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Fractal Software => yFract => Topic started by: yv3 on April 29, 2012, 07:41:50 PM




Title: yFract 1.1.3 released - Undo-function, Improved manual, new Fractal. The end?
Post by: yv3 on April 29, 2012, 07:41:50 PM
Hello fractal lovers,
a new Version (1.1.3/29.04.2012) has been released. New Features:

Undo for explore mode and render mode
Now you can undo the last movement/modifying of fractal/palette selection by pressing backspace!

Random Palette function
Now you can press Space in Render Mode and Palette Room to select a random palette. This is a little but very handy feature. It enables much more artistic results (1671 palettes!).

New Fractal: Other 2D Mandelbox

I integrated the Mandelbox Fractal (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mandelbox) (2D-Version) into yFract. It has 4 modifiers and produces nice images:

(http://yv3.bplaced.net/gallery/yFract/26909.jpg)
[FULL SIZE (http://yv3.bplaced.net/gallery/yFract/26909.jpg)]

(http://yv3.bplaced.net/gallery/yFract/26910.jpg)
[FULL SIZE (http://yv3.bplaced.net/gallery/yFract/26910.jpg)]

(http://yv3.bplaced.net/gallery/yFract/26911.jpg)
[FULL SIZE (http://yv3.bplaced.net/gallery/yFract/26911.jpg)]

(http://yv3.bplaced.net/gallery/yFract/26912.jpg)
[FULL SIZE (http://yv3.bplaced.net/gallery/yFract/26912.jpg)]

Same Fractal combined with Sierpinski Image with the "overlay image"-technique (Sierpinski 2.jpg):
(http://yv3.bplaced.net/gallery/yFract/26913.jpg)
[FULL SIZE (http://yv3.bplaced.net/gallery/yFract/26913.jpg)]

Now yFract has 74 Fractal Types!

Improved Manual

I draw colored keyboard and mouse layouts for each operating mode:

Explore Mode
(http://yv3.bplaced.net/home/Keys_ExploreMode.gif)
[FULL SIZE (http://yv3.bplaced.net/home/Keys_ExploreMode.gif)]

Render Mode
(http://yv3.bplaced.net/home/Keys_RenderMode.gif)
[FULL SIZE (http://yv3.bplaced.net/home/Keys_RenderMode.gif)]

Palette Room
(http://yv3.bplaced.net/home/Keys_PaletteRoom.gif)
[FULL SIZE (http://yv3.bplaced.net/home/Keys_PaletteRoom.gif)]

I optimized and categorized the keyboard shortcuts:

Explore Mode
(http://yv3.bplaced.net/home/Keys_ExploreMode2.gif)
[FULL SIZE (http://yv3.bplaced.net/home/Keys_ExploreMode2.gif)]

Render Mode
(http://yv3.bplaced.net/home/Keys_RenderMode2.gif)
[FULL SIZE (http://yv3.bplaced.net/home/Keys_RenderMode2.gif)]

Palette Room
(http://yv3.bplaced.net/home/Keys_PaletteRoom2.gif)
[FULL SIZE (http://yv3.bplaced.net/home/Keys_PaletteRoom2.gif)]

An updated PDF-Version is also included with the installer. Online manual: http://yv3.bplaced.net/manual.html (http://yv3.bplaced.net/manual.html).

Next Steps - Are there any?

I decided to make a longer break from developing yFract. I think its the right moment now, yFract has grown in the past two years and i feel happy with it now. Its "complete". My dream came true. I wrote my own "perfect fractal art application" and additionally i made it available for others and shared my artwork, impressions and feelings here and there. I wrote more than 60 thousends lines of code, i can't believe it :). I made about 150, maybe 200 applications in my 10-year-life of a programmer. This is also my personal proof that "i can do it if i want". I never learned programming or math on a university but now i can finally feel that it doesn't matter anymore. I like it the hard way and i love fractals :). I feel like a workoholic now. I need a break and my wife and my son need me and i need them. Summer begins slowly. So let's take a break and enjoy the life.

The End?

No, of course :). There is "only one thing" that i would like to integrate into yFract (damn it always begins like this :)). Maybe i will do it until christmas. I dream of having a fourth operating mode for displaying the (2d) fractal as a 3D landscape. It should not be much complicated, yFract already uses OpenGL and what you see is already a 3D scene. I would like to add flying around that landscape, adding backgrounds and fog to it, add support for anaglyph glasses...
But why not make a small r-type-like arcade game with stunning fractal backgrounds and psychedelic music....maybe some day... :)

Download latest version and manual at my website: http://yv3.bplaced.net

Greetings Dawid