I made a long box to use as a "text crawler" sign.  Because I UV mapped it with minimal distortion, the template is just a strip along the bottom of the standard UV 0-1 space square.  My template was 1024 pixels wide, but I made the text objects 2048 pixels wide.  Remember, not all of the text is on screen at any given time.

     Use the frame number variable node to nudge the U offset, and the text will slide leftward.  I also tiled a honeycomb pattern (320 times) to give the text a pixelated look.

.     ShockWave Flash animation of text crawler sign:

.     This enlarges to a still frame render to show pixelated text:

.     Runtime zip of the text crawler sign here.    

     Copyright 2012 seachnasaigh.  EULA:  The text crawler sign is intended as a tutorial prop.  You may copy the materials and use the meshes and the texturing images in your own models, including for redistribution, both freebie and commercial.

     The following images demonstrate the restrictions on P8/PP2010 IDL light casting objects, and the advantages in using P9/PP2012 for self-lit objects.

     This is the P8 version of a lightsabre;  the aura is ghosted,  the blade within is solid-shaded, and I have selected (yellow highlighting) the IDL emitter concealed just inside the blade.  This way, P8 renders will show the blade, and the IDL effect of the emitter, without the emitter itself being visible.  However, the emitter's surface area is small, so it's cast light may be splotchy and insufficient.

.     Compare this to the IDL emitter on the P9 version;  the emitter is about three times the diameter of blade, and so has much more surface area from which to cast light than the P8 emitter.  We can get away with having the P9 emitter "exposed" well outside of the blade because of P9's visible in camera box, which we'll un-tick for the emitter. 

.     Another refinement was to re-form the aura with undulating waves, so as to make the aura's visibility more consistent.

.     Here's a render of the P8 lightsabre...

.     And this is the P9 lightsabre...

.     P9 Lightsabre in runtime zip.  Copyright seachnasaigh 2011.  EULA:  This model is free for both personal and commercial renders.  Do not redistribute.

.     Laser beam with "hit" burst at the end, in pz3.  Copyright seachnasaigh 2011.  EULA:  This model is free for both personal and commercial renders.  Do not redistribute.

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Poser 12, in feet.  

OSes:  Win7Prox64, Win7Ultx64

Silo Pro 2.5.6 64bit, Vue Infinite 2014.7, Genetica 4.0 Studio, UV Mapper Pro, UV Layout Pro, PhotoImpact X3, GIF Animator 5