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The third and hopefully final beta version of Anim8or v1.0 is ready for downloading.
That means it is in a period of public testing.
This beta release has been extensively tested through a
series of point builds posted to the Anim8ot forum over the past two years.
While it has not been fully QA'd it is significantly more solid than previous beta release
due to these point builds.
There may be updated beta versions posted as problems are found and fixed.
Once I feel things are stable enough I'll release the "official" v1.0 through the main download page.
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There should be no major incompatibilities between this and the previous version.
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If you are a new Anim8or user then you probably should not be using this version.
Naive questions and incorrect problem reports will not help the beta process.
If you want to try it out to see how the new features work then this is the version for you.
But you should be aware that it is likely less stable than a released version.
Don't use it for important projects unless you're prepared to redo your work should something happen.
You should also visit the
Ongoing Anim8or Development
forum.
This is where you will find the latest information on problems and give your feedback.
Have fun!
Steve
March 22, 2017
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The major focus for this release was filling in the remaining missing functionality
that I had envisioned for v1.0.
The main new features include:
User Interface:
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The user interface has several enhancements that can streamline modeling and animation.
The most obvious is the new color scheme which has a dark gray background instead of light blue.
This makes models' shapes generally easier to see.
You can also increase the size of the toolbar buttons which helps touch-screen users.
Additionally, with an adequate graphics chip, you can change the 3D views to anti-aliased,
and show edges and controls in thicker lines,
which can make them easier to see on high resolution screens.
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Enabling fast-select allows a more fluid selection and editing work flow
since it eliminates the need to continually switch modes to edit different parts of a mesh or scene.
Moving the mouse highlights in orange the component that would be affected
if you click making it easier to select the correct point or edge.
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Layers are an addition that lets you assign components to different groups
that can be locked or hidden by the click of a button.
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You can temporarily enter arc-rotate mode by pressing and holding the Alt key,
and you can zoom the viewport by scrolling the mouse wheel.
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Improved shaders for the working views.
Using shaders your materials will look much closer
to their final appearance in the working views.
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Modeling:
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There are several improvements to the modeler.
The most important is the topographic tool or topo-knife.
You can split faces, and move, add and dissolve points and edges all in one tool.
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Scaling and rotating faces, edges and points now does so
relative to the center of the group that's selected,
rather than the center axis of the mesh.
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Animation:
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The main addition to Anim8or's animation capabilities is Inverse Kinematics, or IK.
This allows you to position a chain of multiple bones at the same time.
You simply position the end of the one bone where you want it and all of the other bone in the chain adjust.
You can also lock a foot to the ground, move the body and the leg will adjust as needed.
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V1.0 should be able to read previous versions of .an8 files.
Though the opposite is not entirely possible,
it generally should work especially for the most recent releases.
Newly added features will be ignored, of course, but shouldn't cause other problems.
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This Third version of the 1.0 beta dated May 6, 2017 is ready.
Get a copy here:
animv100beta3.zip
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This second version of the 1.0 beta dated April 15, 2017 is available here if you experience problems qith the current one:
animv100beta2.zip
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This initial version of the 1.0 beta dated March 22, 2017 is available here if you experience problems qith the current one:
animv100beta.zip
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The manual for v1.0 is available as a web page.
Here is the link:
v1.0 Manual
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I'm just now writing the spec for the scripting language.
I'll post it here when I have something useful.
In the mean time you can download some of the sample scripts from here:
http://www.anim8or.com/scripts/spec/index.html
If you are an experienced programmer you can probably figure a lot of it out from these examples.
Please don't ask anything about the language until I've posted the spec.
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A current bug list can be found here:
v1.0_bugs.txt
I'll try and keep it current so you know what's happening.
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In order to keep the
V1.0 Forum useful to everyone,
please take the following steps before you post:
1. Limit your posts to v1.0 problems.
No wish lists, and no pictures unless they are in support of a problem
or question on how a new feature works.
You can post pictures as you normally do in the Works In Progress and Finished Works forum.
2. Read through the other posts.
Read through the current big list.
If your problem is already posted and you don't have anything new to add, don't reply.
3. If you don't understand how Anim8or v0.98 works,
you probably shouldn't be posting in the v1.0 beta forum.
4. When you post a new problem topic you should:
a) Use a meaningful title. Titles like "Question?", "Help!", "Big Crash!" are not meaningful.
b) If it's reporting a problem, give a detailed description of what the problem is and how to reproduce it.
c) If it's a question on a new feature be as precise as you can.
d) Don't reply about a different topic besides the one the thread is about.
e) If you have some unique feedback on v0.95 you can also post it here.
f) Use proper English sentences.
Cutsie abbreviations are too ambiguous and aren't nearly as helpful
when I'm trying to understand what you've said.
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