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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.
4,158 topics in this forum
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- 3 replies
- 311 views
I rendered out a shaded wireframe AVI of my chroegraphy - a landspeeder driving round a crater. Everything looked OK so I set it to work on a final, multipass version as a series of TGAs (for the alpha - the crater is "live action") and went to bed. Just before the halfway mark, for three frames, there is a big jitter in the placement of the vehicle and its transparency. I think that it's something to do with the rotation around Y passing the 360 degree mark, and over the four passes it's coming out as a different position. I don't know why it should flash about the frame so wildly, though. There are no keyframes at that point. I've attached a render of four sec…
Last reply by Gorf, -
- 3 replies
- 306 views
OK...i've finally moved to California, so now I have time to concentrate on this program. I want to upload my first animations "Knight Pitch" file. But this forum says i'm not allowed to upload "this type of file". It's an "AVI". What do I have to do to upload this? Steven update: think this works.....It's a black background I think because of the "low" rendering. KnightPitchMOV.mov
Last reply by Dhar, -
- 1 follower
- 2 replies
- 487 views
What is the best way to start or Plan an animation short? Would I get the backgrounds, props and etc. set up first? Or do the animation first and add the other stuff later? Also is it better to do a shot by shot animation and render it all together later? Which Programs (I.E. Photoshop Vegas, Illustrator) are best for this type of animating? I know Lots of questions, and probably 10 times as many answers, but I need a little suggestive help to find the best way for me to get an organized approach to starting and completing an animation. Any tuts out there would be helpful too. Thanx
Last reply by Wolf, -
- 2 replies
- 375 views
Hi - I created a character and dropped him into a choreography scene - it added a large bone that is making it hard to work with because it is so large. Here is a pic Is there a way to hide this bone and why did it add the bone in the first place when I put him in the scene? Thanks - Eric
Last reply by flashawd, -
- 3 replies
- 304 views
Hi - I set up several poses for a character to practice pose sliders. I have a bend left, right, forward and back- which I all have set to "0" on the pose sliders. I started a new action and it puts the character in the screen, but has him bent forward, which is one of the pose sliders, but is shouldn't be doing that. Anyone know what I did wrong? Thanks - Eric
Last reply by flashawd, -
- 1 follower
- 8 replies
- 696 views
Thank you for looking. I'm just about ready to purchase for first time. Can I import an image, weather it be a digital camera image, paint program image, etc.... and use this to either "trace" or use as a guideline for making my image in AM? Again and thank you. Just a suggestion, a "Pre Sales" forum may be useful. Tom
Last reply by dwdmguy, -
- 1 reply
- 208 views
Hi - I am playing around w/ one of the characters "Eddie" to see how the skeletal structure is set up and I am not seeing the bones for his eyes, I am guessing they are turned off - where is the setting to see all the bones of a character? Thanks - Eric
Last reply by flashawd, -
- 3 replies
- 318 views
Hi again - When you have 2 sentences for example the KeeKat tutorial: "I have a secret. Can you keep a secret" Between the two sentences there is a pause, but my characters mouth is slowing starting to open during the pause. How do I keep his mouth completely shut until the second sentence starts "Can you keep a secret"?
Last reply by flashawd, -
- 2 replies
- 294 views
Hi - I created a character and created all the 9 mouth alphabet positions for the character as pose sliders and named them appropriately. I created a new action and dropped in "secret" audio clip from KeeKat Tutorial. I made a new dope sheet for it and it automatically filled in everything. The problem is his mouth isn't moving, but everything is set up and working fine - when I scroll over the audio all the pose sliders are moving back and forth as they should - just no mouth movement. I tested it w/ KeeKat and it worked fine, so the issue is something I did with this model. Any ideas what I might be doing wrong? Thanks - Eric
Last reply by flashawd, -
Hi - can anyone point me in the direction of a tutorial that someone has created that uses a particle system for jet engine effect? A solid, almost pointed short stream of fire. Thanks - Eric
Last reply by flashawd, -
- 2 replies
- 418 views
Hello all, sorry if this might have been asked before, I searched for a while, and couldn't find an answer. What I am trying to do is model objects that I want to render into single frame animations. I need the backgrounds to be transparent, or at least one solid color. The goal is to say model a tree or rock outcropping that I could render into a 2d image and paste it as a "billboard" on a plain in DarkBasic Pro. What I have done so far is to eliminate the ground in the chor and eliminate all unnecessary lighting. However, I can't seem to get the background color to a uniform color. If anyone has used AM for gaming apps, any ideas or methods would be greatly appreciat…
Last reply by mshihrer, -
- 4 replies
- 384 views
Hi - I created a character and need to set up some pose sliders for eye lids shutting, turning left & right, etc. Should I set these up using CP's or put small bones for the eyelids, eyes, etc? What is the proper way? Thanks - Eric
Last reply by flashawd, -
- 2 followers
- 2 replies
- 331 views
i wanna make some decals, but not know where to begin. guess i suck at that ;; all this time ive been trying to use photoshop to build the stuff, but ive been wondering wondering if theres a program i could use to paint the materials right on the model, that would be awsome
Last reply by Caroline, -
- 2 replies
- 419 views
I tried to do some research on my own but found little to nothing call me blind or whatever but, guess i just didnt know where to look in the previous versions of AM a new set of particle systems were introduced and the cloth material as well so i was wondering, whats new in the latest version of AM?
Last reply by Jason Simonds, -
- 1 follower
- 1 reply
- 274 views
Hi guys I'm sure this is a really easy fix, but I'm not sure what's going on. I've rendered a simple line that glows and then fades out. (I've rendered it with an alpha channel) The glow shows up in the .mov file and everything is fine, however when I put it into after effects to be composited, it loses the outside glow completely. I've attached a picture of it with the glow, and then how it looks in after effects when it's supposed to be glowing- but of course nothing is really happening. The glow doesn't show up in other editing programs either. I can always add my own glow in after effects, but I wanted to know if anybody can tell me if I'm doing something wrong. Is it…
Last reply by zandoriastudios, -
- 3 replies
- 413 views
my system crashed and i had to reinstall AM now im having trouble finding some of the models that came with AM more specifically many of the basic shapes any ideas?
Last reply by eptigo, -
- 2 replies
- 354 views
Sorry if this has already been asked, but I can't see the smoke on the hash cd. I also can't see anything when I make a "streak emitter". Do i have something turned off or has anybody heard of this problem? I am using v13.0s.
Last reply by raineyeric, -
- 3 replies
- 479 views
Hello all, I am not sure if I am messing up the applicatoin of my "toon" material or if it is an issue with AM 2005 (Version 12.0w). When a 5 point patch falls along an edge during a render, the toon line color is wrong. This picture shows the under arm area of my model. Notice how the area under the arm has a hazy orange outline. This material should render as a cyanish-blue with a black outline. Does anyone have any tips? Do I need to do something special when applying a material to a 5 point patch? Thanks.
Last reply by animsakari, -
- 3 replies
- 319 views
Hi - I creted two facial pose sliders for a character - "New - Pose - Percentage". The pose sliders are listed under "Properties', but not Pose Sliders. And when I slide it from "0" to "100" is doesn't do anything unless I right click on it and click "edit relationship" and then slide it. Please let me know what I did wrong. Thanks, Eric
Last reply by KenH, -
- 1 follower
- 10 replies
- 598 views
Hi - I am playing around creating an animated fan character and I am getting these weird distortions when I render the image in different areas of the model - Here is a pic of the back of the fan - I have the distortion circled. Thanks
Last reply by zandoriastudios, -
- 6 replies
- 463 views
Hi there, Just woundering if you could put lights in the model panel. As this would help me with my road and my street lights. Will i have to just put loads of little lights on-top of the street lights? Would a glow effect work as a light? Elliot
Last reply by heyvern, -
- 1 reply
- 276 views
I am trying to make a pose slider - I go to "new" - "pose" - "percentage" - that works fine it pulls up the model in the main screen, but none of the control points are active on the model - to create the pose. Not sure what I am doing wrong, and suggestions? Thanks - Eric
Last reply by flashawd, -
- 4 replies
- 394 views
Hi Again - I have an object grouped and gave it a name and colored it red. I wanted to change a color of the portion of it to black, so I grouped that portion and gave it a seperate name - I tried to change the color of that to black - it is showing as black in the properties box but the model is still red- can't figure out what I am doing wrong. Thanks.
Last reply by flashawd, -
- 1 follower
- 8 replies
- 715 views
Hi - can anyone tell me a quick and easy way to make a perfect circle for an eyeball - also can someone point me in the direction of some eye images I can use as decals or tell me if you have any tricks to making them. - Thanks again for all your help.
Last reply by the_black_mage, -
- 15 replies
- 1.1k views
Hi, ive put 2 posts in here, but when i return to the forum few hours later...they disapear!
Last reply by chuchi_disturbed, -
- 3 replies
- 333 views
Hello again - been quite some time since I played w/ this program, so having to relearn - so probably many more questions to come. I have half of a circular tube - I had a full circular tube, but screwed it up, so now I have a half. I need to copy/flip/attach it but where do I put it to do that - it sets it right next to it. -Thanks
Last reply by phatso, -
When I try to work with sound, AM 10.5 crashes every time. I have made a sound file (wav) and have put this file in the sound library. When I, according exercice 7 "Can you say that", select the dope sheet, type the sound text in the box and klick OK, the dictionary does his work properly and all boxes are grey. As soon as I drag the frame marker in the timeline window, AM crashes directly or after some dragging. WHAT MAY BE THE CAUSE ?
Last reply by jannus850, -
- 1 reply
- 399 views
Hello amigos, is there any way (easier) to put sky lights?
Last reply by MMZ_TimeLord, -
- 1 follower
- 6 replies
- 589 views
Ok, I just got A:M Monday, I installed and got ready to use it to start praticing and learning the ropes. The things I have noticed, KeeKat , in Choreography mode in the Choreography window looks like his right ankle is broken and bent to the side. But when I select model or skeletal mode in the Choreography window, KeeKat is fine. I have found a way to fix it with the IK, but is this a temporary or permanent fix? Also the same goes for Knight when using his premade actions. I used the normal walk cycle action for Knight in Choreography, and his legs walk with the knees going the other way. Is there someway I can get around this, or do I need to find a fix for t…
Last reply by Rodney, -
- 5 replies
- 555 views
Hello - I want to copy/flip/attach part of an object to make all the sides exact, but I need to delete a portion of it before I do - when I select the cp and click on "delete" on the keyboard it deletes the cp's, but attached what is left to other cp's - is there a way to select and delete the faces so it just removes it all cleanly? - hopefully I explainded what I am trying to do - Thank you.
Last reply by rusty, -
- 1 follower
- 3 replies
- 642 views
Hi all, I can't make any good models, and i want to use other ones, so i was wondering where i should go to get models for free that i can use on AM. If you know it'd help me out a lot if you could tell me. Thanks
Last reply by Bruce Del Porte, -
- 1 follower
- 10 replies
- 686 views
Hi - I am running through exercise 11.5 - the face. I am having trouble w/ the 5 point spline where the eye and the nose meet. I have the 5 control points set up but when selecting the 5 cp's the "5 point spline button" doesn't activate. So I try a few more times and about the 5 time of selecting the 5 cp the button becomes active to where I can press it and it creates the 5 point patch. Is there a certain order you have to select the cp for it to activate - not sure what I am doing wrong. Thanks - Eric
Last reply by flashawd, -
- 1 follower
- 3 replies
- 556 views
Hi, I'm not sure if people are able to send the models they have made to other people. If you know can you please tell me? Thanks
Last reply by Rodney, -
- 7 replies
- 849 views
Well I'm in the process of using hair to create foilage. So far so good. Now I need to model a vine. I was thinking of using splines to simulate the vine. can i use a single spline as an emitter?" One more question... Can an emmited object be given more flex points like an emmited streak?
Last reply by the_black_mage, -
- 3 replies
- 613 views
Whenever i go to import 3ds files in AM 10.5 with the 3ds import plugin it starts to load the 3ds file until it get to 20% and AM closes instantly. Any advice?
Last reply by Muff, -
- 3 replies
- 362 views
is there a way to duplicate a simple shape randomly across a surface?
Last reply by Rodney, -
- 1 follower
- 3 replies
- 425 views
I'm working on a choreography, and I made a lot of mistakes moving the model around. Now the character is far away from the model bone, and I need to animate a long straight ahead walk (no walk cycles). I'm finding it difficult to get the character to walk smoothly. I'd like to replace the model with a new instance at the exact same point in the chor. I guess it would be like a stunt double. My current approach is to move the model bone of the original character out of the range of my camera with a hold interpolation, so the original model instantly dissapears, and replace it with the new model at the same location in the same pose with a hold interpolation. I'm…
Last reply by Bruce Del Porte, -
- 3 replies
- 568 views
Hi all, I was just wondering how you make water? Elliot
Last reply by johnl3d, -
- 1 reply
- 436 views
Hi, Here are some good site's for blueprints and rotoscopes. http://www.the-blueprints.com - Very good site for everything e.g Planes, Weapons, Cars http://www.militaryfactory.com/blueprints/..._blueprints.asp - Useful for planes and helicopters (basic blueprints). http://www.frazmtn.com/~punstr/blueprint/ - Less detail but good for Star Wars Blue prints If you have any more please add them below, and I will add them to my list. If you can't find a rotoscope or a blueprint that you want please reply with the name of it and I will try to find it Enjoy Elliot
Last reply by R Reynolds, -
- 2 replies
- 502 views
I figured I would post this to show, I've working on walks, and doing some jumps, i decided to see if I could make a character just stand there and be believable as opposed to the static frozen pose. I've had AM for a week and half.
Last reply by Lee, -
- 4 replies
- 625 views
I was wondering what is considered good spline and patch design in A:M. So far I'm up to exercise 11, and it seems like TAOA:M always has 2 splines running through each control point - as a result, 3-point and 5-point patches are necessary. I have an acquaintance who is very experienced at modeling, and he claims 5-point patches are a bad habit and should be avoided; according to him, models should be made entirely out of quads to prevent creasing. However, he works with LightWave, so I don't know how applicable that advice is to A:M. Here's an example of a foot he modeled: (copyright oDDity) Although it's made entirely out of quads, that seems to necessitate oc…
Last reply by frosteternal, -
- 1 follower
- 8 replies
- 889 views
Hey so i was trying out the sweeper plugin that comes with animation master and i cant get it to work. There is a drop down list for crossections but mine stays blank. I looked at the tutorials on the sweeper website and i follow the directions percicely (i think) Is there some hidden setting or a secret code i have to know? I named the crosection the right way but it dosnt display. If anyone here uses sweeper could you please help me with this? Thanks
Last reply by clonewar12345, -
- 1 reply
- 369 views
HELLO! Somebody knows how can I choose which Choreographic Actions must be affected by SimCloth simulations and which not? I mean, if I run "SimCloth Simulate" it affects and modify all my actions and sometimes it overwrite those actions where I've make some manual CP animation, plus it take more time generating unnecessry simulations and bring other disadvantages trying to work with this "layered" animation" technique... Well, any clue about this? (I'd be very grateful ) THANKS!
Last reply by Ramón López, -
- 1 follower
- 12 replies
- 1.2k views
Hi, I would like to make a series of children's cartoons based on religious principles. I have a very talented artist but who has no computer skills. I am a programmer with little natural artistic talent. I'm researching the feasibility right now. Can anyone provide me their opinion if I am being realistic with this and what kind of commitment I'm looking at? I have wanted to learned 3D animation for a while but have never been able to get the right software or spend enough time. I am proficient in Photoshop and Flash. Thanks, Luke
Last reply by phatso, -
- 2 replies
- 408 views
Hi! I am a long time user of A:M but sometimes even we have newbee-questions So: How do you set the pivot of a model to a new position? When I model a character and rig it and than I want to reset the pivot of the model (in the model-window) to a new position so that for example the feet of my character are at the 0 / 0 / 0 point. I could translate the geometry and after that the bones with a translate-comment on the highest hierachy-level, but I wounder if there is a way to just set the model-pivot with a number-input like "Set new pivot to 50 cm lower."? Thanks for your time and your answers *Fuchur*
Last reply by Fuchur, -
- 3 replies
- 535 views
I'm having a strange problem with a model - I modelled it on my laptop using AM v11.1i and it looks like this - (see "strange") but the original model (created in AM11.0t) looks like this on my desktop (see "Thomas") I only need an answer - I must have phrased my question wrong in my original thread that got deleted - but do I need to delete the hair material shortcut and re-apply or should I start the hair all over again? Apologies to Hash if I say anything wrong, I've been off the forums a few years and may say the wrong thing the wrong way. Alf
Last reply by Bruce Del Porte, -
- 5 replies
- 658 views
I appologize if this question is in the wrong place, but I couldnt find the info through several searches. I currently use version 12, and am seriously considering upgrading to 13. I was just curious what the new features are in 13 and if you guys thought it was worth the money to upgrade??
Last reply by KenH, -
- 1 reply
- 462 views
I have some problems and therefore question with the use of multiple chor actions: 1) Multiple chor actions are used for better structuring a scene, correct? 2) When I create a new choreo action, the first key frames are always automatically drawn at the beginning of the whole choreo (starting that way long before the action's chor range; see attachment). Can't I have the action really only start at the exact frame the action is meant to begin? 3) Do I have to start every chor action with a full keyframe on all bones to get my desired action? An unkeyed bone - due to the effect from my previous question - gets his "history" from the first choreo frame! …
Last reply by Bendytoons, -
i have a prob, im working of flower power and when it says open the attributes of the stem the little arrow isent there any ideas?
Last reply by C-grid, -
Hey, Im curious as to how you get involved in working on TWO i would love to help but i would obiously need to concentrate on working in certain areas before i get involved. Do you have to show a certain proficency or what? Thanks Geoff
Last reply by Rodney,
