Preset Architecture
The architecture of a Flashback preset is designed to provide a
flexible approach to constructing complex animations. At its core, a
preset is a complete configuration that includes multiple
elements—such as planes, modules, and control settings—that work
together to generate a animation frames. This structure is organized
hierarchically, with each level performing specific tasks in the
rendering process, from color and drawing effects on individual
planes to the final combination of planes in the Mixer.
Each preset can contain up to four independent planes, which
serve as drawing surfaces that accumulate visuals generated by a
selection of modules. Modules within a plane are divided into
categories, including Color, Drawing, and Overlay, allowing users to
define and tune the color and structure of the images rendered on
each plane. Once planes are rendered, the Mixer combines their
output into a unified image, which can then be enhanced with
post-mixer effects to achieve the final frame.
Flashback’s modular architecture allows for high customization,
letting users add, configure, and organize modules as needed. The
following sections provide a detailed breakdown of each component in
the preset hierarchy and its role in producing a cohesive visual
output.
Preset: A complete
configuration of planes, modules, and controls that can be saved,
loaded, played from a preset file. The architecture of a Flashback Preset
employs a hierarchical structure that divides tasks in generating an
animation frame into specific levels. At the top of this hierarchy
is the Preset, which can contain up to 4 Planes, a Mixer
configuration, and a list of post-Mixer Effects.
Planes: Planes are drawing surfaces that accumulate
an image through various modules' actions and can store either RGB
values or palette indices. Each Plane contains three types of
modules: Color Modules, Drawing Modules, and Overlay Modules. These
modules are categorized based on their functionality in the frame
generation pipeline. Planes are independent of each other and are
generated in parallel until they reach the Mixer module where they
are combined.
Color: Color Modules are responsible for managing
the color palette available to Drawing Modules and include Morpher
Modules, Generator Modules, and Color Effect Modules. Morpher
Modules handle color palette transitions and translate palette indices
into RGB values for both Overlay Modules and Planes before the
mixing process. Generator Modules create color palettes for use in
the animation, while Color Effect Modules apply various color
effects to a color palette, such as palette animation and color
filter effects.
Drawing: Drawing Modules comprise Full Draw
Modules, Painter Modules, and Effect Modules. Full Draw Modules
generate a complete image on the Plane's surface. Painter Modules
draw on or add elements to the existing contents of a Plane, while
Effect Modules modify the existing contents of a Plane to produce
various visual effects.
Overlay: Overlay Modules are like Drawing Modules
except that they are applied to the current frame but their
modifications do not persist to subsequent frames. They receive a
copy of the Plane resolved to RGB values.
Mixer: The Mixer module controls the process of
combining multiple Planes into a single image. It operates on Planes
that have been converted from palette indices to RGB values.
Within the Mixer UI, the user can select a Plane or Meta Plane from
a list, then select a mixing operation they want to perform and a
target plane for the operation if the operation requires one. This
combination of planes with an operation comprises a rule that can be
added to the list of mixing rules to create a numbered Meta Plane. A
Meta Plane can be used in additional mixing rules or displayed if it
is the last rule in the list.
Effects: Post-Mixer Effects are a list of effect
modules that are applied to the mixed image after the Mixer module
has combined the Planes into a single frame. These effects operate
on the final RGB image, allowing the user to make adjustments and
enhancements to the overall appearance of the animation.
Notes:
- All modules, irrespective of type, contain controls.
Controls can be set to a specific value, selected from a list of
options, generated randomly in a number of ways, or driven by
audio or periodic waveforms, allowing the user to have fine
control over the animation's visual appearance.
- Multiple modules can be added within a given module class,
including modules of the same type. The execution order of
the components within a preset follows their arrangement in the
TreeView, typically progressing from the top to the bottom.
However, Planes, which function independently of one another,
can be executed concurrently, allowing for better performance..
Creating a New Preset in Flashback
Flashback's user interface is designed to be highly interactive
and flexible, with much of the functionality accessible through
context-sensitive right-click menus. As you navigate through the
application, you’ll find that right-clicking on items in the
TreeView—such as Planes, Modules, and other preset components—will
bring up context menus tailored to each item’s specific
functionality. These menus provide quick access to options for
adding, removing, and configuring various components, streamlining
the process of building and customizing presets. Getting comfortable
with these context menus will enhance your efficiency and allow you
to take full advantage of Flashback’s capabilities.
The primary workspace for creating and modifying presets is the
TreeView, which displays a hierarchical view of the preset
structure. This hierarchy organizes each component of the animation
frame generation process, from Planes and
Modules to the Mixer and
Post-Mixer Effects. By expanding and collapsing nodes, you
can navigate through the preset and access settings for each item.
Flashback’s design supports modularity, enabling you to add multiple
modules within each category and control the order in which they’re
processed.
Additionally, each new plane added to a preset is automatically
configured with a basic setup, including a default Morpher
and Color Generator. This minimizes initial setup
time and provides a functional starting point, allowing you to focus
on customizing the visual output. Flashback offers a range of
modules across categories, including Color, Drawing, and Overlay,
which can be added to planes to create complex visual effects. The
Mixer module is a fixed component in every preset,
combining planes into a final RGB output that can then be further
refined with post-mixer effects.
As you work through the following steps to create a new preset,
remember that most configuration options, module additions, and
adjustments can be accessed quickly by right-clicking an item in the
TreeView. This workflow will guide you through each stage of
building a new preset from scratch, explaining the purpose of each
component and how to use it to achieve the desired visual effects.
Workflow: Creating a New Preset
-
Initialize a New Preset:
- Go to the File menu at the top of the
application and select New.
- This will create a minimal preset that includes an empty
Drawing Planes section, a Plane
Mixer, and Effects nodes.
- The preset is displayed in the TreeView, with each main
component expandable to reveal their sub-items as you add
them.
-
Adding a New Plane:
- Right-click on Drawing Planes in the
TreeView.
- Select Add Plane > RGB or Add
Plane > Indexed based on your needs:
- RGB Planes allow for any color to
be displayed, making them suitable for realistic images
or videos. RGB planes can still use color palettes but
they are not limited to them like Indexed planes.
- Indexed Planes are optimized for
palette-based animations, simulating effects similar to
old 8-bit graphics but with a much larger palette (up to
2K colors).
- The new plane is added to the TreeView as Plane
1 (or the next available number, up to 4). Each
plane has three main sub-items: Color Modules,
Drawing Modules, and Overlay
Modules.
-
Understanding the Default Modules:
- By default, each new plane includes:
- An Interpolator module (specifically,
Morpher) under Color Modules. The
Interpolator resolves color indices to RGB values for indexed
planes and handles palette transitions, morphing between
palettes over a specified number of frames.
- A Color Generator module
(Algorithmic by default) that creates, loads, or
generates color palettes by a given method. You can replace this generator with
other options depending on your needs.
-
Adding Color Modules:
- Expand the Color Modules section under
the newly added plane.
- Right-click on the type of color module you want to add
(Generator or Effects, there's only one Interpolator module
so leave it as-is):
- Generators:
- Algorithmic: Customizable
algorithms to generate colors.
- Palette Editor: Integrates with
the external palette editor so that edits are
viewable when "Push"ed (how the editor tells
Flashback to update the palette).
- Palette Files: Loads colors
from predefined palette files created with the
Palette Editor.
- Effects:
- Bounce: Bounces red, green, and
blue components at a given color index between their
max and min values over frames
- Scroll: Scrolls
color components at a gven rate/direction to produce
palette animation effects.
- Effects: Adds various
effects (blurring, striping, enhancing, banding,
etc..) to the
palette.
- These modules collectively manage the colors available
to the plane’s drawing operations and any palette-based
animations.
-
Adding Drawing Modules:
- Expand the Drawing Modules section of
the plane.
- Right-click to choose from different Drawing
Modules to determine what is drawn on the plane.
Modules are grouped into:
- Full Draw (draw to every pixel on
every frame, usually best to use just one unless the
module supports forground/background-only drawing):
- Options include modules like Bubbles,
Noise, etc...
- Painter (draws elements on top of
existing content without covering the whole plane):
- Examples include Curve, Line,
etc...
- Effects (apply an effect that takes
the current contents of the plane and modifies it in
some way)
- Use the right-click menu and choose an effect
from the Add Module submenu (Fracture, DigiFX,
etc...)
- Adding a mix of Full Draw and
Painter modules lets you layer visuals creatively,
defining the composition of each frame.
-
Adding Overlay Modules:
- Expand the Overlay Modules section of
the plane.
- Right-click to add Overlay Modules that
apply visual effects to what has already been drawn on the
plane. Overlays modify the current frame but do not persist
to subsequent frames, offering non-destructive effects like:
- Pixelate.dll: Pixelates the
image.
- Fracture: Adds a fracturing
effect.
- Tile: Repeats the content in
a tiled pattern.
- Warp: Warps the image based
on specified parameters.
- Overlay modules enhance the visual complexity without
altering the original drawing on the plane, allowing for
dynamic, frame-specific effects that do not persist
to the next frame.
-
Configuring the Mixer:
- The Mixer section is located below the
planes in the TreeView.
- The Mixer combines multiple planes into a single output.
Since it’s fixed and always outputs an RGB plane, it doesn’t
require configuration beyond setting up the rules for how
planes blend.
- To create a blending rule:
- Select a Source Plane and choose a
Mix Operation (e.g., blend, xor, tile,
etc...) to apply. and choose a mask and/or second source
plane depending on the mix operation.
- You can create multiple rules to define how planes
interact, with the final result representing the
combined content of all planes.
- The last rule in the list is the rule that produces
the final output
-
Adding Post-Mixer Effects:
- After the Mixer combines the planes, you can add
Post-Mixer Effects by right-clicking on the
Effects node below the Mixer.
- These effects operate on the final image output and do
not persist beyond the current frame, giving
you control over the overall look and feel of the animation.
Examples include:
- Use an effects module like Fracture
or DigFX to suffle the geometry
- This final step allows for last-minute tweaks, ensuring
the animation’s appearance matches your vision.
-
Preview and Adjustments:
- Use the Visuals Window to see the effect of each module
and and experiment with the modules controls.
- Adjust settings or add/remove modules as needed to
achieve the desired visual output.
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