Hi people,

I've thought about a few nice features, I would like to see in PovRay:

- A camera map_type. That makes is possible to render background images by using
the sky_sphere.
- A camera_plane to measure distances for DOF.
- Blurred reflection
- 3D-pattern in fog (with a maximum distance for the pattern, to prevent endless
pattern calculations)
- A pre_pass2bin function: This function save a binary file, of what is parsed.
This is help full when making a low-resolution test rendering. If you like the
rendering, just "parse" the binary file. (Sometimes I have to wait longer for
the parsing, but for the rendering)
- Motion blur: by giving a translation_vector for normal objects or cameras. And
for the mesh2 object a motion-vector-block, define each vertex motion.
- Fresnel pattern
- Additional channels like z, alpha, normal...
- A low-level syntax for programming shaders (something like PovMan maybe..)

Hope there is one or two things, you also like :)

Holger

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H. Karsten <h-karsten()web.de> wrote:
> - A camera map_type. That makes is possible to render background images by using
> the sky_sphere.

  How exactly would that work?

> - A camera_plane to measure distances for DOF.

  I'm not sure how that would work either.

> - Blurred reflection

  Already possible. (See eg. http://warp.povusers.org/pics/RubiksRevenge2.jpg )

> - 3D-pattern in fog (with a maximum distance for the pattern, to prevent endless
> pattern calculations)

  How is that different from media?

> - A pre_pass2bin function: This function save a binary file, of what is parsed.
> This is help full when making a low-resolution test rendering. If you like the
> rendering, just "parse" the binary file. (Sometimes I have to wait longer for
> the parsing, but for the rendering)

  One reason for creating pov4 has been to making it easier to export and
import things.

-- 
                                                          - Warp

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> > - A camera map_type.
>   How exactly would that work?

The camera "projects" the mapping to the object: lower left corner of the
rendered image is uv:<0,0> on the object, upper right is uv:<1,1>

The camera_plane works the same way: its an object, that has exactly the size of
the projection_plane. By increasing the distance, the camera_plane will become
bigger (in normal cases) to fill up the picture. Its always orientated to the
camera and has llc uv:<0,0> and urc uv:<1,1>

> > - Blurred reflection
>   Already possible. (See eg. http://warp.povusers.org/pics/RubiksRevenge2.jpg )

Ups.. didn't know this. How is the syntax for this?

> > - 3D-pattern in fog...
>   How is that different from media?

A media is a clipped_by a object. It would be very easy, just to put a pattern
inside the fog statement.

> One reason for creating pov4 has been to making it easier to export and
> import things.

Sounds cool :)

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I'd like to see more developers first and foremost.

Importing binary mesh formats would be nice too.
Exporting media densities another plus.
Tesselating isosurfaces to polygons would be cool.
How about a plane negative component for blobs?
Programmable shaders is nice and a more modular SDL.
Path tracing anyone?

but really povray is in bad need of a Steve Ballmer and his mantra...
"developers, developers, developers"

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H. Karsten <h-karsten()web.de> wrote:
> The camera "projects" the mapping to the object: lower left corner of the
> rendered image is uv:<0,0> on the object, upper right is uv:<1,1>

  I still didn't fully understand. :(

> > > - Blurred reflection
> >   Already possible. (See eg. http://warp.povusers.org/pics/RubiksRevenge2.jpg )

> Ups.. didn't know this. How is the syntax for this?

  There's no syntax. There's a technique to achieve it (IIRC it was first
discovered by Ron Parker). It's describe here:

http://tag.povray.org/povQandT/languageQandT.html#blurredreflection

-- 
                                                          - Warp

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"nemesis" <nam### [at] gmailcom> wrote:
> but really povray is in bad need of a Steve Ballmer and his mantra...
> "developers, developers, developers"

Isn't it a bit early? From what I see here the requirements for POV 4 aren't
anywhere near known, and until they are you don't need programmers.

Tom

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>> The camera "projects" the mapping to the object: lower left corner of the
>> rendered image is uv:<0,0> on the object, upper right is uv:<1,1>
>
>  I still didn't fully understand. :(

I understood it to mean texture coordinates generated from the screen 
coordinates.  Like a projector at the camera point projecting a texture into 
the scene.

>> > > - Blurred reflection
>> >   Already possible. (See eg. 
>> > http://warp.povusers.org/pics/RubiksRevenge2.jpg )
>
>> Ups.. didn't know this. How is the syntax for this?
>
>  There's no syntax. There's a technique to achieve it (IIRC it was first
> discovered by Ron Parker). It's describe here:
>
> http://tag.povray.org/povQandT/languageQandT.html#blurredreflection

Could be tidied up into just 1 or 2 extra paremeters inside the reflection{} 
block though?

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scott <sco### [at] laptopcom> wrote:
> > http://tag.povray.org/povQandT/languageQandT.html#blurredreflection

> Could be tidied up into just 1 or 2 extra paremeters inside the reflection{} 
> block though?

  With the same flexibility? Hardly.

-- 
                                                          - Warp

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"Tom York" <alp### [at] zubenelgenubi34spcom> wrote:
> "nemesis" <nam### [at] gmailcom> wrote:
> > but really povray is in bad need of a Steve Ballmer and his mantra...
> > "developers, developers, developers"

> Isn't it a bit early? From what I see here the requirements for POV 4 aren't
> anywhere near known, and until they are you don't need programmers.

No programmers also mean povray 3.7 in beta status for a few more years and
povray 4 nowhere in sight.  Povray needs developers, not offtopic whinners.

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"nemesis" <nam### [at] gmailcom> wrote:
> "Tom York" <alp### [at] zubenelgenubi34spcom> wrote:
> > "nemesis" <nam### [at] gmailcom> wrote:
> > > but really povray is in bad need of a Steve Ballmer and his mantra...
> > > "developers, developers, developers"
>
> > Isn't it a bit early? From what I see here the requirements for POV 4 aren't
> > anywhere near known, and until they are you don't need programmers.
>
> No programmers also mean povray 3.7 in beta status for a few more years and
> povray 4 nowhere in sight.  Povray needs developers, not offtopic whinners.

I can't find anything about more developers being wanted for 3.7 on
www.povray.org, which might be one reason why there's any shortage. I didn't
even realise you could apply to work on 3.7 - are you entirely sure about this?

Tom

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