News for July 2009

Hi All,

As I hope you are aware, L3DT includes extensive support for plugins and scripts, which allows users to add new features and otherwise make L3DT do what they want. However, most users are not programmers and few ever attempt to write their own scripts, much less compile plugins. Customisation must be easier than this…

…and so now it is. This time I have looked towards filter graphs, which are commonly used in multimedia stream processing, such as the venerable but excellent GraphEdit tool for Microsoft's DirectShow API. Amongst terrain generators, filter graphs are used in the outstanding World-Machine by Stephen Schmitt, and the awesome Terragen 2 by Planetside Software.

In L3DT, the filter graph interface is called ZeoGraph, and it allows users to build complex calculations by snapping together a set of 'filters' for specific operations. An example is shown below:

An example ZeoGraph, combining two Perlin generators and a fractal generator.

The ZeoGraph plugin is included in the latest developmental build of L3DT Professional (v2.7 build 17), which is on the downloads page now. To open ZeoGraph, select the 'Extensions→ZeoGraph→Show window' menu option. Further instructions are given in the user guide is for ZeoGraph, which is complete but for the filter reference pages for a few of the included filters.

At this point in time, the plugin only supports a few basic filters like Perlin and fractal generators, map combiners, rotation/resizing filters, and file input/output. As time goes on, I will include more filters in the installation, and I will also release the plugin API code required to add new filters.

However, my immediate interest is in gauging public opinion:

1. Are you interested in building and using filter graphs?
2. Do you find the ZeoGraph interface confusing or difficult to use in any way?
3. Are there any filters that you would like to use, but aren't yet available?

Please provide feedback in this forum thread (preferred), or to aaron@bundysoft.com.

Best regards, Aaron.