Hi all,

I still know nothing about UNIX but I've been using the UNIX version of POV
for a while now.

It is strange using the command line, but there is a workaround. I use the
x11.app to display the image while rendering, and its "xterm" terminal
shell or whatever it's called to do the command line.

I have an .ini file called myshell.ini in my INI file folder in the standard
POV UNIX file path. This .ini file calls the scene file, and I use the .ini
file to set resolution, antialiasing, where to save image files if desired,
and so on. I open up the scene file right next to the .ini file and edit it
as needed.

The best trick is that the Up Arrow key makes the xterm shell put whever was
on the last command line, on the present command line. So once I have the
right path typed in to launch POV and use the myshell.ini file, it just
means hitting Up Arrow and Enter to start a new render.

I find that the beta Universal version of MacMegaPOV is a little
faster the UNIX POV, on my iMac, but only a little; UNIX POV comes with a
configuration file which recognizes the Intel processor and POV gets
compiled accordingly (the compile takes only a minute or two). The same
scene file rendered form the same .ini file came in at 37 seconds for
MacMegaPOV, 39 seconds for UNIX POV.

Finally, I advise *not* to follow the ReadMe instructions in the UNIX
version, which would have you install POV as Root. This is unnecessary.
Just create a folder in your Home directory and name it UPOV or whatever and
tell the installer the file path to that folder.

It took me about four tries to get it right, but I like it. Apple's
Terminal.app is needed (was needed, for me; for a true UNIX geek,
installation of UNIX POV is trivial). The neat thing about Terminal is that
one can get a file path by dropping a file (or folder) on the Terminal.app
window! This was crucial for me to understand how to force the Installer to
intall POV to my own specified folder, without using this famous thing
called Root.

On my iMac CoreDuo, OSX 10.4.4, POV Macintosh Official does not run at all.
MacMegaPOV v.1.2 runs under Rosetta, and works well if slowly. The beta
Universal MacMegaPOV runs well, but as of yet does not allow saving
animations to QuickTime.

Moreover, it is possible to run two, or all three versions, at once! If they
all could export to QuickTime, one could render frames 1-100 on Machine 1,
101-200 on Machine 2, an so on. But cutting and pasting between QT files is
only permitted under QTPro, unfortunately.

For instance, yesterday I was rendering an animation in MacMegaPOV 1.2 under
Rosetta.This filled up the capacity of the second "core" of the processor,
as seen using the Activity Monitor.app. The other core remained free. So I
launched UNIX POV and did many renders of other scenes, filling up the
second processor core's capacity. This is awfully close to multi-processing
support.

At any rate: to me it is nice that the Macintosh can run
UNIX POV if we wish.

RT

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"Russell Towle" <rto### [at] inreachcom> wrote:

> Moreover, it is possible to run two, or all three versions, at once! If they
> all could export to QuickTime, one could render frames 1-100 on Machine 1,
> 101-200 on Machine 2, an so on. But cutting and pasting between QT files is
> only permitted under QTPro, unfortunately.

I normally use QTPro (an *extremely* good use of $30) to make animations.
But the next best (free) thing is to use ffmpeg
(http://ffmpeg.sourceforge.net/ ), which works well on my MacBook Pro.  You
can use it to take your ordered stack of .png images (for example) and
compress it into a quicktime movie, or whatever format you like.

(If anyone else has good suggestions for high-quality video compression that
works on an intel-based mac for free, I'd like to hear them too.)

Also, if you're dividing up frames, it's usually better to give machine 1
the odd frames and machine 2 render the even frames. (Start them on frames
1 and 2, and use Frame Step +2 in MacMegaPOV.)  Assuming that your machines
are equally matched, they'll finish closer to the same time this way.

-Windell.

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Russell Towle wrote:
> 101-200 on Machine 2, an so on. But cutting and pasting between QT files is
> only permitted under QTPro, unfortunately.

This is not correct. Only Movie Player has certain restrictions. Other 
applications can access all QuickTime editing features at any time. The real 
difference between regular QuickTime and the "Pro" version are a few 
compression features of a few codecs.

	Thorsten

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Thank you, Windell and Thorsten, for your input. I am glad to know of the
ffmpeg software, Windell. I will take a look.

I tried to buy QTPro about ten times at the Apple Store, but my VISA check
card wouldn't run, and even a trip to my bank couldn't fix it. It works
everywhere in the world, except Apple. I have QTPRO version 4.1 or whatever
on my old computer. I had many occasions to use it to make movies from
folders of images.

I wonder whether two instances of UNIX POV could run concurrently; I will
try that. Then it would be neat to set up the Mac GUI so that it can launch
arbitrary numbers of povray executables, and just max out the processors ...

It is a lot like in Mathematica, where there is a "front end" and a
"kernel."

I am feeling so geeky for running UNIX POV but in fact I am quite ignorant,
so bear with me please ... I really value your work, Thorsten, it is such
an important contribution to we Mac users. So thanks much!

RT

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