I would like to know if its possible to create a shader FX that creates a heat haze. Something that skews and warps the imagery seen thrrough the haze. I would think this would use some kind of reflect shader???

The main point is that the effect would need to wobble everything seen though it, i.e models, sprites and the rest of the world environment....

If there is another way to achieve this effect without shaders please point me at it and move this post......

FYI: This effect can be seen on PS2 version of GTA3-VC when using the flam-thrower.

Thanks

if you've pro edition you can render to a "wobled" surface... thought i- i think i've read it on the mainpage

Would displacement mapping be able to do this? Can you have a surface alter what appears behind it - like transparency effects, magnifying glasses, etc?

Displacement mapping displaces textures but not the whole screen. If you have the pro you can use render_to_surface (or something like this) which allows you to render a view on a models surface. So if you have a sphere you would have the effect called "fish eye" (magnifying glass). Ello uses these things in his demos...

Maybe, someone could point me at an example of this, maybe even Ello, it seems that shaders can't do this due to the way they work.....

To clarify the probable approach: Do you think it is a case of rendering a second view onto a model and then somehow distorting the model?

I presume that it will need further modification to get the view to 'bend'. A magnifying glass or fish eye would just be a different camera.arc? for a heat haze the entire view needs to be wobbled.....so this would not work......

YES!!!! - I have seen Ello demo and it does indeed warp and bend the environment!!! Great work Ello.......ok so where do I find how to do it......

Anyway I am going to track down the demos you mention, in the meantime please feel free to explore this further.....Other similiar view skewing FX would be awsome, shockwave-ripple, drugged up strangeness.....all sorts.

This is not shader related but in George's tutorials he released somewhere he disucssed (for get the exact words) a setting to grow / shrink /distort the the camera view i.e. stretch the x to double normal size. Maybe see what a settings these are and if some sort of 'wave' can be created by altering these settings? Maybe you can somehow use these with whatever else you are doing with shaders, camera etc...

I did a quick search and one old game mentioned "Bump mapped perturbance (heat haze) from engine heat" and made me wonder if some sort of transparent animated bump mapped entity might simulate the effect?

I was inspired last night, watching a movie (forget the name) but the weapons emmitted an almost invisible pulse, like ripples on a pond, this was abvoiusly a post production FX, but from what I have seen of Ello's FX demo this is possible......however from what I have read in the manual about mapping a view to another object, only reference I can see is view.bmp....anyway, it appears that although this is possible, only one extra view can be rendered at any one time correctly, so lots of these ripple FX would not be possible......

In Ello's demo the players view is completely skewed, i suspect this is a combination of a wide camera arc, to get the wrap effect and additionally some kind of doughnut bubble model that surrounds the player and skews the view further.....

I have searched through the manual and cant find much in the way of view rendering, though the main website DOES say fisheye lenses....... I can't seem to find any reference to it. I am sure I am being a noob and missing some key place that everyone knows about, but me, where all these questions are answered, so please fogive my ignorance......

I will now trawl through the AUM's and see what I can find, I may PM Ello and ask for a few pointers.....

Thanks again

I had a good belly laugh as you suggest bupaje, btw I have read many of your posts eleswhere, great work, I often read your very worthwhile comments, keep up the good work.....

Considering I often wonder how coherent I am being I appreciate that.

hi, maybe the view should be rendered to skin1 of the model and the second and third skin would be alphachanels like a differencecloud(second skin, shifted with u/v) and a plain alpha gradient which gets transparent to the top direction. but i am not good enough to code this shader. the model itself gets then transformed by meshdeformation.

just wanted to say...

the word you are looking for is quicksilver...I think,,,,

that is what makes mirages in the desert, and also is the name of the visual distortion caused by heat....

there are other words I am sure