ANIMASIA 3-D press release
Animasia
Copyright (c) 1995 Apple Users' Group, Sydney
Republished from Applecations, a publication of the Apple Users' Group, Sydney, Australia.
ANIMASIA ANNOUNCES ANIMASIA 3-D VERSION 1.0
February 2, 1995 - After five years of research and development, Animasia today announced the shipment of version 1.0 of their three dimensional animation software, Animasia 3-D. Animasia 3-D is an Apple IIGS desktop application that allows computer users to create images and animations using three-dimensional objects.
Animations can be played by Animasia 3-D or included in HyperStudio and HyperCard GS stacks. Three-dimensional objects are the things that make up animations. Objects have height, width, and depth, like a chair or a bird. Objects are animated just by moving the object to a new position at a new time. Create the starting and ending positions and the in between transitions are filled in automatically.
Animasia 3-D has a robust suite of features that are powerful, versatile, and intuitive. The goal of all features is to make the user more productive when creating 3-D objects, worlds, and animations.
The intuitive user interface is what sets Animasia 3-D apart from similar types of software available for other computing platforms. With Animasia 3-D, elements are directly changeable by pointing and clicking the mouse, which conforms to the guidelines published by Apple Computer. Users will not have to understand cryptic sets of mathematical concepts and commands. Instead, the popular phrase that heralded the boom of desktop publishing now applies to 3-D graphics: "What you see is what you get."
Animasia 3-D's basic set of tools will be immediately familiar to those who have used drawing and painting applications. Rectangle, Oval, Polygon, and Selection tools are operated instinctively. New users will feel accommodated by the interface because advanced features are hidden from view. Power users will appreciate that all commands are just one or two clicks of the mouse button away.
Thirty levels of undoable actions protect the user from making mistakes and encourages relaxed experimentation with different options. Having the freedom to revert to virtually any previous state is one of the professional touches that every level of user will appreciate.
Animasia 3-D is compatible with all applications, desk accessories, and extensions, such as AppleWorks GS, Platinum Paint, HyperStudio, HyperCard GS, Switch It!, The Manager, Twilight II, ShadowWrite, HardPressed, AutoArk, GraphicWriter III, Addressed For Success, GNO/ME, and the Finder. To further maximize compatibility, existing file standards are adhered to. For instance, users can export Apple Preferred Format pictures, create Paintworks-type animations, and import industry standard AutoCAD "DXF" type objects. The Clipboard is fully supported and utilized, which makes using Animasia 3-D in conjunction with other graphical applications a strong combination.
While Animasia 3-D is easy to use, it is also powerful. Users can cut, copy, paste, move, rotate, size, deform, fuse, align, hide, and lock any object. Tools such as Extrude, Path Extrude, Cone, Bevel, Lathe, Ring, and Spiral create fascinating shapes which invite users to add to and change their appearance.
Indicative of Animasia's commitment to bringing high-end features to users at an affordable price, complex structures of objects can be treated as a larger entity using the Link tool. Linking objects together permits parent-child hierarchies to be formed. For instance, a foot is linked to the lower leg, which is linked to the thigh, which is in turn linked to the body. The significance of the linkages is that turning just the body automatically turns the thigh, lower leg, and foot.
3-D worlds with many objects are easily managed using the powerful grouping feature. Groups are similar to what other applications refer to as layers. By hiding a group, all of the objects which belong to the group are also hidden. The result is increased productivity due to less time waiting.
Animasia 3-D views and illuminates its animations using cameras and lights that mimic the real world. Cameras can be interactively positioned and oriented to any place and at any angle. Unlike the real world, the cameras' field of view can be set to view up to 179 degrees and can move instantly from one location to another. Illumination is achieved using an unlimited combination of four types of lights: Ambient, Directional, Radial, and Spotlight. Any light can be colored and spotlights can have a variable cone of light. Cameras and lights can be animated just as easily as any other object.
A full-featured, event-based timeline allows users to fine-tune the timing of their animations. Any one of an object's twelve animatable attributes can be modified independently from each other. Using the acceleration and deceleration feature, objects can animate their actions in a more natural, non-mechanical way.
Animations play back at 30 frames per second by taking advantage of the Apple IIGS' unique "Fill Mode" video. Using this technique, animations are fast, compact, and compatible.
Animasia 3-D was developed with an eye to the future. A prime example is the way it handles colors. While the Apple IIGS can only display sixteen colors at a time, Animasia 3-D internally calculates all colors from a palette of 280 trillion possible variations. Such fidelity may not seem necessary but it enables Animasia 3-D to automatically mix the sixteen colors to form sixty-four precise shades. There is also a twenty-nine level gray scale mode which displays an object's subtle shading tones.
Animasia 3-D was previewed to an enthusiastic audience at this summer's annual Apple II convergence, ICONference. Reaction to Animasia 3-D has been strong and steady. Jerry Kindall, Editor of "II Alive," reported that ". . . aspects of the user interface ... convinced me that Animasia was probably the most user friendly 3-D program I'd ever seen."
"For the first time on an Apple II computer, users will have the same kind of 3-D animation capabilities as other computing platforms," said Michael Lutynski, president of Animasia. "Animasia 3-D is a powerhouse of accessible and affordable features."
Animasia 3-D ships with two laser printed, spiral bound manuals: a comprehensive reference, and a twelve part tutorial. Of the 300+ combined pages, there is an illustration on almost every page. Animasia maintains direct support on GEnie (General Electric Information Service) and by phone five days a week (10 AM - 4 PM Eastern Time).
Animasia 3-D requires an Apple IIGS that is running System 6.0.1 with at least 2MB of memory. 4MB of memory, a hard disk, and an accelerator are recommended.
The retail price of Animasia 3-D is US$99 (plus US$3.50 S&H; overseas orders add US$5 for air mail shipping). Florida residents add 6% sales tax. School purchase orders are accepted.
To purchase Animasia 3-D, send a check or money order in US funds to:
Animasia
3324 Vishaal Drive
Orlando, Florida 32817
USA
CONTACT: Michael Lutynski (407)380-9932
or by Internet mail: animasia@genie.geis.com

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