Rodney

Great lighting tip. I need to file that one for future use.

Maybe the gun wasn't a hierarchical child of the character? This is one reason to consider Action Objects in similar cases. The act of making the weapon an Action Object (as a separate model brought into the first in an Action) would be similar to making the weapon's bone a child of the character's bone. It basically does the constraining for you. If the bone was just a separate piece unto itself it appears tp be doing exactly what you would have told it to do in the choreography (if it's not somehow related to the other bones); namely not to be effected by the other bones. Another way would be to constrain the weapon to the character in the Chor but personally I don't think that as effective as an Action Object. Rodney

Bruce, You didn't ask for suggestions so I'm hesitant to add these. Since they are minor and you probably already have them covered I'll post them. Say the word and I'll edit them out. First let me say that I remember seeing your film before (at least I'm pretty sure it was your film). Getting a chance to go back in and change things has got to be fun and a whole lot of work all at the same time. I look forward to seeing your progress posted here. Those sprites are very effective. I love them! If I could suggest anything with the sprites (both snow and fairy dust) I'd suggest a little more transparency to blend them in. Scene Three. The scene with Shaggy in bed. You've adjusted the yawn but now his nose penetrates through the upper pallet of his mouth. Looking foward to the next update! Rodney

WOW! At first glance I was about to get pissed because you were posting photos of sports related fun. (Seriously... sports and I don't get along these days) That is one awesome render. Added: For some reason the tire tread on the front tire has gotten cleaner since the last render. What gives? You wiped it off before you walked over to take this new picture?

Ravager, The Library just holds a shortcut to your file. If you've saved the file the Library might not show it but it should still be on your harddrive. Remove the Library out of the equation for now and do a search for your model on your harddrive. Hopefully you saved BEFORE you quit or at least once or twice over the weeks you were working on the project. If you saved it and didn't delete it it'll be there. Rodney

You are going to love A:M.

It'll help the Hash team if you go in and add a note to that effect. Then they can table it, close it or do whatever they find appropriate. I'm sure they like to see good news too.

BUMP

Outstanding work Ethan! It was really hard to see what you had added without seeing the 'before' shot. I'd call that success in my book. I didn't notice the ejection port cover being closed/non existant at first (I take it these were resin M16s? with no functioning parts?). After viewing the 'before' image and going back to view the clip I couldn't help but see it. Unless looking for it specifically I don't think I would have noticed it the first time... I was too busy waiting for someone to get shot!!! I work around similar weapons every day and I'm certainly impressed. This could easily have been a shot from training in the field... a day at the range... or worse... Vietnam! If any critique it might be to scuff up the stocks a bit... tape residue, scratches... something to break up the perfection. If there is any downside I'd say you made that look TOO real and with that some would assume it was easily done. Encore! Encore! Encore!

I can investigate if you want. In my edit I just bypassed the HTML files... something I don't like to do as you can control SWF better by leaving them embedded. I'm having this sense of deja vu about these files (and the link problem too). I've definitely seen them before and I say KEEP 'EM ALL! I'll let others decide which is best... a favorite... etc. So far the Zebra has been my favorite. Not sure why... its just fun. Rodney Edit: The pages open fine in Internet Explorer... Firefox chokes on the URLs however.

John, The links don't play correctly for me (most don't at least). I can get this: http://johnl.inform.net/pages/action.swf.html to play if I delete '.html' from the link: http://johnl.inform.net/pages/action.swf I edited the file and the tutorials then open for me. See attachement: AAA2.html

Thanks Sam. I've added your models to the DVD.

John that is superb. Funny and cute all at the same time too.

Yes, the A:M Features wiki seems to be either down or renamed. The other links (Sweeper, Simcloth, Treeez and Newton Dynamics) still work however.

The concensus seems to be yes, model to 1:1 scale where you can. Recent discussions seem to validate this as the majority of A:M Users practice 1:1 scaling with little to no difference in rendering times. Rodney

I'll be here!

Sorry in a way to hear that the Star Wars movie is on hold. Gotta love it when Star Wars fans get together to make their own film! It is good to hear that you are working your own ideas though. Concerning the calls for models (from your fans) and rigging (from yourselves) I hope you'll consider adding your Star Wars characters to the Extra DVD. With the healthy donation of Star Wars models already donated (thanks Dan!) it is almost certain that when you get back around to working on the movie you'll have (at least the best of them) fully rigged. For now I remain... disappointed... because I was looking forward to seeing your Star Wars characters in action but also very encouraged by your obvious skills and talent. Best of luck on your endeavors. Rodney

There are all kinds of details in your image that I missed the first time around. Every where I look my eyes see something interesting. A detail of area with overloaded power strips and plug ins is attached.

Xtas, I know I should have recognized your signature style (in the aeroplane if nowhere else). What a treat it is to find out that the image is yours. Fine work indeed! Woah! Thanks for sharing your rendering settings. That might come in handy one of these days. ...and thanks for the Robot! Rodney

Those are definitely some really fine props. Your modeling, texturing and lighting skills are really showing.

Coach, The bones are there... just hidden. If you read the first few posts in the Exercise 13 topic you'll see some information on the wheres and whyfores of the 'missing' bones. Exercise 13: Show Some (preferrably all of your) Backbones!

...and he's a beaut too. Nice work!

Not to confuse anyone but centering along the X axis isn't a absolute requirement for C/F/A. Having all CPs aligned... in whatever axis you choose to C/F/A in... will yield the best results. There were a couple video tutorials that demonstrated this but they are gone now; victims of website updating I think. Ken Heslip's C/F/A is still in the Tutorials area. I think his stays on the X axis though.

You've done a good job from what I can see. No real suggestions here... just keep refining. I think I'd like to take a crack at translating that tutorial. If I can find the time I will.

I will remain riveted to my computer screen until you post the next installment. Please don't make us wait too long! (well take as long as you need BUT HURRY!) I purposely didn't read the Ebon script just so I will be surprised by events as they unfold... and I like the way they are unfolding!