OK, DAZ, seriously, what's going on?
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It's not there yet, I was waiting on Britney to add it...ala customer support.
Ah... Okay.
Britney totally ROCKS, doesn't she? She'll have your CPU heating up that sink in no time!
On another note entirely,
I made a rude, laughing comment last night which prevented me from sleeping - which is bad for a manual labor intense job. I'm home with a broken toe as we speak. Nonetheless, I should really have gotten my sleepless arse out of bed and made this reply then... and I'd probably slept just fine, except that I also plagued myself with an exciting new Carrara product idea... at least my adrenaline is totally cranked, and I have a couple of day to just Carrara Out!!! Yaaaaay! And now on with my reply:
It was mentioned that, with the up-and-coming particle system for DS, it may something or other take away the big advantage that Carrara has over DS... different words, but you get my drift... and I laughed at the notion. Well I feel that I owe everyone reading that a big fat apology
For a Carrara nut like myself, it would be a very doubtful switch. But if I think about it, If I were in a situation where money prevented me from getting Carrara, I strongly feel that one of the Best options on the table right now - in the entire realm of 3d CGI, using Poser/DS figures and their accessories, has to be the incredible Daz3d software bundle - which is (really? Thanks Daz!) currently FREE!
Especially for those who have already purchased any one of those packages (or more), there's no wasted investment there - because the worth entirely and immensely outweighs the expense. Here's my point.
In that bundle, the 3d artist now has complete access to:
Daz Studio 4.5 Pro
Utilizing an ingenious use of the latest SubD benefits, the new Daz models are a true step into a fresh, incredibly powerful set of tools and products to achieve amazing art without any other software, whatsoever.
Oh... one of the things that drove me in the direction of Carrara in the first place, is that Poser didn't have a good way of modeling 3d meshes - that I was aware of,anyways. Well Daz Studio connects flawlessly (on my machines) to:
Hexagon
A powerful and easy to use modeler who's bridge to Daz Studio was so well designed that it must be the absolute most efficient method on the planet to create custom assets for use in either Poser or Daz3d. With Daz Studio Pro's content tools and this exceptional mesh maker/tweaker, the artists capabilities just went far beyond what many others can do with such little hassle.
Bryce 7 Pro
Really? I get to add this baby to the list? Where do I begin. I guess it's hard to for me. With Carrara, I never had to try and wrap my head around what it is that you do in this interface to get something into fruition. But I do have some Master Series products that will introduce me and get me going when the time is right.
Seeing what so many others have done with Bryce truly speaks for itself about the power that you have as a 3d artist with this software. And there are plenty of products available to keep this tool around for decades - truly. It, too has a DS bridge. Again... I don't have the slightest idea what this lets you do... but I'm sure it makes everything even that much more exciting.
Now let's not forget Poser - because Poser is huge for a good reason. I really enjoyed my stint in it, and it really is the blaming factor for getting into this maddening hobby/profession to start with. Max came first... but Poser was more fun! :) (I truly have more fun in everything mentioned above over Max, but Max is definitely the choice for those looking for an apprenticeship in a 3d lab)
The Daz3d Software bundle opens up huge possibilities for the Poser artist as well. If I were using Poser as my movie clip render softy, I could use Bryce to make panoramic globes. Poser doesn't like it so much if you build the entire surrounding horizon (if it has to be vast) with vast numbers of polys. Panoramic globes are a great solution. I could (and would) use DS > Hex > DS > CR2 to create my custom movement morphs in clothes and hair. The possibilities go on and on...
For me, there's no place like home. And I live in Carrara. But the Daz3d bundle - especially because of Daz's own baby, Daz | Studio Pro - is a great set of tools to accomplish the entire needs of a 3d CGI movie, painting, comic, novel cover... whatever you want - all with the aid of the amazing Daz artists.
In all, I take it back - and apologize. :red:
Joe :)
Currently I'm not a well as I could be,. but thanks for asking :)
I'm not attacking anyone personally,. NB: (Don't attack the messenger)
I'm simply contradicting the information which you're posting, because it's actually misinformation. or speculation
neither of which should be taken seriously.
The problem is that it's very easy for misinformation like this, to become the fuel for further rumours.
Happy new year (hogmanay) to all :)
Happy New year Andy and hope you get better (hugs)
I do not gush as much as Dart but love my Carrara, get MORE issues with other apps!
one I will not name, has STILL not implimented the facial animation for Daz characters they promised a year ago.
I killed my smart content unfortunately by reinstalling 172, went back to 149 but it is gone
can still import Genesis stuff and a lot of .duf scenes from studio and mimic works on Genesis so no huge loss.
everything else works well.
even my saved file sizes have reduced dramatically so no idea what caused that issue.
Carrara is a great program, that much isn't in doubt. It's potential is, in my opinion, unlimited. The limiting factor is DAZ. Part of the issue is, as has been mentioned before, DAZ did not write Carrara and very little of the original dev team is still with it (if any). Carrara could probably use a rebuild from the ground up, but that is prohibitively expensive and time consuming.
I agree with Stan about our value to DAZ as customers. It's not like we haven't been patient. Our criticisms aren't because we don't like Carrara or DAZ, we want to improve them. We're their biggest supporters, and yet we're being ignored. It's more than frustrating, it's downright insulting at times. When you say a new beta is coming out in a couple of days and then 5 months later it still isn't out, someone has some 'splainin to do.
HI Wendy :) thanks :)
The Smart content issue is probably due to the CMS and Daz studio, rather than carrara,. since carrara only reads the data (if the CMS is running) and if the database has been updated by running DS once to get it to add any new items to the Database.
This is one of the programming hurdles in getting Carrara working with genesis and the smart content,... without having Daz studio installed.
Run task manager,. (Ctrl+Alt+Del) and go to the "Services" tab, then look in the list for (Daz Content management Service)
If it's not there , it's not running,...
You should have some options in the "Start menu" / All Programs / Daz3D / DAZ Content management Service /
where you can start and stop the service.
It should be starting at system Boot up,. and if it's not,, it could be due to Firewall, or even A/V software stopping it, so it's worth checking that your Firewall is allowing the service to run.
Hope it helps. :)
As has been said before, good luck getting most of the big companies to respond to you. Autodesk - forget it. Newtek - forget it. Adobe - forget it. Even little ole messiah - forget it. SmithMicro - only when they want to. Be happy you can save tons of money at DAZ. If you're not saving tons of money, go figure it out. Besides, every time someone from DAZ comes here and does say something, most of the time it seems, they get treated with rude behavior.
Oh, Kodiak. Please don't say rebuild. That's is the very last thing we need. Broken code and stuff where you can't find it. Nope. Seen it all before with other programs. Not good. Better to show people how to do tons of stuff they haven't figured out yet.
I really hear ya, Kodiak.And I totally feel the frustration - don't get me wrong. None of my rants are an attempt to wrong your words.
But I am of the fullest confidence that this silence is driving them nuts too. I know that the Spook and Bruce, Pierre and the others love what they do - and they really are capable at keeping us in a strong and healthy Carrara. They di just rebuild it from the ground up. That's Carrara 8.1 which had to be rewritten in order to make a 64 bit offering - from what I am told. Silence can come from many sources and, while it can be frustrating - sometimes it's the only choice.
You rock, Kodiak...
You've been here much longer than me, and I've enjoyed many of your posts.
This is just me, putting in my thoughts on the subject.
Carrara rocks, too - but I, for one, think that it's here to stay. :)
Well, Dartanbeck, I'm just hoping that all this silence leads to something truly impressive. Like I said earlier, I think we're going to see 8.5 and 9 get released at the same time, with 8.5 costing next to nothing and adding only Genesis functionality. As for 9, I dunno what they would add, but I have a list of things I'm hoping for :-)
Andy, I WILL respond to this because it questions my intent, and implies that I would post deliberate misinformation, neither of which I will accept.
Andy, let me just say that, as far as I can tell from your diatribe, you are absolutely, totally, without exception, misreading and misunderstanding everything I posted that you questioned. Everything. Perhaps it was because I was unclear, but far more likely is you were intentionally looking for ways to disagree with and/or discredit me.
I could give you a line by line explanation, backed up with examples, but knowing you that would be totally useless. Unfortunately, I think it's clear that your intent is not to get at the issues, it's to discredit me personally. Clearly evidenced by the fact that you let a bunch of others speculate about the same subject, but didn't once attempt to call them village idiots.
I am NOT saying I'm right about it all, I'm just saying that it is based many years of experience, it is NOT misinformation, and it has a rational, well thought out basis for all of it.
I'm sorry I angered you at some point, but if you really care about discussing issues rationally, I suggest that instead of implying others are village idiots, you re-read what I posted, respecting (if that's possible) that I do have many years of experience with this stuff, and try to really understand the intent of what I posted.
Joe, he never said any of it was deliberate, just that it was wrong. He never made any statement about your intentions. You're taking this stuff too personally.
Thanks, Kodiak. Great input.
I have no idea why some opinions are valued here, and others aren't. Reason doesn't seem to hold much sway, as far as I can tell, just interpersonal stye, which is remains a mystery to those of us without inherent real-life interpersonal skills.
Carrara is just software. It's not going to feed the poor or heal the sick. Its purpose is to make its owner corporation richer through some (in this case, apparently arcane) path. If it dies, I'll use it until I need something else or it stops working. NBD. It's not worth getting upset and "yelling" at people over.
Clearly I need to stop reading these "OMG it's going to die" threads. I think I keep hoping there might be some useful information in them, but they're more like stopping to watch a fistfight. Somewhere along the way I stopped liking the Carrara forum, I guess.
Have a good New Year. Try not to let a for-profit company hold so much power over your chill, OK? Cheers.
Exactly and well said...;-)
Okay, well, it's raining, the ocean is too rough, and I'm getting bored, so I'll respond to Andy's response to my post.
Yeah, I know I shouldn't. Yeah, it's dumb. And I'm sure everyone will just get furious at me...
So sue me....
Again, I really don't know what you're saying. All I stated was the fact that to add the "buzzword" features to Carrara would take many years. That's a fact. An obvious fact. Just look at the history of any major feature development in any 3D app. So I won't pursue it.
Aside from the innaccuracy about "any time", what you're saying is totally irrelevant to the discussion. I said you need to keep investors happy, by providing a return on their investment. You said all you have to do is look for more investors. Huh?
Andy, if you can't provide investors a return on their investment (ie, a profit), then you can look around until you turn purple and you still won't find any investor out there who's going to give you money. Again, I'm shaking my head trying to understand your point.
Oh, wait, I think you're agreeing with me on this one, so I'll move on...
I said that DAZ has changed course towards content, not software. Is that not true? It's no longer selling most of its software, it's now only selling content. Before the free giveaway they were selling software, now they're not. That's a change. I'm not sure what your problem is with that, unless you want to argue about some detail specifics about what percentage revenue they've gotten from content vs. software over the years. If you have those numbers, and I'm wrong about that, then fine, I'll admit I'm wrong.
Andy, you can keep saying I don't know what I'm talking about if that makes you feel better, but the issues I raised are reasonable ones, based on facts, experience, and a bit of reasonable conjecture based on rational analysis. If that's not enough, then I'm sorry, that's all I've got.
Oh, and for some additional facts to support some of what I said....
There's an article in the Salt Lake Tribune from just after DAZ started the software giveaway, that says stuff like:
"The giveaway-away — anyone can download three programs for free at daz3d.com — is part of a strategic shift by new CEO Jim Thornton, who came to DAZ last year from Provo Craft & Novelty, a manufacturer of craft, hobby and education products."
So, apparently, DAZ has shifted its strategic goals, and very recently. A new CEO who changed strategy for the company. Pretty standard stuff.
Also:
"About 80 percent of the DAZ’s sales come from its stock of images created by artists that can be imported into software programs and used to make two- and three-dimensional images, such as mythic warriors, busty maidens characters or desert or rainforest landscapes. The company’s software provides about 20 percent of its revenue, said Thornton."
Aside from the confusion about what 'content' is (they seem to think it's 'images'), it seems like DAZ's revenues, before the giveaway, were 80/20 content sales over software. And now that there is only a fraction of the software sales, since most of it is free, you have to assume that it might be on the order of 90/10 or maybe 95/5, or something like that. So yeah, it seems that right now DAZ is pretty much fully a content company, although in the recent past it was heavily content already.
Goes to show that software sales are small, and getting smaller.
Also:
"Thornton said after a strategic review, the company decided to jettison some products, and lay off staff as a result, in order to concentrate on its 3D content and software."
Again, a big change in the company with the new CEO. And, as I suspected in a previous post, apparently they cut staff in the process. Perhaps the lack of movement on the Gizmoz front in recent years was part of that....
Also:
"The company has about 40 full time employees", which confirms the figure I posted.
Here's the link to the article if anyone's interested:
http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/money/53801962-79/daz-company-software-thornton.html.csp
OT: Ya know of all the forums I am active on, I only have 1 persona on an ignore list.
If the makers of a line of paintbrushes suddenly stopped manufacturing those brushes it would not change the ability of an artist to paint new works with the brushes already owned. That's up to the artist, not the production factory. Carrara will "die" when users stop posting awesome work. There's lots of awesome Carrara work out there, just not in one place for folks to easily see. I'm sure we can agree that whatever the perceived shortcomings of Carrara (or any other software) it is the creativity of the user that is the most valuable contribution to any software package. Carrara offers exponentially more positives for a creative person than negatives. This article was released a couple years ago. The work still impresses the daylights out of me today.
http://www.highway12ventures.com/2011/01/06/ive-seen-the-future-of-3d-special-effects-and-animation/
Happy Creativity in the New Year to everyone!
I wonder what comping software he use to tie it all together, it is amazing to watch, even the 5th time....
In the Carrara 2010 demo real that's on the same page you see a red Car "muscle car", If that's a straight Carrara render its amazing, Id love to get hold of the file to pick apart the render setup.
ShannonHope your right, if all the top end art that has been produced is one thread it would give people a creative boost and be a positive for Carrara.
Why is it that I have some inability to sum up as quickly as that?
You two are spot on.
Carrara sure has a good way of giving us the tools to get some great art made, that's for sure!
Aside from the part about being taught by Carrara (even though in many ways, it HAS taught me), I feel exactly the same as Ben.
I also find that Carrara is simply a lot more FUN to use than Maya or Max - even though both are truly awesome - just not as fun or easy.
Yeah, I had kinda forgotten about that video. A very nice piece by a very talented group of people. When it comes to eye candy, the guys who produced it are pros :) And if you need some inspiration, it's a great piece.
And Shannon, your analogy to a paintbrush maker is a great one. Two great examples showing that it's not the software or the tools, it's the artist. A concept that all too often gets lost in the discussions here, by folks who are totally focused on, and totally reliant upon, the software.
I also recall a fairly lengthy discussion when that video first came out.
(BTW, a warning to those who might be upset by anything that isn't gushing inspiration...if that describes you, then it's best to stop reading at this point and move on...)
I think it's fairly obvious that all the hype proclaiming that this video was done in Carrara by one guy on his MacBook Pro in his "spare time" (edited to protect the delicate sensibilities of some here...) might perhaps lead some to a rather unfortunate and simplistic conclusion which might not be entirely accurate.
And to say stuff like "one person made this movie, with off-the-shelf software on his MacBook Pro...I guarantee you that it won’t be long before it is and then you’ll see 5th graders making films like this." might be (edited to protect the delicate sensibilities of some here...) somewhat questionable. And I certainly hope that anyone investing in any company doesn't use such simplistic hype to assess the "goodness" of their investments.
It's also fairly obvious, and stated in the accompanying articles, that this video was produced by a group of people, some or all of whom were very talented, and with some skills and experience on a "feature film professional" level, and with access to a LOT of software, a LOT of expensive equipment, a LOT of money, and a LOT of time. And Carrara was a very small part of that.
And, unfortunately, in spite of the pro-Carrara hype, I think it's also clear that he could probably have done it quicker, and with less software, by using some free software out there that has some of the capabilities they needed built in.
For example, Blender has matchmoving and it also has a built in compositor, both of which they used in the production, and neither of which Carrara has.
And, unfortunately, I think it's also clear that just about any 3D app out there could be used to generate the CG sets in that video, espcially if you have access to all of the other software and equipment and talent and experience and other resources they used in the production. Because you could make a real good case that the real work in bringing together that video was in the compositing.
As Shannon said, it's about the artist, not the software. Well, in this case, that and many thousands of $$ of equipment, and video compositing software (in this case, After Effects), and greenscreen studios, and HD cameras, and lighting setups, and crew, and titling software, and actors, and costumes, and sound editing software, and a musical score, and matchmoving software, and a Steadicam (or equivalent), and a bunch of other stuff.
Now, that's not to say that the same guy (or guys) couldn't have generated an awesome short video solely in Carrara (or any other CG app), that maybe didn't have the eye candy and live action that this had, but had a great story and was a big hit with audiences. They certainly seem to have the talent for it. Unfortunately, nowadays, what scores a hit is mostly the eye candy, not the content.
Anyway it's also clear that you don't see videos like this circulating around very often for a good reason. It is EXTREMELY difficult to find a group of people with that kind of time and money and resources and skill and experience and equipment, just hanging around, waiting to do a project which will cost them a lot, and probably result in no income whatsoever when it's all done.
But it's fun to think about....
Sorry, Joe. You just lost any and all credibility. Now you're accusing others of being dishonest about their work without any evidence to back up your claim. For you to go that far is the epitome of insult and it really makes you look like an ass.
If you don't mind, just stop posting in my thread.
So I got the upgrade to C8Pro...but I'm a little worried about using 8.5? Over in the Beta thread, seems Blaine may have left, and there has not been any comm's and the serial number says it is dead in less than 2 weeks. Any recommendations, or should I just stop at 8.1 for now?
Sorry, Joe. You just lost any and all credibility. Now you're accusing others of being dishonest about their work without any evidence to back up your claim. For you to go that far is the epitome of insult and it really makes you look like an ass.
If you don't mind, just stop posting in my thread.
Wow. :bug:
Starting out the New Year kinda cranky, aren't we??? :bug:
Go ahead with 8.5. It works pretty well, has a few little additions other than Genesis (but not much) and they've been good about giving a new serial number when the old one expires.
OK, and I choose "not" to uninstall 8.1 before installing 8.5 right? Just install right on top of it?
Yes, choose not to uninstall 8.1. No, do not install over it. Make a new directory.