arcticPigs 3D viewer programming API

This section describes the programming interface of the arcticPigs viewer. If you are a user of Animation:Master you will recognise many elements of the project tree. Often the relationship is one-to-one between the properties of the arcticPigs classes and the AM variables. You could look at the API as a way to program in Animation:Master, with the API focus being on what corresponds to the AM choreography.

You cannot use the API to create new models, or to change the spline and patch properties of a model. What you can do is start and stop actions, blend multiple actions, access poses on models in real time, change surface properties through groups etc. You can create multiple model instances from the model file data and animate each one independently.

Just as a model is handled as black box, where you cannot get hold of the inner definitions of the model, so is an action within arcticPigs also seen as a closed object where you cannot get hold of channel data etc. This is not only done to keep the API lean an mean, but also to ensure models cannot be reverse engineered through some scripting and converted back into a working Animation:Master model. This way the creative work of the artist is protected even though their 3D arcticPigs model is freely available.

 

©2000 arcticpigs. All rights reserved.
This is a draft version! The functionality of parts of the software are liable to change.