demo tools
category: general [glöplog]
What's the minimum that a demo tool should have? I'm thinking of making a demo 'player' with built-in effects, that would be fed music and a small script, no coding required/possible. Something using the embedded 'events' that you can put into wma, probably. Really just a lightweight way to throw visuals on top of music, with very good sync. Something that can't take in a significant amount of data, but which could procedurally generate crap from sets of parameters. Nothing really huge though, as it's all got to be procedurally generated in real time (so no 'loading' time at start).
So what I'm asking is: what kind of effects does a demoplayer require at minimum, to be interesting? So far I think this is the min, but I'd like to hear suggestions, since this would face a lot of people.
I've been thinking:
hypnoglow flash centered at coords (x,y)
create object n of type m with procedural parameters a,b,c...
display object n with size x,y,z at location x,y,x relative to camera
move camera with momentum dx,dy,dz, spin da,db,dg
turn on/off blur/feedback/some other built-in effect
display text "whtaever" at location x,y in font n
suggestions???
So what I'm asking is: what kind of effects does a demoplayer require at minimum, to be interesting? So far I think this is the min, but I'd like to hear suggestions, since this would face a lot of people.
I've been thinking:
hypnoglow flash centered at coords (x,y)
create object n of type m with procedural parameters a,b,c...
display object n with size x,y,z at location x,y,x relative to camera
move camera with momentum dx,dy,dz, spin da,db,dg
turn on/off blur/feedback/some other built-in effect
display text "whtaever" at location x,y in font n
suggestions???
well...I guess, a decent startup routy ;)
Quote:
what kind of effects does a demoplayer require at minimum, to be interesting?
Interesting? Probably not those winamp vis-plugin effects you described and that we have already seen 500 times :)
take a look at OSDM!
you definitely need more cup holders and an automatic switch for style. "cool", "very cool", "even cooler", "extremely cool", "beakpoint entry"
It also needs more cowbell.
keops: yeah, that's why I asked. Are any winamp vis plugins driven by events embedded in music though? I thought they all just fed off of winamp's beta detection / sound levels and crap.
Honestly, with most of them (and the xbox2 vis's) I can't tell if the music is playing or not just by looking at the vis.
Honestly, with most of them (and the xbox2 vis's) I can't tell if the music is playing or not just by looking at the vis.
DON'T BE A FOOL - MAKE DEMOTOOL WITH DEMOTOOLTOOL!
fuck demotools, code effects from scratch goddamnit ;)
![[self-ban]](https://content.pouet.net/avatars/zulthoofd.gif)
GbND:
It kind off depends on which approach you want to do. Would you like some pre-coded effects with a bare minimum of settings (would be what you describe in your first post), or the abillity to build new effects trough the tool?
Personally, I prefer to create a set of basic building blocks, integrate them in the tool, toss in a timeline, then build new effects by combining the basic building blocks in different ways inside the tool.
If you want to do it by doing some effects and using events in the music file as synching, then you might as well just use pure code since the layer of abstraction you would add (the scripting or whatever) would just get in the way eventually. Thats my oppinion at least. ;)
The most important thing is usability though, no point in having a leet demotool if it takes 351 hours to get a spinning quad.
It kind off depends on which approach you want to do. Would you like some pre-coded effects with a bare minimum of settings (would be what you describe in your first post), or the abillity to build new effects trough the tool?
Personally, I prefer to create a set of basic building blocks, integrate them in the tool, toss in a timeline, then build new effects by combining the basic building blocks in different ways inside the tool.
If you want to do it by doing some effects and using events in the music file as synching, then you might as well just use pure code since the layer of abstraction you would add (the scripting or whatever) would just get in the way eventually. Thats my oppinion at least. ;)
The most important thing is usability though, no point in having a leet demotool if it takes 351 hours to get a spinning quad.
demotools are FORBIDDEN!!!!!1 omfg!(one).
### ILLEGAL DEMOTOOL IMPLANTATIONS ARE NOT COMPATIBLE WITH DEMOCRACY ###
on the other hand... demotools are so 2001
demo player has to include a penis to be interesting
as long as it has the farbrausch loading bar its good enough to use.
hardcoding!
