Warp wrote:
> 
>   Some years ago I made a "Hardcore Povrayer Test" just for fun. Here
> it is again, with small updates.
> 
>   For each statement which you feel is true in your case (be sincere),
> take one point. The number of points you get is your score. The
> maximum number of points is 65.
>   (My personal score is "only" 37, so it *is* a tough test.)
> 
> * You have participated in the IRTC and got to the top 20 best images.
Or animations... Yes

> * You have won a price in the IRTC.
A prize, yes.

> * You have made bicubic patches by hand (and they worked as you
> expected).
Yes.

> * You have made a pov-script that creates a smooth surface with
> bicubic patches using some algorithm.
It's how the Greb are done.

> * You have made triangle meshes by hand.
Yes.

> * You have made a pov-script which generates triangle meshes using
> some algorithm.
Yes.

> * You have used the quadric, cubic, quartic or poly primitives.
How many for using all but the poly?

> * You have used poly objects bigger than 4th degree.
Nope.

> * You have calculated the polynomial for that poly object by yourself
> (instead of looking at the formula somwhere or just trying random
> values).
No.

> * You know the format of a PCM file.
Yes (got to, my modeler imports and exports it).

> * You have made one by hand.
No.

> * You have made a program which outputs a df3 file and used it in a
> scene.
No.

> * You know what a df3 file is and what's its format.
No.

> * You have made a patch for povray.
Wrote some code.

> * Your patch is included in MegaPov or at least it's popular.
Yes.

> * Your patch was included in POV-Ray 3.5.
Yes.

> * You have made a popular tool for povray.
Dunno if it's popular...

> * You have used every object type, every camera type, every light
> source type, every media type, etc. and know how to use them.

I haven't tried all the camera types.  Yes on the rest (for 3.1g).

> * You could write a torus-shaped isosurface by memory, without needing
> to look anywhere for the function.
No.

> * Even if you don't remember the torus function, you could deduce it
> by yourself, without looking it anywhere.
Yes.

> * You know what is the "sturmian root solver" thing which is used with
> the 'sturm' keyword in some objects (ie. you know the algorithm it
> uses).
No.

> * The intensity multiplier curves and light fading functions in the
> light source section of the povray manual are very clear and you
> understand them perfectly (and you might use them to choose your light
> source types).
Yes.

> * You understand how photon mapping works (at algorithm level).
No.

> * You have found the 'average normal bug' by yourself in a povray
> version previous than 3.1e.
No.

> * You know exactly what was causing it.
No.

> * You never include the povray include libraries (like colors.inc)
> because they slow parsing, but always define your colors, textures,
> etc by yourself.
Yes.

> * You only use the png format when working with povray.
Yes.

> * You always use it with alpha channel.
No.

> * It's very easy to you to make slope maps and actually you often use
>   them to make your textures.
Easy, but I rarely use them.

> * You know what the 'use_index' keyword is used for without looking at
> the manual.
Yes.

> * You understand the matrix transformation and you can write them by
> hand.
Yes.

> * You know how to calculate the matrix from any number of consecutive
> transformations (translate, scale, rotate).
Yes.

> * For any given identifier name you can tell by heart if it's a
> reserved keyword (ie. an illegal identifier name) or not (of course
> without having syntax highlighting to help you).
Probably.

> * You could make any of the Chris Colefax's includes or macros by
> yourself if you wanted.
Likely.

> * You use frequency, phase, octaves, omega and lambda without problems
> when creating your own textures.
Yes.

> * You can tell what does each one of them do (without looking at the
> documentation).
Yes.

> * You understand the scattering function pictures in the media section
> of the documentation.
Yes.

> * You remember all the keywords that can be put in a global_settings
> block and you know what do they mean and how to use them.
Rarely use them.

> * Making good-looking radiosity images is not a problem to you.
Never used it.

> * You remember all the built-in float and vector identifiers.
No.

> * You use all the vector and string functions without problem.
Yes.

> * You know if some special feature is already implemented in the
> POV-Ray 3.5 standard include files (and thus you know you don't have
> to implement it yourself).
Haven't tried 3.5 yet.

> * Functions, macros, arrays, loops and file-IO directives are a piece
> of cake.
Yes.

> * You never get the "camera is inside non-hollow object" warning. If
> you ever get it, it's absolutely intentional.
Only through typos...

> * You have made a modeller for povray.
Yes.

> * You often debug your povray code using the text message streams.
Yes.

> * You can easily calculate the camera parameters when you want to put
> a box right in front of the camera so that it completely and exactly
> fills the viewing area.
I have a script to do that.

> * You know which .c and .h files you must change to add a keyword to
> the parser.
No.

> * You can add a keyword and get it right the first time.
No.

> * You know which .c file contains the functionality for each aspect of
> the renderer.
No.

> * You can find a bug in the renderer source code given just a
> description of the symptoms and without using a debugger.
No.

> * You know BOTH reasons why a mesh can't be used in CSG.
No.

> * You know why refraction and media do work with meshes, even though
> CSG doesn't.
No.

> * You know that 'merge' doesn't have to be a primitive CSG operation
> and can recite the equivalent sequence of intersections, unions, and
> inverses.
Yes.

> * You know that 'difference' isn't a primitive CSG operation and you
> know how POV represents one internally.
Yes.

> * You understand how 'bounded_by' _really_ works.
No.

> * You know that a height_field has an inside and how it is defined.
Yes.

> * You've written your own include file and distributed it on the net.
> It has got some popularity.
I dare say.

> * You understand all the options to 'media' without having to look in
> the manual.
Pretty much.

> * You know, without looking at the docs, how antialiasing methods 1
> and 2 work and what's their difference.
Yes.

> * You have made yourself an obfuscated signature in POV-Ray SDL in 4
> lines or less, and you use it by default when posting to the POV-Ray
> news server.
Too busy working on Rusty...

> * You didn't know the answer to one of the above questions so you
> tried to find it in the manual.
Didn't go looking, no.

> * You didn't know the answer to one of the above questions so you
> tried to find it in the source code.
Didn't go looking.

> * You didn't know that 'merge' wasn't a primitive but now that you do
>   you have worked it out for yourself.
Not applicable.

> * You are a member of the POV-Team.
No.

44

Regards,
John
-- 
ICQ: 46085459

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