[Virtual Light]

To be more specific regarding OpenGL, here’s what the dialog says when you try to enable it in the AE preferences…

“OpenGL acceleration is not currently supported on this version of Mac OS. Please go to http://www.adobe.com/go/learn_ae_openglsupport for current information about OpenGL hardware support”

Jim

[Virtual Light]

I have installed AE CS3 and indeed the Open GL will NOT enable. I’m running an 8-core intel with a Radeon XT 1900. The software does suggest installing the latest drivers for the card but I am hesitant to do so without Apple’s “blessing”.

The card does works fine in Open Gl in both Cinema 4D and Zaxwerks (ub version).

BTW, the software comes with all the Cycore plug-ins that AE 7 had in addition to Keylight v1.2 and Color Finesse 2.

Jim

[Virtual Light]

Thanks Jon,

You’re correct in your description of my problem. The “pinching” does go away when I use Open GL rendering but at the cost of the correct “bulging” of the map on the sphere.

Unfortunately, these plug-ins are for Windows only–I’m on a Mac. Perhaps some experimentation with a distortion on the top and bottom of the Photoshop image will allow me to fix the problem.

IMHO, a better explanation and correction through Zaxwerks documentation and software is in order.

Jim

[Virtual Light]

Jon, I had the same problem in testing my post. I got around it by selecting the entire link (after it opens in a new browser window) and just hitting ENTER or RETURN . Not sure what’s going on here but this action seems to open the file.

Jim

[Virtual Light]

Jon, I had the same problem in testing my post. I got around it by selecting the entire link (after it opens in a new browser window) and just hitting or . Not sure what’s going on here but this action seems to open the file.

Jim

[Virtual Light]

No argument here at all. I can attest first hand to the pressure being applied by the top of the food chain. The salad days are over and anyone who doesn’t recognize and react to it will be very lonely.

This kind of stress on the market has and will continue to create a significant shake out. Studio budgets have caused many places to shutter and others to cut margins to the point where extinction is virtually a monthly concern. At the same time, demands for quality, reaction time and creative control have increased exponetially. This way of doing business permeates corporate America. To expect anything less from the creative sector is naive.

I must argue though that extrapolating an hourly rate to a yearly income for a freelance employee is inappropriate. It’s a convenient but innacurate device which makes it appear that your contribution to his/her salary is higher than you’re actually paying. Remember freelancers don’t receive any benefits and must depend entirely on their work, wits and networking to keep the jobs coming. I doubt many freelancers are working 40 hour weeks for an entire year. Add in the cost of living and not many of us will be left after the carnage.

At the very real risk of introducing even a particle of politics here, I encourage everyone who doesn’t own a large corporation to closely read the “Guest Worker” provision of the current emigration bill. I can assure you that anyone who does own or run one is already familiar with It and cheering for its passage. It will make competition even more pointless.

Jim

[Virtual Light]

Although I agree that perhaps ronaldo was less than diplomatic, there is much truth in his post. I’ve been working as a single person corporation for 18-years and have watched (in horror) as rates have declined to the level where a house painter can make more than a great, imaginative and responsive designer.

When asked for advice from young start-ups, I quickly acknowledge that what you charge is the most difficult aspect of establishing yourself. If you decide to work for $25 to $50 per hour, that’s how much YOU say your worth.

As far as working on site, it’s my personal opinion that it’s fraught with significant problems. Not the least of these are out of date software, poorly maintained or inadequate computers, poor selection of plug-ins and fonts and often baffling storage. And, god forbid if you’re taking over someone else’s work as he or she goes on to another project that pays better or is unavailable for future revisions. You’ll often spend at least a day trying to unravel and reconstruct a project, or worse, fix an amateurish, mistake-ridden one.

I understand that managing work in-house is often easier but I would quickly point out that a good outside designer will very likely be more proficient and will usually have a greater selection of tools to draw upon. If you’re finding that “outsiders” don’t even save their work I would suggest looking harder or paying more.

Jim

[Virtual Light]

I’d love to know a simpler technique for accomplishing a real floor but, frankly, whether it’s a floor, ceiling or walls, there’s little that can be done in After Effects to make infinite “hallways”. The files have to be so large or scaled to such astronomical proportions that it becomes effectively impractical.

I’m assuming you would like to travel over the plane or at least “explore” the space you’ve created and this is where it gets sticky. It’s extremely difficult to place objects within such a large area that react predictably and aesthetically.

I’ve just finished a tabletop animatic and even that limited space presented similar challenges. Placing plates, glasses and other embellishments in the environment required some real cheating to get everything to behave properly.

Maybe someone has come up with the magic key for this process. I’d love to have them share it.

Jim

[Virtual Light]

thanks Rich…good to know.

[Virtual Light]

I never promised a rose garden. There’s no question that this IS a series of walls. Every other approach I utilized just plain wouldn’t work in AE’s 3D space. I tried to use HD footage but since the “train” had to come to a slow stop at the station, there was no way to time remap without severe stuttering.

Jim