CompuServe Messages

Brian, Well, I'm beginning to suspect that I'm getting told a lot things in error these days. No one wants to admit that they don't have what I need to operate 3DS (which I am definitely going with) at it's peak efficiency. <<When we announce a release date…>> How long before the actuall release are these announcements usually made? Thanks for the info on the #9 card. That was good to hear. In the "told you in error" vain. May I please run a few more by you? My situation is this. I am about to drop $25,000 into a system that will be built around 3D Studio. I can't do this twice, so I need to be relatively sure that I can use what I get now. On the harware front I get claims as follows: Release 5 will be for NT and will be able to fully utilize the 32 bit architecture of the Pentium 100. It will be multi-threaded to take advantage of a dual CPU system. "You can model on one CPU at the same time rendering operations are being done on the other" (Quote from a dealer) In other words there will be no dead time during rendering. The same as having a dedicated render server in the same box. If this is not true, then I would rather throw the extra $1000 it will cost for a dual system at more ram or programs. There *are* no 3D-Graphics Accelerator boards on the market today that will speed up rendering time in 3DS. Release 5 will support 3Demon SX48 Accelerator boards. Gracie makes an acc board that can be used with 3DSR4 and is on the market now. On the software side: Animation Studio (which I will buy with 3DS) does not work with DPS PAR or PVR. There is no need for PAR because AS is NTSC capable and you can go directly to SVHS decks without additional converters. Animation Studio is for 2D animations only. (What ever that means) I think they are trying to imply that you can only get cartoon quality animations from it. That it can't be used with 3D/photorealistic renderings. Any light you can shed on the truth or nontruth of these statements will be invaluable to me. My goal is to produce interactive simulations. I need for the clients to be able to move through the 3D enviroment, interact with the animation and cause results inside of that environment. For example. Someone would use a button on the KB or click a mouse cursor over a valve. The valve would open and the water would come out with a flow rate represented in a box next to it. I understand that some programming in C or Assembly language will be necessary, but am not sure what I need to tie the two together. VR Toolkit was recommended as well as Rend386. These however sound as if they are a little basic for my needs. I've contacted some API makers and they are talking $10-$25000 to license one of thier programs. I don't have that kind of money to pay up front, and I still don't know exactly what the API does for me. If AutoDesk has any products or any information on products that can be used with 3DS to produce the simulation I have in mind I would appreciate some fax'd info. My fax number is 504-673-9477. Thanks very much for your prompt response, I am expecting great things from AutoDesk. Terry Miller