particleIllusion (pIllusion for short) is a stand-alone

Stand-alone

Standalone software can mean:* Computer software that can work offline, i.e. does not necessarily require network connection to function* Software that is not a part of some software bundle...

 computer graphics

Computer graphics

Computer graphics are graphics created using computers and, more generally, the representation and manipulation of image data by a computer with help from specialized software and hardware....

 application based on the particle system

Particle system

The term particle system refers to a computer graphics technique to simulate certain fuzzy phenomena, which are otherwise very hard to reproduce with conventional rendering techniques...

 technique which allows users to create graphical animations, e.g. fire, explosions, smoke, fireworks, and various abstract visual effects

Visual effects

Visual effects are the various processes by which imagery is created and/or manipulated outside the context of a live action shoot. Visual effects involve the integration of live-action footage and generated imagery to create environments which look realistic, but would be dangerous, costly, or...

. The predecessor of pIllusion is Illusion 2 (1999~2001) which is licensed to Impulse Inc. The chief programmer, Alan Lorence was in disagreement with Impulse Inc and formed another company namely Wondertouch. The upgraded version of Illusion has been rebranded and released as
particleIllusion 3.0, which features new functions such as super emitter and force field.

Overview

The program works solely in two dimensional space, but the random motion of particles may provide a virtually three dimensional

Three-dimensional space

Three-dimensional space is a geometric 3-parameters model of the physical universe in which we live. These three dimensions are commonly called length, width, and depth , although any three directions can be chosen, provided that they do not lie in the same plane.In physics and mathematics, a...

 animation. pIllusion can be supported by OpenGL

OpenGL

OpenGL is a standard specification defining a cross-language, cross-platform API for writing applications that produce 2D and 3D computer graphics. The interface consists of over 250 different function calls which can be used to draw complex three-dimensional scenes from simple primitives. OpenGL...

 to accelerate the rendering

Rendering (computer graphics)

Rendering is the process of generating an image from a model , by means of computer programs. A scene file contains objects in a strictly defined language or data structure; it would contain geometry, viewpoint, texture, lighting, and shading information as a description of the virtual scene...

 speed which allows an accurate real-time preview with a proper video display card.