wpak

dave: i'm finished rendering for around 6 months until the next large project is scheduled to start. when i have the problem again i will send you the file. if you had an in-house architectural firm or something similar, you could look over their shoulders and see all the strange things that happen everyday.

if you're using microspot (macroenter) x-rip software to run your large format printer, be aware that the current software does not work with 10.3 panther and a useable version won't be out for another week or two.

katie and dave: thanks for your replies and concern. i have a flat panel imac running vw/rw 10.5 on osx10.2.8. no, i don't change the settings. it happens out of the blue. also, i have been ranting a bit this last week and i want to tell you two that i appreciate all the fires that you're always trying to put out.

i know this doesn't really answer your question, but you should really consider using a trackball. i use a logitech trackman marble wheel which is thumb operated. it takes a little getting used to, but once you get the hang of it, there is not way you'd go back to using a mouse. besides, it only uses up a little space since it doesn't have to move around.

bara: of course nothing in life is perfect, but like americans who thought that the chevys and fords they bought in the 60s were about as good as they could get (which we know weren't that good and full of bugs) it took the importation of japanese cars to make us realize that there is a better way to produce products and they raised the bar for the whole industry. if the japanese were into producing software, i would guess that they would not be satisfied with the bugs we seem to accept as normal. a recent article in the new york times demoaned the billions of dollars wasted in lost production because of buggy software. unless we demand better we won't get better.

it has nothing to do with the settings. the problems shows up out of the blue - you pick a window and stick it in one wall and it shows clear and take the exact same window and put it in another wall and it is not clear. the fish eye problem is the same thing - sometimes it shows up sometimes it doesn't. if it were simply the settings, i would have probably figured it out by now. thanks anyway.

bara: i don't really have to list the bugs...they are described all over this forum. it is not just rw, but software in general. computer software is one of the few comsumer products which is sold knowing that it does not work properly. wouldn't it be neat to have something which works properly right out of the box and then we can just concentrate on producing good work. i don't want more, i just want better.

the bugs drive me nuts. next will be rw 11 and a whole new series of bugs that will have to be worked out. i would prefer that you issue less versions and make sure that what you sell us is more bug free.

rather than adding any new features, why don't you just concentrate on making the program more bug free. the bugs really make working in renderworks time consuming and frustrating. i don't need more, i just want better!

having a lot of rendered glass problems. sometimes they render clear, sometimes they don't. also, sometimes the glass is turned into a "fisheye" lens and the scene in the background is grossly distorted. what gives?

i've been producing some beautiful renderings, but would like to get a good, intermediate-advanced how-to book so that i can work even better. unfortunately, i don't have anyone nearby whose brain i can pick to get the info i need. thanks, in advance, for your suggestions.

i know they exist in older window versions, but why not just add it to vw10.1? there are workarounds for just about everything in the wish list, but isn't this what the wish list is for?

maybe i'm missing something, but the newest sliding door pio does not include 3 or 4 doors, just 2. also, the awning window pio does not show the awning in plan view (looks like a fixed glass window which is unnecessarily confusing). both of these items were included in older versions of vw, but not in vw10.

katie: the rb is pretty unwieldy and the changes you suggest should help a lot. press for the changes.

MikeB: i did go to your site and you do good work! renderworks in the hands of someone who knows what to do, like yourself, is surely a powerful, powerful tool.

except for the skimpy roof offerings, i am very pleased with the images/textures which came with rw and am especially pleased with the improvements which came with rw10 (image props and background). since many of the textures are editable, an infinite range of possibilities exist and i don't see much need to import more stuff...except the roof images. to me, increasing the roof offerings would make a good program just perfect.

i did check out 3dcafe but couldn't find any good roof images even on the links (roof images must be particularly hard to do). maybe i wasn't looking in the right places. i, also, emailed bristile to see if i can get their cd of images and am waiting for their reply. if anyone else has any suggestions, it would be appreciated. for you vw folks listening in, the existing terra cotta spanish tile image in rw is just gorgeous. how nice it would be if you expanded on it....ah, think of the possibilities.

MikeB: thanks for the info-i'll check it out. it does seem a shame that one has to go outside or create one's own texture when i thought that is what i paid rw for. Having 25 diffferent metal textures and similar stuff is cool, but the roof is really a promiment feature and it would be nice to get it just right. if most other textures aren't right on, the result is usually passable, but a bad roof just looks bad and fakey. as long as this is the wish list section, i wish i didn't have to go outside to get fundamental stuff.

MikeB: creating your own textures and images is a good idea, but how do you prevent noticeable tiling especially when you're texturing a large surface like a roof? just find a larger image to shoot?

a lot of expensive homes have tile roofs and it would be nice to have more tile roof textures and image fills in renderworks. the terra cotta spanish tile included would be more useful if it's color and even profile could be edited. matching monier tile, or something similar, colors and profiles would be great.