Rodney

Just read through this... you guys crack me up. Live long and prosper MAAM!

I'm not sure what the shortcut key would be. Alt H should bring up the Help Menu with the reset option though. Perhaps you had your window selected and it overrode that option. I also don't know about the View/Toolbars side of things. I'd have to run home and check A:M for specifics. If you Right Click in the space the menu bar should be in there should be a Customize option. From there you should be able to Reset or check the menu. If I make it back here tonight after going home I'll post what I find...

Yup. That is why I suggest using Alt H to bring up the Help Menu Options Panel (not related to F1/Help). If you can reset you can probably get your menu back. Rodney

You nailed him Robert. Bet he'd be fun to animate.

If you can get to the Help menu (by using ALT H or the proper shortcut key) you should probably select 'Reset Settings' or whatever it is labeled. Restarting A:M after that might get you going again. I guess it is possible that you mearly undocked the menu and it is hiding off screen...

Thanks John! That'll be useful. Interestingly I just ran across a write up on lighting. It would appear 3 point lighting is pretty much hated these days. I was mostly guessing but appear to be right that the primary value in 3 point lighting concerns how easy it is to use and understand. While I haven't seen it stated yet I still suspect fast rendering is another plus. Now that A:M has ambient occlusion and all this other lighting stuff who knows what we might see as the 'default' chor in the future. Thanks for starting this collection MMC! Good stuff.

Change it to what though... that is the question. Perhaps someone could program a plugin that gives you options based on the look you are after. To the user the plugin would allow selection of the basic lighting and environment. Underneath the plugin would swap default Choreographies. Until such a plugin is created the user could just change the Choreographies the hard way; by copying them over the top of 'default.cho' in the A:M directory. One setup is never going to be ideal for everyone. One must however be the default. Creating several Choreographies from which to choose from might be useful. This idea was passed around a year or so ago and Jeff Lee's Skylight was talked about a little. The thought was to create a few different Choreographies designed to optimize lighting for different situations; morning, noon, evening, moonlight etc etc etc. I think the current default 3 point lighting in A:M is there primarily as a simple way to demonstrate how to set up basic lighting. I would suspect that it also allows renders to be completed fairly fast. The more Chors the better I suppose but options can also lead to confusion if not organized effectively. Quick rendering is one of the most important requirements for the default chor. I assume more complex chors would add to render time. (Something like that) Rodney

Sorta on topic... this may be of interest to those that need to convert their bitmap/pixel based images to vector/line drawings for import into Animation:Master via the AI Wizard. You can convert the image online or download the utility Deliniate for use. Note that the online utility does store your graphic online for some time so you should be willing for others to see what you convert. http://autotrace.sourceforge.net/ The utility does support AI output but that isn't apparent on the main page. Helpful hint: Keep the drawings simple for best results.

Hey look I'm officially closing my very first topic.* *Well, I can't remember closing any other one.

Great to have you with us Thomas. Welcome to the A:M Community!

You ain't a kiddin'! Very cool John. It has a paper/origami look to it.

Liquidspaceman in da TAoAM house! Go get 'em! Show us what you've got.

As sobering as it can be that is exactly what you need to hear. I was confident Christina would tell you it like it is. Even bad news isn't always negative. Resistance is vital in channeling our efforts. Bjorn Cole has a write up on his site that I think should be required reading for all artists. It covers the stages we go through on the road to creating successful projects. Pay special attention to the 'bitterness curve': Project Management Discussion Its also a sobering but necessary examination of what we face in the creative process. I'm confident the journey will be worth it but only if you really want to take it. If you'd rather be doing something else... do that instead. Gambate Kudasai!* Rodney *Japanese for "Please give (us) your very best!"

31 years! Thats older than a lot of folks around here. I think your experience will serve you well. It's great to have you with us T MAC!

Looking forward to what displacement will bring out in him. That and seeing him animated of course!

Watermarks can mean different things nowdays. If you mean watermark as in creating a safeguard by which you can use it to authenticate the image (for example when someone uses it without your permission from your webpage) then the answer is "No, you'll need another application to apply that watermark". If you mean watermark in the sense that you want to overlay an image over your animation or still image the answer is most definitely "Yes, A:M can do it." You can apply the watermark in several different ways; via rotoscope, decal, layer etc. Use of transparancy and/or Alpha Channels is probably going to be required. For example you can take any image and import it as a rotoscope. In the rotoscopes properties you can select 'On Top' to have it stay in front of all images. You can adjust the transparency to soften the effect on your imagery. Thats a start. Hope I'm not too far away from understanding your question. Rodney *Slipin' got his answer in long before me. Don't know how I missed it. Good info!

Very nice and I'd say precise! Did you rig any of it? ...and can you share a wireframe please?

The Font Wizard comes standard with A:M these days. From a modeling window Right Click and select Wizards You should see at least the Extrude, Duplicator, AI and Font Wizards there.

They are on the FTP in one of these places: (From Useful Links)

I think I see what Will is saying... If the dialog was given by a character in an animation (words and pics in the background/foreground/whereva) it would make for some storytelling. Isn't that what animation is about? Telling stories? The content of the message... now that is another matter of course. Not all dialogue is created equal. The value of that would be for the viewer to decide.

You should post queries in a separate topic with a title that describes the problem you are facing. That'll get the best response. As it stands I'm not sure what you are experiencing. If you are trying to adjust the manipulator handles while in Bird's Eye view I'll recommend working on them from one of the cardinal directions; front, right, left, back, top or bottom. I think someone else posted a simliar problem recently. I can't recall if that was answered to their satisfaction. A screen captured image will help too. Rodney Edit: Somewhat related, naming the groups can help to store pivot points so it might help you with bias handles too... not sure though.

I agree. You've perfectly capture Vaughn Bode's style. I too have some of his comics. His unique and cartoony style really caught my eye as I was growing up collecting comics. The mature themes, while part of his works charm, I didn't care for much but the style... simply exquisite. OT Commentary: As far as Vaughn Bode's death all I can say is; what a colossal waste of a life and talent. Artists who live life on the edge all too often fall off. It's best to have a safety net to get you through the rough times. Vaughn Bode may have had one but it failed him if he did. Looking forward to seeing more of your project! Those characters should look great animated. Rodney

Glad to see a restart got it all going for you again. I'm one of those guys who keeps everything running all at the same time and never restarts anything. Well, eventually I do... When I start to notice odd behavior I don't always see the obvious solution and how I control a lot of my own destiny in the over all scheme of A:M stability. After restarting (or hearing from others like you) I am reminded again. Thanks for the reminder! Rodney

Sorry for the delay in answering. I'm not going to be able to help you out right now I'm afraid. Maybe in 3 months. I'll yield to others as I'm sure they'll be glad to help you out. I would encourage you to start a Work In Progress (WIP) and post stills and/or short animations from your project. It can be tough putting your work out in the open for everyone to comment and critique but the rewards can be more than worth the effort. ...and here's a useful tip. You can pick and choose from the tips you recieve and adjust to your own taste. Not all commentary and critiques are created equal but the vast majority are quite useful whether you incorporate them into your work or not. What a forum. Best, Rodney

You may have to be a bit more specific. I will guess: 1) You need to change from D3D to OpenGL in TOOLS/OPTIONS 2) You need to download updated video drivers from your graphics card manufacturer's site Let us know how things go, okay?