CompuServe Messages

Vic, I don't think for a moment that raytracing is new. I remember seeing it on the old Atari ST shortly after it came out, and raytracing wasn't new at that time. Certainly isn't now… it just took this long for IBM to catch up with Amiga and Atari! (many PC folks new at raytracing seem to think that we got it directly from mainframes and minis!) > Haven't you ever heard that the interface tends to stifle creativity > by getting in the way? Heard it… don't believe it. Can you imagine, for example, taking a photo course that doesn't teach you how the lens works, how the developer/fixer do their job, how different contrast grades and brands of film affect the outcome, etc? Might be expected from the local adult education "How to Photograph your Vacation" class, but wouldn't carry much weight in a class designed at making artists. IMO, the CUI interface merely tends to stifle doodling. Part of my point, too, is that the PC modellers we have now (which have only been around for a very short time) are incomplete. It'll be a while before we see one that has all primitives implemented and a complete surface editor (like CRENDER, but complete with the "noise" textures and normal perturbations, etc.). Without enough understanding of the lower levels, users will be stuck with those overused textures in textures.inc, for example. I, for one, have seen enough "Red_Marble" to last me two or three lifetimes. Many folks believe that training wheels do absolutely nothing to help a child learn to ride a bicycle. They begin learning the day the training wheels come off. BTW: _I_ didn't call anybody a whimp. Were you reading my mind? <G>. There is 1 Reply. Read action !