From: bert.tyler@satalink.com (Bert Tyler) 
Newsgroups: alt.fractals
Subject: Plans for Fractint
Date: 28 Aug 92 13:07:00 GMT
Distribution: world
Organization: Datamax/Satalink Connection * Ivyland, PA (215) 443-9434
Reply-To: bert.tyler@satalink.com (Bert Tyler) 

JE>Are you guys working on 18.0 yet?
JE>What additions are you working on?
JE> (Whatever happened to the ideas used in Fractal Witchcraft, anyhow?)
JE>Any idea when we'll be seeing the next version (17.21? 17.3? 18.0?)

We're *always* working on something new <grin>, but there's no fixed
schedule for new releases.  Generally, we release what we have as a
new version when the consensus of the developers is that what we have
internally merits a new release.  We're not at that point yet.

Sneaking a peek at the "new features" section of my internal copy of
Fractint, I see the following items already in the can (this list
doesn't mention Pieter Branderhorst's work on the Fractal Witchcraft
algorithm because it's not functional yet):

 - - - -

Six times speedup of Lyapunov fractal type from Nicholas Wilt

Fast Outside= option with Mandelbrot/Julia from Wesley Loewer

New features from Juan J. Buhler:

  New Julia Inverse fractal type. Implemented as both a type
  and the <j> toggle. 

  Two new diffusion options - falling and square cavity.

  Three new Editpal commands: '!', '@' and '#' commands (that's
  <shift-1>, <shift-2>, and <shift-3>) to swap R<->G, G<->B, R<->B.

New features from Ken Shirriff:

  New fractal types: quaternion, dynamic system, cellular automata.

  Command strings (foo=bar) can be entered using the <g> key while running.

  Dithered gif images can be loaded onto a b/w display.

  Pictures can be output as compressed PostScript.

  Periodicity is a new inside coloring option.

Lots of new stuff from Jonathan Osuch:

  Updated 8514 register-compatible code

  New fractal types - 'lambda(fn||fn)', 'julia(fn||fn)', 'manlam(fn||fn)',
  'mandel(fn||fn)', 'halley'.  See the online help on these functions for
  details.

  Generalized bifurcation types and added new bifurcation type 'bifmay'.

  Fixes: symmetry values for the SQR functions, bailout for the floating-pt
  versions of 'lambdafn' and 'mandelfn' fractals.

"Flip", "conj" operators are now selectable in the parser

Several minor corrections were made to the help-file text

*Big* changes in the source code (hopefully not affecting the program
at all) to make Fractint's code more portable and assist folks like
Ken Shirriff who port it to other environments.

New (and completely untested) DXF Raytracing option from Dennis Bragg.

New register-compatible 8514/A code from Jonathan Osuch.  By default,
Fractint now looks first for the presence of an 8514/A register-compatible
adapter and then (and only if it doesn't find one) the presence of the
8514/A API.  Fractint can be forced to use the 8514/A API by using
a new command-line option, "afi=yes".

Improved boundary-tracing logic from Wesley Loewer.

                   Bert Tyler   (bert.tyler@satalink.com)
---
 . DeLuxe./386 1.25 #343sa . Did you expect mere proof to sway my opinion?
                                                                                         
Newsgroups: alt.fractals,comp.compression