This clip demonstrates how to create a caustic lighting effect using Houdini's Mantra PBR rendering engine. The first part starts with a refresher on refraction. More generally, guide looks at setting up normals correctly, then at the glass shader in Houdini, faux caustics and shadows, and using an environment light in PBR to generate 'background' reflections. Whether you're new to Side Effects Software's popular 3D production program or a seasoned graphic artist just interested in better acq...
Check out this CreativeCow video on creating extruded or 3D text using After Effects. This new video tutorial from Paul Ezzy shows you the basics of using BCC Extruded Text in Adobe After Effects. BCC Extruded Text belongs to the 3D Objects category of filters which is new to Boris Continuum Complete 6. These stunning OpenGL-based filters use vertex and pixel shaders that enable the generation of animated 3D shatter, bulge, bend, taper, twist, ripple, and wave effects. You can also create ref...
New to eBay? Don't worry, setting up an account and buying and selling doesn't take that much effort at all. Everyone who has an Internet connection has at one point come across eBay, to find the perfect gift for their loved ones, to find the cheapest deals on plasma televisions and computers, or to get rid of their dusty, old record album collection in their web store.
When I was unemployed I looked for different ways to make money. Most of that work was connected with online stuff; I’ve tried writing content, refreshed my old Photoshop skills and even created postcards, but then I realized that my passion to music can bring me more money than all of the other work. I was an active member of a few musical forums and started to add affiliate links to my posts instead of simple ones, so they can be profitable.
Learn how to use Trapcode Particular 2 to generate a realistic crowd scene within Adobe After Effects. Whether you're new to Adobe's popular motion graphics and compositing software or a seasoned video professional just looking to better acquaint yourself with the program and its various features and filters, you're sure to be well served by this video tutorial. For more information, including detailed, step-by-step instructions, watch this free video guide. Create a crowd scene with Trapcode...
Using Photoshop’s Pen tool, you will learn how to trace a photograph and turn it into an outline with paths. Whether you're new to Adobe's popular image editing application or simply looking to brush up on Photoshop CS4, you're sure to enjoy this free video tutorial. For detailed instructions, and to get started generating outlines from your own digital images with Photoshop CS4, take a look. Turn a picture into an outline using Photoshop CS4.
SSH is amazing, and we praise its existence on Null Byte for many reasons. Notably, it allows us to reroute our traffic through encrypted ports on our local host to be sent to its destination when on the go. You can even control your home computers remotely over a secure and encrypted connection. This is handy for a multitude of reasons.
If you haven't participated in this week's Math Craft project on the platonic solids, maybe this will inspire you to do so.
There are plenty of cutting edge apps out there, and endless innovations in the field of 3D printing. But to combine the two—and make it available to the common consumer—is unprecedented.
Hacking can't be that hard, can it? At least, that's what it seems like thanks to movies like Hackers, The Net and that last Die Hard flick. Even the Jurassic Park girl's got some game. They all look like they're typing 20wpm, yet can generate a screen full of code in the blink of an eye. Amazing. As long as they're some isolated computer nerd who's glued to their PC all day long (which is pretty much all of us these days, thanks Internet), they're a bona fide hacker.
Are you a conventional male in a conventional relationship with a conventional female? The majority of the population aged 25+ would likely answer "yes". According to stereotype, many males seem to "genetically" struggle with what many females seem to "genetically" value: the acknowledgment and appropriate appreciation of relationship milestones. If you've answered in the affirmative, worry no more, because there's an app-to-the-rescue for the helpless male: If you include yourself among the ...
Have an old-school tabula recta lying around? No? Then just print out the chart below. Nothing ensures better password security than this centuries-old cipher technique. Here's how it works, via Wikipedia:
First Ever User-Generated HD Contest Vimeo and Canon have launched this wonderful contest for filmmakers shooting on Canon's EOS 7D DSLR.
Business owners and marketeers are diverting from traditional marketing techniques, including billboards, radio and TV advertising, brochures, and any other outdoor promotions, to cheaper but effective Internet marketing strategies. Under the new arrangement, business owners reach out to the final consumers through advertising on the World Wide Web.
In this video tutorial, you'll learn how to use Trapcode Form to generate an eye-catching Matrix-style binary code transition within Adobe After Effects. For all of the particulars, and to get started using this effect in your own projects, take a look! Create a binary transition with Trapcode Form in Adobe After Effects - Part 1 of 2.
In this clip, you'll learn how to generate a CAB file for a Windows Mobile application using Visual Studio 2005 as well as how to install that file on an external mobile device. Whether you're new to Microsoft's popular event-driven programming language and IDE or are a seasoned developer merely looking to improve your chops, you're sure to find benefit in this free, official video tutorial. For more information, including detailed, step-by-step instructions, take a look. Deploy Windows Mobil...
Learn how to generate basic character rigs for animating your 3D models within 3ds Max 2010 or 2011. Whether you're new to Autodesk's popular modeling software or a seasoned 3D artist just looking to better acquaint yourself with the application, you're sure to be well served by this video tutorial. For more information, and to get started creating your own character rigs, take a look! Make basic 3D character rigs for animation in 3ds Max.
In this video tutorial, viewers learn how to set and encrypt a NET-Gear router with WEP password protection. Begin by opening your web browser and go to the router website: Router Login.. When the Prompt window appears, type in your router user name and password, and click OK. In the sidebar, under Setup, click on Wireless Settings. Once again, type in your user name and password, and click OK. In the Security Options, check WEP (Wired Equivalent Privacy). Then select the Pass-phrase box, typ...
Watch this video to learn how to encrypt Wi-Fi using WEP password on Linksys in 4 simple steps. Connect to your wireless network. Open your Web browser and type in the web address http://192.168.1.1. Press enter key. Type in the User Name for your network. Type in the Password, press OK button. Select the Wireless text tab, select the Wireless Security text item. Pull down and select the WEP menu item. Type in a good password. Click the Generate button. Click the Save Settings button. Encrypt...
It appears there are endless things you can do with Coke. The Nokia Coke-powered phone is not in production, but certainly an interesting idea. Designed by Daizi Zheng, the Coke phone is an eco-friendly solution to charging your cell.
An RSS feed is a dynamically generated XML summary of information or news published on a website. The Feed2JS tool provides an easy way to display RSS feeds on your website, all without knowing the least bit about XML. All you need to enter is the URL for the RSS source and decide how you'd like it to be formatted. For more on using the Feed2JS tool, watch this video tutorial. Display RSS feeds on your website with Feed2JS.
The Surface modifier in Autodesk's 3ds Max generates a patch surface based on the contours of a spline network. A patch is created wherever the segments of the interwoven splines form a three- or four-sided polygon. The Surface modifier and the CrossSection modifier, taken together, are referred to as Surface Tools. They allow you to create complex or organic surfaces, like the fuselage of a plane, or a three-dimensional character.
In this video tutorial we will see how Stuart Little "lights up" a lighthouse inside a photo. You will learn how to use the lighting filter command within Photoshop to do the trick. After learning it, don't hesitate to experiment on "lighting" other buildings! Click on the screenshot of the video and it will generate a larger pop-up of the actual video. Light up a lighthouse in a photo using Photoshop.
If you saw my last tutorial on retiring early and wealthy, you now know how anyone can invest a small amount of money over the course of their life, and by exploiting compound interest, achieve an extremely comfortable and easy going retirement. In Part 2, we are going to dive into something a little more risky: Tax liens.
If you've ever heard software piracy terminology being discussed, I'm sure the term KeyGens came up. KeyGens is short for key generator, which is a program that exploits algorithmic faults in software by generating software license keys that appear to be genuine. Normally used as a technique to protect the source code software and prevent piracy, a key generator exploits the key algorithm to effectively nullify the need for any software licenses. For example, we must try to find patterns in t...
The 1.9 pre-release is out right now, download it here! Notch has also said that the 1.10 release will be coming soon, with even more Adventure-related updates. Enjoy!
Mobile devices can do just about anything these days, thanks to third-party developers. iPhones and Android devices have been known to do some pretty wild things. Need a dupe key made? Scan and order one with your iPhone. Want to know if you're hotter than Justin Bieber? Compare your facial features. Are you a policeman who needs to ID a suspect? Scan their fingerprints and irides. Want to control your Canon DSLR remotely? Use your Android phone.
Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan's early fall 2010 L.O.V.E. sculpture has generated its fair share of upset. The Italian artist installed a marble monument of the middle finger in Milan's Piazza Affari, directly in front of the Italian stock exchange building. The 13-foot sculpture is attached to a base, bringing it to a total height of 36 feet.
Team Fortress 2 (TF2) is one of the best multiplayer games of all time. It took nine years to make, and the developers have supported it with more post-release free updates than any other game ever. Four years after its release in 2007, it is still immensely popular, and although its price has gone down, Valve has managed to continue making a massive profit by introducing the first successful microtransaction model in a mainstream American shooter. That model has been so successful that it lo...
One of the biggest advantages iOS has over Android as a mobile platform is how readily and fully it has embraced mobile gaming. There are over 200,000 games available in the Apple store, compared to approximately 100,000 in the Android Marketplace. As an Android-using gamer, this has always bothered me.
One of the most effective ways to sift out weak programs is to do market research. Take some time to study the market you are interested in by reading reports, reviews, and market studies. This should help you to determine whether or not the particular affiliate products or services you will be campaigning for is actually worth your time. A successful affiliate marketing program will be targeted at a broad population while offering products or services that are highly in demand or exclusive. ...
Get to know Congresswoman Lucille Roybal-Allard: Congresswoman Lucille Roybal-Allard was born in Bolye Heights, Los Angeles, County, California on June 12, 1941.
Kojiro the robot has muscles, tendons and a flexible spine- just like you! Combine Kojiro with the doppelganger bot and you'll have something supremely sci-fi freaky.
No kidding, watch below as 500,000 volts of electricity literally course over a man's body. Of course, he has a little protection: the faraday suit. The video was shot in Austin, Texas, for a German television documentary. Producer Johannes Wiebus is quoted as saying:
An article in Friday's Wallstreet Journal examines a model for success that can't be ignored: the world is just goo-goo for Lady Gaga.
Super Ventures has published "The AR Landscape," a chart encompassing the major players and startups that are shaping augmented reality. Launched in February as the first incubator and fund focused on augmented reality, Super Ventures outlines companies working augmented reality applications, tools, devices, input/output methods, and components. The AR Landscape lists 312 companies, representing $12.1 billion in funding and $69.6 billion valuation. It runs the gamut from startups and innovato...
Using copper pennies (be sure they are older than 1983), lemon juice, paper towels and sandpaper, you can construct your own DIY battery that generates enough juice to light up an LED.
While it may be tempting to rely on canned beans to save time, going through the process of preparing dried beans for cooking can actually be better for you in the long run—for both your physical and financial health.
Need to fake a few stage tears for your next starring role? Apply a thin layer of Vicks VapoRub underneath your eyes right before you go on stage to generate excess moisture that can help create faux teardrops.
No more alkaline batteries. No more NiCad's. No NiMH's. No Lithium. Forget all of those hazardous chemical reactions in the batteries and think eco-friendly. Professor David Edwards did.