Winamp Goes 3D

"Your favorite plug-in for your favorite skin!"

Version 1.51

Copyright © 1998-2006
LEXITY Software & Consulting

First of all we would like to thank you for downloading this plug-in and we hope you will enjoy it as much as we enjoyed making it. Please read everything carefully in this text. It contains some useful information on how to configure and get the plug-in to work properly.

- I n t r o d u c t i o n
Have you ever dreamed of getting a bit more out of Winamp? Now you can, Winamp 3D is here!
Winamp Goes 3D is an OpenGL based visual plug-in for Winamp, one of the most popular media playback for Win32 platforms.
To download additional backgrounds & models please visit:

www.lexity.se

- D i s c l a i m e r
THIS SOFTWARE IS FREEWARE. IT IS FREELY DISTRIBUTABLE PROVIDED THAT IT IS SUPPLIED IN AN UNMODIFIED FORM. THIS SOFTWARE COMES WITH NO WARRANTY. IT MAY NOT BE SOLD OR IN ANYWAY PROFITED FROM IT WITHOUT THE WRITTEN PERMISSION FROM LEXITY SOFTWARE & CONSULTING.
!!! EPILEPSY WARNING !!! THIS SOFTWARE CAN GENERATE FLASHING PATTERNS WHICH CAN BE DANGEROUS TO SOME INDIVIDUALS. THE AUTHOR TAKES NO RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE DAMAGES CAUSED BY THIS SOFTWARE. IF YOU DO NOT AGREE WITH THE ABOVE YOU MUST IMMEDIATELY REMOVE THE SOFTWARE WITH ALL OF ITS COMPONENTS.
- R e q u i r e m e n t s
This plug-in requires:

- A PC with Win32 based operating system like Windows 95/98/NT/2000/XP.
- Winamp MP3 player.
- Graphics card supporting OpenGL with "opengl32.dll" and "glu32.dll" present in your windows system directory.

- I n s t a l l a t i o n
Simply run the insallation file and when asked, enter the location of Winamp. Then press Next. Do the same when installing additional backgrounds & models. Don't forget to restart the plug-in after installing the backgrounds & models.
- U n i n s t a l l a t i o n
To uninstall this plug-in simply remove the file vis_wg3d.dll found in your Plugins catalog. Also delete the vis_wg3d directory.
- C o n f i g u r a t i o n
The configuration is done by pressing the Configure button or by starting the plug-in, then right clicking on its display.
- B a c k g r o u n d s
The WG3D backgrounds reside in the vis_wg3d/Skyboxes directory.
Skyboxes are used for backgrounds. If you have own skyboxes then send it in and we will post it for others to download.
You have to remember the following when creating skyboxes:

- Create a new directory in vis_wg3d/Skyboxes. The directory name will be the name of your skybox.
- Create your files according to the following filenames:
  vis_wg3d/Skyboxes/"Name of your skybox"/Back.tga
  vis_wg3d/Skyboxes/"Name of your skybox"/Down.tga
  vis_wg3d/Skyboxes/"Name of your skybox"/Front.tga
  vis_wg3d/Skyboxes/"Name of your skybox"/Left.tga
  vis_wg3d/Skyboxes/"Name of your skybox"/Right.tga
  vis_wg3d/Skyboxes/"Name of your skybox"/Up.tga
- All files must be stored in the TGA (Truevision Targa) fileformat. They MUST be stored as uncompressed TGA.
- You should only use the resolution 256x256 for each texture. If you use smaller ones, you might experience poor texture quality (aliasing problem). You can actually use higher ones if you prefer.

- M o d e l s
The WG3D models reside in the vis_wg3d/Models directory.
You can actually use any 3D modeler software that supports the ASE (ASCII Scene Export) fileformat. The ASE fileformat is an ASCII fileformat, i.e. it can be viewed/edited with an ASCII editor like Notepad. In analogy with skyboxes, after creating your own, send it in and we will post it for others to download.
You have to remember the following when creating models:

- Create a new directory in vis_wg3d/Models. The directory name will be the name of your model.
- Design your 3D model with a 3D modeler software. You must store it using the following filename:
  vis_wg3d/Models/"Name of your model"/Model.ase
  Observe that you must use the ASE fileformat.
- To get correct texturing you need to edit Model.ase afterwards. Search for the string *BITMAP in the file. Change the texture location to local. E.g. suppose you use a texture with name Texture.tga and it resides in C:\Gfx. Then you probably have the following line,
  *BITMAP "C:\Gfx\Texture.tga"
  which must be changed to
  *BITMAP "Texture.tga"
  This has to be done for every *BITMAP found in the file. Also you must copy all textures used by the model to vis_wg3d/Models/"Name of your model"

- As with skyboxes, all textures must be stored in the TGA (Truevision Targa) fileformat. They MUST be stored as uncompressed TGA.
- You should only use the resolutions, (2^n)x(2^n), where n is any of 0, 1,...
- In the vis_wg3d/Models directory you can find a file called Winamp_3D.tga. You can use this texture during the 3d modeling stage. Use this for the parts of the model you want to be mapped with Winamp 3D. Note that when editing Model.ase, you have to use
  *BITMAP "Winamp_3D.tga"
  for the part of the model that is going to be mapped with Winamp 3D. I.e. The plug-in checks for the appearance of Winamp_3D.tga and will replace it during run-time with the dynamic version of it.

Finally, if you still have problems, check out the other models. Use them as examples on how to create your own. Note that the *.max files are not used directly by the plug-in. They are included only for teaching purposes.
- B u g s
WG3D will not work properly if your plug-in directory does not lie directly under your Winamp directory and is called Plugins.
If found any bug, please mail it to us. Tell us also your system configuration, CPU type, graphics card, operating system and anything else you find important for bughunting.
- H i s t o r y
1.51

- A lot of bugfixes and optimizations.

v1.5

- WG3D is freeware again. Due to the lack of interest from the public I decided to release WG3D as freeware again. I would like to thank all of you who registered and supported my work. You will always be my favorite users.
- New configuration interface. Makes it easier to configure WG3D.
- Ghost effect added.
- A lot of bugfixes and optimizations.
- Different docking algorithm used.
- Better fullscreen support.
- All fullscreen modes use widescreen.

v1.42

- Fixed a major bug in the "compiled vertex arrays" code which made the plug-in to crash or run very slow on some systems (especially systems with GeForce256-based cards). Thanks to Viet Tam Luu and John Spitzer at NVIDIA Corporation for helping me hunting down the bug.
- "Wireframe" added to oscilloscope rendering modes.
- Better smoke simulation.

v1.41

- Boundary of 1 pixel removed from Winamp 3D due to the fact that many skins have a black (or possibly a constant color) boundary. By removing this, gave the Winamp 3D a more solid feeling than before.
- Fixed a major bug in the compiled vertex arrays code which made the plug-in to cause a GPF in the OpenGL drivers of Savage 2000 cards. Thanks to Kif Davis and the driver developers at S3 Inc. for helping me hunting down the bug.

v1.4

- New oscilloscope rendering modes added. "Plain", "Striped", "Checked", "Water", "Explosion" and "Smoke".
- Implemented "Tail Of Feathers".
- VU meters "Single", "Double" & "Beam" added.
- An easier installation interface used thanks to Nullsoft.
- Winshade notification added.
- Lots of code optimizations.
- Some small changes to the lights.

v1.3

- WG3D has gone shareware. A fee of $5 is a cheap insurance for the further development of this product.
- Added motion blur.
- Added different camera modes.
- Added support for loading skyboxes.
- Added support for loading models. Now you can map Winamp 3D as you wish, like on a sphere, torus, cone etc.
- Added texture to oscilloscope.
- Different sampling modes added to the oscilloscope.
- Support for 32-bit textures.
- For speed improvement, supports now "GL_EXT_compiled_vertex_array".
- Changed the graphics files from BMP to TGA fileformat.
- Fixed the "Not able to save the colors on NT system." bug.
- Some code optimizations.

v1.2

- Added the 640x480, 800x600, 1024x768, 1152x864, 1280x1024 and 1600x1200 window modes. To get dynamic texturing on voodoo cards, use these modes instead of the fullscreen ones.
- Improved the ability to better control the Stroboscope, from 0.0 (Never) to 1.0 (Always). This ROCKS.
- Added texture shifting to "Winamp Logo/3D->Enclose" mode.
- Fixed a lame fullscreen bug.
- Improved the texture handling.
- Changed the texture size for Pulsar from 64x64x16 to 128x128x16.

v1.1

- Added "Winamp Logo/3D->Enclose" mode.
- Added resolution changes in fullscreen mode.
- Made the "Winamp Logo/3D->Beat" more smoother than before.
- Added a new Winamp logo.
- Added 3 new effects to the oscilloscope. "The Vibes" with no-, sine- and cosine-filtering.
- Optimized the Oscilloscope. It is now approximately 3 times(!) faster than before.
- Some small changes to the lights.

v1.0

- First version of WG3D.

- C o n t a c t
You can contact us by E-mail:

wg3d@lexity.se

For additional backgrounds, models please visit:

www.lexity.se

Winamp Goes 3D development team, May 15th 2006, Sweden.