Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/19812
VirtualRig Studio Blurs the Line with Release 2.1 VirtualRig Studio, a Czech software company, has unveiled a new version of its VirtualRig software, which lets users create realistic curved motion-blur simulations previously only available with expensive camera rigs. Unlike many other offerings on the market, VirtualRig is believed to be the only software product supporting curved motion blur, enabling artists to choose any back- ground picture and add virtual motion blur. With Virtual- Rig, the artist decides what to blur and by how much, adjusting the speed to change the look of the picture. VirtualRig 2.1 can be used on both standard photographic images and computer-generated imagery, including HDR images and high-resolution panoramic pictures. VirtualRig supports images with an alpha transparency channel up to 8 bit, allow- ing users to decompose a picture into separate layers, render them with different speed and blur settings, and combine the fi nal renders. According to a VirtualRig spokesperson, the company creat- ed the software to overcome the limitations of car-run photogra- phy processing, which represents 75 percent of all auto motive PRODUCT: EFFECTS CPUs with Embedded Graphics Processors Impact the Market Jon Peddie Research (JPR), the indus- try’s research and consulting fi rm for graphics and multimedia, announced its latest fi ndings in the struggle between CPUs and GPUs in the report “Opportu- nities, Threats, and Changes Created by the EPG & HPU—Tension at the Infl ec- tion Point.” The research fi nds that a genuine infl ection point is occurring in the PC and related industries due to the integra- tion of powerful SIMD graphics process- ing elements with multi-core, multi-stage scalar X86 CPUs. In so doing, JPR fi nds that the stalwart and ubiquitous integrat- ed graphics processor (IGP) will fade out of existence. Because the graphics processor unit (GPU) grew in greater complexity than the CPU during the past eight years, exceeding the transistor count and matching or exceeding the die size of the 6 NEWS: CPU November 2010 CPU, many thought the two would never be able to cohabitate. Yet, amazing things have become possible as semiconductor manufactur- ing tolerances get ever smaller. With four times the number of transistors possible in the same space as the previous manu- facturing node or feature space, the compute density demanded by GPUs suddenly becomes not just feasible, but completely possible, and practical. Moving graphics to the CPUs will be attractive fi rst to the builders of low-cost machines. Intel’s Core i5 (Clarkdale and Arrandale), which are embedded proces- sor graphics (EPG) units, were the fi rst wave. Intel’s Sandybridge will be the next generation, while AMD will introduce a massive SIMD GPU array in its Fusion processors (Ontario and Llano), which will be the fi rst heterogeneous processor units (HPU.) The impact in the total PC and related market on discrete GPUs due to the combination of devices being offered with integrated graphics (IGPs, EPGs, and HPUs) will break the historical rise of discrete GPU sales and put the category in decline. The EPG/HPU will truly revolutionize the PC and associated industries, the study fi nds. The amount of computation capability available in the size, weight, and power consumption of systems equipped with EPG/HPUs, and for the price they will be offered, will upset the market dynamics like never before, or perhaps not since the introduction of the PC, predicts JPR. The “Opportunities, Threats, and Changes Created by the EPG & HPU” market study is available now in both electronic and hard copy editions for $2499 at www.jonpeddie.com. photography and, increasingly, 3D visualizations within the auto industry. VirtualRig takes advantage of static background photography, blurring it by drawing in vectors and regulating the blur before the real or CG car is placed into the scene. The solution drastically reduces the cost of professional car photog- raphy, cuts down on production time, and brings new opportu- nities to CGI photography. While VirtualRig was designed for professional car photogra- phy, it can be used in any situation where accurate motion blur is required. Available for both Mac OS X and Microsoft Windows operat- ing systems, VirtualRig ships in both Lite and Pro versions for $799 and $3699, respectively.