Nex Gen Viz

3ds Max 2012 New Features

2011-03-11T13:57:00.001-05:00

More new features of 3ds Max 2012 from Autodesk's website:

Sculpting and Painting Enhancements
Enjoy greater control over brushstrokes and their effects on geometry, thanks to new sculpting and painting workflows. Useful in topology reduction workflows, the new Conform brush guides geometry towards another surface, with the degree of the conforming effect varying from softly approaching to shrink-wrapping. Modelers can slide vertices along target surfaces with the new transform brushes: Move, Rotate, Scale, and Relax. In addition, Paint Deform brushstrokes—for tools such as Push, Flatten, and Exaggerate—can be constrained to a spline, enabling it to be used as a guide or ruler, or to easily repeat freehand strokes.

Stylistic Rendering
Create a variety of non-photorealistic (NPR) effects that help simulate artistic styles, with the new ability to render stylized images in the viewport and with the Quicksilver renderer. The looser, more abstract style of NPR imagery helps designers and architects more effectively communicate their core design intent while deemphasizing distracting or incomplete design details

ProOptimizer Enhancements
You can now optimize models faster, more efficiently, and with better results, using the enhanced ProOptimizer feature. ProOptimizer now offers normal and UV interpolation, together with the ability to keep high-resolution normals on the low-resolution result.

3ds Max Design Only
Civil View Feature Set
Turn complex civil design geometry into precise and compelling 3D design visualizations faster and more efficiently with the 3ds Max Design Civil View feature set. With simple, style-driven functionality and an extensive library of parametric civil-oriented objects and materials, Civil View helps civil engineers achieve stunning results, even those with little or no detailed knowledge of 3ds Max Design. Civil View dynamically links to data from AutoCAD Civil 3D civil engineering software and other software products such as Bentley MXROAD software. When design changes occur, design visualizations are more easily refreshed, enabling them to evolve in tandem. Civil View now offers enhanced support for the new iray and Quicksilver rendering solutions for faster results and simplified setup

3ds Max 2012 New Features

2011-03-11T13:51:00.002-05:00

More new features of 3ds max 2012 from the Autodesk website:

Single-Step Suites Interoperability
Take advantage of the focused toolsets in the Autodesk 3ds Max Entertainment Creation Suites 2012, with new single-step interoperability between 3ds Max and Autodesk Mudbox 2012 software, Autodesk MotionBuilder 2012 software, and Autodesk Softimage 2012 software. Export 3ds Max scenes to Mudbox to add sculpted and painted details, and then update the scene in 3ds Max in one simple step. Take a 3ds Max scene to MotionBuilder to access the animation toolset, without having to think about file format details. And tap into the power of the Softimage ICE (Interactive Creative Environment) particle system directly from your 3ds Max scene.

Autodesk Alias Products Interoperability
Enjoy smoother interoperability with Autodesk Alias Design software for industrial design, with the ability to import .WIRE files natively into 3ds Max Design and 3ds Max as Bodies objects, preserving object names, hierarchies, layers, and material names. Designers can now interactively adjust tessellation results inside 3ds Max Design and 3ds Max to help fine-tune their visualization, and add sculpted details on top of Alias Design reference data using the intuitive Graphite polygon modeling toolset in 3ds Max Design and 3ds Max

Enhanced UVW Unwrapping
Create better UVW maps in less time, with a new Least Squares Conformal Mapping (LSCM) method, enhancements to existing tools, and more streamlined workflows. The LSCM method preserves local angles of the mesh faces in order to help minimize texture distortion. Employed in a new ‘Peel’ tool, the new method produces unwrapped UVWs from cut seams with a single click.

Vector Displacement Map Support
With new support for Vector Displacement Maps (VDMs) in 3ds Max and 3ds Max Design, you can use mental ray renderer or iray to render complex high-resolution details created in Autodesk Mudbox software or certain other packages on low-resolution geometry. VDMs can represent directional displacements that do not simply follow the normal: for example, forms with appendages, undercuts, folds, and bulges.

3ds Max 2012 New Features

2011-03-11T13:48:00.002-05:00

Autodesk has announced some of the new features of 3ds Max 2012:

Nitrous Accelerated Graphics Core

A top priority of the Excalibur (XBR) initiative to restructure 3ds Max and 3ds Max Design was to introduce a new viewport system engineered to help provide dramatic improvements in performance and visual quality. The new Nitrous core leverages GPUs and multi-core workstations to enable you to iterate faster and handle larger data sets with more interactivity. Advanced scene management techniques, together with multithreaded viewport scene traversal and material evaluation, result in a smoother, more responsive workflow. Furthermore, Nitrous provides a render-quality display environment that supports unlimited lights, soft shadows, screen-space ambient occlusion, tone-mapping, and higher-quality transparency

Substance Procedural Textures
Achieve a vast range of look variations with a new library of 80 Substance procedural textures. These dynamic, resolution-independent textures have a tiny disk space footprint, and can be exported to certain games engines via the Substance Air middleware offering (available separately from Allegorithmic SAS). Alternatively, textures can be quickly converted to bitmaps for rendering. Some examples of dynamically editable and animatable parameters are: brick distribution, surface aging, and mortar thickness in a brick wall; and the age, roughness, curb borders, and lane markings of a street texture.

mRigids Rigid-Body Dynamics
3ds Max 2012 and 3ds Max Design 2012 introduce the MassFX unified system of simulation solvers, and deliver the first module: mRigids rigid-body dynamics. With mRigids, you can leverage the multi-threaded NVIDIA PhysX engine to create compelling, dynamic rigid-body simulations directly in the 3ds Max viewport. mRigids supports static, dynamic, and kinematic rigid bodies (the latter for rag doll simulations), and a number of constraints: Rigid, Slide, Hinge, Twist, Universal, Ball & Socket, and Gear.

iray Renderer
Creating realistic images has never been easier with 3ds Max and 3ds Max Design, using the newly incorporated iray rendering technology from mental images. Get more predictable, photo-real results that more accurately portray the physical world without worrying about rendering settings— similar to a ‘point-and-shoot’ camera. Focus on your creative vision and intuitively use real world materials, lighting, and settings to more accurately portray the physical world; iray progressively refines the image until the desired level of detail is achieved. iray works with standard multi-core CPUs, however, NVIDIA CUDA-enabled GPU hardware will significantly accelerate the rendering process.

3ds Max 2012 System Requirements - 64 Bit

2011-03-01T22:42:00.001-05:00

64-Bit 3ds Max 2012 or 3ds Max Design 2012 for Windows:

Operating system: Microsoft Windows 7 Professional x64, Microsoft Windows Vista Business x64 (SP2 or higher), or Microsoft Windows XP Professional x64 (SP3 or higher)

For general animation and rendering (typically fewer than 1,000 objects or 100,000 polygons):
Intel 64 or AMD64 processor with SSE2 technology
4 GB RAM (8 GB recommended)
4 GB swap space (8 GB recommended)
3 GB free hard drive space
Direct3D 10, Direct3D 9, or OpenGL-capable graphics card (256 MB or higher video card memory, 1 GB recommended)
Three-button mouse with mouse driver software
DVD-ROM drive
Microsoft Internet Explorer 8.0 or higher or Mozilla Firefox 3.0 or higher browser
Internet connection for web downloads and Autodesk Subscription-aware access

For large scenes and complex data sets (typically more than 1,000 objects or 100,000 polygons):
Intel 64 or AMD64 processor with SSE2 technology
8 GB RAM
8 GB swap space
3 GB free hard drive space
Direct3D 10, Direct3D 9, or OpenGL-capable graphics card (1 GB or higher video card memory)
Three-button mouse with mouse driver software
DVD-ROM drive
Microsoft Internet Explorer 8.0 or higher or Mozilla Firefox 3.0 or higher browser
Internet connection for web downloads and Autodesk Subscription-aware access

3ds Max 2012 System Requirements - 32 Bit

2011-03-01T20:08:00.001-05:00

32-Bit 3ds Max 2012 or 3ds Max Design 2012 for Windows:

Operating system: Microsoft Windows 7 Professional operating system, Microsoft Windows Vista Business operating system (SP2 or higher), or Microsoft Windows XP Professional operating system (SP3 or higher)

For general animation and rendering (typically fewer than 1,000 objects or 100,000 polygons):
Intel Pentium 4 1.4 GHz or equivalent AMD processor with SSE2 technology
2 GB RAM (4 GB recommended)
2 GB swap space (4 GB recommended)
3 GB free hard drive space
Direct3D 10 technology, Direct3D 9, or OpenGL-capable graphics card (256 MB or higher video card memory, 1 GB or higher recommended)
Three-button mouse with mouse driver software
DVD-ROM drive
Microsoft Internet Explorer 8.0 internet browser or higher or Mozilla Firefox 3.0 internet browser or higher
Internet connection for web downloads and Autodesk Subscription-aware access

3ds Max 2011 Announced

2010-03-09T14:30:00.002-05:00

Autodesk has announced some of the new features of 3ds Max 2011:

http://news.autodesk.com/portal/site/autodesk/?ndmViewId=news_view&newsId=20100309005318&newsLang=en

http://area.autodesk.com/blogs/ken/3ds_max_2011_announced

Slate Material Editor
Easily visualize and edit material component relationships with Slate, a new node-based material editor that helps significantly improve workflow and productivity for artists creating and editing complex material networks. The intuitive schematic framework is engineered to handle the vast numbers of materials required by today’s demanding productions.

Quicksilver Hardware Renderer
Create high-fidelity pre-visualizations, animatics, and games-related marketing materials in less time with Quicksilver, an innovative new hardware renderer that helps produce high-quality images at incredible speeds. This new multi-threaded rendering engine utilizes both the CPU and the GPU, and supports alpha and z-buffer render elements; depth-of-field; motion blur; dynamic reflections; area, photometric, ambient occlusion, and indirect lighting effects along with precision adaptive shadow maps; and the ability to render at larger-than-screen resolutions.

Local Edits to Containers
Collaborate more efficiently with significantly enhanced workflows for Containers that enable users to layer local edits non-destructively on top of referenced content. Meet tight deadlines by working in parallel: while one user iteratively edits unlocked aspects of the container, another can continue to refine the underlying data. Multiple users can contribute changes to different elements of the same container at once, while simultaneous edits to the same component are prevented.

Modeling and Texturing Enhancements
Accelerate modeling and texturing tasks with new tools that extend the Graphite modeling and Viewport Canvas toolsets: a revised toolset for 3D painting and editing textures within the viewport; the ability to paint with object brushes to create geometry within a scene; a new brush interface for editing UVW coordinates; and an interactive tool for extending edge loops.

Viewport Display of 3ds Max Materials
Develop and refine scenes in a high-fidelity interactive display environment—without the constant need to re-render— with the new ability to view most 3ds Max texture maps and materials in the viewport. Modelers and animators can make interactive decisions in a context that more closely matches the final output, helping reduce errors and enhance the creative storytelling process.

3ds Max Composite
Enhance rendered passes and incorporate them into live action footage with 3ds Max Composite: a fully-featured, high-performance, HDR-capable compositor, based on technology from Autodesk Toxik software. The 3ds Max Composite toolset incorporates keying, color correction, tracking, camera mapping, raster and vector paint, spline-based warping, motion blur, depth of field, and tools to support stereoscopic productions.

In-Context Direct Manipulation UI
Save time when modeling and maintain focus on the creative task at hand with a new in-context user interface (UI) for polygon modeling tools that eliminates unnecessary mouse movement away from the model. Modelers can interactively manipulate properties, enter values directly at the point of interest in the viewport, and preview results prior to committing changes.

CAT Integration
More easily create and manage characters, and layer, load, save, remap, and mirror animations with the Character Animation Toolkit (CAT). Now fully integrated into 3ds Max, CAT provides an out-of-the-box advanced rigging and animation system. With its approachable, flexible toolset, animators can use default settings in CAT to help achieve high-quality results in less time—or completely customize rigs to include arbitrary morphology, embedded custom behaviors, and procedural controllers for more demanding character set-ups.

Ribbon Customization
Maximize the usable workspace and focus on the features that matter most for specialized workflows with customizable Ribbon layouts. Create and store personalized UI configurations that include frequently-used action items and macro scripts, and toggle the display of these configurations with the touch of a hotkey or button.

mental ray 2011
The latest version of mental ray renderer included with 3ds Max offers enhanced performance and stability.

Updated OpenEXR Image IO Plug-in
An updated OpenEXR plug-in supports unlimited layers in one EXR file and automatically stores Render Elements and G-Buffer channels to EXR layers.

Save to Previous Release
Manage the transition to 3ds Max 2011 with the option to save scene files in a format compatible with 3ds Max 2010.

Windows 7 Support
3ds Max 2011 adds Windows 7 operating system as a supported platform.

FBX File Link with Autodesk Revit
Receive and manage updates to a file imported from Autodesk Revit Architecture software using the new FBX File Link.

Native Solids Import/Export
Non-destructively transfer trimmed surfaces, solids models, and assemblies between 3ds Max and certain other CAD applications that support SAT files.

Autodesk Material Library
Choose from up to 1,200 material templates, and more accurately exchange materials with other supporting Autodesk applications.

Google SketchUp Importer
Efficiently import Google SketchUp sketching software (SKP) version 6 and 7 files into 3ds Max.

Inventor Import Improvements
Import Autodesk Inventor software files into 3ds Max without the requirement for Inventor to be installed on the same machine. Plus, get better results when importing solids objects, materials, surfaces, and composites.

3ds Max 2010 Design New UI Features

2009-02-06T22:39:00.003-05:00

User Interface Refresh
The 3ds Max Design user interface has been updated to allow for task‐based workflows. As a result, key functionality becomes much more accessible when it’s needed most through context sensitive user interface components.

Adobe Photoshop Interoperability
Artists can now assign a Microsoft DirectX software material to an object and reference individual layers in Adobe Photoshop .psd files as a texture input, for enhanced interoperability with Photoshop. Additionally, the Viewport Canvas also offers support for Photoshop blending modes and quick updating of textures on 3ds Max Design models.

3ds Max Design 2010 Animation Features

2009-02-06T22:38:00.000-05:00

Support for Locked Tracks
3ds Max Design 2010 supports the locking of any parameter that can be animated, including those with animation layers. Wires, expressions and scripts will still evaluate when locked, but they will not be editable. Vital for people working in teams, this toolset enables users to prevent team members from editing specific tracks.

Link Constraint
Support for a new Link constraint enables users to quickly animate the links between objects using the standard 3ds Max Design keyframe animation UI. The tool lets them quickly see their constrained frame numbers and access linked keyframes in the Trackbar, Dope Sheet and Curve Editor.

3ds Max Design 2010 Advanced Effects Features

2009-02-06T22:35:00.002-05:00

PFlowAdvanced
PFlowAdvanced lets users incorporate sophisticated particle effects into their scenes - perfect for creating water features, fireplaces, or other elements. It includes 14 operators new to 3ds Max Design including new precision Painting tools (for precise particle placement), the Shape Plus operator (for defining the shape of particles) and a wide range of Grouping operators (for creating subsets of particles). It also extends and optimizes the previous PFlow functionality while reducing user interface (UI) complexity, resulting in vastly improved performance and a streamlined, thoroughly 3ds Max Design workflow.

Cloth
A whole new range of cloth effects is now available to 3ds Max Design users. The cloth toolset now supports pressure settings for simulating inflated, enclosed cloth surfaces (e.g. cushions, balloons) and cloth can now be torn with variable strength and timing (e.g. cutting, tearing and unzipping cloth). Collision objects can even be set to cut cloth when they collide. Finally, a new Inherit Velocity tool blends a new simulation with one from previous frames to create a smooth transition for staged simulations.

Hair
The 3ds Max Design Hair toolset has now been enhanced to give visualization specialists more precise control over the styling and animation of hair (often used for grass). A new Spline Deform feature enables them to add splines to a set of hairs which act as control guides so that the hairs can be posed, keyed or assigned a dynamic target - with the hair following.

ProSound
Add a new level of professionalism to presentations by adding musical scores, ambient sound and narration with the new ProSound multi‐track audio system. The new 3ds Max Design ProSound toolset enables users to add up to 100 audio tracks to their scenes and animate the volume of each track. The technology supports both PCM and compressed audio in AVI and WAV format with up to six output channels.

3ds Max Design 2010 Data and Scene Management Features

2009-02-06T22:28:00.003-05:00

Containers
The addition of the Containers toolset to 3ds Max Design facilitates collaboration and flexible workflows by enabling users to collect multiple objects into a single container when dealing with complex scenes. Related objects (e.g. sections of a city) can be placed in a container and treated as a single element. Opening the container exposes the content while closing the container externalizes the data. Containers can be temporarily unloaded from the scene, toggling data in and out as needed to manage complexity. Such workflows can save memory, increase viewport performance and decrease load and save times. Container nodes can be translated, deleted, copied, or saved - affecting everything in the container. Containers also override object properties - so users can organize scene display using container properties without affecting layer organization (similar to a nested layer workflow). Multiple containers created by others can be referenced into a single scene ‐ enabling users to work in‐context with each other. Accessing and editing each other’s container is managed with permissions on the container - allowing flexible workflows while also imposing constraints on what can be edited.

Enhanced Scene Explorer
With 3ds Max Design 2010, Autodesk continues to expand the functionality of the Scene Explorer and increase its level of integration with the rest of the software. This powerful scene management toolset now works with viewports, Track View, as well as the Material Explorer. Additionally, Scene Explorer now offers improved management tools - making it easier to navigate, inspect and modify the properties of objects in a scene.

OBJ Import Improvements
Improved OBJ plug‐in performance and expanded support for the OBJ file format facilitate the importing and exporting of model data between Mudbox software and 3ds Max Design - as well as other third‐party 3D digital sculpting applications. Users will now be able to see if their OBJ files contain texture coordinates and smoothing groups. They will also have options for triangulating polygons on import, choosing how normals are imported and for saving presets for normal and polygon import, for future use.

Flight Studio Support
A new 3ds Max Design plug‐in enables users to import and export OpenFlight format scenes (FLT files). Users can now load, edit and export OpenFlight scene graphs and databases from within 3ds Max Design - while retaining scene graph structure and attributes. Instead of translating and losing data, 3ds Max Design can be used as an OpenFlight editor.

3ds Max Design 2010 Additional Rendering Features

2009-02-06T22:23:00.002-05:00

Real‐Time Photometric Lighting and Viewport Exposure Control
For the architect who wishes to experiment with advanced lighting effects in their viewport, 3ds Max Design 2010 delivers real-time photometric lighting and exposure control. Not only do these features support timesaving, iterative workflows, exposure control can improve the accuracy of final renderings.

Support for High Resolution Render Output
Enhancements to the 3ds Max Design automatic memory management feature enables architects and designers to render out large, print resolution images with 32-bit systems.

Multi‐Map Shader: mental ray
A new 3ds Max Design Multi‐Map Shader for mental ray lets users purposely assign specific color variations to a set of objects that otherwise share the same material. It can also be used to quickly randomize or assign colors to multiple objects/maps based on object IDs or Material IDs. This new capability could be used to randomize the colors of trees, leaves, crowds, or anything repetitive that could benefit from a degree of color variation.

Animation Flicker Reduction: mental ray
3ds Max Design 2010 enables users to render animation sequences in mental ray with indirect illumination calculations (Final Gather), greatly reducing or eliminating traditional flickering issues. The ability to use the Final Gather cache, and render animation sequences faster has also been improved.

Final Gather Progressive Rendering
Progressive feedback has now been added for mental ray Final Gather, helping artists to more quickly evaluate their rendering results.

Render Surface Map
3ds Max Design 2010 enables architects and designers to generate bitmaps based on the surface of the geometry (Density maps, Dust maps, SubSurface maps, and Cavity maps) that can be used as masks to blend textures. Maps can also be generated from subobject selections and wrapped textures that are generated automatically with blended seams. These provide a good starting point for painting or layering details in bitmaps. For example, an architect might generate a Cavity grayscale bitmap where the crevices on the object are darkest, use this as a mask to blend dirt, rust, or emphasize contours with shading.

Linear Color Space Workflow
Gamma correction has been improved to correctly handle images and textures for a physically accurate rendering workflow where color consistency is critical. Gamma settings now load correctly with files and propagate correctly on network rendering solutions.

3ds Max Design 2010 New Rendering Features

2009-02-06T17:50:00.003-05:00

mental mill/MetaSL Support
3ds Max Design 2010 is the first animation package to integrate the mental images powerful mental mill technology. This means that 3ds Max Design users will be able to develop, test and maintain shaders and complex shader graphs for hardware and software rendering with real‐time visual feedback - no programming skills required. MetaSL shaders can be created using the included mental mill Artist Edition software. These shaders are completely hardware agnostic, meaning they do not need to be re-authored for different target platforms. mental mill supports CgFX, HLSL, and GLSL, as well as C++ for mental ray technology and RealityServer; plus, the mental mill application programming interface (API) enables third parties to develop back‐end plug-ins for other targets, including special purpose processors and other software renderers.

Review Enhancements
Representing a major leap forward in viewport display, Review 3 helps take the guesswork out of rendering. It offers support for ambient occlusion, HDRI-based lighting, soft shadows, hardware anti-aliasing, interactive exposure control, and the revolutionary mental mill shader technology from mental images. Combined with prior abilities for textures, bump maps and photometric area lights - viewports give you live feedback like never before. The Viewport menu system has also been re-designed to significantly improve the user experience. For example, you can now take advantage of the Layer Manager to control groups of lights (light banks) to quickly turn on and off lights in the viewport, similar to what you can do with the 3ds Max Design software renderer.

Exposure Lighting Analysis Improvements
Simulate the lighting in your designs with confidence - Exposure lighting analysis technology has been validated by the National Research Council Canada (NRC), Canada’s leading organization for scientific research and development, and the same organization that has conducted validation studies on Radiance for lighting simulation. A feature unique to 3ds Max Design 2010, Exposure enables you to achieve more sustainable designs by analyzing how sun, sky, and artificial lighting interact with your design and exploring direct lighting effects right in the viewport. Load complex designs and watch lighting levels adjust in the scene as colors.

Interactive Lighting Analysis
A unique and new feature of 3ds Max Design 2010 lets you analytically explore direct lighting effects with interactive results right in the viewport using the new real‐time pseudo‐color exposure control. You can use the exposure control to establish color gradations for different light levels and then interactively adjust your lights until they give the necessary coverage. You can then use Exposure to validate the results and to factor in the impact of indirect lighting effects.

Global Quality Knobs: mental ray
Architects familiar with Revit will appreciate the addition of global quality knobs to the 3ds Max Design mental ray toolset. This new feature can be used to quickly dial up or down quality settings for shadows, glossy refractions and reflections along with image antialiasing and indirect illumination quality.

3ds Max Design 2010 New Modeling and Mapping Tools

2009-02-06T17:39:00.003-05:00

Graphite Modeling Tools
3ds Max Design 2010 takes its polygon modeling tools to a whole new level. With at least 100 new tools for freeform design and advanced polygonal modeling, the Graphite modeling tools facilitate creativity and artistic freedom. Additionally, the Graphite tools are displayed in one central location, making it easier to find the tool you need for the job. Moreover, users can customize the tool display or hide the command panel and model in Expert Mode. In addition to the many modeling and mapping tools available in previous versions of the software, the Graphite toolkit includes anumber of completely new tools for such operations as:
o Sculpting with assorted brushes
o Quick re‐topologizing
o Granular polygon editing
o Locking transforms to any surface
o Freeform creation of vertices
o Modifying and creating smart selections
o Quick drawing of surfaces and shapes
o Quick transformations

Material Explorer
The Material Explorer revolutionizes the way artists interact with objects and materials. Users can now quickly browse all materials in the scene, and view material properties and relationships. The Material Explorer also enables them to replace materials - making it much easier to manage even highly complex scenes.

xView Mesh Analyzer
Validate your 3D models prior to export or rendering using the new xView mesh analyzer technology. Get an interactive view of where problems may lie to help you make crucial decisions. This key new tool makes testing of models and maps significantly faster and more efficient. Users can test or query for flipped faces, overlapping faces and unwelded vertices. They can also add their own specific tests and queries.

Viewport Canvas
New in 3ds Max Design 2010 is the ability for artists to paint on a 3D model directly in the Viewport. This means artists will be able to quickly create new maps or extend existing maps using brushes, blend modes, fill, clone and erase. The Viewport also provides quick updates for changes to textures made in Adobe Photoshop software.

ProBooleans Enhancements
A new Quadify modifier has been added to the 3ds Max Design ProBooleans toolset that enables modelers to clean up triangles in model for better subdivision and smoothing. A new Merge Boolean operation has also been added which lets them attach an object (or multiple objects) to another while maintaining the transforms, topology and modifier stacks of each object.

UVW Unwrap Enhancements
Manipulating UV maps in the Viewport is now as easy as modeling in the Viewport thanks to a significantly expanded 3ds Max Design UVW Unwrap toolset. New features include such UV Selection tools as Growing/Shrinking Rings and Loops, and quick editing tools for aligning, spacing, and stitching UVs.

ProOptimizer
The new 3ds Max Design ProOptimizer technology is ideal for quickly and intelligently optimizing high‐poly count 3D models. It enables users to precisely control the number of faces or points their scene/model has; useful faces are removed last, so that a selection can be reduced up to 75% without loss of detail. Scenes can be optimized in real time, or batch optimized. ProOptimizer technology maintains UV texture channel information and vertex color channel information, respects the symmetry of symmetrical models, preserves explicit normals, and gives users the option to protect or exclude object borders.

3ds max Design 2010 New Feature Highlights

2009-02-06T17:32:00.002-05:00

Some of the new features of 3ds max Design 2010 include:

• New Graphite modeling tools represent a modern approach to 3D modeling - over 100 tools for freeform sculpting, texture painting, and advanced polygonal modeling, unified in an new user interface.

• Create powerful referencing workflows to organize complex scenes easily by treating multiple objects and scenes as a single Container object. Set rules for the Container to control access to its content in collaborative environments. Fast loading and unloading of containers helps you improve performance and reduce memory requirements.

• The third generation of Review technology represents a major leap forward in viewport display, helping take the guesswork out of final renders. It offers support for ambient occlusion, High Dynamic Range Image (HDRI) based lighting, soft shadows, hardware anti-aliasing, interactive exposure control, and the revolutionary mental mill shader technology.

• The new Material Explorer simplifies the way artists and designers interact with objects and materials. Navigate all rendering-related assets in the scene, perform operations on multiple objects, or inspect individual materials. The Material Explorer also lets you replace materials - making iterations much easier, even in highly complex scenes.

3ds Max Design 2010 System Requirements

2009-02-06T17:27:00.002-05:00

Software Requirements

3ds Max Design 2010 requires one of the following 32‐bit or 64‐bit operating systems:
• Microsoft Windows XP Professional (Service Pack 2 or higher)
• Microsoft Windows Vista (Business, Premium and Ultimate)
• Microsoft Windows XP Professional x64
• Microsoft Windows Vista 64 bit (Business, Premium and Ultimate)

3ds Max Design 2010 requires the following internet browser:
• Microsoft Internet Explorer 6 or higher

3ds Max Design 2010 requires the following supplemental software:
• DirectX 9.0c* (required), OpenGL (optional)

* Some features of 3ds Max Design 2010 are only enabled when used with graphics hardware that supports Shader Model 3.0 (Pixel Shader and Vertex Shader 3.0). Check with your manufacturer to determine if your hardware supports Shader Model 3.0.

Hardware Requirements

At a minimum, 3ds Max Design 2010 32‐bit software requires a system with the following:
• Intel Pentium 4 or higher, AMD Athlon 64 or higher, or AMD Opteron processor
• 1 GB RAM (2 GB recommended)
• 2 GB hard disk space
• 1 GB swap space (2 GB recommended)
• Direct3D 10, Direct3D 9, or OpenGL‐capable graphics card with minimum 128 MB RAM
• Three‐button mouse with mouse driver software
• DVD‐ROM drive

Note: Apple computers based on Intel processors and running Microsoft operating systems are supported using Apple’s Boot Camp.

At a minimum, 3ds Max Design 2010 64‐bit software requires a system with the following:
• Intel EM64T, AMD Athlon 64 or higher, AMD Opteron processor
• 1 GB RAM (4 GB recommended)
• 2 GB hard disk space
• 1 GB swap space (2 GB recommended)
• Direct3D 10, Direct3D 9, or OpenGL‐capable graphics card with minimum 128 MB RAM
• Three‐button mouse with mouse driver software
• DVD‐ROM drive

3ds Max 2010 Announced by Autodesk

2009-02-06T17:24:00.001-05:00

Autodesk has announced the release of 3ds Max 2010 and 3ds max Design 2010.

Information has been posted at the Autodesk Press Room at http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/index?siteID=123112&id=11268974

Distributed Bucket Rendering with 3ds Max Design 2009

2009-01-19T01:13:00.006-05:00

When using the mental ray rendering engine in 3ds Max 2009, distributed bucket rendering can be used for speeding up the rendering of single images as you work. Especially when rendering high-resolution still images, you can get much faster results with distributed bucket rendering. This type of rendering uses the processors from other machines on your network to speed up the rendering time on your machine.

Rendering menu/main toolbar > Render Setup > Render Setup dialog > Processing panel > Distributed Bucket Rendering rollout

Note: The Processing panel appears only when the mental ray renderer is the currently active renderer.

Controls on this rollout are for setting up and managed distributed bucket rendering. With distributed rendering, multiple networked systems can all work on a mental ray rendering. Buckets are assigned to systems as they become available.

TIPS:
When you use distributed bucket rendering, be sure to:
Turn on Use Placeholder Objects on the Translator Options rollout.
When placeholder objects are enabled, geometry is sent to the renderer only on demand.
Leave Bucket Order set to Hilbert on the Sampling Quality rollout.
With Hilbert order, the sequence of buckets to render uses the fewest number of data transfers.
Contour shading does not work with distributed bucket rendering.
You cannot use distributed bucket rendering when you render to texture.

Important: To use distributed bucket rendering, you must set up host systems that are capable of running the mental ray renderer. There are two ways to do so: set up satellite systems by installing 3ds Max on the machines, or install mental ray standalone licensing on the machines.

You can launch distributed bucket rendering from the command line, using 3dsmaxcmd.exe.

If you use satellite processors, you cannot use Backburner to manage distributed bucket rendering. When host processors have mental ray standalone licenses, you can use Backburner to manage distributed bucket rendering.

Procedures
To use mental ray distributed rendering:

1. On the Render Setup dialog, go to the Processing panel. On the Distributed Bucket Rendering rollout, turn on Distributed Render. Note: The Net Render option on the Common Parameters rollout has no effect on distributed bucket rendering.

2. Click to select the names of those satellite or host systems you want to use for distributed rendering. You can click All to select all the host names in the list, or None to select none of the hosts. You can click Add and manually add the IP addresses of the host computers.

3. If other host systems have maps installed on them, with exactly the same file names and path names as on your local host, turn on Distributed Maps. With Distributed Maps turned on, remote renderers can use their local copy of maps, which saves time.

4. Render the scene. Each system renders the buckets assigned to it. The final rendering appears on your local system, with buckets arriving in an indeterminate order.

What's New in 3ds Max 2009 CAT?

2009-01-19T00:36:00.003-05:00

3ds Max CAT software is a plug-in for 3ds Max 2009 and Autodesk 3ds Max Design 2009 and available to subscription customers. It is a set of tools used for character animation.

New Features include:

CATMuscle Integration
CATMuscle is a fully scaleable solution for solving skin deformation problems. CATMuscle provides you with the tools you need to achieve a smooth, organic skin deformation across a wide range of motion. It's easy to learn, and requires no understanding of anatomy.
CATMuscle rigs can be as simple or as complex as you wish, so they can suit your purposes whether you are working in film or game development.

Rigging
New rigging features include:
Setup Controllers
Layers can now have a setup controller rather than just a setup value. Any complex procedural animation can be configured onto the "Setup" or "Base" controller.
Bones can also contain a setup controller, which is used to drive animation. These controllers can contain procedural animation such as constraints, and script controllers.
Setup controllers for layers and bones are saved, and loaded with rig presets.
Layer Configuration Baking
Now each layer controller can save a mini clip file that defines all of the settings for that layer.
New Rig Nodes
You can now add extra information, like props, muscle configurations and skin meshes, to rigs. The extra information is saves, merged, and/or deleted with the rigs.
New Rig Saver
A new rig preset system allows you to save rigs by themselves, without their animation.
New CATUnits Position, Rotation, and Float Controllers
These controllers are used to create rigs that resize with the CATRig when CATUnits are changed.

New Inheritance Settings on Bones
Bones now have Inheritance options for Animation and Setup Mode. You can disable position, rotation or scale inheritance for the entire bone, including all layers, using a single toggle.

Layers
New layering features include:
Layer Collapsing Tool
A new layer collapsing tool allows you to collapse layers while preserving source keyframe times, keep constraints, and plot constraints to keyframes.
New Layer Manager
An all new layer manager has been written for complete CATRig layer management. It is both simpler and easier to use than the previous layer manager. Most layer operations can now be applied to many layers at once simply by selecting them in the layer manager.

CATMotion
New CATMotion features include:
Arbitrary Numbers of Feet Per CATMotion Limb
CATMotion now supports arbitrary bones as feet. You can turn any bone that is the child of a limb (a walking stick, for example) into a foot using a simple toggle.
CATMotion Foot Nodes Automatically Placed on Ground Plane
Should your rig's setup pose not place the character's feet flat on the ground (for example, the "Da Vinci" pose), 3ds Max CAT 3 can place them there automatically. Previous versions required the use of large offsets.

CAT for 3ds Max Subscription Customers

2009-01-15T11:13:00.002-05:00

Great News! Autodesk has announced that by 3PM PST today, all 3ds Max subscription customers can download a complete version of CAT compiled for 3ds Max 2009 for free! CAT is the suite of character animation tools that were previously available from Softimage for $995. CAT will no longer be sold and will become an exclusive download for 3ds Max subscription customers. It will be interesting to see what Autodesk does with the rest of the Softimage line of products they acquired!

Importing Revit FBX Files into 3ds Max Design 2009

2008-11-25T21:40:00.002-05:00

This video tutorial shows how to import Revit Architecture 2009 FBX files into 3ds Max Design 2009.

Autodesk Acquiring Softimage

2008-10-24T13:53:00.002-04:00

Autodesk announced yesterday that they are acquiring Softimage.

Softimage was founded in 1986 and is headquartered in Montreal, Canada. Softimage develops 3D modeling and animation software for the film, television and games markets.

Upon completion of the acquisition, Autodesk intends to continue developing and selling Softimage's core product line, while integrating certain Softimage technology into future versions of Autodesk solutions and products. Autodesk plans to acquire and continue developing the following Softimage products:

SOFTIMAGE XSI: Including XSI Essentials, XSI Advanced, XSI Academic, XSI Mod Tool and the XSI software development kit.

SOFTIMAGE Face Robot: A complete software solution for easily rigging and animating 3D faces. Face Robot enables studios to create life-like facial animation at incredible speeds.

SOFTIMAGE Cat: This advanced character animation system is a plug-in for Autodesk 3ds Max software. It is intended to be integrated into the 3ds Max product line.

SOFTIMAGE Crosswalk: This interoperability solution is intended to be integrated with Autodesk's own interoperability technology.

Autodesk plans to maintain and grow the Softimage product line (just like they are doing with Maya since they bought Alias), and through the FBX file format provide better interoperability between Softimage products, 3ds Max and Autodesk Maya. FBX also provides interoperability between Softimage products and Mudbox, MotionBuilder, ImageModeler and Stitcher, as well as numerous third-party applications.

Creativity Extension for 3ds Max 2009

2008-10-09T22:51:00.004-04:00

The Creativity Extension for subscription customers of 3ds Max 2009 contain several new additions to particle flow functionality. PflowAdvanced is a set of operators and tools designed to extend the Particle Flow system's capabilities. Included are 14 actions and tools that fall into three categories: Painting, Groups, and Tools.

The PflowAdvanced operators appear in the Particle View depot along with the standard Particle Flow operators, sorted by category and then by name:

Birth Paint: Generates particles by using the data from a Particle Paint helper.

Birth Texture: Generates particles by using animated color data from emitter objects. The operator can translate mapping from emitters to particles, and control particle scale by texture color.

Group Operator: Uses operators from an external event to modify a subset of particles defined by a Group Selection operator.

Group Selection: Defines a subset of particles based on particle properties and other means.

Initial State: Makes a snapshot of a particle system or Particle Flow events at Start Time, and uses it to generate clone particles at Emit Time.

Lock/Bond: A test for attaching particles to animated objects.

Mapping Object: Assigns mapping from reference objects to particles.

Placement Paint: Initializes position, rotation, and script data from a Particle Paint helper.

Preset Flow: Lets you create initial custom particle systems, or add predefined sets of events, operators, and objects to the scene.

Shape: Replaces the original Shape operator with an extended set of 2D and 3D particle shapes.

Split Group: Checks whether a particle belongs to a selection group as defined by a Group Selection operator.

Other tools:
Particle Paint: The Particle Paint system starts with a helper that lets you spray particle seeds onto the surface of one or more objects. The seeds can then be used with the Birth Paint and Placement Paint operators to generate particles.

Particle Flow Tools: PflowAdvanced adds a Tools menu with some useful functions to Particle Flow.

Civil 3D & 3ds Max Design 2009 Video Tutorial: Creating a Forest

2008-09-08T16:17:00.003-04:00

This video tutorial shows how to create a forest on an AutoCAD Civil 3D surface imported into 3ds Max Design 2009.

3ds Max Design 2009 ProMaterials Video Tutorials

2008-09-04T18:56:00.003-04:00

I've posted on YouTube two video tutorials showing how to work with the new mental ray ProMaterials in 3ds Max Design 2009:

Autodesk Announces ImageModeler 2009

2008-08-20T13:43:00.002-04:00

Autodesk announced the release of ImageModeler 2009 at SIGGRAPH last week. This is the first Autodesk release of the software since they purchased it from REALVIZ. ImageModeler is used to create photorealistic 3D objects from photographs, including accurate 3D measurements.

Its features include:
New calibration engine
Generates a 3D model or scene using calibration points based on one or more panoramas or photos.
3D measurement
Using the ruler toolset, calculate real-world distances and angles between points, eliminating the need for complex laser measurements on site.
High-performance photo texturing
Get high-quality texture extraction with texture mapping that is a one-click, automatic process with built-in photorealism.
Friendly user interface
View source images as thumbnails.
Improved interoperability with Autodesk software
Works with Maya, 3ds Max, MotionBuilder, and AutoCAD.
Calibration
Automatic calculation of camera parameters (such as position and focal length)
Ability to supply a reference coordinate system and a reference distance (standard) to impose a global scale
Modeling
Interactive and intuitive modeling
Interactive editing of Pivot point
Constraint modeling (working planes, axis constraints)
Editable properties for each tool
Interactive help for a better understanding of the tools
Polygonal modeling
3D measurement tools (coordinates, distances, angles)
Texturing
Capture textures from original images and retouch them directly in Autodesk ImageModeler if necessary
Automatic unfolding of the 3D surface elements with minimization of distortion
Automatic split of the 3D scene into developing elements
Quality control of the generated textures
Input Formats Supported
TGA (.tga), Silicon Graphics(.sgi), PNG (.png), JPEG (.jpg, .jpeg), PICT (.pict), Portable Grey Map (.pgm). Portable Pixmap (.ppm), CINEON format (.cin)
Exports To Latest Formats
3ds Max (.max), OBJ, DWG, Maya software, STL (PC only), VRML, Export to COLLADA format (supported by Google Earth 1.4 mapping service), QuickTime VR

Video Demonstrations can be viewed at:
http://imagemodeler.realviz.com/photomodeling-software-products/imagemodeler/demonstration-software.html

Stitcher Unlimited 2009 Announced at SIGGRAPH

2008-08-12T22:36:00.002-04:00

This is the first version of Stitcher released by Autodesk since their acquisition of REALVIZ.

Professional photographers, digital artists, and panorama specialists can use Stitcher Unlimited 2009 to produce high-quality panoramas with maximum productivity. Stitcher can automatically assemble a wide variety of images, from rectilinear to fisheye.

Stitcher Unlimited 2009 NEW FEATURES

Automatic "stitching" engine
Can create partial or full spherical panoramas in just a few clicks. All the steps can be automated: stitching, alignment, and color correction.

Double shot
Can stitch images taken with a two-shot fisheye lens; an effective way to create fully spherical virtual tours with only two pictures.

Image-based lighting
Can make exceptionally high-quality environment maps and panoramas through its support for EXR and HDR input and output.

Hotspot support
Generate web-ready Apple QuickTime VR application program hotspots; links integrated within a panorama, which reference another panorama.

Tripod cap
Use the tripod cap, a highly practical feature to cover up the tripod in an image with another graphic.

Graphics processing unit (GPU) acceleration
Take advantage of graphics card GPUs for preview rendering in the main Viewport. The GPU is now also used to accelerate final renders.

Selectable rendering area
Use the crop tool to select a precise area to be rendered. This tool can be used while in full-screen mode.

New user interface and workflow
New look and feel, including new icons and a new palette to manage thumbnails more efficiently.

MotionBuilder 2009 System Requirements

2008-08-12T21:46:00.002-04:00

Software

The 32-bit version of MotionBuilder 2009 is supported on the following operating system:

Microsoft Windows XP Professional operating system (SP2 or higher)

The 64-bit version of MotionBuilder 2009 is supported on any of the following operating systems:

Microsoft Windows Vista Business operating system
Microsoft Windows XP x64 Edition
The following web browsers are supported for MotionBuilder 2009:
Microsoft Internet Explorer 6.0 internet browser or higher
Netscape 7 web browser or higher
Mozilla Firefox web browser

Hardware

At a minimum, the 32-bit version of MotionBuilder 2009 requires a system with the following hardware:

Windows: Intel Pentium 4 or higher, AMD Athlon processor
512 MB RAM
1 GB free hard drive space
OpenGL graphics card with a minimum of 64 MB RAM
DVD-ROM Drive

At a minimum, the 64-bit version of MotionBuilder 2009 requires a system with the following hardware:

Windows: Intel EM64T, AMD Athlon 64, or AMD Opteron processor
2 GB RAM
1 GB free hard drive space
OpenGL graphics card with a minimum of 64 MB RAM
DVD-ROM Drive

MotionBuilder 2009 Announced at SIGGRAPH

2008-08-12T21:43:00.001-04:00

MotionBuilder is a powerful, real-time 3D character animation productivity suite for games, films, television, and multimedia.

MotionBuilder 2009 NEW FEATURES

Rigid-body Dynamics
You can now set up a real-time, rigid-body simulation using the 3D objects in your scene. Support for real-time collisions, in particular, may be used to prevent interpenetration of characters, objects, and other scene elements, which is invaluable for those looking to efficiently edit 3D animations involving characters interacting with objects.

Rag Doll Solver
The new Rag Doll solver enables you to simulate complex interactions between a character and its environment that would be time consuming and difficult to animate using traditional keyframing or motion capture techniques. This simulation can be applied to the character’s control-rig, and mixed with existing animation data or poses for increased realism (such as, a character falling and hitting the ground, or waving his arms wildly).

Enhanced Hardware Shader Support
Provides support for new hardware-accelerated CG shaders (shaders supported on Nvidia based graphics cards only), including the Light Attenuation shader, and Normal Mapping shader, which delivers real-time display of normal maps created in MayaMudbox or 3ds Max. There is now also support for version 2.0 of the CgFX library, enabling you to take advantage of the latest CgFX shader technology.

Python Scripting
The addition of an intelligent, fully integrated Python scripting language editor enables you to develop, test, and refine your Python scripts within MotionBuilder. Support is provided for single and multi-line entry, tabbed workspaces, line numbering, color coding, history, hotkey support, drag and drop support, color coded error messages, and searching. You also get deeper access to MotionBuilder functionality through exposure of rendering codes, the FCurve % function, control rigs, and loading/merging of characters.

Support for Windows 64-bit
Extends support to the 64-bit Intel and AMD-based Windows platform, including Windows Vista Business 64-bit operating system. Use the software on a 64-bit platform and benefit from significant performance improvements: 64-bit support allows you to address considerably more memory (up to 128 GB for Windows XP 64, for example). This enables you to handle larger and more complex scenes, and will improve performance in cases where swapping would previously occur.

Interoperability
The addition of Steering Wheel navigation and ViewCube navigation tools creates a more consistent navigation experience as you switch between MotionBuilder and other Autodesk products. MotionBuilder 2009 also delivers enhanced support for workflows involving MotionBuilder and the 3ds Max Biped, as well as the Maya Full Body Inverse Kinematics (FBIK) character rig.

Mudbox 2009 System Requirements

2008-08-12T21:37:00.001-04:00

Software

The 32-bit version of Mudbox 2009 is supported on the following operating systems:

Microsoft Windows XP Professional, SP2
Microsoft Windows Vista Business, SP1

The 64-bit version of Mudbox 2009 is supported on the following operating systems:

Microsoft Windows XP Professional x64 Edition, SP2
Microsoft Windows Vista Business, SP1

Mudbox 2009 documentation is compatible with any of the following web browsers:

Microsoft Internet Explorer 6.0 or higher
Mozilla Firefox 2.0 or higher

Hardware

At a minimum, the 32-bit version of Mudbox 2009 requires a system with the following hardware:

Intel Pentium 4 (or equivalent) processor
1 GB RAM (2 GB recommended)
650 MB free hard drive space (2 GB recommended)
Ethernet adapter or wireless Internet card
Qualified hardware-accelerated OpenGL graphics card
Three-button mouse or qualified Wacom tablet
DVD-ROM drive

At a minimum, the 64-bit version of Mudbox 2009 requires a system with the following hardware:

Intel EM64T, AMD Athlon 64, or AMD Opteron processor
1 GB RAM (2 GB recommended)
650 MB free hard drive space (2 GB recommended)
Ethernet adapter or wireless Internet card
Qualified hardware-accelerated OpenGL graphics card
Three-button mouse or qualified Wacom tablet
DVD-ROM drive

Notes:
Latest graphics card drivers are required for proper display.
Latest Wacom drivers are required for best tablet support. When installing a new Wacom driver, be sure to first uninstall the old driver, restart, and then install the new one according to Wacom instructions. Failure to do so may impact performance of the hardware.

Mudbox 2009 Announced at SIGGRAPH

2008-08-12T21:34:00.002-04:00

Mudbox is Autodesk’s organic brush-based 3D modeling, digital sculpting and texture painting solution.

Mudbox 2009 NEW FEATURES

Texture Painting
A new, production-focused texture paint workflow simplifies the process of painting multiple diffuse, bump, specular, and reflection textures across multiple high-resolution maps. Paint directly on 3D models to add detail precisely where it’s required, regardless of UV distortion or surface complexity. Paint reference images onto the model from screen space using the new Projection brush. You can also paint multiple maps on multiple meshes simultaneously and assign multiple UV tiles on a single mesh for maximum productivity.

Performance Enhancements
Significantly improved camera manipulation and brush speed, enabling you to work interactively with 3D models that are fully subdivided into tens of millions of polygons.

On-Target Display
New display technologies leverage the power of the OpenGL API and today’s powerful graphics cards to offer an accurate, on-target environment for real-time evaluation as the asset is manipulated, and for enhanced interactive presentations to clients and art directors.

Multiple Maps, Textures, and Materials
Advanced real-time GPU rendering technology has the power to display multiple maps and texture channels (including bump and reflection) per mesh, and multiple materials in the scene, while still delivering interactive sculpting and painting performance on complex, high-resolution models.

Multiple Fast and Accurate Shadows
The ability to accurately cast shadows from multiple light sources means that artists can validate the effectiveness of their model’s form, for example, making sure that a character’s eyes are not perpetually shadowed by an overly prominent brow or that an environment is convincing from all viewpoints.

High Dynamic Range Image Lighting
HDR (high dynamic range) images can be used as light sources, enabling users to evaluate both the form and the color of their models in the context of the target environment’s lighting conditions.

Viewport Filters
More realistic interactive presentations are now possible, thanks to the inclusion of a number of viewport filters, including those for ambient occlusion, depth of field, and tone mapping.

Maximized Work Area
Option to hide user interface elements while working, and by employing standard hotkeys to control the camera, enables artists to maximize their workspace to fill virtually the entire screen.

Improved Interoperability with Maya and 3ds Max
Enhanced interoperability with Maya and 3ds Max software through improved matching of Maya and 3ds Max normal maps. Additionally, Mudbox employs by default the same keyboard shortcuts as Maya for camera manipulation.

Artist-Friendly User Interface
A highly intuitive user interface that gives you complete creative freedom. Whether you’re looking to explore forms for product design or create highly detailed characters for film and game projects, Mudbox allows you to forget about technical details and focus purely on the art of 3D modeling.

Toxik 2009 System Requirements

2008-08-12T21:24:00.002-04:00

Software

The 32-bit version of Toxik 2009 is supported on any of the following operating systems:

Microsoft Windows Vista Business (SP1 or higher)
Microsoft Windows XP Professional (SP2 or higher)

The 64-bit version of Toxik 2009 is supported on any of the following operating systems:

Microsoft Windows Vista Business (SP1 or higher)
Microsoft Windows XP x64 Edition (SP2 or higher)
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4.0 WS operating system (U6)
Fedora 8

The following web browser is supported for Toxik 2009:

Microsoft Internet Explorer 6.0 or higher

Hardware

At a minimum, the 32-bit version of Toxik 2009 requires a system with the following hardware:

Windows: Intel Pentium 4 or higher, AMD Athlon 64, or AMD Opteron processor
2 GB RAM
1 GB free hard drive space
Media cache requirements: 10 GB minimum, 200 GB recommended
Qualified hardware-accelerated OpenGL graphics card
Three-button mouse with mouse driver software or tablet with tablet driver software
DVD-ROM drive

At a minimum, the 64-bit version of Toxik 2009 requires a system with the following hardware:

Windows and Linux: Intel EM64T processor, AMD Athlon 64, or AMD Opteron (processor must support SSE3)
2 GB RAM
1 GB free hard drive space
Media cache requirements: 10 GB minimum, 200 GB recommended
Qualified hardware-accelerated OpenGL graphics card
Three-button mouse with mouse driver software or tablet with tablet driver software
DVD-ROM drive

Toxik 2009 Announced at SIGGRAPH

2008-08-12T21:21:00.001-04:00

Toxik 2009 software brings compositing and visual effects tools to high-end 2D effects artists working at HD, 2K, 4K or above, in film, television, and design. When combined with Maya 2009, the two products together create a highly efficient, iterative, and collaborative environment that accelerates everyday workflows and facilitates the addition of an extra dimension to 2D imagery. The Toxik high dynamic range (HDR) creative toolset includes keying, color correction, tracking, camera mapping, paint, spline-based warping, motion blur, and depth of field.

Toxik 2009 NEW FEATURES:

Render Pass and Render Layer Import from Maya
You can now automatically generate and update compositions based on Render Layer and Render Pass setups provided by Maya. This new feature (leveraging updated Maya 2009 Render Pass functionality) accelerates and streamlines the 3D to 2D workflow by allowing you to previsualize your scene in the form of the final composite, while you continue to iterate and refine only the required elements.

Data Management
New file-based data model offers individual artists, system administrators, and developers a number of advantages. Artists gain more control over their Toxik while enjoying improved data integrity, and developers can readily integrate Toxik into existing pipelines. This new system supports collaboration without complexity; versioning functionality lets you keep track of multiple iterations, while team members working simultaneously on linked compositions within a project are notified when updates are made by another user. In addition, a new hierarchical bookmarking system makes it easy to save and access links to footage, projects, and compositions.

Stereoscopic Content Creation
Facilitates the creation of stereoscopic content through a range of new enhancements, including support for stereo playback with linked pan and zoom, and a Multi-Stream feature that enables you to simultaneously process pairs of images via a single node. With the appropriate hardware, high-performance interactive playback at 2K is possible; this feature helps you make informed, artistic choices. This functionality, combined with a new Camera Mapping feature and the ability to import simple geometry as FBX files from Maya and other 3D applications, enables you to produce truly convincing stereoscopic content.

Lens Blur Tool
A new Lens Blur tool enables you to simulate the depth-of-field effects associated with real-world cameras. Animate the blur to produce a rack defocus effect. A number of different iris shapes are available to help you customize the shape and profile of the blur.

Warp 2D Functionality
A new Warp 2D tool delivers advanced, nonlinear, spline-based warping of an image with precise local control, as well as a smooth and continuous transformation across the image and in time. Use this new tool to quickly change or animate the geometric shape and position of objects within an image, to create everything from extremely stylized effects to subtle perspective corrections.

Pixel Expression Language Tool
You can now create and customize plug-in effects to manipulate your output image using the powerful new Pixel Expression Language (PXL) tool. This intuitive, C-like programming language offers a rich set of features, including conditionals, looping, and numerous built-in functions.

Color Transformation Language
Now you can also write and apply color transforms using the Color Transformation Language (CTL) technology from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. This new functionality enables you to implement a strong color management solution within Toxik.

Enhanced Display
Images created in Toxik can now be viewed on broadcast-quality display devices with serial digital interface (SDI) or HD-SDI inputs. This streamlines the compositing workflow by enabling broadcast content creators to make informed color decisions.

Maya 2009 System Requirements

2008-08-12T21:14:00.003-04:00

Software Requirements:

The 32-bit version of Maya 2009 is supported on any of the following operating systems:

Microsoft Windows Vista Business operating system (SP1 or higher)
Microsoft Windows XP Professional operating system (SP2 or higher)
Apple Mac OS X 10.5.2 operating system or higher

The 64-bit version of Maya 2009 is supported on any of the following operating systems:

Microsoft Windows Vista Business (SP1 or higher)
Microsoft Windows XP x64 Edition (SP2 or higher)
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4.0 WS operating system (U6)
Fedora 8 operating system

These web browsers are supported for Maya 2009:

Microsoft Internet Explorer 6.0 internet browser or higher
Netscape 7 web browser or higher
Apple Safari web browser
Mozilla Firefox web browser

Hardware Requirements:

At a minimum, the 32-bit version of Maya 2009 requires a system with the following hardware:

Windows: Intel Pentium 4 or higher, AMD Athlon 64, or AMD Opteron processor
Macintosh: Intel-based Macintosh computers
2 GB RAM
2 GB free hard drive space
Qualified hardware-accelerated OpenGL graphics card
Three-button mouse with mouse driver software
DVD-ROM drive

At a minimum, the 64-bit version of Maya 2009 requires a system with the following hardware:

Windows and Linux: Intel EM64T processor, AMD Athlon 64, or AMD Opteron
2 GB RAM
2 GB free hard drive space
Qualified hardware-accelerated OpenGL graphics card
Three-button mouse with mouse driver software
DVD-ROM drive

Note: Maya 2009 is also capable of running on other configurations, such as boutique distributions of Linux. However, enumerating systems that are not tested and cannot be supported, or that fall below the requirements for a productive user experience is beyond the scope of the online qualification charts.

MAYA 2009 Announced at SIGGRAPH

2008-08-12T21:05:00.003-04:00

Maya 2009 NEW FEATURES:

New Selection Paradigm
New selection features: true soft selection and pre-selection highlighting.

Improved Modeling Workflow
Symmetrical modeling with soft seams, a tweak mode for rapid modifications, and a new Merge Vertex feature that enables you to combine parts of a mesh.

Maya Assets
With Maya Assets, complex data can be effectively organized, shared, referenced, and presented. Maya Assets enables you to encapsulate a set of nodes into a container so that they can be treated as if they were a single node from a user’s perspective (selected attributes of interest from the contained nodes can be published to the container). This new feature also supports customized and user-specific views, flexible referencing, and the creation of customized libraries.

Animation Layering
A powerful new animation layering paradigm, built on technology from MotionBuilder, gives you more flexibility as you nondestructively create and edit animation. This toolset works with any attribute: animation layers can be blended, merged, grouped, and reordered, and can override or add to preceding layers.

Maya nParticles
The second module built on the Maya Nucleus unified simulation framework: Maya nParticles. This newest toolset gives you an intuitive, efficient workflow for simulating a wide range of complex effects, including liquids, clouds, smoke, spray, and dust. It features particle-to-particle collisions, particle and nCloth bidirectional interaction, powerful constraints, cloud and "blobby" hardware display, preset rendering, and dynamic behaviors.

Maya Muscle
Maya Muscle helps you create life-like muscle and skin motion. This toolset allows you to direct muscle and skin behavior precisely, with secondary motion, collisions, wrinkles, sliding, and stickiness.

UV Layout Enhancements
The ability to preserve UVs (when making modeling edits after the fact) as well as new UV unfolding and layout option, including an interactive mode, can increase your productivity by streamlining the otherwise time-consuming task of creating optimal texture coordinates.

Render Proxy
A new Render Proxy feature in mental ray enables you to replace scene elements with a simple low-resolution mesh, and only load the pre-translated data when required for rendering.

Render Pass Enhancements
A completely updated Render Pass feature set provides precise control over render output, making it easier to optimize integration with compositing packages such as Toxik.

Creativity Extension for 3ds Max 2009 and 3ds Max Design 2009

2008-08-11T14:44:00.003-04:00

If you are part of the Autodesk Subscription program for 3ds Max 2009 and 3ds Max Design 2009, you can download the new Creativity Extension. This extension gives you new particle systems effects, new tools to incorporate audio and sound effects into your animated scenes and allows you to optimize highly detailed 3D models from digital sculpting applications like Mudbox and ZBrush.

Advanced Particle Effects
The new PFlowAdvanced toolset offers:

Numerous paint tools enable you to precisely place particles in your scene. Operators, including Particle Paint, Birth Paint, Placement Paint, Birth Texture, and Mapping Object, enable you to paint both particles and emitters onto specific parts of your objects. Other special effects include the ability to emit particles based on animated color data in emitter objects.

The utility operators have been integrated into the 3ds Max and 3ds Max Design core to extend Particle Flow's capabilities, while giving you a streamlined workflow for creating particle effects. Clean up particle flow, synchronize layers, repair the cache system, save a custom flow as a preset, and automatically delete operators that are not in use and lock or bond particles to an object (improves on the former position object operator).

The ability to group particles enables you to perform specific operations on arbitrary subsets of particles. Quickly create multiple groups and work with as many of them as you like through such operators as Group Selection, Group, and Split Group.

The PFlowAdvanced Shape operators greatly expand the Particle Flow Shape toolset. Define a particle shape beginning with a pre-existing shape (a vast range of 3D and 2D shape presets are available to choose from). Additionally, the Fast Shape Evaluation operation evaluates a reference mesh object on the final frame quickly and accurately, significantly improving performance.

Workflow enhancements include an Express Save operator that has been integrated with the 3ds Max Design auto-save functionality, backward compatibility with Orbaz Particle Flow Tools, Box # 1-based scenes, and general memory and performance improvements based on source.

Polygon Modeling Optimization
Reduce the number of faces on your model using the new ProOptimizer technology, which is ideal for optimizing high-poly count 3D models from digital sculpting applications, such as Mudbox and ZBrush software.

This new modifier offers support for:
Precision control over the number of faces or points in your scene/model
Preservation of detail: useful faces are removed last, enabling you to reduce your selection up to 75 percent without removing detail
Real-time scene optimization (optimization is precalculated)
Batch optimizing of files (you control the optimization level for each file)
Preservation of all UV texture channel information and vertex color channel information
Optimization of multiple objects simultaneously (optimize a selection of faces or the inverted selection across multiple objects)
Symmetry preservation
Protection or exclusion of object borders, so your objects stay connected after optimization

Integrated Audio
Enhance your presentations with the addition of audio and sound effects. The incorporation of ProSound means the software now supports integrated, multitrack audio to enhance your film, game, and visualization projects through the addition of high-quality audio and sound effects. This allows you to assign sounds to specific objects, and add a music track or voice-over for your presentations.

The toolset supports the following:
Up to 100 audio tracks per scene
Per-track animated volume
Audio output normalization
Audio playback during motion capture
An intuitive user interface and workflow features help you to quickly synchronize your audio
Sync your playback with the viewport, render your track to match playback speed, or play it backwards and forwards (ping pong mode)
Support for both PCM and compressed audio in AVI and WAV formats with up to six output channels
Controllable via MaxScript through 46 script commands

3ds Max Design 2009 Lighting Analysis Tool

2008-05-15T22:08:00.006-04:00

Unique to 3ds Max Design 2009, Lighting Analysis tools can be used for simulating and analyzing Sun, Sky and artificial lighting in a 3D scene. Ideal for sustainable Architecture projects, these tools can help evaluate light intensity in your designs. The Lighting Analysis tools can help facilitate the evaluation of indoor lighting quality for LEED certification.

The workflow for using the Lighting Analysis tool is as follows:

Use a Daylight System or photometric lights with IES files.
Under the Daylight System mr Sky Parameters, change the Sky Model to Perez All Weather.
Use ProMaterials or mr Arch and Design materials.
Use the Lighting Analysis Assistant to find any errors in your scene
Download a Weather Data file from the US Department of Energy website (http://www.eere.energy.gov/buildings/energyplus/cfm/weather_data.cfm) and configure the Daylight System to use the data.
Set the specific date and time for the Daylight System.
Add a Light Meter Helper object to calculate the lighting levels in the scene.
Render an Image Overlay to display the light level data in a rendered image.

Revit Architecture 2009 and 3ds Max 2009 Interoperability

2008-03-10T22:07:00.003-04:00

Design visualization using Revit Architecture models with 3ds Max has become easier. Revit Architecture 2009 now features the mental ray rendering engine, which brings the product more in line with AutoCAD and AutoCAD Architecture, which have used mental ray for the past couple of versions.

The mental ray rendering engine in Revit will allow export through the FBX file format. FBX is an open-standard, platform-independent 3D file format that will allow Revit lights, materials and cameras to be imported into 3ds Max 2009. FBX also allows interoperability between 3ds Max, Maya and MotionBuilder.

For information on the FBX file format, check out http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/index?siteID=123112&id=8224901

3ds Max 2009 New Features: Scripting and SDK

2008-03-10T21:59:00.002-04:00

Two more new features of 3ds Max 2009:

Object Metadata
Support has been added for object-level metadata. Metadata objects can be interactively created and populated with properties by the user through MaxScript and the SDK (Software Development Kit).

.NET Support
Support for .NET allows programmers to use Microsoft's high-level UI APIs to extend, for example, the Scene Explorer. The 3ds Max 2009 SDK ships with sample .NET code and documentation showing developers how they can take advantage of the development tools.

3ds Max 2009 New Features: General and Miscellaneous

2008-03-03T08:51:00.003-05:00

Some more new odds-and-ends about 3ds Max 2009:

ViewCube Navigation
The new ViewCube navigation system is an on-screen, cube-shaped UI element that provides feedback about the current viewing angle in relation to model world coordinates. You can directly click on a face or rotate the ViewCube by clicking and dragging in order to change the view.

SteeringWheels Navigation
A new camera interface.

Edit Soft Selection
When using soft selection, you can interactively manipulate falloff, pinch and bubble directly on the screen. The cursor changes to indicate which values are being affected, and feedback is given directly on the object.

Enhanced Windows Vista Support
3ds Max now supports the Windows Vista Aero interface.

Autodesk Viz 2008 and 3ds max Design 2009: What’s the Difference?

2008-02-24T22:10:00.002-05:00

With Autodesk Viz being discontinued (Viz 2008 being the last version) and 3ds Max Design 2009 being announced as its replacement, the question arises: What’s the difference between the two?

Here is a list of the major differences between Autodesk Viz 2008 and 3ds Max Design 2009:

3ds Max Design has free, unlimited integrated mental ray rendering software. Viz 2008 requires a license per seat.

3ds Max Design has up to 8 mental ray rendering satellites. Viz 2008 is limited to 2 satellites.

3ds Max Design has integrated mental ray rendering support for up to 512 cores. Viz 2008 is limited to 4 cores.

3ds Max Design has both 32-bit and 64-bit versions. Viz is limited to only a 32-bit version.

3ds Max Design has Review viewport improvements that allow you to preview real-time shadows, photometric lights, Arch & Design materials, and sun/sky system directly in the viewport. Viz requires you to render the scene to see these features.

3ds Max Design has 10 times the performance gains over Viz for scenes composed of tens of thousands of objects.

3ds Max Design has the new Reveal iterative rendering optimizations for mental ray that allow faster rendering of incremental changes or specific regions and objects.

3ds Max Design has enhanced DWG workflow with new memory management for handling large scenes, improved normal and material support from Revit DWG files, and new material support for DWG Solids.

3ds Max Design has the new Recognize scene loading technology for interoperability with Revit Architecture 2009, allowing cameras, geometry, materials and lights to be easily imported.

3ds Max Design has the new Exposure lighting analysis technology for assisting in LEED 8.1 certification.

3ds Max Design has ProBooleans (enhanced Boolean modeling tools).

3ds Max Design has the Scene Explorer for managing scenes with thousands of objects and exposing Revit metadata for objects imported from Revit.

3ds Max Design has a fully-rigged character animation system and library of motions (Biped).

3ds Max Design has particle systems for realistic water, smoke and special effects.

3ds Max Design has the Reactor real-time physics system.

3ds Max Design has the Cloth system for banners, curtains and clothes.

3ds Max Design has the Hair system for grass, fur and hair.

3ds Max Design allows sub-object animation (deformable vertices).

3ds Max 2009 New Features: Data and Scene Management

2008-02-24T21:46:00.003-05:00

Here are some more new features of 3ds Max 2009:

Autodesk Mudbox Interoperability
Improved support for the OBJ file format, including more export options, facilitates importing and exporting of model data between Mudbox, 3ds max and ZBrush. Users can take advantage of new export presets, additional geometry options, including hidden splines/lines and new optimize options, to reduce file sizes and improve performance. There is also improved texture map handling and more import information with regards to face counts per object.

FBX Import/Export
Improved FBX memory management, data translation fidelity and new import options support interoperability between 3ds max, Maya and MotionBuilder.

Enhanced Scene Explorer
The functionality of the Scene Explorer (which was introduced in 3ds Max 2008) has been expanded. New advanced filtering options allow you to set and save more custom object lists and there are more options for how groups are displayed.

3ds Max 2009 and 3ds Max Design 2009: What's the Difference?

2008-02-20T23:15:00.002-05:00

The key difference between 3ds Max 2009 and 3ds Max Design 2009 is that each product is tailored specifically for customers in different industries. 3ds Max Design is for architects, designers and visualization specialists (it replaces Autodesk Viz). 3ds Max is for professionals in the gaming, film and television industries.

Both products share the same binary code, but they differ in the following ways:

User Interface and application defaults are optimized for either visualization or entertainment workflows and pipelines to maximize productivity.
3ds Max Design features new Exposure technology for simulating and analyzing sun, sky and artificial lighting. 3ds Max does not contain this technology.
3ds Max includes a powerful SDK for developers to allow them to create their own plug-ins. 3ds Max Design does not contain the SDK.
Tutorials and sample files will be customized to optimize the learning experiences of each customer group for each product.
Documentation contains custom contect for each product.
Icons and packaging for 3ds Max Design will be more closely aligned with Autodesk AEC solutions (AutoCAD, AutoCAD Architecture, Revit Architecture) for quick visual recognition. 3ds Max 2009 icons will remain similar to 3ds Max 2008 icons.
Online documentation content will be tailored for visualization or entertainment customers.

The bottom line: If you work primarily in the architecture, civil engineering or manufacturing sectors, and do not need to create your own plug-ins using the SDK, choose 3ds Max Design. It has all the features of 3ds Max except for the SDK, and it includes the Exposure lighting analysis tool for assisting in LEED 8.1 certification.

3ds Max 2009 New Features: Rendering

2008-02-20T22:56:00.002-05:00

Reveal Workflow
The new Reveal rendering system allows the user to visualize and manipulate a given region in both the Viewport and the Framebuffer. The rendered image Framebuffer now contains a simplified set of tools to quickly validate changes in a render. The user can optionally filter out objects, regions or processes to temporarly control quality vs. speed vs. completeness. Render speed can be controlled by toggling geometry translation, lighting calculation and image quality settings (based on what the user wants to update). Users can also auto-generate regions around selections and reuse temporary Final Gather maps at any time.

Photometric Lighting Enhancements
There are new types of area lights (circular, cylindrical), photometric web previews in the Browse dialog and Light UI, and improved near-field photometry quality and spot distribution. Also, distribution types can now support any emitting shape and the user can have their light shapes appear in the rendered image.

Updated Composite Map
The Composite Map has been redesigned. The map now supports multiple blending modes, color correction via the color correction map, opacity adjustments, reordering of images or layers, as well as hiding and deleting of layers. Users also have the option of replacing or creating alpha channels with any type of map, including procedurals.

New Color Correct Map
The new color correction map (separate from the new composite map) gives more options for independent correction of texture maps.

Review Enhancements
Using Review, multiple maps can now be simultaneously displayed in the viewport, for more accurate previewing. IES files and photometric light data can now be shown in the viewport, and support has been added for real-time shadowing of objects using mental ray Arch & design materials.

Autodesk Announces Maya 2008 Extension 2

2008-02-18T21:33:00.001-05:00

Autodesk announced Maya 2008 Extension 2 software, which provides enhanced creative control over polygon modeling and UV texturing, as well as significant improvements to the Maya Muscle toolset.

The Maya 2008 Extension 2 software is expected to be available for download to Maya Complete 2008 and Maya Unlimited 2008 Subscription customers with Gold support in March 2008.

Extension 2 is not sold separately.

Key features and enhancements offered in Maya 2008 Extension 2 include:

Superior Modeling Workflow
New selection management features offer modelers a fast and precise workflow for controlling large amounts of complex geometry. Also, symmetrical modeling has been enhanced through
such additions as seam preservation functionality.

Faster Texturing through Streamlined UV Workflows
New and enhanced UV workflow tools provide artists with more control over their texturing,
which enables them to achieve their desired results faster.

Detailed Skin Articulation and Animation
New features and enhanced workflows for Maya Muscle extend the animator or technical director's ability to precisely direct muscle and skin behavior. These include a new smart collisions toolset, support for three new forces, and the ability to displace skin.

Maya Unlimited 2008 Price Reduction

2008-02-18T21:29:00.002-05:00

Autodesk announced reduced pricing for Autodesk Maya Unlimited 2008.

"The reduced price of Autodesk Maya Unlimited makes its extensive toolset more accessible to new users and existing facilities that want to expand their Maya-based pipelines," said Marc Petit, senior vice president, Autodesk Media & Entertainment. "More artists can now take advantage of the software's professional tools and advanced workflows to meet demands for captivating content created on shorter deadlines and tighter budgets."

Maya Unlimited contains everything offered in Maya Complete software, plus innovations such as Maya Fluid Effects, Maya nCloth, Maya Hair, Maya Fur, and Maya Live.

Pricing for Autodesk Maya Complete 2008 remains unchanged.

The retail price of a new license of Maya Unlimited, Standalone has been reduced from $6,995 to $4,995.

The retail price of a new license of Maya Unlimited, Network has been reduced from $8,345 to $6,245.

Maya Complete 2008 customers can now cross-grade to Maya Unlimited 2008 at the reduced retail price of $2,995.

3ds Max 2009 System Requirements

2008-02-18T21:11:00.002-05:00

System Requirements for both 3ds Max 2009 and 3ds Max Design 2009:

The 32-bit version of 3ds Max 2009 is supported on the following operating systems:
Microsoft Windows Vista
Microsoft Windows XP Professional (SP2 or higher)

The 64-bit version of 3ds Max 2009 is supported on the following operating systems:
Microsoft Windows Vista
Microsoft Windows XP Professional x64

3ds Max 2009 requires the following browser:
Microsoft Internet Explorer 6 or higher

3ds Max 2009 requires the following supplemental software:
DirectX 9.0c* (required)
Some features of 3ds Max 2009 are only enabled when used with graphics hardware that supports Shader Model 3.0 (Pixel Shader and Vertex Shader 3.0). Check with your manufacturer to determine if your hardware supports Shader Model 3.0.

Hardware
At a minimum, 3ds Max 2009 32-bit requires a system with:
Intel Pentium IV or AMD Athlon XP or higher processor
512 MB RAM (1 GB recommended)
500 MB swap space (2 GB recommended)
Hardware-accelerated OpenGL and Direct3D supported
Microsoft Windows-compliant pointing device (optimized for Microsoft IntelliMouse)
DVD-ROM drive

Note: Apple computers based on Intel processors and running Microsoft operating systems are not currently supported.

At a minimum, 3ds Max 2009 64-bit requires a system with:
Intel EM64T, AMD Athlon 64 or higher, AMD Opteron processor
1 GB RAM (4 GB recommended)
500 MB swap space (2 GB recommended)
Hardware-accelerated OpenGL and Direct3D supported
Microsoft Windows-compliant pointing device (optimized IntelliMouse)
DVD-ROM drive

3ds Max 2009 New Features: UV Texturing

2008-02-18T21:06:00.002-05:00

New UV Texturing features with 3ds Max 2009 and 3ds Max Design 2009:

UV Spline Mapping
A new spline mapping feature can be used to map tubular and spline-like objects, such as mapping a road onto a terrain.

UVW Unwrap Improvements
Improvements have been made to relax and pelt workflows that streamline UVW unwrapping.

3ds Max 2009 New Features: Biped

2008-02-18T20:58:00.002-05:00

New Biped features with 3ds Max 2009 and 3ds Max Design 2009:

Hands Like Feet Option
You have the option to have Biped character's hands behave like feet (with regards to the ground plane). This simplifies the number of steps needed to create quadrapeds.

Working Pivot Rotation
You can rotate Biped objects around the Working Pivot, as well as the Pick pivot. This makes it easier to create animations such as a character falling to the ground.

Mirror Animation Options
You can mirror Biped animation while keeping the COM orientation intact.

Triangle Neck
You can link a character's clavicles to the the top Spine link, instead of the neck (similar to the Triangle Pelvis feature).

3ds Max 2009 New Features: mental ray

2008-02-15T16:44:00.002-05:00

New mental ray features with 3ds Max 2009 and 3ds Max Design 2009:

ProMaterials
A new library of easy-to-use, physically based materials for mental ray based on manufacturing-supplied data and professional images. These materials give you fast access to commonly used real-world materials such as professional wall paint (glossy or matte finish), solid glass and concrete.

New mental ray Proxy Objects
A new primitive has been added that lets artists cache high-resolution meshes that be demand-loaded at render time. This saves memory, increases performance and allows the artist to render larger scenes.

Enhanced Production Shaders
A new lens shader enables mental ray to evaluate only those rays that intersect specified objects, a new matte/shadow material can capture indirect illumunination, and a new chrome ball shader can quickly create reflection maps.

Enhanced Per-object Render Settings
Additional object-level settings are available that allow more control over renders.

Improved Final Gather and GI
New final gather and GI only settings allow artists to quickly cache these types of maps for improved animation rendering.

New BSP2 Raytrace Acceleration
New, faster binary space partitioning acceleration improves large scene rendering performance.

New mental ray Render Elements
A new render element for extracting HDR data from Arch & Design materials and another new render element allows the user to define the type of data they would like to extract from the shader tree.

3ds Max 2009 Pricing

2008-02-15T15:53:00.003-05:00

Here are the announced retail prices for 3ds Max 2009 and 3ds Max Design 2009:

3ds Max 2009: $3495
3ds Max Design 2009: $3495
Subscription: $495 per year

Upgrade from 3ds Max 2008 to 3ds Max 2009 or 3ds Max Design 2009: $895

Autodesk Viz 2008 Subscription cross-grade to 3ds Max Design 2009: $249

Viz 2006, 2007 or 2008 cross-grade to 3ds Max Design 2009: $895

Of course, your local Autodesk Reseller can usually give you a better price.

3ds max 2009 Announced

2008-02-15T07:17:00.003-05:00

At its annual World Press Days event, Autodesk announced two new versions of 3ds Max. They launched 3ds Max 2009, and debuted 3ds Max Design 2009 software, which replaces Autodesk Viz and is tailored for architects, designers and visualization. Both versions of the software offer new rendering capabilities, improved interoperability with other Autodesk products including Revit, as well as additional time-saving animation and mapping workflow tools. 3ds Max Design 2009 further provides lighting simulation and analysis technology.

"Autodesk 3ds Max now comes in two distinct flavors to better meet the specific needs of our entertainment and visualization customers," Marc Petit, senior vice president, Autodesk Media & Entertainment announced. "3ds Max 2009 and 3ds Max Design 2009 provide users with tailored online experiences, user interface and application defaults, tutorials, samples, and more. This simplifies the learning process and makes it easier for users to find the information that's most relevant to them."

New Feature Highlights

New Reveal rendering toolset, which streamlines iterative workflows; and the ProMaterials material library for simulating real-world surfaces.

Numerous biped enhancements (its now easier to build quadrapeds) and new UV editing tools.

Improved OBJ and Autodesk FBX file formats import and export vastly enhance interoperability with Autodesk Mudbox, Autodesk Maya, Autodesk MotionBuilder and other third-party applications.

Recognize, a new scene-loading technology, significantly improves the inter-application workflow with Revit Architecture 2009.

3ds Max Design 2009 includes all features offered in Autodesk 3ds Max 2009, with the exception of the software development toolkit (SDK). The SDK is a set of development tools used in the entertainment markets to integrate software into a production pipeline and develop in-house tools to be used in conjunction with the application. 3ds Max Design also includes Exposure technology for simulating and analyzing sun, sky, and artificial lighting to assist with LEED 8.1 certification.

Viz 2008 is the last version of Autodesk Viz.

3ds max Realistic Skin Texture Video Tutorials

2007-09-26T09:49:00.001-04:00

This series of three videos show how to create a realistic skin texture using the mental ray SSS Fast Skin Material shader in 3ds max.

Part 1:

http://www.screencast.com/t/1kW2fKTW1yD
Using the Unwrap UVW Tool.

Part 2:

http://www.screencast.com/t/UZvkoPUr

Painting the color, bump and specular maps in PhotoShop.

Part 3:

http://www.screencast.com/t/gLVY60mq

Setting up the mental ray SSS Fast Skin Material shader.

Mudbox Videos

2007-08-09T00:59:00.001-04:00

Here is a link to four videos showing some features of Autodesk's newly acquired Mudbox 3D Brush-based Modeling software:

http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/item?id=9931584&siteID=123112

System Requirements for Maya 2008

2007-08-09T00:47:00.000-04:00

The 32-bit version of Maya 2008 is supported on the following operating systems:
Microsoft Windows Vista Business
Microsoft Windows XP Professional (SP2 or higher)
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4.0 WS (U4)
openSuSE Linux 10.2
Fedora Core 5
Apple Mac OS X 10.4.9 (PowerPC and Intel versions of Maya)

The 64-bit version of Maya 2008 is supported on the following operating systems:
Microsoft Windows Vista Business
Microsoft Windows XP x64 Edition (SP1 or higher)
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4.0 WS (U4)
openSuSE Linux 10.2
Fedora Core

These web browsers are supported for Autodesk Maya 2008:
Microsoft Internet Explorer 6.0 or higher
Netscape 7 or higher
Apple Safari
Mozilla Firefox

Hardware
At a minimum, the 32-bit version of Maya 2008 requires a system with the following hardware:
Windows and Linux: Intel Pentium 4 or higher, AMD Athlon 64, or AMD Opteron processor
Macintosh: Power Mac G5 or Intel-based Macintosh® computers
2 GB RAM
2 GB hard disk space
Qualified hardware-accelerated OpenGL graphics card
Three-button mouse with mouse driver software
DVD-ROM drive

At a minimum, the 64-bit version of Maya 2008 requires a system with the following hardware:
Windows and Linux: Intel EM64T, AMD Athlon 64, or AMD Opteron processor
2 GB RAM
2 GB hard disk space
Qualified hardware-accelerated OpenGL graphics card
Three-button mouse with mouse driver software
DVD-ROM drive

Note: Maya 2008 is also capable of running on other hardware configurations such as the Power Mac G4 or boutique distributions of Linux. However, enumerating systems that are not tested and cannot be supported or that fall below the requirements for a productive user experience is beyond the scope of the online qualification charts.

Maya 2008 is Coming!

2007-08-09T00:40:00.000-04:00

Key Features and Enhancements of Maya 2008:

New and Enhanced Modeling Tools and Workflows
Maya 2008 introduces considerable performance improvements and a number of new features that will make modeling workflows significantly more efficient. The Maya Mesh Smooth workflow, for instance, has been dramatically streamlined: You can now preview a smoothed mesh while editing the mesh cage - with superb performance, particularly on multiprocessor workstations. Other much-requested workflow enhancements include the ability to position objects along a curve, replace objects within a scene, and convert instances to objects.
Additionally, a new Slide Edge feature - as well as significant enhancements to Booleans, Bevel, Bridge, Reduce, and other tools - can let you model more efficiently. Maya 2008 also delivers two new selection management features: X-Ray selection highlighting and the ability to pick walk edge loops.

Faster, More Accurate Viewport / Hardware Rendering
Truly WYSIWYG interactive previews are several steps closer now that the Maya hardware rendering engine supports layered textures, multiple UV sets, negative lighting, and object space normal maps. Not only does this improve preview fidelity when using the High Quality renderer in the interactive viewport, it allows a greater range of effects to be rendered to final output using the Maya hardware renderer. Moreover, accelerated draw and selection performance, together with more efficient updating of UI elements, facilitates level editing and speeds overall workflows.

Support for DirectX HLSL Shaders
Maya 2008 can let you effectively create and display sophisticated looks for content destined for the next-generation game consoles. In particular, native support for DirectX HLSL shaders (in addition to the existing CgFX support), lets you work with assets in the viewport and see them as they will be seen on the target console.

Nondestructive Skin Editing
Animators and animation technical directors usually find it necessary to work iteratively on their rigged characters. Maya 2008 now streamlines iterative skinning workflows by enabling you to modify the skeleton of a bound character, without having to rebind it after, thus preserving any work done after the skeleton was bound. This process is supported through new tools for inserting, moving, deleting, connecting, and disconnecting joints on a bound skeleton, as well as support for multiple bind poses.

API Enhancements
Game developers can now more easily write high-performance hardware shading plug-ins for Maya using the new API for hardware shaders. This API includes native support for OpenGL and DirectX shaders, built-in support for shader parameters, and direct access to the Maya rendering cache. Also, a new constraints API can let plug-in developers write their own animation constraint nodes and commands derived from the underlying Maya constraint node and command architecture. This makes it easier to write custom constraints and have them interact with the rest of Maya in a manner similar to built-in constraints.

mental ray 3.6 Core
Maya 2008 uses the latest mental ray 3.6 core, a release that boasts dramatic performance improvements in the translation of polygon meshes and instances for rendering, as well as for IPR (Interactive Photorealistic Rendering) startup. Additionally, particle types previously supported only in the Maya hardware renderer can now be rendered in mental ray, eliminating the need to combine outputs from multiple renderers.

Expanded Platform Support
Support for Windows Vista operating system has been added, that enables you to take advantage of the performance capabilities of this recent technology.

System Requirements for 3ds max 2008

2007-08-09T00:32:00.000-04:00

The 32-bit version of 3ds Max 2008 is supported on the following operating systems:
Microsoft Windows Vista
Microsoft Windows XP Professional (SP2 or higher)

The 64-bit version of 3ds Max 2008 is supported on the following operating systems:
Microsoft Windows Vista
Microsoft Windows XP Professional x64

3ds Max 2008 requires the following browser:
Microsoft Internet Explorer 6 or higher

3ds Max 2008 requires the following supplemental software:
DirectX 9.0c* (required), OpenGL (optional)
* Some features of 3ds Max 2008 are only enabled when used with graphics hardware that supports Shader Model 3.0 (Pixel Shader and Vertex Shader 3.0). Check with your manufacturer to determine if your hardware supports Shader Model 3.0.

Hardware
At a minimum, 3ds Max 2008 32-bit requires a system with:
Intel Pentium IV or AMD Athlon XP or higher processor
512 MB RAM (1 GB recommended)
500 MB swap space (2 GB recommended)
Hardware-accelerated OpenGL and Direct3D supported
Microsoft Windows-compliant pointing device (optimized for Microsoft IntelliMouse)
DVD-ROM drive

Note: Apple computers based on Intel processors and running Microsoft operating systems are not currently supported.

At a minimum, 3ds Max 2008 64-bit requires a system with:
Intel EM64T, AMD Athlon 64 or higher, AMD Opteron processor
1 GB RAM (4 GB recommended)
500 MB swap space (2 GB recommended)
Hardware-accelerated OpenGL and Direct3D supported
Microsoft Windows-compliant pointing device (optimized IntelliMouse)
DVD-ROM drive

3ds max 2008 is Coming!

2007-08-07T20:11:00.000-04:00

3ds max 2008 will be shipping in October!

Key New Features and Enhancements from Autodesk's website:

Accelerated Performance
The integration of new technology into the software’s Adaptive Degradation System improves interactive performance by automatically simplifying scene display to meet a user-defined target frame rate. You control how 3ds Max adjusts scene display - whether the smallest objects are hidden, or distant objects have less detail, etc. - and 3ds Max calculates how best to achieve it. When combined with the new Direct3D mesh caching that groups objects by materials, the result is that tens of thousands of objects can be just as interactive as ten objects. In addition, loading, arrays, Autodesk FBX and OBJ export, and other areas of the software perform significantly faster.

Scene Explorer for Scene Management
Scene Explorer is a new tool that provides you with a hierarchical view of scene data and fast scene analysis, along with editing tools that facilitate working with even the most complex, object-heavy scenes. Scene Explorer gives you the ability to sort, filter, and search a scene by any object type or property (including metadata), with stackable filtering, sorting, and searching criteria. This new tool also enables you to save and store multiple Explorer instances and to link, unlink, rename, hide, freeze, and delete objects, regardless of what objects are currently selected in the scene. You can also configure columns to display and edit any object property, and because this feature is scriptable and SDK extendable, you can use callbacks to add custom column definitions.

Review
This powerful new toolset gives you immediate feedback on various render settings, enabling you to iterate rapidly. This means you can now quickly hone in on your desired look without waiting for a software render - perfect for over-the-shoulder client/boss feedback sessions and other iterative workflows. Based on the latest game engine technology, Review delivers interactive viewport previews of shadows (including self-shadowing and up to 64 lights simultaneously), the 3ds Max sun/sky system, and mental ray Architectural and Design material settings.

MAXScript ProEditor
The debut of the new MAXScript ProEditor! This intuitive new interface for working with MAXScript includes multilevel undo functionality; fast, high-quality code colorization; rapid opening of large documents; line number display; regular expressions in search/replace; folding of sections of the script; support for user customization; and many other features.

Enhanced DWG Import
3ds Max 2008 delivers faster, more accurate importing of DWG files. Significantly improved memory management enables you to import large, complex scenes with multiple objects in considerably less time. Improved support for material assignment and naming, solid object import, and normals management facilitate working with software products such as Revit Architecture 2008. Plus, a new Select Similar feature identifies all objects in an imported DWG scene that contain characteristics similar to those of a selected object. This capability lets you select and edit multiple imported objects simultaneously - dramatically streamlining DWG-based workflows.

Artist-Friendly Modeling Options
3ds Max 2008 gives you a more streamlined, artist-friendly modeling workflow through a collection of hands-on modeling options that let you focus more on the creative process. These options include selection previewing and the ability to have existing modeling hotkeys and pivots become temporary overrides.

Biped Enhancements
This latest release provides you with new levels of flexibility with regard to your Biped rigs. A new Xtras tool lets you create and animate extraneous Biped features anywhere on your rig (for example, wings or additional facial bones) and save them as BIP files. These files are supported in Mixer and Motion Flow, as well as in Layers, where new layering functionality enables BIP files to be saved as offsets from each layer to isolate character motion. As a result, each layer can be saved as its own asset for export into a game.

Expanded Platform Support
3ds Max 2008 is the first full release of the software officially compatible with Microsoft Windows Vista 32-bit and 64-bit operating systems and the Microsoft DirectX 10 platform.

I'll be checking out the new version of MAX tomorrow at SIGGRAPH - I'll let you know what cool things I find out!

Autodesk Acquires Mudbox

2007-08-06T14:33:00.001-04:00

Excerpt from Autodesk press release:

"Autodesk announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire substantially all the assets of Skymatter Limited, the developer of Mudbox 3D modeling software. This acquisition will augment Autodesk's offering for the film, television and game market segments, while providing additional growth opportunities for other design disciplines. Autodesk anticipates that the transaction will close in the next two months. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Skymatter is a privately held New Zealand-based company. Skymatter's Mudbox software offers a new paradigm of 3D brush-based modeling, allowing users to sculpt organic shapes in 3D space with brush-like tools. Appealing to both traditional sculptors and digital artists, Mudbox provides a simple and fast toolset for creative modeling, prototyping and detailing. 3D assets created in Mudbox are often imported into Autodesk 3ds Max and Autodesk Maya software for texturing, rigging, animation and final rendering."

http://www.mudbox3d.com/

3ds Max 9 Service Pack 2 Released

2007-05-23T11:43:00.000-04:00

3ds max 9 SP2 can be downloaded at:

http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/ps/dl/item?siteID=123112&id=9593622&linkID=9241177

SP2 is aimed primarily at addressing Vista compatibility issues. It includes a number of fixes specific to Windows Vista, as well as fixes across several functional areas, including Animation, Backburner, Batch Rendering, Biped, Editable Poly, Editable Mesh, Hair, Materials, Maxscript, mental ray, Reactor, Render to Texture, SDK and UV Unwrap.

This Service Pack does NOT update Autodesk 3ds Max 9 Extension: Productivity Booster.
Either the 32-bit or 64-bit versions of the Service Pack can be downloaded.

Issues addressed by this Service Pack:

ANIMATION
Fixed a problem that prevented keyframes from Custom Attributes displayed in the Timeline from updating correctly.
Fixed a problem when wiring animation layer weights together.

BACKBURNER
Fixed a problem with Assign to Selected Job. It now works correctly.
A limitation where slaves could only pick jobs from submitting machines that had exactly the same operating system has been removed. Now, any workstation can submit jobs that can be picked by any slave, regardless of the Operating System (32-bit or 64-bit Windows).

BATCH RENDER
Fixed a problem with stitch rendering. Strips are now saved correctly.

BIPED/CS
Fixed a problem with FBX imports onto biped.
Fixed a problem that prevented .BIP files from being loaded onto X-ref’ed Bipeds.
Fixed a problem with keyframe selections in the Dopesheet that led to stability problems.
Fixed a problem where crowd simulations were solved in the wrong plane.
Fixed a problem with Euler controllers that could lead to interpolation issues.
Fixed a problem that prevented Bipeds from displaying trajectories. This was actually a feature in previous releases. It was determined that using 3ds max trajectories display on biped limbs (not biped trajectories) could lead to stability problems, and thus they were disabled. Some users requested these were enabled again, so a new .INI switch has been added to enable this functionality. To be able to use 3ds max trajectories display, add the following entry to your 3dsmax.ini file (you may edit your .ini files at your own risk):[Trajectory]ShowBiped=1
Using Render Presets on a file where a biped was present would result in a corrupt file when saved. This has been fixed.

CONTROLLERS
Fixed a problem with animation layers where wiring the output of a layer would not update the dependant.

DISPLAY
There was a problem where turning on Vertex tick display and Backface culling could lead to a crash. This has been fixed.
Fixed some display issues with Hidden Line display mode.
Fixed some display artifacts on objects that had animated topology changes.
Fixed a problem that prevented hidden sub-objects from not being displayed when viewed in Wireframe mode.
Fixed a problem that changed the normals at the base of face extrusions.
Fixed a problem with DDS support in Dx10 under Windows Vista.
Fixed a problem that prevented the max viewports from drawing properly after startup under Windows Vista.
Fixed a memory leak in the Dx material that was triggered by Multi/Sub-Object materials and the 0x001 and 0x003 parsers.

EDITABLE POLY
Fixed a problem in ePoly objects that could cause topology changes when files were saved and re-opened.
Fixed a problem that prevented some legacy files from loading onto 3ds max 9.

EDITABLE MESH
Fixed a problem that caused all normals to have wrong directions.

FILE I/O
Fixed a problem where a file path of a file imported through FileLink would not update correctly when the file was moved.
Fixed a problem that would set the shininess value to 100 in materials imported from DWG files.
Fixed an issue with the LandXML importer that was preventing it from working.
LandXML import would randomly fail. This has been corrected.

HAIR
Fixed a problem that led to stability problems when rendering hair presets.
Fixed a problem when rendering hair with identical values for Root Thickness and Tip Thickness.
Fixed a problem that occurred when rendering reflections in a scene where the Hair render effect had been deleted.
Fixed a problem where changing the Tip Thickness value continuously in between renderings could lead to loss of reflections or a crash.
Fixed a stability problem that affected styling on spline objects with only 1 spline sub-object.
Fixed a problem that prevented Hair from completely rendering long hair with many segments.
Fixed a problem that prevented Spherical collisions from working.
Fixed a problem that could crash max when rendering some Hair Sample Scenes in the 64-bit 3ds max 9 build.
Fixed a low ceiling memory limit in the tile renderer.

INSTALLER
Installing updates would remove existing flags set in the program launch shortcuts. This has been fixed.

LIGHTS
Fixed a UI component mismatch in the IES Sky light.

LOAD/SAVE ANIMATION
Fixed a problem that could decrease the stability of load/save animation.
Fixed a problem that prevented list controllers from showing up in the incoming list.

LOCALIZATION/GLOBALIZATION
Some hair presets would not work in the English version of 3ds max when running under French or German localized Operating Systems. This has been fixed.
3ds max files saved in folders with double-byte characters in their names could get corrupted or suffer from compatibility issues. This has been corrected.

MAPS
Fractal mode in the cellular texture was not working correctly. This has been fixed.

MATERIALS
Fixed a problem in the Arch&Design material that caused shadows to work incorrectly. This was affecting cutouts.
Fixed a problem in the DirectX material that prevented it from using any mapping channel higher than 1.

MAX SCRIPT
Encrypted MAXScripts now use a much more robust encryption scheme.

MENTAL RAY
Fixed a compatibility issue between the fast rasterizer and the mr sun and sky shader.
Fixed a compatibility problem between the new FG interpolation mode and the Fast SSS shader.
Fixed a performance issue with accessing IES light profiles.
There was a problem with the number of satellites available in multi-core or hyper-threaded machines. This has been corrected.

MOTION MIXER
Fixed a problem would prevent Custom Attributes from mapping correctly when performing a default mapping.
Fixed a problem where a Hold/Fetch operation could break Max Objects in a mix.
Fixed a cosmetic issue with a checkbox in the Add Max Objects dialog.

OPERATING SYSTEMS
Fixed a problem that was causing DxDDS.bmi errors on startup under Windows Vista.
3ds max would display white viewports on startup under Windows Vista. This has been corrected.
3ds max would not run under Windows Vista when the UAC feature was on. This has been corrected.

REACTOR
Fixed a problem that prevented vertices from showing up in FFD’s used by softbodies.

RENDERING
Fixed a problem where logarithmic exposure would output negative values for color components greater than ~0.95.
Fixed a problem that could lead to decreased stability when rendering displacement maps.
Fixed a problem that was forcing render output filenames to user lowercase characters only, and completely changing double-byte characters.

RENDER TO TEXTURE
Fixed a problem that caused accuracy errors in the 64-bit build of 3ds max 9.

SDK
Fixed an issue with IKControl that prevented forward kinematic transforms from solving correctly.
Fixed a problem that could lead to MAXScript exceptions in the Render To Texture and Named Selection Sets dialogs.
Fixed a performance issue with selecting animated controls in the layer control system.
Fixed a memory leak in the viewport code.
Fixed a scene notification explosion problem that could lead to hangs when performing a Save Selected operation.

UV UNWRAP
Fixed a few small issues with packing UV’s.

Known Issues:

File I/O:
Files saved in 3ds max 9 can grow in size when compared to previous versions of 3ds max.

Operating Systems:
There is a refresh problem with the Welcome Screen when running DirectX on Windows Vista that can cause the Close button to not be visible. Resizing the dialog will refresh the window.

VIZ 2008 Install Location Problem

2007-04-11T13:53:00.000-04:00

VIZ 2008 will only install to its default location in C:\Program Files\Autodesk\VIZ2008.

To install VIZ 2008 in a different location than the default path, download and install the patch from the following link:

http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/ps/dl/item?siteID=123112&id=9421591&linkID=9242899

Materials and Content Missing from Autodesk VIZ 2008

2007-03-30T17:02:00.000-04:00

Materials and content from earlier versions of Autodesk VIZ are missing from the VIZ 2008 DVD. Follow the link below to download the missing content:

http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/ps/dl/item?siteID=123112&id=9380231&linkID=9242899

3ds Max 9 Service Pack 1 Released

2007-03-30T16:50:00.000-04:00

3ds Max 9 SP1 can be downloaded from the following link:

http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/ps/dl/item?siteID=123112&id=9396598&linkID=9241178

Issues Addressed by this Service Pack:

ANIMATION
Keyframes from Custom Attributes displayed in the Timeline now update correctly.
Wiring animation layer weights together work correctly.

AUTODESK BACKBURNER
Assign to Selected Job option now works correctly.
A limitation where slaves could only select jobs from submitting machines with identical operating systems has been removed. Now, any workstation can submit jobs that can be picked by any slave, regardless of the operating system (32-bit or 64-bit Windows). IMPORTANT: Mixing slaves that have different operating systems in the same job is NOT recommended and can lead to unexpected results.

BATCH RENDER
Fixed a problem with stitch rendering. Strips are now saved correctly.

BIPED/CS
FBX imports onto bipeds now working correctly.
You can now load.BIP files onto X-Ref’ed Bipeds.
Fixed stability problems with keyframe selections in the Dopesheet.
Fixed a problem where crowd simulations were being solved in the wrong plane.
Fixed a problem with Euler controllers that sometimes led to interpolation issues.
Added a new .INI switch to allow Bipeds to display trajectories. This was previously a feature, but disabled when it appeared that using 3ds Max trajectories display on biped limbs (not biped trajectories) led to stability problems. As users are requesting this functionality, the 3ds Max trajectories display have been re-activated. To use 3ds Max trajectories display, add the following entry to your 3dsmax.ini file (edit .ini files at your own risk):[Trajectory]ShowBiped=1

CONTROLLERS
Fixed an animation layering problem where wiring the output of a layer did not update the dependant.

DISPLAY
Hidden Line display mode issues fixed.
Fixed issues involving display artifacts on objects that had animated topology changes.
Fixed a problem that prevented the display of hidden sub-objects when viewed in Wireframe mode.
Addressed issues where normals at the base of face extrusions would change.

EDITABLE POLY
Topology changes no longer occur when ePoly object files are saved and re-opened.
Fixed problems preventing some legacy files from loading in 3ds Max 9.

EDITABLE MESH
Fixed a problem that caused normals to point in the wrong direction.

FILE I/O
Fixed a problem with the file path of files imported through FileLink. Previously they did not update correctly if the file had been moved.
Fixed a problem that automatically gave materials imported from DWG files a shininess value of 100.

HAIR
Fixed a problem created when rendering hair with identical Root Thickness and Tip Thickness values.
Fixed a problem occurring when rendering reflections in scenes where the Hair render effect had been deleted.
Fixed a problem where changing the Tip Thickness value continuously between renderings could lead to loss of reflection or instability.
Fixed a stability issues affecting styling on spline objects with only one spline sub-object.
Fixed a problem preventing the complete render of long hair with many segments.
Fixed a problem preventing Spherical collisions from working.
Fixed a low ceiling memory limit in the tile renderer.

LIGHTS
Fixed a UI component mismatch in the IES Sky light.

LOAD/SAVE ANIMATION
Fixed a problem that decreased the stability of load/save animation.
Fixed a problem preventing list controllers from appearing on the incoming list.

MAPS
Fixed problems with Fractal mode in the cellular texture so that it now functions correctly.

MATERIALS
Fixed a problem in the Arch & Design material causing incorrect shadows. This was affecting cutouts.
Fixed a problem in the DirectX material preventing it from using any mapping channel greater than 1.

MAX SCRIPT
Improved MAXScript encryption so it now uses a much more robust encryption scheme.

MENTAL RAY
Fixed compatibility issues between the fast rasterizer and the mr sun and sky shader.
Fixed compatibility issues between the new FG interpolation mode and the Fast SSS shader.
Fixed a performance issue involving IES light profile access.

MOTION MIXER
Fixed a problem that incorrectly mapped Custom Attributes when performing a default mapping.
Fixed a problem where Hold/Fetch operations could break Max Objects in a mix.

REACTOR
Fixed a problem that prevented vertices from appearing up in FFD’s used by softbodies.

RENDERING
Fixed an output problem where logarithmic exposure created negative values for color components greater than ~0.95.
Fixed a problem leading to decreased stability when rendering displacement maps.

RENDER TO TEXTURE
Fixed a problem that created inaccuracy errors in the 64-bit build of 3ds Max 9.

SDK
Fixed IKControl issues that prevented forward kinematic transforms from solving correctly.
Fixed a problem leading to MAXScript exceptions in the Render To Texture and Named Selection Sets dialogs.
Fixed a performance issue with selecting animated controls in the layer control system.
Fixed a memory leak in the viewport code.
Fixed a scene notification explosion problem that could lead to freezes when performing a Save Selected operation.

UV UNWRAP
Addressed a few small issues with packing UV’s.

3ds max 9 (32 bit) Hot Fix 1 and 2 Released

2007-03-06T15:36:00.000-05:00

Here is the link to two new Hot Fixes for 3ds max 9.0 (32-bit only):

http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/ps/dl/item?siteID=123112&id=9233784&linkID=5573636

Hot Fix 2 resolves a problem with the DX material which was unable to use UV channels higher than 1.When installing Hot Fix 2 , you will also install Hot Fix 1.

Hot Fix 1 resolves a Shockwave issue where the exporter is missing from the product's install.

Viz/3ds max Sub Object Selection Video

2007-02-28T16:38:00.000-05:00

Video Tutorial showing how to use Sub Object selection to model an Edit Mesh object in 3ds max:

http://www.screencast.com/users/nexgenviz/collections/Default/media/71521cec-b6b3-4a57-a456-10ae8076f354

Viz 2008 Coming Soon!

2007-02-21T00:09:00.000-05:00

VIZ 2008 inherits the viewport performance improvements from 3ds Max 9 along with the new mental ray sun/sky and architectural & design shader.

Some features of the new release:
Import projects from AutoCAD 2008 and Revit Architecture 2008 software
applications.
Improved handling of complex scenes with many objects.
Optimized memory management system improves import speed and performance.
Use the Select Similar command to automatically select to multiple imported objects with similar attributes.
Incorporates new mental ray (3.5) rendering technology targeted at visualizing architectural spaces and easily producing photo-real imagery.
Easy-to-use Architectural and Design Shaders with presets for ambient occlusion, rounded corner effects, reflections, and refractions.
Dramatically improved rendering performance, particularly for large, data-heavy scenes.
New physical sun and sky Shaders, based on position and turbidity of the atmosphere.
DirectX optimizations improve interactivity with high-density geometry and complex scenes.
Improvements to file I/O, working with splines, geometry modeling, viewports, and xrefs enhance productivity.
Video-based tutorials.
Printed Quick Reference Guide and Architectural Tutorials Book featuring Revit Architecture 2008 and AutoCAD workflows.

3ds Max 9 Extension 1 Details

2007-02-20T23:58:00.000-05:00

Autodesk 3ds Max 9 Extension 1: Productivity Booster will be available for download by Autodesk Subscription customers on March 29, 2007.

The Productivity Booster will enable Autodesk subscription customers to work more efficiently with more than 35 productivity enhancements in the areas of animation and Biped, rendering, UI and usability. Additionally, increased interoperability with AutoCAD 2008, AutoCAD Architecture 2008 and Revit Building 2008 will help design visualization customers share data with other architecture professionals more easily. Users can also take advantage of technology improvements available with Microsoft Windows Vista with new DirectX10 support.

New DWG import options and an optimized import memory management system make the software easier to use and dramatically improve import performance—making it possible to import large files and complex scenes. The new Select Similar feature parses object metadata to isolate objects with similar characteristics, making simple work of identifying and changing multiple objects in a scene.

Maya 8.5 Supports Intel-based Macintosh Computers

2007-02-01T11:40:00.000-05:00

The newest release of Maya will work on Intel-based Macs.

For more details, see:

http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/item?siteID=123112&id=8847359&linkID=5807594

Viz/3ds max Omni Lights Video

2007-01-15T10:36:00.000-05:00

Video Tutorial for using Omni lights in 3ds max or Viz:

http://www.screencast.com/users/nexgenviz/media/bdcf0920-a03e-4906-b588-3d0198432764

Backburner 2007 Service Pack 2 Released

2007-01-11T20:12:00.000-05:00

If you are using Backburner 2007 to network render with 3ds max 9, a Service Pack has been released at:

http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/ps/dl/item?siteID=123112&id=8388951&linkID=5573636

The update includes critical fixes for Backburner 2007 that affected job submissions and job/slave re-assignments.

Existing versions of Backburner must be uninstalled before installing this Service Pack (the Service Pack is a full install in itself). To uninstall existing versions, you must go to the Add/Remove Programs menu of Windows XP (Control Panel). You will find the Backburner program in the list of programs installed.

Issues addressed by this Service Pack:

JOB SUBMISSIONS
Fixed a problem that occurred when jobs were sent to multiple servers. Servers would finish a job, and not be available again for subsequent jobs. This prevented them for picking up jobs in the queue, and from being re-assigned manually.

Autodesk 3ds max 9 New Features Videos

2006-12-26T13:06:00.000-05:00

Autodesk has posted six videos on their website showing six of the new features of 3ds max 9:

http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/item?siteID=123112&id=7684178

The videos can be downloaded and cover Animation Layers, Cloth enhancements, Hair enhancements, mental ray improvements, Point Cache improvements, and Poly performance increases.

Basic 3D Modeling in Viz/3ds max

2006-12-19T20:05:00.000-05:00

Video Tutorial for the Bend Modifier:

http://www.screencast.com/users/nexgenviz/media/b421a31e-46a7-4ba4-98a5-8242590d3a96

Video Tutorial for the Bevel Modifier:

http://www.screencast.com/users/nexgenviz/media/c80b3fd9-2390-41de-a2e4-c5a8d3607e3f

Video Tutorial for the Extrude Modifier:

http://www.screencast.com/users/nexgenviz/media/07de71d2-f4e8-4048-8afe-41c13e77b82e

Video Tutorial for the Lathe Modifier:

http://www.screencast.com/users/nexgenviz/media/349d8769-8480-439a-ac4a-feded883adae

Video Tutorial for the Loft Command:

http://www.screencast.com/users/nexgenviz/media/b2cf1c6f-8d4d-47b3-baee-16854870c2ef

Video Tutorial for the Boolean Subtraction Command:

http://www.screencast.com/users/nexgenviz/media/87bba8b3-5720-421c-8137-0910ab2942b2

Importing Revit Models into Viz/3ds max

2006-12-11T20:18:00.000-05:00

I've posted a Video Tutorial on Screencast.com showing how to import Revit models into Viz or 3ds max:

http://www.screencast.com/users/nexgenviz/media/952193eb-6b37-4e00-bb04-a17fbc7c885d

Tampa Autodesk Animation Users Group

2006-12-11T19:33:00.000-05:00

For anyone living in the Tampa, FL area:

A new Tampa Autodesk Animation Users Group for 3ds max/Maya/MotionBuilder users have been started. The first meeting is from 6-8PM on Tuesday, January 16th at the Art Institute in Tampa. They will be meeting every two months to present ideas and exchange information.

If anyone is interested in more information or would like to be added to their mailing list, contact tstephens@tbaug.org.

3December Events

2006-11-21T21:12:00.000-05:00

Over the past seven years, 3December has become a tradition. Around the world, on or about December 3, artists using Autodesk Maya software and MotionBuilder software join together to celebrate 3D and their art. Now, with 3December in its eighth year, Maya and MotionBuilder 3D artists come together again and welcome Autodesk 3ds Max software users, too.

For more information on events, check out:

http://www.autodesk.com/mini-sites/3dec/

Autodesk Animation Users Group Association

2006-10-03T15:28:00.000-04:00

Check out this website for forums and information on 3ds max and Maya:

http://www.a-auga.com/forums/index.php?act=home

The Area Launches 8-22-06

2006-08-13T17:39:00.000-04:00

On August 22, Autodesk will launch the Area at http://www.autodesk.com/m-e/area/ .

The Area is a community portal focused on artists and developers using Maya, 3ds max, Motion Builder and Viz used in games, film, post production or design visualization.

The site will include: Tips and tutorials, downloads of textures, shaders, plug-ins and scripts, a showcase area for member portfolios and blog and discussion areas.

Ted Boardman's Visualization Blog

2006-08-05T22:31:00.000-04:00

Check out 3ds max/Viz Guru Ted Boardman's Visualization Blog at:

http://www.tbmax.net/blog

3ds max 9.0 mental ray Enhancements

2006-08-05T19:30:00.000-04:00

Autodesk video showing new features of mental ray in 3ds max 9.0:
http://download.autodesk.com/global/3dsmax/featureVideos/max9_mentalray_improvments_medium.wmv

New Final Gather settings (much easier to work with, comes with several presets, Speckle reduction, has a multiplier setting)

New mrSun and mr Sky lights in the Daylight system.

New Shaders:
mr Physical Sky shader to match Daylight settings
Car Paint Shader (can set speckle and dirt)
Architectural Design Shader: Very Nice! Has several templates, several settings to make realistic materials, Ambient Occlusion and Round Corners special effects, and control over reflections and glossiness.

3ds Max 9.0 System Requirements

2006-08-04T22:16:00.000-04:00

Minimum System requirements for 3ds max 9.0:

Software:

Requires one of the following 32-bit operating systems:
Microsoft® Windows® XP Professional (Service Pack 2 or higher)—recommended
Microsoft® Windows® 2000 Professional (Service Pack 4)

Required 64-bit operating system: Microsoft® Windows® XP Professional x64
Required web browser: Microsoft® Internet Explorer 6 or higher
Required supplemental software: DirectX® 9.0c (required), OpenGL® (optional)

Hardware:

Minimum requirements for 32-bit versions:
Intel Pentium IV or AMD Athlon XP or higher processor
512 MB RAM (1 GB recommended)
500 MB swap space (2 GB recommended)
Hardware-accelerated OpenGL and Direct3D supported
Microsoft Windows-compliant pointing device (optimized for Microsoft IntelliMouse)
DVD-ROM drive

Minimum requirements for 64-bit versions:
Intel EM64T, AMD Athlon®64 or higher, AMD Opteron processor
1 GB RAM (4 GB recommended)
500 MB swap space (2 GB recommended)
Hardware-accelerated OpenGL and Direct3D supported
Microsoft Windows-compliant pointing device (optimized for Microsoft IntelliMouse)
DVD-ROM drive

3ds Max 9.0 Coming Soon!

2006-08-03T21:43:00.000-04:00

Here's a rundown of the new features to expect in 3ds max 9.0 (this information was just released at the SIGGRAPH convention in Boston):

64-bit Release for Windows:
3ds Max 9 marks the first full release of 3ds Max with both 32-bit (Windows) and 64-bit (Windows) executables. It allows you to address considerably more memory than you could in the past, allowing you to handle larger and more complex scenes.

Easily Render Realistic Scenes:
mental ray 3.5 software adds powerful rendering functionality to 3ds Max 9. Create photorealistic skies based on the position of the sun with Physical Sun and Sky mental ray shader. New Architectural and Design shaders make it easier for designers and architects to create effects such as blurred reflections, frosted glass, and glossy car paint. The ability to create bump mapping on glossiness only and to simulate round corners and soft edges makes objects appear even more natural and true to life.

mental ray 3.5 Core:
mental ray 3.5 adds a simplified user interface for working with Final Gather. It also has a unified indirect lighting model that provides consistent results when switching between different 3ds Max radiosity modes.

Performance Optimizations:
Core performance enhancements have been made to 3ds Max 9 to maximize your productivity and accelerate your creative workflow. For example, enjoy greater viewport interactivity when working with dense meshes and switch between high-res and low-res bitmap proxies to allow for better interaction.

Layered Animation:
The ability to place animation into separate layers allows you to easily tweak dense and complex animations. Layers can be turned on or off to evaluate an animation, can blend new keys with existing motion, and allow for a full range of adjustments without having to modify the key frames of the animated object.

Character Animation Workflow Improvements:
Craft and refine your character animation more easily with numerous enhancements to Biped. For example, you can now move keys past each other and work in negative frames. This saves numerous steps when tweaking a Biped animation and is particularly useful when trying to reverse an animation, since one can now negatively scale an animation range.

Pro Booleans:
Pro Booleans is a new tool for modeling with Boolean operations allowing you to quickly and easily model inorganic shapes—useful for prototyping geometry, creating game level layout designs, and complex architectural elements. Merge, intersect, subtract, or add meshes to create rich and complex objects. Pro Booleans re-evaluates the topology to remove bad triangles, allowing you to create higher quality meshes with fewer small edges and skinny triangles.

Hair and Cloth Improvements:
Easily work with Cloth and Hair in 3ds Max 9. Create, manipulate, and style hair directly in the viewports using standard navigation and selection tools. As of 3ds Max 9, you can cinch waistlines, shorten hems, and tailor clothing in the stack without the need to edit the original pattern to make clothes fit.

XRef Object Enhancements:
Many enhancements have been made to XRefs in 3ds Max 9. You can now reference scene geometry, materials, and controllers and can maintain dependencies between XRef’d items. The XRef system’s new dependency handling lets you preview object relationships in both merge and XRef operations, providing more control over how external objects are used.

Enhanced FBX Support :
The Autodesk FBX 3D authoring and interchange format allows you to exchange assets between 3D applications. Enhancements in FBX include improvements to mesh compatibility, pixel accuracy when transferring assets and data between 3ds Max and Maya software.

Display Support for DirectX and CG Shaders:
Support for all DirectX shaders and performance enhancements have been made for 3ds Max 9. You can now load cgfx files into the DX material and have them displayed in the viewport.

Viz 2007 Editable Poly Enhancements

2006-03-24T21:01:00.000-05:00

Some more information on the new Modeling features in Viz 2007:

Enhancements in Editable Poly and Edit Poly modifier include:
1. Grow, shrink, and move edge sub-object selections along rings and loops. A faster way to modify selections and move them along a surface.
2. Create rows of new faces between edges with the new Bridge feature. This is useful for creating edge loops.
3. When removing edges, the new Clean Remove option lets you delete associated vertices, simplifying the resulting geometry.
4. When chamfering sub-objects, the new Open option lets you create holes instead of new faces. 5. Change spacing and positioning of new edges with the Pinch and Slide settings.
6. The Show Cage function now uses two colors to show both selected and unselected sub-objects.
7. You can convert a selection to only sub-objects that border the selection by pressing SHIFT as you change the sub-object level.

Pen and Ink Render with mental ray Video

2006-03-23T23:43:00.000-05:00

Here is a link to a video on creating a Pen and Ink style render in Viz or 3ds Max using a Render Preset:

http://www.intelliconsolutions.com/quicktips/quicktip1_mental_ray.wmv

Rendering a Wireframe Animation

2006-03-23T23:40:00.000-05:00

To render a wireframe animation in Viz or 3ds max, go to the Renderer tab of the Render Scene dialog box. Under Options, click on Force Wireframe. The Wire Thickness setting can be changed to make the wireframe lines thicker or thinner.

2006-03-23T23:36:00.000-05:00

Wireframe Animation

2006-03-23T23:35:00.000-05:00

Render Settings for Wireframe Animation

Viz 2007 New Features

2006-03-23T22:56:00.000-05:00

New features list from Autodesk:

Key general functionality:
Sweep modifier
“Loft” a shape or profile along lines or polylines imported from AutoCAD or line work created in Autodesk 3ds Max, even applying pre-set shapes to simple linework.

Autodesk 2007 DWG format support
Autodesk can share projects across multiple applications using the DWG format. This format encapsulates information about geometry, material, rendering properties, and cameras—making fluid project data exchange across multiple applications.

Autodesk Inventor interoperability
Access the Inventor file option directly within the import tool.

Rendering:
Adds adaptive subdivision to the radiosity plug-in, enabling higher quality, more accurate, and more efficient radiosity processing.

mental ray 3.4.4
With built-in access to the most current version of mental ray, design visualization and visual effects customers will be able to run medium-sized render farms right out of the box. mental ray 3.4 delivers numerous optimizations, including faster final gathering performance, double precision computation for ray tracing, and fast rasterization for first-generation rays. mental ray 3.4 also adds Satellite Rendering to allow VIZ 2007 license owners to freely use up to eight slave CPUs to render an image using distributed bucket rendering. This will make the look design process a lot more efficient.

32 bit support
Allow renderers to output 32-bit floating point images for OpenEXR and HDR images. Higher bit depth format allows for greater detail and wider color dynamic range for richer results.

Modeling:
Epoly Edge Bridge creates geometry between two or more edges.
A great way to build detail into geometry and speeding up the modeling process when these details are required.

Walking edge selections along Rings and Loops
Grow and shrink selections along rings and loops—a far faster way to select edge geometry and move them along a surface.

Clean remove of edges removes both edges and vertices in a single pass.
Simplify the process of cleaning up models by removing excess steps.

New options for connect that support sliding and pinching of edges.

Collaboration & project management:
Extended External Referencing System
Scenes are often built by aggregating multiple independents components designed by multiple users. A solid Xref system enables that workflow.

Autodesk Vault 5 readiness
Autodesk Vault makes work-in-progress assets more accessible and reusable, while avoiding the versioning problems inherent in sharing files among workgroups. Vault readiness ensures that Autodesk VIZ 2007 fits flawlessly in a pipeline using vault and other Autodesk products.

Asset re-pathing
Quickly reassign assets for an entire project or portions of it.

Viz 2006 Keyboard Shortcuts

2005-12-23T08:20:00.000-05:00

Keyboard shortcuts are keyboard alternatives you can use to initiate actions (commands or tools). For example, to open the Select Objects dialog, you can press the H key or if the Top viewport is active, you can change to a view from the Bottom, by pressing B. Keyboard shortcuts offer a means to let you work faster and more efficiently.

If you want to modify or add new shortcuts, you can do this from the Keyboard tab of the Customize User Interface dialog box (Customize menu > Customize User interface).

Here is a list of the Viz 2006 Keyboard Shortcuts for the Main User Interface Group:
Adaptive Degradation Toggle O
Align Alt+A
Angle Snap Toggle A
Arc Rotate View Mode Ctrl+R
Auto Key Mode Toggle N
Background Lock Toggle Alt+Ctrl+B
Bottom View B
Camera View C
Clone Ctrl+V
Cycle Active Snap Type Alt+S
Cycle Selection Method Ctrl+F
Cycle Snap Hit Alt+Shift+S
Default Lighting Toggle Ctrl+L
Disable Viewport D
Display as See-Through Toggle Alt+X
Environment Dialog Toggle 8
Expert Mode Toggle Ctrl+X
Fetch Alt+Ctrl+F
Front View F
Go to Start Frame Home
Hide Cameras Toggle Shift+C
Hide Geometry Toggle Shift+G
Hide Grids Toggle G
Hide Helpers Toggle Shift+H
Hide Lights Toggle Shift+L
Hide Shapes Toggle Shift+S
Hold Alt+Ctrl+H
Isometric User View U
Left View L
Lock User Interface Toggle Alt+0
Material Editor Toggle M
Maximize Viewport Toggle Alt+W
MAXScript Listener F11
New Scene Ctrl+N
Normal Align Alt+N
Open File Ctrl+O
Pan View Ctrl+P
Pan Viewport I
Percent Snap Toggle Shift+Ctrl+P
Perspective User View P
Place Highlight Ctrl+H
Play Animation /
Quick Align Shift+A
Quick Render Shift+Q
Redo Scene Operation Ctrl+Y
Redo Viewport Operation Shift+Y
Render Last F9
Render Scene Dialog Toggle F10
Restrict Plane Cycle F8
Restrict to X F5
Restrict to Y F6
Restrict to Z F7
Save File Ctrl+S
Scale Cycle Ctrl+E
Select All Ctrl+A
Select and Rotate E
Select By Name H
Select Child PageDown
Select Children Ctrl+PageDown
Select Invert Ctrl+I
Select None Ctrl+D
Selection Lock Toggle Space
Set Keys K
Shade Selected Faces Toggle F2
Show Last Rendering
Show Main Toolbar Toggle Alt+6
Show Safeframes Toggle Shift+F
Show Selection Bracket Toggle J
Show Tab Panel Toggle Y
Snap To Frozen Objects Toggle Alt+F2
Snaps Toggle S
Snaps Use Axis Constraints Toggle Alt+F3, Alt+D
Sound Toggle Spacing Tool Shift+I
Spot/Directional Light View Shift+4
Sub-object Level Cycle Insert
Sub-object Selection Toggle Ctrl+B
Top View T
Track View Floater Shift+T
Transform Gizmo Size Down -
Transform Gizmo Size Up =
Transform Gizmo Toggle X
Transform Type-In Dialog Toggle F12
Undo Scene Operation Ctrl+Z
Undo Viewport Operation Shift+Z
Update Background Image Alt+Shift+Ctrl+B
View Edged Faces Toggle F4
Viewport Background Alt+B
Virtual Viewport Pan Down NumPad 2
Virtual Viewport Pan Left NumPad 4
Virtual Viewport Pan Right NumPad 6
Virtual Viewport Pan Up NumPad 8
Virtual Viewport Toggle NumPad /
Virtual Viewport Zoom In NumPad +
Virtual Viewport Zoom Out NumPad -
Wireframe / Smooth+Highlights Toggle F3
Zoom Extents All Selected Z
Zoom Extents All Shift+Ctrl+Z
Zoom Extents Alt+Ctrl+Z
Zoom Mode Alt+Z
Zoom Region Mode Ctrl+W
Zoom Viewport In [
Zoom Viewport Out ]

Viz/Max Modifiers

2005-12-02T12:00:00.000-05:00

This will be the first in a series of entries showing how to apply Modifiers to 3D objects in Viz or 3ds max. Applying modifiers to objects allows you to model unique shapes. To apply a modifier to an object, select the object, open the Modify Panel and choose the Modifier you want from the list. This entry will take a look at the Spherify modifier.

The Spherify modifier distorts an object into a spherical shape. This modifier has only one parameter: a Percent spinner that deforms the object, as much as possible, into a spherical shape.

In the example below, I applied the Spherify modifier to a simple 100 x 100 x 100 Box that has 5 segments on each side. The first box on the left is the original geometry before applying the Spherify modifier. The second box in the center has the modifier applied with a setting of 100 percent. The third box has the modifier applied at 50 percent. The 100 percent setting completely transforms the box into a sphere, and the 50 percent setting retains half of the box shape.

As with many modifiers, make sure the object has several segments so the modifier has some geometry to work with.

2005-12-02T11:45:00.000-05:00

Spherify Modifier

3ds Max 8 Released

2005-10-11T20:27:00.000-04:00

A 30 day trial of the newest version of 3ds Max 8 can be downloaded from Autodesk's website at http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/index?siteID=123112&id=5972446 .

Viz 2006 Service Pack Released

2005-09-07T09:28:00.000-04:00

Autodesk released a Service Pack for Viz 2006 this week.

The link to the download is
http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/ps/dl/item?siteID=123112&id=5904311&linkID=2377704 .

Issues addressed:
(1) The Snap Preview Radius and Snap Radius settings in the Options tab of the Grid and Snap Settings dialog properly remember their values and are no longer reset to the factory defaults during object creation mode or when the dialog is dismissed.

(2) When XRef’ing a scene using XRef Objects that has multiple objects with Substitute modifiers applied to them, where different XRef’ed objects are used as the substitution objects, the proper XRef’ed objects will be maintained after the scene is reloaded.

(3) When XRef’ed objects from different XRef’ed scenes that have the same name in the source scene were XRef’ed into a scene using XRef Objects, sometimes the name conflict would cause objects to be drawn incorrectly. This issue is resolved in this service pack for XRef’s made after the service pack was installed. Scenes made before the service pack 1 installation where the XRef’s exhibit this problem will not be automatically fixed so those XRef’s will need to removed and XRef’ed again.

2005-08-26T16:31:00.000-04:00

3ds max Video Post Command Locations

2005-08-22T00:58:00.000-04:00

After Video Post Glow Effect

2005-08-22T00:57:00.000-04:00

Before Video Post Glow Effect

3ds Max Video Post Glow Effect

2005-08-22T00:30:00.001-04:00

Make an object glow with Video Post.
Right click on the object in your scene that you want to add the glow effect to. Select Properties. Set the Object Channel in the G-Buffer Group to 1 and click OK.
Go to Rendering > Video Post.
Click on the Add Scene Event icon and choose the Perspective viewport. Click OK.
Click on the Add Image Filter Event icon and choose Lens Effects Glow from the Filter plug-in list. Click OK.
Click on the Add Image Output Event icon and then click on Files. Select the TIFF file format and enter a file name. Click Save. Choose the default file settings, then click OK.
Click on the Execute Sequence icon.
Click Render.
The glow effect is a post-render effect - it won't act like a light source in your scene.
To play around with the Glow settings, double click on Lens Effect Glow and select Setup. You can change the intensity, color and shape of the glow.

2005-08-22T00:30:00.000-04:00

Video Post Settings

3ds Max Version 8 Released!

2005-08-04T12:18:00.000-04:00

Autodesk just announced the release of 3ds max 8.0:

http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/index?id=5659302&siteID=123112&CMP=ILC-74NC67366684

Link to new features demos:
http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/index?siteID=123112&id=5659513

No 30 day trial download available yet for version 8 - hopefully soon!

Create 3D Worlds with MojoWorld

2005-05-31T22:35:00.000-04:00

Ever want to create an entire planet? Here's your chance! Pandromeda's MojoWorld is an exciting piece of software that uses fractal landscape modeling to create complete 3D planets with virtually infinite, pixel-level detail. You can add an atmosphere, clouds, a sun, moons, stars, an ocean, even planetary rings. The photo-realistic landscape scenes can be rendered out and composited as background scenes for use with Viz or Max. You can also fly around the planet and create path animations. Check out Pandromeda's website at http://www.pandromeda.com/ for more information.

2005-05-31T22:33:00.000-04:00

MojoWorld Rendering

Viz 2006 New Feature: Sweep Modifier

2005-05-31T22:16:00.000-04:00

The new Sweep modifier in Viz 2006 lets you extrude a predefined shape along a spline drawn in Viz or a polyline imported from AutoCAD. The predefined shapes are called Built-in Sections, and the shapes include an angle, bar, channel, cylinder, half round, pipe, quarter round, tee, tube or wide flange. A section can also be drawn in Viz by selecting the Use Custom Section option. To use the Sweep modifier, draw a 2D spline in Viz (this could be a line, rectangle, circle, or other spline). Then, select the Sweep modifier form the Modifier List, and select a Built-in Section from the drop-down list or create your own section and select the Use Custom Section option. The end result is a 3D mesh object. The same result can be achieved with the Loft modifier, but the Sweep modifier is easier to use since it is basically a one step process.