Free Stripped-Down 3D Studio Max

mikpos writes: "A division of Autodesk is apparently going to be releasing a free (speech) stripped-down version of 3D Studio Max, geared towards game developers and users. The product is going to be called gMax, and Autodesk might be licencing some customised versions of it to specific game companies." Sounds like there might be a spate of "genuine free-speech" 3-D modelers in the works, with the release of Blender 2.0 as well. Update: 07/31 05:35 PM by S : Seems to have moved link.

Comments

I have a theory about this...

[mav[LAG]]

It's only a theory mind you since I was 10 000 miles away from Siggraph. Here it is: Some Autodesk execs went to the Blender 2.0 launch and basically crapped in their pants when they saw the new modeller/gaming support.

My (completely conspiratorial and possibly completely incorrect) reasoning for this conclusion:

• gMax is just an announcement at the moment - no .tar.gz or .zip files to download - if it was a real announcement, the site would be /.'ed already
• gMax will only be available after the winter release of the next Max - plenty of time to get a source release bashed out after a knee-jerk announcement
• Blender has gone from 0-100mph in a frightening amount of time - and it's free. In a year's time it could start eating into non-free competitors' profits
• plenty of modellers are sick of Windows crashes
• Linux is just starting to become a viable modelling/rendering platform for commercial 3d games

Put it all together and it's an interesting hypothesis. Unless an Autodesk exec can show me an internal e-mail from weeks before the show :)

As I said, it's only a theory. I have another theory - ahem ahem....

Piracy and Alternatives

[Sir_Winston]

I truly wonder how much outright piracy is responsible for releases like this. It seems that many companies are offering stripped-down free versions of their software, and my guess is that a large number of such releases are to minimize the desire to pirate the full program. Ontrack/Mijenix, for example, released a free version of some of their products, with limited functionality, and several more companies have started similar measures this past year.

One thing I've noticed is that these products which get limited free versions are usually ones which are heavily pirated. I suppose one line of reasoning is that if a version with all the commonly-used features is freely available, that people will be less likely to pirate the full version with all the less-commonly-used or only-needed-by-professionals features. 3D Studio MAX is among the most commonly pirated 3D apps, despite the dongle protection scheme (which was cracked within weeks). Heck, I even downloaded it to try it out after people were discussing it here on /. in a thread about graphics workstations.

But for the things most people would use it for, there are better tools. My favorite is MetaCreations' 3D package called Carrarra. Carrarra is an integrated offering combining the features of Ray Dream Studio and Infini-D into one easy-to-use and intuitive interface. The thing I've always loved about MetaCreations is that their user interfaces are not only eye candy, they're easy to learn and practically self-explanatory. If anyone is interested in 3D graphics and wants something far easier to use than 3D Studio MAX, but still powerful and versatile, check out http://www.metacreations.com/products/carrara/ for their under-appreciated but very fine product. I use it all the time for making game models, and it'll probably whip the hell out of any stripped down version of MAX.

Re:Kinda makes sense, though...

[Dr. Sp0ng]

Actually, Kinetix/AutoDesk have been saying for years that they don't mind you using a warez-copy of 3DSMAX as long as you don't use it commercially (quite a sensible attitude, btw).

Errmm... where did you hear this? AutoDesk/Discreet is extremely tough on pirates, and they offer a reward (some ridiculous amount of money... I want to say $5000 but I'm not sure) for turning in somebody using a pirated version of 3D Studio.
--

Wow.

[nebby]

This is really really incredible news. It's really shocking that Discreet/Kinetix would give away anything like this for free. The high end 3d market has been exclusively for those with deep pockets.. I'm wondering how feature-rich the gMax version of MAX will be.

Just the fresh blood in the 3d scene will be good to have (more people = better/more 3d tools and support), but the thing that really blows me away is the fact that it's OPEN SOURCE (!?!) .. I wouldn't be surprised to see gMax evolve into the 3d equivalent of GIMP for Linux. When I get my hands on it, the first thing I'm gonna start trying to do is hack away to get all those features back into it that Kinetix took out from MAX! This could be a huge, rewarding, and enjoyable project.

I can't wait to see SGI's response, now that they've annoucned Maya for Linux.. the difference being that Maya is going to cost you a big chunk of change.. gMaya anyone? :)

These companies *like* non-commerical piracy

[xtal]

I think you're missing the point here a bit.

These companies are concerned about having professional versions of the software flying around out there because it is possible someone might get real commerical profit from using it. It might even lower their ability to procecute in a criminal trial a company using it if the company can prove there's lots of other people using the software that aren't being hassled.

The real benefit from having a noncommerical version of the software that's highly usable is what I call "Wordperfect Syndrome". Wordperfect, back in the day, was one of the most pirated programs I could think of. This pirating led to the software becoming framiliar to almost anyone with a PC.

Now, you're a business, say, and hire people to, uh, process words. You're going to buy the package they know, because you can't afford to get nailed for using pirated software (and you should have your ass nailed for making money off pirated software, IMHO). The reason you bought the software was because your user base knew it, and a good percentage of them picked it up through pirate or quasi-legal copies.

This is like the widespread pirating of 3D studio and AutoCad that goes on in Academia - students learn the high power tools, then when they have their engineering degrees and get their high paying jobs, what do you think gets bought? Of course, AutoCad and 3D studio. I see 3D studio being used in a lot more places than you might think - it's used a LOT for animating engineering drawings produced in Autocad, as the two work seamlessly together.

In any case, the company makes no more money by getting rid of piracy. All they've done is transform it from piracy to using a free version

EXACTLY. Now all those future purchasers of your software don't have to act like felons (in the US, anyhow). This is a smarter move than you might think.

Wrong - licencing only for "game packs"/distribing

[sprayNwipe]

The press release says you "license the right to distribute 3d studio gMAX with their title". This means it's free to download for all, but if a developer modifies it and wants to put it on the same CD as the game, they have to pay a license fee.

The only other licence fee is if you decide to purchase "Game Packs", which sound very familiar to plugins. Personally, I'd consider game packs/plugins separate from the main product, and I'm not bothered that they're charging for them. Besides, someone out there in the community is bound to make freeware versions of game packs for those of you opposed to supporting a company who is releasing a product for free ;p

implications?

[fluxrad]

this is going to bring a LOT of people over to linux.

case in point: i've got a friend doing some high level 3d modeling using apps like Maya and SoftImage on his SGI Indigo2. I asked him (faceciously) why he didn't blow away IRIX on that box and go with linux, which is, IMNSHO a signifigantly better OS than IRIX. He told me it was basically because ther was almost a non-existant amount of graphics support for linux.

Up till now i would have agreed with him. But with the recent ports of toonz, maya, and now 3DSM, that's all changing. There are a ton of people out there who no longer have any excuse to stick with windows (Irix yes, windows no). While 3d in linux does have a little ways to go...this is a gigantic step in the right direction.

Now it's time to sit back and watch how this affects NAN.


FluX
After 16 years, MTV has finally completed its deevolution into the shiny things network