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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.
4,142 topics in this forum
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- 30 replies
- 1.9k views
Hi all, I have a weird problem: I have downloaded a demo version of AM but cannot get it started before I fill out "username" and "organisation" in a registration window that appears when I open the application. Should I register at Hash's web page somewhere first?
Last reply by Darkwing, -
- 4 replies
- 415 views
I was rendering a long set of jpeg. and A:M had a problem. The last frame rendered was 979 I would like to start the render on 980. There is nothing spacial with the animation that I need to worry about I just need to restart it where it left off.
Last reply by DJBREIT, -
- 8 replies
- 841 views
Hello, I'm new to A:M (Well in fact I used ist 10 years ago - but the times they are changing...) I have a very easy question but somehow I don't get it. I want to make some simple animation, with a black figure on a white ground. So the figure is black and everything around her is white. but of course I want to see the schadows of the figure. So I made a plane for the Figure to walk on answitched the camera to white background. but always is something wrong. sometimes the plane is not perfectly white, but the shadows are there or, the plane is white but the shadow disapears. I used bulbs as lights I tried also flat shaded and riecive shadows, with shadow…
Last reply by Florian80, -
- 5 replies
- 646 views
I still have problems when I combine some cctions together. For example if a character walks into a scene I can use a walk action already there. Then the character stops and does something else. For that i use the choreography action. Maybe I want to move the arm of the character. But when I change something after the other acrion there is always an animation created from the begining untill the point where i first move the charcters arm. This always distorts the walk action. What is the usual workflow when combining choreography actions with reusable actions?? I didn't get it right. Thanks for your help!
Last reply by HomeSlice, -
- 5 replies
- 509 views
I'm starting to learn the Treez plugin to make my bonsai tree for my vase. I downloaded the Treez plugin into the hxt folder in my AM folder. How do I install it into AM?
Last reply by mtpeak2, -
- 4 replies
- 461 views
I am working on the Cooper face project and am having some trouble with valid patches. I have looked over the Giraffe project and think i am starting to have a better understanding. However, I am running into a few patches that are not working and I am not sure why. If anyone can explain it would be a big help.
Last reply by Darkwing, -
- 1 follower
- 1 reply
- 290 views
This is a nice treat. Although this is live action CG has the same abilities in repeatable camera moves that we take for granted. I recommend this tutorial for anyone interested in advanced spfx. http://www.cameracontrol.com/reels.html
Last reply by jimd, -
- 3 replies
- 434 views
I cannot detect any difference between " toon with falloff" and "toon with multiple lights" tested in a chor with the default chor lights and some toonmodels. So what is the difference supposed to look like?
Last reply by robcat2075, -
- 1 reply
- 309 views
What would possibly be the best and least rendertimeexpensive way to create a rocket engines jetstream matching the TOON WITH FALLOFF? style? (I am experimenting with some glowing transparent shapes at the moment.) Lensflare,streaks maybe? Has anybody by chance final working examples for this topic? Any FX matching with toonshading would be great...
Last reply by robcat2075, -
- 4 replies
- 354 views
Can someone please help? Ive been watching A:M tutorials for past few months, even read the manual online. I now have a new computer running win 7 and brand new A:M. Both 2 days old YAY! Ive used Maya and Bryce for years and dying to get into A:M now. For some reason my render Bounding Box shows solid (or last rendered pic underneath) when i drag a box. This also happens when selecting splines or points. I looked thru tools/options but couldnt find anything. I also tried running A:M in XP mode 32 bit and had same solid bounding box. Can anyone help? Thank you Michael
Last reply by mikeydee, -
- 1 follower
- 7 replies
- 948 views
My new computer has Microsoft VISTA. When I open the giraffe file, I either get the giraffe without the graph stage or just a white box without the giraffe. How can this be fixed?
Last reply by mikeydee, -
- 22 replies
- 941 views
I've been taking another run at bump maps. I made a bump stencil and put blur on it in Corel. I put it on as a bump map on the model and did a render lock on the model and it looked fine, but when I did a render to file it barely showed as a shadow trace on the surface. Is it because I have a material on the Vase? Why would it render one way in render lock and another in render to file?
Last reply by Darkwing, -
- 1 follower
- 10 replies
- 788 views
This is certainly a case of a guy who left Animation:Master for years and came back... For the record, I'm still running with Animation 2006 here - that was the version I'd upgraded to before I gave it up in despair because my old computer used to crash it. I've now upgraded to a brand new "Windows 7 Home" machine, which runs it very nicely. Anyway, to the subject of my problem. My hare Danbuster's kilt is an essential part of his quirky personality, but not to the point of absurdity I wouldn't have thought. I just tried attaching a SimCloth material to the ring-splines that make up his kilt below the belt, using the defaults from the "Waving the Flag" tutori…
Last reply by robcat2075, -
- 5 replies
- 445 views
Is it possible to have a light in a lightlist so that the light itself only affect one model, but still have that model cast a shadow on other objects? How would I do this?
Last reply by Marcus, -
- 2 replies
- 411 views
Hello All, I am just trying how to figure out basic light placement and adjustments. I tried downloading the tech ref manual but I can't seem to download it from its current location. Is there another place where I can download the tech ref manual from? Also, does anyone know of any basic lighting tutorials? Mark.
Last reply by Mark3D, -
CP Weighting
by TNT- 1 follower
- 6 replies
- 487 views
I just changed to AM v15i. I have the 2008 Rig partially installed but have not mirrored the bones yet. I don't have a lot of experience weighting models but I don't recall this happening before. When I weight a CP between two bones in an action, the CP is moving as I change the balance of the weighting. The two pics show the position of the CP with a 90/10 favoring the Pelvis and a 90/10 favoring the Hip. Note the position change of the CP. Is this supposed to happen? I thought that since the model was in its default pose, nothing should visually change. If I'm doing something wrong I want to fix it before I mess up my model and rigging. Thanks,
Last reply by mtpeak2, -
- 3 replies
- 456 views
I was work on coping a bunch of group pivots to there material. After two hours of mind numbing work I hit some keys and the groups I was working on had there pivots numbers copied to the materials translate. I wish I new what keys I hit because it saved me a boat load of work. If You know something about this please post.
Last reply by DJBREIT, -
- 5 replies
- 367 views
Hey Gang! I'm trying to map some Quicktime files onto the green and blue screens, but unfortunately, AM keeps crashing on me. Should I be using a certain codec? Does AM like Quicktime files with alfas? Should I use some pic sequence such as a targa instead of a Quicktime movie? Also, I wanted to add some people (green screen and keyed with alfa) onto the middle stage. Can I place them there without having to map onto a grid/wall? Can they stand alone away from the wall right up to the railing or do I have to map them onto a solid grid/wall? Thanks in advance.
Last reply by new guy, -
- 9 replies
- 523 views
I'm sure I'm probably doing something wrong here but I'm out of ideas so I thought I'd ask. I've pulled in an older model from the Extras disc as a starting point for something I want to make. While I was at it I upgraded to 15i as my 1 year is about up. Now I'm grouping CP's (and selecting them individually) and I can't get bias handles to show up (I clicked off it and back on again) or the yellow (I"m not sure this is the right term) bounding box around multiple CP's. I've tried selecting the different manipulators and that box just isn't showing up. Although, I can still move the CP's.... I just can't see the box or any of the controls that it gives me…
Last reply by Rodney, -
- 4 replies
- 461 views
I read some place, that when you use let`s say 3 instances of AM to render a scene you can put the first instance to render every 1, next every second, third every third frame. Somehow it escapes me, what the great advantage of this procedure would be compared to leting the first render the first 50 frames, the second the next 50 and the third the last fifty. Is there any advantage and if what is it?
Last reply by Paul Forwood, -
- 4 replies
- 520 views
So yeah, is this model workable with or should i start from scratch again? It's not finished yet keep in mind just curious if i'm on track -the point of this model is the main character in my animation short -He's going to be a skier going through a freestyle course basically Thanks in advance for any feedback skierv3.mdl
Last reply by robcat2075, -
- 0 replies
- 293 views
Is there a way to scale a light bigger especially the bone in order to get a better grip and handling on it in big chors
Last reply by jakerupert, -
- 7 replies
- 443 views
For various reasons I am slowly moving over to using Macs instead of PC's, wherein I discovered a problem today and wondered if anyone might have a solution ? I have set up and tested the animation on a Mac then, while I prepare the next part, was going to get the old PC to render the stills to the best quality because it doesn't matter how long it takes ( relatively ) as I'm preparing the next part. I've tried to keep the same file structure on both platforms but, when I came to rendering on the PC the project file had 'remembered' the destination as being the Mac HD and, although I tried repeatedly, it would not allow me to change the drive ID to suit the …
Last reply by Simon Edmondson, -
- 17 replies
- 995 views
Hello All, I was just attempting to complete the fighter plane tutorial and had a few questions about A:M performance issues. Basically, A:M has been running very smooth with every tutorial until the fighter one. I am having terrible performance issues making A:M completely unusable. Here are some of the issues and steps I've taken to resolve them: - When loading the fighter project that I have been working on it takes over a minute to load. - Once the project loads I am trying to put the back fin on and when I click a node there is a delay of over 30 seconds for it to select. (spinning colour wheel of doom entertains me while I wait) - Once the node f…
Last reply by Mark3D, -
NEW 2 HASH
by oliver- 4 replies
- 451 views
new animation artist. the best in my class.
Last reply by Xtaz, -
I just started with A:M. My goal is to just make simple boxes and color them. Actually, I want to create 3-D engines and eventually use A:M to render street rods. BTW, I am a master draftsman (figure drawing) and have been a traditional animation and graphic design instructor and a professional illustrator for over 40 years. I have the drawing skills. I just don't have the 3-D modeling skills. Thanks. Dennis
Last reply by Xtaz, -
NEW TWO HASH
by chuy- 12 replies
- 825 views
BEST IN MY CLASS ANIMATION MASTER. IF U NEED HELP TELL ME IM A TEACHER
Last reply by Eric2575, -
- 9 replies
- 693 views
I was modeling a jacket and in the fever of splination I inadvertantly hit a key or combination of keys that turned my view from shaded to shaded wireframe with no CP"s. The wireframe is the same color as the model. To repeat in a redundant fashion: What did I do? How can I undo it? How can I do it again? Thanks.
Last reply by MJL, -
- 2 replies
- 378 views
I am trying to work on the face exercise but when I extrude the first set of splines they end up back in the models skull or right in front of his face instead of along the front of the face. I am sure I am doing something silly wrong, but I just cant figure out what.
Last reply by Timekiller, -
- 4 replies
- 463 views
i need help . please . i'd like to create an "anime . " that'd be nice . thankyouverymuch . -matcha .
Last reply by holaachelsea, -
- 1 follower
- 7 replies
- 631 views
Hi Matt Can you tell me how you got that perfect gloss on the top of the globe?
Last reply by John Bigboote, -
can anybody point me to a nice snow material i haven't been able to find one
Last reply by John Bigboote, -
- 1 reply
- 379 views
what would be the best way to go about making a pine tree?
Last reply by HomeSlice, -
- 0 replies
- 299 views
OK hopefully simple. I'm using the extended grid turb material to try and make a grid over the surfaces I'm working with . only problem is that the lines are warping and i don't know why , in the material demo its nice and straight but when rendered comes out like this
Last reply by Master chief, -
- 6 replies
- 617 views
I am setting up for a video tour of a house I have made for You Tube. And after taking two days to figuring out how to get the doors and windows to work at the right time throw an action. It maybe faster to just ask. I am using a path with a camera. 1. How do I speed up/down and stop the camera along the path so I can have the camera stop and look around. 2. How do I set up so the cameras movement as the actions that dictate the time of the video instead of the path. Since it is a pain to recalculate the time ever time I make some changes to the cameras tour of the house. 3. How do I set up an object on the path ahead of the camera so the camera will ai…
Last reply by KenH, -
- 1 follower
- 0 replies
- 348 views
My tutorials can be found here
Last reply by jason1025, -
- 1 follower
- 3 replies
- 354 views
You know above in orange letters, what font was used for "A:M Forums" or does anyone have that Model? If anyone has this model in the picture below or how to get it please let me know. I want to use it for my presentation if possible. Preferably without the Yeti.
Last reply by jason1025, -
- 18 replies
- 1.1k views
Hi Everyone, Does anyone know the biggest resolution AM can render? I tried to render Panavision (2048x871) and AM crashes every time. It does render 1080 every time. Is 1080 the highest resolution AM will output/render? Thanks in advance.
Last reply by Gerry, -
- 1 follower
- 3 replies
- 301 views
I made the mistake of deleting a model that is used as an action object in a pose for another model. I though that the model contained the action object. I was wrong and hours of work were lost. Is there a way to embed action objects? So that you have everything contained in one model?
Last reply by jason1025, -
- 1 follower
- 3 replies
- 400 views
I need to know if there is a difference between hiding a model vs making it 100% Transparent. I have a rig for a camera that simulates a Jib and dolly. I need to see the jib when setting up the camera moves. But I know that render times decrease when there are less patches or models in the chor. Because the rig will never be seen in the final render I need to find out the most efficient way to make it disappear easily. I could hide the model in the modeling window before I render Or I could make it 100% Transparent. I prefer the transparency method because I can create a Pose to easily turn off and on. However Hiding it in my mind assures me that AM i…
Last reply by jason1025, -
- 4 replies
- 505 views
I've installed A:M on a second computer, and ordered a second license. When I try to start A:M on that computer, I can't even get it to start - I only get this error: "The application has failed to start because the application configuration is incorrect. Reinstalling the application may fix the problem.". Reinstalling does not fix the problem. Restarting doesn't either. I can't even find any Master.lic file to delete. Apparently this file has not been created yet. Running XP.
Last reply by Atomike, -
- 3 replies
- 257 views
Ok should be simple im drawing a top down view of a building and using a grid. only problem is that the lines seam to hid behid the grid so in the tod down view you only see parts of the cps and no lines what so ever , is there any way to set the grid to be behind the lines?
Last reply by robcat2075, -
- 7 replies
- 526 views
Hey Everyone. I had to get a second license(web) and installed v15i. However, I need to have 15f instead. Can anyone walk through a step process how to do this on a pc/ vista 64 computer. I have installed, re-installed, tried to copy paste things.... Where I have come back to is I re-installed V_15i again. It is the only one that has worked(obviously)..... The other installs I tried installed fine and even said "successful" after copy/ pasting the activation code. But when I open and begin trying to work in 15f, it errors, and crashes. Where do I create these new folders and paste file(s).... Is there a step process anyone can fill me in on. I have tried wh…
Last reply by detbear, -
anyone got a nice set of rotoscopes for a guys face they could hook me up with?
Last reply by Alex55, -
- 5 replies
- 455 views
This is my first try at making a character and I'm making his head and was wondering if I'm going about this the right way. What I'm trying to do is build different sections of the face and then i was thinking of hooking it all together with just points and smoothing it out. So yeah, if someone could take a look at this and tell me if I'm going about this the right way I would greatly appreciate some pointers and input. Skier__s_Body.mdl
Last reply by Alex55, -
- 1 follower
- 21 replies
- 1.5k views
Hi All I'm working on a model and I can't get the splines to act right. The spline fallows the curve right between the CPs but in some places between 2 CPs the curve flips, like in this image: and you end up with divots where I don't want them, as in this image: I only have 2 = 3 point patches and 2 straight splines. All other patches are 4 point. Here is an image of the splines: I've tried to refind normals, I selected one of these weird splines and tried to flip the normal and I tried using the smooth tool, all with no effect. This model looks OK with the toon shader turned on: but I'm trying to use him as a standard 3d …
Last reply by earthquake, -
- 1 follower
- 6 replies
- 525 views
hey does anyone know where i can find a tutorial on creating like a basic human?
Last reply by Alex55, -
- 1 follower
- 4 replies
- 434 views
I find myself creating unique looks in group attribute and then I say to myself I wish I had that as a material. How can I easily creat that as a material without having to do it manually.
Last reply by jason1025, -
- 4 replies
- 313 views
hopefully simple question , i import a roto scope into AM but for some reason it makes the line that are in front of the image t-4 times thicker . is there any way to turn this off?
Last reply by KenH, -
- 7 replies
- 543 views
How would i go about filling in the center of a model, when i made it it ended up being just an outline.
Last reply by Alex55,
