[comp.graphics] 3D Block letters

jp@Apple.COM (John Peterson) (01/11/90)

From article <7351@shlump.nac.dec.com>, by ellenberger@tle.decwrl.dec.com:
> Does anyone out there have a public domain 3-D title generator (ala TITLE from
> the BYU MOVIE Package) that I could use with one of the public Ray Tracing
> Packages (MTV or Rayshade)?  I'm in the mood for flying logos and I don't the
> time to digitize my own font.


Gordon Romney's PhD. thesis from the University of Utah ("Computer
Assisted Assembly and Rendering of Solids") has an appendix in the
back listing the coordinates for a complete 3D block letter alphabet.
It came out in 1969 or 70, you should be able to order a copy from
University Microfilms for $20-30.  Graphics folks in SLC might enjoy
looking up the copy in the U of U library, it contains what must be
some of the earliest 3D color shaded pictures. 

If you can get your hands on a scanner and a Really Good OCR
package you might be able to save yourself some typing.  I suspect the
digital data was lost when the original graphics lab was scrapped to build
the new one in 82 or so.  (Oddly enough, nobody there preserved any of
the "classic" data - they didn't even have a copy of the teapot until
somebody pulled it off the net a few years ago...)

Enough rambling,
jp

leech@cassatt.cs.unc.edu (Jonathan Leech) (01/11/90)

In article <37743@apple.Apple.COM> jp@Apple.COM (John Peterson) writes:
>From article <7351@shlump.nac.dec.com>, by ellenberger@tle.decwrl.dec.com:
>> Does anyone out there have a public domain 3-D title generator (ala TITLE from
>> the BYU MOVIE Package) that I could use with one of the public Ray Tracing
>> Packages (MTV or Rayshade)?	I'm in the mood for flying logos and I don't the
>> time to digitize my own font.

    An easy way to generate solid logos is to take a vector font and
turn each stroke into a cylinder with hemispherical endcaps.  I did
this with the Hershey fonts to build the credit sequence for the
Caltech 'trees' demo tape a few years back.
--
    Jon Leech (leech@cs.unc.edu)    __@/
    ``God is more interested in your future and your relationships
      than you are.'' - Billy Graham

mtv@milton.acs.washington.edu (David Schanen) (01/12/90)

	I have seen some demo's for 'Interfont' by Syndesis that were really 
incredible.  These were words turned to objects suitable for use in a raytacer
particularly Turbo Silver and Sculpt 4D.

	What is the technology like as far as extruding 2D images?

		-Dave

	mv /etc/disclaimer.std > /dev/null

mitchell@cbmvax.commodore.com (Fred Mitchell - PA) (01/15/90)

In article <1346@milton.acs.washington.edu> mtv@milton.acs.washington.edu (David Schanen) writes:
>
>	I have seen some demo's for 'Interfont' by Syndesis that were really 
>incredible.  These were words turned to objects suitable for use in a raytacer
>particularly Turbo Silver and Sculpt 4D.
>
>	What is the technology like as far as extruding 2D images?
>

The system that I am working on at present (3-Tuple) will be able to 
vectorize a 2-D bitmap, and extrude it anyway you like! Can't wait to
finish it! I've been working on my 3-D Animation & Rendering system for
almost 2 years now! It is guaranteed to advance the technology, at least
as far as micros are concerned! 


>		-Dave
>
>	mv /etc/disclaimer.std > /dev/null

	-Mitchell
	 To Life, Immortal