Frequently Asked Questions
Running Art of Illusion
Unfortunately, the SourceForge web servers can be very flaky at times, especially when accessed through a slow network connection. This may cause downloads to stop before the file has been fully sent. If you wait a little while then try again, you can usually get it to download correctly. Also, it helps to use a web browser (such as Firefox) that allows you to resume interrupted downloads. That way, if the download stops too soon, you can simply hit the 'Resume' button to continue downloading from where it stopped.
To run Art of Illusion you need to have Java Virtual Machine (JVM) installed. You can download it for free from the java.com homepage.
More about JVM at "Miscellaneous Questions -- What is a JVM".
Once you have JVM installed, you can start Art of Illusion by clicking the Art of Illusion icon.
Once you have JVM installed, you can start Art of Illusion by clicking the Art of Illusion icon.
Every Java program has a "maximum heap size"; that is, the maximum amount of memory it is allowed to use. This value can be increased with the -Xmx command line flag. For example, if you specify -Xmx4096m on the command line when running it, the program will be allowed to use up to 4096 MB of memory. (4 GB) The official launchers for each platform specify a maximum heap of 1,500 MB.
The folder containing ArtOfIllusion.jar should also contain a folder called Plugins. If you have moved or renamed that folder, it will not be able to find it. Also, make sure that you are launching Art of Illusion exactly as described on the Downloads page. In particular, be sure to cd to the ArtOfIllusion directory before executing the java command.
Using Art of Illusion
Click on the blue sphere in the toolbar in the upper left of the main screen, then drag the mouse with the left button depressed in any of the four white views. Release the mouse button and there is the sphere.
Select the menu option "Scene -> Render Scene" or just press control+R on your keyboard. Click on the button labeled "OK" in the dialog box that appears. When the render is finished, you can save your picture.
There are some known flaws in the algorithm which Art of Illusion uses to calculate the surfaces of boolean objects. Eventually, I plan to rewrite it to use a different algorithm which does not have those flaws. That will be a major project, however, so it may not happen for a while.
The problems occur when the two objects have faces which are exactly flush with each other. To work around them, make sure that no face of one object lies exactly on top of a face of the other object. For example, if you are taking the difference between two objects, make sure the object you are subtracting extends slightly outside the object you are subtracting it from.
Boolean modelling also works better if you do not use deeply nested boolean operations. Instead, create the first boolean object, convert it to a triangle mesh, and then use that mesh as the input to the second operation.
The problems occur when the two objects have faces which are exactly flush with each other. To work around them, make sure that no face of one object lies exactly on top of a face of the other object. For example, if you are taking the difference between two objects, make sure the object you are subtracting extends slightly outside the object you are subtracting it from.
Boolean modelling also works better if you do not use deeply nested boolean operations. Instead, create the first boolean object, convert it to a triangle mesh, and then use that mesh as the input to the second operation.
Miscellaneous Questions
A Java Virtual Machine (JVM) is a program running in your computer that emulates another machine: an imaginary machine designed to run programs written in Java. Because Art of Illusion is written in Java, it needs a JVM to run on. Oracle provides JVMs for Windows, Linux, Mac OSX and Solaris. You can download it for free from the java.com homepage. JVMs for other operating systems are provided by the OS manufacturers.
Start by downloading the source code. You will find a file called artofillusion.properties. This is a Java Properties file. It contains all of the localized text in the program as a list of key=value pairs. Create a new version of this file, in which all the property values have been translated into the target language, and send it to me.
Note that this file must use the ISO 8859-1 (also known as ISO Latin-1) character encoding, so be sure to use a text editor that lets you specify the character encoding.
Note that this file must use the ISO 8859-1 (also known as ISO Latin-1) character encoding, so be sure to use a text editor that lets you specify the character encoding.