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  • Random Images from a list looping

    Posted by Ken Latman on October 31, 2007 at 1:57 pm

    I’m a little stumped. I have six images that have in a line that I want in a row randomly changing on a loop. If anyone remembers the opening to I think, Charmed or Buffy the Vampire slayer, they are ramdomly changing symbols.
    Would this be part expression part something else? Any thoughts?

    Kevin Camp replied 18 years, 10 months ago 4 Members · 6 Replies
  • 6 Replies
  • Mike Clasby

    October 31, 2007 at 5:01 pm

    Don’t really know what you want, there are so many homemade versions of Buffy and Charmed openings at youTube; I dunno what was the original.

  • Kevin Camp

    October 31, 2007 at 5:05 pm

    also, do you want the images to just flash up randomly for a frame, or should the duration be longer or fade out, etc..

    Kevin Camp
    Designer – KCPQ, KMYQ & KRCW

  • Ken Latman

    October 31, 2007 at 6:36 pm

    All six images are on the screen at once. They rotate around the same images but never two showing up at the same time. The images/symbols are changing randomly, but again I want to see the same six images just in different arrangements.

    1 2 3 4 5 6
    then maybe (this is all random)
    6 4 2 1 3 5
    and so on
    3 1 2 5 6 4

    NOT

    2 2 4 5 6 3

    I have adapted something from Dan Ebberts page on random stills. The problem is I’m still getting some duplication.
    I first made a comp with all my images in a row. Duplicated that comp six times but changed the order of the images.
    I then took those six comps and applied the expression to them as if they were layers.

    The next step goes a little beyond because, though I do want these items in a row, I would like to control the spacing of my elements from each other. The gutters I don’t want to keep always constant. So I then made six copies of this random generated compostion. I set it to loop in an very basic command found here on the cow. I put masks on each of the compsitions, framing only the one image I want to control for each. I asumed this would keep my layer times in sync, but I’m still getting duplicate symbols showing.

    I think I am over complicating this whole process, but I’m not an expert in expressions.

  • Steve Roberts

    October 31, 2007 at 8:59 pm

    You know …. in the time that it would take you to come up with an expression (or to wait for us) you could have probably created a short loop giving you exactly what you want. … by hand.

    Just a thought. 🙂

  • Ken Latman

    October 31, 2007 at 11:33 pm

    Ah but aren’t expressions so much cooler? 🙂
    I think I have something exceptable.
    Thanks for your input.

  • Kevin Camp

    November 1, 2007 at 6:10 pm

    on this one i agree with steve… the problem is the no duplicates. if you want an expression i think it’s time to turn to the ae expressions forum, dan or philip may be able to help you.

    to quote jj gifford concerning when not to use expressions (from his expression site), ‘any time you can avoid them’

    but they are fun 😉

    Kevin Camp
    Designer – KCPQ, KMYQ & KRCW

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