Attention would be 3D artists - Claigari TrueSpace 7.6 is now FREE.

3D Modeling Software - trueSpace

Some of the first 3d models I ever submitted to TFW's fan art section were done with an older version of TrueSpace, it's a fairly decent 3D program and used to cost hundreds of dollars - evidently Caligari, the company that produces the software was bought by Microsoft and now the software is bering given away!

All you have to do is sign up at the site and download it!

Cool. I've been meaning to find a free 3D program for my home computer. Hopefully it's not that different from 3dsMax, which I've used in some of my classes in the past.

Originally Posted by optimus major this man is a genius

Interesting I may have to give this a go - some of the tools seem to work quite similarly to Sketchup (inference snapping, face extruding)

Kick-arse. I learned most of my 3D modelling skills using TruSpace 2 about 8-9 years ago. I'll have to try this one out.

Meh. I've already got Blender, and that's working. I still don't know how to make hands or lips - and real-life cars are beyond my current skills, so I cheat by making Cybertron modes - but I can live without Claigari whatever-it-is.

Originally Posted by Sso02V I don't know how you intend to show this movie to the lower class citizens of imperial Rome, Superion33, but I'm sure that if they could see 2000 years into the future, they wouldn't appreciate their opinions and personal taste being mocked thusly by an internet nerd.

I have Blender as well, I also have an older version of 3D Studio Max, and have downloaded this new version of TrueSpace.

Just because I already have a screwdriver in my toolbox doesn't mean I don't want another one with slightly different features.

As a reference point, who's used it for designing and animating Transformers? Would you say it's better or worse for that purpose than other 3D apps around at the moment?

Playing around with it the interface seems a bit more complicated than say 3D studio.

The thing about 3D though is, it's not the tools but the artists. Once you lean a particular app it's down to your skill and style as an artist.

from what i remember it was hugely simpler than something like studio or maya - but that was over 10 years ago though

I was thinking more along the lines of if it had useful built-ins or easily adaptable functions which specifically helped make 3D designs where the parts slide and rotate around one another, or where a component has to look good or fit well in two or more modes.

For example, a 3D package where it was easy to not only set up a transformation animation, but to work on the detailing/colour of a part while viewing both modes at the same time. Or a package where an animation could be set up and the application would notify if a part's shape was changed in such a way as to cause collisions during the animation. Or even something like making it really easy to 'chop' an existing part into two regular or irregular halves which have to fit together along the new seamline, or taking two parts which fit together in one mode and being able to alter both parts at the same time simply by changing the details of the seam line.

A lot of 3D programs can do something like this, but with some it's a battle of checking one thing, then another, then another, whereas it would be nice if at least some of it was automated.

Mmm, which reminds me, anyone know where to find terrain-adaptive 3D gaits other than bipedal or quadrupedal? I'm thinking they might be useful for animating altmodes of insects, spiders, crabs etc.