Dragon's Eye News

OneNote has been written about ad-infinitum as a tool for note taking in meetings and classes, as a general information repository and as a collaboration tool but I'd like to introduce you to another use that I'm putting OneNote to.

Making holograms.

Or more specifically, documenting both the process I go through when creating a hologram and the results from that process in the form of notes and pictures.

As most of you will probably know, OneNote is a great repository for all sorts of information. It has allowed me to combine a number of sources into one place so that when needed, I can easily refer back to previous results when I'm making a new hologram.

Continue reading "Using OneNote to make holograms"

Alright, just to get it right out in the open, the Ambient Design guys rock.

Besides being a nice bunch of people (actually I've only corresponded with Matt Fox-Wilson and I'm sure he doesn't remember but they're all great guys, I'm sure) and I've probably been swayed somewhat because they've got a cat as a mascot but if you haven't tried Art Rage with either a Tablet PC or a Wacom compatible digitizer, you're missing out.

Continue reading "Art Rage 2.5"

Over the weekend I had the time to start testing the latest batch of photopolymer from Polygrama and I have to tell you that it was a pleasure to work with. But let me back up a bit and take you to the beginning of the testing session. [first posted Tuesday, March 15. 2005] [updated 3/30 with the latest round of results & consolidated into one post] Continue reading "Want a photopolymer that works?"

As some already know, this paper took forever to finish but it's done and ready for the world to read.

If you've got any comments or questions just let me know.

Here's an excerpt from the the introduction: This paper describes the methods used by myself and Andres Ghisays in building our latest tables as well as a set of recommendations for those considering doing the same.

Hexcel is a honeycomb material often used by the aerospace industry for making structural panels that are very light but extremely stiff or strong. They're used in aircraft wings, walkways, satellites, Moon-bound spacecraft and can even be found in many cars.

Hexcel honeycomb (hereafter just referred to as "Hexcel") as discussed here is a flat panel made out of aluminum in the shape of a honeycomb.

Click here to download and read the PDF paper Continue reading "Building a holography table with Hexcel"

Back in November, during the PCGG-II gathering, several people spent a lot of time and effort trying to get a hologram out of the Liti Holographics material. After the gathering I put together a review and sent it off to Liti for comment. Continue reading "Litiholographics Kit"

Well, PCGG-II is over. Many thanks to Dinesh and Joy for hosting the event and giving me a place to stay while there. It was a great weekend and I'm looking forward to the next gathering.

Continue reading "PCGG-II Trip report"

The release of Graham Saxby's third edition of Practical Holography shows how well the author understands what people need from a complete book on holography.

He takes the reader through what a hologram is, the history of holography, what sort of light sources can be used to make a hologram, what kinds have been made to date and so on through to making and displaying your own images.

The book is written in a clear and concise manner and is augmented by additional tips, definitions, and observations in the margins as well as extensive source references at the end of each chapter.

If you're new to the field or hobby of holography you should make this one of the first books you buy. Even if you're an old hand this book will probably show you a few new tricks.

Click here for the full review

Continue reading "Practical Holography 3rd Edition, Graham Saxby"

The holy grail of hobbyist holography books. Yes, this book is that good. It's presented with an easy to understand style and saves the theory for later (when you've been captured by the magic of making holograms).

Click here for the full review

Continue reading "Holography Handbook, Unterseher, et. al"

Run like the wind. Run fast and very far away from this book. To quote another reviewer "This is the worst book on Holography in print."

Check out some of the reviews from Amazon, although I urge you to ignore the paid reviews, the people who read the book don't understand holography any more than the author does.

The reviews on Amazon are interesting in that there was an incredible run to review that book in June and July of 2001 and that all the reviews were positive. Makes one wonder if the Amazon reviewer rumors are true.

Note that for this review I didn't have access to the CD since I checked out the book from the library and the CD had been kept by someone else. Even though I obtained the book for free, I still feel like I've been ripped off.

Click here for the full review

Continue reading "Holograms and Holography - Vacca"