python hermite function

as Maya doesn`t have python command version of its hermite MEL command, I found this example of the very basic curve interpolation description. What is cool, you can pass both floats or MVectors from OpenMaya module. Both work.


import maya.OpenMaya

p0 = maya.OpenMaya.MVector( 0,0,0 )
p1 = maya.OpenMaya.MVector( 10,0,0 )
r0 = maya.OpenMaya.MVector( 0,4,0 )
r1 = maya.OpenMaya.MVector( 0,-4,0 )

def hermite(p0, p1, r0, r1, t):

t2 = t * t
t3 = t2 * t
_3t2 = 3.0 * t2
_2t3 = 2.0 * t3

return (p0*(_2t3-_3t2+1) + p1*(-_2t3+_3t2) + r0*(t3-2.0*t2+t) + r1*(t3-t2))

res = hermite(p0, p1, r0, r1, t)



taken from Autodesk API examples:

http://download.autodesk.com/us/maya/2010help/api/torus_field_8py-example.html

DAM new album

Go to this website to find samples from new album of czech/american electro project Die Alten Maschinen:

http://www.myspace.com/diealtemaschinen

(art by 21. century Michelangelo Adolf Lachman)

Despicable Me

Saw this a while ago and I really enjoyed it. So I think it should get its post here. Contains parts of the story, in case you haven`t seen it!

First I didn`t expect much as the trailer seemed quite simple - an evil guy with lot of gadgets and couple of gags. But the little girls were the best element of the story. I would say playing similar note as Pixar`s Monsters Inc. It was really fun and touching to see how the villain changes his life priorities after the three girls enter his life.

Also each character was performed really well, with lots of detail in the behaviour. The scenes were just believable. Even the overacted gags were still balanced and making sense. The little yellow guys were brilliant, even though I was thinking it was just stupid from the trailer. In the movie they were awesome. Especially shopping mall sequence when they go buy the unicorn toy. Generally this was great comedy with lots of ideas taken from real life. Even though this was not made in major studio they have reached high quality of comedial and emotional performance of such as Dreamworks or Pixar.

The production story is no less interesting. Chris Meledandri who was executive producer on many Blue Sky movies (Ice Age,..., Horton Hears Who) started up his own production company and needed to find a studio capable of making A quality commercial cg feature. To cut it short he settled with Parise-based studio Mac Guff. They previously made a feature that already looked pretty good - Dragon Hunters. They also had a working character animation pipeline including Asset Management system, according to another producer Janet Healy [1]. The studio is already working on another feature Dr. Seuss' The Lorax (see the producer connection here with Dr.Seuss' Horton Hears Who done in Blue Sky).

So also taking the fact, this wasn`t one the top established studios, again, job well done!

friday fun video

just forwarding video someone sent me... :) he says it`s classic
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gWHJk5g9DOE&feature=channel

installing SVN for Eclipse on Windows

I have just installed SVN at home under Windows 7 and thought I would share the steps I did.

In case you see "SVN" first time. This is shortcut for a file version control system. Its full name is Subversion. It seems to be prefered today over CVS system, which was used earlier.

http://subversion.tigris.org/

I already used Eclipse for coding python modules, but I wanted to:

a) keep version history just in case b) get to know more about using SVN

Eclipse has CVS system built in, but as I use SVN at work, I wanted to learn the same at home.

First thing was to create SVN repository. As I wanted an easy way, I`ve downloaded Tortoise SVN which is Windows shell extension. So it does the same as typing in shell, but using Windows Explorer UI (right click menu on folder has Tortoise sub-menu):

http://tortoisesvn.tigris.org/

After installation you just need to make a directory which will be your Repository. I created a folder C:/SVNRepos. Then use Tortoise menu option Create repository here. That`s it. You shouldn`t change or delete files in this folder. The repository system is using it.

Next step is adding files to repository. These can be anywhere and they can even be later deleted. Usually it`s a folder containing some subfolders and script files. If you want the top folder to appear in repository, you have to actually go one folder up and add this. In case there are more folders under top folder, just copy it as I did, so there is nothing else.

So I right-clicked for Tortoise menu on a folder "svn" containing my main tool folder and choosed Import...

(click on image to see full size)

Then all folders and files were recursively added to my new SVN repository. Now about Eclipse...

Eclipse doesn`t have SVN built-in, so you need to download it as a plugin, which is easy. Go to Help>Install New Software. Then add this path to Work With texfield:

http://subclipse.tigris.org/update_1.6.x

Make sure that this points to latest Subclipse version. Better go to main Subclibse website and check what is latest to get all the new features. It can actually happen if you install old version, that it will not be able to recognise the SVN repository system, which can be newer version. This is why latest is important.

Then just click all plugin parts and follow easy installation steps. At one point you will be prompted to agree with Subclipse terms of use and also that you want to use a sofware without Windows signature. This is only formality.

Now just go to File>New>Project>SVN>Check Out Project From SVN, choose Create New Repository and type your svn repository path, for example

file:///C:/SVNRepos/

In the last options you can choose Eclipse to check out the files into its default folder. I prefer my own location, which is not under Eclipse folder, as I can better integrate it to my tool folders.

(click on image to see full size)

If this all worked you can now enjoy Eclipse with SVN controlling your development files :)

8 november - X-ray Day on google

this cool image is how Google celebrates the day when Wilhelm Röntgen`s discovered X-ray, on November 8, 1895. In Czech Republic we actualy use the word "rentgen" after its discoverer for this type of medical scan. Same for Germany and Russia. Other countires use the actual name of this radiation "x-ray".

90`s

this is my first graphics program I used to work in: Autodesk Animator. We did a dungeon game programmed in Pascal, and I was making icons (like dead rat or gemstone) and user interfaces for it. That was in 1994, the resolution of this was 320x240 with 8-bit color depth. I know the most cool thing to me was Smooth function to average with neighbouring pixel colors.

cool book!

in case you were interested in some nice book about rigging...
http://www.amazon.com/Art-Rigging-George-Biddlecombe/dp/0486263436/ref=pd_sim_sbs_b_1

;)