Brent –
got lots of experiences with 3DS and Truespace 2.0 beta (the release is
shipping these days). 3DS is the most advanced 3D and animation stuff I've
seen, but for most "every-day-work" (whatever that is) TS 2.0 will do very
well. (Depends on what you intend to do, of course). It's recommended to use
Premiere 4.0 as well and maybe Photoshop and Animtor. You'll need that
additional stuff to take full advantage of any 3D program.
I've heard rumors that Lightwave for PC is also a great tool and Animation
Master as well, but I still couldn't get any kind of demo, though.
Your platform should be a PC and: get the most advanced stuff you can afford.
Let me know if you want more.
Jurgen Schrader
MediaHouse GmbH
Munich, Germany