Monthly Archives: November 2007

Digital Illustration

I use a Wacom graphic tablet to draw all of the items in the HeroMachine. It cuts development time dramatically, and allows me to combine the art production and code development into one application. I don't think I could ever go back to a pure pen and ink on paper method of drawing at this point, I'm lost to the dark side.

Anyway, I thought you might be interested in seeing a demonstration of how, in general, you can go from a neat photograph of something to a finished digital pen and ink illustration like those found in the program. There's no sound, just a visual -- my auditory skills haven't quite caught up to the times yet.

New brick metal skin

The "robot" skin probably takes longer to draw than any other single item in the program, but I think the one for the male Brick has turned out the best of all:

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Where is this all going?

Before I get going whole-hog on the site, I wanted to take a moment to talk about the kinds of things I am going to talk about. And if that's not meta enough for you, I don't know what is.

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For whom the poll tolls …

One of the features I'm most excited about with the new site is the "poll" module in the right hand column. The current question involves matters nearest and dearest to my heart -- what do you want to see me and UGO spending our time on with the HeroMachine? I'm working on it full-time right now, so the possibilities are wide open. When you get a chance, register your preferences so I'll know what it is I ought to be doing!

Welcome to the new HeroMachine.com!

At long last, I am pleased to announce that in conjunction with UGO, a new version of the HeroMachine site is now live! I hope the new graphics, the new layout, and the blogging interface help me bring you new and exciting information about the program, comics, heroic illustration, and other topics of interest to the well-informed, modern geek. I did want to point out a couple of neat features that I think you'll like:

  • The "Downloads" page now has direct links to the files you need to run HeroMachine locally, including -- now absolutely free without registration or payment -- HeroMachine 2.0. That's right, you can now use the full version of the application on your desktop for nothing!
  • The "FAQ" page has been updated as well, with a bit more information on some topics that have been confusing people.
  • Blogging is now built right into the site. The newest few posts will always show up on the home page, or you can click on the "News" link at the top for a longer list.
  • Links to other cool things UGO is doing can be found at the bottom, and in the "Games" header at the very top. The company writes about a lot of neat stuff involving super-heroes, comic books, popular movies, books, video games, and a lot more. If you like HeroMachine and gaming in general, the odds are good that UGO has other content you'd find interesting.

I'll have more to say in the upcoming days, but for now, I hope you enjoy the site and the program. If you have any questions at all, please feel free send me a message using the "Contact" form, or directly to my personal address (afdstudios@gmail.com).