uNDefineD

8th April 2003 12:10 UTC

UnConeD, Magic, Phaze, Nic, Raz, Tug and Dragon please read
I've compiled my list of presets I'd like to remix for MiniPak 4:

1. Magic - FASTSPIN
2. Phaze - Damaged Warp Core
3. Nic01 - Interaction
4. Raz_001 - Twisted Shifted
5. UnConeD - Zero-G Maze III :D
6. Phaze - Bubble World
7. Tuggummi - Times-X II
8. Dragon - Eternal Winter
9. Tuggummi - Counter Falls
10. Nic01 - Oldskool Stuff

Boy, I'm gonna have a field day.

If you guys could give me permission to remix these presets I would be VERY appreciative. :)

Rovastar

8th April 2003 12:36 UTC

I am so cynical at the moment that I thought that this thread was going to be a flame thread attacking all the people listed. :) I don't know if to laugh or cry...:)

UnConeD

8th April 2003 12:50 UTC

Aside from Whacko AVS I-II (older terms), you don't need my permission to remix my presets :).

If you want to have a go at messing with the code in zg3, I can whip up an explanation of how it works (most of the code goes into controlling the camera, not the raytracing 'cos that's just cylinders).

uNDefineD

8th April 2003 13:03 UTC

Well, I was planning on attacking just the texture, but I would love a bit of a walkthrough (maybe to fast-track a bit of the research I have planned).

Thanks man. :) 1 down.

Raz

8th April 2003 17:12 UTC

Haha i remember twisted shifted, that's one of my noob presets. Sure go ahead.

Btw UnConeD, if you're typing something that explains how the camera movements work can you please post it here. Lots of people very interested :)

Phaze1987

8th April 2003 20:33 UTC

Damn those are some OLD presets :) Good luck in remixing them.Oh a 3d warp core would be cool...:p

Nic01

8th April 2003 23:17 UTC

You have my full permission (You never needed to ask me, really) as long as you give me credit and include the original comment (that last one is more of an option than necessity). Any violators will be eternally flamed.

UnConeD

9th April 2003 02:09 UTC

Raz_001: what exactly do you mean with 'camera movements'? If you want info, send me an email (steven at acko dot net) with more specific requests.

To understand ZGM3 you need to understand the main trick: there is only one intersection being rendered, which consists of 3 full or half cylinders, and optionally a sphere to close off the holes (eg. if you have a 90° corner). These cylinders are situated on the x,y,z axes.

At the beginning of a 'cycle', a random intersection is calculated in the form of a number (variable 'pat') and every tunnel is either open or closed. Every possible intersection-shape is assigned a number. Note however that there are many intersections that are the same, except that they are mirrored or rotated 90°.

The camera comes out of the negative z tunnel and approaches the intersection. When it reaches the intersection, it rotates towards one of the open tunnels and accelerates again. Once it's cleared the intersection, it is moved back to the negative z-axis at the correct offset, and it is ready to approach a new intersection. There are three intersections where the camera will go straight ahead, and this is handled as a special case (variable 'qz' true/false).

To the viewer it looks of course as if it is going through a continuous maze, but this is just a trick ;).

The movement of the camera is handled in phases (var 'ph'). Every phase corresponds to one of the possible situations the camera can be in (approaching intersection, rotating towards tunnel, accelerating).
For every phase, there is code for modifying the camera's position and/or rotation, and code that specifies under which conditions we should move to another phase.

For example, phase 1 in ZGM3 is when the camera has rotated towards the correct tunnel and must now move into it. Phase 1 ends when the camera's distance to the center of the intersection is higher than the intersection's radius: in this case, the other tunnels are no longer visible and we can snap the camera back into the negative z tunnel.

By splitting up the camera movement into small phases that are each simple to code, you can easily create complicated routines without going into code-hell.

Tuggummi

14th April 2003 09:58 UTC

Sure you can remix those presets if you want :)

Raz

14th April 2003 17:02 UTC

That was pretty much it UnConeD, i'll go into more detail with the code by myself. I learn better when i figure it out for myself.

Phaze1987

14th April 2003 20:31 UTC

Great explanation UnConeD!It cleared my mind on some things...

Raz

20th April 2003 01:47 UTC

UnConeD, just one question: In ZGmaze 2 when it goes into the tunnel, does the code specify a time rotating in the intersection then shifts it forward a bit into the tunnel then moves the texture for a specified time then snaps it back into the intersection?

UnConeD

20th April 2003 03:05 UTC

Not sure what you mean, but ZGM2 is not as advanced as ZGM3... it always goes down the positive Z-tunnel.

In ZGM2, the phase variable is 'md' (mode). If i recall correctly, phase 0 is rotating in the intersection, phase 1 is rotating to face the positive z tunnel, phase 2 is moving into the tunnel and phase 3 is arriving from the negative tunnel. The snapback occurs when switching from phase 2 to 3.

Raz

20th April 2003 03:22 UTC

mm, i'll have to poke around a bit more. I've got may intersection and i've got the camera entering the tunnel, then it's just a tunnel preset.

Raz

20th April 2003 05:45 UTC

ARRRRGHH :mad: I had the goddamned thing going down a tunnel and passing through an intersection after a specific number of frames and then i resaved it after not changing a thing and it doesn't even start moving down the tunnel now :mad: :mad: AGHHHH

edit: never mind, fixed, forgot to reput my "phase variable" back into the beat section

Phaze1987

20th April 2003 14:05 UTC

Hahhahha! HOMER RULES BABY! Raz maybe you`ll post today the preset ? :) Undefined : how`s the work going ?

Raz

20th April 2003 14:10 UTC

I'll post it later. Code errors and the like, the code's all unorganised and crappy with unused variables, stuff like that. I'll neaten it all up and post it.

And yes: homer does rule :D (so do "r=0" movements and channel shift ;))

Phaze1987

20th April 2003 14:27 UTC

Btw do you have Homer`s Beer Song ?

Magic.X

24th April 2003 17:22 UTC

ACCESS GRANTED :D

But WOW, fastspin? Thats just a watered, rotating SSC with a random mirror - rotozoomer effect. Go ahead and have fun :wink:

uNDefineD

25th April 2003 10:36 UTC

Phaze--
It's all going just jim dandy. :) I've been touring Sovereign Hill and the Great Ocean Road the last few days, so things slowed down a little, but it's all fine.

AVS Axer

26th April 2003 11:57 UTC

Hey, would you look at that.. i never realised you were from australia UD. I'm from adelaide!!

Phaze1987

4th May 2003 22:30 UTC

How long till its out ?

uNDefineD

5th May 2003 01:39 UTC

Well, I'm going to finish all the packs before any is released. Then I'm putting them up at 1 week intervals, so it'll be a while (Remixes is #4).

Phaze1987

5th May 2003 08:06 UTC

Dammit,i dont have patience lol.Could you at least change the sig ? Early April is waaaaay...gone! :)

Magic.X

6th May 2003 11:25 UTC

Phazey's right, hurry up a bit :p

Phaze1987

9th May 2003 21:04 UTC

Any new update on the packs ?

uNDefineD

11th May 2003 06:42 UTC

Not really. I just don't have as much time anymore, and ideas are hard to come by, especially when you're limiting them to one particular concept.

Phaze1987

11th May 2003 10:03 UTC

LOL @ the ETA in the sig :D
OK,i have patience,but the thing is i`ll be gone in Germany for 1 month and i`ll be netless kinda...I`ll try to keep posting but i dont know if i could check the presets.If anyone volunteers to give me a laptop i`ll give you a...big hug :)

Ches Dragon

12th May 2003 04:51 UTC

Sorry it took me so long to reply. I havent been on the net for a while, but sure, I hope you remix my AVS,
You have my full permission to remix Eternal Winter,
Have Fun! :D