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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.
4,140 topics in this forum
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- 1 follower
- 12 replies
- 1.1k views
As a test for my first animation in A:M, I want everything to happen around a group of rocks [underwater]. What's the easiest way to make the camera revolve around a center? In other programs, I could move the 'geometric center' of the object. In this case, do I need to move the 'camera bone'?[attachmentid=12848]
Last reply by ArgleBargle, -
- 1 follower
- 4 replies
- 684 views
Well, I've decided to get A:M. Even though I will post here again, I just wanna say thanks to you guys, these forums have been very helpfull with my decision making. So, I'm going to buy it in about three months or so, until then I'll make a good old fasioned analog effects mafia movie, and put off my fan film until I get A:M. Thanks again!
Last reply by Tacku, -
- 3 replies
- 641 views
I am trying to change background color, permately if possible, so I can key out background when compositing. I can't find the color chip mentioned in the help files to save me. I find a control for the ground color but not background color. Any help is appreciated.
Last reply by luckbat, -
- 2 replies
- 574 views
Hello and Goodday, I am trying to rotoscope a simple vault and I have an image... however when I go through the process to put it into the work place through the rotoscope selection all I get is a white box... I thought maybe there was something wrong with the picture so i tried the image used in the video tutorial but it did the same thing... any ideas how I could fix that? Raul Castro
Last reply by ofgiants, -
- 1 follower
- 3 replies
- 639 views
HELLO! Hmmm, I treat to explain me... A Patch or surface is not generated when the area is delimitated by five points/lines/faces/splines (I don't know how call it...) or more and I wonder if there was a secret way or ways... Well, THANK YOU very much (in advance) and CIAO!
Last reply by Ramón López, -
- 7 replies
- 815 views
Wondered what folks thought as best enhancement for my AM experience. Currently have a Geoforce 4 Ti 4600 Video card with 128 ram and have a p4 2.53 processor with 512 ram. Having only been working with AM for ver 12.n for about two months so I was curious what would be best choice to get a better video card with maybe 256 mb of video ram or increase my system ram to 1gb. Sometimes for me choreography is a little jumpy when I have a number of items on screen especially with textures and sometimes my model manipulating seem a little quirky . So wondered of these two choices what might be best. Overall I am having great time learning AM. And I know a faster cpu is always …
Last reply by Motility, -
- 3 replies
- 656 views
I am still on exercise 7 and having some more trouble. I have tried to find the index file on the disk. I am using a mac 867/ 1gb memory and tiger 4.3 When I right click and go to the dope sheet. I then add "I've got a secret ect. I click on ok and get the message: Dictionary modified or Index file missing. Recreating Index File. From there it just goes in a circle with: Trouble opening the dictionary index file! I need to know where the index file is on the disk for the mac. I can't find it. (in the tutorial it says that you take the file from the disk and drop it into animation master folder) Thanks
Last reply by Douglas, -
- 1 follower
- 1 reply
- 611 views
I saw this in the contest...what does it mean to be "The Art of A:M" Alum? Edit: Wow, i must have selective sight...i was looking at the stickies but somehow i missed the one that completely explains this. very sorry.
Last reply by forevernameless, -
still help
by cuboos- 2 replies
- 609 views
i need to know how do i make a still pic what i have been doing is making a small avi movie and then take a pic from it is this how i'm suppose to do it or is there another way?
Last reply by Stuart Rogers, -
- 5 replies
- 755 views
I am trying to get started with A.M. I can't seem to get the Pose Sliders to come up. I am on exercise 7. I am using tiger. Everything was working before I had to reinstall everthing on my mac and now I get no pose. Is there anything that I can do? Thank you for any help.
Last reply by Stuart Rogers, -
- 3 replies
- 471 views
Following along with the book Excercise 5 Take A Walk, I've been unable to fix the slipping occuring. I've adjusted the stride length, shortening both points, lengthening both points, lengthening one point while shortening the other, nothing seems to really work. How do you adjust the stride length to get rid of slipping?
Last reply by sbk, -
- 1 follower
- 2 replies
- 567 views
I've animated tanks in Carrara, but this one is a first in A:M. I'm thinking that I should arrange one whole track [treads. drive wheels, armor. etc.] as a named group, animate a full cycle where each track-plate goes all the way around once, and save that Action to the Library. Then duplicate it, flip it on the Z-axis and drop the Action onto the new tread. Is there a better way? [in Carrara this was not difficult, but it was tedious. So before I launch in...] Secondly, in Carrara, there was a way to select groups of key-frame markers, and, [if I recall correctly, by holding down the Alt key] drag the markers out proportionally, thereby slowing the action, or compre…
Last reply by cstanton, -
- 2 replies
- 576 views
I'm trying to model a '50's style fedora similar to the one shown. The hat itself is little problem, but my challenge especially concerns the portion of the band circled in yellow. Would it be better to model this in geometry or as a (bump, normal, or displacement) map... I'm concerned that a map would make it less 3D than it is, though the actual "bow" on a fedora is pretty form-fitting in real life, it does have dimension and this photo shows it fairly well at the rear of the bow where it is obviously not "decaled" to the hat, but a seperate piece. [attachmentid=12783] Of course, since it would be part of complex scenes (with a person under it) patch cou…
Last reply by oakchas, -
- 1 follower
- 5 replies
- 729 views
I find that if a texture is applied 'planar', it looks as it ought to. [unless stretched over a large area] But if textures are applied spherically, or cylindrically, [even if the bounding box area is reduced to fit] they want to look blurry, or smeared across the object. Has anyone else had this problem?
Last reply by Eric2575, -
- 1 follower
- 2 replies
- 612 views
Hi Guys! Hope u all had a good Christmas and don't drink and drive tonight for the New Year! Just a quick question. When I try to bring up the Help in A:M, it just comes with 'Failed to Launch Help'. I know I can just go into the Programs, Hash etc using explorer but I'm lazy Anyone know the secret? Thanks!
Last reply by noewjook, -
- 1 follower
- 5 replies
- 753 views
So... how, or when does a 'newbie' (or should I say apprentice) get to join a user group, or no longer be considered a 'newbie'? (newbie... I always hated that word)
Last reply by nimblepix, -
- 24 replies
- 1.7k views
Hello - I have purchased a custom built PC with an AMD 320+Ghz dual core processor with 2 gig of RAM and I'm still running into long rendering times. Rendering a 20 sec (491 frames) animation in "preview" mode at low res (320x240) is still taking over 2 hours. My choreography's ground and sky are just the default A:M backgrounds. I am running A:M 11.1 on my startup disc and rendering to a seperate internal hard drive. Surely this rendering time is abnormally long. Any suggestions? Thanks, Chris
Last reply by luckbat, -
- 2 followers
- 19 replies
- 1.4k views
Hello, I think this is what David refers to as "gamma popping" in his book. Sometimes when I am animating a character in the Chor, the arms in particular will look a little "planar" and concave along one spline (flattened-looking). If I switch to muscle mode and select what I think is the offending CP with its spline direction, it will suddenly go back to the way it should look. I understand what gamma does, but because this character is not a mechanical model, I haven't adjusted the gamma at all. All randomly sampled CPs have a (default?) gamma of 0%. It's as if occasionally a spline forgets whether it is to bend in or out. As I said, as soon as I touch a CP+splin…
Last reply by sbk, -
- 6 followers
- 147 replies
- 10.4k views
It is that time again. Time for upgrading to the latest edition of Animation:Master. As a way of saying thanks for your continued support of the New Users Forum I will again be raffling off a free upgrade here in the New Users Forum. This year the rules have changed a little in order to include more A:M Users and to thank everyone for supporting new users of A:M. The rules: 1) Only legal owners of Animation:Master (any version) are eligible. 2) Hash Inc is not affiliated with this contest and no connection with them should be inferred. 3) A:M Users can enter their names in the contest twice* 3a) A:M Users must post in this thread to indic…
Last reply by dborruso, -
- 22 replies
- 2.7k views
Okay so I'm modelling my thing. I've gotten started on putting insides, but I accidentally make a wrong few splines and when I delete them there's still one spline left following the same path as the one already there connecting other splines. I can't deelete this withought screwing up my model. And sometimes I just want to delete other things and it screws up there too. It deletes whole areas of my model from just deleting one vertice. How do I delete it w/o doing thart? How do I delete individual spline segments? Also I'm having through with undoing in the modeller. It alwways goes back a couple steps on the same step I just did and starts to deform it and mess it …
Last reply by Sacman, -
- 10 replies
- 935 views
Has anyone out there used the AI plug in that comes with Animation Master? I am trying to bring in a logo from an illustrator file and I can locate the file no problem, the option dialogue box comes up, but when I hit "ok" nothing happens. The model window just sits empty. Anyone actually been able to create a 3D logo with the AI plug in?
Last reply by ArfGraf, -
- 0 replies
- 566 views
It may have been mentioned but its worth repeating. The v12 Help Installer has been added to the Help Page. You can view the Help files online or... with the help of the installer from right inside Animation:Master The links and installers can be found here: http://www.hash.com/htmlHelp/
Last reply by Rodney, -
- 9 replies
- 875 views
All, Just a note from your friendly neighborhood New Users Forum moderator to say I'll be out quite a bit in July. I may have limited connectivity to the internet so my ability to answer personal mail etc. will be effected. This is something of a summer family vacation that will take me to Illinois, Los Angeles, Tokyo, Los Angeles and a variety of other places in between. The tour should end with a visit to SIGGRAPH 2005 where I'm looking forward to meeting some of the great people that frequent this forum. If you see a guy that looks lost in LA it'll probably be me so please direct me to the Hash Inc booth! I'll be checking the forum every time I'm near…
Last reply by vf124, -
- 16 replies
- 2.5k views
For those that like to be ahead of the power curve I'm proud to announce that Hash Inc is releasing the new edition of The Art of Animation:Master. You can find the PDF manual and files associated with new/updated exercises on the Hash Inc FTP site: ftp://ftp.hash.com/pub/updates/windows/Am2005/2005Manual.pdf 24.6MB ftp://ftp.hash.com/pub/updates/windows/Am...wManualData.zip 5.1MB Of specific interest to older A:M Users will be two new exercises: Exercise 11.5: Make a Face - Colin Freeman's Cooper Face building tutorial. Exercise 20: It's Getting a Bit Hairy - Kevin Waldron's Wookie Hair tutorial Exercise 16: Smoke, Wind and Fire has also …
Last reply by selahpoetic, -
- 0 replies
- 847 views
Darrin Mossor has some really excellent tutorials on his website. There are several subject that I thought I would like to do a tutorial on but Darrin says it better than I ever could. Some of the information might seem a little outdated (most created in 2002) but they are must read tutorials. For instance: Layers Tutorial by Darrin Mossor Other tutorials can be found here: http://www.mossor.org/Desktop/index.html These tutorials include: - Writing with Sprites - The Duplicator Wizard -or- 5 minute instant DNA - Walking a Centipede Along a Path -or- Building Complex Animations from Simple Pieces - Footsteps in the Snow (using Animated Dis…
Last reply by Rodney, -
- 1 reply
- 642 views
Occasionally things just cannot be explained. Even then though... there are clues... While troubleshooting some hooks and 5 point patches earlier today I noticed really strange behavior from A:M. A:M wouldn't save, locked up (kinda sorta) and the display... well it wouldn't display things as expected. Restart A:M. Nothin' Restart A:M Again. Little improvement. Change models/projects. More improvement. Spline stuff. Crash and Burn. What the heck... Maybe it was one of those updates I recently installed!!! Enter very distracting kids who remove my attention from my #1 hobby for awhile. Return with fresh perspective to see same odd …
Last reply by johnl3d, -
- 1 reply
- 676 views
The Art of Animation:Master (Online) Please add your exerices to this topic and others will join in. The Art of Animation:Master is being completed on a continual basis in the New Users Forum. Meeting deadlines can be an important skill to master early on but this course is self paced to allow each person the flexibility they need to learn the basics of Animation:Master. The course can be completed in as little time as necessary or as much as is needed by each participant. Note: You may want to download the videos first. All available Video Tutorials related to TAOA:M can be found on one page: The Art of Animation Master Video Tutorials The Art o…
Last reply by Rodney, -
- 1 reply
- 681 views
We can always learn a lot from those that have tried and tested Animation:Master over the years. 'Tis the stuff of legend. In 2002, Darrin Mossor put a few tutorials and resources together. They are still great resources today. http://www.mossor.org/Desktop/ Here you'll find the following tutorials: - Displacement Map Footsteps - Writing with Sprites - Playing with Layers - Duplicator Wizard - Action Reuse/Centipede Along a Path - Displacement Mapping on a Garbage Can While there have been some changes to A:M's interface and functionality since these tutorials were written they are still a good read. As a minimum they still serve as …
Last reply by Tony, -
- 12 replies
- 1.1k views
The A:M Community always stands ready to help each other out and this is indeed one of the reasons why I devote time to the community. I've been on the recieving end of the community's generosity more times than I can count. Having said that... a word of caution to new users might be in order. The knowledgeable among us (old and new) can certainly help us through the trouble spots but carelessly abusing the graces of others is guaranteed to put a stop to such excellent assistance rather than see it prosper and get us to the goal (whatever that may be in each case). Of course, A:M Community members can defend themselves so I'm not attempting to speak for th…
Last reply by vf124, -
- 15 replies
- 1.7k views
No. I didn't lose an important file. No. I didn't corrupt a model I had been spending days to create. No. I didn't save over the top and overwrite my beautiful project. Well. Not recently at least. It just occurred to me that it had been a long time since a warning was put out and I hope that by spreading the word we can save people the trouble of learning the hard way. I'm not sure that I've ever emphasized backing up to new users. TIme to do something about that. If anyone would care to elaborate on their backup methods I'm sure others would be greatful for your time. It might even save them a scream or two.
Last reply by Rodney, -
- 14 replies
- 1.6k views
We are embarking on a project here in the New Users Forum to identify, resource, fully illustrate and thoroughly reveal areas of Animation:Master that users of Animation:Master want to see fully explained. The perspective we are seeking is that of the New User. From opening the box on the first day to adding detail to your animated film successful we want to document it all. This is not a new idea and there are many who have contributed to the wealth of knowledge already available. We are greatful for those that have worked so hard to help everyone understand the power and ease of animating with A:M. We hope you'll join in and help with this project. Shortly …
Last reply by Hutch, -
- 2 replies
- 626 views
If you haven't looked at the Online HTML Technical Reference you should check it out. http://www.hash.com/htmlHelp/v11.1/Technical_Reference.htm It's amazing what information you can find there.
Last reply by hypnomike, -
- 17 replies
- 2.4k views
Okay folks. In keeping with the tradition of follow up questions to #hash3d lectures we are going to open the floor for questions. Here's your chance to query Martin Hash on A:M related topics. The rules are a little different with this follow up. Let me explain why. Since we are all sitting in what might be considered Martin's living room chatting with the creator of Animation:Master we need to remember that forum rules still apply and the same courtesy given to other lecturers should be extended to Martin too. If your question disappears... don't take offense... reconsider what you asked and consider a different question. While it may not be expedient…
Last reply by entity, -
- 2 replies
- 1.3k views
Here in one post are links to the followup Question and Answer sessions hosted at #hash3d. We need to keep these talented people 'on tap' and in the spotlight! Read the lectures/interviews and ask questions that apply to your endeavors as an animator. You'll learn a lot from the answers you get. #hash3d Lectures (Q&A Sessions) January 2005 (To Be Announced - Stay Tuned) December 2004 (Vacation) Raf Anzovin (and Guests) November 2004 Martin Hash October 2004 John Henderson September 2004 Sam Buntrock August 2004 Shaun Freeman July 2004
Last reply by Pengy, -
- 14 replies
- 1.4k views
This discussion is designed to serve two purposes. First, to highlight some excellent resources, and second to point everyone to related 'breathing spaces'. Breathing Space is the term I use for when you have been working at a project for a long time without taking a good break. Ideally, that breathing space should be as far as possible from the task that you are trying to take a break away from. However, it isn't so far away that you stop working on the project. If you wander too far away... that's a vacation! For more than a few people that means the end of the show. Move just far enough away to get a refreshed perspective on the task at hand. Take a…
Last reply by Rodney, -
- 89 replies
- 5.8k views
Note: Some of these are old posts... please post at the bottom. I was just noticing the front page ticker. It states: That is simply awesome! There are a lot of that 3,000 though that I have yet to meet and greet. So, if you are new to Animation:Master or discovering the A:M Forum for the first time... WELCOME! It's good to have you here!
Last reply by Rodney, -
- 23 replies
- 3.7k views
For those who were involved in, modeling, rigging and animating KeeCat and others that have used KeeCat in animation tests and/or experiments... What can new users learn from KeeCat? Would anyone care to post their thoughts concerning the KeeKat Character?
Last reply by Rodney, -
- 36 replies
- 7.3k views
New Users Home --- The Art of Animation:Master--- A:M Films --- Useful Searches Forum Search Technical Manual Search for Tutorials on the A.R.M. Just change the last word after = in the URL and you can find other useful resources Example#2: Search for "Rigging" on the A.R.M. Search for an Author on the A.R.M.: Colin Freeman Character Tutorials and More William Sutton UV Editor and More Jeff Cantin Basic Splinemanship, Font/AI Wizards and More Google Rules! A search for "Animation:Master materials" at www.google.com HASH INC Support and Services Always maintain the most current release of your subcription to Animation Master. …
Last reply by Rodney, -
Welcome New Users 1 2 3
by KBaer- 5 followers
- 141 replies
- 15k views
Welcome to the New Users forum! The idea behind this forum is to provide help and support for users who are new to Animation:Master and are going through the Art of Animation:Master tutorials. We encourage you to post your Works-In-Progress (WIP) from these tutorials to this forum. You will learn a lot from the feedback you get. Rodney Baker has gallantly volunteered to be the moderator for this forum and will be here to answer basic A:M questions. We encourage everyone to pitch in and give encouragment to new users. It's always exciting to see artists emerge from being a beginner, to next hotshot animator. And don't forget, we have the New Users Pa…
Last reply by Robert-Jank,