#IPAS!!
11 messages in this thread
Hey! I got my IPAS Catalog!!!!!
Very impressive stuff… Disk #1 looks very impressive, as does Disk #2.
Wish I could afford this stuff right now!!! -sigh-
Does the water program find *all* surfaces in the model, and react
appropriately? Water hitting walls, running down roofs, etc. Or does it
only work on one place at the bottom? Will water collect?
The lens flare effect is *very* nice. That one alone is worth the cost of
the disk! (ouch, did I really say that?)
I know you said you would ignore these questions, but..
Will there be a method in the future by which we can purchase individualy
programs? It would be fine if there was a surcharge for this… For
instance, I would pay $75.00 for the lens flare. Don't bother to seperate
the Docs for this routine from the others, if they are all bundled together
into one book (to save processing).
It is hard to get management to purchase these things when they are at
$300.00; it is much easier to acquire these one at a time (even if it is at
a premium).
-Mike.
Michael,
The water.sxp "shader" can be used as a texture, opacity, and/or bump map
on all surfaces of an object. Since it's a MAP, it doesn't affect the
geometry, but creates the illusion of bumpiness, watery texture, and
translucency.
Unfortunately, we don't have the flexibility to make these routines
available individually. Each of the 5 packages is only available as a
complete set. (and you're right… the Lens Flare alone IS worth the cost
of Disk #1!)
– G
So, the rain & snow shader(s) will not work on all surfaces! <groooan>.
Is this possible, at all, theoretically, to produce a routine which can
look into the model and find what surfaces are potential for interaction
with the routine?
Sorry about `shaders' I guess it's just habit. What would a better term be
for these routines?
-Mike.
When you said "water" in your first message to me, I thought that you meant
the water.sxp procedural shader from Disk #2. From your current message,
it seems more like you're talking about the rain.axp and snow.axp particle
systems from Disk #4. The rain and snow routines fill a cubic volume with
a rainstorm and snowstorm, respectively… that's it. It's "possible" to
produce a particle system that constrains itself to the insides of an
object, but we didn't tackle that one this time round.
– G
Is there going to be a IPAS developer's kit? All of the IPAS disks look
great (and I've already written an order for a couple) but I can see that
writing my own routines might be the only way to do some of the things that
I need to do.
Chris
Chris, the folks up in Adesk's Multimedia Developer Services group have
been hard at work on getting the beta IPAS software developers kit out the
door. It's been distributed in beta already, and should be on the verge of
being final any day now. If you're interested in becoming a registered
developer (necessary to get the IPAS SDK), contact Chris Allis or Regina
Brown at Autodesk (415/332/2344).
– G
I would like to correct you if I may, Gary. The IPAS Toolkit will be
available to nonregistered developers for approx. $200 dollars via an 800
number. There will be an announcement on the forum with all the details
when the kit becomes available (RSN).
– Grant
That's great to hear, Grant. Thanks.
– G
Thanks, I'll give them a call.
Chris
But probably you can make a special price for those who want to order the
complete set ??
-nt- (hopefully)
Btw: Your broshure arrived Tuesday. 4 days from Houston (?) to Munich –
that's not bad
Actually Werner, there isn't a complete-set price. This is for two
reasons:
1) All 36 of the IPAS routines are the bargain of the century at $1500 (the
average price is only $42 per routine, and considering the amount of work
that went each one, that's a steal).
2) Special pricing deals can get incredibly complicated when it comes to
paying royalties, and if I can't run this operation totally automatically
(SIMPLY), I'll just cut it off and stop doing it. This is because I'm very
serious about the fact that my primary responsibility is to update 3D
Studio core code… not to make IPAS routines.
Take care,
– G