I'm just not thinking straight... hope someone can clear the cobwebs out o' my head.

How would I create an action that allows a random 'frame' from that action to effect multiple (but similar or same) models in the choreography window?

Example:
Drop the same action on two identical models in the Chor and they each get modified differently based on either a random or semi-random part of the pose/action. A way that the action could be controlled by either a random element...

I'm thinking too hard... expression? Ease?

I dunno.

Edit: Maybe just making the action a chor action with an expression to randomize a pose?

I tried this a while back to no avail. My mattress animation was originally planned to have a swamp background with plenty of trees - there would only be one or two real trees but there would be poses to deform the trees into different shapes. I came to the conclusion that the random() function would always start with the same seed for that particular action for consistency. If it behaved otherwise then someone else would be frustrated in just the same way you are but for th opposite reason. I don't know if your alternative suggestion (doing it in the chor) would work, but that strikes me as negating the usefulness of a separate Action.

You could always submit a feature request for a way to overcome this, but I don't know how it would be done. Maybe an ON/OFF property for an Action along the lines of "Set new random seed for each instance of this Action."

I'm probably not completely understanding what you're asking, Rodney. However, the thing that I'm thinking (that may or may not be helpful) is that you could make several poses and then make an Expression that triggers them randomly or based on the timeline...they could be either on/off poses or percentage poses, depending on what you're after.

Hope that helps...somehow. If I fully understood, it would probably be a better suggestion.

Stuart/David,
Thanks for the responses.

I have a long running project that I've been looking for various elements to make it work before really digging in. I'm beyond tired of starting a project only to find I can't pull off the basic requirements and pushing it aside... again... and again. Part of it is the time I have to devote to a single project... part is that I don't want to focus on a single project... working outside my competence... complex projects... life... work... and procrastination. Its the nature of the beast as I have too many ideas to realistically implement. I'm having fun and enjoying all things A:M related though!

This one is close though.
Just because I find an answer doesn't mean it'll work in every instance... but it'll add more to my understanding of what I can do with the tools. Little by little the puzzle pieces get in place.

Stuart, your example is pretty close to the test I ran last night.
I decided to create a modest attempt at the Loon's forest to examine the results of using the 'Mulitple models on a spline' plugin. It worked well.

I drew a couple splines and multiplied some trees around a inverted fishbowl type spline.
Trees duplicated perfectly around the spline to create the first level of trees around the pathway to the clearing. One thing didn't work so well... the trees all looked the same.

What I'm started to investigate then was what it would take to have the trees deform in various ways based on either their location, proximity to another object (Null would be sweet!) or an action dropped onto the model. My question here is to resolve the issue of the action which would randomly change a setting on the tree. It might control height, girth/scale, rotation to provide some variety to trees that are otherwise exactly the same.

This isn't a full solution of course and there are many attacks to consider.
To maximize variety having several instances of different tree models would be ideal.
In the case of the Loon's forest most trees can probably be similar.

This of course is just the test case.
The answer is there I suspect the Expression Tech Talk supplies the answer to part of the problem.

For anyone interested in testing... I do highly recommend the use of simple proxy models to begin with.
Once they are in place its easy to select a group of models and change them all to the more detailed model.

Thanks again for putting up with my random explorations.

When I have understand your request right , try the new MMoP version

There's a 'multiple models on a spline' plugin? I missed that. You could always use this with several splines, one for each of several model types, with the splines interweaving. Not as easy as what you're after, but possibly of some use.Perhaps we could convince one of our handy plug-in writers to create a plug-in that effectively acts like the crowd flock, except that it actually adds a number of real object instances to the chor using a surface constraint for each object. The difference between this and a crowd is that the user can tweak the position of each object (maybe adding "aim at camera" constraints if need be - the plug-in could do this for you). (Take all this with a pinch of salt - I haven't really thought this through very much.)
EDIT: Ooh, I see Steffan's paying attention... maybe we're in luck!

You have gotta be freakin' kidding me.

You are one very dangerous man Steffen.
I don't know how you do it... but keep on doing it.

Thank you! Thank You! Thank You!

(one of your many fans)
Rodney

Oh! I completely misunderstood. But, it looks like Steffen has solved the problem....another plugin I'll have to try. Thanks again, Steffen!