KatsBits Community

General Category => News => Topic started by: kat on April 10, 2010, 03:48:45 PM

Title: [tutorial] understand the basics and make better textures
Post by: kat on April 10, 2010, 03:48:45 PM
New tutorial for your learn-ee-maa-cation. I was in the middle of doing this when I wrote the previous news item (http://www.katsbits.com/smforum/index.php?topic=81.0) about artists and creators not knowing the basics of texture making, otherwise I would have posted this the other day. Anywho, the new tutorial covers one of the basic 'rules' of texture making that's applicable across all 'game' mediums, it truly is astonishing just how many so called 'Pros' don't even know this stuff - and they should really know better - never mind 'noobs'. Have a read of the latest texture tutorial (http://www.katsbits.com/htm/tutorials/textures-correct-power-of-two-size.htm).
Title: Re: Tutorial - understand the basics and make better textures
Post by: ratty redemption on April 11, 2010, 03:06:06 AM
@ kat, I'm surprised people still need this explaining to them. but do you think it's also partly the fault of the engines accepting incorrectly sized images?
Title: Re: Tutorial - understand the basics and make better textures
Post by: Shaderman on April 11, 2010, 09:15:31 AM
Quote
@ kat, I'm surprised people still need this explaining to them.

I'm not surprised people still need this explained and see it like this:

A tiler learned his trade and learned all the dos and don'ts about tiles and tile sizes.
But isn't there a difference if ratty thinks he can tile his bathroom himself and buys some different sized tiles in a do-it-yourself store, starts tiling and noticed that the tiles don't match?
Who's the one to blame? The guy in the store because he didn't tell ratty all the dos and don'ts? Or maybe the tile manufacturer because there came no note or warning with the tiles? I think ratty has no reason to complain :)

Why should people know that textures should be power of two if they didn't learn it in any education?

Quote
but do you think it's also partly the fault of the engines accepting incorrectly sized images?

I say no :)
Title: Re: Tutorial - understand the basics and make better textures
Post by: kat on April 11, 2010, 10:56:06 AM
...Why should people know that textures should be power of two if they didn't learn it in any education?...
Yes, totally. There's too much stuff online telling people how to make stuff in terms of pressing various buttons in Max, but the fundamental principles get very little eyeball time anywhere, certainly that's in a form easily digested by people not familiar with the whole game development process. Obviously this is notwithstanding the general problem these days with instant gratification, users don't want to 'learn' per-say, they just want to 'do' and 'have'.

Something slightly related to this, i.e. 'education'. I was just reading an interesting article in this months Develop Magazine (http://www.develop-online.net/digital-edition)  (read it online here.. page 15 is the article (http://issuu.com/develop/docs/dev104_web)) which commented on that lack of applicants to "computing degrees". Now I don't know what constitutes a computing 'degree', but according to the author whilst general IT professionals has gone up year on year, since approx 2001 there's been a 50% drop in the number of graduates taking 'computer' related degrees, to the extent that Universities are finding themselves having to make courses easier so as to get the applicants in. It's seems there's a fundamental 'malaise' around.

Additionally... Bad ratty for tiling his bathroom all wrong!! hehe  :D
Title: Re: Tutorial - understand the basics and make better textures
Post by: ratty redemption on April 11, 2010, 02:09:37 PM
hehe, understood guys and good example ;)

also interesting to hear of the decline in computer degrees.