Rodney

I'm not ignoring your post Robcat... just waiting to see what other thoughts are out there. What you suggest is pretty close to my original attack. Since TAoA:M is broken into three parts; Animation, Modeling and Tech Direction those might be pinned and everything else update as utilized. Still scheming... Thanks for your input.

Great to see you posting your creations again Emilio! I know your focus is modeling but I wanna see that spaceship animated.

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 behavior. Notice similar behavior in other graphics program (Corel). Shut down computer. Restart. A:M runs like nobody's business. Lesson Learned. It's okay to leave your computer running for extended periods of time. However, not shutting your computer off for months at a time can lead to strange behavior. Thanks for listening. I'm back in control now and feeling much better now that A:M is stable again.

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 of Animation Master Part II: Modeling MODELING TAKES TALENT 8 - Customized Car 9 - Flower Power 10 - FW-190 Fighter 11 - Giraffe (No available video tutorial) 12 - Lip Poses 13 - Show Some Backbone (Adding a Skeleton)

Very nice Mark! Your examples have a very cinematic quality to them. So basically you can direct your scenes programatically within a choreography with this rig?? Wow! Too cool.

Vash, Hash's own Yves Poissant once wrote (and demonstrated) extensively on bevels. Look here for some of that info from his site: http://www.ypoart.com/tutorials/bevels-intro.htm Don't get distracted though... too much to see on his site. **Nice calculator by-the-way!

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 inspiration. Darrin also made several models available to the community which he provides links to on his site. Thanks Darrin!

Very nice Phil... the technique and the critter.

No problem... no offence taken... a tip of the hat to all who make the A:M Community what it is. The A:M Community rocks on.

Antony, Thought that I responded already but just wanted to send a "Bravo" your way. Thanks for the additional information too. Good stuff! Sadly, a lot of your older pics are now missing from the forum. For those that want to check it out though the following (by Antony) is quite inspirational: Character Head, A Head used Hair Lock in V11a -Rodney

Great News! I should note (I'm ever so on topic!) that you did get me intrigued when you said "many many people from years ago who never received not one answer or any help whatsoever". Ouch. I'm sure there are a few but my experience (and a brief check) tells me "a few" is more accurate than "many many". I can't speak for the other forum areas but I pride myself in keeping the 0s out of view. In other words if people don't get at least one answer to their question... I'll often look it up. Having said that... if the answer (or at least a lead) isn't there... the 0 stays. From my perspective I see an average of 1 post for each page (that's 40 posts on my screen) that doesn't get a response over the past year in the New Users Forum. Now keep in mind that some of these aren't questions... some are "Here's a model" or "Thanks" type posts. Many don't require a response. I do agree we should have responded to a few of these... but somehow they just slipped past. No slight intended. Within the New Users Forum the 0s are more likely to let you know what subject matter "Rodney" doesn't have a clue about. That is where "Rodney" diminishes and the A:M Community takes it's rightful place. Unlike me the community knows the answers. As I've indicated above there are many reasons posts might not get a response. Sometimes the original poster finds the answer in a different area of the forum. If anyone thinks their questions have gone unanswered we can always start a new topic titled "Age old questions" or something and get them nailed down. "How do I model"... well Tony, that one is gonna get you some interesting answers. Looking forward to your Picaninny's debut Gale. 'Bout time!

Gale, Sometimes the reason people don't respond is because they have absolutely nothing to say on the matter. I'm not sure what exactly you mean by 'lucky'. I'd say 'average' at best. I recently ran across a few questions I had asked long ago that I still don't have a answer for. While I think they were fairly well formulated I'd guess no one knew the answer or (perhaps more likely) the people that knew the answer simply hadn't read my post. Perhaps I should have sent them to support@hash.com. I usually have a hundred little questions rolling through my mind and I'll wait for the opportunity to launch them. If "On Topic", the results will yield tenfold. A much better way to approach unanswered queries (especially if not directly related to A:M) might be to look for the answer elsewhere. When that fails rewording the question might be in order with a fresh post in the forum. Timing also is important. If the question is missed the first time it might be for any number of reasons. Post the question again after a little time or consider if it was posted in the proper forum in the first instance. "To the patient come the fruits" There is perhaps one situation I've noted where people might legitimately think they are being ignored... and that is perhaps one of the reasons I posted on this subject in the first place. I'd prefer they not have to go there. When people post their frustration concerning failure to get answers in the forum of the "Why won't anyone answer my question!" sort, they fail to get the point. If they add insult and additional commentary attacking the very same people that try to help them their chance of being ignored is most assured. Can be funny at times... but mostly it is just frustrating. So, which is more important... an ego stroke or the answer to a question? The answer to the question *should be* obvious. (Perhaps yet another unnecessary post but... for what it is worth) Best, Rodney *Gale: You may have to explain the significance of the link you posted. I haven't a clue. People *should* ask questions and be a part of the community. Nothing new here.

Oh dear. Nice characters Nancy! Did I miss any revelations on your plans for these characters?

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 them. They can smash egos with the best of 'em. I have, however, noticed an increase in bold and even brazen requests in the forum. Perhaps they weren't meant that way and this post is unnecessary. I'm posting this primarily because the quality of new users posts has consistently been quite productive and I hope it continues to be in the future. Please consider that others 'want' to help you but the way you approach things can make a lot of difference. Also, if someone does help you... a "Thank You" can also go a long way. This isn't directed to anyone in particular and I haven't been on the recieving end of any of the activity I describe. This isn't a problem as of yet. I just felt it might be an appropriate time to address the issue. For additional/related information please check The Forum Guidelines Thank you for your time. Rodney

No crits here. Just wanted to say "Bravo". You've captured the fun and innocence of youth in a powerful way. Looking forward to seeing more of his personality revealed.

That you didn't use alpha channels might be adding a neat/realistic effect there. It's almost as if the label was printed onto the can and the registration of the colors was just slightly off. You see that a lot in the real world. A perfect placement might lessen that effect. Good job!

Glad to see you smiling more than frowning Eric. I can't recall how many times I've made such mistakes, committed them to memory and found myself doing that same thing again later... the most frustrating part of it is that it is entirely preventable. Your Nautilus is really looking sharp.

Christina, Congrats on your clearance... little standing in your way now! Hope you feel better soon. I'd make you a bowl of soup but my wife won't allow me in the kitchen*. (*There is good reason for that)

Mark, Arlington Heights eh? Thats great news! I lived in Elmwood Park for a little while just prior to entering the Air Force. If I can get back in shape(!) I just might go the recruiter route for my last few years in the Air Force. The Chicago area is never lacking in a need for recruiters. My family would probably faint dead away if I told them I was moving home. It's somewhat unlikely that I'll end up living in Illinois soon... but retirement isn't far away...

Since this is a User Group topic I should have added: I'm trying to convince my wife to move to Illinois but she isn't biting. If someone can convince her there are no shortages of Japanese grocery stores/restaurants in Illinois (or at least asian in general) I might have a fighting chance. Downstate, where most of my family lives I think there must be 1 Japanese restaurant per 999,999 people. Needless to say... my wife and 2 daughters are not impressed by this fact. I'll keep looking for windows of opportunity. ...and if I find myself back in Illinois I'd surely like to meet up with other A:M users.

Jeffrey, Best of luck to you on your endeavor. Thought I'd probe this requirement a little: While face to face is often preferred don't discount the power of the internet (and those in the A:M Community). With the internet everyone is less than an hour away. Please tell us more!

Noah, Awesome as ever! I do have to say though that the foot against the wall in the following image looks entirely too big. Hmmm... maybe it's just the shoe...* >Link *Why is it that I'm looking at her foot... P.S. Noah... you are being paged in this thread> Haruwo - An amazing feat by one lone Japanese animator

Bravo! From zero to CalArts in 6 weeks is most impressive as is your music video. It's easy to see the potential that the screeners saw presented in your film application. I'd guess the tight deadline probably helped more than it hurt too. Now just don't forget to follow the words of that song and return to planet earth occasionally and visit those of us landlubbers. I'm sure whether you attend CalArts or some other university you'll go far. I guess what I'm trying to say is... Don't be a stranger! *Addendum: Nice penguin advertisement Greg. Version 4 magic!

I'm seeing your model for the first time here Jim. Wow! For someone who can't animate... you sure can animate! Its great to see your work (modeling too of course) flowing on the screen again.

Tom, I like what you've got there. Childrens books are indeed a treasure trove of ideas for modeling. Some great styles to play with too. One way you can change the colors in the various instances is to animate the color of those particular groups and each model's instance. Of course you aren't really animating the colors per se but just adjusting the color and making sure they remain the same throughout the animation. There surely must be an easier way but can't think of it just now.