Peter Popov wrote in message ...
>alternative solution? As I understand the problem, you don't want to
>have to calculate all previous steps when doing an animation. Why
>don't you use the file I/O directives to write the current state
>(position, linear velocity etc.) of the car and then, in the next
>frame, read it and continue your calculations from there? It is a


Actually I already do have a system which works pretty well for the final
animation, although it doesn't work on a frame-by-frame basis.  I run a pov
file which reads the motion script and calculates through the motions of the
car from start to finish.   For every motion segment in the motion script,
the starting position-data of the car is recorded into a file.   For final
rendering, only one motion segment (or partial segment) needs to be
calculated per frame.   This is more calculation per frame than it'd be to
save data per frame, true.

Ultimately both systems have trouble when doing trial and error test frame
renders (and Ralf Muschall correctly pointed out that this is something I
currently have to do).  I usually add a little bit to the end of the motion
script I'm editing and then render the final frame.  One of the next things
I plan on doing is making a modification of my current system that doesn't
need to precalculate the entire sequence of motions, and which doesn't need
them in any particular order...  I.e. the new system would record relative
positon data for any given initial-speed, initial-steering-angle,
speed-delta and steering-angle-delta, but Wouldn't record initial car
orientation or position for each segment.   I'm thinking this should work
well for testing... the other would work better for final rendering... er um
parsing speed.

-Charles

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