CompuServe Messages

Jim, I have been running Alias for some time (up to yesterday), and it waits to convert the wireframe model to polygons until render time. At that time you give it a "Save SDL File" command, it goes off somewhere and makes splines into polygons, and then renders. You can "quick render" the patch models all through the animation process, but the final images are based on polygon versions. The Shader module of Alias is part of their Render module. That is where all the effects are applied. Thay can only be applied to the SDL file, which can be edited by itself in a text editor. It is similar to a Renderman RIB file, which describes how normals are oriented on poligonal surfaces, and how light hits them. If Animation Master could write a RIB file, we could have the best of all worlds, but a very complicated one as well. Renderman does allow many effects to be applied, and can render any file converted to their format. Well, I hope Martin is looking at this thread. We do need effects to keep Animation Master afloat into the 2000's. Sanford