CompuServe Thread

There is a book out called "Inside 3D Studio" by Elliot, Miller and Pyros which covers R3 and comes with a CD of support material. As to the quality of the book, I have just begun using it in our CAD Presentations class at MSU-Billings this semester, so our experience with this text is about a week old. Looks really good at first impulse…with the authors that are involved one would expect quality! The one (singlemost? is that a word?) factor that is especially good about this book is that it teaches commands in concept format as opposed to the "type in what we have written down" format. Far too much of the educational material being written today does not emphasize "critical thinking", that is, if you turn off the monitor and make no typos you end up with a final product…then you give the student (or the professional) a regular project in their field and they can't produce. ….comments anyone regarding critical thinking skills?

Angel…. If cost wasn't an issue. I would recommend providing the students with "Inside 3D Studio" for the depth of information it provides. "3D Studio Applied" for the quality of the tutorials. and finally even though I have yet to see it "Fallingwater in 3D Studio" for the Architectural bent to the book. If you need to choose one book.. then find which format best suits your course, and remember that the 3D Studio tutorials are still excellent introductory training materials… Roger C.

As I think has already been mentioned in another section, if the students are beginners, use the tutorials that come with 3D Studio. If you're teaching intermediate to advanced students, use "Inside 3D Studio" as a guide. However, you should realize that neither are "training manuals." – Jack

3D Studio Applied by Advanstar publishing and author Nancy Fulton is very good for a class approach. And she has a new extra addition out for training center use with more tutorials and day to day class outlines for varoius types of classes-arch-mech-theater-etc. Inside 3ds is a definite one to get also but more for reference at the pro user level. IMHO students should see both and decide what they want to buy. CD s come with both, they are great. I start with the manual that is in the box and mix in stuff from both books and my own materials.I have a copy of 3ds applied for each student to workl from. Come to our teacher training classes to get loads of resources. Call Briana Pierce at 415-491-8250 to schedule attendance at a program partners training session. You will benefit greatly. New sessions on R4 will be in the Fall. E-mail me for more info.