting a model into another model (object) A:M crashed. I tried a second time - success. So I am wondering if this was a one time occurrence (either way) and do objects (mdls) have to be saved first?
Last reply by Rodney, -
- 3 replies
- 504 views
I can understand you might think this a strange question (because there is a simpler way - maybe) but if I were to create two separate boxes, then place one on top of the other and join the corner CPs, are there still two splines or now just one?
Last reply by bubba, -
- 1 follower
- 13 replies
- 851 views
Can Material Effectors be isolated to effect 1 single group? or specific groups?
Last reply by jason1025, -
- 1 follower
- 15 replies
- 983 views
I have a layer and its in a chor its supposed to be a bunch of tiny lights off in the distance. Any ideas on how to make the lights which are basically circles of solid colors twinkle?
Last reply by jason1025, -
- 6 replies
- 575 views
I'm still learning the basic's and am experimenting a lot by simply modeling and running in to problems and learning from those. Trying to build a Mad Cat (aka Timber Wolf), a battlemech robot. It has a lot of square,cylinder, octangle shaped elements in its design. out of a square shaped cube, like this missile pod, where missiles are sticking out. It took me a good deal of time of patch up the front (rendered as lines) but with all the patching I had the task of, trying to reduce the cp's and trying to reduce them. and this really gave me a headache, ran in to a lot of odd looking patches when making hooks. So i'm wondering if I could eliminate…
Last reply by robcat2075, -
- 4 replies
- 624 views
hey gang! my guess is that planet glow would give a texture such as this?
Last reply by detbear, -
- 3 replies
- 426 views
So I've a section of a model that I grouped and named group1, when reselecting it, I'm missing bits and pieces of my selection that I grouped. Now I've regrouped it renamed it and so on but it keeps on happening. Oddly enough when I change view point to any thing but front or back, I'm seeing all selection points of the created group. So only when I'm looking at the group form front or back view, its looks like I don't have cp's selected. This a common problem? using AM V15J+ (CD)
Last reply by wildcard, -
- 3 replies
- 598 views
I've been modeling basic object, with the least amount of patches and control points when ever possible. But as I'm exploring the forums and the Exta's DVD I've ran across a few projects that contained not all to complex model with a very high patch count. What are the advantages (or disadvantages) of having a high patch count on a model?
Last reply by John Bigboote, -
- 3 replies
- 398 views
I'm seeing the "Show Manipulator Properties" being selected in quite a few tutorial video's, the seem to be different looking than the one I'm seeing when I've multiple CP's selected. I've Animation:Master 2002:A Complete Guide, and it has tutorial video's that show the Manipulator Properties to show X,Y,Z Scale and X,Y,Z Pivot when having multiple CP selected. Mine only shows X,Y,Z Offset when having multiple CP's selected. Now I know I can find Scale and Pivot also in the Properties Tab, but I'm human and in nature very lazy, so if I can do some thing with less moving of my mouse I like to take the easy way All joking aside, is there an option to chan…
Last reply by MJL, -
- 1 follower
- 15 replies
- 1k views
this is not a project i'm working on now, but i'd like to understand something and find out what that something is . to make a model come apart at the seams, think "Sarah's Asylum Nightmare" in T2, the nuclear explosion, she's at the playground fence or Iron Man says to computer "exploded view" - is there something called exploded view in reality? (yes i know where this might point and yes i might stray but it's a:m for me, period.) - is there a simple way to use the patch information to perform this type of operation in a:m? boiling down to, can i blow up any model, or should i for instance go find a polygon model and then explode it in a:m? i'd …
Last reply by jimd, -
- 6 replies
- 524 views
So I build my fist model, but when I render a lot patches don't render right. I found the solution and I had to flip normals on the patch that didn't render right. Any quick way to get all patches to be flipped in an outward direction so the render correctly?
Last reply by NancyGormezano, -
- 1 follower
- 2 replies
- 498 views
Hi Folks I am not good with expressions attached is a model I made. The numbers need to spin like a counter adding up to 103. That means the right needs to spin the fastest, the middle needs to spin a slower and the first digit needs to spin the slowest. Eventually the number needs to land on 103 for my project. I made some expressions. currently to animate the dial you need to rotate bone 4 in an action. Thats the fist digits bone. Although this can kind of fake what I need however the rotation of the 2nd and 3rd digits rotate from clockwise to counter clock wise at some points. so you loose the illusion if you spin too slowly. In my fantasy I w…
Last reply by jason1025, -
- 1 follower
- 9 replies
- 678 views
It seems that When glow is set to on and you have reflection on something like the ground, the reflection does not render correctly. Is this a known issue? Should I bother to put in a bug report?
Last reply by new guy, -
At the risk of sounding like a complete newbie (To late) how do you create hooks? I know what they are and how they work but I just dont know how to make them! Thanks in advance. Photoman
Last reply by Darkwing, -
- 1 follower
- 2 replies
- 507 views
I cant see any of my crowed in the flock. I think there is a trick to see them. I think you have to turn on particles but I dont know how?
Last reply by robcat2075, -
- 5 replies
- 563 views
Composite confoooses moi. I have 2 images - the depth buffer.png, and a color image.png I then want to combine these 2 images in A:M using the post effect fakeao, without always having to rerender, in order to try out the fakeao properties/settings. Is it possible to do this in ver16beta5 pc? using composite? some other way? Does composite only work on exr? I have read Holmes tutorial on Compositing Light Buffers - I believe I almost actually did the tut at some point in my life. I believe I got it to work. Somewhat. I could be lying. Or I was probably confused at that time as well. Here's what I have - how do I get the images into a compos…
Last reply by John Bigboote, -
- 1 follower
- 3 replies
- 465 views
does anyone know how to bring audio into a chor so you can sync animation to it? I have not done it before. Could you point me towards tutorials?
Last reply by jason1025, -
- 7 replies
- 730 views
I am having problem with the sprite system. I am unable to create a depth map when using a smoke emitter and fog. I looks like the emitter ignores the fog, and stays bright white no matter what. Using the depth Buffer doesn't work either, the Depth Buffer doesnt render the smoke at all. Can anyone take a look at this problem before I report it? I might have missed something elementary. I could fake it by giving the smoke a grey tint, but it would not be the best solution, since the camera is going to be moving smoke.zip
Last reply by robcat2075, -
- 2 replies
- 516 views
I was doing some digging through the shortcuts in AM, looking for the Hook CP. It appears that there isn't one that we can customize. I say this because I use a Magic Mouse and with the magic mouse, you can't left click and then right click simultaneously, so I was thinking, oh, if I can just change it's command so that I hold down a key and click, that would work. So if there is a way to do this that I missed (cause digging out my older mouse and connecting it for one click is a bit of a pain) please let me know. If not, perhaps it could be added to the development of AM to be able to customize the Hook CP command. Thanks
Last reply by Darkwing, -
- 1 follower
- 3 replies
- 497 views
Hey guys my name is Adam Wermus and I am still trying to learn the ropes of Animation Master(v15) 1) How do you change which camera is dominant during choreography? Say from t= 0 sec to t=3 seconds I want camera 1 to be dominant, then t=3 seconds to t=6 seconds I want camera 2 to be dominant, and then back to camera 1 for the rest of the film? how do I do that? 2) When I try to render a file it takes hours to finish rendering (20+). Is there a way to make that process go by faster or do I just have to be patient? 3) When I have more than one object in a scene for choreography mode, when I play what I have it drags, skips and is very slow making it hard for …
Last reply by Xtaz, -
- 9 replies
- 797 views
Been working some more on terrain texturing today, trying numerous techniques and still coming up pretty blah. You can't really see much here since it's a low-res preview, but there's not much to see. Just giving you an idea of a section of ground I'm working on. Basically a large grid pushed and pulled into terrain shapes. Now, how do I go about texturing this properly? I can't figure out a good flattening technique; endless decals-on-decals to patch stretched looking sides are starting to look pretty lame, porjection mapping a material doesn't seem to be going anywhere useful... suggestions? Thanks a ton!
Last reply by mtpeak2, -
- 1 follower
- 5 replies
- 615 views
how do i change a characters preview to something even simpler than a wireframe? hiding is not an option. they all have the AO options set, beginning to suspect this somehow affects work even when in wireframe, is this possible? i've 11 characters in a scene and haven't even started on the sprites..
Last reply by dblhelix, -
- 1 follower
- 36 replies
- 4.6k views
When AM launches the file path to Data > Libraries > is never correct. We have a ten seat network > education license. When I log on to the computer all the libraries show correctly. When any of my students log onto the computer, none of the libraries show. No Models, no Actions, no Materials, etc. When I go to the Options menu and check the path to the data > library file, the path is always wrong (when my students log on). The path is directed towards the Shaders directory. Note: This problem is only happening on one computer. My other 9 seats work fine. I have tried changing the path in the Tools > Options > Folders tab to point to the …
Last reply by robcat2075, -
Glass Dome
by bubba- 6 replies
- 1.1k views
How do I make a glass dome, like on an anniversary clock? Thanks.
Last reply by bubba, -
- 1 follower
- 5 replies
- 539 views
so i'm on 15j+ and 32bit OS. and i'm in love with those "AO only" renderings people post on jenpy's fast AO thread. they gave me a new script idea. something similar should be possible with just light, shadow, in a colorless environment? it's the oomph in the beautiful blurry shape-moulding gradients that's the issue. actual question: what to study? a specific light category, exr, post? tips on how to make it swift? this project is aeons into the future, just need to nail a few images down, get the atmosphere recorded now that it's so alive in my mind's eye. (any chance one can learn to pose cloth -heavy, flowing cape- in, say, 3 days? needed for the sh…
Last reply by robcat2075, -
- 6 replies
- 521 views
I've been tooling around with the image sequence option for decaling, and simply can't get it to do anything. I've imported as a sequence, and they have little movie clip icons next to them in the timeline - - but I can't seem to get them to actually DO anything when I apply the decal. I've messed with the settings, looked through the manual... nothing. Help!
Last reply by johnl3d, -
- 8 replies
- 881 views
Hi all, I'm hoping some of you guru's might help my students out. We are using 3D Game Studio to develop a 3D game and AM for character development. When using AmxTex to export, AM crashes with some models; and some models it works fine with. Even when we remove the rigging and strip down a model we still encounter crashes. I've attached a simple model (designed after Jeff Lew's Killer Bean) that won't export. Any ideas on what we should try? Mike Bean.mdl
Last reply by wedgeeguy,
