Computer Graphics World articles from August 2005

Computer Graphics World archives from August 2005

Bring your brain.(Siggraph 2005 report)(Editorial)
August 1, 2005... SIGGRAPH returns to Los Angeles this month, and you're encouraged to "Bring Your Brain." For 32 years, this mecca of CG has attracted and inspired artists from around the world, encouraging attendees to stretch their minds and unleash their...

SIGGRAPH 2005 opens.(spotlight: Your resource for products, user applications, news, and market research)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... Roughly 30,000 professionals from six continents are expected to descend on the Los Angeles Convention Center early this month for SIGGRAPH 2005. And it couldn't be a better time: Both technology and optimism abound in the industry. In...

3Dlabs introduces Wildcat Realizm 500.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... 3Dlabs has unveiled its Wildcat Realizm 500 professional graphics accelerator. The company's latest midrange graphics board, the Wildcat Realizm 500 is designed to ensure the efficient manipulation of large-size, complex animations and...

Nvidia upgrades Gelato to Version 2.0.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... SIGGRAPH attendees will be among the first to witness the upgraded version of the Nvidia Gelato software renderer. Tapping the power of Nvidia Quadro FX graphics boards, Gelato speeds final-frame rendering for film, television, and design...

RenderMan for Maya presented at SIGGRAPH.(enhanced software from Pixar Animation Studios)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... Pixar Animation Studios has unveiled the latest version of its RenderMan software, RenderMan for Maya. RenderMan for Maya is designed to provide tight work flow integration with Alias's Maya 3D modeling, animation, effects, and rendering...

Alienware launches Area-51 7500.(PRODUCTS: WORKSTATION)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... Alienware has expanded its Area-51 product line with the Area-51 7500, a high-performance desktop system designed for data-intensive applications. The Area-51 7500 is the first Alienware system to incorporate Nvidia SLI and Intel dual-core...

Silicon Graphics Prism Deskside system debuts.(PRODUCTS: VISUALIZATION)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... In its booth at SIGGRAPH 2005, SGI will demonstrate the Deskside version of the Silicon Graphics Prism interactive visualization system. In fact, these systems can he seen powering a Sony SXRD 4K projector in the SGI Visualization Theater, in...

Correction.(Correction Notice)
August 1, 2005... In the June issue, two images appearing in the Portfolio section on page 29 were incorrectly identified. The image pictured here on the immediate right is "Rogue IV" by Eric Heller, while the image on the far right is "Persona in Fields" by...

Virtual sets for all.(new product from Serious Magic Inc.)(Column)
August 1, 2005... When I was a kid, my family visited Universal Studios in Hollywood. That was back in the early 1970s--the era of mechanical monsters, rubber scars, and Styrofoam boulders. I recall seeing examples of all those things on the studio tour. I was...

Thoughts in motion.(use of animation software to express the feelings)
August 1, 2005... Two fundamental aspects of creating a believable character are thoughts and actions. While creating believable thoughts for a character with artificial intelligence (AI) is certainly an admirable endeavor, at this point in time, for most game...

Eye candy: CGI makes Willy Wonka's chocolate factory sweeter than ever.(common gateway interface)
August 1, 2005... A much more literal adaptation of the Roald Dahl children's classic, Tim Button's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory stands apart from the 1971 version by using state-of-the-art CGI to faithfully re-create the weird and wonderful world of Willy...

Asian fusion: BioWare blends martial arts and digital arts in the action-RPG Xbox title Jade Empire.(design of the video game)(Cover Story)
August 1, 2005... Picture a wondrous Chinese-style world that could have been, if all the ancient Asian myths and legends were true. That's exactly what the team at BioWare, a game developer in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, did while creating its new crown jewel,...

Four play: studios join forces to create unique visual efects for feature film's newest superheroes.(Film)
August 1, 2005... When a cosmic storm envelops an inventor, astronaut, pilot, geneticist, and industrialist, all five become transformed in unearthly ways. The inventor, Dr. Reed Richards, becomes elastic Mr. Fantastic. The astronaut, Ben Grim, grows into an...

Fast, reliable, 64-bit: with its revolutionary 64-bit workstations, Hewlett-Packard is driving the digital media and entertainment revolution.(PA-RISC)(the miccroprocessor of the company)(Advertisement)
August 1, 2005... Hewlett-Packard first shattered the memory constraints imposed by 32-bit computing in 1996, when it announced its PA-RISC 64-bit processor. HP continues this trend of 64-bit leadership with a family of workstations that take full advantage of...

64-bit wave extends its reach: Softimage, Autodesk, and Alias announce plans for support of 64-bit technology.(Advertisement)
August 1, 2005... As audiences' appetites for realism in film, broadcast, and games continue to grow--and deadlines to create digital content continue to shrink--the need for software tools that enable artists to produce cutting-edge visuals without compromising...

All systems go: boosted by 64 bit, DCC productivity is expected to soar.(future of the data collection computers)
August 1, 2005... A revolution is coming... again This time it involves 64-bit computing driven by new processors from AMD, IBM, and Intel. Like most revolutions, this one has been building for some time--64-bit computing has been a mainstay of server...

Top of the class: Computer Graphics World talks to studios about who, how, and why they hire.(Students in animation)
August 1, 2005... 'Tis the season when graduates are stepping out of the classroom and, if all goes well, into the studios to begin their careers. Whether you're fresh out of school or an experienced digital artist, it helps to know what studios are looking for...

SIGGRAPH 2005 animation theater.(Portfolio)
August 1, 2005... The SIGGRAPH 2005 Animation Theater featured a selection of projects--including dramatic and humorous pieces, commercials, and scientific and technical animations--that illustrate the diversity of computer graphics in a variety of mediums. The...

Combustion 4: the upgrade offers improved work flows, color keying, and time warping.(Product/Service Evaluation)
August 1, 2005... If someone had slipped in one night and upgraded my Combustion 3 to Version 4, it might have taken me a while to notice it. This is good: The enhancements have been worked in smoothly and won't disrupt existing work flows. At the same time, it...

SketchBook upgrade.(new upgraded software from Alias Systems)(SketchBook Pro 2)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... Linux Alias has unveiled an updated version of its paint and drawing software, SketchBook Pro 2. For use with digitized pen tablets and Tablet PCs, SketchBook Pro 2 boasts such new features as an improved user interface and enhanced brush...

Massive undertaking.(new enhanced product from Massive Software)(Massive 2.0)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... Massive Software has revealed that Massive 2.0, an upgraded version of its 3D animation system for Al-driven characters and digital stunts, is now shipping. New to Version 2.0, facial blend shape animation adds to the quality of characters...

RealViz news.(new product)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... Win * Mac * Linux During SIGGRAPH 2005 in Los Angeles, RealViz is introducing the first applications in its new "Powered by Smart" product family. Smart, based on a new generation of algorithms, is an automatic 3D tracking engine designed to...

Events.
August 1, 2005... AUGUST 30-9/1 Game Developers Conference Europe (GDCE), held in London. Contact www.gdceurope.com. SEPTEMBER 9-13 IBC2005, held in Amsterdam. Contact International Broadcasting Convention (IBC), 44-20-7831-6909, www.ibc.org. OCTOBER...

Animating with Anarchy.(new software from Digital Anarchy)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... Win Digital Anarchy's Data Animator 1.0, its latest special effects software release, is making its debut at SIGGRAPH. Data Animator 1.0 is a collection of seven plug-ins for Adobe's After Effects. The plug-ins are designed to enable After...

Plant production.(new product from Bionatics)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... Win Bionatics has released an upgraded version of its natFX plant simulation and modeling solution for use with Autodesk's 3ds Max. The NatFX 3 plant modeler is designed for 3D animation professionals and game developers, and well suited to CG...

Natural selection.(new products from E-on Software and Newtek)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... Win*Mac NewTek and E-on Software have announced the availability of a software bundle. The new offering combines NewTek's LightWave 3D content creation and rendering package and E-on's Vue 5 Infinite natural environment creation software and is...

Maya according to Maestri.(new book from Sybex Inc.)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... Sybex has released Maya at a Glance, an introduction to Alias's Maya 3D animation and effects software. In the book and accompanying CD, animation/effects professional, CGW contributing editor, and author George Maestri blends a wealth of...

Penning CG principles.(computer graphics)(new book from Springer-Verlag)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... Springer-Verlag has unveiled Principles of Computer Graphics, Theory and Practice Using OpenGL and Maya. The new text is authored by Shalini Govil-Pai, who worked at Pixar Animation as a technical director on such films as Toy Story and A Bug's...

Graphical gems.(new programming technique book from nVidia)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... Nvidia has introduced its second volume of GPU Gems, written by GPU programming experts and edited by Matt Pharr, Nvidia software engineer, and Randima Fernando, manager of developer education at Nvidia. With graphics processing units (GPUs)...

64-bit RenderDrive.(new product from ART VPS)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... Art VPS has introduced a 64-bit version of its RenderDrive system, the RenderDrive RD6400. The new release performs off-line final-frame rendering for a virtually unlimited number of users. In fact, it is capable of processing model sizes of 30...

Silent system.(WhisperStation)(new product from Microway Inc.)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... Microway has announced the availability of its WhisperStation, an ultra-quiet workstation designed to run demanding 64-bit graphics applications. The base tower configuration sports a pair of single or dual-core 64-bit AMD Opteron 275...

Storage space.(new product from APPRO International Inc.)(AR3015)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... Appro has announced the availability of its new AR3015 network-attached storage (NAS) system, designed for storage-hungry and data-sharing applications. The Appro AR3015 NAS incorporates a Linux embedded operating system, a Web-based storage...

Creative content.(new web portal from Curious Labs)(Content Paradise)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2005... Curious Labs has launched Content Paradise, a Web portal developed specifically for 3D artists, animators, illustrators, and designers. Via Content Paradise, creative professionals can purchase and download digital content--including figures,...

Blown away: Pandemic Studios gets busy with LucasArts' Mercenaries: Playground of Destruction.(new software from SOFTIMAGE Inc.)(Advertisement)
August 1, 2005... How does one go about creating the vicariously violent world of Mercenaries: Playground of Destruction, the third-person shooter adventure from LucasArts? For their part, Pandemic Studios relied heavily on SOFTIMAGE | XSI's modeling, texturing...

Let your imagination run wild.(Wildcat from 3Dlabs Inc.)(Brief Article)(Advertisement)
August 1, 2005... Important projects with extremely tight schedules. No time for anything that slows you down. Here at 3Dlabs,[R] we build graphics accelerators that give you the raw performance and unconditional reliability you need to get your projects...

Alias to demonstrate full range of industry workflow solutions at SIGGRAPH[SM].(Alias Systems)(Maya 7, Alias MotionBuilder 7, Alias SketchBook Pro 2)(Advertisement)
August 1, 2005... For more than twenty years, Alias has been developing award-winning software solutions for the entertainment and design industries. Maya[R] is the top choice of leading filmmakers, and has been used in many films that have been nominated for an...

ATI Technologies has been a technology innovator for 20 years, delivering powerful, proven technology to designers, animators and engineers all over the world.(Advertisement)
August 1, 2005... ATI's FireGL[TM] workstation graphics accelerators are optimized and certified for professional DCC as well as CAD applications and are supported by a unified driver. Advanced features include dual display, dual-link support, stereo 3D output,...

Ideas realized. Transform your most daring and ambitious visions into reality.(new software from Autodesk Inc.)(Brief Article)(Advertisement)
August 1, 2005... Autodesk solutions enable the world's top game, film post, broadcast, video, and CD production facilities to break new ground while delivering on aggressive deadlines. Autodesk provides the award-winning solutions today's top artists...

Accelerating the digital world.(new product from BlueArc Corp.)(Brief Article)(Advertisement)
August 1, 2005... BlueArc is a storage innovator--consistently delivering network storage technologies that enable data-driven customers to do things previously impossible--dramatically changing their business. BlueArc's solutions are used by organizations that...

BOXX[R] Technologies, Inc.(new products)(Brief Article)(Advertisement)
August 1, 2005... BOXX Technologies delivers technology to the innovators in the digital media community with high-performance, flexible workstations, render nodes, and turnkey video editing solutions that enhance creativity and fuel innovation. The BOXX series...

D2 Software.(new product)(Advertisement)
August 1, 2005... D2 Software, Inc., a subsidiary of Digital Domain, Inc., the Academy Award [R] winning effects house, has one simple mandate: To provide the high-end visual effects community with the most powerful and production proven software solutions on...

Durable ABS models printed right from your desktop.(new products)(Dimension BST, Dimension SST)(Brief Article)(Advertisement)
August 1, 2005... Dimension brings 3D printing right in your office so you can easily collaborate and make changes for a much more efficient and productive design process. And because Dimension uses only tough, durable ABS plastic that can be sanded, milled,...

e frontier: formerly Curious Labs.(e frontier America Inc.)(Company Profile)
August 1, 2005... e frontier America, Inc., formerly Curious Labs, Inc., empowers artists to capture the human experience through its world class software products. Overview Headquartered in Scotts Valley, CA, e frontier helps designers, artists and...

eyeon.(new products from eyeon Software Inc.)(Brief Article)(Advertisement)
August 1, 2005... Software Inc. is fully dedicated to the visual effects community through the development of flexible and unique software solutions, eyeon continues to foster creative productivity by promoting client feedback. Home to Fusion and its...

Eyetronics 3D Scanning: film/TV/commercials/games: actors, animals, whatever...wherever!(services)(Brief Article)(Advertisement)
August 1, 2005... At Eyetronics we take a complete approach to 3D scanning, Our process has been developed with the end result in mind. We provide a final 3D scan that is highly detailed, fully textured and ready to animate. Fully mobile, we can be anywhere...

Infortrend: RAID controller and subsystem specialists since 1992.(Infortrend Europe, redundant array of inexpensive disks )(Company Profile)
August 1, 2005... Background Infortrend's mission is to provide the highest performing product line available in the storage industry. Infortrend's RAID technology helps protect computer data against hard drive failure, while increasing system performance...

Passion for innovation.(NVIDIA Corp. new products)(Brief Article)(Advertisement)
August 1, 2005... NVIDIA Corporation is a worldwide leader in graphics and digital media processors. The Company's products enhance the end-user experience on consumer and professional computing devices. NVIDIA graphics processing units (GPUs), media and...

Corporate profile.(COMPANY PROFILES)(Company Profile)
August 1, 2005... REALVIZ provides image-based creation software for professionals and prosumers in the domains of Visual Effects, Digital Imaging, and Industrial Imaging. Derived from years of research at the famous INRIA Lab in France, the company's software...