Google Sketchup users have a new toy to play with, ArtVPS has brought the popular Shaderlight rendering system to Google Sketchup 7 and 8. You can download a free version to try out, but they also offer a ‘Pro’ version for only $199.
Developed as a tool for all SketchUp modellers, Shaderlight echoes the ‘simplicity first’ philosophy behind SketchUp and its familiar UI and simple workflow make it easy to deliver professional results, without requiring rendering expertise. Fully integrated in to SketchUp and SketchUp Pro, Shaderlight offers a range of features including automatic material presets, applied to the SketchUp material collection, and material finishes controlled via the Shaderlight Material Editor. The physically based interior lighting features and advanced global illumination techniques help render realistic interiors. Shaderlight allows users to change background setting with options for SketchUp background colour, image-based lighting environment or custom background.
The free version is limited to 640×480 rendering and lacks some of the nicer lighting effects, but every free download comes with a free 14-day trial of Pro so you can see everything they offer.
Using Australian telescopes, Swinburne University astronomy student Andy Green has found ‘living dinosaurs’ in space: galaxies in today’s Universe that were thought to have existed only in the distant past.
The report of his finding – Green’s first scientific paper – appears on the cover of the 7 October issue of Nature.
“We didn’t think these galaxies existed. We’ve found they do, but they are extremely rare,” said Professor Karl Glazebrook, Green’s thesis supervisor and team leader.
Folks in the printing industry might want to pay attention to Gandy’s new Grand Format Digital Printer they’ll be premiering at the SGIA show in Las Vegas. Named the ‘Pred8tor’ (someone in marketing is playing too much online Halo, methinks), it can print a 4x8ft rigit sheet at 1200dpi in under a minute.
“Everything is new on the Pred8tor”, says James Gandy, “at the design stage we wanted a total revolutionary new digital printer in everyway, from the mechanics and software, to the end user’s experience. We wanted to make things simpler to use without compromising quality and still push the boundaries. We wanted to deliver technology that was ubiquitous but not obtrusive, it works seamlessly behind the scenes, and still remains in full control, these are the best types of advanced technologies”, I believe we’ve achieved this and more.
Another whiz-bang feature is that the entire rig can be controlled from an iPad.
The Pred8tor is also be the first commercially distributed Grand Format Digital Printer that is fully controlled by an interface delivered on the iPad. Using the iPad allows the operator full freedom to control, monitor and work anywhere around the printer. The new interface will monitor many aspects of the printer behind the scenes and alert the user. Built in diagnostics, documentation, video tutorials and more all come as standard.
Of course, you can also control it via a web interface or software GUI. Get the full release after the break, or visit their booth (#573) at SGIA next week.
We begin today’s selection with GOOD showing us how Americans seem to be losing faith in climate change, and Credit Loan breaking down how the average consumer spends their paycheck – something Visual Economics also brings up with another infographic. Attitudes towards buying cars online are changing, according to Motor Trade Insider, and, finally, Get Satisfaction unveils the fastest way to lose customers.
An interesting product from NeuroSystems called ‘Substance’ aims to make fractal-modeling of organic forms and structures easy, with amazing realism in thefinal renderings. Using multi-threading, image-based lighting, and fast rendering modes, the pictures it comes up with are jaw-dropping.
Powered by NeuroSystems’ procedural organic modeling technology P.O.M.E and advanced rendering technology P.U.R.E, SUBSTANCE exploits the process of evolution to create an artwork which continually changes according to a genetic evolutionary algorithm. Basically, the artist is able to control the development of a piece of work through some form of “selection”, in a manner analogous to natural selection. In a system such as SUBSTANCE, one or more parent virtual sculptures are mutated and/or crossbred to produce a number of “children”, which are then selected again. These results are then used to produce the next “generation”.
Evolutionary systems such as SUBSTANCE allow the artist to generate complex unique unpredictable computer graphics artworks in a very visual way.
Get the viewer for free, but buy the full product for only $49.
If you’ll be in Brooklyn in two weeks, consider checking out this Intermediate Processing Workshop at the Devotion Gallery. The workshop 4 days, 4 hours each day, with a registration of $350 ($250 for Students).
This four-day workshop will introduce the participants to Processing syntax and coding structures, going from the basics to more advanced concepts like object-oriented programming and using libraries to extend Processing’s core functions. Participants will receive a pre-prepared library of code examples demonstrating the topics covered in the workshop, and will have a chance to discuss how they might use Processing in their existing practice
I have a friend who graduated from Ohio State. Every single Sunday, he talked about how well they had played, unless they lost. In those cases, he was silent. Well, if my friend was a 3-D geek (and he is not), and if he had 3-D TV (which he does not) then he would love to see that Ohio State, the number 2 team in the nation will be on ESPN 3D both this Saturday, and the next. I guess if you are the number one team in the nation, Alabama, you do not count.
ESPN 3D will televise No. 2 Ohio State at No. 20 Wisconsin on Oct. 16. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. ET. This marks the fourth 3D appearance for Ohio State. The Buckeye’s were first featured in 3D last year on Sept. 9 and will have had three appearances on the new network in 2010.
This Saturday ESPN 3D will be at Ohio State when the Buckeye’s host Indiana. Kickoff is slated for 11:55 a.m. ET.
At work, we tend to use Maya for very specific tasks, and 3D Studio Max for other specific tasks. Every year we buy the upgrades to both products, which should make Autodesk very happy. We started off by using Maya on SGI workstations in the IRIX environment. Now we use high-end Dell workstations in Windows. Things sure have changed over time, and so has Maya. Dan Ablan over at Macworld has posted a great review on Maya 2011.
Having worked with the very first version of Maya, as well as the now-defunct Maya Fusion, it has been exciting to see the program evolve over the past seven years. Additions to the modeling features, animation controls, and dynamics are just some of the ways the software has improved. Advancements in OpenGL technology have also led to a revolution in 3D interface design, allowing users to view textures and lighting in real time. But what’s more exciting in this new version is how Autodesk has simultaneously added new features and streamlined the program.
So you have a new 120Hz 3-D display and some active shutter glasses, and you want to simulate flying remote controlled helicopters. Now you can with the latest version of the Reflex XTR2 R/C Flight Simulator. And if you are like me, you can use the old red/cyan glasses as well.
Apparently the software flight simulator supports two different Stereoscopic 3D modes: either using red/cyan anaglyph glasses (a pair is included with the simulator), or using active 3D shutter glasses. Note that for the 3D shutter glasses mode you’ll be required the use a 120Hz 3D display and NVIDIA-compatible graphics card, along with the 3D Vision shutter glasses. The anaglyph mode can either be used for free with the 3D Vision Discover mode or the iZ3D Driver that also comes with free anaglyph mode on practically any normal monitor, however you might also be able to use the iZ3D driver or DDD’s TriDef software along with the Reflex XTR2 flight simulator in order to make it work with passive polarized glasses for example.
No doubt journalism and publishing has really gotten excited about Data Visualization lately. It’s not a particularly new field, but the tools to create the visualizations have moved out of academia and science and into mainstream, opening it to anyone with a web browser and the time and patience to use Tableau Public, Trendalyzer, or ManyEyes. Over at MediaShift, Anthony Calabrese has begun a regular article on Data Visualization, and opens with a quick intro on what it is and why folks care.
Data visualization is taking the web by storm and, with a little luck, it might be the next big thing in online journalism. Buoyed by the open data movement and accelerating change in newsrooms around the country, it has become something more than just flashy graphics and charts — it is a new form of visual communication for the 21st century.
In the coming months, I’ll be writing about this emerging field for MediaShift. We’ll cover best practices, free tools and resources. We’ll also analyze the best of the best and talk to some data visualization or viz bloggers about what’s hot and what’s not. From time to time, I’ll share some of my own data viz experiences with you and seek your feedback.
Google Sketchup users have a new toy to play with, ArtVPS has brought the popular Shaderlight rendering system to Google Sketchup 7 and 8. You can download a free version to try out, but they also offer a ‘Pro’ version for only $199.
Folks in the printing industry might want to pay attention to Gandy’s new Grand Format Digital Printer they’ll be premiering at the SGIA show in Las Vegas. Named the ‘Pred8tor’ (someone in marketing is playing too much online Halo, methinks), it can print a 4x8ft rigit sheet at 1200dpi in under a minute.
We begin today’s selection with 
An interesting product from NeuroSystems called ‘Substance’ aims to make fractal-modeling of organic forms and structures easy, with amazing realism in thefinal renderings. Using multi-threading, image-based lighting, and fast rendering modes, the pictures it comes up with are jaw-dropping.
If you’ll be in Brooklyn in two weeks, consider checking out this Intermediate Processing Workshop at the Devotion Gallery. The workshop 4 days, 4 hours each day, with a registration of $350 ($250 for Students).
No doubt journalism and publishing has really gotten excited about Data Visualization lately. It’s not a particularly new field, but the tools to create the visualizations have moved out of academia and science and into mainstream, opening it to anyone with a web browser and the time and patience to use 
VizWorld.com 
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