Adding tons of text causes lag

[cyclonejack]

I have to create a game for an assignment and a feature I added was a "how to play" page with the instructions for the game. I had to create individual lines of 3d text that moved into the screen then moved out of screen to usher in the next line of text. I would've just written all the instructions into one block of text but Alice wouldn't allow for this and would give me error messages. Immediately after the instructions the user enters into a game arena and has the ability to move the camera using the arrow keys. The issue I am experiencing is that when the user moves the camera pass where the text was displayed (the text now at this point has been set to 0% opacity) the program lags and the movement is no longer smooth. Is there a way to have the text removed from the program at this point after the instructions have been called and the player has moved into the game world event to avoid it causing this hiccup?

[sfunk]

Check out the attachment, I made comments in the method called "First Step". These comments should give you directions on how to recreate the code. If not the code is there for you to look at. All you will have to do to get the effect of moving the text, is just using a simple move function, after the text string changes.

I hope it helps.

Just ask if you have questions. I don't normally get on a lot though.

[MrMoke]

Good advice from SFunk, and I've used many times. For large volumes of text the use of billboards is also a handy feature of Alice.
The idea is to create an image with all of the text, and to import it as a Billboard. My modified version of SFunk's post adds an animation of two billboards that I created using Gimp.
Following this process gives you the advantage of learning how to use another product to add new stuff to an Alice World while minimizing coding and memory.

I also added the zipped Gimp project file if you are interested.

Have Fun.

[cyclonejack]

Thank you guys for the advice!