Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1585
Visualization Reality is Served Mental Images has unveiled its Reality- Server 2.2 server-based, 3D Web applica- tion and services platform for developers and system integrators. RealityServer, designed to provide high-quality renderings for large-model visualization in 3D, enables users to create and deploy 3D interac- tive Web services and applications for a variety of disciplines, such as aerospace, automotive, architecture, and product design. Real-time viewing and interaction with high image quality and large datasets enables Web-based remote collaboration without the need for downloads or client- side viewer applications. RealityServer maintains and processes content securely on the server, so the client does not need additional plug-ins, client-side applications, storage, memory, or more-powerful CPUs and GPUs. The software platform provides multiple rendering options, including a high-quality raytracer and an interactive graphics-card renderer. Mental images; www.mentalimages.com RendeR ManageMent Frantic Deadline The in-house software division of Frantic Films VFX has released Deadline 3.0, an administration and rendering toolkit for Windows-, Linux-, and Mac OS X- based renderfarms. Deadline offers file sharing, 64-bit support, an intuitive user interface, and custom-written interfaces for popular rendering packages, including Autodesk's Maya, 3ds Max, and Softim- age XSI, NewTek's LightWave, Maxon's Cinema 4D, Adobe's After Effects, and more. Additional features include flexible job scheduling, secure administration and auditing, remote error reporting, and job monitoring with automatic progress updates. Deadline, available free to start- up renderfarms of two nodes or less, starts at $130 per render node for the first 10 licenses. Frantic Films Software; http:/ /software.franticfilms.com 3d Models Male Model Michael 4, the latest version of Daz 3D's 3D male figure, is designed to be the most realistic, versatile, and anatomically accurate human male model available for public use. The figure is derived from high- resolution human photography and body scans combined with fourth-generation unimesh and improved rigging and body contours. With Michael 4, artists can produce, morph, and mix characters of different proportions and shapes, lending to virtually limitless character genera- tion. Michael 4 comes with multiple head shapes to manipulate age, weight, and ethnicity characteristics, as well as high- resolution, photoreal skin texture maps with such enhanced irregularities as pores, freckles, veins, and muscle striations. Daz 3D's new high-end Character Setup Tools infuse Michael 4 with more realistic joint movement while eliminating distortion. Available free of charge for all registered Daz 3D users, Michael 4 is now available for electronic download via Daz 3D's Web site. Corresponding product bundles— containing various clothing, hairstyles, skins, heads, and body shapes—range in price from $35 to $60. Daz 3D; www.daz3d.com siMulation Extended Family E-on Software has expanded its Vue product family with Vue 7 Complete and Vue 7 Pioneer. Vue 7 Complete, specifi- cally designed for expert 3D artists and small studios, provides wind and breeze effects, ventilators, EcoSystem painting, and 3D export. Vue 7 Pioneer, an entry- level version of Vue targeted at newcomers to 3D and casual artists, offers various landscape-creation tools for creating and rendering 3D worlds. Users can add independent modules to Vue 7 Pioneer to extend its functionality and progres- sively upgrade to Vue 7 Complete. Vue 7 Complete and Vue 7 Pioneer are priced at $599 and $49.95, respectively. E-on Software; www.e-onsoftware.com Motion tRacking Contact Editor Animazoo debuted Contact Editor, soft- ware with editing and auto-cleaning tools. Contact Editor works in conjunction with Animazoo's IGS-190M (Mobile) and new IGS-190H (Hybrid) motion-capture suits to deliver optical-quality motion-capture data from an inertial gyroscopic system. The newly released IGS-190H combines the features of the IGS-190M with a new Ultrasonic system, ExacTrax, and Version 9 software. Animazoo developed the ExacTrax ultrasonic tracking technology to work in conjunction with the IGS-190M and GypsyGyro-18 systems. Its scalable configuration includes one Sonar Process- ing Unit (SPU) per four sonar sensors (up to 32 sensors per PCI slot of a standard PC). The basic system comes in a 20- sensor/five-SPU configuration. The hybrid system is designed to accommodate up to four IGS-190 systems without requiring additional sonar gear. Animazoo; www.animazoo.com For additional product news and information, visit CGW.com 46 February 2009 SOFTWARE WIN LINUX WIN MAC WIN WIN MAC LINUX