[Unknown Target]

I figured that this should be put up here to give newbies an alternative to the monster that is Truespace.

Angel 3D - Link?
Never really used this program much. I've heard of it, but heard it's sort of mediocre.

GMAX - http://www4.discreet.com/gmax/
Made by discreet, the same people who bought you 3DS Max, this free app is a powerful, full-featured builder. However, it is has severe limits onm the types of files you can save as by default. Fortunately, there are ways around this, or so I am led to believe.

Blender - http://www.blender3d.com/
A free app that has been taken over by the community, I've heard both good and bad about it. It seems to powerful in some very skilled hands, but otherwise, I've heard it's incredibly hard to use.

Lithunwrap - (download links) http://files.seriouszone.com/download.php?fileid=198
Not really a modeling tool, but incredibly useful for texturing. It has since become Ultimate Unwrap 3D, a pay program, but I have provided a link where you can hopefully get the older Lithunwrap version, which is still free

Milkshape 3D - http://www.swissquake.ch/chumbalum-soft/
Not really free, but it costs so little ($20), that I thought it should be posted. I personally use this modeler, and it is a very powerful little program that is very easy on novices.

[KARMA]

wings 3d
http://www.wings3d.com/

fairly simple, but imho it is almost as powerful as TS. Designed specifically for low poly modelling (that means: mods). I prefer the truespace's workflow but the learning curve is steeper than ts. Doesn't have booleans. Can save in 3ds. It features an interesting autounwrapper (it tryes to decide automatically what uvspaces to use and use them, useful for simple objects)
Completely free

maya 3d http://www.alias.com/eng/products-services/maya/maya_ple/index.shtml
one of the most used at pro level, afaik the most used for movies animations. The PLE version (personal learning edition) is free and has most of the features of maya unlimited. You must have winxp or 2000 to run it.
I'm not sure in which formats it can save but IIRC in the precedent versions there were limits to reduce the exportability: it could save only in some maya format which I can't remember and which I don't know if it could be converted to something else. I don't know if it is the same

XSI 3d http://www.softimage.com/products/Mod/v4/

the challenger of maya 3d, this mean a pro program used a lot for CG effects in the movies. They have a free modmaker version. It's the same story of gmax. Like maya PLE, it works only with w 2000/XP. As for gmax, you need plugins to save to some game formats, like md5 or HL2 format.
That's sad because they were used to give for free a learning edition called XSI EXP which could save to all the native xsi formats (!!!!). That version was made to challenge Maya personal edition and therefore they added lesser limits to it. It shouldn't be too hard to find a copy of it somewhere, I found this old page on their site but I'm not sure if the download links are still active..... http://www.softimage.com/products/exp/v3/

[DaBrain]

Most people misunderstand GMAX. If I understand it correctly, GMAX has to be licensed by a company for their game. So the modders may use it.

And you may not use it for games without this license. (Like Freespace 2)

At least I heard something like this.

[karajorma]

You can use it AFAIK. You can't develop a plugin for it though.

[MetalDestroyer]

Interesting links. Also i add Rhino 3D into the list, i know it isn't free but the demo version contain the complete program but, we can only save 35 times no more. Ater this we can continue to work with it but without the ability to save our work.

http://www.rhino3d.com/

[KARMA]

someone should add a link to 3dexploration and TS free versions too

[StratComm]

Technically, if you read the full EULA (or at least back when I did look at it) you can use GMax to mod a game for which a conversion plugin exists, but extracting it from that format to use in another application or game is prohibited.  Not sure if that clause is still in there, but GMax is still a product sold to gaming companies and is not supposed to be a completely free modding tool.

[Jonathan_S47]

Maya PLE will not export or save in any format other then .mp, which is a format specific it the Maya PLE program. There is a way around this however. You need to have UT2004. It comes with some plugins that will export a model directly to UnrealED, form there you can export to an OBJ format.

[Black Wolf]

Originally posted by StratComm
Technically, if you read the full EULA (or at least back when I did look at it) you can use GMax to mod a game for which a conversion plugin exists, but extracting it from that format to use in another application or game is prohibited.  Not sure if that clause is still in there, but GMax is still a product sold to gaming companies and is not supposed to be a completely free modding tool.

I don't think we need to get picky over the precise definition of an effectively free program when I suspect a good 75% (or more) of the available FS2 mods are made (at some point) with software of a far greater degree of legal iffyness.

[TrashMan]

BAh..Truespace is the king...Especially if you use versions from 5.0 and above!:D

[Janos]

DOGA-L3

This is only a modelling tool in broad sense. It offers you premade parts - although you can make your own - which you can then combine. L3 features textures as well, IIRC.

Nice for concept use and if you just like making some starships. The huge bonus is the easiness of the interface, which makes this quick to learn and fun to use, but it is in no ways rival to any "real" 3D programs, like Max or TS. It's also small. Take a look, for fun if not for anything else.

[aldo_14]

Originally posted by Black Wolf


I don't think we need to get picky over the precise definition of an effectively free program when I suspect a good 75% (or more) of the available FS2 mods are made (at some point) with software of a far greater degree of legal iffyness.

surely such a thing could not happen!!1111

[Janos]

Originally posted by Black Wolf


I don't think we need to get picky over the precise definition of an effectively free program when I suspect a good 75% (or more) of the available FS2 mods are made (at some point) with software of a far greater degree of legal iffyness.

now you made FBI and interpol and supo to break into my home and confiscate all those mods and i have nothing on my hard drive and I am in jail and e-mad at you

[DaBrain]

Nah, don't worry about it. I think as long as you do not use these software for commercial projects they won't care.

To some extend it's even good for those companies. The more people can use their software, the more will buy their software later for commercial projects.


That's the reason for all these  'learning editions', 'trial editions' and 'free, older versions'.

And all those CGI competitions... it's all for this reason.


I don't say it's ok to dl these software. But those companies aren't evil, or something. They want to earn money. So if you're a poor student, using their expansive software for non-commercial things, I highly doubt they'll have any interessed in you. (Neither good, nor bad.)
Putting potenial customers into jail is not good for buisness.


But you can sure feel better if you own the software you're using.

And there are many free alternatives...
They are like poison to commercial companies. People gow up using this free software, will probably stick to it. And they probably won't buy an expensive software they cannot even use...


I guess will see more 'learning editions 'n stuff" soon.

[Roanoke]

There are demo and free versaions of xsi at www.softimage.com

[KARMA]

personally I'd give it a try to xsi exp if you can find it, among the free softwares it looks like the most complete....
This, of course, if you look for free softwares and you don't have lots of money to buy commercial products or...uh... you have a friend who gives you one of them as a present

btw I agree with dabrain: I doubt you'll be incriminated for piracy if you don't sell illegal copies of those programs or  you don't use them for commercial purposes.... That's how lots of commercial programs got so diffused

[MetalDestroyer]

I see recently that Pandemic Studio have release a complete packaging containing the XSI software for Battlefront.
I didn't d/l it yet but it takes average 500 Mo.

[MetalDestroyer]

I found the link to the XSI Modder tools here :
http://www.swbattlefront.net/

and you can grab it in FileFront :
http://www.fileplanet.com/section.aspx?s=100457&v=0

[KARMA]

afaik, the xsi modder and the xsi exp for hl2 have similar exporting limitations to gmax, with the difference that for gmax there are already people who can convert to pof. Which doesn't mean that there isn't a way(easy or hard) to export with those xsi version, you just have to find a way. I was suggesting the old xsi exp version just because it was able to save in all the xsi supported formats (or so they said on their site), which should make everything easyer.

[Cobra]

you should also post a link to the "solidify" extension for TS3.2. even though i got off my dead ass and searched, i couldn't find it.