This has pushed me to start working back on getting 3mension up and running as soon as possible.

Given the Torquebay situation, I’ll focus the site initially on GarageGames related stuff. There are tons of real gems to be found on the forums at GarageGames, but the site isn’t really constructed as a catalogue. If you want to log interesting stuff, you’d need to use Delicious or some other bookmarking alternative.

The first iteration of 3mension aims to be a collaborative bookmarking tool for Torque engine users, with tags and categories to make it all easier to find what you’re looking for. I’ll start posting links to interesting stuff, starting on the GarageGames site, but maybe also looking on to other sites.

No related posts.

It is clear that this had an important impact on the outlook of the Torque Community. The forums are still running, and some people are posting special offers from competing engines for current Torque licensees. Others are publicly considering switching their projects to a different engine.

I wouldn’t.

For current and even new projects, the future isn’t all that bleak. Torque Game engine technology has always been unique in the fact that it provided a license with source code included. In the event that the Torque technology shouldn’t find a partner, this only means that no more new developments will be done for the engine.

This situation won’t affect 3mension support for Torque in any way. The beta release of 3mension is scheduled before the end of the year. In order to get notified about what’s going on at 3mension, subscribe to our RSS feed or the mailing list.

No related posts.

This version comes in two flavors : standard and a Pro variant, with enhancements and new features for both versions.

The Bryce7 feature comparison table gives in fair detail what is the difference between the two. The pro version does seem to have quite a bit of new features that are meant for the power user, but could also be quite helpful for the hobby user:

• Lighting enhancements
• Atmospheric additions
• displacement mapping

Upgrade promotions

To celebrate this release, Daz3D is offering upgrade promotions to all those that have invested in previous version of Bryce.

When you upgrade from Bryce6, you could be upgrading to Bryce7 for $6, which is quite a good deal in my opinion.

Head over to the website to find out the upgrade prices for Standard and Pro.

Bryce Master Series

If you want some step-by-step descriptions on how to build a specific scene, head over to the Bryce Master Series section in the Daz3D shop. The Bryce Master Series take some notable Bryce-generated scenes and explains how to re-create them in step-by-step.

These seem to be geared to Bryce 5 users, which is a shame. So don’t expect to have an in-depth explanation on how to use the new features of Bryce7 or even Bryce6.

I hope this will be rectified and updated in the near future, as it’s a very good way of showing your users what was the advantage of upgrading to these newer versions.

No related posts.

jQuery

login panel

The new template got some jQuery love. I’m using a script found in a tutorial at web-kreation.com, which gives really exceptional results. I’m working on a theme for 3mension that will incorporate a panel like this. It’s very easy to install, and I think the uses are limitless. I just need to see if it has to be added to the top of the window, or if it can be added to the top of a block in ImpressCMS

.

Image fading

Also, I added a fading effect  to the images of the different supported engines. Not that difficult, and it saves loads of space.

ImpressCMS Theme someday

At the moment, this is only a simple web page which I updated to work with the login feature of ImpressCMS, to imitate the ‘site closed’ feature. I’m working on a template that will add these features in ImpressCMS proper. That will mean the jQuery stuff will be available to the entire site, and the Site Closed page will mimic the design of the site theme. At the moment, ImpressCMS developers are discussing a standardisation of the different CSS classes, in order to make it easier to get themes on the platform. I hope this gets a boost and a first version quickly, as this is really needed.

No related posts.

This release contains many changes, enhancements and new functionality, with the most important ones listed here:

• Totally rewritten Imagemanager, with online editing
• Fully customizable Profile module, specifically aimed at social networks
• Content is now a full-size module
• Autotasks
• AJAX Redirect, no more redirect pages
• HTMLPurifier configuration in admin backend
• Captcha configuration in admin backend
• Themes for the admin area
• Separate home pages are now possible for each user group
• Textsanitizer plugins
• Installer – new look, using AJAX
• Search results page
• Adsense management in admin area
• Centralized Ratings and Mimetype management

The release has been well publicised on several sites:

• The Release announcement on ImpressCMS.org

• INBOX International can’t keep silent either

• The Announcement on CMSCritic.com

• CMSReport.com mentioning the release

• Also our friends at H-Online have noticed this release

No related posts.

The team is still working hard to get the release stable and secure. I you would like to see what is coming in the next release of this CMS, please consider helping out in the testing cycle.

The sooner this release is deemed stable enough for release, the developers can start working on all the cool things that have been held up due to the beta testing. So if you want to help out, I’m sure everybody will be delighted to assist you in setting up a test environment, or explain which bugs need to be fixed.

Join the ImpressCMS Team

Download the ImpressCMS 1.2 beta release

No related posts.

This is a significant step, as the logo will be used as the base for the theme created for the website. It will also help with the development of the site, as it is the first really visible part of the site that falls into place.

It seems ImpressCMS 1.2 might come out before the 3mension site goes live. A beta of ImpressCMS 1.2 is forthcoming, and the package should be feature-complete by now. During the wait for answers on the queries for a logo design, I plan to migrate all the work that is done towards that version, in order to have the newly added functionality and enhancements at my disposal.

No related posts.

The ImpressCMS 1.2 branch is particularly interesting, as it marks the end of Xoops compatibility. That doesn’t mean the developers are trying to break as much of the Xoops functionality just for the heck of it of course. It does mean that ImpressCMS can choose its own path to greatness, without having to think each time if the proposed change won’t break Xoops compatibility. The ImpressCMS 1.2 branch will have some very interesting additions and changes, especially for module developers

jQuery inclusion in the core: The standard inclusion of the jQuery library guarantees the developer that AJAX functionality will be available without any extra dependencies. The fact that the jQuery library is set as standard also means less potential juggling with different AJAX libraries and versions of those libraries.

IPF: The classes which started some time ago as the SmartObject framework, have evolved and extended to form the ImpressCMS Persistable Framework (IPF). These are classes that serve as a solid foundation for modules, without having to re-invent the wheel (or the hot water, depending on your preference).

EYODF or Eat Your Own Dog Food. A very healthy principle (unless you really start eating dog food, don’t exaggerate) that has been taken up by the ImpressCMS core and addon developer teams.
The first steps are already made towards converting the entire core of ImpressCMS towards using IPF. Most im* modules (imTagging, imBlogging) are also heavy users of IPF. That’s also the best way of testing the IPF design. Eating our own Dog Food

When the bugs found in Alpha 2 are resolved, ImpressCMS 1.2 will evolve towards the beta cycle. That means that no breaking changes will be made anymore. This doesn’t mean everything will be frozen. Already some nice layout work is being prepared on the installation procedure.

3Mension will be compatible with the 1.1.2 version of ImpressCMS at the moment, as the first release of the site is imminent (a few weeks at most). The new features in iCMS 1.2 look better and better as we get nearer the new release.

I can hardly wait.

No related posts.

I am happy to announce that a major part of the core functionality has been written in its basic form. At the moment, it is possible to upload files accompanied by an image, a title and a description. It’s still butt-ugly at the moment, as no time has been devoted yet to the templates that should make everything look nice on the screen. Once the functionality is approaching what will be used on the production site, I’ll start looking at the presentation.

At the moment, the plugin is built with an old Xoops plugin to generate the classes. ImpressCMS 1.2 is still a bit too far off to wait for it to get to a state I am confident with to install on a website out in the open. That’s a shame really, as the IPF framework, in combination with the imbuilding plugin for iCMS 1.2.x is a very powerful and easy-to-use tool to develop with.

I started asking around about the feature set users would like to see. My first victims were on BlenderArtists. I plan to build a bit of momentum on the different forums towards the launch of the beta, which should be next month at the latest.

No related posts.

This is what I call an Infrastructure module. The main goal of it is to provide a service to other modules in such a way that they don’t have to reinvent the same functionality over and over again. In the first release of the module, there won’t be any fancy rating stars or javascript-based animations. The service will simply accept numbers for the individual votes,  and return numbers if the rating of an object is retrieved. All the fancy stuff is to be added later, or even provided by the module, if something weird is needed that nobody else thought about (or wants).

I’ve been working with the latest version of imBuilding in the SVN repository, and although there are some quirks consistent with the alpha-release status, it is working quite well as initial step. Next step will be to get a closer understanding of the do’s and don’ts of the IPF framework.

In ProjectPier, those are items on my current task list. I plan to have a working first version by the end of this month, and propose it to the other icms developers for review and suggestions.

No related posts.