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paulie Femto

Into the dark

Join date: 13 Sep 2003

Posts: 1,098

04-29-2006 11:39

Check this screenshot. Am I seeing the shadow of the stairs inside the Cayman lighthouse being rendered on the exterior of the lighthouse?

http://www.triadalliance.com/shadow.bmp

Are shadows rendered in software? Will they be rendered in hardware in a later version?

Doesn't modern hardware (GEFORCE 3 and above) support shadowing in hardware?

_____________________

REUTERS on SL: "Thirty-five thousand people wearing their psyches on the outside and all the attendant unfettered freakishness that brings."

Pyrii Akula

NO PANTS!

Join date: 25 Nov 2005

Posts: 187

04-30-2006 05:02

My experience is shadows are totally screwed up in the client, when you pan the camera around an static object the shadows creep around with the camera. Yay for vertex lighting tho.

Remember a vertex is where the edges of a polygon meet, vertex lighting is calculated on how much light is hitting that point.

UT2004 uses vertex based lighting to apply shadows to static meshes, BSP brushes get baked on lightmaps. Anyways, this can lead to lighting weirdness. usually it's to do with now the objects polys are divided. And lithing placement.

I ranted again.

paulie Femto

Into the dark

Join date: 13 Sep 2003

Posts: 1,098

neat shadows

04-30-2006 12:53

check the neat shadows generated by the sun shining through assorted objects in the distance of this pic:

http://www.triadalliance.com/neatshadows.bmp

shadows cast on land are apparently simplified by LOD as you zoom out or fly away. that makes sense, since the land itself gets simplified by LOD in the distance. but it does look jarring to see shadows being simplified that way. heres a suggestion: since shadows are only semi real-time, could computed shadow volumes cast on land be exempt from LOD simplification and just be allowed to shrink with distance? that would look more natural and might even save some frame rates.

_____________________

REUTERS on SL: "Thirty-five thousand people wearing their psyches on the outside and all the attendant unfettered freakishness that brings."

Pyrii Akula

NO PANTS!

Join date: 25 Nov 2005

Posts: 187

04-30-2006 13:00

Hehe, yeah, you can see the vertex lines of the terrain mesh =P Makes for an interesting view though. Oh yeah, PNG is your friend.

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weird shadows

weird shadows
paulie Femto Into the dark Join date: 13 Sep 2003 Posts: 1,098	04-29-2006 11:39 Check this screenshot. Am I seeing the shadow of the stairs inside the Cayman lighthouse being rendered on the exterior of the lighthouse? http://www.triadalliance.com/shadow.bmp Are shadows rendered in software? Will they be rendered in hardware in a later version? Doesn't modern hardware (GEFORCE 3 and above) support shadowing in hardware? _____________________ REUTERS on SL: "Thirty-five thousand people wearing their psyches on the outside and all the attendant unfettered freakishness that brings."
Pyrii Akula NO PANTS! Join date: 25 Nov 2005 Posts: 187	04-30-2006 05:02 My experience is shadows are totally screwed up in the client, when you pan the camera around an static object the shadows creep around with the camera. Yay for vertex lighting tho. Remember a vertex is where the edges of a polygon meet, vertex lighting is calculated on how much light is hitting that point. UT2004 uses vertex based lighting to apply shadows to static meshes, BSP brushes get baked on lightmaps. Anyways, this can lead to lighting weirdness. usually it's to do with now the objects polys are divided. And lithing placement. I ranted again.
paulie Femto Into the dark Join date: 13 Sep 2003 Posts: 1,098	neat shadows 04-30-2006 12:53 check the neat shadows generated by the sun shining through assorted objects in the distance of this pic: http://www.triadalliance.com/neatshadows.bmp shadows cast on land are apparently simplified by LOD as you zoom out or fly away. that makes sense, since the land itself gets simplified by LOD in the distance. but it does look jarring to see shadows being simplified that way. heres a suggestion: since shadows are only semi real-time, could computed shadow volumes cast on land be exempt from LOD simplification and just be allowed to shrink with distance? that would look more natural and might even save some frame rates. _____________________ REUTERS on SL: "Thirty-five thousand people wearing their psyches on the outside and all the attendant unfettered freakishness that brings."
Pyrii Akula NO PANTS! Join date: 25 Nov 2005 Posts: 187	04-30-2006 13:00 Hehe, yeah, you can see the vertex lines of the terrain mesh =P Makes for an interesting view though. Oh yeah, PNG is your friend.