Thank you for installing the Polymorf 3D screen saver! This document gives you an overview of all of the configuration options that are available within the application.
The config page is split into several sections, as follows:
Object settings
Morph speed
This controls how quickly the Polymorf object morphs between its old form and its new form. Higher values will cause the transformation to complete very quickly, lower values will take longer for the transition to complete.
Morph frequency
Controls how frequently the object morphs from one shape to another. The highest value will have it morphing almost continuously, whereas lower values will cause each shape to stay active for longer.
Rotation speed
Sets how quickly the object will rotate.
Position
Allows you to control the location of the 3D object. Available choices are "Central" (the object will appear in the middle of the screen), "Moving" (the object will move around the screen as it rotates) and "Random" (the object will appear at a random location, and will periodically move to new locations).
Light intensity
Controls the strength of the specular highlighting on the Polymorf object. High values will cause a bright reflective light to be applied to the object; lower values will reduce or switch off this light.
Background settings
Fade speed
If this is set to a high value, the background will fade between different colours very quickly. Lower values will cause the fade to take place much more slowly. If this is set to zero, the background will not fade at all and will stay black.
Trails
The Polymorf object leaves a trail of after-images as it moves, and the length of the trail can be defined here. If set to zero, the trails will be completely switched off. Note that this control is not available when the Anti-Aliasing feature is being used.
Textures
Reflection
Allows a texture to be selected to be used as a reflection on the Polymorf object. A series of textures are built in to the screen saver, but it is also possible to use your own images. To choose your own image, select "Custom" as the reflection texture, and then choose an image file in the Custom field below. The reflection texture may also be switched off by selecting "None".
Custom
When the reflection texture is set to "Custom", this field is used to specify a custom image file to be used for the reflection. Click the "..." button to the right to open a file browser for easier file selection.
Repeat
Sets how many times the reflection texture will repeat in the reflection. For example, set this to "3" and the reflection texture will be displayed in a 3x3 repeating grid in the reflection. Setting this to values greater than "1" works best with textures that tile seamlessly.
Skin
Allows a texture to be selected to be used as the skin on the Polymorf object. A series of textures are built in to the screen saver, but it is also possible to use your own images. To choose your own image, select "Custom" as the reflection texture, and then choose an image file in the Custom field below. The skin texture may also be switched off by selecting "None".
Custom
When the skin texture is set to "Custom", this field is used to specify a custom image file to be used for the skin. Click the "..." button to the right to open a file browser for easier file selection.
Repeat
Sets how many times the skin texture will repeat as it is mapped on the object. For example, set this to "3" and the skin texture will be displayed in a 3x3 repeating grid on the object. Setting this to values greater than "1" works best with textures that tile seamlessly.
Multi-coloured
If this box is checked, colours will be applied randomly to the surface of the Polymorf object. This can be used in combination with reflection and/or skin textures, or can be used with the textures switched off.
Screen settings
Display mode
Sets the screen resolution with which the screen saver will run.
Anti-aliasing
Enabled anti-aliasing, if your graphics hardware supports it. Note that switching this on will disable the Trails feature due to an internal DirectX limitation.
If you wish to get in touch with me, you can do so via my web site:
www.adamdawes.com