Celestia Forums

hello everybody

has anyone managed to get the camera move smooth on complex paths?

for example: if i would like to go from earth to saturn and swing directly from the go into an orbit that gently moves slower.

is that possible?

i can think of a workaround by defining the flight path with an xyz-file, having an extremely small black object traveling on that path and attaching the camera to that. but this seems to be annoyingly hardcoded, i would prefer that movement to work rather like a series of orbits and changedistances.

probably, the main problem lies in the predefind behaviour of the go command, can that be altered?

thanks for suggestions, and have fun everybody!

-blueberry

Hello, Blueberry.
Ihope I have understood you right.

To make an orbit around a planet if you have all the setup code, you need the folllowing program code:

( You just have to exchange moon with " Sol" Neptune" or any planetary body you want:

print { text "f.E: lets make a journey the Moon." row -3 duration 3 }
select { object "Moon" }
wait { duration 5.5}
goto { time 8 distance 6 upframe "equatorial" }
wait { duration 0.1}
orbit { axis [ 0 1 0 ] rate 20 duration 40 }

distance ( from the object)
wait ( The programm needs time to load the moon, but 2 seconds might be enough
axis= axis in which direction the planet rotates(orbits)- [0 1 0 ]ist the normasl direction 1.0.0 is around the poles
rate is the velocity. 10 is slower
duration is the tiome how long you (the camera" orbitsthe planet.

I have written with that code ( taken from demo.cel) a whole journey through the sun system orbiting around all moons and planets.

Its great and makes a prefect 4 dimenisional impression.

But if there is any expert around:

I have just one problem or wish for my script :

Difficult to explain. so I take an example:
If the space Shuttle is going to land on earth, it does not stand with its 90 degrees to the equator level, but has to move with its frontside ahead along the equatorial level.

In my current orbits, the programm respectivelly the angle, tzhe screen displays the orbits makes me even dizzy .I start the programm very often to test the adjustments, as one jota- for the beginner not always to find then, makes a program failure. So I also stand or sit in front of my screen 90 degrees to the directions, where my planets, resp where my camera orbits around the planets and moons. move to.

So, if anything moves towards a planet it would. so said have to turn 90 degrees 90 degrees to the equatorial level or view and also move along the equatorial level into any all planet systems.

And that I would like to simulate in my version.( old Stanley Kubrick trick, also used by Ridley Scott)

Ot the screen it would then have to appear so, that the rotation axis move into a horizontal direction, whille the planets oif cours stillmove into their default direction.
as long as the camera moves around the planet ( would be also more comfortable to watch and a space craft wouldnot survive those manoevers either. After leaving the orbits I want to get it switched back to the default view ( rotation axis vertical)...(joke: has nothing to do with the axis of evil)
Okay for our used perception we like the normal default view in Celestia but out in space it would not be real. We jusrt associate that so it, as of course on earth some bowl or ball only can rotate if it axis stands vertical otherwise the rotation would be stopped by the friction. But in universe its different

Stanley Kubrick was aware of that problemand his caera turns in Space odyssey made the whole to a realistic 3 d experience.


But I dont know how to manage that in my script. The CEL scr?­pting does not have the whole example, especiallynot for that. but the code provided in the user manual "CEL scritping" does not work:

Maybe i have to cancel the default camera orientation before?
But how by which exact command? clear...? cancel...?

The commands as explained in CEL scripting for to change the camera position are:
ones are:

setorientation { angle 90 axis [ 0 1 0 ]}

but the program does not react on that command
Is it maybe:

setframe { observer axis 1 0 0} or so?

or is that one available CEL scripting to old for the 1.4.1. version of Celestia?

Its for me imprtant to learn the basics, but perharps I should tomorrow already study the CELX scripting or LAO scripting docus. Its much to read. So maybe e??som?©one knows the answer to myproblem? Maybe the camera cant turn 90 degress and backward again?

Maybe any expert in that forumk could just post here the code for that ... Thanks a lot!!

I surley will provide my program thatalready works fine here if I have made these adjustments.

If you are using windows there is an application to generate scripts for complex flight paths. It works very well and has very smooth transitions from action to action. You can find it at:

http://aureality.midiworld.org/celestia/celestia.html

It may give you what you are looking for.

Brother, Starshipwright,

thank you also for the link . Celestia is a huge site, I have not discovered that page jet.
However, CEL scripting translated by Dickamann is a user guide rather to understand a script but not to write one, resp also desribes itself just the intro part. Its maybe to old for the current version of Celestia?
So- also in the name of Blueberry. I for myself need one day rest, then I will study these scripts whether they are helpful..
Its anyway easier to understand something by examples. First to use a demo script ,see what it makes in the program and then just copy the sequences.

Okay enough for today I am wiring already too much.
cheers!

hey starshipwright

thanks for the link, it kinda looks like what i'm looking for... and, as a mac user, i finally need to jump over the shadow and install that boot camp to run win on my machine..

best, -blueberry

hey siriusmistery

thanks for the input, but that was'nt what i'm looking for. i am aware of the orbit command.

the question goes wheter it is possible to smoothly orbit *and* changedistance at the same time, and on top of that, start doing it while approaching using the go cmd.

the thing that starshipwright proposed seems to do the job.

as for your question, if i do understand you right you don't need to change the angle of the camera but the one of the shuttle. this you would have to do in the .ssc file that describes the shuttle, if i'm right...


best -blueberry