Thanks for all the replies ! : Briefly , in the event I am not making a good point ...
I am not a modeler !! Do I have to become one to use SDS ? Yes ! and that's what I hate about SDS , in a nutshell . SDS is an excel- lent modeling tool ... but for modelers , not for non-modelers . For non-modelers it is just another freakin' learning curve . Am I making any sense here ? Read the headlines "It's the most powerful modeling tool ever invented !" . Who cares , when you just want to do simple-simple things , every once and awhile . Anyway , Vesa was kind enough to respond to my questions about a "magnetic" modeling tool in V6 by saying that RS has thought often about the validity of having "artists" tools . That would be awesome ! In my mind the genius is not in creat- ing powerful tools that a user will have to search and search the manual , or the Forum , or the mailing list , or the IRC , in order to learn how to use these "Powerful" tools , but in making creative tools that anyone can use , right off the bat ! I think for modelers, SDS must have seem'd like an actual gift from heaven . It is very fast , has ton's of options , gets better with every version , has tons of tutorials all around the internet ... It is _NOT_ intuative to use . It is easy to use once you do spend the time to wrap your head around all the many controls . Nurbs are slow , but steady , and an old fashioned nurbs guy could probably learn SDS and then use both when or where each can show their plus's , as Stef has said . However , for the new persons that are coming to 3D in droves, inspired by what they see on the big screen , brand new and eager to create , what will they use ? Will they devote the time required to SDS ? "Chomping at the bit" , will they run to the manuals ? I would say not , not with todays attention span (worse than mine) . I think , myself , they will try one 3D package after the other until they find one that is comfortable and easy to use . Perhaps SDS polygonal modeling is just the answer a lot of newbies may be looking for ? (+ an intuative to use ,soft-deformation tool with auto-smoothing and full multi-axial control of surface stretching) Cheers ! studio www.niagara.com/~studio www.studiodynamics.net
