It's heeeerreee.....
Joe Cotter
Posts: 3,259
Well it's here. Line drawing rendering, 3D paint system, innovative compositing system, motion tracker system for integrating 3d with live footage, nested node editor, 3D printing, extensive modeling tools, what's not to love ;)
Post edited by Joe Cotter on
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Comments
The User Interface, LOL.
...it's downloading...
I'm with Michael on this one. Downloaded and installed, the UI needs a serious re design to make what appears to be a very serious tool more user friendly this I feel would really expand its user base. this does not mean that I won't look at it again some time in the future after checking out some tutorials.
Cheers
GG
...willing to deal with the UI as a tradeoff for better stability than Hexagon offers and more powerful tools than available in Wings.
I agree. it's a seriously powerful tool, but has a user interface that makes the flight deck of Challenger look like the cockpit of a Sopwith Camel. Also, I cant believe they still havent built in an SL sculpt map output as standard.
Totally awesome. I recently had a system crash after trying to install new NVIDIA drivers for my card and well, the system had been giving me allot of headaches these past few weeks and I think installing such an important update just did the poor thing in. So reinstalled. First app I installed was Blender. Now that's saying allot for me. Seeing this new one just made my heart go pitter patter. So my shiny new FAST and CLEAN system will be in heaven enjoying this new version along with myself. Hexagon and Carrara did not make it into the line up but ZBrush and of course DAZ Studio did! lol
I got it now too.
Never tried blender before.....it doesnt look that bad.
The 3D printing feature is intriguing. You gotta love Blender, although the UI is brain shattering, it is too AWESOME to ignore... Unless you have the cash for the full Autodesk suite, nothing seems to come close... You also have to love the people who develop this software and keep it free... Talent, dedication, innovation and generosity.
Blender Course Basics: http://blendercourse.com/English/blendercourse-basics-v2
PDF download at the bottom.
YAY!!! :coolsmirk:
If the comments regarding the UI were about versions up to 2.49, I would have to agree. Fact is, imo, the DS interface is clunky compared to that of Blender 2.6. A little time dedicated to learning some keyboard shortcuts can go a long way to unlocking the power of a truly awesome program. Free program. Lots of free content. Loads of free tutorials and documentation. A bit of a learning curve. To be frank, any 'professional' CG application is going to have a steep learning curve. I've used Maya. You need to learn quite a few keyboard shortcuts and other UI features to get anywhere in that program too. There's just no escaping the fact that CG is a big and complex field no matter what your applications of choice may be. :)
Well said. :-)
While true that any program will usually have a learning curve, it all depends on the person and what they are exposed to. I wasn't knocking Blender, i agree it is a powerful app with lots of possibilities and i have seen some great things come out of it.
In saying that, i have used Maya, Rhino, CD4, milkshape, Hexagon, Wings3D, Sketchup, etc and i am primarily used to 3DSMax, but Blender baffles me every time i fire it up, LOL. Then again, I used to say the same thing about DS over poser and now DS 4.5 is my main app for render setup.
Funny that you mention keyboard shortcuts, I never use them on any program, I am a virtual button guy.
@FSMCDesigns
Yeah, me too... I understand the logic behind it, but for me it never "clicked" either. Back when I first used computers there was no mouse (except for the one that lived behind the TRS80)... when I first started using a mouse based UI, keys seemed so antiquated.
For me keyboard shortcuts don't save time.
•1- You either have to remember them or have a cheat sheet.
•2- You have to have a reasonably functional memory to remember them (so I'm out on that one).
•3- If you have a cheat sheet you have to have somewhere to hang it or be able to find it (scratch that one too).
•4- Be able to except that it will always be something like- it is F6 not F9 that undoes what you did with F12 which actually should have been Ctrl + Shift + Z + RMB + Footpedal 2 + Click drag elbow button.... as opposed to mouse clicking "Options".
•5- Believe and except that the eight and a half minutes you just spent trying to find the correct keyboard shortcut to repair the mess you made with the wrong keyboard shortcut was actually an overall time and effort saving operation which in the long run will save you from undergoing expensive carpel tunnel surgery which is far worse than the reconstructive surgery for the multiple compound fractures you just incurred because you punched a hole in the wall and hit the steel wall receptacle box for the room on the other side.
I'm not saying keyboard short cuts don't work... but I always get people treating me like I'm a monkey mutant for not using them, which isn't fair because as a monkey mutant I'm entitled to be treated equally. What is faster for a button using primate may not be faster for me.
People sometime don't understand that...
I really had no point... thats more or less of a very long... "I hear ya brother!"
That's the heart of the problem. Blender is designed to be very efficient using keyboard shortcuts. Without them, yes it's clunky because that's not really how it is supposed to be used. With keyboard shortcuts, it's much faster then pushbutton/click interface systems, when leveled out for the tools (some apps just have more efficient tools for certain types of design.)
Yes, keyboard interfaces aren't for everyone. I will say though, most people have problems with remembering shortcuts until they've invested a lot of time into using them, it's not free. Different shortcuts in different apps don't help either. Finally, some people for various reasons will never be comfortable with an interface focused on keyboard shortcuts. For them to become second nature and thereby really getting their maximum advantage, one has to be pretty much dedicated to Blender as a main app and use them till they stick (in one's memory) I believe.
Thanks for posting this. Just one enhancement would be enough, but this is loaded with goodness. Looks like I'll be giving Blender some serious attention for the foreseeable future.
...I'm the opposite as I love using hotkeys. The reason why Blender was such a chore on my previous system was because it is a notebook and doesn't have a 10key pad where a number of the Blender shortcuts are programmed. With the new system (which has a full standard keyboard) it runs a lot smoother.
usb keypad ftw ;)
Yes, keyboard interfaces aren't for everyone. I will say though, most people have problems with remembering shortcuts until they've invested a lot of time into using them, it's not free. Different shortcuts in different apps don't help either. Finally, some people for various reasons will never be comfortable with an interface focused on keyboard shortcuts. For them to become second nature and thereby really getting their maximum advantage, one has to be pretty much dedicated to Blender as a main app and use them till they stick (in one's memory) I believe.
Yeah, I was just making light of keyboard shortcuts... they work for most people, but are lost on me. From what I once read somewhere, Blender's interface was designed to minimize repetitive stress related injuries or prevent carpal tunnel syndrome and I can see where that makes sense.
I was actually leading up to a thought which I forgot about while I was writing that previous post...
I wonder what will end up becoming the predominant type of machine in the near future, with some manufacturers looking to push tablets on the consumer market and with Windows 8 pushing heavily (design-wise) in favoring touch screens (at least initially)... It would seem that smaller all in one touch screen machines will be all the average consumer will be faced with(in the near future)... probably desk top units will stick around on the professional workstation level for some time, but I imagine the prices will keep them make them unattractive to the mid-range consumer.
That having been said, I wonder if a separate keyboard will even make sense anymore (to me it does, but to industrial designers it doesn't have to make sense, just be popular)... with a tablet type UI, keyboard short cuts might seem awkward... I suppose there are more important things to be pondering, but I guess eventually if I hold out long enough I'll be able to say to someone... "dude, you still use keyboard shortcuts?"
I might have to have myself frozen in liquid argon and thawed out when the last person using keyboard shortcuts is found... but, it might be worth it if I have nothing better to do.
Yeah... there was no point to that statement, but it did bump this thread up a notch for the moment and maybe someone else will see it and adopt Blender as their new modeling program...
I can understand the difficulty learning keyboard shortcuts, especially if one uses multiple programs like Gimp or Photoshop, etc. There are some universal shortcuts that even Blender holds to like Ctrl-c, Ctrl-z, and Ctrl-v.
Now, one really nice thing about Blender since 2.5 is the use of more readable text in the interface. With text one is not left guessing what a setting is supposed to do, assuming some familiarity with CG terms. This alone was a huge improvement over 2.49 with its plethora of obscure icons and abbreviated text descriptions. I personally think some applications suffer from icon overkill, and that's a worse sin in my book than keyboard shortcuts. I don't know how many here have tried out Houdini. Now there's an interface that made me want to cry. ;)