Poseidon

Installation
============

a) Version

This program does not run with 3D Studio MAX 2.x versions.

b) Package

Poseïdon version 2.2 is given in French and English version.
Here is the detailed contents of the package:

- UnderW22.ms : French version program
- UnderW22us.ms : English version program
- readme.txt : documentation
- presets.zip : preselections set
- doc.zip : full documentation

c) Directory

To install the program - just copy the UnderW22.ms or UnderW22us.ms script file according to the chosen version in your script directory. By default - c:3dsmaxscripts. *.uww extension files included in Presets.zip can be stored in any directory you choose.

d) Loading

To load the program - choose the Utilities tab of the command panel. Press the Maxscript button. Press the Run Script button. A dialog invites you to load a script. You can choose Poseïdon 2.

e) Initialisation

When the program is run for the first time - the user is invited to choose a directory to store the *.uww extension files including the preselection sets. This operation creates a poseidon.ini file in the script directory. You can at any time erase this file to reinit the program.

Launching
=========

Once the program opened - you can either use the create button to launch the creation process with the default parameters - or double-click upon a name of the preselection list to load the corresponding parameters of a peculiar configuration. A message then shows than parameters are loaded and you can run creation process.

The preselection sets can be saved after an under water fixing. The Save button above the preselection list allows this operation. 43 parameters are then saved in a *.uww extension file and can be reloaded at any time double-clicking on its name in the list.

The Options button allows to access the software configuration. The directory containing the presets can be altered. Then - the Preview and Rendering options can de reached. The thumbnail allowing a quick rendering to especially fix the ocean depth - the location - color or global light particularly includes the exclusion of the maps - atmospheric effects - reflexions or shadows. The thumbnail and pre-rendering windows can be resized.

Configuration
=============

The beams are never rendered in the thumbnail and pre-rendering windows since the calculation time should be too long. That is why you can see a Beam Render checkbox allowing to exclude the beams from the calculation when testing the renderins to fine tune the parameters of such elements as reliefs - maps etc. Beams are the last things to be fixed.

The Save checkbox allows to run the saving of the rendering just after the calculation. Rendering height and width can be define.

The Ok button allows to validate the options without writing them in the poseidon.ini file - the Save button save them allowing to turn them as default options.

Work process
============

The creation process can exclude the floor - beams - plankton. Once lauched - all the options are available from 5 menus : camera - ocean - effects - reliefs - animation. The Options menu allows to manage the rendering and display. A Render button located at the bottom of the command pannel allows to run the rendering without modify the running menu in which peculiar parameters are looked for. The thumbnail is a fast primary tool to display the general aspect of the parameters. The Pre-render button allows a larger thumbnail. Use then the Render button as you want to display the current work in a size larger than 320x200. The Beam Render button - in the Options menu - allows to speed up the process deactivating the beams calculation. The beams slow down the calculation and they sohuld be the last things to be fixed.

Any mesh added to the scene shall be excluded from the sun and the light source creating the beams. The only scene light source is the spotlight controling the caustic shadows.