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This is an open forum for discussing Animation:Master and discussions should relate to A:M in some capacity.
Ask questions. Share experiences. Outline goals and aspirations.
Discuss what you hope to accomplish with A:M and projects you are working on.
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977 topics in this forum
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- 1 follower
- 100 replies
- 19k views
Have any early adopters of the latest Mac OS version had any new issues with A:M on it? Edit: See Post #71 for patch pending new installers.
Last reply by Roger, -
- 1 follower
- 12 replies
- 7.5k views
Hi! I'm trying to avoid posting stupid questions, but I have an inquiry about netrender. I use OS X and just got netrender running. I followed the tutorial http://www.hash.com/forums/index.php?act=a...st&id=61145 which is very informative about adding additional cores from the 2 core default, etc. Applets, all that... very informative. My question is: WHERE is there a document that just states in plain English how to make external machines into nodes and how to have them interact with the main computer? I just bought additional nodes and there is NO satisfactory information on what to do with the master0.lic file that I just purchased. PLEASE tell me that it'…
Last reply by markw, -
- 1 follower
- 106 replies
- 29.8k views
UPDATE: as of July 25, 2016... the price keeps changing. Keep your eye open for deals. Amazon is offering all six "Golden" collections for $65 $48.49 24 DVDs Until midnight tonight only. For how long I don't know. Looney Tunes Golden Collections
Last reply by robcat2075, -
- 90 replies
- 22.1k views
Background HAMR (Hash Animation:Master Realtime) and WebHAMR (HAMR for browsers) was an effort of several years ago (2009) to press A:M content out to new platforms. From the basic write up: The ultimate goal of HAMR was of course to push A:M content to web browsers but the API allowed other access as well (as demonstrated in the standalone HAMRviewer). Some general thoughts: - HAMR tech still works quite well although I don't know the extent of whether the API is used by anyone and some connectivity has been depricated over the ensuing years. - HAMR tech didn't get out of the initial development phase (as such it didn't get to the Mac port phase) - The Mac port and so…
Last reply by Rodney, -
- 90 replies
- 8.7k views
I ran into this informative video and couldn't help but wonder if A:M suffers from a similar limitation. This video is lengthy, but if someone has the time to look through it, I'd like to find out if A:M might be set to the old sRGB scale and unable to rise to a better "Dynamic Range" for more realistic renders using a single sun light. Since I don't know a lot about the tech in these matters, I'm wondering if someone else might shed some light on whether A:M could be improved also like Blender is in this video. xhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m9AT7H4GGrA
Last reply by pixelplucker, -
- 1 follower
- 89 replies
- 9.7k views
A review of the Surface Pro 3 I didn't even know there was a 3 yet.
Last reply by pixelplucker, -
- 1 follower
- 86 replies
- 9.4k views
I got my feet wet in the '3D Printing' arena this week... turned out kinda cool! I uploaded a hash model of my Tireman character to sculpteo.com(via OBJ exporter with a .mat file for colors...) and interacted with their online 'repair-bot'... which sent me back to A:M to make revisions maybe 8-10 times as I learned what I could and could not get away with... and mostly what geometry was deemed 'too thin' for the scale I had chose... which was 3.8" tall. This print cost $80...I am pretty happy with what I see. My method was to pose the character using his TSM rig in a chor and save it out from there as a .mdl... which I opened and deleted all the bones and decals f…
Last reply by pixelplucker, -
3-D Printing 1 2
by Pitcher- 76 replies
- 8.8k views
A couple of years ago, I inquired of someone whether A:M produced models in a format that could be used with a 3-D printer, and I was given an answer in the affirmative. I wasn't planning to print anything out at that particular time, and did not pursue the details. Now, our library has a 3-D printer, and I was thinking about taking their orientation course and possibly printing one or two of my models. In talking to the lady at the library who deals with this, she said that their printer prints out NEG files. Does A:M produce NEG files or can A:M model files be converted to NEG files? As you see, I still don't know very much about it. If I can 3-D print an A:M model, wha…
Last reply by pixelplucker, -
- 2 followers
- 71 replies
- 5.7k views
Is there something you think can't be done in A:M that it ought to be able to do? Is there something you'd like to see figured out and explained? Perhaps A:M does it already but no one has tried it yet! Here is your chance to nominate a topic or task that you would like to see someone figure out how to do with A:M. I will choose one and make a WIP thread out of it in February 2014. The nominator of the chosen topic will receive some fabulous prize, possibly a copy of one of Martin Hash's "Memoirs" books. (Did you know there's three of them?) My Rules: -Task will be something reasonably appropriate for a full-featured 3D app like A:M. For example, "…
Last reply by Fuchur, -
- 2 followers
- 70 replies
- 10.2k views
Just imagine... ...A:M would have polygons and OpenSubDiv.... ...and alembic support.... ...and support of integrated 3rd-party renderers in the API / SDK... with that, A:M could be a serious competitor to all the major 3d-applications out there... A:M has the best data management, animation and rigging features that i ever seen in all the other major 3d-applications. but the lack of not having polygons makes it really, really hard to interact with the other 3d products...
Last reply by Rodney, -
- 60 replies
- 5.2k views
Source: Heavily adapted and reordered from SIGGRAPH educational notes: The five key elements of a good story: audience, content, motivation, semiotics and timing. Audience: The goal of a story is to share knowledge (and experience) with the audience. If we are sensitive to an audience we can even use stories to move people from one understanding to another understanding (more often than not without their conscious awareness). Telling a story with no one in the audience is not storytelling. Consider the old adage, "If a tree falls in the woods and no one is there to hear it..." If the event doesn't resonate with an audience it will be of little significance. …
Last reply by Rodney, -
- 60 replies
- 5.7k views
So normally I would ask my daughter to do this for me, but her mind is on other things, only weeks away from making me a grandpa, so I'm coming to the forums. I am trying to dust off, improve, and capitalize on my meager modeling and rigging skills for a little project I have in mind. Below is a picture of Disney's Humphrey the Bear. It is exceedingly hard to find images of Humphrey that can be used to create a model from, this being the best I've found so far. Serg2 had created a head for me last year, but I wanted to do the body. My problem is that I, for some reason, have a real problem in imagining the body in 3D space from the flat picture. I hope I will have b…
Last reply by steve392, -
- 1 follower
- 53 replies
- 7.7k views
For whatever reason--Maybe I pressed a button without realizing it or Maybe Windows 10 is doing something--shaded and wire frame does not look the same. Instead of showing the CPs and splines on the surface, it is showing them throughout the figure, even from the other side of the figure. The view just adds a semitransparent color to regular wire frame. What do I press to get just cps and wire-frame back on the outer surface? Thanks.
Last reply by pixelplucker, -
- 52 replies
- 5.8k views
I was wondering if it would be possible to create a decal that had a transparent background and to apply that decal to a transparent model. For example, I am creating a pine tree, and I am concerned about the needles. Probably, I could create the needles as hair on the pine tree branches, but that takes a lot of computer memory. Could I instead make a decal that had a transparent background and apply it to a part of a sphere that was transparent and then attach the part of the sphere to the branches? I have taken a photograph of pine needles to which I could add color for the needles and make the background transparent. Attached is my photograph. I was interested in opini…
Last reply by Pitcher, -
3dcoat with AM 1 2
by ludo_si- 50 replies
- 4.8k views
Here is the explanation for texturing a model AM in 3dcoat. 1. Create your model 2. Use bake texture to save uv without difficulty. 3. export obj 16* with triangle. 4. Import your model in 3dcoat (option perpixel) 5. texture your model with symetry, bump, specular, emission, ambiant occlusion etc... 6. Export your model in obj to. All the textures are saved. 7. Import in AM. and decal replaces by new images. 8. It work and it's easy.
Last reply by Fuchur, -
- 47 replies
- 6.5k views
This will mainly be of interest to programmers... and if you are into such things you likely know about this already but just in case... Pixar has released Open Subdiv as Open Source. What does that mean? I'm not a programmer so I really don't know. http://graphics.pixar.com/ http://graphics.pixar.com/opensubdiv
Last reply by Rodney, -
- 44 replies
- 6.8k views
I'd prefer to stay with Windows 7 but the end of security updates in a few weeks means it's time to move on. Although MS doesn't promote it anymore, you can still upgrade Windows 7 to Windows 10 free. Here's how you can still get a free Windows 10 upgrade I'm sure it's not an accident that they still allow it, not after all the attention this ZDnet article has gotten. Of course it is possible that some programs you have used on Windows 7 will not work on Windows 10. For now, i am keeping one of my computers on Windows 7 because of that since this upgrade seems not to be reversible.
Last reply by robcat2075, -
- 1 follower
- 42 replies
- 5.1k views
I'm researching software for the initial workup of a game app proposal and have been asked to investigate software to build the proposed application. At this time the project is pre-pitch/prefunding with much of the material confidential so I can't go into detail on specifics of the game itself but the following is basic criteria: The team is affiliated with an Educational Institution and likely eligible for education/student licensing. The team consists of approx 14 people most of which are technical experts in the games subject matter (not gaming, graphics or software development). -- Depending on funding/green light to go ahead the team may involve students an…
Last reply by Darrin S, -
Decal glow?
by Tore- 1 follower
- 39 replies
- 3.6k views
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Last reply by Rodney, -
- 1 follower
- 37 replies
- 3.7k views
On Tuesday I met with Paul Harris for several hours and discussed a very wide range of topics. We should have recorded the meeting although it's surely best that some things were off the record as that allowed us to wander far afield in the discussion. One of the subjects of interest concerned financial support (a very broad topic). I have a lot of opinions on this subject which I'll be more than happy to discuss but I am more interested in the thoughts of everyone in the A:M Community on the subject of grants and sponsorship. Some general parameters should probably be stated for the discussion but I don't want to miss important feedback by artificially limiting di…
Last reply by DZ4, -
- 37 replies
- 3.8k views
I am running Version 18n 64 bit on a computer with 8GB of RAM and an i7 64 bit processor. Sometimes, it takes 10 to 14 hours to save my work. I work in wireframe and sometimes stop and render along the way so that I can see what the patches look like. I am wondering if there is a way to shorten the saving time, or is there a way to know when rendering time for a frame is going to exceed 7 minutes or so, before I press the render button. What happens when I render sometimes is that the computer buffers (twirls) and twirls indefinitely. I try to abort, and the rendering program seems to abort but twirling continues, and I cannot get back to where I can start the 10 to 14 h…
Last reply by Pitcher, -
GPU Slave?
by Tore- 2 followers
- 37 replies
- 4.7k views
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Last reply by Tore, -
- 1 follower
- 35 replies
- 4k views
I'd love some advice, other than reading Jeremy Birn's book (which I have somewhere, lost in the move and separation... ugh), about how you would go about achieving lighting as in the attached sample. The character is well lit, seeing all features, and even the underside of his cheeks, while there's still a nice soft shadow being cast by the brim of his hat. I've been playing in a .cho all day tryint to get something similar. I built a psych w/ my character on it, and I probably had about 18 lights in there trying to achieve this effect and still wasn't even close. The sample came out of 3DS Max - it's by a tremendous 3D cartoon artist in Paris, Julien Trom…
Last reply by largento, -
- 1 follower
- 33 replies
- 6.9k views
Is anyone familiar with the Lightworks video editor? It went open source a year or so ago and phase 2 of their release is to provide source code to potential developers. http://www.lightworksbeta.com/ Windows only at this time. Sorry.
Last reply by Rodney, -
- 32 replies
- 2.5k views
I'm looking at running Windows via Parallels on my Mac, so that I can take advantage of some of the A:M plug-ins that don't work on the Mac (ie DarkTree textures, Setup Machine2, etc.) In order to do this, I have to purchase Windows and in trying to sift through the stuff, I find myself scratching my head. Windows 7 OEM 64-Bit seems to be an attractive option, yet it says in the eula that I can only purchase this if I'm building a PC that I'm going to sell to someone else and provide support for. Yet, Windows 8 OEM 64-bit says I can use it personally. Windows 7 is a bit cheaper, but Windows 8 apparently offers a free option to update to Windows 8.1 pro…
Last reply by pixelplucker, -
- 1 follower
- 31 replies
- 3.7k views
lovely new forms of life - Strandbeests Organization doing Kinetic-DIY creatures inspired by the above Image shows details for the leg mechanism (taken from strandbeest site)
Last reply by Shelton, -
- 31 replies
- 3.7k views
I'm getting intrigued on the way to use alpha channels on models to obtain partial transparance. On the Extra-DVD there is a tutorial about it and while I'm following the example my results fail. Point is that I can't save a *.TGA file with an alpha channel. I'm using Photoshop 7.0 and when it transports the file, I can only use *.TIF and *.PSD to implement the alpha channel. Using *.TGA saves the file, but AM0.16 doesn't show it as an alpha channel. Afterwards this "*.TGA" file doesn't have the alfa channel when I import it back to Photoshop. I tried another graphic program CorelPainterIX, but there also I wasn't able to export a *.TGA file with a…
Last reply by Fuchur, -
- 31 replies
- 3.3k views
Hello All- Was playing around with this cool old tutorial using "forces" and am having trouble deconstructing how it was achieved. I wanted to upload the zipped project file but it is over the 2Mb limit for the forum. It is 3Mb. What I could do was upload the movie. You can see from the wmv movie what the project looks like. I tried adding another leaf like object to the scene but the forces did not have any effect on the object that was added. The new leaf-like object was added as a dynamic object and told to respond to Newton Physics but it did not move. Can anyone explain how those leaves are made to respond to the force fields? Thanks for a…
Last reply by robcat2075, -
- 31 replies
- 7.1k views
https://youtu.be/z5nBA45DvRo Andrew Kramer has announced a November release for Video Copilot's Element Version 2. Element is an Adobe After Effects plug-in that offers realtime GPU based 3D rendering, right within the After Effects application. Version 1 was a big hit but had obvious drawbacks in that with realtime GPU you can not generate shadows or reflections... well, with V2 he appears to have jumped those hurdles, and threw in realtime sub-surface-scattering and refraction as well! The shadows, refraction and SSS look pretty nice, and the reflections use a bit of a 'cheat' as realtime raytracing is still unobtainable. It is kind of amazing! Prices and up…
Last reply by Rodney, -
- 31 replies
- 6.7k views
(Moderator update: A work-around for this problem has been found. See post # 26) SO I'm sure that there is a place for this topic but I don't have time to go hunting. Here's my problem: So applied for the AM 18 trial version, downloaded it and followed all the instructions and it is telling me that I need an activation code??? I sent a message to support to see if I can get that resolved. In the interim and because I just did some serious upgrades to my machine, I thought I would try to get one of my older versions to work. When I say older I mean v11,12, or 13. Umm yeah, no matter what I effin do, they won't run. Even when I go through the "compatibility troubleshoote…
Last reply by robcat2075, -
- 30 replies
- 7.9k views
Yep... time again to cover some Adobe news that intersects with our interests... Abobe has released the preview of Fuse which we've seen before under a different name. As part of Adobe CC, if you subscribe to that you get Fuse thrown in to the mix. What is Fuse? Fuse is a bipedal (human) mesh generator that has many custom sliders that allow for modification of the mesh. It's primary purposes is to send the mesh off to Mixamo or to Photoshop CC where it can be articulated/animated. Fuse does also allow export to .OBJ format which is useful for A:M Users. While the mesh is dense for the humans the acouterments/clothing are reasonable. Perhaps best ye…
Last reply by robcat2075, -
Resampling
by Madfox- 30 replies
- 6.9k views
Surfing on the board I came to an example of someone who wanted to explore the new advantages of AM17. It was an example of, I think resampling a model. It had a model cached out locked and it showed how to add new splines on the model that were positioned with help of the magnetic mode. In this way it is possible to recreate the model in another spline fetched . I looked several times but I can't find it.
Last reply by Madfox, -
- 1 follower
- 29 replies
- 6.3k views
The irony of having a modeling program with infinite resolution is that its stl export is lower resolution than any of its competitors. Its unfortunate because Animation master could if presented / marketed the right way could have a second wind because of the the 3d printer revolution. within 10 years 20% or more of hose holds could have a 3D printer. The bottleneck right now other than price is lack of easy to use 3D modeling software. But in our case we have the software and know how to use it but we cant get a high resolution stl file to the printer. Most people are using google sketchup, this program takes about 8 minutes to create a wine glass, as s…
Last reply by pixelplucker, -
- 2 followers
- 29 replies
- 2.6k views
Ya know, when it rains it pours. I've been working like a mad man trying to get this off the cuff Christmas short done before the 4th of July 2014. Had the set built, had props built, and was ready to put the pieces together. Tweeked my truck model, and was really quite stoked that I pulled that one out of the hat, saved the model, saved the chor, saved the project. I then decided to look at some other human models I had kicking around to see if I had one rigged well enough to do what I needed...found one (yeah for dusty archives!). Reopend my opening scene project, and noticed my truck was missing from the chor, and not even in the objects list of the project. Went …
Last reply by fae_alba, -
- 28 replies
- 3.4k views
Are there any brave souls out there willing to help me test some peer to peer file sharing? I'm looking for one or two people to help me test the basic process. The underlying idea is that of distributed computing where files are shared from my computer directly to anyone with the address without need for a middleman server. If they so desire they can also share files as if they have their own server. I'm leaning toward this approach for the next round of A:M Extras and other productions but it really needs to shown to work well first. I think I can only use WIndows users only at this time. Later testing should expand to Mac and Linux. For those to…
Last reply by rusty, -
- 2 followers
- 27 replies
- 4.2k views
Hello, Years ago I played with using bvh MoCap files with AM and various rigs. I also purchased the entire Truebones collection and started indexing the files. I'm looking into bvh MoCap w/AM again and wondered if there were any tuts or other information on the subject. I remember stumbling onto a way to scale each part of a bvh mocap rig to the model rig and also got whole mocap thing working pretty well (though I didn't document any of this...DUMB!). So I want to research it all and try it again. If I get it all working again and find that none of the current AM/BVH MoCap tuts cover any of my own methods/discoveries I'll add a tut to demonstrate these. S…
Last reply by rusty, -
- 27 replies
- 4.7k views
I'm not sure this is actually news as Apple hasn't supported/updated Quicktime for Windows in a long time but... some folks are even recommending an uninstall to avoid exploits that might take advantage of the static code and critical flaws. Ref: LINK The bigger question becomes one of what format to use instead of .MOV format when that is a primary format for A:M (at least the 32bit version). According to a recent Ruetuers report even the US government has an opinion: The warning does not apply to QuickTime for Apple's Mac computers.
Last reply by Rodney, -
- 2 followers
- 27 replies
- 3.9k views
I'm keeping notes my experience using the new v19 for mac. My main problem immediately is still no predictable appearance of rotoscopes. I'm trying to compare my models movements to the rotoscope reference in the background and it can't be done !
Last reply by robcat2075, -
- 26 replies
- 2.8k views
So, couldn't this made usable for hashusers also now? Cycles Render Engine Released With Permissive License http://code.blender.org/index.php/20...ssive-license/
Last reply by Vertexspline, -
- 1 follower
- 26 replies
- 2.8k views
Just read what gene posted on Face book Good Morning! All my life I have dreamed of being an animator. And through hard work by both myself and you great people I DID IT! now the bad news: Thursday morning I awoke and could barely walk, I have spent till now trying to shake it off.(ministroke) Today I feel no choice but to go to hospital. If for some reason I do not return to Facebook, I THANK ALL OF YOU.
Last reply by Vertexspline, -
- 1 follower
- 26 replies
- 7.3k views
Hi all, I need to model an item with just a photo, and one measurement of a side of the item. I thought I could set up an choreography with the camera matching the perspective of the photo, then model the item there. But after an hour trying to set the camera, still no go. Anyone have done this before, or has this been discussed before? Cheers, Rijk
Last reply by rijklau, -
- 1 follower
- 25 replies
- 2.7k views
Windows 7, AM v.19Oi. System sound working fine. Import sound "cartoonhammer" from AM disc, dragged onto action, dragged onto chor but no sound plays. System sound is working. Right clicking on sound file and Play but no sound. What am I doing wrong???
Last reply by robcat2075, -
- 24 replies
- 3.1k views
Hello, All! I've been away a while... work demands my attention. I was messing around on a personal project and had a lot of models (four, but with lots of copies) to assemble a structure. The issue I am having, and maybe I just forgot how, is I select a group of models and want to "nudge" them over with the arrow keys. Well, this results in the models moving all different directions as they have been rotated from their original placement. I can drag them with the mouse with no issue, but it is not as precise. I have attached images to show what I mean. EDIT: Correction, it even shifts the models when dragging with the mouse or isolating one axis by holding "…
Last reply by robcat2075, -
- 1 follower
- 24 replies
- 3.8k views
Hey guys, I'm considering the option of getting a Windows laptop just to run A:M on for modeling/rigging/animating. Not so much for rendering. I see there are a number of reasonably priced laptops out there, but I'm not sure if they're up to snuff. Since I have no experience with Windows, I wanted to put it out here to ask what would be a good choice. Ideally, I'm looking for one that will do what it needs to do, but on the low cost side, since it's going to be just a supplemental thing. Any opinions/suggestions? Thanks!
Last reply by pixelplucker, -
- 24 replies
- 1.7k views
I was wondering how long does it take to process orders after they've been placed? Will there be an email sent to the email address used while placing the order?
Last reply by kujaibacha, -
- 1 follower
- 23 replies
- 2.4k views
I'd like to open a discussion on budgeting for projects. The primary bias I have going into such a subject is that I equate the outlay of a budget with the establishment of the project's priorities. As an example of this, lets say that you are allotted 10 bazoozas in which to apply to a production. These bazoozas are all that you have at the moment to pay forward toward the final product. You have considered approaching the producer but he's already complained that you are on a tight budget and you think you might actually be able to pull off preproduction on a 10 bazooza budget. The only guy signed up on your team as of this moment suggests the following …
Last reply by zandoriastudios, -
- 23 replies
- 2.8k views
I suppose this is old news, but... Microsoft is ending security updates and bug fixes for Windows XP Does A:M v18 still run on XP? I couldn't find the current system requirements on the Hash.com page. support for Windows XP will end on April 8, 2014
Last reply by robcat2075, -
- 22 replies
- 2.6k views
So I'm trying like the dickens to get this Christmas short of mine done, started rendering and decided that a) the lighting sucks, and I'm not happy with the render settings. For the lighting I'm using the basic default lights from a new chor with the addition of a sun. The sun is set to have a soft yellow color, set at a 100%. I'll confess that lighting and rendering are two areas that I haven't had the chance to experiment with yet, and I'm down to the wire on this project if I'm going to get this done, so I'm looking for suggestions. I've attached the camera presets as well as a base project. Thanks for any suggestions: SampleProject.prj Preset.pre
Last reply by fae_alba, -
- 22 replies
- 2k views
Something is very wrong, and it might be because I don't understand optimizing win7 or..I might have purchased a DOG. I need help with finding out why new system is performing so badly (compared to old)..not much of a speed up at all, and in the case of running 16b/32 - it's slower. OLD system: xp pro 32, core2duo 3.2ghz, 3GB, nvidia 8600 256 NEW system: win 7-64 pro, i7-4770 3.4 (up to 3.9 - whatever that means), 16gb, nvidia gtx 650 1 gb. (dell xps 8700 special edition) I am running Robs benchmark test and results are disappointing, surprisingly. I can only compare old and new with render times for ver16b/32 since old system was Xp pro 32 OS …
Last reply by robcat2075, -
- 1 follower
- 22 replies
- 3k views
This is an old clip but the results are so cool, thought the Hashers might enjoy it. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gT9qU_fJNuw Wish there was some sort of plug-in which would simulate some of these effects... Tom
Last reply by Clipping Path Specialists,
