<<<<<here's a video of my first animation...
>NINJA ATTACK!!<
here's some information about pivot animation...
Pivot Stick figure Animator (usually shortened to
Pivot) is a
Windows freeware application that allows users to create
stick-figure animations, and save them in the animated
GIF (Graphics Interchangeable Format) format used on web pages and, which can also be converted into videos using other software, such as
Windows Movie Maker.
Pivot provides a simple, easy to use interface with a few features. It uses fixed length 'sticks' to ensure size consistency during animation, something which is not as simple to recreate in professional animation software such as
Blender or
Adobe Flash.
Animations created within Pivot are uploaded frequently to the well known video forum, You Tube. There are also websites that allow the sharing of Pivot Project Files (.piv) or Stick Figure Files (.st k) created with Pivot
- Pivot 1.0
First Pivot release. This version of Pivot Animator had several
software bugs, as with most first-generation programs. Stick figures were limited to one type of stick figure, the default
stickman. Animations could be saved in the .PIV (Pivot Project File) or exported as Animated
.GIFs (Graphics Interchangeable Format) format. Users were given few options of image optimization, compression or resizing when saving their animation.
- Pivot 2.2
Second major release of the Pivot Stickfigure Animator. This version implemented the 'Stick Figure Builder', which allowed users to create their own stick figure designs saved in the STK format. This allowed a much wider scope of animation choice for Pivot users. It also fixed a few minor bugs, added the "back" and "front" buttons to the main interface to bring a stick figure in front or behind other figures, and could automatically check to make sure the user does not lose unsaved projects.
- Pivot 2.2.4
In this version, Pivot was introduced as a
MSI Installer Package, ensuring that the program would be installed properly. This made the use of
Registry Keys(.reg) easier to install, and that the appropriate file associations for animation and stick figure files would be set. Other additions include unique icons for
.PIV and
.STK files, the ability to load
JPEG backgrounds, and further warnings when a user tried to overwrite an existing file, to make sure that the animation that they were working on were not lost.
- Pivot 2.2.5[3]
A few more minor bugs were fixed in this release, and the installer was now downloaded as an Executable
.EXE file instead of the Windows Installer '
.msi. There is also another feature which allows the animator to select the stk on screen using the Scroll on the mouse in case the joints were not on the screen. This version was considered the last "official" release of Pivot. This is one of the most commonly used versions of Pivot. Pivot 2.2.5 is currently the most stable version, but the more knowledgeable pivot animators use DarkDemon's (a pivot community) called "Pivot Hotkeys".
- Pivot 2.2.5
- Hotkeys
Pivot 2.2.5 Hotkeys is a modded version of the official Pivot 2.2.5, and adds the ability to just click "N" to go to a new frame, and other various functions as such. It is freely available at
http://darkdemon.org/downloads/ as "PivotHotkeysV3.zip".
- Pivot 3.1 Beta
This release was sent intentionally to the (now defunct)
MSN groups for testing, but the Beta was leaked from various unofficial sources, such as the DarkDemon forums, to the general public. Several features had been vastly improved and several new features had been added. There was an improved interface, with new icons, a better default stickman with bolder arms and legs and a reorganization of the features. New features included the ability to import any .GIF or .BMP image as a
sprite to be moved around in the animation like a stick figure. Another added feature was the ability to have multiple backgrounds in an animation. When a user saved a .piv file, the frame rate was saved with it.
Pivot 3.1 Beta : Darkdemon mod Darkdemon fixed various bugs with the Pivot 3.1 beta, and redubbed it Pivot 3. It is also available at the same download address,
http://darkdemon.org/downloads/ for free. It is entitled "Pivot3.zip".
- Future Releases
Because the developer, Peter Bone, stopped work on the project before releasing a Final version of the 3.1 Beta, there never was, and supposedly never will be, a Pivot 3.1 Final Release. On YouTube, he said, "I have a full time job now and so I don't have time to make my own programs."
Various members of the programming society are picking up Pivot and remaking it. Some are enthusiastic about creating a version called "Pivot: Revolution", but progress has been slow, with multiple programmers each working on their own versions.
A similar program based on Pivot,
Stykz, has almost all the functionalities of Pivot 2.25, and many that have never been included in any version of Pivot. Most of Stykz' features are similar to Pivot's. As of October 19th, 2010, it is compatible with Pivot's .stk figures, but is not yet compatible with .piv projects. Stykz is available for free download from
stykz.net[4].
Running Pivot on Linux and Mac
Although Pivot was compiled only for the Windows environment, many have found success running Pivot in Linux and Mac using
WINE. Because Pivot doesn't utilize many other
DLL experienced users have been able to run Pivot in very stripped down or older Windows environments.
Modifications
- Dark-Demon Mod
Also known as the DD mod, this modification from a forum named
Darkdemon and it is based on Pivot 3.1 Beta. However this modification gets rid of a "Read-Me file not found" error pop-up in the Pivot 3.1 beta, if the Readme.txt file isn't found on the desktop. Other DD mods include a Pivot Hotkeys mod, and a 3D mod. The hot keysmod is based on the popular 2.2.5 release and adds hotkeys to the program. The 3D mod, however, does not live up to many of the expectations presented by the DD community. To animate in the 3D mod, individual .stks (or "sticks") must still be used.
After many requests for a .piv and .stk file uploading site, DarkDemon (also known as DD) forum owner, Adam Davis, made
PivotUp, which allows users to upload their .stk, .piv, .stykz, .styk, .fla, and .gif files.
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