On 2024-10-04 11:40 (-4), Bald Eagle wrote:
> 
> That's some really nice work there, Mr. Callwood.

Thanks!

> When did you write the first desk lamp scene?

This question has multiple interpretations, so forgive me for the long
timeline.

2004 December 30: Work is started.
2005 March 6: The first (unpublished) include file is completed.
2005 March 6: The lamp is used by my 3rd generation (unpublished) render
  rig.
2005 March 6: The first scene is created (lampdemo2.jpg).  Like the OP
  animation, it was a test scene.  Sure the image is small; my computer
  screen was 800x600 at the time.
2021 January 11: A rewrite of the include file is started.
2021 November 30: The hooded lamp aiming test animation is created, with
  edits until 2022 June 27.  The final animation posted to YouTube was
  created last month.  This scene turns on an undocumented debugging
  switch to reveal exactly where the lamp is aimed (the bright spot on
  the moving target).
2022 September 6: The rewritten include file is completed and published.
2022 September 6: The first non-test scene to incorporate the new lamp
  (lamp-round-dl-hiq.jpg) is an update of a scene created on 2005 April
  15 which used the old lamp include file.
2022 October 13: The new lamp is used by my 4th generation render rig.
2024 April 30: The flat panel lamp aiming test animation scenes are
  completed.  The final animations posted to YouTube were created last
  month.  Like the hooded lamp test, these scenes turn on the debugging
  switch to reveal exactly where the lamp is aimed.

> How many files and features are associated with it at this point?

The scene description files use two of my proposed Object Collection
libraries, DeskLamp and ShapeOfTheDay.  I have posted links to both of
these libraries in p.object-collection.  These two, in turn, use
RoundEdge, including its elliptical torus mesh.

> Are you using macros to calculate the positioning of the light?
> Are they "simple" vector calculations like vdot and vcross, or are you employing
> matrix transforms?

The lamp's position and up-vector are of course set by the scene, but
the macros used to aim the lamp (given its position and up-vector) are
all defined in desklamp.inc.  The transformation is defined in macro
Lamp_Orient_Trans(), which uses vcross() and vdot(), along with macro
Reorient_Trans() from transforms.inc.  Macro Lamp_Flex_Angle() completes
the aiming by flexing the neck appropriately.

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