h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Recommendation for non-webpage files mentioned here: go to http://adaworks.home.sprynet.com/ and right-click on the files to copy them down to your local hard drive. The file with the .mov extension is a QTVR (QuickTime Virtual Reality) and will play on any app that supports that.

For those new to the atelier, the scenes and movies referenced here were generated entirely fractally using an app called Mojoworld. Bryce/Terragen and the like create 3D scenes: Mojoworld does whole planets.

The .MJW file can be opened in the Transporter available free from pandromeda.com. Read the instructions, please! What you see in the Transporter window, initially, is a very coarse version of what is possible...





*Passing through the atrium, where Mindspring and Ripley can be seen hanging motionless from some chinese elms, Lil heads to the massive airlock door of the planet workshop*

*The planet workshop is as close as you can get to the hidden side of CLI without actually being Garius or Affy: the boys found it necessary to plumb the RTT (real-time terrain) directly into some of their own systems. There is no danger of contamination or incursion, however, thanks to the RCF (rift containment facility) that Affy belatedly added to their main labs*

*Unlocking the door, Lil leaves it unlocked and walks through to the next door, which demands a palm print. With Chloe's help, Lil has been collecting the prints of her fellow salonistas from used glasses and bottles, and has made a security database which will admit her fellow atelier denizens*

*Going through the second door, Lil steps into utter blackness except for low red lights that illuminate a catwalk. The catwalk runs all the way around the edge of an improbably large space which is dotted here and there with stars interspersed with dust clouds. This is FOV Space. There are a number of lifeboat-like vessels moored to the catwalk at intermittent locations. Inside the "boats" are a supply of VPBs (see footnote), a supply of biscuits/cookies, and everything needed to serve tea.

Lil moves forward a few hundred feet then turns and waves her hand in front of a huge console, which recognises her palm (hers only) and comes awake. There is a readout, as follows:*

NEW HOOTOONIA

Radius: 6 million km
Orbit Position: 100.619
Rotation Position (time): 148.783732
Sea Level: 2001.401 feet

Main Sun: Hootoo Sol
Other Sun: Sol Minor

Moons: 2
Salonis
Orchidos


Initial Viewing Position
22º06' N
128º48W
vector: WSW

PLANET GENERATION COMPLETE
THERE WERE NO ERRORS
FJORD REQUIREMENT MET TO 300% OF INPUT PARAMETERS
ATMOSPHERE NOT COMPATIBLE WITH HUMAN REQUIREMENTS (OXYGEN NOT SUFFICIENT)
CURRENT LIFE FORMS AS REQUESTED:
LICHEN
ALGAE
PLANKTON
NEON TETRAS
SNAILS

ABSENT COMPETITION, SOME SIZE EVOLUTION HAS OCCURRED.

SELECT ONE

SAVE CANCEL

*Lil considers the readout, mutters, "I wish I'd remembered the dolphins," then hits SAVE. The display then brings up a new window, which says:*

FLAT PANE VIEW: http://www.asterlil.com/h2g2/hootoonia/nhtgall.htm

IMMERSIVE VIEW: http://adaworks.home.sprynet.com/arrival.mov
Quicktime VR, 1.68 MB

EXPLORATIVE ENVIRONMENT
http://adaworks.home.sprynet.com/noohootoo.mjw
232 KB

PRESS KEY TO ACTIVATE

*Lil hits the key then turns and grabs the catwalk rail for balance, as the field of view suddenly seems to explode in magnification. A brown and blue speck appears in the middle of the space and rapidly grows. Finally the scene stabilises to reveal New Hootoonia hanging in the blackness, its moons visible just within range of the FOV space.

Hm. Looks good from here. I think I'll do the QTVR.

*a few moments later* Wow. So that's 300% in excess of parameters.

*another pause* Mountain goats??


{Footnote: VPB stands for Virtual Patio Bubble. It was invented by Irving Washington, proprietor of the Aroma Cafe, in order to make it possible for non-smokers to coexist with smokers. Quest-oriented researchers have since co-opted the invention for space travel and undersea exploration.}

I had a 'page not found' for the last link

A nice little thatched cottage on the shore of the big lake, or a tea room to sit and admire the view would be excellent.

*deeply impressed by the immersive view*

It'd be nice to have a sauna by the water, not far from the cottage, with a landing-stage next to it, and maybe a rowing boat or canoe...

I couldn't get the last link to work either

I guess we better ignore that last link: if you want to copy the planet down to use in the transporter, use http://adaworks.home.sprynet.com/ and just right-click on the file name, then select Save or Save As.


I don't want to go too near the water until we know what the tides do. With two moons, sea level might be unpredictable!

And the next thing to sort out with be grass and trees. I can't live without trees.

We'll explore this planet and see whether where we are is the best choice. I noticed there were some much less rugged places on the planet, and I do want a view.

I'm glad you mentioned trees, a few stately oaks would be lovely and also some elms as so many were destroyed by Dutch Elm disease, it really changed the look of the counrtyside.

And some triffids.

*typing 1-handed with cat on lap*

garius, if you can find an isolated continent for them, you can have triffids.

Once i start adding fauna, it won't be movie viewing any longer; the polygon overhead is enormous, slows the rendering right down.

*goes back over to the computer console and begins to work*

by the way, if you find a nice spot using one of the transporters here, *gestures at the vessels* let us know. Anyone who has the transporter can go to exactly the same place and see the same thing as long as you give us your position. That will make it feel just like a group adventure!

Please excuse a non- - but which program do I use to open the mjw-file?

go to http://www.pandromeda.com and head for free downloads. They have a program there called the Transporter.

Unfortunately, it's a very demanding app in terms of performance. You really need a video card that does OpenGL and a decent amount of memory! I haven't been up there recently to check, so I don't know whether it's been upgraded.

The program I'm using to do these planets and scenes is called Mojoworld.

*scrolls through a library and selects about half a dozen plant life forms to add to the planet. The computer considers for a moment, then flashes the following message*

WARNING!
HIGH POLYGON COUNT
RENDER TIME MAY BE ADVERSELY AFFECTED

Oh, it's looking great, Lil!


Are you sure that Transporter program is entirely free? On both the machines onto which I have installed it, the registration code has expired. I'll have to pay for a new one, surely.

I've had that registration expired message too, but my hard drive is so full of stuff I daren't add anything to it.

I must get H to show me how to use the second hard drive for installing new things.

You must have downloaded the trial demo, rather than just the transporter. Version 1 is definitely free, but you have to pay for Transporter Pro.


*Lil contemplates a quick snapshot she has just taken of a beach with joshua trees. For some reason the material, visible in the real-time render window, has failed to "take", leaving black silhouettes on the beach*

Hmmmm...I am going to have to ask Doc Mojo about this.

Hi Professor! Glad you like the planet. If you're planning to tour the planet, let us know if you find something interesting and at what coordinates you find it!

Nope, it's MojoWorld Transporter 2.0 I've got, and it says my registration code's expired. I remember that when I downloaded it, they sent me an activation code. If version 1 is free, I can't find it on their site anywhere.

As it happens, our mojoworld weekly online chat is this evening. I will find out what the deal is. How long was your copy of Transporter 2.0 operative?

I'm not sure. I tried it today for the first time in weeks.

I just looked online, and there's definitely a distinction being made between Transporter Pro and Transporter 2.0, the latter being free. So there shouldn't be any date issues. The developers are very upfront people, so I expect to get it sorted out straightaway.

And then I have to ask them about my missing materials.

The answer is an apologetic yes, you do have to periodically re-register the free transporter, and yes, they agree that it is stupid, and yes, they will change this on the next release, and sorry. In the early days they were concentrating on a whole raft of upgrades and fixes on Mojoworld, and simply used the demo model for the free release.

As for my question, they need to look at the planet.

Oh! So I just have to get another code, eh? Alright then, I'll do that as soon as I have time. Thanks!

*floating in, having picked Ripley down from the Chinese elm outside*

Isn't it a bit too early for hibernating, dear?

*presses her palm against the lock*

*steps out on the catwalk to admire the view*

*scurries in and stops short to see planet turning silently in darkness*
*reads instructions*

Feh! Food Lady too complicated again.
*trots out leaving trail of sawdust*