Impossible Cubes

The following design has no images:

Attachment 128372

Do note, this JPEG shows the construction, not the final HTML rendering:

Attachment 128373

I couldn't resist building it but my technique was very imprecise.

Attachment 128374

Acorn

The first example there is a problem with the third cube down on the left. The second looks great.

Not sure what you mean HTML rendering. Need more info.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by gwpriester

The first example there is a problem with the third cube down on the left. The second looks great.
Not sure what you mean HTML rendering. Need more info.

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No Gary, the TG JPGing of the image destroys the transparency in the first image.
I let it be as it shows how I folded the bottom left, second in, cube to make it appear both over and under the touching cube.

"HTML rendering" is looking at the design file Preview or other web output.

The second image was such a screen grab.

Open the design file and check the funny cube actually has an extra lid.

The point of making it like this is to show how small the payload is and how much you can scale without any jaggies.
I want Xara to deliver more web content that is vector, be it through HTML, CSS or SVG.

My inspiration was https://a.singlediv.com.

Acorn

P.S.
The index.htm file is just 12.37kB so very fast to load.
Each face is code like:
<span class="xr_ar xr_t280" style="left:274px;top:361px;width:143px;height:143 px; background-color: #92EDE3; transform: matrix(-0.866,0.500,0.000,1.000,0,0);"></span>
Pure maths: the -0.866 is sin^-1(-60)^o​. Far clearer than a tacky JPEG.

Would this work as well? Especially for people who are short on time?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by gwpriester

Would this work as well? Especially for people who are short on time?

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Thanks Gary.

The approach would require a Intersect All any time you moved the overlap.
The resultant shapes are rendered as images so will become blocky at scale.
There is no need for the Yellow kite as the Green shapes overlap already.

My approach does not end up with any images so is one HTTP fetch, smaller and sharper.

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I do notice your edges are not aligned as the comers do not touch exactly.

To make the 'perfect' Xara cube:

1. With the Rectangle Tool, click-drag a square.
2. Rotate 45^o.
3. Resize the width to 1,000,000 mp (Xara accepts milliPoint values typed in directly to the W & H boxes).
4. With Aspect Ratio unlocked, set your Height to 577,350 mp (Xara uses milliPoints in its internal calculations).
5. You now have one Face with angle 30^o.
6. Clone and Rotate to 90^o.
7. Clone and Flip horizontally.
8. Colour and marry the three Faces as a common intersection.
9. Soft-Group and keep as your Master Cube.

I still want to create the Face without the Steps 3&4 calculations.
The use of the Isometric Grid is no real use.

Any takers?

Acorn

My cube examples were very quick and crude.

I'm an artist not a mathematician. :) And I have made hundreds of cubes for my stereograms.

My method is more primitive but it works for me.

I use the QuickShapes Tool to make a hexagon using the Radius Creation Option.

I zoom in and snap two guidelines to the center of the cube.

I use the Shape Tool to draw the top shape.

Rotate and duplicate the top shape around the bottom point 120 degrees. Then once more.

It works for me.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by gwpriester

My cube examples were very quick and crude.

I'm an artist not a mathematician. :) And I have made hundreds of cubes for my stereograms.
My method is more primitive but it works for me.
I use the QuickShapes Tool to make a hexagon using the Radius Creation Option.
I zoom in and snap two guidelines to the center of the cube.
I use the Shape Tool to draw the top shape.
Rotate and duplicate the top shape around the bottom point 120 degrees. Then once more.
It works for me.

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Thanks Gary, you inspired me.

Create a hexagon.
Clone it and position the one's centre to the apex of the second.
Intersect and you are left with the exact shape.
As it is a Shape and I want a Rectangle looking the same I can create a square, rotate 45^o and centre on the shape and Shift-Drag corners to snap-fit.

No math / maths.

Attachment 128378

Acorn

Whatever works. :)

are you eschering new ideas?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by handrawn

are you eschering new ideas?

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No, not me:

Attachment 128380

Acorn

That's very interesting. No bitmaps in sight!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Egg Bramhill

That's very interesting. No bitmaps in sight!

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Thanks Egg.

Silly me for not rearranging the overlapping faces of the last three cubes.

It is hard as in yours the faces are slightly out and the central hexa-star gap is not balanced.

Thanks for having a go.

I will look on it as an apprentice piece.

Acorn

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Acorn

No, not me:

Attachment 128380

Acorn

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that looks suspiciously like an old piece of xara clipart ;)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by handrawn

that looks suspiciously like an old piece of xara clipart ;)

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Sorry to disappoint, homegrown:

Attachment 128390

Clipart and image-free zone, all of 18kB.

Acorn :smug:

probably thiking of this:


Attachment 128391

plus there is also this:

Attachment 128392

;)

Same-same but no images:

https://parkeston.com/xara/no-images/

Quote:

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Originally Posted by handrawn

probably thiking of this:
Attachment 128391
plus there is also this:
Attachment 128392

;)

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The first clipart is 90^o rotated to mine, so completely different.

I've taken the second, one of Egg's I think, and turned it into an SVG.
This is what Xara should be doing with grouped shapes and not making them images!

Attachment 128393
Technically, there is no image (check the Bitmap Gallery).
It is a Placeholder with code linking into to an embedded SVG file (Shift+Ctrl+Alt+A), sitting in the Name Gallery.
It seems to render to a 5kB image but this is all SVG code.
When it scales, there are no jaggies.

Acorn

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Acorn

The first clipart is 90^o rotated to mine, so completely different.

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sorry but if I choose to lie down at 90 degrees I am still me... you will have to do better than that :D

Quote:

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This is what Xara should be doing with grouped shapes and not making them images!

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indeed

Quote:

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Attachment 128393
Technically, there is no image (check the Bitmap Gallery).
It is a Placeholder with code linking into to an embedded SVG file (Shift+Ctrl+Alt+A), sitting in the Name Gallery.
It seems to render to a 5kB image but this is all SVG code.
When it scales, there are no jaggies.

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so does that mean it is a vector clipart or not ? - i just threw it in because it resembles your avatar, no really serious ;) :)

Because, what else do I have to do?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by gwpriester

Because, what else do I have to do?

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I'd love that in our sitting room.

Acorn

Quote:

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Originally Posted by handrawn

sorry but if I choose to lie down at 90 degrees I am still me... you will have to do better than that :D
indeed
so does that mean it is a vector clipart or not ? - i just threw it in because it resembles your avatar, no really serious ;) :)

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Foiled!

Yes it is vector clipart but properly rendered. we have a brilliant vector product so why is it not being showcased for its detailed outputs.
We need the same focus on rotated text too.

Acorn

+1

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Acorn

Foiled!

Yes it is vector clipart but properly rendered. we have a brilliant vector product so why is it not being showcased for its detailed outputs.
We need the same focus on rotated text too.

Acorn

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when xara xtreme 'the original' [ie ver 2] came along I stuck with it until version 7, and a major reason for upgrading then was the comic vector clipart which I could see a real use for - I still use it although it disappeared after ver 11

as in:

Attachment 128405

compared to this, most of the current pixabay stuff that is pushed in the OCC is micturation imo

but xara have gone down the route of 'lets be creative without the hassle of actually having to bespoke anything' - the comic clipart was/is wonderfully fleixible in terms of manipulation