Rodney

The very happiest of happy birthdays to you Jason!

Glad to hear it Lloyd. (Not that you had to get a new PC... that things are still chugging along) You've been missed!

Awesome. Not only educational... entertaining! Well worth the wait as well. I think I know where you are headed with this in the next episode. If not... I'm thinking of a decent alternative. Time will tell!

Nicely done!

Well, that's easy enough. Personally I'd model them into the guy but you have a lot of different avenues you can approach. Added: While I'm sure you are looking for more detail than in the attached, the pants and shirt for Thom here took less than 5 minutes to create and move into place. All they are is Thom's mesh copy/pasted, scaled up and then moved over Thom (whose mesh was locked down to keep from inadvertently selecting his splines).

Here's a Proof of Concept that cheats a little. Technically I could have gotten away with one bone in the unicycle (or even no bones if you don't count the root bone). There are additional bones and a null in the unicycle to facilitate aiming, turning etc. but at present they aren't serving any purpose. Stand by for Project file. The trick in this case being to actually add the pedals to Rabbit's feet. unicyclePOC1.mov Unicycle1.zip

The DressMe plugin could be duplicated and that duplicate renamed because it can do so much more than just 'DressMe'. My thought was to call it 'MergeMe' (as a tip of the hat to the original) or 'Merge and Constrain'. Note: It's not enough to just duplicate the plugin though as the name A:M will use is internally stored in the plugin. Duplicating the plugin manually will just give A:M two plugins in the dropdown menu named 'DressMe'. Disclaimer: The DressMe plugin does not fully answer Phils original query but it can be a great timesaver, especially if you've got multiple props a character needs to be outfitted and those are collected elsewhere. I believe I will use the DressMe plugin for outfitting my character(s) in my Sci Fi contest entry.

Congrats Ernest. Yes, that does sound very economical. I'd say that's progress!

It's been a long time since I used the 'Dress Me' plugin but that worked great the last time I tried. Caroline created the plugin and disappeared shortly thereafter so I'm not sure if she'll see this message and weigh in. (I miss Caroline) I believe the Dress me plugin installs with both Mac and PC. There is a PDF file outlining usage here: DressMe Plugin Added: Whoa. Now I remember just how easy it is to use that plugin!

Okay John, you've got to explain that one in a bit more detail. Is this a composite that you created optically (on film), full size props that you are standing in between... Is this from a trip to Disneyland? Did you abscond with the wizard's hat and that became the source of your tinkering power? Inquiring minds want to know! That sure looks like full sized props to me.

I'm sure Ikarus can be found elsewhere but I see this guy has it available for Mac and PC via his site: http://www.colinlevy.com/tuts/IcarusTutorials/Icarus.php From the AE tutorial on his site he demo's that the text from the Ikarus file can be manipulated (because there apparently is no direct way to import the file he copy/pastes the data from a text editor into After Effects). Unless I'm mistaken Pixel Farm (the owners of Ikarus) do not offer it any more but do offer PFTrack and other software. Pixel Farm website

Hmmm... looks intriguing. As it is already funded and still has 18 days to go... I might have to bite at this one. Although in many ways this is more of a novelty item it does have some practicality to it also. This might be primarily of interest for those of you with a desire for a Cintique but a budget closer to an iPad. Of interest to me is how this effort actually helps to bridge the gap between old 2D methodology and the newer digital approaches. CAEgL3kJyBs https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/964133...n-desk-for-tabl Edit: Grrr... I hate it when kickstarter projects limit the number of distros in the tier I want and don't allow similarly priced options.

Nicely demonstrated Gerald! If you are working with two or more actions in a Chor then as Gerald suggests (at the end of his post) you can stagger the Actions in the Chor and let A:M do the blending work. In this way you don't have to set keyframes because A:M does all that for you. Attached video show you this method... BUT... what Gerald demo'd is the more direct and CG standard keyframing approach if picking up and pressing on with animation in the Chor. If you've already got the Actions created though it's a quick way to animate a shot without animating anything else in the Chor. AnimationBlendMode.mp4

At first I thought you were being facetious Robert but that actually makes sense. If there is a particular file that is more likely to produce the error that also could be shared so others can set their save timers as well. The downside: At present this error appears to only be happening on Paul's system so it may be hard to replicate by someone else. Added: Problems with saving don't trouble me... my problem is remembering WHERE I saved things.

No point missed here. If there is a bug then wth the right information it can be tracked down and fixed. Or perhaps I should say, if it can be reproduced it can be documented. If it can be documented it can be fixed. It is that ability to reproduce a bug that we are after here... and trying to reduce variables by suggesting workflows that fully rule out user error. Which leads us back to your first post and my response. Reducing the variables will help. Note that this is why A:M Reports is the place to collect bug reporting information as it collects such things as: What version is this occurring in? What operating system? Does it occur anywhere else (i.e. can it be reproduced in an earlier or later version)? What exactly were you doing at the time (immediately before saving)? (i.e. Was it dealing with cloth and simulation?) What was (or would be) the file size if the file had been properly saved? What steps can be walked through to reproduce the error? What files can be used to replicate the error? Etc. If this is a bug that only happens every 4 months or so is there something you do (or fail to do) every four months or so that triggers it? Rhetorical question... there would have to be. Do you have any steps that will or are likely to reproduce this bug? Suggesting that Steffen should continuously save files until something odd happens isn't a very good option. (Although I suppose that could be tried) Thanks Robert. I will try to assimilate that! Added: One thing that posting here in the forum does that on the surface A:M Reports does not is confirm a user experience. If others are having the same issue then we can narrow the field down, identify the real problem and discover the underlying cause to it. This can be accomplished in A:M Reports as well due primarily to the nature of multiple reports that will circle around a specific bug until it is fixed but that confirmation may not happen as quickly as it can when the problem is discussed via chat or forum.

If it doesn't seem to work I'd turn it off. At least until it can be determined to work. If A:M closed before it could save the file then I can see how that file might be corrupted. A slowed down response time usually indicates lack of available memory for programs to operate with. While it's a good idea to close down programs that aren't being used to free up memory closing the program down that you are trying to save files from can be a dangerous proposition. Better to take a break... go away for awhile... and allow the program to save the file. If it is still not saved upon return then that iteration is likely a lost cause and a previous state will need to be returned to. Here is what I would like to see you do (assuming you wish to continue overwriting your files the way you do): 'Save As' first to another filename and then go back and save over the top of the original. After doing this for a few days/weeks you'll instinctively stop doing that second part. A lot could be said about saving but the best advise I can give is, "Save often and incrementally." Think of it as creating 'dailies'... heck create a new folder each time with today's current date on it when you first go to work. A workflow like this may suffice until operating systems seamlessly iterate file updates for us. I assume by this you mean that you use the OS to create a copy of the file or directory. I don't find this to be a reliable approach for one reason in particular; you may not copy all of the required files you need with your project. Problems in this area can generally be avoided using the 'Save incrementally' approach. Some resources may not immediately load if you move them but they will still usually be somewhere close. This appears to be the area we need to focus on more closely. There are a lot of variables to consider but one important variable would be how often you save. The longer in between saves the more tenuous the end results. If you don't save often that goes against the best practice of 'Save often and incrementally' and I can only refer you back to that proven workflow. I hear you but... As far as I know the Save option assumes an empty/missing file. If the file is there it assumes you want it written over. Save As assumes you have more instructions and will initiate a process to protect files from being overwritten. 'Save' means you want what was there previously to go away... which is usually NOT what we want. (We would at least like to be able to reference that earlier version) Using 'Save' then opens you up to all manner of things outside of your... and A:M's control. For instance, a power surge, power outage, corrupted memory, read only data location... this last one is a biggy if you initiated a session from a read only location, etc. etc., etc. etc... In case I've failed to mention this before: Save often and incrementally.

Nicely done Mark! This is just outstanding in it's storytelling simplicity: This is a great approach and I wholeheartedly recommend it, especially for complex scene. I've had a couple projects where I posed a character and then build up all the props around him. It has a delightful way of keeping us from modeling things that wont be in the shot in the first place and, of course, making sure everything is exactly where it should be from the camera's perspective. In this way we can cheat on a lot of unnecessary detail.

Sorry, I can't move forum posts into A:M Reports which is where you'll want to file your feature requests. We can discuss the pros/cons and such about ideas here in the forum but the firstest and bestest way to get something fixed or added in A:M is through A:M Reports. It's a database of bugs, fixes and feature requests. Since every idea is a good idea in some capacity or other we can vet the ideas here with regard to 'how' such a thing might be accomplished and programmers can weigh in on how expensive (in time and talent if not in wages) it'd might be to implement. My take on aborting simulation would be to attack the very root of a users need for the simulation in the first place by suggesting where possible not to launch any unnecessary simulation. I'm trying to think of reasons why a simulation might not be able to be interrupted. I can't think of any save one... a continuous check would have to be conducted to see if the user wishes to abort the process. A similar issue use to exist with rendering until the Abort button was added (I have a vague recollection of A:M pushing the Escape key repeatedly**) It is during the calculation process that most users probably desire to terminate the process. How often should the check be conducted? Obviously not after every calculation but perhaps at key moments before large amounts of memory are allocated, released or reallocated. The question I ask is "What might success look like?" Simulation is initiated with a big button promenently displayed that says, "Terminate Simulation". At any given time the user may push the "Terminate Simulation" button and the next time the test is conducted and a user request for termination = true then A:M would exit to a path where calculations stop and memory is freed. Note that it wouldn't suffice to just stop calculating. **What Robert said!

Paul, You'll need to be more specific about what was happening when this errant file was created. Deciphering what your 'hiccup' was is going to be a pretty wide area to traverse. I do agree that having A:M save files at critical times is a good idea but this saving can also be detrimental if it overwrites a 'better' file. I'd love to see A:M save a copy of the current project into the same folder that it will render into for instance immediately before rendering. This would serve several purposes: 1) If something goes wrong, such as a crash upon rendering, the saved file could simply be reopened. 2) It would be really easy to open a file and rerender a shot or scene because it'd be right there in the render folder. I must say that I have never had A:M produce a file like you show but then again my requirements aren't as computer intensive as many folks. Where I tend to lose files is when I launch a render without saving first. The part that intrigues me about your case is that there are several variables that aren't accounted for. For instance, are you saving to a network folder or local harddrive? Are you saving to a new file or attempting to save over an old one? When you save your files do you number them incrementally or use the same name as before? There are a lot of variables to reduce before this 'cure this hiccup' can become a actionable suggestion for inclusion in a future version. Added: This is definitely something worth looking at more closely. I assume you are suggesting that if you were to save the model again the file might then contain the same data as what is displayed on screen? I'm not sure. A:M does this every time we select "Save As' and attempt to overwrite an existing file. I have never trusted direct saves in any program and definitely don't trust Save icons (who knows where those really go?... and worst of all... they are intentionally designed to automate (and take the user out of the process) of Overwrite and Destroy!). At least when using 'Save As' the program lets you be in control. And when something inevitably fails you'll know it was you and not the computer.

Sure can. I was going to wait a little while because when I create the link it'll temporarily look like this topic is gone. Dan, These are really fun models. I downloaded and messed around with the first ones you posted and just returned to see you'd uploaded a ton more! Many thanks. These resources are awesome.

Thanks Dan! Very generous of you. This will equate to many hours of fun for a lot of folks in A:M.

Fun stuff! And well done. I love these sneak peeks into the animation process.

Very cool. I get very different results based on whether I'm using the touch screen or the mouse. Not sure if that is a browser thing... or something else. I see they plan to add a recording option as well as a standalone application. Nice.

That'd surely work but I'm not hooked into Youtube enough yet to take that one on.

Hehe. You don't have to be a veteran of the TaoA:M tutorials to get a kick out of that but it'll help. You have a talent for humorous reveals and gags. Keep it up!