Monitoring bug reports over the past while, I have noticed that there appear to be some misconceptions about the Driver system in 2.5. As usual, these seem to stem from trying to carry old Blender knowledge straight across to the new system, which inevitably, will cause some problems as aspects of that old system were backwards/fundamentally broken.
So, as will become a common phrase for you in common weeks: "forget the old, in with the new!"
This is by no means a fully comprehensive guide on the Driver system. There are some things I can't cover here, as they'd probably be fodder for their own posts. So, hopefully this guide is enough to highlight some of the main things that you should know about this system.
[EDIT 2011Jan03 - See the extra notes for this post here]
Thursday, September 16, 2010
Monday, September 13, 2010
Matters of Code Indention - Tabs only please
The internet is a place where people can discuss various matters, in particular, the tale of two bitter rivals. There are: Ford vs Holden car enthusiasts, Canon vs Nikon photographers, JPEG vs RAW, Marmite vs Vegemite, AMD vs Intel, ATI vs NVIDIA, and emacs vs vi(m), to mention a few of the many such rivalries I'm aware of.
Of particular relevance to the last one is the issue of code indention: how much, and of what type.
Of particular relevance to the last one is the issue of code indention: how much, and of what type.
Sunday, September 12, 2010
Christchurch Rebuilding - Photos from Out and About a Week Later
Over the past two days, I've been gradually venturing out, exploring Christchurch a week after the great earthquake, and taking photos of damage, cordons, and recovery in progress. I've just included some which give a fair impression of the overall situation, though aren't always the best shots I took.
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| From Christchurch 4Sep2010 Earthquake |
Friday, September 10, 2010
Earthquake Theory
I must say that this earthquake has taught me quite a few things about them:
1) Earthquakes can be scary, especially when they're big and go on for more than 2 seconds. Previously, every "earthquake" we'd had would just be a 2 second wobble once a year or once every few years that'd hardly damage anything. But the longer they get, the greater the chance of damage + power/water cuts.
2) "Aftershocks" are pretty much full-blown earthquakes in their own right
3) Aftershocks are not small shakes that happen once every few days after the "main event". Rather, the earth underneath your feet is just in constant motion more than usual, and that rather regularly (aka minutes in the first 2-3 days, and hours during later days) this constant motion is more vigorous
4) Shallow earthquakes are nastier than deep ones. They feel more powerful, usually with "wide" swaying leading to things falling down.
To illustrate this for yourself, get a goldfish and put it in a large+wide+shallow mixing bowl and observe the way it swims around (my fish tends to like swimming around the rim quite rapidly, half-flattening his dorsal fin, and using the tip of his tail to create large vibrations on the water surface). Next, move the same fish over to a deep tank, and notice how movements "down under" won't affect the surface so much.
5) Standing up in stable stance means that you can't feel any of the smaller shakes at all
6) A good indicator of all types of shaking is the TV antenna, which shakes as soon as some of the more subtle shakes come in. Useful when trying to decide whether it's just your butt shaking, or the ground.
7) Water is not a very good indicator of shaking. It is actually not that sensitive to movement, especially the smaller shakes. Only violent shakes create visible displacement. Floating penguins in the water make interesting diversions during this.
8) After a big shock, your butt often "feels" like the ground underneath it is shaking. Perhaps it really is, and you're sensitive enough to feel it. Or perhaps, you're just starting to get nervous again.
9) Earthquakes are noisy. You usually hear one coming before you see or feel anything (in that order too). They have a low rumbling sound, which then combines with the sound of the house/building you're in creaking as it shunts sideways, followed by the sounds of stuff shaking.
10) It takes a few days, but eventually, you'll become almost desensitised to all but the larger shakes (usually the shallow but with lower magnitude ones), as you'll be sleepy enough to just sleep right through 12-3 aftershocks, some of magnitude 4.5 or greater, and 3.x's generally just aren't felt at all.
1) Earthquakes can be scary, especially when they're big and go on for more than 2 seconds. Previously, every "earthquake" we'd had would just be a 2 second wobble once a year or once every few years that'd hardly damage anything. But the longer they get, the greater the chance of damage + power/water cuts.
2) "Aftershocks" are pretty much full-blown earthquakes in their own right
3) Aftershocks are not small shakes that happen once every few days after the "main event". Rather, the earth underneath your feet is just in constant motion more than usual, and that rather regularly (aka minutes in the first 2-3 days, and hours during later days) this constant motion is more vigorous
4) Shallow earthquakes are nastier than deep ones. They feel more powerful, usually with "wide" swaying leading to things falling down.
To illustrate this for yourself, get a goldfish and put it in a large+wide+shallow mixing bowl and observe the way it swims around (my fish tends to like swimming around the rim quite rapidly, half-flattening his dorsal fin, and using the tip of his tail to create large vibrations on the water surface). Next, move the same fish over to a deep tank, and notice how movements "down under" won't affect the surface so much.
5) Standing up in stable stance means that you can't feel any of the smaller shakes at all
6) A good indicator of all types of shaking is the TV antenna, which shakes as soon as some of the more subtle shakes come in. Useful when trying to decide whether it's just your butt shaking, or the ground.
7) Water is not a very good indicator of shaking. It is actually not that sensitive to movement, especially the smaller shakes. Only violent shakes create visible displacement. Floating penguins in the water make interesting diversions during this.
8) After a big shock, your butt often "feels" like the ground underneath it is shaking. Perhaps it really is, and you're sensitive enough to feel it. Or perhaps, you're just starting to get nervous again.
9) Earthquakes are noisy. You usually hear one coming before you see or feel anything (in that order too). They have a low rumbling sound, which then combines with the sound of the house/building you're in creaking as it shunts sideways, followed by the sounds of stuff shaking.
10) It takes a few days, but eventually, you'll become almost desensitised to all but the larger shakes (usually the shallow but with lower magnitude ones), as you'll be sleepy enough to just sleep right through 12-3 aftershocks, some of magnitude 4.5 or greater, and 3.x's generally just aren't felt at all.
New Canon EOS 7D and Macro Photography
As I've mentioned in passing earlier, since a few days before the earthquake, I'm not a proud/happy owner of a Canon EOS 7D.
In a way, the earthquake came at a convenient timing with-respect-to-the-camera, as it does pose some interesting subjects to take photos of (once I can get out and about to do so safely, that is).
I've got the main things I was looking for:
1) fast + responsive digital camera (it's just about if not faster than the old film camera we used to use, before it was retired after film processing became prohibitively expensive/inconvenient, and the long-suffering zoom lens got arthritis which meant it couldn't retract "unaided")
2) comfortable to hold and use
3) manual control when I need it
In a way, the earthquake came at a convenient timing with-respect-to-the-camera, as it does pose some interesting subjects to take photos of (once I can get out and about to do so safely, that is).
I've got the main things I was looking for:
1) fast + responsive digital camera (it's just about if not faster than the old film camera we used to use, before it was retired after film processing became prohibitively expensive/inconvenient, and the long-suffering zoom lens got arthritis which meant it couldn't retract "unaided")
2) comfortable to hold and use
3) manual control when I need it
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
[Rigging FAQ] Constraints and Rotations - What you should know
Just like the aftershocks here, it seems that everything seems to come in waves. Over the past week or so, I've been once again reading quite a few instances of people asking for help regarding working with constraints and rotations, and not quite getting the results that they were expecting. While the root cause of the problem is the same from 2.4x to the 2.5 series still, the 'remedies' I'm going to be suggesting here only really apply to 2.5 where things have been improved significantly to make such things bearable.
A brief warning that some readers may find some of the content here upsetting: there is a "little bit" of math involved here, but I'll try to keep it tame.
A brief warning that some readers may find some of the content here upsetting: there is a "little bit" of math involved here, but I'll try to keep it tame.
Terror Revisited
This morning, I was woken by another strong aftershock just before 8am, after having also experienced a weaker one just before falling asleep. These were quite a surprise after the eerie stillness/lack of shaking for most if not all of yesterday (during daylight hours at least), though by yesterday evening I getting increasingly anxious that another big shake was inevitably coming along as darkness enveloped the land.
Indeed, I was proven correct.
(This photo shows a pattern left on my desk by water splashing out of my cup during the aftershock. Eerily it looks like a stylised face in shock!)
It felt almost as bad as the initial quake, lasting 10-20 seconds I'd guess, shaking things off shelves around me and giving the computer table a good battering. Like with the initial quake, the power cut out instantly again (though was restored again after 15 minutes), and I wondered if this time the quakes had really taken their toll.
However, unlike with the first quake, this happened when there was some daylight around, which made things a bit less scary. No doors were dislodged this time (which was also quite a relief). Also, nothing was broken this time, with most glass/breakable objects having been placed on safer ground, and other items having been rearranged to be less likely to fall.
To illustrate the force of this quake, here are a few examples of things that got moved:
1) the fridge was moved backwards by about an inch, perhaps a bit more than last time
2) the printer was just about knocked off its perch, moving about 2 inches
3) a TV being moved backwards by 2cm (again)
Hopefully these aftershocks die out for good sometime soon (preferably sooner rather than later).
Indeed, I was proven correct.
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| From Christchurch 4Sep2010 Earthquake |
It felt almost as bad as the initial quake, lasting 10-20 seconds I'd guess, shaking things off shelves around me and giving the computer table a good battering. Like with the initial quake, the power cut out instantly again (though was restored again after 15 minutes), and I wondered if this time the quakes had really taken their toll.
However, unlike with the first quake, this happened when there was some daylight around, which made things a bit less scary. No doors were dislodged this time (which was also quite a relief). Also, nothing was broken this time, with most glass/breakable objects having been placed on safer ground, and other items having been rearranged to be less likely to fall.
To illustrate the force of this quake, here are a few examples of things that got moved:
1) the fridge was moved backwards by about an inch, perhaps a bit more than last time
2) the printer was just about knocked off its perch, moving about 2 inches
3) a TV being moved backwards by 2cm (again)
Hopefully these aftershocks die out for good sometime soon (preferably sooner rather than later).
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
Resuming some normality...
Today I've finally started trying to resume work on all pending projects again that had been interrupted over the past few days.
Throughout the city, people and businesses are also trying to restore a sense of normality, with many people in non-affected areas returning to work today, bus services resuming soon, and parts of the CBD starting to open again. Certainly picking things up again should help in the healing process for the city, though some things will obviously still take time.
What has not really helped though are the aftershocks that passed through last night. After having had rather infrequent though still significant aftershocks for most of the day yesterday, we had a series of rather strong and violent 5 pointers just before midnight. These were quite unsettling, especially just around bedtime, and listening to the radio this morning confirms this, with many people not being able to fall asleep after this.
Throughout the city, people and businesses are also trying to restore a sense of normality, with many people in non-affected areas returning to work today, bus services resuming soon, and parts of the CBD starting to open again. Certainly picking things up again should help in the healing process for the city, though some things will obviously still take time.
What has not really helped though are the aftershocks that passed through last night. After having had rather infrequent though still significant aftershocks for most of the day yesterday, we had a series of rather strong and violent 5 pointers just before midnight. These were quite unsettling, especially just around bedtime, and listening to the radio this morning confirms this, with many people not being able to fall asleep after this.
Monday, September 6, 2010
Aftermath of the quake...
It's been good catching up on some sleep this morning. The aftershocks today have died down quite a bit (in terms of frequency and intensity) which is certainly a relief. Also, the strong winds forecast haven't quite eventuated yet, though I am starting to hear them blowing outside now.
Looking back, I have to say that I'm impressed with the speed and effectiveness at which emergency services have managed to cope with the situation. Hats off gratitude to the linesmen and watersupply guys and gals out there for working so hard and getting our essentials up and running again so quickly. I seriously thought we were going to be stuck without these for quite few days still, which would've been quite nasty with the cold nights over the past while.
Looking back, I have to say that I'm impressed with the speed and effectiveness at which emergency services have managed to cope with the situation. Hats off gratitude to the linesmen and watersupply guys and gals out there for working so hard and getting our essentials up and running again so quickly. I seriously thought we were going to be stuck without these for quite few days still, which would've been quite nasty with the cold nights over the past while.
Saturday, September 4, 2010
Rattle Zone - A Black Day in Christchurch
It is 5:58pm as I write this post, having been up for over 13 hours (and counting) in a sleep deprived and increasingly paranoid state.
You may or may not have heard already, that Christchurch (my hometown) has been ravaged by a 7.1 quake overnight at about 4:35am this morning (September 4th, 2010), centered just ~30km from the city centre and at a relatively shallow depth of 10km. There has been quite a bit of property damage: many shops and buildings, especially in the CBD have been damaged, some to the extent where large parts have collapsed. Here we've gotten off a bit lighter, but with quite a lot of broken glass, displaced stuff, and paper/books soaked when water splashed out of the fish tank during the shaking. Fortunately though, there haven't been any loss of life arising from this major disaster yet.
You may or may not have heard already, that Christchurch (my hometown) has been ravaged by a 7.1 quake overnight at about 4:35am this morning (September 4th, 2010), centered just ~30km from the city centre and at a relatively shallow depth of 10km. There has been quite a bit of property damage: many shops and buildings, especially in the CBD have been damaged, some to the extent where large parts have collapsed. Here we've gotten off a bit lighter, but with quite a lot of broken glass, displaced stuff, and paper/books soaked when water splashed out of the fish tank during the shaking. Fortunately though, there haven't been any loss of life arising from this major disaster yet.
Thursday, September 2, 2010
Holiday Assignments - Some *** time required
It seems that the job of a uni-student never abates until the exams are over - indeed, the term "term break" is really a misnomer the further up you get. At least the work gets more fun at the same time (usually) ;)
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Conquering the wobbles - cosc atrium after dark
This evening I had a meeting in the department which ran a bit late. That is, after most people had already left (though there were quite a few active asian communities gathering in corners) and the skies were getting dark outside.
A perfect opportunity to take some snaps of the department atrium with full lighting (and without being disturbed)!
A perfect opportunity to take some snaps of the department atrium with full lighting (and without being disturbed)!
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| From Uni Snapshots |
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