Computer Graphics World articles from March 2003

Computer Graphics World archives from March 2003

Prime prospects. (editor's note).(computer graphics industry analysis)(Editorial)
March 1, 2003... When economic climates are favorable, business planners often use market forecasts mererly to support strategic decisions they've already made. When conditions are chaotic, they may turn to them for something more. Of course, there's...

Video aerobatics: mini copters let videographers create unique camera moves. (viewpoint DV).
March 1, 2003... To create compelling images--whether for a music video, a television ad, or a corporate presentation--videographers will go to great lengths to come up with creative camera angles for the shots. Rather than simply shooting a subject straight...

Private tour: a real-time simulation lets museum visitors see an art collection as its collectors once did. (Multimedia).
March 1, 2003... Few of us have been fortunate enough to view a painting by a renowned artist within a personal setting. Instead, we've had to gaze at the piece from afar as it hangs on a plain museum wall. Now, thanks to efforts by the Imaging Research Center...

A mod, mod, mod, mod world: players turned programmers create the next generation of their favorite games. (Gaming).
March 1, 2003... The world is going interactive--the world of entertainment, that is. US retail sales of video game hardware, software, and accessories exceeded the $10 billion mark in 2002, beating out the record of $9.4 billion set in 2001. If there were ever...

Familiar faces: players of the Sims Deluxe PC game can give characters unique identities, even their own. (Gaming).(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... The next time you see a friend or relative playing The Sims Deluxe Edition computer game, don't be surprised if you see a familiar face or two among the virtual crowd. You may even see a character that looks just like you. That's because this...

Crossing over: film and television assets trade places. (Broadcast).
March 1, 2003... The list of animated television series that have made the leap to the big screen is long and getting longer. There's Nickelodeon's Rugrats, Hey Arnold!, and The Wild Thornberrys. The Cartoon Network's Powerpuff Girls have already starred in a...

Art studio.(Richard Baily designs his own 3D software)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... When Richard "Dr." Baily formed his Hollywood-based fine-art studio Image Savant in 1992, he set an unusual goal for himself: "Within 10 years, I wanted to be doing all my work using proprietary 3D software. I didn't want to be limited by...

Veepers 3.0: talking Web characters from Pulse.(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... Ever since the Internet took off in the mid-'90s, companies have been looking for ways to create a more personal Web experience. To this end, Pulse has introduced Veepers--talking characters requiring very low bandwidth that can be added to a...

Digital Fusion 4.0: Eyeon upgrades its compositing program.(Digital Fusion 4.0)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... The new version of Digital Fusion, the compositing program from eyeon Software, is fully resolution independent and can work in either 8-, 16-, or 32-bit floating-point color processing, all within the same project. It is now also fully...

Frame rates. (Digital Video).(ReTimer SD by RealViz)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... [Win*Mac] RealViz has announced availability of ReTimer SD, a frame rate manipulation tool for artists working in Adobe Systems' After Effects. ReTimer allows users to slow down or speed up any video or image sequence of any resolution up to...

OS X effects. (Digital Video).(Final Effects Complete for Mac OS X)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... [Mac] Final Effects Complete for Mac OS X, a set of more than 100 software plug-in filters and transitions that generate film-style special effects for film, video, animation, DVD, and CD-ROM content, is now being offered by Media 100. Final...

Multiple effects. (Digital Video).(Profound Effects' Useful Things)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... [Win*Mac] Forty new or improved effects highlight the latest version of Useful Things, Profound Effects' plug-in for Adobe Systems' After Effects. Among the new effects are video tools that render in an After Effects layer, self-animating...

Nature and skies. (Modeling And Animation).(Doth Design's Dosch HDRI: Nature and Dosch HDRI: Skies)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... [Win*Mac] Dosch Design has released two products in its new HDRI (High Dynamic Range Images) line. Both Dosch HDRI: Nature and Dosch HDRI: Skies contain 56 images for use in 3D design and animation applications. These images contain detailed...

Flash editor. (Web).(Wildform Linx Flash Editor)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... [Win] The Linx Flash Editor from Wildform allows users to import, edit, and combine Flash SWF files, including animations and audio and visual files, without having extensive knowledge of Macromedia's Flash. Instead, the program's WSIWYG...

Asset management. (Web).(Softimage/XSI BatchServe Version 1.5 )(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... Softimage|XSI BatchServe Version 1.5 is a Web-based client/server system for users of Softimage|XSI. BatchServe supplies an easy-to-use graphical interface for the automation and management of processing and rendering jobs in Softimage|XSI. It...

Events.(Brief Article)(Calendar)
March 1, 2003... MARCH 4-8 Game Developers Conference 2003, held in San Jose, CA. Contact: CMP Media; www.gdconf.com APRIL 5-10 National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) 2003, held in Las Vegas. Contact: National Association of...

Interactive time capsule: a virtual exhibit transports museum-goers back in time to view a famous art collection in its original setting. (backdrop).
March 1, 2003... Q Why did the Baltimore Museum of Art decide to recreate the original setting for the Cone sisters" famous art collection in virtual reality rather than recreate it in physical space? A Actually, to some extent, they have done both. The...