Computer Graphics World articles from November 2006

Computer Graphics World archives from November 2006

Following the law.
November 1, 2006... Change usually is a good thing, particularly in the computer graphics industry. For the most part, "change" here means technological advancements. And, as this month's issue of Computer Graphics World demonstrates, the CG arena continues to...

E frontier announces Poser 7.(animation software)(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... E frontier is poised to release Poser 7, the company's 3D figure design and animation software first introduced in 1995. The release of Poser 7 introduces two new realistic 3D Poser figures, Sydney and Simon. Poser 7 Special Edition, available...

Eyeon readies Fusion 5.1.(Eyeon Software, image processing software)(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... Eyeon Software is set to unveil Fusion 5.1, an upgrade to its Fusion 5.0 compositing software, which the company rolled out a year ago. The upgrade is free of charge to Version 5.0 users. SIGGRAPH 2006 attendees were provided their first...

NextDimension supports FireGL V5200, V7200.(NextComputing launched portable graphics engineering computer)(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... NextComputing, creator of the first FlexTop computer, has announced the availability of ATI's FireGL V5200 and FireGL V7200 graphics boards on its NextDimension portable graphics engineering computer. The NextDimension incorporates single- or...

TrueSpace offers real-time collaborative tools.(3D software)
November 1, 2006... Caligari has announced Version 7.5 of TrueSpace, reportedly the industry's first 3D software application to feature real-time collaborative authoring technology. The new release, which will become available this quarter, will boast several...

Bookworm.(Visa International's advertising commercial)
November 1, 2006... A recent television commercial for Visa incorporates a unique digital process to create what appears to be a simplistic animation... and one with a surprising twist. The spot, called "Worm/Recycling," starts off quite unexpectedly, with...

Bridging the 2D and CG gap.(computer graphics software)
November 1, 2006... Animation has been through some major changes during the past 10 years, and some of them blindsided artists. The signs were there, but resistance to change, fear of the machine, and the concept of denial prevented many artists from seeing what...

Happy feat: digital effects studio Animal Logic choreographs a new pipeline to create its first animated CG feature.
November 1, 2006... Oh, those irresistible penguins! They can't help but charm as they shuffle, toboggan, swim, fall, tumble, huddle together, and waddle across the ice, the adults all dressed up in their jazzy tuxedos and the children as fuzzy as a stuffed toy....

Big moves: visual effects and motion-capture studios push the state of the art for mocap technology and techniques.
November 1, 2006... The ideal motion-capture system for filmmakers and game developers is easy to describe, It's invisible, interactive, and accurate. "A Holy Grail is to be able to capture a performer, face, and body, on set without infringing on principal...

Tools of the trade: commercial mocap offerings track movements for a range of applications.(Buyers guide)
November 1, 2006... A number of studios recently have broken new ground in terms of motion capture, as detailed in the feature "Big Moves" on pg. 18. In those instances, studios are advancing the state of the art in motion capture through R&D involving the use of...

High seas: visual effects artists devise a new method for creating turbulent water in The Guardian.(Fluid Simulation)
November 1, 2006... Creating realistic digital water has always been a challenge for visual effects artists. First, VFX teams found a way to generate relatively calm CG water for films such as Waterworld and Titanic. Then they tackled more turbulent seas, making...

Portfolio.(art animation exhibitions)(Siggraph 2006)
November 1, 2006... Clockwise from top: Akkad By Pierre Henon, this art animation examines the effects of big-city rhythms on our lives and relationships. The project was created using Photoshop, After Effects, Final Cut, and RhythmTX. Autarkeia...

A Magic Bullet.(Red Giant Software LLC launched digital video tools)(Magic Bullet Editors 2.1 and Knoll Light Factory 2.5.1)(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... Mac Red Giant Software, publisher of professional digital video tools, including Magic Bullet and Knoll Light Factory, has announced free software updates for professionals using Intel and PowerPC Macs or running Apple Final Cut Pro, Avid...

Anime Studio.(E frontier America Inc. launched animation software)(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... Win * Mac E frontier America has released Anime Studio 5, a 2D animation and cartoon creation software offering. Anime Studio employs a "bone rigging" system common of 3D graphics software, designed to streamline the animation workflow, reduce...

SGI files lawsuit against ATI.(NEWS)
November 1, 2006... SGI last month filed a patent infringement lawsuit against graphics card manufacturer ATI Technologies in US District Court. In the complaint, SGI asserts that products in ATI's line of Radeon graphics processors infringe on its US Patent...

Disney opens online submission portal.(Disney Online)(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... Disney Animation (DA) is connecting talent to animation opportunities with the online artistic submission portal. At www.DisneyMouseLink.com, artists can submit their demo reels and/ or portfolios through a secure Web-based upload system....

Autodesk unveils Area portal.(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... Autodesk has announced a new community portal called Area (www.the-area.com) that allows artists to network with peers and enjoy a repository of 3D content. The content is posted by community members and Autodesk. Area contains tips and...

Work groups.(Tiger Technology launched "StoneGate", hierarchical storage management software)(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... Win Tiger Technology, developer of storage area networking (SAN) and workgroup management software solutions, has announced StoneGate. The new solution is a virtual file system that enables raw image sequences stored on an Autodesk Media and...

A bite of the Apple.(Graphisoft launched Archicad 10.0, CAD software)(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... Mac Graphisoft has announced that Archicad 10, the latest version of its Virtual Building modeling technology, now supports Apple Macintosh OS X running on the new Intel Core processor platform. Graphisoft Archicad is designed to help users...

DirectConnect, ImageStudio.(Autodesk Inc. upgrade its CAD and image processing software)(Autodesk DirectConnect)(Autodesk ImageStudio 3.0.1)(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... Win Autodesk has announced improvements to its Autodesk DirectConnect family of translators and Autodesk ImageStudio, a rendering software. An update to Autodesk DirectConnect software is now available for download from the product center...

On the Gridiron.(Gridiron Software released workflow software "Gridiron Nucleo Pro")(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... Win * Mac Gridiron Software has announced the availability of Gridiron Nucleo Pro, designed to optimize the workflow for visual effects artists working in Adobe After Effects on multi-processor and multi-core computers. Nucleo Pro, an After...

Let the data flow.(Intelligent Light launched "FieldView 11.1", virtualization software)(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... Win * Mac * Linux * Unix Intelligent Light, in addressing the need to post-process and visualize data generated by computational fluid dynamics (CFD) applications, has introduced FieldView Version 11.1. FieldView has been updated with new...

Toshiba projection.(Toshiba America Information Systems Inc. launched LCD projectors)(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... Toshiba's Digital Products, a division of Toshiba America Information Systems, Inc., has introduced the TLP-X3000U LCD projector with 3000 ANSI lumens, designed for mobile professionals, educators, corporate trainers, and small- to midsize...

Diamond offering.(Diamond Multimedia Systems Inc. launched three new versions of video cards)(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... Diamond Multimedia, a manufacturer of PC graphics cards, sound cards, and communications products, has begun shipping three new versions of its Viper video card line. The new editions include the X1950 CrossFireT, X1950XTX with PCI Express, and...

Media's Mac focus.(EDITING)
November 1, 2006... Win * Mac Media 100 revealed plans to support the new Apple Intel-based Macs. Media 100 HD Suite, Media 100 HDe, Media 100 SDe, and Media 100 sw will be qualified for Intel-based Mac systems in early 2007. The Intel-based Mac development effort...

Sandio Technology's 3D mouse.(Sandio Technology launched 6DOF 3D mouse)(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... Sandio Technology, a 3D input company, debuted a new advanced version of its 6DOF 3D mouse. The 3DeePro is a 3D professional mouse designed to improve the productivity of 3D applications. The new version of Sandio's 3DeePro was developed for...