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Zabaware Forums => Share Conversations, Experiences, Graphics => Topic started by: ricky on March 18, 2009, 12:00:42 pm

Title: More Free Software I found
Post by: ricky on March 18, 2009, 12:00:42 pm
http://www.caligari.com/

True Space, an extensive animation program that is pretty advanced, intense and free.

http://mocap.cs.cmu.edu/

a huge database of free motion capture files for public use. ( need to convert the files to the respective program you choose )

http://www.daz3d.com/

Daz 3D is a free 3D art program that has a very large community of people that share work with each other.

http://www.sidefx.com/

Houdini,  has a free learning version of their 7,0000.00 program!! 0.0

http://video4coach.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=13&Itemid=45

skillspector,  is a free program for designing mocap data.


http://www.blender.org/
Blender is the free open source 3D content creation suite, available for all major operating systems under the GNU General Public License.

BVHacker

http://davedub.co.uk/bvhacker/

is a special program for editing mocap data from bvh files,  to make them compatible with different programs.

http://www.wings3d.com/
Wings 3D is a subdivision modeler inspired by Nendo and Mirai from Izware.


http://www.naturalmotion.com/endorphin.htm
endorphin is the industry's first Dynamic Motion Synthesis software.


Iclone has a free version as well
www.reallusion.com
Title: More Free Software I found
Post by: freddy888 on March 18, 2009, 12:38:49 pm
Nice list, I use/have used a few of those.  Quite interested in Skillspector...not just because it sounds a lot like 'Phil Spector'..
Title: More Free Software I found
Post by: ricky on March 19, 2009, 01:48:05 pm
http://www.hongkiat.com/blog/60-excellent-free-3d-model-websites/
60 free 3D model websites, good collective list of what always pops up on google searches when looking for free content heh.

http://jahshaka.org/
Video editing and effects at the post production stage allows me to  hide and cover up my production mistakes in a professional way, when in doubt blurr it out I say!!

http://www.prodad.de/gb/download.html

Video Effects,  the trial package offers an extensive selection of effects and transitions to add to your movie clips.  

If anyone knows any other cool links to free resources / programs,  please feel free to share.  :D
Title: More Free Software I found
Post by: ricky on March 22, 2009, 02:00:27 am
http://www.youtube.com/truespacefree

a youtube tutorial for the http://www.caligari.com/ ,  the guys at true space / truebones are friendly and supportive.
Title: More Free Software I found
Post by: freddy888 on March 23, 2009, 08:55:48 am
You'll need something to do textures in as well - I came across this the other day :

http://photoscape.en.softonic.com/

Haven't tried it, I like what I am using already - Photo Impact.

Or maybe GIMP :

http://www.gimp.org/

That's one I do want to try out at some point.
Title: More Free Software I found
Post by: Duskrider on March 23, 2009, 11:34:03 am

When I got Vista laptop in December it had Photoscape already on it.
However, I'm use to Photo Express, Photosuite3, and Irfanview and therefore haven't got into Photoscape.  But looking at it, it seems impressive and able to do lot of things.  [8D]
Title: More Free Software I found
Post by: Carl2 on March 24, 2009, 08:52:04 am
I'd tried putting Gimp into a computer some time ago, couldn't get the install to work.  I'd be interested to know if anyone can get the download to work.  
Carl2
Title: More Free Software I found
Post by: Cefwyn on March 24, 2009, 08:58:50 am
I've been using The Gimp for about 6 years no problems. It's really a lot better on linux, as the Windows binary does tend to have issues. If you have trouble installing it, try a different version. The version I currently use in Vista for photo editing is version 2.6.4. I think it's the latest version, but it's a bit slow on Vista compared to running it in linux. It works just fine, but it takes a lot longer starting up then I remember any version ever doing. The Gimp is made cross-platform using the GTK+ library, which while originally created just for The Gimp, has evolved to become the basis for the Gnome desktop manager. Due to some of the bloat that GTK+ has obtained over the years the developers of Gimp don't really support Windows and it's mostly up to third-parties to compile GTK+ and The Gimp for Windows and so depending on what has been changed in The Gimp between versions it can lead to it not working on certain configurations. Latest versions of The Gimp have begun to include support for GEGL which is some sort of render-farm type parallel processing system so don't be surprised when the latest version doesn't install in Windows and just keep trying different versions and stick with a version that works.

EDIT: Also on the first list I see Blender. That's a great program. I've been using it for 3D modeling ever since Maya stopped releasing Linux versions. I'll be using it to model for hal once the Ogre based render engine is finalized as Blender has supported the Ogre engine's formats for quite a while now.
Title: More Free Software I found
Post by: Jake on March 24, 2009, 07:15:42 pm
Cefwyn... have you ever used DAZ?  I'm miserably failing at talking myself out of getting into 3D modeling, so I would like to get some feedback from people that have been doing the 3D thing for a while on the best packages in the low-cost\no-cost category.

So... Cefwyn and any other 3D veterans... what's best, DAZ or Blender or other?

I've already downloaded and installed DAZ... but I have lots of room left to install Blender or other!

Title: More Free Software I found
Post by: Art on March 25, 2009, 05:35:22 am
TrueSpace is now free and I've seen a lot of really great renderings done with it. It's GUI is not the best IMO and takes some time to find and get used to all the widgets.

Bryce3D is Free (or at least a free version is available).

Wings3D is Free and not bad for what it can do.

Rhino is great and much lower cost for NURBS modeling

With all, especially the higher end (price) applications, always check to see if they offer an academic / student version of the program as they are much cheaper!
Title: More Free Software I found
Post by: freddy888 on March 25, 2009, 08:13:57 am
I've recently got back into 3D modelling again and have some previous  experience, I'm not a pro or anything, this is just a hobby for me and I am learning every day.  But from my point of view...

Personally I don't think it's a case of Blender OR something else, for me it's Blender AND something else.  But generally I find it's good to have a selection of programs because they all have different qualities and compatibilities.

Blender is the best Modeller you can get I reckon, I've played with GMAX which is a slimmed down version of 3dS Max and I really hated it.  I've also tried plenty of other 3D modelling programs too and Blender is by far the best and these days very reliable.

Blender is just a pleasure to model with, but it comes with a steep learning curve.  Once you figure it out you probably won't bother looking for a similar program again though.

Daz Studio is fun to use and a great entry point with a host of pre-made models; I have used it a lot in the past and would recommend the newest version to anyone.  I also use Poser 6 and Carrara (from Daz) which is the best piece of software I have bought in ages - but it's not cheap for the full version.  You can get an 'express' version though.  You probably won't want it until you have at least given Daz Studio a good long try and find you are hooked on 3D stuff and want to do more.

For free though, Daz Studio and Blender are the best you are probably going to get.  It's worth knowing that Daz is aimed at people who don't necessarily want to get into the modelling side but are more into making scenes and final renderings.  So when you get to the point of thinking 'I want to make stuff too', then that is the time to try something like Blender.
Title: More Free Software I found
Post by: freddy888 on March 25, 2009, 08:25:45 am
P.S. Another free bit of kit is Terragen, it makes terrains and is pretty cool :

http://www.planetside.co.uk/terragen/

Here's a link to some Gmax information if anyone feels they want to look at that; some people might like it:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gmax
Title: More Free Software I found
Post by: Cefwyn on March 25, 2009, 10:28:47 am
Well, it's general agreement that the interface for Blender3D was designed by aliens for aliens, so the learning curve is pretty steep to figure out how to do anything really amazing. Regardless of the bizarre interface, blender has one of the best, if not the best, shader plugin systems which can allow you to chain up some pretty interesting effects node by node. It was a group of Blender artists messing about with the shader system who came up with the fast screenspace ambient occlusion method which formed the basis for the method used in all the latest video games (Don't worry if that doesn't mean anything to you). I've not used daz, but the list of programs I've used to create content for games I've worked on includes 3DS Max 6,7 and 8, Maya 5,6 and 7, Softimage XSI, Mudbox, Milkshape 3D, Rhinoceros 3D, and of course Blender3D. Most of the programs I listed are or were high-end industry standard programs at one time and yet there isn't a single feature I can think of that Blender3D doesn't have for free. Blender3D even has a hair creation system and I think a cloths system (available on their site or related sites as a plugin) both of which are similar to what 3DS Max uses. If your looking for something more simple, I've heard wings3D is pretty good though I wouldn't use it as I think it's all done through subdivision and I find edge loop modeling much more efficient for game meshes.

Blender3D used to be even more awkward to use, but for the last few years I've found that using The Gimp and Blender3D I can make anything from movie grade CGI to game models. If you do pre-rendered stuff though you will need a 3rd party renderer supported by Blender3D as the default raytracer has many issues with antialiasing, but I've seen images using the default raytracer were you can't tell so there are obviously tricks to get it to do things I don't know about.
Title: More Free Software I found
Post by: Jake on March 25, 2009, 09:16:26 pm
Thanks for all the info guys... I have TOO many interests and only 28 hours in a day, (24 normal hours + the 4 hours of sleep that I normally due without = 28 hour days...right?), SO... if I CAN NOT talk myself out of this 3D modeling thing, (that is obviously a major time consuming monster), then I would at least like to save the time of trying several different programs with several different learning curve periods.  If I do this, I know I will want to master it and create my own content and with that in mind and from what I hear here, it sounds like BLENDER is the way to go... does anyone want to dispute that?  I may still keep DAZ to play with.  One major question... things created with BLENDER... are they compatible with the up coming OGRE interface for HAL?  Seem like I remember reading that it is compatible.
Title: More Free Software I found
Post by: freddy888 on March 26, 2009, 07:17:56 am
Yes, Blender exports to the Ogre 'mesh' format - if I remember correctly it's a plug-in feature.  There's a little more to it than that though, we're still waiting for Rob to publish details.  But before long we should all be able to make things for Hal [:)]

Here's the exporter documentation (got to go out now, but I  will find the actual download later) :

http://www.cs.ucr.edu/~macchiea/cs134/lab1/ogrehelp/ogremeshesexporter.html

We also have a thread running on AiDreams regarding the Ogre developments if anyone is interested, bit thin on details at the moment though.

http://aidreams.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=1579.0
Title: More Free Software I found
Post by: freddy888 on March 26, 2009, 07:25:30 am
Had a couple of minutes I didn't think I had!  You can find all the exporter details from here :

http://www.ogre3d.org/wiki/index.php/Blender_Exporter
Title: More Free Software I found
Post by: Cefwyn on March 26, 2009, 10:06:17 am
Beware with the ogre exporter though, it can be a bit temperamental. Most of the time it will just work, but occasionally I had problems with meshes being exported inside out or materials not exporting at all. I think when I last used it for a project 3 years ago I had to export to lightwave object files and then load that into 3DSMax and have it export it to the ogre format because I just couldn't get the blender exporter to cooperate. Ogre has gone a long way since then and I'm sure the exporter works fine now depending on what version of Ogre ends up making it's way into hal
Title: More Free Software I found
Post by: ricky on March 26, 2009, 02:23:33 pm
here's another one I mentioned before but forgot to put on the list...

http://sketchup.google.com/

Create 3D models and share them with the world
Google SketchUp is software that you can use to create 3D models of anything you like.

Get started right away.
Most people get rolling with SketchUp in just a few minutes. Dozens of video tutorials, an extensive Help Center and a worldwide user community mean that anyone who wants to make 3D models with SketchUp, can. Check out our training videos »

Model anything you can imagine.

Redecorate your living room. Design a new piece of furniture. Model your city for Google Earth. Create a skatepark for your hometown, then export an animation and share it on YouTube. There's no limit to what you can create with SketchUp.

Get models online for free.

You can build models from scratch, or you can download what you need. People all over the world share what they've made on the Google 3D Warehouse. It's a huge, searchable repository of models, and it's free. Explore the Google 3D Warehouse »
Title: More Free Software I found
Post by: ricky on March 28, 2009, 04:32:25 am
http://www.arishapiro.com/dance/

this is a free Motion/Mocap program that reads afs / amc and bvh files.  This is good for converting the http://mocap.cs.cmu.edu/ Carnegie Mellon University Motion Capture Database to bvh, among other things. the CMU motion database has over 2600 free mocap files. They have already been converted by cgspeed to bvh, but those bvh do not translate well to iclone, the dance program did create compatible bvh files. only 2,599 conversions to go heh :)

note: I tried the amc2bvh tool, but I seem to be the only one on the internet that can't get it to work properly,  i keep getting an error and crash after every attempt to convert files with this 'as is' no support tool.
Title: More Free Software I found
Post by: ricky on April 01, 2009, 02:55:35 am
http://www.theopensourcecommunity.com/details.php?area=16

Title: More Free Software I found
Post by: ricky on April 01, 2009, 11:59:56 pm
I really liked this one, just found it today!

http://freeframe.sourceforge.net/  

its a relatively new system of video effects plug ins specifically designed for VJ software,  its a free open source program ( although some plug in designers charge for their effect sets, but apparently there are more free plug ins than commercial ) the quality on these plug ins is quite amazing for a free software IMO, in fact they made an adobe after effects wrapper to use some of the plugs in AE.  It's currently only compatible with a few systems,  but they also make a stand alone which says it will allow you to stack plug ins on your videos and render, http://ffrend.sourceforge.net/  Im still downloading the rest of this program and plug ins to give it a go, but Im excited from the few Motion effects I saw on their site.

Title: More Free Software I found
Post by: ricky on April 14, 2009, 01:44:32 pm
Just found this one last night,  I've been looking for software that will help me create 3D environments so that I can have more unique and original sets for future videos ..

http://www.3dgamestudio.com/

The lite-C package contains a complete development environment with 3D model and terrain editor, code editor, compiler, debugger, an integrated 3D engine, a physics engine, many samples including DirectX and OpenGL programs, and a tutorial with 24 easy workshops.

Last week I discovered...

www.sendspace.com   free file sending service, upto 300 megs with a new nifty interface thats in beta.

free legit copy of bryce

http://download.cnet.com/Bryce/3000-6677_4-10696716.html?tag=mncol

----

I find that in the 3D world I want to major in Motions, Mocap, bvh...I find that stuff facinating ..not to mention if you get good at it,  there are several markets to sell your original moves.

http://www.animeeple.com/


Endorphin - Natural Motion issues an LE version of their software which is simply a hoot to play with to learn to make Motion files.
It's almost like playing a video game,  then selling a video of you playing lol :)


http://www.naturalmotion.com/


Title: More Free Software I found
Post by: sofort99 on April 15, 2009, 03:46:26 pm
quote:
Originally posted by Cefwyn

Well, it's general agreement that the interface for Blender3D was designed by aliens for aliens, so the learning curve is pretty steep to figure out how to do anything really amazing. Regardless of the bizarre interface, blender has one of the best, if not the best, shader plugin systems which can allow you to chain up some pretty interesting effects node by node.


Me and a couple of other guys fought Ton tooth and nail over the user interface to make it as usable as it is now instead of nothing but keyboard shortcuts for everything after it was first released from NaN.

The battle lines broke down between "programmers" and "artists". The majority of the programmers wanted the interface set up so you used one hand on the mouse in the 3d window to manipulate the model and the other on the keyboard doing nothing but typing shortcuts for the commands. The artists mostly wanted everything point and click. We had to really fight with a lot of the programmers because they just didn't see any reason to design the interface to be able to do both so both groups could use it, and so that new people would have any chance at all of figuring it out.

Blender came this close >< at one time to being a program that nobody but a handful of people would be able to figure out how to use it. Considering what it could be like, I'm pretty happy with it. [8D]
Title: More Free Software I found
Post by: lightspeed on May 03, 2009, 08:37:56 pm
although this has nothing to do with a.i. its a cool free software called  Celestia 1.5.1 its a space program with some really great animation for those who like the solar system i had this befor and am downloading it again . heres the lowdown description .
Celestia is a free space simulation that lets you explore our universe in three dimensions.

Unlike most planetarium software, Celestia doesn't confine you to the surface of the Earth. You can travel throughout the solar system, to any of over 100,000 stars, or even beyond the galaxy.

All movement in Celestia is seamless; the exponential zoom feature lets you explore space across a huge range of scales, from galaxy clusters down to spacecraft only a few meters across. A 'point-and-goto' interface makes it simple to navigate through the universe to the object you want to visit.

Celestia comes with a large catalog of stars, galaxies, planets, moons, asteroids, comets, and spacecraft. If that's not enough, you can download dozens of easy to install add-ons with more objects.
this is on a favorite site of mine major geeks .

 heres the link to the page to download this if interested !
http://majorgeeks.com/Celestia_d5030.html
their is also a sscreen shot to that you can look at .
[:)][:D][8D]
Title: More Free Software I found
Post by: tedathome on May 03, 2009, 09:47:36 pm
That's a good one lightspeed. Just downloaded it and gave it a spin. It is fun and vista compatable.
Title: More Free Software I found
Post by: lightspeed on May 03, 2009, 11:34:26 pm
yeah its a cool program you can zoom to planets and even make the rotation faster etc. a lot of neat stuff very realistic looking ! [:)]
Title: More Free Software I found
Post by: ricky on May 04, 2009, 11:55:21 am
thanks Lightspeed!! I actually was looking for one of those! ~ Ricky


here's one for you too!!  http://www.paint.net/

About
Paint.NET is free image and photo editing software for computers that run Windows
. It features an intuitive and innovative user interface with support for layers, unlimited undo, special effects, and a wide variety of useful and powerful tools. An active and growing online community provides friendly help, tutorials, and plugins.
It started development as an undergraduate college senior design project mentored by Microsoft, and is currently being maintained by some of the alumni that originally worked on it. Originally intended as a free replacement for the Microsoft Paint software
that comes with Windows, it has grown into a powerful yet simple image and photo editor tool. It has been compared to other digital photo editing software packages such as Adobe® Photoshop®, Corel® Paint Shop Pro®, Microsoft Photo Editor, and The GIMP.
Title: More Free Software I found
Post by: tedathome on May 04, 2009, 04:31:33 pm
Here's another paint program that I found from your link lightspeed.
http://www.majorgeeks.com/downloads37.html
ArtRage 2 Free Edition
It's fun, very intuative and full of special effects.[:D]
Title: More Free Software I found
Post by: lightspeed on May 04, 2009, 07:57:59 pm
yeah major geeks has all kinds of goodies its a great site !![:)]
Title: More Free Software I found
Post by: ricky on May 17, 2009, 10:30:05 am
just dropping off some links I found that are awesome for making free websites

www.wix.com  awesome free flash site maker.

www.bravenet.com  offers free web space among a plethora of other great free tools

www.sendspace.com   allows you to email upto 300 megs,  as well as keep 300 megs up available for download.  

www.photobucket.com  allows you to save and share graphics free.



Title: More Free Software I found
Post by: freddy888 on June 15, 2009, 09:03:03 am
I used to use Bravenet years ago, they had some pretty neat stuff back then for free.  It still looks like a useful resource.  I noticed that with them you can get free SitePal characters for your site.

http://www.bravenet.com/webtools/sitepal/
Title: More Free Software I found
Post by: lightspeed on June 15, 2009, 09:22:40 am
that site pal looks pretty nice thanks for the site link !![:D]