Introduction

SKulpt D3D - Windows / Direct3D 7 version

Introduction

See sKulpt project in Amiga section for the full description of sKulpt.

This is the Direct3D version of the project.

Both versions live at the same level of functionality, one always having a slight advance over the other, depending on which platform I feel it will be easier to add a feature. Porting it to other platforms (Linux, PS/2, BeOS, NextStep and MorphOS) could be done easily.

Requirements

To run sKulpt, you need :

A PC with a 3D-accelerated graphics board (like a Voodoo, or TNT, or GeForce, or Radeon, etc.)
a version of Windows which supports Direct3DV7 (Win95, Win98, Win2000, WinMe, WinXP)
DirectX7 installed
A minimum of 8 megs of free memory

You CAN'T run sKulpt if you don't have all the above.

Don't try to run sKulpt if the Direct3D samples don't fully work.

To do

Add a freeware raytracing engine, which would start working in the background as soon as the 3D scene is rendered, stop working as soon as anything is modified in the scene, and overdraw the 3D window with the raytraced image if it could complete rendering before something has moved in the scene.

Add more input/output file formats, maybe through a 3D file Datatype class system to be developed

Finish the smart texture pre-mapper (planar, spherical, cylindrical)

Animation support

Font outline support in Amiga version

Finish the documentation

Tech notes regarding the PC version

To keep things simple and portable, I don't use vertex buffers (which is absurd in terms of performance). But the modern 3D boards are so fast that it is not really necessary in the sKulpt context (try the embedded TimeDemo on a 1.800 MHz machine with a GeForce3...)

DownLoad

See File area on the main index of this site.

Mailing List

Subscription

Unsubscription

Author

I am a software engineer working in a subsidiary of a large and great French IT firm, Steria.

Over all, sKulpt is one of an Amiga-fond programmer's projects, which aims at maintaining me fluent with modern programming techniques and environments on the Classic Amiga, a machine I consider superior to others, due to the expandability of all its aspects and design concepts. Do you know a machine and its OS from the mid-eighties, which can run on the Web, with RTG, 3D graphics, 16-bit sounds etc. and still provide excitement to many of us ? Apart from the Classic Amiga, I don't see. Try expanding a Macintosh 512K, an Atari 1040ST or a PC/AT etc. to reach this level of functionality.

Fond, I am of the Amiga (I own and use a 500+, a 1000, various 2000 and 2 4000s), but also of the Apple //s (a //e, a IIc, a IIgs), a Mac SE/30 (brilliant integrated machine), a NextCube, an Atari 1040 ste, and a pair of PC (plus various other less important 8 bit machines). Hours, many (thousands since the early 80's) I spent on these keyboards, diving in system software and writing application software and system tools. Smart Motorola CPU's tend to be the heart of smart machines...

Thanks

My wife for her supporting many Amigas and other computers at home, their fans whirling late at night, my children & family for the love they give everyday,

The ones who made the Amiga what it is now and which I really LOVE : the perfect nerd platform !
Hardware : Commodore original design team, special mention to Dave Haynie, VillageTronic, Phase 5, GVP, Janal crew
Software : authors of the jewels : MUI, MCP, SAS/C, Aztec C, Storm C, WarpOS, Warp3D, Picasso96, Cybergraphics, NetConnect, AmiTCP, Miami, IBRowse, Yam, AmIRC, Microdot, MakeCD and a few other

The Janal crew who undisclosed this platform to me

Gilles Roy and David Larochette for the ideas and code

Steffen Haeuser, Sam Jordan, Frieden brothers and Mr. Haage for their support and high quality software they bring to the Classic Amiga. Support them, they are among the very rare !

Jonathan Richard Shewchuk for his Triangle mesh-triangulation suite, which is a lesson in good C programming as well as the perfect fit to my curve filling needs

Microsoft for the Direct3D v7 SDK, a jewel for understanding 3D programming. You Amigans, before smashing this file because I mention the Redmond firm, go have a look !

The 3D chipset manufacturers and gaming industry for having brought the fast hardware 3D features to our desktops at affordable prices : S3, nVidia, 3Dlabs and so on

Others I forget but will recognize themselves for sure !

Legalese

I hope no one will find a copyright infringement in all this stuff, as its only purpose is have fun with open source software, experiment and share, and bring life back into an ancient model of the smart software without having ripped any single of its source line.

" The author of this software can not be pursued in any case …"

" Use at your own risk …"

" Make backups … "

" Please if you propagate this software, do so using the original archives …"

" Send me back your enhancement ideas and source code …"

" Have fun …"