Quote:Originally posted by Bachus
Just want to add my vote for Hash's Animation: Master.
I can't speak on Hash's support (as I've never looked for any) and the lack of an OS X version is annoying (though it works fine for me in Classic), but I oh so love the modeler.

I just got their latest flyer in the mail - they say a Mac OS X version is coming in 2003. Hopefully that doesnt mean they are going to release the X version 9 months from now!!

What does anybody think of Blender (http://www.blender3d.org)?

I've been looking for a good 3d renderer...

Quote:The LW demo has a watermark but the edu. doesn't.

any water mark is fairly simple to get rid of also.

Ones with transparent logos (like LW's watermark) aren't.

Quote:Originally posted by AJ Infinity
Oh yes LW is very hard to learn.

C4D's a good choice because the majority of it's features are better than LW's. For example, LW Modeller exports
only to LWO and EPSF (whatever that is).

Encapsulated Postscript Format.

Sorry. I have a head for acronyms.

Someone asked about Strata. I've used it for years.

They got a bump when the first Myst used it. For a long time, "they lived on that." Then some silly 3D-TV company without a clue bought them. New versions were delayed and when they shipped, they were buggy. That really hurt their business. Much like Electric Image and PLAY drama. Like E.I., the companys went back to their owners and roots. And now are going forward. Strata has a VERY good rendering engine. It also has a good shader/material creator. For making quick mechanical objects, it is good. To make animation, it is not. They did finally get onto Mac OS X, which is great. They have good support for Win and Mac, and a good community site at http://www.stratacafe.com. Unlike Hash, they aren't likely to kick you off the Strata list either. Their community is pretty nice I think.

To me, companies offer education versions so that when you get a job, you are apt to use what you learned in school at your work place. (Or ask for it, or buy it, etc)

I also have tried Amo Pro. It is interesting. Try ZSculpt/Paint sometime. Without doing nothing, like on a ZScript and watch an alien head be created before your very eyes. WOW! It is super cool.

Cheers

I am thinking a buying a 3D animation education software. I have Maya, LightWave, and Cinema 4D. I want a program that I can just stick with so I don't have to purchase all these different programs. I also want a program good with game development and low-poly models. Maya is very expensive and I hear the academic license expires after a year and that the lightwave license does not expire at all. Lightwave and cinema 4D are both very well priced. I hear lightwave is better with the game development area, but harder to learn compared to cinema 4D. I will be purchasing a package this summer so I have a while till I do so.

Jack

I have trouble making models in Cinema. LW has some features that are just more useful in games. There are PLENTY of LW tutorials on the web. In your other thread I gave links to them at the beginning. Plus there are GREAT LW books on the market, including Inside LightWave 7, which is the best LW book.

I think we all heard that you like LW and think it is the best, but we have supplied Snick with enough info, saying the same thing again won't help.

To tell you the truth, I can't figure out why he posted in this thread anyway when he had it in the thread he'd already started.

sorry i ask the same questions, its just I dont want to spend money on something I will end up hating. I think I will be buying Lightwave 3D 7 academic . How long do you think it would take to learn? Any good tutorial books? What are the modeling and animation tools like? From what i've heard so far, lightwave is harder to learn than Maya and 3Ds max. I always thought that maya and 3ds max were harder than lightwave from reviews and articles I have read.

There is an active LW user community on the net today. There are many tutorials.

If anyone is wondering... I am closing threads that don't seem to die even though the questions have been answered, and GOOGLE exists. For MORE info on a subject, re-read the thread, see who knows what they are taalking about, and then send them an email...

Cheers