Re: 3d w/ Amiga

[P3D Don Chaps <dchaps@xxxxxxx>]

On Mon, 5 Aug 1996, P3D DZ-015 wrote:

> With all this talk about 3-d rendering, I've been inspired to make some
> anim attempts on my Amiga.  I have a couple of questions though...
> I will be using Imagine, and it is capable of outputting in a 3-d
> interlaced mode that is compatible with x-specs.  I've never used x-specs
> or even seen them for sale.  There has been talk of inexpensive $69 LCD
> shutter glasses.  Would these be compatible with the Amiga?  Are there
> drivers available?
Well, I use the Amiga for photographic and video 3D. I have X-Specs, as 
well as standard LCD glasses, so I'd be glad to compare them. I don't, 
however, do rendered 3D so I can't help you with Imagine.

The X-Specs kit came (many years ago) with -
-a pair of LCD shutter glasses. The LCDs were not overly large, 
especially compared with Toshiba glasses. They are wired in phase with 
other LCD glasses (right eye is right eye) and have the same mini plug so 
mix with other LCD glasses on other viewer methods. The X-Spec glasses 
are very "gogglish" and attach with a band of wide elastic. I have driven 
mine up to 90 or so hertz successfully with an SVGA monitor and a Retina 
graphics board. Your mileage may vary, they were only designed for video 
switching frequencies. I have used the glasses intermixed with other 
glasses in video presentations without adverse comparisons to the more 
expensive glasses being used. Just keep in mind their age when comparing 
to the latest LCD glasses. Often can found dirt cheap ($30) used or in 
the usenet amiga.marketplace group.
-an interface box that plugs into the joystick port and has a jack for 
glasses. You can, as with most devices of this kind, drive multiple pairs 
using standard splitters to add more glasses. I've used up to four 
glasses. No limit implied, I didn't add glasses till failure, just a 
commentary on my family size. I might warn you here that, IF memory 
serves me, the X-spec adapter serves up left and right eye backwards 
compared to the standard (there was no standard when it was released). No 
need to worry. You can just poke the keyboard and switch the polarity any 
time at will.
-and software. It originally came with a 3D space shoot'em up called 
"Space Spuds" that allowed you to blast invading potatoes.I've already 
confessed that I'm Lithuanian, so you know that something involving 
potatoes and 3D made my heart soar like an eagle. It also came with a 
switching utility to activate the glasses. Since the Amiga has true 
multitasking, you can run that in the background and use any image 
processing or viewing program to view or manipulate your 3D images. 

There also was developer software in (hmmmm, I can almost remember) both 
assembly and C source code.

Many programs directly support 3D on the Amiga. ImageFX and Adpro allow 
you to split interlaced images for processing or combine two images to 
frame sequential (i.e., interlace and deinterlace in Adpro). Other 
programs like PageRender3D, Vistapro, etc., directly support X-spec and 
frame sequential 3D. Since the driver multitasks, you can use many other 
programs without their being designed specifically 3D. For example, I 
would regularly use a Vlab framegrabber to pull frames form a Toshiba 3D 
camcorder, crop and process in Adpro, overlay titles IN 3D from 
Pagerender3D, and output back to video. You can use Vlab Motion for 
realtime video 3D digitizing and editing. These programs are available 
really cheap nowadays, considering.

> Anyone have experience?

If you know anybody trading experience for youth, ...

> 
> The other question is, once the anim is rendered is it possible to record
> to VCR and playback stereoscopicly with one of those decoder box things?
> Anyone have any experience?
Doing anims in 3D is a snap. Completely compatible with 'those other 
decoder boxes.' I've taught photography to Junior High kids, they could 
do stop motion and ather anims, so can you. It's fun. Give it a shot.

> 
> I'm sure there is a way to do it by spending $$$, but I can't afford
> anything over the cost of a VCR right now.
Well, any computer or photographic activity can be made more glossy by 
throwing money at it. If you don't have beaucoup bucks, substitute hard 
work, understanding in depth what hardware and software you do have, and 
creativity. Even the 
most expensive hardware won't substitute for that. Remember that "Art is 
what artists do." Don't worry about what you don't have. Throw  
yourself at your projects with passion and complete involvement. A 
pinhole camera or an old computer or Polaroid prints can produce 
breathtaking results from the passionate mind. Remember petroglyphs...

> 
> Thanks,
>       -Jay
>        dz-015@xxxxxxxx
>        http://emrl.com/~dz-015
> 
> -----
> Experimental Media Research Laboratory, Northern California
> For more Information, http://emrl.com or email INFO@xxxxxxxxx
> 
> 
Don also here in northern california
dchaps@xxxxxxx
www.crl.com/~dchaps  under construction, done real soon now


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