Well, Inches per frame is a start. Perhaps you can specify how long each frame is? Because there is an option under Plugins>SketchyPhysics>Physics Settings that allows you to change the framerate. The default framerate is 3. 3 whats? Perhaps it is a real life unit?
Thanks,
--PinkSkink
Hey m' mate! Very very nice render. I like it a lot. Nice work, I like the material settings you have there. Possibly make the sim higher res (Not the picture size, but the fluid res) because I can see the polygons 
Nice work again though
Great, thanks! I actually got this to work in Blender too, but I can't seem to figure out how to get real-life units working. Does SketchyPhysics have a way to measure the speed of the cone's rotation, and convert it to m/sec or ft/sec?
Hello everyone!
PinkSkink here. I'm trying to figure out how to get around the "bounding box" that surrounds objects in SketchyPhysics. I need to be able to put a small ball into an ice-cream cone shape. But whenever I try to do so, it doesn't actually go into the cone, because it is stopped by the bounding box. Any way to change this? Also, does anyone know if SketchyPhysics does centripetal force? In other words, when I spin the cone, will the ball fly out? Or do I need to try another physics simulator?
Thanks you,
--PinkSkink
Lookin' forward to seeing some of your stuff Jimi!
Wow, ely, this is your best design yet! Great work, love the smoothness. 
I hate to bump a thread that's as old as this, but I've finally finished the story! If anyone's interested... 
Anyway, here it is:
@unknownuser said:
This way of living might have led to a stagnating society, but the Ta’Yawi found diverse ways to keep themselves occupied. They spent much of their time travelling to various nearby planets, and cataloguing the life found there. Maclean caught a sense of the thrilling danger of this unusual job, but it was a danger the Ta’Yawi welcomed, for it kept them from sinking into a stagnant, dead lifestyle.
Some specimens of this life were brought back to the Ta’Yawah II, and were kept in “zoos”, or museums. There, the Ta’Yawi conducted research on the aliens’ way of thinking, reacting, and reasoning. They also kept samples in deep-freeze, to prevent extinction of a species. The Ta’Yawi valued diversity in thought, and constantly sought new ways of reasoning and looking at problems. A human may look at an issue from both sides--a Ta’Yawi will examine it from ten different sides, and Maclean realized that this adaptability in thought was the key to their survival.
Although Ren`Tikdanak had indicated food on the table, and although it had been replenished consistently, there was no liquid of any sort. The food, a gray block about the size of his hand, was as dry as the chalky dust of the asteroid. When he had expressed his wish for water, he had met a peculiar reaction--confusion mixed with what he felt sure was revulsion. It cast doubt upon his theory that the aliens were withholding water from him to break down his resistance.
He had long ago given up the supply ship as lost. He could not imagine what sort of accident would delay such an important ship, but he was sure he had been kept a prisoner by the aliens for more than 10 days. The lack of water was beginning to tell on him, and he knew that he could not keep up his mental barriers for very long. Already he could feel sharp, insistent fingers prying and probing and creating new cracks.
Another contributor to his disorientation was the strange, almost schizophrenic quality that his life took on. When the aliens were in his mind, he felt a compassion, a loyalty for them, that was quite inexplicable. When he was alone, he hated them with every fiber of his being, and dreaded the soft, insistent rustling they made as they moved. When the aliens were in his mind, he racked his brains to try and remember the information he had so carefully walled off. When he was alone, he shuddered to think how close he had come, that time, and vowed that next time, he would be strong--next time, he would resist them.
Days dragged by, and he became weaker and weaker. He cursed himself when he gave the coordinates for a small, remote asteroid base much like the one he had been assigned to, but the guilt he felt was faint, and he soon forgot it in his persistent, painful longing for water.
And then, one day, something unusual happened. It was during one of the grueling mind-probe sessions that he suddenly remembered the exercises room in the asteroid base. Its main feature was a large, round swimming pool. The water was distilled from ice that formed on the dark side of the asteroid, and was purer than anything to be found on the whole of Terra. Swimming in it, in the low gravity, was more like flying than anything else. As for diving--
Here his thoughts were cut abruptly short by a searing wave of pain that washed through him, and a chilling sense of unearthly terror. When the pain subsided, he found himself lying face down on the floor. The circle of worms which usually gathered around to watch his mind being dissected had retreated to a respectful distance and were writhing agitatedly among themselves. But where was Ren
Tikdanak? Maclean got to his feet and looked around. RenTikdanak was in one corner, struggling and squirming like an earthworm that had been cut in half. Even though he and Maclean were no longer connected by any mind feelers, Maclean could feel the sheer horror eminating from the alien. Then, abruptly, he ceased his struggles and lay quite still.
From the new mind-prober who took Ren
Tikdanak’s place, Maclean learned that RenTikdanak had gone insane quite suddenly, and had died soon after. He had been driven insane by something he had seen--or felt--in Maclean’s mind. But what? Maclean could tell that this new alien was not eager to find out--his probing was much more gentle and tremulous. But Maclean was weakening, and the aliens would not find it hard to wrench his last few secrets from him if he lay in a stupor. He had to find out what drove Ren`Tikdanak mad. Soon.
Kirk Maclean leaned back in the soft leather chair and lit a cigarette. The man across from him, a hard-bitten, rugged commander, waited for him to continue his story.
“I finally put two and two together, and realized what had happened. The aliens were from a desert planet.”
The commander raised an eyebrow. “How do you figure that?”
“Simple. The air they breathed was unbelievably dry, as was the food. They were confused and disgusted when I asked for water. When I thought about it for a while longer, I realized what had driven Ren`Tikdanak mad.”
“What?”
“Fear of water. They had evolved on a desert world, learned to live without water. They had to. And although they were only disgusted when I wanted to drink the stuff, they were horrified when I imagined immersing myself in it.”
Maclean blew out a cloud of smoke.
“Imagine if you were--oh, lets say, afraid of heights. You might feel uncomfortable if a friend told you about his recent journey in one of those new air yachts.”
“You mean the sorts like a glass bubble with one engine. I guess I might. But what does that have to do with anything?”
“The worms didn’t just read my mind--they felt the experiences. I know this because the same thing happened to me. I felt their emotions, not just observed them. When I imagined swimming, Ren`Tikdanak felt what I was doing. He himself was immersed in the noxious stuff--he wasn’t just watching me swim. It would be like if your friend projected all his feelings and sensations into your mind when telling you about his air yacht journey.”
The commander nodded. “I see. Go on.”
“After I figured this out, water was all I thought about. I imagined rainstorms, tsunamis, and swimming. I think I must have driven three mind-probers mad in as many days.” He smiled grimly at the remembrance. “Eventually, I guess, they realized that Terra just wasn’t the planet for them. The next thing I remember, the crew from the supply ship were storming in the airlock of the asteroid base.”
The commander looked puzzled. “That’s right. I guess the worms must have left you there. Wonder why they didn’t kill you? Maybe they were being humane.” The commander laughed sharply at his joke, but Maclean did not.
“I think they were. Just because they did all that to me doesn’t mean they’re an evil race of slimy worms, you know.”
The commander shrugged.
Maclean contemplated the end of his cigarette. “I wonder where they’ll go now? Terra was the only possibility left them, I remember.”
“So long as they stay out of this galaxy, I couldn’t care less.”
Maclean nodded absently and left, promising a full report later that week. But his mind was busy with another problem. Where does a whole race go, when it has staked its hopes on one goal, and that goal is revealed to be a dead end? He remembered vividly the hopeless apathy he had sensed in the aliens, that first day of captivity. He remembered the aliens’ desperate gamble that this planet would be the right one. Time was running out, he knew, and their ace in the hole had vanished.
He walked home, pushing through the crowds of milling, aimless people. And he thought of Terra, a race which had passed its glory days, which was stagnating in a flood of 3-d videos, robots that did even the most minute task, and meals at the push of a button. He realized that the strange, double existence he had had as a prisoner of the aliens enabled him to look at Terra from a coldly objective viewpoint. He found himself asking a question which, two weeks ago, his proud military nationalism would have rejected instantly: If only one race could have Terra, who should?
The Terrans or the aliens?
The End
I'd really love to see any writing that any of you have done! This thread isn't just about me, you know!
Anyway, hope you like the story.
--PinkSkink
@regis said:
I'm dealing with the Kitchen now
Hey REGIS, might wanna check out Blenderguru. He has a tutorial for realistic kitchens. Link: http://www.blenderguru.com/create-a-realistic-kitchen-part-1-of-2/ This is part one of two, the second part deals with rendering.
Well, actually I do need 3d. But phun looks like a cool program anyway! thanks for the link!
Thanks for the information! I think I'll do as you both suggest, and learn Blender. I already have it downloaded--I just don't know how to use it!
Thanks again!
--PinkSkink
Hello!
This is PinkSkink, Goldenfrog's sister.
Im taking a high school physics course, and for extra credit my teacher has asked me to design an experiment and simulate it in a 3d program.
The problem with sketchyphysics is that if you try to drop a ball into an ice-cream cone shaped object, it won't actually fall into the cone, but rather will sort of float above its apex. So what I really need is another physics simulator. I'm wondering if any of you guys know about such a one?
Basically, it needs to have:
[list=]The ability to simulate centripetal force (the force that pushes you to one side when your car rounds a sharp corner)
Absence of bounding boxes[/list]
Thanks for your help!
Super awesome modeling, mate. Nice design too!! Though last I remember, the Axis was a hatchback...Right?
Ok, then, absolutely nothing worng with that one, it's really good stuff you do. Do you think you could do a 2010 Ford Taurus?
Nice work there REGIS and Pilou! The house looked very nice, maybe add some depth of field or something
As for the lighthouse, very artistic. But not realistic, but I don't think that's what you were aiming for, so good job as well!
Hey dedmin
Thanks much for the links. Found them useful.
Remember, guys, feel free to post shots of your work here too!
Nice work Ely! But doesn't it seem a bit needlessly high-poly? I mean, just a bit? Still great work.
Just a little update to let eveyone know I haven't forgotten about this story
The ending of the story is coming soon--I just need to finish editing it. For now, here's a few paragraphs.
@unknownuser said:
Any feeling of friendship he had for the aliens was gone. He realized that it lasted only while the alien was inhabiting one’s brain. He also was horrified at how close he had come to betraying Terra. If the aliens continued to probe his mind, he realized, it would not be long before he would break down and tell them everything. How could he stop them?
He remembered his military training. Back when he had still been on Terra, he had undergone a hypnosis session after every briefing. The hypnosis had integrated a key phrase, such as “Mrs. Brown makes pancakes every Friday,” into his mind. If uttered, this phrase would erect certain mental “walls”, and prevent him from remembering the subject of that week’s briefing. He could not prevent the worms from learning most things, such as the size of the Terran population, or their psychological strength, but he could at least slow them down. He could buy time, to think about how to escape, to get back to Terra, to warn the others. But how? He had no idea.
The hours stretched into monotonous days, broken only by the mind-probe sessions, which became ever more frequent. Ren
Tikdanak continued his relentless picking and probing at the barriers Maclean had erected. Sometimes, though, the alien would get tired, and drift off into long reveries about his home planet. Maclean traveled with him, through the delicate highways and tunnels of TaYawha II. The name of the star, Ta`Yawha, could be translated into Standard as “giver of life”, and indeed, that was the view that the aliens took.The Ta`Yawi relied entirely on the star their planets orbited for their food. Every dwelling had, floating high above it, a metal platform connected to the house by a narrow chute. The platform was filled with a type of rock, called siket, which changed into a gray crystal when subjected to high levels of heat. This was automatically chipped off and sent down the chute, where the household devoured it.
Enjoy!
--PinkSkink