From: diego@minerva.st.dsi.unimi.it (Diego Montefusco)
Newsgroups: sci.virtual-worlds
Subject: Re: TECH: Amiga VR?
Date: Wed, 23 Dec 92 01:57:11 CET
Organization: University of Washington
NNTP-Posting-Host: stein.u.washington.edu
Originator: hlab@stein.u.washington.edu


In <9212120135.AA04693@ghost.dsi.unimi.it>, on Dec 10, you wrote:

> >    For $5000 you can get a 486-33 with an i860 math coprocessor which will
> > give you as much computing power as your average Cray. That would be more
> > than enough for any home-VR app you could think of. You culd probably rig
> > it up with a 24-bit graphics card and you'd be set, making the Amiga with a
> > video-toaster look like a toy (no flames, please! This isn't in the realm
> > of PC/Amiga war, rather co-processor power!)
> 
> But...for about the same $5000 you can get an Amiga 4000, with a 68040,
> AGA chipset, a Video Toaster (24-bit capability, video quality, NTSC
> or PAL output, dedicated graphics coprocessors over and above the Amiga's
> dedicated graphics coprocessors), math coprocessor, 4-channel stereo sound,
> etc.  This is not intended as a flame, merely as information.  NASA uses
> Toasters to produce their rendered videos, the Toaster has been used to
> produce special effects in numerous TV shows (unsolved mysteries, the new FOX
> space saga (not Deep Space Nine, but the other one), a VR game show on
> Nickelodeon, MTV has used them, the White House has used them to edit and
> compile video news briefs, etc. etc. etc.).  The Toaster also comes with
> a very powerful 3d rendering package called Lightwave that surpasses any
> other home computer rendering package I've seen in both speed and
> flexibility.  Combine this with innumerable video (live and canned)
> manipulation tools, and NTSC output, and you've got a very powerful
> VR package.  You forgot to mention that the PC setup described above
> will still require a lot of software, a sound card, video accelerator,
> extra memory, video capability, genlock, etc.  The amiga setup
> above is pretty much 'plug'n'play', and already has all these features
> and more.

Probably nobody told you what a VR system is: we are not talking about
nice videos, good rendering packages or manipulating images to make
impressive video effects.

We ARE TALKING about REAL TIME rendering, i.e. a lot of frames per
second!  You don't need software: you HAVE TO WRITE it. I don't care
anything about Lightwave, it can't be of any help. You need RAW
COMPUTATION power and, here I agree, a 68040 can DO something, but if
you go on talking about Toaster and Lightwave it is obvious you don't
understand what a VR system should be.  Sorry.

I do have an Amiga (I used to do some 3D graphics, before moving to a
Mac w/ Renderman, now I just use it for e-mailing) and I know a lot of
people who own one. You all suffer from a totemic-cult syndrome (kind
of "if-god- was-a-program-He'd-run-on-an-Amiga"), and you always jump
and shout if anyone says Amiga isn't the PERFECT machine for anything.

I am not saying WHICH machine is better for VR, I am just saying you
can take all the Toasters and Lightwaves, "plug'n'play", and all the
stories about the Amiga-inside-the-Virtuality-machine (true but it
doesn't render a pixel!) and throw them OUT-OF-THE-WINDOW.

This IS intended to be a FLAME: I am bored of silly argumentations
about WHY the Amiga is perfect for VR. C'mon boys invent something
else...  Have you ever wondered why Sense8 or VREAM or Dimension have
developed NOTHING on Amiga?

> Anyone interested in arguing this further, however, should probably
> take it to comp.sys.amiga.*, since this type of debate is constantly
> raging on one of those groups in one form or another.

I will NEVER!

Diego Montefusco
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