Author Topic: So I wondered if Aether3D went unnoticed  (Read 12704 times)

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Offline Matrefeytontias

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So I wondered if Aether3D went unnoticed
« on: April 27, 2014, 08:16:43 pm »
So yeah. I was wandering in WikiTI's Experiments page, section 3D engine, and went trough different links to see which ones included source (you know, documentation and all). I had heard about qarnos's Aether3D but in some way I never got my hand on it or anything related to it.

Until I found an actual download. The zip doesn't contain the lib's source unfortunately, but the lib itself has been compiled into a flash app accessible via the same mecanism that I use with PageSwap (mapping the app to bank A and stuff). Taking a look at the readme (an amazing readme, you should see it), I realized how awesome it was, and how close to OpenGL it actually was O.O (scaled down to z80 calcs of course).

So it has pretty much anything one could expect from a 3D engine : rotations, camera handling, matrices, quaternions, model-loading automagic, arbitrary polygon-filling (any number of points), proper 3D clipping, all that stuff.

So I'm not doing it right now since it's 2:15 am, but I'm pretty sure it would be worth it to dive into it a bit (the zip includes an example and some models to play with), but I guess it'll be hard since the latest (understand : 2008) source is non-available.

Just pointing out.

Offline DJ Omnimaga

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Re: So I wondered if Aether3D went unnoticed
« Reply #1 on: April 27, 2014, 08:19:59 pm »
Oh wow I remember that engine. It was a shame that it was never completed. He posted a vid on Youtube and when  I asked if it was dead he said he felt the community was dying and he wasn't very motivated to work on it.

The only thing: When he said that in 2010-11 I don't think he was aware that calc sites other than MaxCoderz and Ticalc.org actually existed, since back then Omni had record high activity. Had he known back then, maybe he would have still worked on it?

Offline Matrefeytontias

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Re: So I wondered if Aether3D went unnoticed
« Reply #2 on: April 27, 2014, 08:27:28 pm »
Well I don't know for sure. I read in the MaxCoderz thread that he worked on it since 2001 (which is a pretty long time if you ask me) ; so I guess the only thing we can really do is send him an email asking for the source (I would like to at least, because I'm quite fascinated by this piece of work). Though I have a bad experience of asking insistantly for a source code (sorry about that calc84maniac ._. ).

Offline tr1p1ea

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Re: So I wondered if Aether3D went unnoticed
« Reply #3 on: April 27, 2014, 08:41:53 pm »
It is an amazing engine and i do think that qarnos did leave a copy of some source code with maxcoderz ... However i dont think its the source to the app lib, but code to some earlier tests. I used to talk regularly with qarnos about 3D when i was making my own engine.

He also has a really nice 2D library as well.
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Offline Sorunome

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Re: So I wondered if Aether3D went unnoticed
« Reply #4 on: April 28, 2014, 09:11:35 am »
Wow, that sounds amazing!

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Offline TheMachine02

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Re: So I wondered if Aether3D went unnoticed
« Reply #5 on: April 28, 2014, 12:56:42 pm »
Wow  O.O  how I missed that...
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Offline Matrefeytontias

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Re: So I wondered if Aether3D went unnoticed
« Reply #6 on: April 28, 2014, 01:05:22 pm »
Well, probably because it has been started 13 years ago and abandonned 5 years ago.

Offline tr1p1ea

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Re: So I wondered if Aether3D went unnoticed
« Reply #7 on: April 29, 2014, 03:49:05 am »
I wouldnt say that it was missed, this project obviously generated a large amount of attention when it was active. The only issue is that so many 3D projects end up being abandoned :(.
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Offline Matrefeytontias

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Re: So I wondered if Aether3D went unnoticed
« Reply #8 on: April 29, 2014, 05:07:35 am »
I guess that's because of the many difficulties due to working with 3D at all. Having tried, I think of 3D as a powerful but extremely hard-to-use tool when it comes to calculator programming <_<

Offline Runer112

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Re: So I wondered if Aether3D went unnoticed
« Reply #9 on: April 29, 2014, 07:16:26 am »
I guess that's because of the many difficulties due to working with 3D at all. Having tried, I think of 3D as a powerful but an underpowered and extremely hard-to-use tool when it comes to calculator programming <_<

FTFY.

At least, it's the unfortunate truth when it comes to polygon 3D. Pseudo-3D rendering techniques like raycasting, and perhaps mode 7, have potential.
« Last Edit: April 29, 2014, 07:18:28 am by Runer112 »

Offline Matrefeytontias

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Re: So I wondered if Aether3D went unnoticed
« Reply #10 on: April 29, 2014, 07:17:32 am »
Hum.



I call that powerful, even if it's Nostromo by benryves and not Aether3D by qarnos.

Offline Runer112

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Re: So I wondered if Aether3D went unnoticed
« Reply #11 on: April 29, 2014, 07:23:54 am »
Hum.



I call that powerful, even if it's Nostromo by benryves and not Aether3D by qarnos.

That's definitely one of the best examples of 3D quality/performance on an 83+/84+, and I think it had huge potential to become a full game. Although more complex than raycasting and mode 7, it still uses shortcuts to avoid full polygon 3D. And comparing it to any platform that isn't a calculator, the truth is it's awfully plain and slow. I don't have much faith in a full polygon 3D game for the 83+/84+, but I still believe in the capability of engines like this that take intelligent shortcuts.

Offline Sorunome

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Re: So I wondered if Aether3D went unnoticed
« Reply #12 on: April 29, 2014, 07:50:20 am »
Hum.



I call that powerful, even if it's Nostromo by benryves and not Aether3D by qarnos.
Wow, that is pretty awesome O.O

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Offline GinDiamond

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Re: So I wondered if Aether3D went unnoticed
« Reply #13 on: April 29, 2014, 09:35:51 am »
So many of these 3D engines for the z80 calcs are not completed, and are mostly dead. So sad.

Offline Streetwalrus

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Re: So I wondered if Aether3D went unnoticed
« Reply #14 on: April 29, 2014, 02:27:18 pm »
I don't think a 3D engine like what's being made for console and PC games is something that should be done on calcs for more than trying to push them to their limits etc. Rather, I agree with Runer that a hybrid engine optimized for a game in particular is better.