[TopAce]

Turambar gave me a version of 3ds Max that is theoretically an infinite-day trial version, with severe limitations, I guess. Now when I want to start the program, it says the trial period is over, and I am required to register my version by a serial code. Mine is a trial version, so I did not get a serial number with it. To get one, I would have to buy the program from somewhere, but I don't want to spend anything on a modeling program, and I heard that many of you use such an infinite-day trial version. How to remedy this?

[redsniper]

Er, I think most of the MAX users around here pirated their copies.
You can try gmax, but it's a pain to export from it to FS, though not impossible.

[colecampbell666]

 

Er, I think most of the MAX users around here pirated their copies.

[Nuke]

arg matey! walk the plank!

[Vengence]

  what about those of us who actually bought that $300 package?

[Excalibur]

Well then it sucks to be you.

At least you won't ever get in trouble if they do a random computer software check. (If they exist)

Oh, and if you want a free modelling program, use Blender if you can get used to it.

[Nuke]

the real money is in going after businesses that pirate, not individuals. the $300 educational version is all well and good, but it seemse to say to me "hey *****, poor people shouldn't be allowed to make models" or some such.

[Vengence]

Photoshop costs $300 too. So poor people can't make art either? Either way I'd be using whatever scholarship money I can get to buy it. Best of all, not illegal. :-/

[redsniper]

Photoshop costs $300 too. So poor people can't make art either?

Nah, they just use the GIMP.

[JGZinv]

Or GIMPshop

[Colonol Dekker]

Use truespace i say, just spend a bit of time getting used to it. Its free too.  

[Vasudan Admiral]

Dude, that's like telling him to use MS Paint over The Gimp/Paint Shop Pro/Photoshop.

[Nuke]

gimps pretty impressive, i might learn to use it over photoshop cs3. either way il probibly get pissed off that im not gettting any work done and go back to ps7.

[Turey]

Er, I think most of the MAX users around here pirated their copies.

I take offense from that. My copy is completely legal.

Anyway, you should just be able to uninstall/reinstall and get another 30 days.

[Colonol Dekker]

Truespace is fine. Mappings a pain granted. But thats what lithunwrap is for. I've got an old version of max r4 and i find starting the basic geometries of a model easier in ts believe it or not. But i was reared on ts since 2.0 so i'm biased i guess

[Nuke]

truespace was designed as a primitive modeler. its not really set up to do surface detail well. its not really set up to preserve data integrity for export. ive never used lith while i used truespace because ts6 had fairly descent uv mapping tools. the ragnarok class uv map is a good example of what ts6's uv mapper can do. still, max has a better one

[Vengence]

Anyway, you should just be able to uninstall/reinstall and get another 30 days.

Doesn't work that way. I believe the uninstalled software still keeps a sort of registry archive in your computer telling it you have used this many days. So even if you do uninstall it your computer will still remember how many days you used up.

[TopAce]

...and I do not want to reinstall my whole computer in every month.

Anyway, I tried Blender, and so far it looks fine. Complicated but fine.

[Vasudan Admiral]

Truespace is fine. Mappings a pain granted. But thats what lithunwrap is for. I've got an old version of max r4 and i find starting the basic geometries of a model easier in ts believe it or not. But i was reared on ts since 2.0 so i'm biased i guess

TS is not fine. As Nuke has said, it's basically a primitive modeller. It becomes unbelievably difficult to model shapes in TS that go beyond a collection of primitives. As such, the majority of TS (ESPECIALLY those from 3.2) models I've seen around here have been just that - a collection of primitives that have been modified to differing degrees. (Though obviously there are exceptions)

Detail that is piss easy to add to an object in just about any other modelling program becomes tedious and ungainly in TS. For example, try and approximate this technique here in TS. It's a very powerful and flexible ability to be able to go from a 2d outline to a full blown 3d mesh, and TS really really sucks at it. Closest I've seen anyone get so far is this.

UV mapping is really awkward compared to just about anything else as well, and for me the thing has crashed more times than every other program I've ever used combined. Undo works for only some operations, if there are shortcut keys to operations then I've never seen any evidence of them. View controls are gumby and hard to use, fixing simple geometry errors like split verticies in the model is nigh impossible and there are so many other things wrong with it that I could go on for hours.

The two good things about it in my opinion are the hierarchy bits and the ability to orientate tiled textures nicely. That said, tile textured ships never look as good as they could with a good UV map and texture, so it's a moot point most of the time.

As I'm sure people are aware by now (mainly because I just don't shut up about it ), I loathe TS. Not just because it's a lousy program but because it has this nasty habit of sucking up new modelers and messing with their brains. I know a number of people who were scared off modelling alltogether, or got discouraged completely from using TS, despite the fact that their designs - the hard bit of modelling, were fine.

[Colonol Dekker]

What can i say, Theres no arguement from me on that fact  i'm not a hippocrite, i just like TS