New Blender Release

For those that do not know, Blender is an open source, completely free, 3D content creation application. It features modelling, animation, rendering, a node based compositor, and even a real time "game engine." It runs on Linux,(32 and 64bit,) Mac, and Windows, (32bit only though, Boo.) as well as a couple of other bizarro platforms, like Free BSD and Solaris. Pretty mind blowing considering the low low price of $0.00. Contrast that to 3ds Max, which is somewhere in the neighborhood of $3500.00.

I am a long time 3ds max user, having started using it in 1996 when the first release became available. In fact, for many years I was something of a fanatical 3ds max evangelist of sorts. Recently however, I have started to become a bit disillusioned with the program as it has begun to show its age. It seems like I am always running into some roadblock or issue in the dark corners of the app that nobody has ever ventured into. The subscription system of annual updates is a major hassle. Lately with each release some tried and true feature seems to break or is replaced with a less functional implementation.

One of my responsibilies at work is to advise and steer the art department and as part of that, I have suggested that we drop our subscription and just update our software as needed, perhaps every 3 years. Heck, we only just upgraded to version 9, while the newer 2008 and 2009 editions sit on the shelf.

Now with Blender coming up to speed as real contender, I wonder if we should be using 3dsmax at all. I recently recogized that when it comes to these complex applications like 3ds Max, Maya, or XSI, the vast majority of artists in the industry only know slightly more than the bare minimum required to get their job done. I have come to the conclusion that switching to a new app might not be that great a loss. Perhaps we should axe our subscription, and slowly migrate Blender, incorporating more and more of it into our pipeline over time. Schools are already adopting it, so the flow of Blender skilled talent available is only going to increase over time. The financial savings would be significant, and that has got to look pretty good on my record come review time...

Looks like I am going to have to fit a crash course on Blender in to the nocturnal portion of my schedule and get up to speed.