Current status - Page 4

Jav400 · 01-05-2006, 11:31 PM

From your comments about progress in another thread Jim, I chose for reasons of continuity to ask here. Care to enlighten us on anything concerning MA 3 and recent accomplishments?

feldon34 · 01-06-2006, 12:19 AM

The problem, Jim, is how poorly the background scales to different resolutions on most video cards. I am not sure which Direct3D call you're using, but it is not perfect.

Jim Sachs · 01-06-2006, 11:49 AM

Morgan - Though I've heard of scaling problems on some cards, my cheapie Intel cards do a pretty nice job of blowing up the image to 1280 on this monitor and 1920 on my main system at home. Edgar is the guy for OS calls, so I don't know what he's using.

JAV - I have been amassing material for the background objects, and have started modeling them in Lightwave. The idea is that the center of the screen will look very similar to the current background, but with all the objects in real 3D. Then the camera can pan to the left and right, exposing the additional background in both directions. Having given up on Shaders (for the moment, anyway), I'm doing the modeling "Old School". This means that coral with thousands of moving "grass blades", like the large green object in the lower left, will have to be replaced by something with a harder surface. I'm currently searching for a coral type which looks similar to that one, so that the difference is not too obvious.

Derrek · 01-12-2006, 03:03 PM

Has there been any word from Prolific on releasing either MA2.6 or the GA2? GA2 seems like it has been in beta for a few months and MA2.6 I thought was finished by Jim and was just waiting for Prolific to get ramped up to release it.

Jim Sachs · 01-12-2006, 03:08 PM

All true. Still waiting.

GreenHsiF · 01-12-2006, 10:17 PM

Will they release this new version also on dvd at stores when it comes out?

Jim Sachs · 01-12-2006, 10:38 PM

No.

feldon34 · 01-13-2006, 09:09 AM

I'm always surprised when someone e-mails me "I bought the Aquarium at the store because I wanted a physical CD."

Do they still make computers without CD burners?

I'll admit that the artwork on the boxes is outstanding.

Jim Sachs · 01-13-2006, 10:50 AM

There is a place for the physical CD, and that's when it's used as a gift. When I want to give it to someone, I go buy a copy at Fred Meyer. (No, I don't get free copies from the publisher.)

Tiny Turtle · 01-14-2006, 04:46 PM

At least you can provide your friends with a copy signed by the artist...

igohigh · 01-28-2006, 09:34 PM

Originally posted by Jim Sachs:

I know it seems like a simple thing to just replace the current file on the website with the new version, but it's actually a rather big deal. It must be tested for weeks to make sure that no bugs have been introduced. When you are dealing with tens of millions of customers, a tiny bug can generate an avalanche of email.....

I think the staff over at Prolific is just palying with us, their sitting back infront of their huge 80" monitors and laughing "We gots new fishes and you don't - Ha Ha Ha!"
I can even see their beadie little faces stareing and laughing at me behind the screen while I sit patiantly on their web site for that version number to change...

Jim Sachs · 01-28-2006, 10:22 PM

Jim R. (Schnapps) says the release is very near now.

feldon34 · 01-29-2006, 10:44 AM

Originally posted by igohigh:

I think the staff over at Prolific is just palying with us, their sitting back infront of their huge 80" monitors and laughing "We gots new fishes and you don't - Ha Ha Ha!"

They don't have 80" monitors, unless something has changed since I visited them a couple years back.

Tiny Turtle · 01-30-2006, 01:16 AM

..because everything else he/she wrote was spot on?

Schnaaps · 02-07-2006, 03:33 PM

Jim R. (Schnapps) says the release is very near now.

This is true, I am working on it now actually. It is coming along well, but it takes time. With all the upgrade paths, special bundles & pricing, CD's etc... what used to be a simple upload an EXE and shoot off a couple of emails has become a little more complicated.

Regardless of all that, coming soon and the fans are the first to know.

Ziphiid · 02-09-2006, 10:03 AM

Thanks for all of your hard work Schnapps. QA'ing software is no easy task, and is usually an underappreciated role.

Schnaaps · 02-14-2006, 12:50 PM

Just an update for you all. We found a bug not related to Jim's work or us.

Basically on windows 98 and ME, running certain video cards and running the latest drivers causes the screensavers to lose textures. Older versions of the drivers work fine. This is actually a bug in the recent nvidia drivers running on older operating system, that we have to address. We have a work around for the issue and we are testing this fix now.

01-05-2006, 11:31 PM	#61
Jav400 Administrator Join Date: Dec 2000 Location: Tennessee Posts: 9,725	From your comments about progress in another thread Jim, I chose for reasons of continuity to ask here. Care to enlighten us on anything concerning MA 3 and recent accomplishments? Michael Administrator of Inside:SereneScreen Aquarium Forum, Chatroom, Fan Site & *Gallery* DVD Collection

01-06-2006, 12:19 AM	#62
feldon34 Forum Administrator Join Date: Dec 2000 Location: Rock Hill, SC Posts: 10,939	The problem, Jim, is how poorly the background scales to different resolutions on most video cards. I am not sure which Direct3D call you're using, but it is not perfect. "Journalism is printing what someone else does not want printed. Everything else is public relations." - George Orwell "If voting changed anything, they'd make it illegal." - Emma Goldman

01-06-2006, 11:49 AM	#63
Jim Sachs Developer Join Date: Dec 2000 Location: Southern Oregon Posts: 9,787	Morgan - Though I've heard of scaling problems on some cards, my cheapie Intel cards do a pretty nice job of blowing up the image to 1280 on this monitor and 1920 on my main system at home. Edgar is the guy for OS calls, so I don't know what he's using. JAV - I have been amassing material for the background objects, and have started modeling them in Lightwave. The idea is that the center of the screen will look very similar to the current background, but with all the objects in real 3D. Then the camera can pan to the left and right, exposing the additional background in both directions. Having given up on Shaders (for the moment, anyway), I'm doing the modeling "Old School". This means that coral with thousands of moving "grass blades", like the large green object in the lower left, will have to be replaced by something with a harder surface. I'm currently searching for a coral type which looks similar to that one, so that the difference is not too obvious. Jim Sachs Creator of SereneScreen Aquarium

01-12-2006, 03:08 PM	#65
Jim Sachs Developer Join Date: Dec 2000 Location: Southern Oregon Posts: 9,787	All true. Still waiting. Jim Sachs Creator of SereneScreen Aquarium

01-12-2006, 10:38 PM	#67
Jim Sachs Developer Join Date: Dec 2000 Location: Southern Oregon Posts: 9,787	No. Jim Sachs Creator of SereneScreen Aquarium

01-12-2006, 03:03 PM	#64
Derrek Registered Join Date: Nov 2001 Posts: 186	Has there been any word from Prolific on releasing either MA2.6 or the GA2? GA2 seems like it has been in beta for a few months and MA2.6 I thought was finished by Jim and was just waiting for Prolific to get ramped up to release it.

01-12-2006, 10:17 PM	#66
GreenHsiF SereneScreenFanatic Join Date: Apr 2003 Location: California Posts: 261	Will they release this new version also on dvd at stores when it comes out?

01-13-2006, 09:09 AM	#68
feldon34 Forum Administrator Join Date: Dec 2000 Location: Rock Hill, SC Posts: 10,939	I'm always surprised when someone e-mails me "I bought the Aquarium at the store because I wanted a physical CD." Do they still make computers without CD burners? I'll admit that the artwork on the boxes is outstanding. "Journalism is printing what someone else does not want printed. Everything else is public relations." - George Orwell "If voting changed anything, they'd make it illegal." - Emma Goldman

01-13-2006, 10:50 AM	#69
Jim Sachs Developer Join Date: Dec 2000 Location: Southern Oregon Posts: 9,787	There is a place for the physical CD, and that's when it's used as a gift. When I want to give it to someone, I go buy a copy at Fred Meyer. (No, I don't get free copies from the publisher.) Jim Sachs Creator of SereneScreen Aquarium

01-14-2006, 04:46 PM	#70
Tiny Turtle is pleased Join Date: Mar 2001 Location: Stockholm, Sweden Posts: 7,365	At least you can provide your friends with a copy signed by the artist... Thanks to Morgan, Tiny Snapshots is up and running again with "Tiny Järvafält" as the latest addition – Go have a look and tell me what you think. "We knew the world would not be the same. A few people laughed, a few people cried, most people were silent. I remembered the line from the Hindu scripture, the Bhagavad-Gita. Vishnu is trying to persuade the Prince that he should do his duty and to impress him takes on his multi-armed form and says, 'Now, I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds.' I suppose we all thought that, one way or another." /Robert Oppenheimer on witnessing the first thermonuclear detonation in history.

01-28-2006, 09:34 PM	#71
igohigh Registered Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: California Posts: 25	Originally posted by Jim Sachs: I know it seems like a simple thing to just replace the current file on the website with the new version, but it's actually a rather big deal. It must be tested for weeks to make sure that no bugs have been introduced. When you are dealing with tens of millions of customers, a tiny bug can generate an avalanche of email..... I think the staff over at Prolific is just palying with us, their sitting back infront of their huge 80" monitors and laughing "We gots new fishes and you don't - Ha Ha Ha!" I can even see their beadie little faces stareing and laughing at me behind the screen while I sit patiantly on their web site for that version number to change... Vultures take the easy prey, Hunters take the prize! ~The Jolly Rogers

01-28-2006, 10:22 PM	#72
Jim Sachs Developer Join Date: Dec 2000 Location: Southern Oregon Posts: 9,787	Jim R. (Schnapps) says the release is very near now. Jim Sachs Creator of SereneScreen Aquarium

01-29-2006, 10:44 AM	#73
feldon34 Forum Administrator Join Date: Dec 2000 Location: Rock Hill, SC Posts: 10,939	Originally posted by igohigh: I think the staff over at Prolific is just palying with us, their sitting back infront of their huge 80" monitors and laughing "We gots new fishes and you don't - Ha Ha Ha!" They don't have 80" monitors, unless something has changed since I visited them a couple years back. "Journalism is printing what someone else does not want printed. Everything else is public relations." - George Orwell "If voting changed anything, they'd make it illegal." - Emma Goldman

01-30-2006, 01:16 AM	#74
Tiny Turtle is pleased Join Date: Mar 2001 Location: Stockholm, Sweden Posts: 7,365	..because everything else he/she wrote was spot on? Thanks to Morgan, Tiny Snapshots is up and running again with "Tiny Järvafält" as the latest addition – Go have a look and tell me what you think. "We knew the world would not be the same. A few people laughed, a few people cried, most people were silent. I remembered the line from the Hindu scripture, the Bhagavad-Gita. Vishnu is trying to persuade the Prince that he should do his duty and to impress him takes on his multi-armed form and says, 'Now, I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds.' I suppose we all thought that, one way or another." /Robert Oppenheimer on witnessing the first thermonuclear detonation in history.

02-07-2006, 03:33 PM	#75
Schnaaps prolificus penguinus Join Date: Feb 2002 Location: Prolific Posts: 204	Jim R. (Schnapps) says the release is very near now. This is true, I am working on it now actually. It is coming along well, but it takes time. With all the upgrade paths, special bundles & pricing, CD's etc... what used to be a simple upload an EXE and shoot off a couple of emails has become a little more complicated. Regardless of all that, coming soon and the fans are the first to know. "Jim, no not THAT Jim but another of the same name" JamesRathbun.com

02-09-2006, 10:03 AM	#76
Ziphiid Registered Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: Katy, Texas Posts: 10	Thanks for all of your hard work Schnapps. QA'ing software is no easy task, and is usually an underappreciated role. Alright Scotty, now beam back my clothes.

02-14-2006, 12:50 PM	#77
Schnaaps prolificus penguinus Join Date: Feb 2002 Location: Prolific Posts: 204	Just an update for you all. We found a bug not related to Jim's work or us. Basically on windows 98 and ME, running certain video cards and running the latest drivers causes the screensavers to lose textures. Older versions of the drivers work fine. This is actually a bug in the recent nvidia drivers running on older operating system, that we have to address. We have a work around for the issue and we are testing this fix now. "Jim, no not THAT Jim but another of the same name" JamesRathbun.com