This is from USA Today. Its about the software that was used to make Shrek and other effects available to the public. I just thought some people here might be interested.\r\r**\rFans of animation and effects-packed films such as Shrek and Lord of the Rings will soon be seeing an explosion in groundbreaking special effects, thanks to wider availability of the software used to create them.\r\rIndustry giant Alias/Wavefront already has a free streamlined version of its Maya 3-D graphics software available for download from its Web site. A $5 CD version is due next week.\r\rToday, the company will announce drastic price cuts on its professional versions, Maya Complete ($1,999) and Maya Unlimited ($6,999). That’s far below their former prices of $7,500 and $16,000 — sums that might not faze Industrial Light & Magic or DreamWorks but exclude small-time developers.\r\r"Anybody who wants to do anything professional in 3-D now will be able to afford the tools that the top innovators use," says company president Doug Walker.\r\rMaya Complete lets users build, animate and add voices to 3-D characters and create 3-D objects and environments for movies and games. Maya Unlimited has premium features for creating realistic cloth and fur. The free version offers tutorials and the same capabilities as Maya Complete, but adds a watermark so that saved output cannot be used professionally. Still, students and budding animators can tinker with the technology used in films such as Ice Age, Monsters, Inc., Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone and Titanic.\r\rPart of the Maya strategy is to get dabblers to graduate to more powerful — and more expensive — programs. “Going after the consumer market seems to be the Holy Grail for 3-D content-creation apps just now,” says Daniel R. Huebner, editor of game development Web site Gamasutra.com.\r\rMore likely: Lower prices might attract studios that previously “found Maya too expensive,” he says.\r\rOthers in the 3-D industry have aimed at developing new talent, too. SoftImage has a free version of its XSI 2.0 effects software available online, also with a watermark. And last week NewTek cut the price of its LightWave 3-D software from $2,495 to $1,595.\r\rGame publishers have been including a free developer version of Discreet’s gmax animation software on games such as Microsoft’s Flight Simulator 2002 so that players can create new models, maps and character appearances. And Sony is taking orders for its budget-priced Linux-based PlayStation 2 development kit ($199, due in May).\r\rThis is all good news for moviegoers and video game players, says Jennifer Olsen, editor in chief of Game Developer magazine. “Removing the cost barrier means that more people can learn to author high-end 3-D content,” she says. “The hobbyists today will be the professionals of tomorrow, creating the sophisticated 3-D content consumers will be demanding.”\r\r**
hehehehe… (I’ve got a secret… no I can’t share, no I can’t say…)\r\rUltimately that aint a bad price. A serious animated 3D logo can nab you tens of thousands of dollars. 5 seconds of animation is all you need. If you have skill with that program, you can make serious money.\rOf course you still gotta hussle. Anyone who wants to make money has to learn how to peddle their wares. \r\r1500 huh… could be a really good investment. I know people who are making more than your average college grad, and they’re getting by on hacker skills alone.
Upu’s got a secret…see, now saying that leads to speculation on our part, and now we think Upu may be involved in some “criminal” activities…
That price is still a lil’ too steep for me…but then again, we all have secrets…
I downloaded the learing edition for free… Have yet to install it, but you can’t beat free. The only difference to the learning version to the full version (according to the website) is that the learning version leaves a little watermark in the animation, so it could not be used in a commercial setting. If you are interested in learing about 3D design and animation get the learning software. Since it won’t run on 98, looks like I am gonna have to build a new workstation just to run it. =) The system requirements are rather beefy as well…\r\rMin:\r600Mhz processor\r512 Megs RAM\rOpen GL Graphics adapter\rWin NT/2000/XP\r\rCheers!\r-Niann
yeah looks like i am unable to run it. I am stuck w/ 98.
I have Maya 3D, I am not saying how I got it cause I dont wanna hear any crap about, piracy or warez, lets just say its not hard to find, and it pretty popular of p-2-p networks. So is all the software I d/l for free, even Flash MX. Its a right to share what U have, so if people share what they got, oh well its technology, and its great for a 15 year old who doesnt have 7 grand to sepnd on it. Also, if sharing software was a issue, then why dosent Macromedia produce better protection on there software? There CD Keys can be used hundreds of time, even thousands, its wrong, and it sickeing to know that people whine and whine, well its not our fault that we can get it for free, somewhere along the line someone bought it and decided not to be an american like most of us are and keep the greed, they share the wealth. This is America, home of the free, we have the freedom of speech, and the freedom of sharing what we want. There is no law stating that sharing of a program is illegal, only reselling. I have read a lot about this. Most people dont agree, but for now I am saying this, Jubba, if you want it go d/l it from lets see it rhymes with la la. So for now I beg a pardon cause I know I will probaldly get loads of bs from a lot of you. But like I said if you hate then why dont U complain to the compaines, if they wanna sell the software with shabby protection then let them. Hell, there making millions of just the production, of sites like Shockwave. \r\rTitrationX
yeah its pretty kewl shiyt if u know how to use maya … and yes u can earn alot of cash in that industry and thats why i am gonna go to this bad ass 3d school now this october. only thing is that u gotta be prepared to pay up sum serioius amount of cash if u wanna learn… but hey its worth it when u get ur diploma after alittle more than 1 year of hard studying ^^ i am gonna make my dream come true and become a 3d artist in the industry.
Titration…not for nothin’ but thats not what this thread was about. You make good points, and I agree and disagree with some of them, but I wasn’t really interested in starting this debate again. Its one that is going to continue on until Companies begin to make free software (never).
Hmm… a topic for me…\r\rFirst off… 15 year olds should NOT be able to afford programs like this… you can barely fricking drive let alone make thousands of dollars… if you have a rich mommy and daddy then go for it. But what 15 year old owns a 8,000 dollar program? \r\rWell Im going to say that Maya is NOT overpriced anymore. Many people a few years ago [30,000 for maya] thought it was overpriced and that sparked Piracy of it. Now they have even released a free version: “is that the learning version leaves a little watermark in the animation” ~ not true… it is maya complete… Maya Unlimited is where the power is. Any monkey can warez or pirate Maya or Softimage [sounds like mirage… not IMAGE noone knows this]… but to be able to USE it takes schooling. I don’t care at what degree you are familiar with the product. To make the big bucks you have to spend some money anyways. I have four years experience in 3dsmax, maya, softimage, rhino3d, and pretty much any other programs out there all self taught and it means nothing. Without that degree it is a waste of time. Maya takes years to master. There are VERY FEW masters of maya out there… one being Steven Stahlberg… and maybe a handful of others. So to charge 8 or15 grand for the program that creates the one image that creates a sh1tload of cash in your pocket… is not that bad. you have to realize that these programs are very powerful machines… if they came as packaged computers and not programs, they wouldn’t be looked upon as so bad. My main point here is that I hear people all the time whining about how much it costs, for any product for that matter, no matter the cost. It’s lame. End of little rant.\r\rThe reason why Alias|Wavefront and Avid are releasing free programs is because they want to be able to compete with 3dsmax and lightwave users … programs like these are RAPIDLY enhancing and catching up with the ‘higher end’ programs on a daily basis. 3dsmax for example has fluid dynamics now, cloth, fur, everything but Artisan… and in comparison… maya’s polygon side sucks… while max’s nurbs are growing more useable every day. see, with lower end programs that cost around the same, being able to finally compete with those programs… alias and avid are worried. so they release their programs at a free price tag to push them upon users. But in the long run, Maya’s tools way surpass max or lightwave’s… the program’s power is just not as widely seen by us normal users and their main goal was towards companies… now the everyday user is becoming more and more advanced and buying more and more expensive programs. Alias and Avid want a piece of this pie. I will say, however that the full install of maya unlimited 4.0 is over 3 cd’s big… the LEGAL one… so there is no way in hell that this Maya 4.0 Complete is similar at around 100 megs… \r\rI personally owned a copy of maya with a student license. I would have kept paying the student fee if Alias|Wavefront didn’t charge a yearly license fee… so I quit paying it and downloaded a keygen. They lost out by being ‘greedy’.\r\rThat ‘american’ statement is really ignorant too… it IS illegal to share programs. YOU pay for the program it is YOURS. you can not give it to whoever you choose AND keep a copy for yourself or on your HD. so, read up some more because you are blowing smoke out of your as$. They are called the Intellectual Property Laws… It prevents an IDEA from being stolen nowadays and its a great thing. You can buy maya, give it to a friend for free and never get into trouble but if you install it first, then give it away… you can go to jail. So many little 15 year olds think they know the law… why? because you read a webpage written by some other 15 year old? so you are basically saying that going to college for at least 4 years to be a lawyer is just a waste of time? they dont learn much? you dont know the law. the laws you read have other parts to them that state what i just wrote. and i know because i just looked it up myself. copying a cd for your own person use as a backup is legal… copying it to distribute whether for a price or not is ILLEGAL. now lets say you didnt copy it… and you had installed it… you can then distribute it form your HD via ftp to other people or via kazaa or edonkey or morpheus… these programs are not some big secret man… ‘rhymes with la la’ lol… DISTRIBUTION OF ANY KIND, on software to anyone other than yourself is illegal in almost 90 percent of the cases. lending your friend your q3 cd to install it on his comp is illegal… selling it to him when u have it instlaled is illegal [hence, buy, burn, return, from a store]. Some people never learn.\r\rim bored… later
MeHoo…did you not read my previous post? lol. thanks for the lesson in law. I, personally, know that there is no future for me in graphic design or programing in any sort. I just thought there would be someone out there that was interested in this software that might be looking towards a career in such fields. I did not intend to spark controversy (sp?). Oh, well, good point MeHoo…can we drop that subject?
Did you really read the post ENTIRELY ?? Well done if you did. I’ve read neither his nor yours, so… But I agree.\r\rpom 0]
yes i did. I usually read everything that is posted, however I read fast, and I may miss some things. Like that person who asked How i made the hands on my clock, and I said, yes I did…what you posted after that still kills me every time I read it.
it wasn’t aimed at you my friend… it was aimed at the other guy.\r\rand i did drop it. you just brought it back up =] \r\ri plan on buying maya as soon as they do away with the yeary license fee =[ until then 3dsmax is only 4 grand… i will buy that… plus i know MAX very well. \r\roh well i DO have a future in some sorts of art… flash isn’t one but 3d and graphic design are… =]\r\rthe wallpaper’s being made daily here have made me decide to whip out my 9 x 12 wacom and put ya all to shame =] lol\r\rttyl guys. no harm intended.
oh, i know that it wasn’t aimed at me. I was mad at the other guy for bringing that sh!t up because thats not what this thread was for. And I hate it when people start with that, because its never going to end and there is no sense in arguing about it. But you did make some good points, and I suppose you would know all about it, so good luck with whatever project you are working on now. Can’t wait to see the wall papers
… fighting has broken out in Kirupa.com… where are the bouncers???\r\rI know what you’re point was Jubba… and I appreciate it anyway. I think that my post was what got people thinking along those lines in this thread… if so, sorry, that wasn’t my intention either.
Upu it was your fault! Grrrr! Yer goin’ to hell!! lol
pitchforks !!!
Thats it time for a war!!!\r\rHAHAHA, JK\r\rAnyway MeHoo,\r\rJust thought that I add to the fire, I wanna say that Jubba is right, there will be contoversy till software is free (NEVER). Now MeHoo, Just thought U wanna know that U have one big mouth, and a crap load of time. Also, four years of learning all those programs wow, whoop-t-doo to you, I am learning Rhino 3d, and 3d Studio Max in my drafting class, in a public high school. I agree these laws exist, but obviously there not useful. Kazaa, Morpheus, Edonkey, Direct Connect, Grokster, and WinMX, are all file sharing networks. These compaines, such as Sherman Networks, use there servers to allow you to connect and search many computers sharing there software, and mp3’s, and videos. This is all about money. Every friggin thing is in this world. I think its BS that people whine and complain about it. Its free, free is good, free is America, you know home of the few, the proud, the free. I think its just total crap whenever people complian, about these compaines. It angers me. Also to add I am blowing smoke out of my ass, I think your blowing smoke outta your head, cause obviously UR a stuck up bastard. And saying that 15 year olds cant drive, HAHAHAHA. I race at my loacl short track, www.charlottecountyspeedway.com , and the fastest short trach in Florida, www.desotospeedway.com . Sorry I had to make that point. And for a final note, I think a big war is gonna exploid, hold on, I am ready to for any questions!\r\rI am also adding this, I have Maya 4 Unlimited\r\rTitrationX
For the record, if it were up to me, no one would drive until they were 30 and have their licences taken away at 50.\r\rAs for complaining… who’s complaining? I think that we’re all in agreement that if we want a program, and we can find it, we probebly will. The only thing that has EVER been an issue here at Kirupa is this. You and I and everyone else who signs up for an Ezboard account cannot relate information which is specificaly designed to teach other how to hack crack or steel software. That’s it… nothing else.
LOL what a loser…\r\rooh… go race ur car big boy… \r\r"I am learning Rhino 3d, and 3d Studio Max in my drafting class, in a public high school." ~ quite amazing… thats how i learned… in drafting class. \r\rI do not blow smoke. All of my comments are backed up, while yours are all shaky opinions… There IS a difference. I am sorry you don’t approve of my points… but that you felt the need to TRY and rip my post apart is even funnier. \r\rI gotta go to work… oh and BTW i don’t have alot of time on my hands… im just a really fast typer. \r\rwe’ll continue this later.