Request for top 10 Anime Studio Pro Version 6 Features

mkelley · Post by **mkelley** » Thu Feb 12, 2009 10:14 pm

But how else is Mike going to judge what is really needed in AS?

Or are you assuming that he will take all these requests and apply an equal weighing? IOW, should AI import be given exactly the same import <g> as, say, bone joint fixes?

I don't think so -- I think this thread (and, indeed, any feature thread) needs comments by ALL so that Mike and Co. can make some judgments on what is needed. Otherwise -- he really doesn't need us at all.

cartoonmonkey · Post by **cartoonmonkey** » Thu Feb 12, 2009 11:16 pm

Seriously!

If anything, this type of flash support would bring *gasp!* a HUGE community of orphaned Flash users who are unhappy with the direction that Adobe has taken..! I realize we have a whole group of 'flash haters' here, but perhaps you need some perspective from someone who has been a professional animator for 15 years, and used both wacom tablets, and flash (almost every animation software invented in fact) since it's inception.

Anime Studio has every opportunity here to steal the thunder away from a company who is clearly not going in the direction of animators, at all!

And let's face it, the dynamic symbol, that Macromedia introduced, changed the face of independent animation forever, and it's the most used tool in animation production today. The concept of re-use makes the .swf format the most compact, dynamic way to deliver interesting content on the web. Making Anime Studio use this one compatible concept would launch AS into being a much more viable product in the long run.

Being able to post vector based animation that contain real .swf compatible symbols would only mean more business, and more overall user base. This addition to Anime Studio's already fantastic bones / morphing technology would be a real game changer, and knock the ball out of the park. There just wouldn't be anything else like it.

C

synthsin75 · Post by **synthsin75** » Fri Feb 13, 2009 12:41 am

Sorry Chucky, but until the developers start to narrow the field of what they might be planning to focus their attention on, I just can't help but provide pros and cons voting here. How else are they to prioritize?

That said, I'll refrain from it for now.

p.s. One question though. I may not completely understand Flash symbols, but isn't each body part in flash a separate symbol? If not then isn't exporting a character animation with alpha good enough for a movie symbol? If so that is why flash has such trouble trying to do AS-like bone warping.

Or is this all about action script?

heyvern · Post by **heyvern** » Fri Feb 13, 2009 1:54 am

I think that Lua and an "AS Player" could be a competitor to Flash. Just my opinion of course. I know it wouldn't be a serious competitor to the Flash player but imagine a browser plugin that could play AS files.

Lua has the same power and functionality as Actionscript does. I would like to see it "control" the application so I could create "interactive tutorials" inside the AS application with pause and stop and play "buttons" that could be scripted in an AS file. I can almost do that... almost. I can't make AS stop on frames though. I can make it "goto" frames. I want play and stop of the application via scripting.

I think Flash integration would be good but only if you don't need Flash. I hate flash myself, but I use it with things like samples of AS files or doing Wink tutorials or if I have a client who insists on some flash thingy. Mainly it's the PROGRAMMING that I use it for.

-vern

Rudiger · Post by **Rudiger** » Fri Feb 13, 2009 2:55 am

chucky wrote:MKelley, shhhh.
I appreciate your opinion,on this issue. Sometimes though I wonder why we need it.
This is a feature requests thread not a shout down other peoples requests thread. Grrr.

I like it's natural that people would want to discuss other people's feature requests and it's been happening since this thread began. Would you have us start a new thread for each new suggested feature?

synthsin75 · Post by **synthsin75** » Fri Feb 13, 2009 2:59 am

4) True multi-monitor support, and the ability to save your workspace layout. Each time I start up AS, the windows are all over the place.

Almost forgot. Search the forum for 'Panel Arranger'. It restores dual monitor layout, and it's free.

chucky · Post by **chucky** » Fri Feb 13, 2009 12:18 pm

sorry for my impatience, I just think that negative votes are'nt that cool.
What I should have said is this:
Of course make any improvement possible to swf exporting.

Anime is after all a VECTOR animation app and the web operates with a large amount of vector animation, for obvious reasons , it's independent of resolution and its clean .
Bring it on Mike

banjar · Post by **banjar** » Fri Feb 13, 2009 4:45 pm

The Modax Jago wrote: * on a side note,... although I know AS is designed for vector work, and has really nice drawing tools optimized for animation (+5 cool points) oddly enough, 99% of my work with it is with raster images ( .png) You guys realize that AS actually is quite good at this, even as it is currently? Alot of users knocks AS raster animation, but I can attest to having produced high quailty pure bitmap work with it. Of course, as many things, it can use mayor updates, but I just wanted to get my experience regarding raster animations in AS out there.

I am saving years of Flash work by exporting into PNG and then animating it as cut-outs in AS. Yeah, raster animation works great in AS.

banjar · Post by **banjar** » Fri Feb 13, 2009 4:51 pm

The Modax Jago wrote:
synthsin75 wrote:Uh,...the freehand tool does have pressure sensitive variable line width.

I just don't quite see AS becoming the do-all post production software for all of its competitors. It just seem like you'd be better off asking Flash to export to AS, as it is the failings of Flash that makes you want to migrate to AS anyway.

Sorry to sound so harsh, but to those of us who love the AS drawing tools, it's just really hard to swallow some one who hasn't learned them griping. Just take all this as testimonials to the AS drawing tools. They are a large part of that 'elegant' AS animation.
Essentially yes. AS is what Flash should be sans action script. And the drawing tools are very powerful. It's the best process to do all work from 0 on AS. But it would be nice if the process where more open to differnt pipleines. After all, each studio has it's own way of doing things and software should help, not hinder that.

Just to clarify. I dont expect AS to be the be-all end-all of compositing software. That is what I use Afx and combustion for. What I do expect is for AS to be the best at whatever it's own little catagory is called (? 2.5D animation) As long as AS is providing capacity to create work in a timely and cost effective method, it is fine by me. I dont need it to do gobal GI renders. It just needs to get me from point a to point b. Fast. And with no hassles. (well, ok,... at least not as many as flash)

This is why I say, the less like flash, and the more like "x" compositor, the better for AS. I dont mean to dilute AS's unique approach, just to actualize it with the buisness needs of it's commercial users.

Well... yeah, okay. Both you guys have your "points". But the pencil tool with a varying width and a ton of points is not the same as the brush tool with a varying fill with just a few points. I still think a real brush tool would be nice instead of a simulation.

banjar · Post by **banjar** » Fri Feb 13, 2009 5:05 pm

chucky wrote:MKelley, shhhh.
I appreciate your opinion,on this issue. Sometimes though I wonder why we need it.
This is a feature requests thread not a shout down other peoples requests thread. Grrr.

Not true. Many heads make lighter work ... or something like that. Throw out some suggestions, kick them around for pros and cons, pre-digest them and it saves the AS team time. That way, they can get the next upgrade out SOONER! SOONER! SOONER! Do you hear me? SOONER!

banjar · Post by **banjar** » Fri Feb 13, 2009 5:13 pm

cartoonmonkey wrote:Seriously!

If anything, this type of flash support would bring *gasp!* a HUGE community of orphaned Flash users who are unhappy with the direction that Adobe has taken..! I realize we have a whole group of 'flash haters' here, but perhaps you need some perspective from someone who has been a professional animator for 15 years, and used both wacom tablets, and flash (almost every animation software invented in fact) since it's inception.

Anime Studio has every opportunity here to steal the thunder away from a company who is clearly not going in the direction of animators, at all!

And let's face it, the dynamic symbol, that Macromedia introduced, changed the face of independent animation forever, and it's the most used tool in animation production today. The concept of re-use makes the .swf format the most compact, dynamic way to deliver interesting content on the web. Making Anime Studio use this one compatible concept would launch AS into being a much more viable product in the long run.

Being able to post vector based animation that contain real .swf compatible symbols would only mean more business, and more overall user base. This addition to Anime Studio's already fantastic bones / morphing technology would be a real game changer, and knock the ball out of the park. There just wouldn't be anything else like it.

C

Well, I am one of the Flash community that doesn't like the direction Flash is going. But there is no good reason to try to compete with Flash. For the web it's great, and if Web animation is all that you are interested in, then why use anything other than Flash? But for real advanced animation, AS is better.

I don't really care if AS exports to .SWF. Of course, the more import and export formats, the better. But for a real animation software that can create professional film and video animations, competing with Toon Boom should be the real target, not competing with Flash.

GCharb · Post by **GCharb** » Fri Feb 13, 2009 6:54 pm

banjar wrote:But for a real animation software that can create professional film and video animations, competing with Toon Boom should be the real target, not competing with Flash.

I second that!

Gilles

synthsin75 · Post by **synthsin75** » Fri Feb 13, 2009 7:49 pm

banjar wrote:But for a real animation software that can create professional film and video animations, competing with Toon Boom should be the real target, not competing with Flash.

I third that! Amen brother! Toon Boom is the one to beat, since I already consider Flash as beaten.

chucky · Post by **chucky** » Fri Feb 13, 2009 11:56 pm

Well guys, if you want AS to beat toon boom, then you are making all the wrong requests.

Here's what you should be asking for, and I believe the coding would be much harder than improved flash exports.
Shape morphs independent of point count.
Auto Gap filling , many more freehand drawing tools including auto smooth.
That's just for starters.
Also a MASSIVE marketing campaign for enough sales to make these improvements pay for themselves.
So good luck with those requests

For AS to compete with toon boom on a professional level it would need to change significantly, you all know I love AS it's cool and fun and has some awesome capabilities, but it doesn't work with the same philosophy behind the vector construction , drawing or morphing methods, AS doesn't stand a chance.... sorry.
I would just qualify that statement by saying, I prefer AS it ROCKS, and if I ran a small studio I would much prefer to use AS than ToonBoom, it's a heart, not head preference.

mkelley · Post by **mkelley** » Sat Feb 14, 2009 1:00 am

chucky wrote:Well guys, if you want AS to beat toon boom, then you are making all the wrong requests.

Here's what you should be asking for, and I believe the coding would be much harder than improved flash exports.

Coding ain't our concern. This thread isn't titled "The 10 most easy to code feature requests for AS". If it were Flash stuff wouldn't even be in the top 100. All that would end up would be interface changes such as the one I request (putting a checkbox on layers and then a option to select whether to display all or only the ones checked).

I don't give a damn if AS "competes" in terms of market share with TB -- probably never going to happen. But it sure can add things which bring some of the good stuff of TB (and what, exactly is that? Unlike some here, I'm not so sure I've found *anything* in TB I miss, and I tried using many many versions of it to be sure).

chucky wrote: Shape morphs independent of point count.
Auto Gap filling , many more freehand drawing tools including auto smooth.

I like the morphing independent of point count in theory -- in Elastic Reality you could define your own "points" that had nothing to do with actual vertices and map these to new ones on any shape. Mike could implement something like that, which wouldn't be all that much coding, IMHO (I was a business programmer, not a graphics one. But the math on that kind of mapping is pretty straightforward).

I'm not sure what you mean by auto gap filling, but I certainly don't need any more drawing tools and I suspect most would agree. Now -- more script access to enable folks to write whatever tools they want would be nice for folks like Vern and Wes (and perhaps that would satisfy you as well, as long as you could convince folks that the tools you have in mind are needed).