Using other applications with LightWave

[jimnokc]

This really doesn't belong in the third party group, but it probably belongs less anywhere else.

I have recently considered selling some of my "other" 3d software. I was going to sell Animation Master, but decided to wait until 2004 edition and upgrade it then. It's been stable in recent releases and has a kick *** toon render and if I ever get the urge to work with just spline patches, I've got a tool (plus it wasn't expensive at all).

Secondly, I considered selling Carrara, but remember a plug-in I had called Anything Grooves. I made an excellent manhole cover object in seconds in Carrara and had it over in LightWave in a few more seconds. So, okay, maybe that is a keeper too. It also has one of the fast GI renders I've seen.

Bryce and Vue, well, both have excellent terrain modelers and export to LWO, can't give them up. Bryce can do some awesome texture renders with the proper camera and lighting setups, so both have merits worth keeping.

trueSpace, haven't touched it in month. Have version 5., 6, and 6.5 along with all 4 plug-in paks (valued at $199 each). I found I could not sell the plug-in paks because they were third party programs.

So now, for my question. I've found ways to use all of my other packages and have decided not to keep them. I don't really want trueSpace, but am not going to toss away my investment (MORE than base LightWave!).

Has ANYONE found any uses for trueSpace with LightWave??? Found anything that tS just does better than LW? Radiosity in tS is painfully slow, so that's not an option. Character animation sucks, and originally I was keeping it for Creature Creator but managed to negotiate a sidegrade price with F/X Realms and moved to the much better LW version.

I'm open to any suggestions. I'm probably not the only tS convert out here. I'm just very put off by Caligari's attitude towards my desire to sell the software.

Jim

[Verlon]

To me, Truespace was a good start into 3D. I got the old SE edition and gradually upgraded over time. It always seemed to follow Lightwave in features. If Lightwave was doing something, so was the next Truespace. So, when I could afford it, I moved to Lightwave.

I gave all my Truespace stuff to my dad. He loves 3d stuff, but cannot afford to buy the software. I bundled up Truespace with a fresh upgrade, all my plugins, and my books, and I UPS'd the whole thing to him.

That was the best use I could find for Truespace after Lightwave. Find an aspiring 3d artist (you really like) who needs a little help, and generate some positive karma. Yeah, I know, its expensive.

Except for that single interface though, I don't see anything in Truespace I would not rather do in Lightwave (and there are plenty who would argue about the single interface).

[jimnokc]

Actually no, that's a pretty good idea. I may just find a friend that's interested in getting started and give it all to them. I'm not too thrilled with them selling me CD's that can't be transferred just cause they didn't spend the time up front to form some decent agreement on the collection!

I was sold on LightWave before I got my hands on the discovery edition, the next day I ordered it and because it was a weekend I bought Inside LightWave 7 that Friday so I could get a few steps ahead of UPS! :)

[colkai]

Gotta second that idea.
I used to use Imagine 4.0 - When I 'moved up' - I bundled it off to a friend with a couple of ..get this.. audio tutorials. Didn't have video ability back then.
She was very pleased and it gave her a start into something she couldn't justify the cost of at the time.
I try to do this with all old things, it feels real good helping out someone, one of the reasons I enjoy working at the Bird Of Prey centre.
Everyone should have something bigger than themselves to be involved with, you get a real balance that way.

[jimnokc]

Apparently I can't even GIVE away the extra plug-in paks for tS since they contain third-party programs. Which actually conflicts with a previous statement where I was told each developer had to be individually contacted about xferring the license. I wouldn't mind throwing them in for free, but they tell me I can't do that either! I have done little more than keep the software updated since switching to LW.

tS isn't a bad app, it has a pretty good renderer, decent shader support (along with a couple of third-party shader extensions as well). I just have yet to find a way to use it with LW.

I almost ditched Carrara, but then discovered I had a couple of programs that would let me model a few types of objects quicker in Carrara, plus it's GI renderer is VERY fast compared with most others. I just keep hoping to find some way to utilize tS if I can't sell the whole package.

[Verlon]

BS. Fair use entitles you to treat your copy of the software like a book. Any one person can be using it at one time so long as no two people are using it atthe same time.

If you upgraded your software and tried to give away a prior version, they would have a case (since you technically only owned one copy).

Any software company that tries to keep you from GIVING away something you bought and paid for is crazy (and on very shakey legal ground).

If its really an issue, tell them you are installing it on a new computer and install it on the lucky recipient's system. The idiots at said software company should realize that the new owner may continue to purchase upgrades where you will obviously not.

I didn't run into this issue because my dad and I have the same name, but I do know about fair use. Fair use is why its not piracy for you to make a copy of your CD for use in your car as long as you don't loan that (or the original) CD out to friends.

[jimnokc]

What makes me angry is that I bought the first version I had, then two upgrades, have boxes and books for them. These plug-in paks were $99 each when I bought them, they're now $199 each, and are sold directly by the company in question!

I feel as if I've purchased a $400 set of coasters, I expressed this opinion to them and was told that I had the benefit of using the paks for over a year! Isn't that more like a leasing agreement or something?

You don't have this problem with LightWave since most third-party plug-ins are tied to your dongle. You sell the base package and everythign else can go along with it.

Why would I want to keep plug-ins for software I want to sell? That's the stupidest part of the whole thing.

The most un-customer relations thing about this is that it NEVER said anything about not being able to resell it. That probably would have affected my original purchase decision.

Jim

[Verlon]

You could always sue. I am certain you would have a strong case.

[gjjackson]

Unfortunately, if you read the licenses of most software, that I'm aware of anyway, you don't actually own it. The way it's written it seems to be more of a lease than property you own. There's been a lot of controversy over the whole software copyright issue.

[Verlon]

I do not think the software license can get around 'fair use,' especially when you are GIVING the software away.

As far as it goes, you can counter with "I still own it, but I am installing it on this computer at John Doe's house instead of at mine."

It doesn't matter how they write the license, it cannot break the law. I am not suggesting or advocating piracy, merely saying that you are legally entitled to give away software you own the same way you can give away a CD, DVD, or Book.

[gjjackson]

When it comes to software the law is somewhat different. Here is an excerpt from one

20. The Product is protected by copyright and
other intellectual property laws and treaties. Microsoft or
its suppliers own the title, copyright, and other
intellectual property rights in the Product. The Product is
licensed, not sold.

As you can see you Don't Own it, unfortunately. I was surprised by this myself. The laws are different when it comes to intellectual property. I believe this was changed in the mid '90s.

It would be akin to getting a driver's license. This allows you to drive but can be revoked at any time by the state. Not the best analogy but the only one I can think of momentarily.

[turbo]

chalk it up to a learning experience and let it go.. :p

[Verlon]

Pretty sure Fair Use still applies, and would hold up in court if need be. The clarification is that you do not have the right to do with as you please copies of said software (i.e. pirate it). Technically, you can not run it on 2 computers at the same time.


Still, if all else fails.....you can retain 'ownership' of the software while it is installed elsewhere. If they want to sweat small details, let them sweat that one.

[jimnokc]

I've chalked it up as a learning experience.

Bryce gives ne a top-notch terrain designer/editor with export to LW, not to mention the somewhat funky material editor that can render seamless textures with a little scene setup.

Then I've got Vue d'Espirit with it's somewhat different terrain editor, and excellent plant objects. Good for compositing, or rendering trees with clip maps.

Then I've got Carrara, almost sold it until I remembered it had a kick-*** displacement modeling plug-in. Remembered that, tried it out, it's a keeper.

The we've got trueSpace, 'nuff said. I've dropped the issue with Caligari, wasn't getting anywhere and I've got ther fish to fry! :)

Jim