Computer Graphics World articles from December 2004

Computer Graphics World archives from December 2004

A few good mentors.(future of personal online mentors )(Editorial)
December 1, 2004... Last spring, the editors received a rather cryptic e-mail from an animator at a major studio about a "side project" that he and a few of his friends were working on. When we checked it out, we learned that the group was planning to launch an...

Eovia introduces Cararra 4.(3D animation)
December 1, 2004... Eovia has started shipping Carrara 4, the latest version of its 3D animation, modeling, and rendering software, in Standard and Professional versions. New to Version 4 are an updated Scene Wizard, faster OpenGL functionality, and the...

NewTek unveils VT4 Live.(video)
December 1, 2004... NewTek has released VT4 Live, an integrated production suite of hardware and software, for professionals in SD video production. Among the many features new to VT4 Live are support for Microsoft PowerPoint presentations, DVD Authoring with...

@Last Software upgrades SketchUp.(previz)
December 1, 2004... Maker of conceptual design software, @Last Software has unveiled Version 4.0 of its SketchUp 3D design tool for previsualization in the entertainment, film, and gaming industries. Designed for quick and easy sketching, modification, and...

Maxon launches Cinema 4D Release 9.(3D models/animation)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... Maxon Computer has introduced the ninth generation of its modeling and animation tool, Cinema 4D. As well as housing more than 100 new functions and features, Cinema 4D Release 9 offers a re-engineered modeling core, designed to ease and...

Celco Advances film recording software.(film recording)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... Celco has announced the availability of Version 2.0 of its FilmOut Pro advanced film recording software. The newly upgraded film recorder and image control software is designed for use with the latest generation of the company's Fury and...

Hi Def Jam.(music video)(high definition technology)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... Most music videos, which are created on a "fast track," are not finished in HD. The format is expensive, the postproduction work is time-consuming, and, above all, music video channels do not push for it. But when the Beastie Boys tapped...

Slam-dunk effects.(use of computer graphics software in video games)
December 1, 2004... Audiences can expect plenty of action when two of the NBA's best point guards go head-to-head on the court. But when their digital doubles play an intense game of one-on-one in a grungy industrial back-lot setting, the feats escalate from the...

The DCC market at year's end.(Digital Content Creation)
December 1, 2004... In its updated "Digital Content Creation Report," Jon Peddie Research calls attention to several industry trends that emerged over the past 12 months, as well as provides a forecast for 2005. 3D modeling and animation software experienced...

Newly separated from parent company DreamWorks SKG, DreamWorks Animation SKG (Glendale, CA) premiered on Wall Street, offering 29 million shares of common stock at an opening price of $28 per share, a price that quickly rose by nearly 40 percent.(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... Newly separated from parent company DreamWorks SKG, DreamWorks Animation SKG (Glendale, CA) premiered on Wall Street, offering 29 million shares of common stock at an opening price of $28 per share, a price that quickly rose by nearly 40...

Uncommon compositing.(viewpoint video)(methods and usage of video editing software)
December 1, 2004... Compositing. It's arguably the part of postproduction in which the graphic artist meets the videographer. Compositing is about designing the frame, and building and layering images. Simplistically, whereas video editing assembles clips linearly...

Locomotion: live-action film techniques transport Tom Hanks and cast the CG world of The Polar Express.(computer graphics)
December 1, 2004... When filmmakers think about bringing a storybook to life, they usually imagine re-creating the fantasy world by using animation or by putting actors into the roles of the storybook characters. Shrek is a good example of the former; last year's...

Fear factors: game developers use the latest tools and techniques to create frightening experiences.(Gaming: computer graphics)
December 1, 2004... Using various technical and artistic approaches, three developers have injected fear and horror into their recent game releases, producing unique terrifying experiences that are not for the fainthearted. In Doom 3, Id Software crafted a...

Consolation prizes: though the next-gen game consoles aren't here yet, current offerings provide plenty of engaging play and graphics.(Hardware)
December 1, 2004... The "big three" next-generation consoles--Microsoft's Xbox 2, Nintendo's GameCube 2, and Sony's PlayStation 3--are expected to ship in 2005, or perhaps even in 2006. Though these units are frequently discussed and anxiously awaited by the...

Albert Kiefer.(Portfolio)(a software specialist at Genicap)
December 1, 2004... While working on advanced plant research, Belgian scientist Johan Gielis discovered that any natural shape--circles, squares, stars, ovals--can be defined digitally by changing a few variables in one basic equation. This mathematical principle,...

3D animation software.(Snapshot)(Buyers Guide)
December 1, 2004... In recent months, the industry has been buzzing with news, such as updates and price reductions, surrounding tools for 3D animation. As these pages indicate, today's market bears a wealth of options for professional 3D animators. Whether...

Adobe Atmosphere: Adobe's new tool enables rich, interactive experiences.(Adobe Systems Inc. new product)
December 1, 2004... Interactivity. Real-time imaging. Immersive environments. These buzzwords have floated around the industry for years. Software developers continue to produce products that change these words into reality, even virtual reality. Adobe is no...

A new generation.(Tracking)(a new camera matchmoving software)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... Win * Mac * Linux Boujou Three, the third generation of 2d3's 3D camera matchmoving software, takes advantage of a new feature-tracking engine. With improved accuracy and performance, the latest version is effective in tracking thousands of...

RenderPipe release.(Rendering)
December 1, 2004... Win ART VPS, Ltd. has updated its Render Pipe software with support for the company's own Pure and RenderDrive raytracing hardware systems. Moreover, the plug-in gains support for Discreet's 3ds max 7, various Maya 6 render nodes, bitmap files...

Multimedia monitor.(Display)
December 1, 2004... Mintek Digital has launched the DTV Series, a family of HDTV-ready flat-panel displays. To date, the new product line boasts a 17-inch DTV-17 and 23-inch DTV-23, both offering a wide viewing angle of nearly 180 degrees. The two models feature a...

Seven feet tall.(Storage)
December 1, 2004... Clara Technologies has introduced the VXR-96, the latest product in its line of VXRack ultra-dense servers. A compact cluster technology, VXR-96 is capable of hosting up to 96 of the company's VX-Blades inside an 84-inch rack enclosure. As a...

Events.(Video games industry)(Calendar)
December 1, 2004... January 10-14 Macworld Conference and Expo, held in San Francisco. Contact www.macworldexpo.com. 25-27 Video Forum 2005, held in London. Contact www.videoforum.co.uk. 2-5 Imagina 2005, held in Monte Carlo. Contact...

Discreet 3ds max 7: a popular 3D tool gains new features and functionality.
December 1, 2004... Discreet has begun shipping 3ds max 7, the latest version of its venerable 3D modeling and animation application. The upgrade includes new modeling and texturing features, as well as an update to Mental Ray rendering. And Discreet's popular...