Does PlantStudio work on Windows <95, 98, NT, 2000, Me>?

▪        At the time of this writing, we are testing on Windows NT 4.0, Windows 95 and Windows 98. We expect PlantStudio to work on all of the versions of Windows, but we have not been able to test on all of them as completely as we’d like. However, we do respond quickly to any problems our users tell us about. If you have problems, please let us know and we’ll do our best to fix them.

How do I submit a bug report?

▪        We are VERY grateful for all reports on bugs in PlantStudio. Even questions that are not strictly speaking about bugs are VERY welcome. We do serious testing before each release, but PlantStudio is used on so many different computer systems and with so many other 3D programs that we can’t possibly test with them all. A large part of the improvement of PlantStudio since version 1.0 has been because of the wonderful feedback we’ve got from PlantStudio users. 

▪        If you find PlantStudio doing something you don’t understand or think it shouldn’t do, please let us know exactly what you did and what happened because of it. Try to reconstruct the sequence of events, because that’s exactly what we’ll do – we’ll try to make the same thing happen for us. Screen shots are golden, because they really help us to see what you’re talking about. 

I have Windows set to use a comma separator for decimal numbers (like 1,5). Why does PlantStudio show its parameters as period-delimited (like 1.5)? 

▪        If you have your Windows regional number setting set to using any other decimal separator than a period (“.”), PlantStudio will ignore that setting and use only periods as decimal separators. This is because the separator must be consistent with the PlantStudio file format in order to read plant files correctly. We realize that this is not a complete solution; it’s something we will address when and if we are able to more completely internationalize the program. 

▪        DO NOT change your Windows setting for decimal separator while PlantStudio is running. If you need to change how decimals are displayed, close PlantStudio first.

Do you have any plant libraries for <desert plants, marsh plants, local flora in my area, etc>?

▪        We’d like to create more plants, but we always end up improving PlantStudio instead. 

▪        If you’d like to start a collaborative campaign to develop PlantStudio plants for your local area or for a particular type of plant, please do, and send us a note so we can give you our blessing. Remember though that only registered users of PlantStudio are entitled to distribute any output including PlantStudio plants.

My plant files say version <a version>, but I'm using a later version of PlantStudio.

▪        We only change the version numbers written out in plant files when there is a major change in the file format. When we do this we make sure to note it in the readme file, the help system, the web site, and other places. So until we make a big deal about the file format changing, don't worry about it. 

▪        The file format did change in PlantStudio 2.0, but  the 1.0 and 2.0 formats are forward and backward compatible. What does that mean? If you open a PS1.x file in PS2 and save it, the file will turn into a PS2 file. But PS1.x will still be able to read it.

Is this L-Systems?

▪        No, it’s not. L-Systems are a set of mathematical algorithms for modeling any kind of organic forms based on string substitution. You can find several L-System modelers on the web through any search engine. 

▪        PlantStudio uses object-oriented modeling specifically designed for plant growth, where each plant part (leaf, stem, etc) is an entity which interacts with the others. In effect, PlantStudio models plants as little populations. Plants are modular organisms, which is what makes them perfect for object-oriented modeling. We think this gives PlantStudio a greater flexibility to create more lifelike plants.

I notice a number of (fairly large) .~pl files in the PlantStudio directory. Are these safe to delete?

▪        Yes. Those are backup copies of plant files (*.pla). Whenever PlantStudio saves any type of file, it makes an automatic backup of any existing file with the same name but with a ~ in place of the first letter in the file’s extension. Thus if you save a 3DS file, then another on top of it, PlantStudio will leave two files in the directory (*.3ds and *.~3d). 

▪        You can’t turn this off, but you can periodically remove any backup files you don’t want.

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