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Alias|Wavefront Releases Free Version of Maya

Posted by pudge on from the free-as-in-you-can-afford-it dept.

Gribflex writes "There's good news today for those of us who are heavy into 3D modelling and animation. Alias|Wavefront has released a free version of their popular software Maya. That's right, free." Maya Personal Learning Edition, for Windows and Mac OS X, offers unrestricted access to the features of Maya, but displays a watermark on images, uses a special non-commercial file format, and plug-ins are not supported.

10 of 32 comments (clear)

  1. Free Version? by Satai · · Score: 2, Flamebait

    Leaves a watermark... doesn't use plugins... non-commercial format...

    Ok, so is this a demo? I'm confused as to what seperates this from, say, CoolEdit Pro Demo or Paint Shop Pro, or any of the other semi-crippled products available for test use.

    Anybody know?

  2. Re:oh great! by RevAaron · · Score: 2

    iBook and www.lowendmac.com. :)

    --

    Working toward a usable PDA environment in the spirit of Newton OS: Dynapad
  3. Wow by omega9 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    What a lot of bitching going on in here. Get some coffee, eat a twinkie and lets break this down.

    A full version can cost over $6,000. How many of us are going to legally purchase a full copy of Maya for home use? Only those who are serious about getting into the field of 3D would consider that. Now, how many of us are interested in production quality 3D and would like to play with the toys the pros use? I certainly am, and I bet there are a lot of others.

    So Alias|Wavefront makes a killer move and covers a lot of ground by making this free version available. First, it makes available to us a close-to-the-original free copy of Maya for home/non-commercial use. More people than ever will be able to see what Maya is all about and perhaps become interested in a career in 3D. Second, they keep it far enough away from their full version to keep their customers happy. If you were a paying customer who just bought Maya for >$6,000 and suddenly it was free, wouldn't you be a bit upset? Third, they kill any legit reason for Maya to hit the warez circuit. The usual excuse is "If it wasn't so expensive we wouldn't have to pirate it!" and now it no longer works. If you're that serious about 3D you either have an employer who uses Maya or you will get it yourself. If you're just a home hobbyist now you've got your version too.

    Yes, it's cripled, and no, there's no Linux version (WTF are you thinking A|W?). But before now it was either the full version or nothing. Just because they didn't release it under the GPL (yeah, right), or they left out some features doesn't give anyone here much right to bitch-n-moan.

    --
    I'm against picketing, but I don't know how to show it.
    1. Re:Wow by codexus · · Score: 3, Insightful

      You say you're interested in production quality 3D and want to try the tool of the pros. Fine, as a demo this Maya will let you do that.

      But then in some time, after learning the soft you'll probably want to put some of the images on your website, or simply show them to your friends. But what you'll have to show is an image covered by a big text. That's not going to impress anyone. And you won't be able to export any of your creations, should you decide to use another program.

      After spending many hours learning this program you'll be at dead end. If you don't buy the full version you won't get any result from your work. So unless you're ready to spend $6000, wouldn't it be better to start learning to use a tool that you can afford to buy? Maya isn't magic, you can make pictures just as good with less expensive tools.

      As for stopping piracy, I don't think for one second that a pirate will choose to use this "demo" instead of downloading a full version.

      Now, I think it's great they are releasing a demo so that people can try the soft and see if its really worth the money, but calling it a free Maya is misleading.

      --
      True warriors use the Klingon Google
    2. Re:Wow by omega9 · · Score: 2
      The poeple that use Maya (full version) fall into one of the following catagories:
      • Professional in the industry
      • Hard-core hobbyist
      • Small time hobbyinst with to much money to spend
      • Warez junky


      Most small time 3D hobbyists will not be using Maya because it is way out of their league as far as price in concerned. I am a big fan of Truespace because it can be had for less than $500 and does nearly everything I enjoy doing in 3D. Having a free version of Maya available lets me see what I can do with pro tools. Who knows, maybe I'd change careers.

      As for stopping piracy, I don't think for one second that a pirate will choose to use this "demo" instead of downloading a full version.

      I don't think a pirate will make that decision either, but I think it will keep potential pirates from downloading a warez full copy. If a lesser version is available for free it is much easier to get then warez. You could argue 'tasting the goods' will lead people to want the full version, but again nobody is going to change a pirate's ways. What this does do very well for A|W is give them clout in any potential court case. Cripled or not, there's a version of Maya for anyone who wants to use it. Remember, it's not your right to run Maya any way you see fit. They're just trying to introduce their product to "potentials".
      --
      I'm against picketing, but I don't know how to show it.
    3. Re:Wow by donglekey · · Score: 2

      Yes you can make pictures just as good with less expensive tools, but you cannot make animations just as good. It is the artist not the tools, but there is a level of complexity that cannot be achieved with anything less than the magic five (lightwave, 3ds, softimage, maya, houdini).

      If you don't like it, don't use it and stop whining about how a free trial version of a program has a watermark. The trial is there because of mind share. They want people to learn without pirating the software. When people learn, then they will want the real version. Software this complex demands it, and it isn't all about the cost, it is also about the ability to use it.

      --

      This Wiki Feeds You TV and Anime - vidwiki.org
  4. Re:Hey, that reminds me... by foobar104 · · Score: 2

    Can someone post a coherent version of the instructions on how to implement the Maya krack?

    It's an intelligence test. If you can't figure out the crack, you have zero chance of ever figuring out Maya.

    I've had better luck farting around with NASTRAN or SAP than Maya. It's fantastic software, truly amazing, but utterly impenetrable if you don't have the documentation or a tutorial or something.

  5. Just like so many things in life... by PrimeWaveZ · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Just like so many things in life, you get what you pay for. When you shell out $6k for Maya, you get a pretty bitchen application. I don't think anyone would dispute this. Sure, there are some bugs and shortcomings, but there are plenty of good reasons to spend that kind of money if it is really worth it to you.

    When you don't have to shell out any money for something, it is only because of the good graces of those allowing whatever it is to be free. The folks at A|W have no obligation whatsoever to provide any of this to anyone for free. They are doing it because they want to, and they really don't have to answer to anyone for it. Anyone who reads the documentation for this program knows what is different between the free version of Maya and the commercial version.

    Frankly, I think A|W put a lot of work into this freebie app that they didn't need to. People who know their stuff would probably go ahead and buy the program for whatever they need it for.

    As for someone's comment that since it is free, it should include source code or be a fully functional app but for noncommercial use, you are really a moron. One thing that the open source and free software communities have a negative effect on is hard work making a profit. I have no problems with dedicating time to open source and free software development, but every person and every company has a right to charge for their hard work. Why would they include source to a $6k program and disclose a lot of proprietary intellectual property? That doesn't make sense at all...

    Lastly, nobody is making anyone use this software. There is nothing that says "If you want to do 3D, you have to use this demo version of Maya." If you don't like it, go elsewhere. The beauty of having a free will is not being constrained by having only one choice. It seems, though, that many are constrained by having too many choices.

  6. You broke the internet by -douggy · · Score: 2

    Due to an overwhelming demand for the Maya Personal Learning Edition, we are experiencing a temporary slow-down in our server. As we don't want our users to experience long delays, please come back again shortly and try again. Thank you for your interest in the Maya Personal Learning Edition!

  7. A Better Learning Alternative... by aluminumcube · · Score: 4, Informative

    http://www.dvgarage.com For US$200, you get a full copy of Electric Image 2.9 (no time limits, no dumb file formats, no BS) Modeler and Animator. While that's worth the price of admission for most people, DV Garage's coolest trick are the few hours of video walkthroughs, tutorials, training and other goodies. DVG will soon be offering Electric Image Universe 3 with full OS X compatability. While Electric Image isn't exactly Maya (though EI does have plenty of big time movie credits to it's name), the DV Garage package's training is nothing short of excellent. Maya's 'Learning' edition comes with NO training.