Google SketchUp Pro 6 Released ***

- Great News,.... Google has released both SketchUp 6 (free) and SketchUp Pro 6, which is available as a free upgrade to all SketchUp Users who have purchased any of SketchUp earlier version (2 to 5). Google SketchUp Pro 6 is powerful, intuitive 3D modeling software that allows designers and planners to explore, communicate and present complex design concepts. The simple, robust toolset and intelligent drawing system make it easy to create and modify models, while the import/export capability gives you the flexibility and functionality required in a professional workflow. And now, with SketchUp Pro’s LayOut feature, you can integrate 3D models with 2D elements like photographs, artwork, text, title blocks – even handwritten notes – to create compelling interactive presentations. LayOut (beta) also enables you to output large-format, high-resolution documents. In a single program, SketchUp Pro 6 combines high-quality 2D design tools with the ability to manipulate dimensionally accurate 3D models with CAD-like precision and scale. For more information please visit this link - Google SketchUp Pro 6

European Design Awards

European Design Awards : Open for submissions (Deadline: Fabruary 28)

- A new paneuropean institution consisting of an awards scheme, a conference and an annual catalogue for the European communication design industry is born! The three events are organized by European Awards Ltd. in collaboration with twelve leading European communication design magazines and sponsored by Corbis and HP.
The European Design Awards is the comprehensive annual awards organization acknowledging the best of graphic design, illustration and multimedia design in Europe. It is based on a collaboration with twelve prestigious communication design magazines in Europe who have taken upon them to support and promote the event, Representatives of these magazines will compose the jury They are: 2+3D, CAP & Design, +design, étapes, Eye, idpure, Items, KAK, Linea Grafica, Novum, TYPO and Visual.

Submission period: January 1 - February 28, 2007

For more information please visit - http://www.ed-awards.com/

Terragen 2 Technology Preview

- The Terragen 2 Technology Preview is now available. Terragen™ is a scenery generator for Windows and the Mac OS. Terragen is free for personal non-commercial use. Terragen™ is capable of photorealistic results for professional landscape visualisation, special effects, art and recreation. For full documentation and download, please visit this - Link

SOFTIMAGE | XSI 6 Released

-Avid Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ: AVID), today announced that its Softimage, Co. subsidiary has released SOFTIMAGE®XSI® 6, the latest version of its flagship 3D animation and character creation software. Available now for download, XSI 6 software offers new features and solutions that result in a fast and highly integrated way to work with complex 3D characters and motion capture data in a mixed-studio pipeline. Whether used for visual effects in film and broadcast programs or for designing next-generation PC and console games, XSI 6 software delivers many powerful capabilities to 3D artists this holiday season. Along with major advances in animation and data management for complex 3D scenes, the rendering core within XSI 6 software has been enhanced for increased performance, scalability and extensibility.
Read more on XSI website
Watch XSI 6 Features, Video

Power NURBS™ 2.0 For AutoDesk's 3DS MAX

- nPower Software boast Power NURBS 2.0 facilitates construction of even the most complex geometry. (PR) nPower Software, a division of IntegrityWare, Inc, announced today the 2.0 release of its popular Power NURBS product (with support for 3ds Max 9, including 64 bit support). Power NURBS hybrid Solids / Surface Modeler is revolutionizing 3D design with the ability to combine both types of models in a seamless, integrated fashion. Power NURBS' hybrid design flexibility makes it uniquely applicable to a broad range of markets. Power NURBS 1.0 achieved great success in the industrial design, mechanical, electronic and architectural industries. Version 2.0 simplifies the construction of complex geometry typical of the automotive, aerospace, medical, entertainment and organic modeling industries........Download Free Beta!!
Tags: 3ds Max . 3ds Max plugins .

HOW International Design Awards

-Deadline of this years high-profile Howdesign competition closing in, So Don't miss your opportunity to enter the 15th Annual How International Design Awards. It could be your chance to gain international recognition, feel like a star and show off your hard work Winning entries appear in the April 2007 issue of HOW. Entry deadline is September 1, 2006. Download rules and an entry form here(.PDF). [Source: Howdesign]

Chaos Group Released V-Ray Beta For Autodesk's 3ds Max And Maya

- Chaos Group has Released Beta version 1.5 of the V-Ray rendering engine for Autodesk® 3ds Max® is now available for download. The New features in this version includes; Support for motion blur on Particle Flow systems with both translational and rotational motion blur, New Reinhardt color mapping mode, Sub-pixel and per-pixel color mapping modes, Detail enhancement for the irradiance map, supports 64-bit operating systems, Render elements are fully supported in VRay distributed rendering mode, Support for including/excluding objects from the Toon effect and many more enhancement features. chaos group has also released public beta for Autodesk Maya .
V-Ray 1.5 RC1 for 3ds max
Download Vray beta for max and Maya
Tags: 3ds max . maya . vray . V-ray

Autodesk Launched 3ds Max 9 And Maya 8 At SIGGRAPH '06

Autodesk, Inc. has launched Autodesk Maya 8 and 3ds Max 9 , both Supports 64-bit Technology and Multithreading Enhancements Offer New Levels of Scalability and Speed. Both programs have also been optimized for large datasets, one of the most crucial features for high-end film, broadcast and game users. Each program also contains numerous improvements, in areas such as productivity, pipeline efficiency, rendering and file exchange capabilities with other programs.The latter is one of the advantages of Autodesk owning both programs, plus other assets which came to it in the Alias purchase last year. One of those was the FBX plugin, which has now been upgraded for tighter integration between Maya, 3ds Max and MotionBuilder. The new version features inter changeable geometry between Maya and 3ds Max. In addition, render layers can be exported to Autodesk’s Toxik database. Both of them will take advantage from mental ray 3.5 core. The 3ds Max 9 will be available in October 2006, while Maya 8 starts shipping in August 2006.(source: CGI, Y!news)
For a complete list of new features in Maya 8, please visit www.autodesk.com/maya.
For a complete list of new features in 3ds Max 9, please visit www.autodesk.com/3dsmax.
Tags: 3ds Max . Maya . Autodesk

Download 3d Studio Max Scripts ( by Ivan )

- Various task specific 3d studio max scripts written by Ivan Tepavicharov. 'steps'. AlignMultiple - This script aligns the selected objects along the X coordinate axis by picking a point on the viewport. LinkBySelection - Links objects by order of their selection. For example, when selecting two or more objects, the first selected is linked to the second, the second to the third, and so on. AnimationTransfer - Transfers animation from one object to another by exporting it to a file and importing again. GlobalGlossySubdiv - Globally changes reflection or refraction glossy subdivision for all vRayMtl materials, as well as, for all vRayMaps. FixMapPath - If there are missing maps within the scene this script automatically finds and fixes them. All you need to do is assign a directory that contains the missing maps (the script searches within subdirectories as well) and the script repairs the paths.......And many more!
Download Menon's Max Scripts
Tags: 3ds max . 3ds max scripts

Download Menon's Useful Max Scripts

- Various task specific 3d studio max scripts written by Shibu Menon. BonesPro 2 Skin - As the name suggests, this script allows you to use all the good features of BonesPro, and then convert all skinning info to the skin modifier need to save a structure file of BonesPro before the conversion. TurboManager - Useful in managing Turbosmooth modifier in large scenes can manage Turbosmoothing of either selected objectsor the whole scene. MeshBaker - Bakes any animated mesh. I wrote it for a project where some skinned objects had become unstable and caused a crash on render.I baked these objects using this script. AnimatedAlign -Same like the align tool in Max, allowing an object to be aligned (pos/rot) to another object.Only difference being, it sticks the first object to the other over a specified time duration.If steps = 1 then keys are generated on the child on each frame within the specified duration. Else it will generate keys depending on 'steps'.......And many more!
Download Menon's Max Scripts
Tags: 3ds max . 3ds max scripts

Bionatics Released natFX 4 for 3ds Max

- Bionatics, the leading developer of 3D plant modeling and simulation tools for the 3D industry, announces the release of the version 4 of its 3D plant modeler natFX for 3ds max, its signature product used by the largest 3D animation and video game studios around the world. natFX® is a plug-in of 3ds max® designed for 3D Animation, Video Game willing to reduce production costs, rendering time or optimize realtime performances. natFX provides new first class technologies as such as: animation, real-time modeling, level of details, normal maps, texture management.

download natFX 4 Demo
Tags: natFX . 3ds max plugins

Max Scripts - Buckyball and Tracer 1.30 available For Download

- Two New handy 3ds Max script by Mark Walters available for download. Buckyball 1.00 - The user can create buckyballs (geometric shapes of carbon atoms consisting of 12 pentagons and a varying amount and arrangement of hexagons), other fullerenes, radiolarians, soccer balls (european footballs), or any number of other interesting geometric shapes. Cancel out of the Chamfer floater to create other fun shapes with the vertexes and edges that get selected on the base geosphere.. Tracer 1.30 - This is an updated version of the original Tracer Script written by Neil Blevins.The user draws any combination of top, front, right, bottom, back and left views of an object, scans in the pictures, and then this 3ds max script will create the corresponding planes in your viewport with your pictures on them, allowing the user to use the reference photos as a guide for building their 3d model. For best results, make sure that all widths and heights correlate appropriately in your image editing software.

Download Max script Buckyball 1.0

Download Max script Tracer 1.30

Tags: 3ds max scripts . 3ds max plugins . 3ds max

CGIndia Announce Release of First CG ToolBar !!!!

- Independent online publication and CG portal, CGIndia has announced the Release of CGToolbar for Computer Graphics Community. CGToolbar is extremely useful and must have tool for CG Artists, Animators, VFX and 3d professionals. CGIndia's Toolbar is one of its kind (unique)- probably the first toolbar which is loaded with custom features, built by focusing on the needs of a computer graphics professional and to cater the whole CG community. This small but powerful Toolbar bring all the resources a CG artists ever need at their fingertips by bridging the gap between various useful CG Portals. Besides all this, its offers all the features that a normal toolbar may have..!!

download link
Tags: CGIndia . graphics . 3d . Animation . VFX

RTsquare Plugin For 3ds Max Trial !!

- RTsquare is an advanced GPU based 3D rendering plugin for 3d studio max. RTsquare gives 3ds Max users Benefit from the power of system GPU. This plug-in Offers high Productivity- Processing time divided by more than 10. Main features includes ; Soft shadows up to 256 samples, Reflection on multiple level and refraction, Reflection and refraction caustics, Global illumination and skylight, Atmospheric effect with shadows management, Depth of field, fog and layered fog, Motion blur, cartoon rendering and many more.............Download Trial Link!!

Tags: 3ds max . 3d studio max . 3ds max plugins . 3dsmax plugins

Free Maya 5.x Character Animation Rig

- Free Maya rig By Andrew Silke. Generi is a free model rigged and ready for character animation in Maya 5.x. The Generi rig includes full lip sync and facial controls and the brand new trigger UI selection method for selecting puppet controls. He's a simple model with a production quality rig perfect for learning character animation. Download size 500k only........Link!!
Tags: maya . Character animation . maya plugins . maya rigs

Introduction to XSI, 2nd Edition!!

- Introduction to XSI, 2nd Edition is latest offering by Digital-Tutors, A Major Leading Provider of award-winning training solutions for emerging digital artists. Easily learn 3d Modeling, Texturing, UV Mapping, Animation and Rendering in XSI. Contains over 6.5 hours of project-based training. Perfect for beginner to intermediate artists. The 2nd Edition also covers the latest tools added in XSI 5.1 update.............XSI, 2nd Edition-Link!!
Related post from Archives: via cginida
Digital-Tutors : Fundamentals of mental ray in XSI
Tutorials : ZBrush and XSI Integration
Digital-Tutors Releases "Particles and Forces in XSI"
Tags: XSI . XSI Tutorials . XSI Training DVD

Liquid+1.3 and Pencil+ 1.2 for 3d Studio Max 8

- P SOFTHOUSE Co. LTD has Released Liquid+1.3 and Pencil+ 1.2 plugins for 3d Studio Max 8 . Pencil+ is the NPR Shader plug-in that lets 3D artist truly realize the style of hand drawing.You can create fascinating renderings that simulate from the vivid colors of the wax pencil strokes to the delicate pigment pen drawings. Liquid+ is the NPR Renderer plug-in for 3ds max lets 3D artist truly realize style of hand-painted watercolor expressions with blotted and blurred images on 3D/CG animation. This brings great visual experiences you never had........Download demo!!
Tags: 3ds max . 3ds Max plug-ins . 3d studio max . Max plugins