The 3DO Options menu

This section discusses the 3DO Options menu, which is not available in Studio/32. Figure 1 shows all commands in the 3DO Options menu:

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Figure 1: 3DO Options menu.

Access 3DO Palette command

When you select Access 3DO Palette, that command is checked, the 3DO palette becomes the default palette, and the other commands in the 3DO Options menu become available.

The command is a toggle: If you select it again, the other commands are dimmed and the Studio/32 palette becomes the default palette.

Show/Hide 3DO Palette command

When you select Show/Hide 3DO Palette (or type 3), 3DO Animator displays (or hides) the Set 3DO Object Type dialog that lets you create 3DO images and cels. This dialog is discussed in detail in The Set 3DO Object Type Dialog.

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Figure 2: Set 3DO Object Type dialog.

Show/Hide 3DO Board Controls command

When you select Show/Hide 3DO Board Controls, 3DO Animator displays the 3DO Board control dialog (see Figure 3).

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Figure 3: 3DO Board Control dialog.

The dialog lets you display a current image or cel directly on the NTSC screen using the options in the table below through the 3DO Artist Card available from The 3DO Company.

Table 1:  3DO Board Control dialog options.
--------------------------------------------------------
Option      |Description                                
--------------------------------------------------------
Show Working|Lets you select areas for viewing if the   
Area        |document is larger than 320 by 240 pixels. 
--------------------------------------------------------
Parameters  |Only available if the NTSC connection has  
            |been established. It allows you, for       
            |example, to turn interpolation on or off.  
--------------------------------------------------------
Use         |Currently not supported.                   
Prototype   |                                           
--------------------------------------------------------

Show/Hide 3DO PMode Control Panel command

When you select Show/Hide PMode Control Panel, 3DO Animator displays the P-Mode control panel.

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Figure 5: P-Mode control panel.

The P-Mode control panel lets you define how areas selected for P-Mode0 and P-Mode1 are processed and which areas are set to P-Mode0 and P-Mode1.

Table 2:  P-Mode control panel options. 
---------------------------------------------------------
Option            |Description                           
---------------------------------------------------------
Document on Top   |Makes the document the top layer.     
---------------------------------------------------------
PMode on Top      |Makes the P-Mode pixels the top layer.
---------------------------------------------------------
Transparency      |Lets you use transparency in          
                  |conjunction with P-Mode functionality.
---------------------------------------------------------
On Current Frame  |Sets P-Mode for the current frame     
                  |only.                                 
---------------------------------------------------------
On All Frames     |Sets P-Mode for all frames in the     
                  |animation.                            
---------------------------------------------------------
Copy Mask in PMode|Uses a mask you defined and copies it 
                  |into P-Mode.                          
---------------------------------------------------------
Detect Edges and  |Detects the edges of an irregularly   
Copy              |shaped cel, or the edges of an object 
                  |on a black background, and copies this
                  |information to the other frames of an 
                  |animation                             
---------------------------------------------------------
Invert PMode      |Inverts P-Mode 0 and P-Mode 1.        
---------------------------------------------------------

Set CCB command

When you select Set CCB, 3DO Animator displays the Load CCB Settings dialog that lets you do the following:

Load CCB settings from existing files.
Go to other dialogs that let you:

Customize CCB settings.
Add special effects with translucency options.
Turn packing on and off.
Choose a format for saving the file.

Figure 6: Load CCB Settings dialog.

Translucency Options command

When you select Translucency Options, 3DO Animator displays the Translucency Options dialog.

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Figure 7: Translucency Options dialog.

The dialog lets you do the following:

Set the P-mode.
Adjust the opacity.
Enhance luminance.
Add shadows.
Access the 3DO Cel Parameters dialog by using the More Options dialog.

These special effects are achieved by mixing the cel pixels with the image pixels. The selections you make for the first source and second source influence the outcome of the mixing. Likewise, the multiply and divide choices you make will also influence the effects you achieve.

For tutorial-style examples that illustrate the effects of these options, see Creating 3DO Images and Cels.

Quick Build 3DO Anim command

Concatenates a series of frame files in a folder. Select a folder with 3DOa and 3DOo files.