Re: Unity - was Re: Otoy news...

I agree with Barry and Gene.

I don't mind discussing new tools broadly on this list and
even 
posting/reading impressions from a Director's developer
perspective of these 
tools. But I don't have time to extensively bug-test a
non-Director platform 
on this list. Nor do I have time to submit bugs to the
appropriate support 
forums or whatever. I'm sorry, if I don't have the
authorware of the tool or 
the demo of the tool, I'm not going to go crazy bug testing
and submiting 
reports. Likewise, having this mailing list and archives
cluttered with 
Unity bug testing is annoying

As Barry pointed out, the best advocacy is the software
itself. So for 
Unity, get the web player solid across all the major
browsers on BOTH Mac 
and *Windows* machines. Get it so midrange Windows systems
can actually get 
high frame rates. Get a Windows authorware...etc. At least
get it on the 
same playing field as Director in the basic areas before
heavily 
evangelizing it on this list.

Gene also brought up some excellent points about how it's
not just about 
pixel shaders and other rendering features. For Web 3D, it's
really about 
being able to bring solid visuals and performance to modest
speced machines. 
It's the only way to reach mainstream users and increase
ubiquity. You're 
also more likely to finish your web project if you're
concentrating on the 
gameplay and not cloth physics.If there's a SW3D update, I'd
be happy with a 
few modest graphical improvements, engine optimizations, and
improved 
content pipeline.

I'll definitely keep my eye on Unity, but it's not really
far enough long 
yet to deserve the constant news alerts and discussion on
this list. I hope 
the next time we have one of these huge Unity threads it's
when the web 
player is actually stable and there's Windows authorware...

- Chris


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Barry Swan" <gerbiltheburrow.co.uk>
To: "Director - Shockwave - and Flash Game
Production" 
<dirgames-lnuttybar.drama.uga.edu>
Sent: Monday, February 05, 2007 10:40 AM
Subject: Unity - was Re: [dirGames-L] Otoy news...


>> To those who are complaining about performance
issues i would like to ask 
>> if you're experiencing this a) only with webplayers
or b) also in offline 
>> projects?
>
> So now we are bug-testing Unity on a shockwave list?
> OK I get the idea some of you do love Unity - that's
cool - but really, 
> this is wandering a little outside even the 'discuss
other tools' things - 
> all I've seen from this list so far on it is 'nice
feature list, is 
> actively developed, tons of problems with the
web-player'.
>
> Seriously, can we shift bug-catching somewhere more
appropriate? General 
> software discussion = fine, but I don't need more
evangelists for other 
> bits of software getting the hard work done in an
inappropriate list 
>
> Come back when the Unity advocates have made it stable
- the worst 'sell' 
> you can do is get us to try it out and it doesn't work
:p
>
> Barry
> gerbiltheburrow.co.uk
> _______________________________________________
> dirGames-L mailing list  -  dirGames-Lnuttybar.drama.uga.edu
> http://nuttybar.drama.uga.edu/mailman/listinfo/dirgames
-l 

_______________________________________________
dirGames-L mailing list  -  dirGames-Lnuttybar.drama.uga.edu
http://nuttybar.drama.uga.edu/mailman/listinfo/dirgames
-l

> I agree with Barry and Gene.

Guys, I full appreciate what you're saying and will continue
to do my 
best to respect this list and what its focus should be. My
mode of 
operation has been, and will continue to be one where I
won't start any 
threads, but if questions come up about Unity then I'll
answer those 
appropriately. Thus I hope I'm leaving it to list members to
start (and 
for the most part carry on) any conversations. I hope that's
ok...

All the best.


Cheers,
Tom Higgins - Product Evangelist
http://www.unity3d.com

blog: http://unity3d.com/blog
s/tom/
im: Otee Tom (aim)


_______________________________________________
dirGames-L mailing list  -  dirGames-Lnuttybar.drama.uga.edu
http://nuttybar.drama.uga.edu/mailman/listinfo/dirgames
-l

> As Barry pointed out, the best advocacy is the software
itself. So for 
> Unity, get the web player solid across all the major
browsers on BOTH Mac 
> and *Windows* machines.

I think you answered this problem yourself in the mail.
The problem is the minute you go 'IT DOES PIXELSHADERS!'
everyone rushes to 
switch it all on.
It can look lush, don't get me wrong, but it's not a selling
point for a 
browser plug-in (not that Unity is even particularly
focussed in that area 
from what I gather, it's more of a 'oh and can also do
this'), it's more for 
stand-alone games.

The problem of course is hard-core gamers don't go to
shockwave.com to play 
games, they pira.. buy Quake 4 and sit on that, trying to
squeeze every last 
framerate from their brand-new gfx card.

>Guys, I full appreciate what you're saying and will
continue to do my best 
>to respect this list and what its focus should be.

I don't think any of us were pointing the finger at you for
how the threads 
went from 'Look at Unity!' to 'It doesn't work, let's hijack
the list to 
bug-fix'*! Colin has already quote rightly accepted the
blame for that, and 
is most likely standing in a corner somewhere at this very
moment mulling 
over his sins ;)

Barry
gerbiltheburrow.co.uk

* I may or may not be exaggerating for effect. 

_______________________________________________
dirGames-L mailing list  -  dirGames-Lnuttybar.drama.uga.edu
http://nuttybar.drama.uga.edu/mailman/listinfo/dirgames
-l