Planet Blender

Favourite Sci-Fi online comic strip returns, this time created with Inkscape, Blender and GIMP
Starbright Illustrations (blog) - 2009-12-06 19:36:02

 

 

I’ve been tempted to bring the Moonbugs out of retirement lately. Last year, when I was drawing this science fiction comic strip and posting the humorous adventures of the strip’s characters to various blogs, I was working by sketching a strip in pencil, scanning it into the computer and adding shading or colour with Photoshop.

That technique was quite time consuming and fiddly, and I was never 100% satisfied with the results, but now I have discovered a plethora of new apps to potentially get the look of my comic strip where I want it to be.

I’ve also decided that the traditional three or four panel horizontal strip might not be the perfect format for an online, blog-based comic strip. It might be a better idea to add each panel to the post as a separate image and allow the reader to scroll downward through the illustrations with the scroll wheel on the mouse. Even Apple Mac has this feature these days.

So now I just have to decide if I want to make 3D computer generated characters and put them in a vector art Inkscape world, or the other way around, or perhaps I want sketchy graphics tablet and GIMP illustrations against a 3D background. I could even do a pure vector graphics, super professional looking strip. The options are endless. I’m starting with Inkscape, and the first thing I had to find out was how to cut a hole in one shape with another, so I could put a nice ring round a background planet.

As I’ve just downloaded the latest version of Blender, 2.5 – it’s still in alpha testing right now, and I’m currently playing with it. I’m going to be sculpting a mesh of Caz the Moonbug who gets the most screen time. I might even rig the mesh before I render it, so that I can repose it and use it over and over again. It’s time to bring the Moonbugs out of their sketchy four-colour past and propel them into a bright and shiny 3D future.

I might even animate them. Hmm… this is going to be fun.

Augmented reality for architectural visualization presentations
Blender 3D Architect - 2009-12-06 13:05:17

How do you make your architectural visualization presentations? I have clients and projects that required only simple slides presentations made in Powerpoint, with a sequence of images showed as a slideshow. Another type of project demands a set of printed panels, which will be displayed in a room or conference. There are several ways to [...] Related posts:

1. Augmented reality and architectural visualization The augmented reality can boost up the experiences provided in...
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I asked the Puppy Linux Discussion Forum, can I use a tar.bz2 app with my 4.3.1 puppy?
Starbright Illustrations (blog) - 2009-12-06 11:45:18

I’m having a lot of fun experimenting with my new 3D sculpting and rendering suite, Blender 2.5, under Windows XP and I wanted it on my Linux machine too. But of course Linux has a reputation of being for nerds, and very difficult indeed to use, and installation of new apps is one of the things that is creating that impression. So how did I get on with the installation?

Let’s compare what you have to do to get this 3D app working in Linux with the simple and intuitive Windows procedure. In Windows all I had to do is download the Windows version, unpack it (even this can be daunting for inexperienced users, but unpacking a file seems simple to me now) and click the pretty icon with exe written underneath. Blender starts, no problem. But Linux. oh my goodness…

Take a look at this page of hints and tips about what might, and what might not be needed to kick the app into life. And this isn’t the most complex set of instructions I have found as I have been trying to install, oh no, not by a long chalk.

When people run into problems they start mentioning strange things like a scons package. To me that sounds like something that should be enjoyed with cream and jam. They also, with the best of intentions, offer lines and lines of gibberish that can be typed into something called a terminal, which looks like a c prompt and is just as cold and unresponsive. All mine ever says to me when I type the suggested clumps of computer geekery is “No such command or file.” Then it says “#”, and that’s it.

For those who enjoy laughing at the misfortunes of the less initiated here is a forum where I have been explaining the idiot things I have been doing, and begging for hints and tips.

Puppy Linux Discussion Forum :: View topic – can I use a tar.bz2 app with my 4.3.1 puppy?

Over the last few days of Googling around I have read thousands of similar stories of woe from billions (perhaps that last number was exaggerated) of other perplexed Linux users who can’t get stuff to install, compile, call it what you will. It might be a good idea for developers to offer already unpacked and compiled versions for idiots, sure they would be a couple of megabytes bigger, but they would be easier to use.

Having said all this I do have the old version of Blender, Blender 2.4, running on my Linux machine because a friendly forum lurker posted a pet – an easy to install version for my “distro” (Puppy Linux) – and a page of step-by-step instructions on installation. So with Blender’s great reputation for backwards compatibility I should still be able to swap files between the two machines and do useful work on both. And when 2.5 stabilizes I’m pretty sure that another kind-hearted forum spirit will take pity on us mere mortals and provide a Puppy Linux specific, easy to install Blender 2.5 pet package, with instructions.

It’ll probably be a while though…

Blender workshop winter 2010 in Barcelona
BlenderNation - 2009-12-06 09:54:24

A Blender workshop for beginners will be held in the first quarter of 2010 in Barcelona. Raimon Guarro  wrote: Casa Orlandai, cultural center in Barcelona, schedules again an introductory Blender workshop between January 15 and March 19 of 2010. Sessions are each Friday from 17.30 to 19.30. There are a dual boot Windows-GNU/Linux computer per person, and room [...]

Michelin Challenge Design Pre-Registration
BlenderCars.com - Competitions, Free 3D Models, Render Clinic and Blender Modeling Resources - 2009-12-06 00:00:00

{jcomments on}The Michelin Challenge Design competition is now accepting pre registration entries for the 2011 challenge entitled "Plus 10." Get over there now and pre-register and share your ideas here as your design unfolds.

Michelin Challenge Design Pre-Registration form