Julia revisited

Started by mogn, February 27, 2014, 01:59:33 PM

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mogn

5 julian iterations displayed by HSV shader.

TheBadger

Hi mogn

These files you have been sharing seem to be a good way to learn about blue nodes. However, from my perspective, they seem more useful to users such as your self than to 'want to be' geeks like me.

perhaps if this (blue nodes and functions) is something you enjoy thinking about, you may also enjoy writing about? The file in this post looks a lot less structurally complex than some of your other shares. So what I am asking is, can you explain your intended use? I need a way that I can trust is 'correct' to think about how to use it. Then I can play with settings and make changes to see what happens.

What should I plug this clip into, and what are the intended results? How should I think about it, in order to make a creative use from it? If that makes sense? Frankly, there is just is not much discussion on this topic. People who understand it use it, and those who don't, take Valium ;D

I have used clips with lots of blues. But all I did was plug it in, I even managed to reverse the effect. So I used a set of nodes to "clam" an effect. And was able to reverse the clamp from a high part of a terrain to a low land area. But I did not have much luck making any big changes. So what IM really asking here is just some talk that I may be able to glean some more understanding, is all, I guess ;D

Whatever you feel like discussing. hopefully someone else will understand you, and between the two of you, I will understand better.

Just a humble request. Don't feel compelled if you don't have time, or don't like the topic so much ;) But right now all I understand about functions and blue nodes is that they are a way to tell TG to do things, that we don't have specific shaders for. Basically, they are a kind of simple coding language, where the language comes in chunks like sentences, rather than paragraphs or single words. Is that accurate? And these sentences are mathematical in nature, correct? If so, that is all I know.

Cheers for reading  :)
It has been eaten.

engineer

#2
Hi TheBadger,

I would like to suggest that you may go to Wikipedia and take a look for Julia sets or Mandelbrot sets ;)
Not that long ago these sets (among others) were bases for digital graphics or computer art. You may have heard about or seen pics of so called fractals?

And about 10 years ago fractals were used for terrain creation in the Terragen community on a regular base and tons of images are based on Mandelbrot sets, Julia sets or other formulas.

So thanks to mogn one can use his Julia set generator within Terragen directly to create fractal landscapes (as one example). Other examples for usage might be warping and/or displacing of landscapes or even coloring.
If you are asking yourself what can be changed then I would suggest to create a different set, a different place, a higher iteration count, etc. The result may pay you back for the effort 8)

Let me try to give an answer to your last question(s): you are right.

Blue nodes are the way to enter mathematical formulas or functions in Terragen.

The red nodes are mostly implemented formulas/functions where just parameters can be changed (but not the function itself).


TheBadger

Thank you for the words!
Especially for some search terms to investigate.

I have a basic understanding of the history of computer 3D, but large important gaps remain in my understanding of fundamental things.

Context like you suggest has helped me understand other complex topics. So Ill try reading back as you said.
Ultimately I don't need to know enough to be a teacher or anything. But anything that helps me make better work I will do.
Thank you.
It has been eaten.