The Second Free Third Dimension

It maybe easy being a pirate. But living off a pirate's loot is becoming harder by the day. I'm into 3D modelling. Offlate companies like Alias|Wavefront & Discreet are using sophisticated methods to crack down on people using illegal versions of their softwares. An advertising company in B'lore was caught & fined Rs. 2.5 Lakh. I began to think that it was the end of 3D modelling for me. Either I bust my balls to buy the software, which is like buying 1/4th of a car. I don't have that kind of money.

Searching for free alternatives I decided to try Blender3d. I tried using the same software about one & a half years back. Back then it just kept crashing no matter what I did. Well the software is more robust today. Its an under 5MB download (for windows). There are versions available for other OSes too. A great software except for the fact, of it NOT being user friendly. The documentation actually offers consolation in the vein of '3D modelling & animation is a tough field like rocket science, so u can't expect to simply pick it up & make it fly'. What!?! Yeah right!

After spending days with it, I actually found it to be a very Powerful program. Its like in those Sci-Fi movies, u have this smooth shiny surface in the middle of nowhere. Something tells u that this structure is mucho powerful & it can only be realized by getting it to open in some way...DANG! how do u get in? Maybe the future versions will focus on being a tad bit userfriendly. Till then its Beggars can't be Choosers mode for me.

Whats Cool About it:
1> Its Opensource. Its FREEEEEEEEE
2> Has features for developing Games. But right now in the Yaroze stages
3> Its FREEEEEEEEE
4> Versatility through plugins & scripts (written in Python)