Anyway, I'm trying to create a simulation of the Carboniferous forest for a grade in a computer graphics class. Heh, being graded for creating an Age. It's almost as good as getting paid to create an Age! Project progress report due: 12/4. EEEEK! That's tomorrow!
Project presentations on Tuesday, 12/11 and Thursday, 12/13.
My project proposal--roughly translated, it says, "I want to create my own Age--strictly for the education benefits of course." (NOT!!)
Simulating a Swamp Forest With Real-time Graphics
Proposed by Jennifer P
Real-time 3D graphics are the basis for much of today’s gaming industry, and it is here that choices between performance and graphics quality become particularly important. The importance of graphics quality is further heightened when one is attempting to create real-world simulations, in which small, unrealistic deviations from correct appearance may have a particularly adverse effect on the realism of the simulation. As a result, when high detail is required it is necessary to have a mastery of the performance-saving techniques by which smooth, undelayed motion may be achieved.
For my project, I propose the creation of a real-time simulation of a Paleozoic swamp forest, created in a higher level graphics program, Blender, and imported into a computer game as a level explorable by a provided avatar. I expect the balancing act necessary to make my simulation successful in terms of both performance and graphical quality to contribute significantly to my knowledge of applied computer graphics. There are three major challenges that will have to be met in order for me to reach this goal.
First, I must of course acquire the knowledge to successfully recreate the Paleozoic swamp forest. Since I am currently researching this topic for a research paper, I expect this portion of the project to be the easiest part. Artists’ reconstructions of the plants and animal life and pictures of swamp forest fossils are readily available to create 3D models from, and I expect that the greatest difficulty I will face will be avoiding copyright violations.
Second, I will need to learn how to use a higher level 3D graphics program. Since my previous experience in this area is limited to creating a few spheres in POV-Ray, I expect that learning to control the program for use in a computer game will present both significant challenges and significant rewards. The program I intend to use is called Blender; it is a free, open-source program capable of advanced techniques. A comparison of more recent versions of Blender with other 3D modeling software is available at http://wiki.cgsociety.org/index.php/Com ... f_3d_tools for viewing. Blender is somewhat infamous for its unusual interface and I expect that long hours with the extensive tutorials available will be necessary for me to begin using this program.
Thirdly, I wish to import the models I create in Blender into an offline computer game, Uru: Complete Chronicles, and from there to explore various types of game and simulation-related issues such as footstep sound regions, collision meshes, and of course performance vs. graphical quality. This portion of the project is the most uncertain in terms of what will be required to achieve success and what will be possible if in fact success should be achieved. The reason for this is that the ability to add levels to the game is not in fact supported by the game’s original scope; rather, programming fans of the game hacked it and created a Python plug-in that allows Blender models of a certain, older version to be uploaded--with limited game capabilities supported as a result. An example of this is sound; while footstep regions are supported, it is not possible to add ambient sound or music to a level. I expect that this part of the project will be the most valuable in providing real-world experience in real-time computer graphics, as it allows me to explore the effects of various 3D graphical techniques in an actual computer game. In addition, my simulation would be greatly enhanced by the added capability of first or third person exploration.
I realize that this project involves a large field with many possibilities for both learning and project-related work; and since of course it would be difficult for me to attain complete mastery in the three areas I have mentioned it will no doubt be necessary to trim some of the ambitions of the project down as I find out how much time and labor will be necessary to implement them. At a minimum, I wish to accomplish the goals set below to the standards described:
1. The creation of a mostly bug-free explorable level for Uru: Complete Chronicles.
2. In terms of the models I intend to create, the level should feature at least three different plant types, a clouded sky, and water.
3. I wish to learn how to accurately model and texture objects in Blender, and possibly also to learn how to create my own textures in Photoshop for use on the forest models.
4. The overall effect of the simulation should be pleasing, if not brilliant, and real-time exploration without jerkiness or lag should be possible.
Fortunately I have a little time after the presentations to work on this before the final due date...hmm, I do need to figure out when that is. Unfortunately I missed the class that this project is for today because my car got a flat tire. 
And I can use any techniques I want for this assignment, just fyi. Hey, did you know there was no grass in the Carboniferous period? They had ferns instead back then--much cooler. 
