#Colors w. ATI/Vibrant ?
12 messages in this thread
Not a very important problem, but I'd like to solve it one day:
I use 3DS 2.01 with an ATI Ultra +, 2Megs and the Vibrant driver for 3DS.
The resolution for the main display (3D Editor, etc.) is set to 1024x768x8 bit.
I do miss some colors: the green and yellow arrows by adjusting splines are
just both black, also the mapping icon is black and pretty hard to see from the
side.
It looks like the problem is independent from the color definitions in 3ds.set.
Thanks in advance for any help.
Alex.
Alex,
To fix this, you can download the TRBDEM.EXE from this forum. This is a
completely FREE!!!!! 3D Studio driver that we are providing. It will let you
run the ATI Ultra @ 1024 x 768 with colored mapping icon and 2d shaper arrows.
Good Luck!
-Chris
Panacea
Chris:
This was a fast answer! Panacea seems watching the scene… 🙂
I'll have a look at it. Thanks for the tip!
Alex.
Alex –
DL-XPress 2.1.5 and up from the ATI BBS includes the color mapping icons, as
well as a 40-50% speed increase over other drivers. If ATI does not yet have
that version available, you can always contact Vibrant at 1-512-250-1711 for a
retail upgrade to DL-XPress or ProRes/3DS.
The pre 2.1.5 versions did not have color-mapping icons because the ADI
specification didn't allow them. Therefore, any external driver without
special code lacks the color-mapping icons.
Thanks
Chuck Walbourn.
Chuck:
Thanks for that information! I just tried Panaceas driver…. I got those
colored icons, but…. renderings in 8 bit only!!! I stick with the Vibrant
stuff.
I check ATI first. If they don't have the driver: what do I have to pay for the
upgrade? What is the advantage of the ProRes/3DS I don't know yet?
Thanks again for the quick reply!
Alex.
Alex –
ProRes/3DS is a stand-alone product which provides 40-50% faster redraw times
in the display screens (editor, shaper); color-mapping icons; fully
configurable resolutions and fonts for the display screens, materials editor,
RCPADI rendering, and RDPADI rendering; full support for all possible mixtures
of video hardware and resolutions; and much more.
SoftEngine and DL-XPress versions 2.1.5 and up include all of ProRes/3DS's
features and speed. Previous versions did not have color-mapping icons or the
40-50% speed enhancements. If you have 3D-Studio and AutoCAD, then SoftEngine
or DL-XPress is perfect.
The upgrade cost depends upon the version of our software you already have,
give us a call at 512-250-1711 and ask for the information.
Thanks,
Chuck Walbourn – Vibrant
Chuck:
Thanks for the reply. I've got DL-Xpress v2.1.2 – which came with the ATI Ultra
Plus. Right now I'm waiting for a response from ATI regarding upgrade
possibilities. Do you know whether today the ATI Mach32 boards are delivered
with a newer drivers?
The ATI Ultra Pro comes with a driver called 'UltraCAD 68800' (?): what's the
difference to the DL-Xpress? Would it help to buy this one?
Thanks for your support!
Alex.
Alex –
UltraCAD 68800 is our OEM feature driver for ATI. It has a bird's eye and
hotkeys, which are lacking in DL-Xpress, as well as a few other features.
I am not sure which versions are in the current shipments. ATI ships a LOT of
boards and we are not really sure what version is shipped with what. Our
current level is 2.1.6, but I am unclear where ATI is at in their quality
cylce.
Chuck Walbourn – Vibrant
Alexander,
IMHO, the _best_ drivers around are Vibrants. I have done tons of benchmarks
using the various drivers (mostly in AutoCAD though) and the fastest and most
stable are Vibrants bar none. I would suggest using DL-Xpress for 3DS it is a
very nice driver with color spline arrows and mapping icon. Panaceas seem to
work ok but at least in AutoCAD they like to leave crap on the screen after a
move or anything. Also, with high VIEWRES settings all the drivers I have
tested, except Vibrants, ran into problems highlighing entities. Well hope that
helps.
Dave Mennenoh
Dave:
Thanks for your reply! I'm already using DL-Xpress: it's defenitely a very good
choice! Unfortunately, it looks like I just missed the right release number…
the driver I use is not able to display those icon colors… otherwise it
great!
Something else: I read your question about the terrain-modelling. I've been
looking for a good terrain creator quite a while (mostly to create accurate
site terrains from architectural plans). I found that the IPAS routine '3D
surf' from Schreiber Instrument just does the things I needed (generating exact
terrains from Autocad data and generating random terrains as well). The price
here in Europe is 99.00 pounds for the package.
Alex.
Dave –
Sorry for the missing color icons. Have you tried the ATI BBS? They might
have a newer version.
Chuck Walbourn – Vibrant
Alex,
Thanks for the info – I will give Schreiber a call about the 3d surf routine.
Also, you should be able to upgrade your DL-Xpress to the newest revision so
that you will have color icons. I think the newest is 2.16.
Dave