[LINKS] Archive of useful standalone 2D and DAZ & Poser tools
IceEmpress
Posts: 639
This is still a work in progress.
NOTE: This is not a list of scripts for DAZ Studio or Poser. Those can be found elsewhere. This is solely a links archive of useful little free, stand-alone programs for converting 3D models, viewing Poser matfiles, and texture creation/editing tools-- with an emphasis on GIMP, since it's free and has the most support by far of any 2D paint program.
First section:
Useful standalone applications
RenamerNG
Description: Batch-renaming application. (note: download is at upper left of page)
http://www.albert.nu/programs/renamerng/default.asp
CR2Editor
Description: Compare and edit CR2, PZ2, MC6, and other poser filetypes.
http://mystic-nights.com/freebies/details.php?image_id=317&sessionid=8f8e216371ddf7a43effbebff0d1f0d2
Notepad++
Description: Popular free text editor; can read most CR2/PZ2/etc files and at least 50% of .ds/.dsa/.dsb/etc files. Not linking to it since it's easy to find.
DAS-RGB (donationware from Winterbrose; since it's donationware I'm not linking to it directly unless Winterbrose gives his okay.)
This simple C+ application is a calculator to Kd/Ka/Ks to RGB and back (Kd/Ka/Ks is the color system used in Poser) Useful when reading Poser files via Notepad ++ or CR2 Builder/Editor/etc.
RSRConverter
Description: Simple program which batch-converts RSR files within a folder to PNG. Advantage is that rsr files don't like it when the associated pp2/cr2/etc file is renamed, which can be a problem if you want to rename the Poser file it belongs to.
http://rsr-converter.software.informer.com/
UVMapper
Description: Free and well-known UV-unwrapping program. Downside is that it does not support high-poly models. (too lazy to link yet)
Geometry Stripper:
This program performs the following process:
1) Removes the geometry information from a prop (pp2) file.
2) Saves the geometry information to an obj file.
3) Adds a reference to the obj file back to the prop file.
This program will also work with props which have multiple objects within it: each set of geometry information is saved to a separate obj file.
http://www.vanishingpoint.biz/freeitemdetail.asp?FreeItemID=421
7-Zip
Best free zip file archive opening/creating program
http://www.7-zip.org/
File Conversion Software
Note: Make sure to place and convert the 3D file in the same folder that you want to store its textures in.
Poseray
Description: The favorite and most well-known free 3D conversion program. One program I've encountered is that (at least with 3DS files) some files with many er... "fused" pieces have screwed up geometry, where sections are displaced or offset on the map (for instance, on a shower, the handle might have a Z translation offset which can only be corrected in a program like Hexagon)
Poseray seems to be the alltime favorite 3D file conversion program since it has many added features in addition to converting files.
Supported Filetypes: 3ds, Dxf, Lwo, Pov/Inc, Raw, Vrml/Wrl
Exportable Filetypes:
Anycad Exchange
Description: Another converter. I'd recommend this in conjunction with Poseray or --- as it lacks the problem shared by those two in regards to the aforementioned displaced sections of geometry. The downside is that it messes up on material zones-- (I can't figure out how to articulate this very well) if several material zones are grouped together, they will instead be a single material zone in the exported file. So you'll have to compare this file to one exported using Poseray or Propviewer then divide the material zones back up in DAZ Studio or Hexagon if the model includes texture files.
Warning: I've encountered versions of the installer which install annoying (but removable) adware on your computer (some Chinese antivirus program)
Supported Filetypes: 3ds, dae, dxf, iges, obj, md2, mdl, step, stl (note: it's still a beta program, so not all listed filetypes can be exchanged-- I need to update this list to exclude the ones that can't be converted yet)
Exportable Filetypes: to be listed
Propviewer
Description: Yet another. Not as good as Poseray, though it is very simple to use. Shares Poseray's problem with messed up/offset geometry sections. In addition, it tends to make the 3ds models ridiculously huge and at a phenomenal offset.
http://www.sharecg.com/v/47408/
Supported Filetypes:
3ds, cr2, dae, dxf, hr2, obj, ply, pp2
Exportable Filetypes:
obj, pp2
XNView
Description: Well-known image file reading and conversion program. Some versions allow add-ons to view 3D files, but its primary strength is in viewing and converting 2D images. It can read more image filetypes than Irfanview. Among other things, it can convert .hdr files to other formats. (and I've never been able to open 3D files with it)
Irfanview
Description: Another well-known image file reader and converter. Among other things, it can read .Bum files (legacy filetype from Poser 4) and auto-sharpens and grayscales them in Batch conversion mode to another file format. With the plugins collection it can also read .hdr files, though I think DAZ is already able to read them, anyway.
http://www.irfanview.com/
RTEncoder
Though not a stand-alone product technically, it is necessary for some of the added morphs/fit poses for some of the really old hair and clothing models, the character remaps at KCTC Freebies, and the UV map fix for the Genesis Supersuit basic suit. It converts and encodes files into the .RTE format. In order to convert them back into their original files, an original file is needed-- usually a .obj file.
For example, let's take Victoria 4 as an example, and say someone wants to make an alternate UV map of her. Normally, this would require editting the .obj or .uvo file, which cannot be redistributed due to copyright. RTEncoder could be used to convert the edited file into an RTE file. Because the RTE file requires the original milwom4.obj file for the aforementioned CR2 file or UV map, it cannot be decoded (turned into a new CR2/Uvo/obj/etc.) file unless the user has the milwom4.obj file on their computer, which means they can't use it unless they already bought Victoria 4. If they do have milwom4.obj on their computer however, then RTEncoder would use this file to create an alternate CR2 or Uvo file of a re-mapped Vicky 4. (my description my not be 100% correct-- please let me know of any errors)
http://www.rtencoder.com/downloads/
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3D TEXTURE CREATION AND EDITING
Geneica Viewer
Description: Generous and useful free advertising tool (spam free!) from Spiralgraphics for viewing (and rendering) texture presets from Genetica with very basic editing (seed/variation + hue/saturation/brightness/contrast/intensity and scale) Some texture preset files include mask textures, which allow them to be used as LIE presets in the UbS2 if you have that (in order to render properly, you will need to render said textures with "render color only" and "render effect maps" on) Note that the EULA states that you must credit Filterforge if you redistribute their rendered textures-- you may also need permission from the texture creator. Many of the presets come with 3D maps, though the majority are given names such as "substance" "top mask" and "weathering"-- you have to use your discretion as to what type of texture these are, and you may need to render a reference pic with "color only" turned off. Genetica Viewer does not render normalmaps, though.
http://www.spiralgraphics.biz/viewer/download_viewer.htm
Wood Workshop
Description: A fully functional but advanded wood texture creator by Spiral Graphics (the makers of Genetica) based on the same node-based editor found in Genetica. Wood Workshop is considered superior to Genetica for the creation of wood textures (warning: does not create bark textures!) Like Genetica Viewer, it is a highly useful and generous advertising tool (similar to 3D model freebies by artists like Sickleyield, 3DCheapskate/3DC, XFrog, etc.) Wood Workshop can create both raw and patterned wood textures (patterned as in wood tiles and parquet.) A downside is that it cannot create bump/specular/displacement/normal maps, though this problem can be solved by saving your Wood Workshop preset then copy/pasting the GTX file into one of your Genetica Viewer preset folders (In Windows 7, your Wood Workshop files are located in Programfilesx86 under "Spiral Graphics", while your Genetica Viewer preset folders are located in Program Files under "Spiral Graphics")
http://www.spiralgraphics.biz/ww_overview.htm
MaPZone
Another (though less known) free node-based texture creator.
http://www.mapzoneeditor.com/?PAGE=HOME
Neo-Texture Edit
Another (less known) free node-based texture creator.
http://neotextureedit.sourceforge.net/
Smart-Normal
Description: An adobe Flash plugin which can generate great normalmaps from images-- so far it creates the highest quality normalmaps that I've seen in free software (I'd compare them to Crazybump). Unfortunately, it possesses a MAJOR drawback-- it creates seams along edges of the image and is therefore unusable for tiles, be they seamless or non-seamless.
http://www.smart-page.net/smartnormal/
Picturenaut (HDR image editing/tonemapping)
http://www.hdrlabs.com/picturenaut
2D POSTWORK OR PHOTOGRAPH-DERIVED TEXTURE CREATION
Note: It is required that you apply a gaussian blur bet. .5 to 1.5 to the image before running the filter. It is also recommended that you open the Brightness-Contrast window and lower the brightness while increasing the contrast.
If you are not familiar with Raster Editor programs, these functions can be found in the following Dropdown Windows:
Photoshop: Enhance>> Adjust Lighting >> Brightness/Contrast; Filters >> Blur >> Gaussian Blur
GIMP: Colors >> Brightness/Contrast; Filters >> Blur >> Gaussian Blur
GIMP
Description: Gimp is a paint/raster image editor which possesses a built-in Normalmap generator under Filters >> Maps, as well as a built-in Bumpmap and seamless tiling generators (seamless tiler may require manual enhancement to remove seams and enhance detail near edges)
http://www.gimp.org/downloads/
Useful GIMP plugins:
NOTE: All listed filters can be found either packaged with GIMP itself or as part of the GIMP 2.8 Extension collection.
The Windows installer for the GIMP 2.8 Extension collection can be found here:
http://sourceforge.net/projects/gimpextensions/files/GIMP_2.8/GIMP_Extensions_v2.8_latest.exe/download
Useful image cleanup plugins:
--G'Mic: EXE plugin with a whole slew of filters, including several sharpening and blurring filters.
--Grain Colors: Splits the image into a despeckled, unsharpened color and a grain + sharpness layer. Fairly useful for making bumpmaps and the like from a diffuse texture.
--Separate Lightness: (useful filter which separates color and brightness layers-- useful for cleaning up pixelated JPEGS.
--Wavelet Decompose: (useful filter which separates sharpness and other components into different layers-- useful for manually cleaning up pixelated or grainy JPEGS)
http://registry.gimp.org/node/13439
--Wavelet Denoise: (useful filter which removes noise from image-- I find it confusing and difficult to use however)
http://registry.gimp.org/node/13549
--Mehdi Noise Shampoo (Photoshop filter which cleans up noise/pixelation while preserving black lines/borders. Requires PSPI to use in GIMP, which is included in the GIMP 2.8 Extensions collection)
http://www.mehdiplugins.com/english/noiseshampoo.htm
--Xero Graphics Clarity (Photoshop filter which sharpens the image without the typical oversaturation and overexposure found in most sharpening filters. It's in the free classic downloads collection *bottommost link on page* Requires PSPI to use in GIMP, which is included in the GIMP 2.8 Extensions collection)
http://www.xero-graphics.co.uk/downloads.html
USEFUL PAINTSHOP PRO PLUGINS
PSP Vector to Object Script
This is a script for Paintshop Pro 12 and up (possibly works in 11) which creates 3D cookie-cutouts out of a vector image and exports it as an .obj and .mtl file. As I do not yet have PSP, so I cannot vouch for how well this works, and there's only one comment on the page.
http://morganrlewis.deviantart.com/art/Vector-to-OBJ-Script-for-PSP-157731780
As an addition to the above:
Vector decompose (Decomposes non-connected sections of a vector into separate vectors-- see example image for details)
http://morganrlewis.deviantart.com/art/Vector-Decompose-Script-68790555
Again, I haven't tested this as I don't have PSP, yet.
3D MODELLING PROGRAMS
Sculptris
Pixlogic's much more limited variant of ZBrush. Like ZBrush, it is a 3D sculpting tool, but far more limited.
http://pixologic.com/sculptris/
Blender
The most famous and best by far open-source 3D program. There's a lot of things Blender can't do as well as other programs (e.g. RealityPaint/Blacksmith3D), and it can't handle big textures too well, but it's an excellent alternative to expensive programs like 3DS Studio and Autodesk Maya.
The downside is that Blender's interface/workflow has a steep learning curve that many have difficulty with. Blender Wiki's tutorials do help with this, however.
Blender also features innumerable script add-ons, many of which you'll have to hunt down on your own-- these include plugins capable of importing and exporting various 3D model formats.
http://www.blender.org/
Teleblender
Mcasual, aka Mcj, has been both gracious and ingenious enough to create a plugin which allows one to export a DAZ Studio scene to Blender's Cycles Engine-- it is still in the Beta. Note that because this uses a different render engine, DAZ Studio shaders, cameras, and lights WILL NOT work in it-- it is meant to make use of Blender's Cycles materials and lights, some of which are superior to 3Delight shaders (built-in default render engine in DAZ Studio)
Note again this thread is NOT for posting DAZ Studio scripts-- I am merely posting this one as it is an accessory for Blender.
https://sites.google.com/site/mcasualsdazscripts3/mcjteleblender2
An add-on package can be found here:
http://www.sharecg.com/v/72122/browse/8/Script/Mods-for-mcjTeleblender-DAZ-Studio-to-Blender
Meshlab
An open-source 3D modelling program-- far more limited than Blender, but is still one of the favorites among the 3D community, generally ranked #3 behind Blender and Wings3D.
http://meshlab.sourceforge.net/
Plantstudio
Free program for creating herbaceous plants.
http://www.kurtz-fernhout.com/PlantStudio/
Noggin has provided many plant parameter files: (click "free materials & resources" then "parameter files for Plant Studio")
http://www.nigelpickering.mistral.co.uk/
as has Dreamview:
http://www.varian.net/dreamview/dreamtools/plant/params/index.html
Sketchup
Google sketchup is a simple program which creates models via 3D line drawing-- the demo is only free for a measly 8 hours however. Google also has a database of fan submitted models-- the vast majority are low-poly crap, but a few are very good-- (unfortunately, some are so high poly that I can't get them to open in DAZ Studio O_o) Even after your free trial expires, you can still download and export models to both dae (collada) and obj format. (and even among the crap, some might be useful-- I know of nowhere else to find a free starfruit/carambola/bilimbi model, for example) There are some very high poly tree models (including a Bilimbi/Carambola tree" that I have been unable to import into DAZ Studio in .obj form as of yet (crashes the program at 99%.)
Poseray (see 3D conversion program section) can be used to fix one of the distortion problems found in some models when imported into DAZ Studio.
http://www.sketchup.com/
Wings 3D
A free but somewhat simple 3D modelling program. I'm told the interface has a fairly easy learning curve compared to most 3D programs. Herminio Nieves/Sevein and Epony/Tessier Jacky use Wings3D to create most of their props.
http://www.wings3d.com/?page_id=84
Bonus Mention: Our PA Pal Ignus Serpentus has a collection of nice Filterforge presets available. His page can be found here:
http://www.filterforge.com/filters/author16638-page1.html
Bonus#2:
Scott Warren's tutorial on "Recovering Detailed Normals from Photo Textures" (note: though labor-intensive and not for novices, this procedure is by far one of the best for creating seamless normalmaps-- the tutorial makes use of the Nvidia Tools filter for Photoshop, but can be used with GIMP's filters as well. Beware however that every image editor program produces slightly different results-- for example, Photoshop's overlay layer style results in oversaturated colors compared to Gimp, while Gimp's hue and color layer styles are more likely to oversaturate dark/blackish areas.)
http://cgtextures.com/content.php?action=tutorial&name=normalmap
Bonus #3:
This is a short summary of texture equivalents in other 3D programs. It is intended as a reference guide for those importing models exported from other programs which are accompanied by a set of textures-- as well as for those who wish to utilize Nobiax's (aka Yughues on ShareCG) lovely textures. This is NOT a glossary of texture types-- you can find those elsewhere.
This list is still a work-in-progress.
Please let me know if any of this information is incorrect.
General Rule of Thumb: As with DAZ and Poser texture sets, most texture creators do not indicate in the texture's title whether a texture is a color or strength map-- though usually you can tell based on whether the texture is in color or grayscale (black & white only)
--Ambient Occlusion: Ambient strength.
--Anisotropic: Anisotropy simulates the types of specularity seen in hair, stones like cat's eye and moonstone, and general long-thin specularity that is not simulated by default in most render engines. I do not know if anisotropic maps are compatible with DAZ Studio or not, though they are almost always anisotropic strength maps.
--Bampu or Bamp: Japanese loanword for "bump".
--Banpu or Banp: As above-- Japanese loanword for "bump".
--Color Map: Diffuse color.
--Cubemap: No equivalent in DAZ or Poser. In some programs, this is used as an alternative to skydomes, but it is NOT compatible with them. If applied incorrectly, it results in vertical "seams" or gaps in parts of the sky (interesting note, this was done intentionally in the game "Return to Mysterious Island" as a special effect, which IMO, though a tad lazy, is quite creative.)
--Darkmap: Similar to lightmaps (see below), but are based on the subtractive color model (CMYK or cyan, magenta, yellow, and black instead of RGB used in Lightmaps) Darkmaps are combined with the "Base Texture" to darken the model.
--D-Normalmap: aka Derivitive Normalmap-- a type of normalmap that uses the RGB rather than the CMY colorspace. These are not compatible with DAZ Studio, and you'll be able to tell a D-Normalmap from a regular one as it will be mostly green and red. They look similar to the .bum files from Poser 4.
--Emissive: I don't think there's an equivalent for this in Poser and DAZ. Emissive maps "create the illusion of a slight aura/corona/glow emission off the surface of an object with high ambience". In Luxus emissive maps are used for area lights (compare to UberArea light, which is used to light up a model/mesh object). However, they usually work just fine in DAZ as ambient color maps.
--Environment Map: This is usually Reflection Color. However, they are also used in image-based lighting (IBL)
--Gloss: Specular Strength
--Glow Map: This one is usually a synonym for an ambient strength or ambient color map. Usually one can tell the difference by looking at the texture-- if it's grayscale, then it probably goes in Ambient Strength; if it's RGB (color), then it goes in Ambient Color. In their native 3D programs, glowmaps are meant to make an object glow in the dark.
--Height Map: Usually this is a displacement map, but sometimes it's meant as a bump map.
--Lightmap: I don't think there's an equivalent for this in Poser and DAZ. Lightmaps are typically used for light baking in 3DS Studio and other high-end programs, with the goal of exporting the model to a game engine. Think of it as fake image-based lighting (IBL)-- lightmaps are used as an alternative to dynamic lighting (lighting which changes based on camera angle) Lightmaps are used with a basemap in additive color models (aka additive texture blending) and usually multiplied to lighten the model or parts of it. Theoretically, you might be able to get a similar effect by plugging the texture into ambient color or ambient strength.
--Metallic Map: This is a special type of reflection map which DAZ does not at this time possess. A metallic map may work just fine as a reflection map, or (in UE2) the Reflection Map 2 if the model or texture set has already been assigned with a reflection map.
--Opacity Map: Transparency map.
--Reflective Occlusion: Reflection Strength.
--Roughness: Usually this is a bumpmap.
--Specular Color: Specular Map (the color map)
--Specularity: Specular Color or Strength.
--Specular Power Map: Specular Strength
--Spheremap: These are generally light probes-- pictures-- usually in HDR format, of a chrome sphere with a reflected surface over a black background. Light probes are not compatible with DAZ Studio (but they are compatible with Poser and Luxus/Reality) Rarely, a spheremap may be used as the title for a reflect map in Poser-- as this is the name for the environment map shader node in that program.
Abbreviations:
AO: Ambient Occlusion (Ambient Strength)
B: Bump
Bampu, Bamp, Banpu, or Banp: This is the romanization of the Japanese loanword for "bump".
C: Diffuse Color
D: In other 3D programs, usually displacement.
E: probably environment map (usually reflection color)
G: In other 3D programs, may stand for either "gloss" or "glow"
H: In other 3D programs, usually bump, but possibly displacement (see "Heightmap")
M: "material"-- usually diffuse color.
Nml: Normalmap
O: Opacity
R: May stand for reflection
S: Specular (usually strength)
SSS: Subsurface Scattering
T: Usually stands for transparency-- in very rare instances, it may stand for translucency.
TL: Translucency-- either color or strength.
Thanks for these links! Much appreciated information.
One I would add...
XNormal
A standalone tool to create normal maps. Works best in the way that normal maps should be created (from high and low resolution object files), however it can also convert bump and displacement maps into normal maps. XNormal Downloads
Moved to the Freepozitory because it is an offer of, not a request for, freebies.
^^Thank you. I don't know if you moved it before or after I made the request that it be moved to the freepository
Thank you for taking the time to make this list!
I have a couple of the missing links for the first post...
PropViewer:
http://www.sharecg.com/v/47408/
IrfanView:
http://www.irfanview.com/
I think along with GIMP and the other image editing stuff, this fits...a bit of a niche fit, but still something that I find useful on occasion.
http://www.inkscape.org/en/#front-banner-features
And probably one of the best file archive (zip) programs...
http://www.7-zip.org/
Dizzi's .rsr to .png convertor - it does subfolders too:
http://www.renderosity.com/mod/freestuff/details.php?item_id=57197
I'll add Krita as painting program http://krita.org/
And Meshlab to manipulate/view 3D mesh http://meshlab.sourceforge.net/
Node-based procedural texture editing/creation (similar to Filter Forge/Genetica):
Neo Texture Edit: http://neotextureedit.sourceforge.net/
FxGen: http://fxgen.sourceforge.net/ (this one looks confusing as hell)
MaPZone: http://www.mapzoneeditor.com/?PAGE=HOME
Picturenaut- HDR Imaging/Tonemapping: http://www.hdrlabs.com/picturenaut
Texture Studio 1.14: Seamless texture creation. http://opensim-creations.com/2013/01/31/texture-studio/
FBX Converter- Convert OBJ, DXF™, DAE, and 3DS files to or from multiple versions of the FBX format.: http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/pc/item?siteID=123112&id=10775920
Blender: http://www.blender.org/
Wings3D: http://www.wings3d.com/
Sculptris: http://pixologic.com/sculptris/
I personally use Inkscape for vector images (linked above by mjc), but just for the sake of completion...
Microsoft Expression Design 4- Vector based editor: http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=36180
Also, Ignis is a she. ;)
A lot of people use ZBrush to create morphs for the various models and can't get what they are looking for with the morph packages that are available. Not everyone can afford ZBrush, however, there is a similar program (less options but still very doable) that is free.
http://pixologic.com/sculptris/
Geometry Stripper:
This program performs the following process:
1) Removes the geometry information from a prop (pp2) file.
2) Saves the geometry information to an obj file.
3) Adds a reference to the obj file back to the prop file.
This program will also work with props which have multiple objects within it: each set of geometry information is saved to a separate obj file.
http://www.vanishingpoint.biz/freeitemdetail.asp?FreeItemID=421
MAT Pose Edit BETA 4.2:
Older mat file editor
http://www.mediafire.com/download/6u9r8cw8bp264eg/MAT Pose Edit BETA4_2.zip
Thanks, I knew that something like that existed, but couldn't think of the name of it...sure beats doing it by hand (usually several times, because I screw something up the first few times through...)
Anyone else have any programs they'd like me to add to the list?
Just added RTEncoder to the list. I need to know if anything in the paragraph is incorrect.
Alright guys, I need links to free STANDALONE particle physics system apps. I'd look for it myself but I'm not sure where/how to look.
Morph Manager, an oldie but a goodie... :)
http://www.morphography.uk.vu/dlutility.html
Dizzi's RSR convertor (Windows)...
http://neocron.webspaceforme.net/alforum/index.php?topic=1489.0
CR2 Builder...
http://www.geocities.co.jp/Bookend-Ohgai/9483/tool/CR2Builder/index.html
Thanks for posting the links they are very helpful
Might want to add Sprite Sheet to GIMP's useful plugins. http://registry.gimp.org/node/20943
As the name implys it lets you render animations frame by frame and use the plugin to create a sprite sheet, for use with creating games.
Deep Paint was a commercial programme sold by a company called Right Hemisphere. Version 2.0 of this software eventually became freeware. It is a stand alone painting programme which paints in layers (diffuse, alpha, bump, shine...) and creates a layered 2D image which looks like 3D because it has an adjustable light source which shines across the bump in the paint. There are lots of brushes and textures and these are completely customisable. It also comes with a photoshop compatible plugin (8bf) which enables Deep Paint to send the image to Photoshop (or Gimp or Bryce or any other software which can use 8bf type of plugins) and receive the image back again when updated.
Grab it from here: http://grafnet.com.pl/Filters/Deep-Paint
Thank You, this looks amazing :) I will have to check trough the list.
There are several useful freeware programmes available at http://www.debugmode.com/. There are 4 programmes: Wax, Wink, Winmorph and Frameserver. The author, Satish Kumar Sampath, developed these projects a few years ago and now occasionally does updates.
Debugmode Wax is a slightly buggy non-linear video editor. It is unusual amongst video editors in that the video frames are held in a 3D space. This means that the video can be rotated in any direction, including the "Z" axis. Also, 3D objects can be imported in 3DS format, Quake MD2 or Milkshape MS3d. The 3D objects can use an imported texture or the video frame itself can be the surface texture. So that makes it possible to, for instance, export a 3DS shape from Bryce, position that shape against an animated video backdrop, use another animation for the surface of the object and have the object move 3-dimensionally in relation to the backdrop. There are lots of other possibilities. The video editor has its own special effects and transitions. It is also able to use VDUB plugins (if you don't know VDUB you should check it out, it is another useful tool for a video toolbox) and Freeframe plugins (which are available from Sourceforge at http://freeframe.sourceforge.net/. As I said before, this software is slightly buggy. However, its range of unusual functions make it a useful way of doing some tricky video tricks cheaply (i.e: free).
Debugmode Winmorph creates video transitions by morphing (in the sense of stretching pixels to make one image "morph" into another.
Debugmode Frameserver speeds up a video creation pipeline by enabling one programme to send video frames directly to another programme. Works with Debugmode Wax, Adobe Premiere and a few other video editors.
Debugmode Wink creates presentations and is an alternative to Powerpoint.
OpenFX is an open source ongoing project to edit 3D objects and animations. It's not as advanced in some ways as Blender or Hexagon but it is open source and gradually coming along. One interesting feature is the abilty to "explode" a mesh object or, in other words, to move the vertices of the chosen object outward randomly to create a destroyed shape. Weird.
It has its own quirky charm and is worth keeping an eye on.
OpenFX is available from http://www.openfx.org/.
Did anyone mention MakeHuman? http://www.makehuman.org/
I JUST discovered an awesome 3D tool: https://clara.io/
Build 3D objects on your browser, no downloads needed! It's in beta right now and I haven't tried it yet, but it looks promising!
Google Earth Pro is now free
http://google-latlong.blogspot.co.uk/2015/01/google-earth-pro-is-now-free.html
Meshmixer is a fun free tool from Autodesk: http://www.meshmixer.com/
This thread is cluttering up my computer. Free? I gotta have it right now. Never mind that I probably will never use. I cannot resist downloading. :cheese: