CompuServe Thread

Hi Brian, I don't know if you remember this, but six months ago there was a long discussion on ASOFT as to whether 3DS is a better _value_ than Lightwave. Market share being the measuring stick, we placed an informal wager. You wagered that Lightware would succeed 3DS as the better value within six months. I wagered that 3DS would remain the better value. Well, 10/03/95 marked six months. To my knowledge, there has been no significant change in the market share between 3DS and Lightwave. Furthermore, Lightwave has had an NT version available long enough to stake a claim. The NT version of 3DS has not had this opportunity. Hence 3DS is still the better value, as evidenced by market share. Furthermore, I just read the following from Tesselation Times #533 . . . – – – "The initial news also was that, to get a RISC (e.g., DEC Alpha) version of LightWave 3D, buyers would have to buy a DeskStation computer." […] "In follow-up conversations, Don Peterson, president of DeskStation, told *Tess* about the DeskStation-only plans for LightWave. Also, a letter from NewTek to its dealers confirmed this arrangement." – – – If that's what actaullly happens, 3DS is going trounce LightWave in the RISC-NT market. Citing Tess #533 again, "Although the RISC-NT 3D workstation market is still quite small, the expected entry of Autodesk 3D Studio Max and Microsoft Softimage has focused attention on its larger potential." There's no guesswork here. When DPS opened it's Amiga PAR product to the PC market it skyrocketed — and evolved into the PVR. NewTek, on the other hand, kept their Toaster product tied to the Commodore Amiga and look what happened (nothing). Now, NewTek is tryiing to tie thier Lightwave NT product to a single hardware vendor. Apparently they don't learn from their mistakes. — James E. Coulter — Choreo Motion — NOTE: I want everyone to know that I'm not addressing the usefullness of Lightwave. Rather, I'm stating that 3DS has maintained it's position as leader of the PC maket, and will likely develop a leadership in new markets. Also, for those curious about the Tesselation Times: " *Tess* is free! To subscribe just send a message simply stating "subscribe" in the subject or message to <join.tess@3dartist.com>."