How does Alias Upfront compare to the 3DS modeller? I like the lofter, and the
features in Editor, but there are times when I wish you could model stuff using
x,y,z outlines, like in Wavefront. Does Upfront do this? So many questions…
John Tissavary (La Luna cie)
No, Upfront is, in their own marketing terms, "like sketching on a napkin". It
is totally interactive in primitive creation. For a cubic solid, click on the
surface that it's to rest on, click a start point, click at a height, start
drawing rubber-banded "walls", double-click or click on the start point and the
solid is closed and a top and bottom added. For a sphere, click on the surface,
click a center point, click a height, click a a point on the diameter (this
makes a dome — if diameter click is at the same point as the center, a sphere
of dia=height is made) and then sweep through the number of degrees you want
the sphere/dome shape, and click to form. Etc.
It's kinda slick, and while most stuff is fairly intuitive, some is kinda
arcane.
Dave