Please Answer Questions about AM.

[mrtech]

Hi I was wondering what are the lip sync tools like in Am?

What sort of documentation does Am come with?

What sort of technical support can I expect from am company, if i bought am.

Does am have a paint program simular to that of bodypaint?

 

 

 

What feature films does anyone know of that have been developed from am.

How easy is it to learn the moddeling tools?

 

What other software is compatible with am?, In your own words how does am compare with major packages like cinema 4d?, or lightwave?

 

If you can answer any of these questions I would be very grateful.

[itsjustme]

As a disclaimer, I am not a representative for Hash, just a user of AM. Here is the "New Users" page that might answer questions that I don't.

 

Hi I was wondering what are the lip sync tools like in Am?

 

There is the ability to use Dope Sheets that you can see in the video tutorial called "Can You Say That" located on this page. Personally, I think doing the lip sync by hand is faster and better. The Squetch Rig has a set of controllers called FACE that are based on "visemes", which is outlined in the book Stop Staring by Jason Osipa (very good book). There is an example rigged character called "Squetchy Sam" on the Wiki page for the rig that you can download and use.

 

What sort of documentation does Am come with?

 

This year it came with a physical version of the Technical Reference, there is an online version of The Art of Animation Master that has a hard copy of the content of the video tutorials I mentioned, there's these forums (if you have a question, you should get an answer relatively quickly), there are the Tech Talks, here is a pretty extensive list of tutorials, there is the beginnings of an AM Features Wiki and a lot of other links you'll find throughout these forums.

 

What sort of technical support can I expect from am company, if i bought am.

 

That would be better answered by a Hash representative.

 

Does am have a paint program simular to that of bodypaint?

 

3DPainter

 

What feature films does anyone know of that have been developed from am.

 

There is presently a community project that is a feature length film...TWO (TinWoodman of Oz).

 

How easy is it to learn the moddeling tools?

 

That depends on the individual...how easy is it to draw?

 

What other software is compatible with am?, In your own words how does am compare with major packages like cinema 4d?, or lightwave?

 

AM can import objects from other software, but only as props or converted to the AM model file. If it is converted, you would have to do a lot of cleaning up. AM is not a polygon-based application...the packages you list are polygon-based, so it's harder to go from or to them from AM.

 

If you can answer any of these questions I would be very grateful.

 

I hope that was helpful...you didn't need to post your questions more than once though.

[Paul Forwood]

These are questions that get asked often but seem to be left to us users to answer.

Have you looked HERE yet?

 

what are the lip sync tools like in Am?

There is a dopesheet which uses the phoneme approach. You type in the dialogue and adjust it's placement which in turn controls a set of poses to give you the mouth shapes that you have initially defined. Many people prefer to animate the lipsync themselves.

 

What sort of documentation does Am come with?

The Art of Animation:Master is a full colour book of excersizes and instructions which are designed to get you familiar with the basics of the interface, tools and animating. I believe that A:M now comes with a Technical Reference too. This tech ref is also available online. (See the link above).

 

What sort of technical support can I expect from am company, if i bought am.

Follow the link above.

 

Does am have a paint program simular to that of bodypaint?

Pixosaur/3D Painter has only recently been developed by a Belgian company and seems very popular. I haven't tried it yet but it does allow you to paint directly onto the surface of the model. Visit their website for more info: 3D Painter

 

What feature films does anyone know of that have been developed from am.

None that I know of. TWO, (Tin Woodman of Oz), is in production here and now by Hash Inc and community members. Check out the TWO forums for more info.

 

How easy is it to learn the moddeling tools?

All software has a learning curve to negotiate. If you are experienced with programs which use bezier curves, such as Illustrator, then you will probably feel quite at home fairly quickly. If you are used to modelling with a polygon modeller then it may take a bit of mental adjusting while you get used to splines. A:M is not too difficult to learn but is made a little more difficult by the lack of in depth documentation. The people in these forums are usually very helpful if you have any questions.

 

What other software is compatible with am

It depends on what you mean by compatible. A:M can import and export a number of formats but conversion between polygons and splines is not something that A:M/Hash have much interest in. The policy seems to be that they provide tools that enable the user to create models and animation with splines to the best of their ability, and at a very low cost, but as Hash Inc is a small company they are not interested in trying to match and mingle with every piece of 3D software out there. They seem more interested in providing a high quality hobbyist's kit that is capable of producing a feature film and having fun. They don't want to be sucked into the professional market because the level of support required would cripple their ability to function. But don't let that put you off! A:M is capable of professional output but it is up to you to work with any restrictions rather than expecting Hash Inc to meet all your demands. It is a very flexible, deceptively powerful piece of kit that is very capable but quirky.

 

In your own words how does am compare with major packages like cinema 4d?, or lightwave?

Fun and capable but not as well supported for industry use as some of the other packages but just look at what you get for your money. If you are a professional you will be welcomed and supported as much as possible by the community but don't expect free professional support from Hash Inc.

 

These are my personal observations and I am not associated with Hash Inc in any way. A:M is capable of professional output but the company policy seems to be to not encourage it. There is a 30 day money back guarantee with your purchase of A:M so why not suck it and see. Also take a look at A:M Films and A:M Stills to see if it meets the standards that you have set for yourself. If you are considering A:M as a purchase for enhancing your job prospects I would look elsewhere but if you are an indy film maker it may be just what you want.

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Oops! David answered before I could finish this response.

[mrtech]

Just so you know why I asked those questions, is becuase if you go on amazon.com do a search for animation master and read all the reviews on the software , your'll find a pretty upset user who has said some pretty bad things about hash, if you guys read this please let me know if what he says is exactly true or not.

 

ps. He has the lowest stars in his review.

[itsjustme]

Just so you know why I asked those questions, is becuase if you go on amazon.com do a search for animation master and read all the reviews on the software , your'll find a pretty upset user who has said some pretty bad things about hash, if you guys read this please let me know if what he says is exactly true or not.

 

ps. He has the lowest stars in his review.

 

You will find disgruntled users for any software...and you'll find just as many that love the same software. That guy is ridiculous, in my opinion.

[heyvern]

When I wake up in the morning I often curse the world for its cruelty and sometimes I jump right out of bed and bless the start of a new day... (not often but sometimes. I don't actually "jump" anymore.)

 

There is always something to complain about with anything at some point. That reviewer has pretty much burned his bridges. It would be difficult for him to "change his mind" or his opinion even if it was true because he would have to admit being "wrong".

 

Are you a "glass is half full" kind of person or "glass is half empty"? Think about this honestly... are you a "complainer"? Does the slightest problem throw you into a fit of rage and frustration? Or can you work through problems to find solutions? That is the key to working with ANY program in my opinion.

 

Depending on your response would determine a lot of your satisfaction with AM. When it comes to this sort of stuff you almost always have to lean towards "glass is half full".

 

I've seen comments from AM users that are so much at each end of the spectrum you can hardly believe they are using the same application.

 

In my opinion I put AM at "glass is 3/4 to 4/5 full" depending on what phase the moon is in and whether I've had my coffee yet. There are some people who complain if the glass is full and just a few drops spilled out on the table.

 

I believe I've taken this analogy as far as it will go.... now I'm thirsty dangit!

 

-vern

[arkaos]

Hi I was wondering what are the lip sync tools like in Am?

What sort of documentation does Am come with?

What sort of technical support can I expect from am company, if i bought am.

Does am have a paint program simular to that of bodypaint?

 

 

 

What feature films does anyone know of that have been developed from am.

How easy is it to learn the moddeling tools?

 

What other software is compatible with am?, In your own words how does am compare with major packages like cinema 4d?, or lightwave?

 

If you can answer any of these questions I would be very grateful.

 

Hi I use both A:M and Lightwave .

 

The comparison between programs completely depends on what you want to do with the program.

 

If you want to do character animation...hands down...A:M is the way to go!

 

If you want fast render times, easy to set up materials, and fast particle effects....I would say Lightwave3d.

 

If you want easy to set up characters (easy being a relative term comparing the 2 applications) then you need A:M.

 

If you want to animate things using radiosity and caustics, I'd say Lightwave. A:M supports those, but the render times are really slow.

 

If you want to be able to do realistic hair for characters....A:M.

 

If you want to do anything relating to character animation, while Lightwave and cinema 4d CAN do character animation,

A:M was DESIGNED FOR character animation. The others were simply retrofitted.

 

 

Okay, now to tech support.

 

Lightwave tech support sucks.

 

A:M tech support is the best of any software, of any kind, I have used. Just look at the section for 'Latest Info' and see how often

new releases come out to fix problems or simply enhance the software. If you find a bug, submit it to the staff. 99.99% of the time

you get a reply back within 1/2 hour.

 

A:M has a lot fewer problems and bugs simply because Hash's developers work around the clock to maintain and improve their software,

the others outsource it to India, or other places.

 

A:M is not a Polygon based modeler, so don't expect too much industry standard software like Max or Maya to be very happy with the characters

you create in A:M. But, using a variety of titles, I can say, most software, industry standard or not, do their best to make their stuff non-compliant with

their competition anyway, so stuff built in Maya or Max or Lightwave will only be fully compatible with whichever software created the models. And

usually animation files do not export and work in other titles, anyway. So you have to choose a software package and stick with it and use and explore

it's features and capabitlities.

 

A:M usually doesn't render as fast, but it is the ONLY software out there that has EVERY tool you need : Modeler, Animator, Texturer, Particles, Realistic

Hair with Grooming, and now Fluids is in the works. No other software has all that without needing expensive 3rd party add ons.

 

A:M does lip-sync like no other. You do not need an expensive 3rd party add-on like Mimic (the others need mimic or another) and A:M's works

better.

 

And, oh yeah...A:M DOES have a program similar to Body Paint and it's only $99 and just as good.

 

And finally A:M = $300 + $99 per version upgrades (usually needed only every third revision) and $99 for A:M Paint.

Check the prices on the others....they can't compete.

[Fuchur]

Okay... I just had a look at the review from this "Graphics Guy" there and I just have to say: EVERYTHING he writes is not true or just a half-truth...

 

"A:M cant have multiple windows." -> just wrong... it can have as many as you want and your graphiccard is capable of.

 

"A:M isn't crashproove..." -> maybe you can say it wasnt on version 9... but every other version later was quite crashproove... of course no software is totally crashproove... but A:M is at an average level if you ask me... and they provide a better bug-tracking-portal than any other I saw... bugs are very fast found (A:M Reports) and a patch will be available in one to two weeks ore even on the same day if it is something important

 

"A:M is primitive..." -> cant be more wrong... it is efficent... it's interface looks simple and is easy to use... so a new user can easily and fast find his way through it... and it is VERY powerful if you know how to use it... MUCH better than what you will find in Max or so, if you ask me...

 

"A:M has a bad technical service..." -> Yes... if you compare it to the service Autodesk provides you with, it is not that good... the only bad thing about it... Autodesk will charge you several thousand dollars for that... but I doubt that there is a better one out there for free, if you think of the forum and A:M Reports.

 

"A:M's Forum is only filled with other users..." -> half-truth and even if, that isnt any disadvantage at all... they walked the same way as you will and so they will have easy and fast solutions for you point of view...

AND Martin, Yves, Noel and Co arent only user... they are programmers too...

 

"A:M's renderingspeed is slow" -> Yes and no... it depends on what you are rendering and how you will compare it... keep in mind:

To get an equally round sphere for example you have to use that many polygones while a few patches will be enough... so if you use only the patchcount and transfer it to polycount, yes, A:M will loose the race... but the thing is: A:M will provide you with a sphere while polygone-programms will provied you with a box or something like that which you didnt want...

 

"A:M isnt the only softwarepackage which is cheap..:" -> This one is true... but for example Carrera isnt half as powerful as A:M... There are other cheap tools available for example one from Softimage... BUT they are all not "full" versions like A:M but limited once which cant keep up with the features of A:M.

 

"A:M's forum has a censorship..." -> true... DAMN you Martin, that you won't let us post advertisings for competing products on the forum... cant understand why you do that!

One thing about that is although: You get informations here, which are filtered for being helpful and useful without the spam-entries, etc.

 

"A:M's manual is not good..." -> Damn we all have to be wizards to work with A:M... in fact: the TAO ("The Art of Animation:Master"-manual) is just not usual... it is a tutorial-approach to bring you into the software which worked very well for most of us. The Technical Reference you will get too is the "normal approach"... it is true that the technical reference wasn't there in a printed form on early versions... but was in the internet for download.

And lets say you like it more visual... there are VideoTutorials which will guide you the same steps like the TAO does and if you want more "indepth"-informations there are the tech-talks-video-tutorials which are really a great help for the new features...

 

*Fuchur*

[Rodney]

Good questions. Good responses.

I'm just moving this out of the TaoA:M area to 'Newbies'.

'Tis not censorship. 'Tis categorization.

[phatso]

Hope you don't mind if I respond to those complaints too...

 

A:M can't have multiple windows? I model in 2 windows as a matter of course.

 

A:M isn't crashproof? Whose program is? Many thousands of people use A:M all day long with no problems. That has to mean - has to mean - that the people who do have problems must have something wrong (or inadequate) in their computers. 3D animation is computation-intensive, and you have to have reasonable hardware. (Mine is a 2-year old cheapo Compaq with Athalon. Works fine.)

 

A:M is primitive? I don't think anyone alive has come anywhere near exhausting its possibilities, and if that's true, it can't be called primitive. What it can be called is easy to get started with. If that's "primitive," it' a virtue.

 

Bad tech service? Maybe. Perhaps we should take a vote: would we prefer that A:M become a $3,000 program with good tech service? I for one would find such a program useless, because I can't afford $3,000 for it. Bear in mind that if you are willing to do a little digging, you can find the answer to almost any question on the forum. Which brings us to the next "complaint:"

 

The forum is filled with other users? Those "other users" include many of the people who developed A:M and plugins for it, and also the most skilled and experienced A:M modellers and animators on the planet. Aren't these the very people you'd most like to turn to for guidance? And they give you the benefit of their knowledge for free. Maya users should weep with envy.

 

Rendering is slow? Even if that's true, rendering happens while you're doing other things. The time that's expensive is not the computer's time but your time, the time you spend modelling and animating. A:M has a very efficient workflow for those who bother to master it.

 

This forum is censored? True. For those who want to kvetch, there are other forums. This one exists for the benefit of those who want answers to questions, who want to improve their work, who want to speed up their mastery of A:M, those who, in other words, take a serious, professional approach to learning and doing this animation thing (whether or not they are in fact professionals or amateurs). I personally could find reasons to kvetch all day long, but when I'm sitting in a cyber-room with a dozen people who are the equivalent of animation PHDs and who are willing to tutor me for free, I'm not going to waste their time or mine kvetching.

 

The manual is not good? What it is not is complete. A:M has so many capabilities that the manual only scratches the surface. If you pay extra for tutorials and textbooks, you still don't get it all. Every day I run into some arcane thing in the forum that I would never have stumbled across otherwise. So this truly is a reasonable complaint. But how to solve it? Good, thorough, well-produced instructional material is extremely expensive - I know, I make it for a living. So, yes, this could be done better, but it would make A:M cost $3,000. An improvement I can't afford - an improvement that would take an affordable program and put it out of my reach - is no improvement in practical terms. (The kind of training I speak of is available for other programs. It's called "two year college" and it costs tens of thousands of bucks.)

 

Bottom line: just try it. If you don't like it in 30 days, return it and get your money back.

 

For my own use, I'd list A:M's advantages thusly:

1. It's cheap.

2. It uses splines and patches, which are to polygons as 3D is to 2D. Modelling and animation, especially of organic objects, goes a lot faster once you master the technique, and you aren't constantly banging up against the problem of trying to make roses out of shards of broken glass.

3. It has re-useable motion, which can be applied to more than one model in more than one situation and speeds up work a lot.

4. It has pretty good lipsync that's simple to use.

5. It has cartoon render.

6 Whatever you can't find in the manual that comes with A:M, you can find on the forum.

7. Extremely important, and not stressed nearly enough by Hash - it is both a beginner's program and a master's program. Why is this important? Because, if your time is worth anything, the main cost of any program is the value of the time you spend mastering it. There's no way around that. But the last thing you want to do is go thru the learning curve multiple times as you outgrow one program after another. A:M allows the beginner to make simple animations literally minutes after opening the box, and also has particle systems, hair, cloth, Newton dynamics and other powerful features for the professional to work with. There are also powerful 3rd party plug-ins. You can start with it and stick with it. For a measly $300.