CompuServe Messages

John, The Par's quality is very good. Better than the best you can get with single frame SVHS and very close to what you can get with a LVR-3000 laser disc, when outputting to Beta SP. In terms of value, its a very good value because for instance you can spend $8000 + on a high entry level Beta SP deck plus a controller which will run another $500 +. The artifacting is almost imperceptible unless you know what you're looking for. With newer drives expected to come out in the near future, the quality will get even better as the throughput increases, which is nice as the PAR becomes instantly upgradeable. But as you mentioned 4:2:2 several times, I considered that this might be an important factor to you and thought I should clarify. I was very skeptical about the PAR's ability to deliver and it has definitely exceeded my expectations at twice the price. But when you start talking true digital component there is a difference. Prices have come way down on this gear but you still looking at about $12000 + plus investment with only 30 seconds of playback. The PAR can give you 5 to 10 mins worth of animation. As I said, I'm very happy with the PAR and would only seriously consider the alternatives at twice the price, but I don't expect it to do what's available at four times the price. Its comparable to the value you get with 3DS vs Wavefront. <g> (Not quite as good a value but then nothing is. <BG>) I've heard about these "triangles" and the limitations imposed by them. I'm fairly conservative with polygons but I think I'd be frustrated by the limitations of the number of "triangles" you can use per object. There is a graphics engine called the "Glint" chip by 3D Labs being released shortly which by all accounts sounds very comparable to a "reality engine". I think this is going to make VR creation on the PC a reality especially with the increased power available with Pentiums. Creative Labs and Sigma Design amoung others has signed on to build boards around the Glint 300SX which is due for public showing at Comdex in Nov. Hence my interest in VR as these boards availability to the mass market could radically change VR gaming possibilities. They can push 300k shaded, Z-buffered, anti-aliased, translucent polygons per second. Pretty impressive! Well it looks like I've gotten carried away again. More later. 🙂 Cheers John