Computer Graphics World

November/December 2013

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spot L I G H T Dell's M3800 Mobile  Workstation Blends Beauty, Performance NewTek Turns On LightWave 11.6, NevronMotion Plug-in  The LightWave 3D Group, a division of NewTek, has rolled out the final release of LightWave 11.6 software for 3D modeling, animation, and rendering. Also available is the final version of the NevronMotion plug-in for LightWave 11.6, which uses the Microsoft Kinect camera to capture motion in real time for retargeting to 3D or live-performance characters. NevronMotion also simplifies retargeting data from standard motion-capture files directly into the LightWave interface. LightWave 11.6 introduces many new ways for artists and designers to model, animate, capture, retarget, and input and output to 3D. With the Spline Control tool, nulls or other objects act as nodes in a spline to control or deform objects, such as tentacles, tails, whips, or even elevators. Raycast Motion utilizes raycasting technology to make an animated object aware of its surroundings. And, the Compound Node feature can simplify complex networks down to a single node. LightWave 11.6 also helps streamline real-time virtual production, previs, and game development through the use of Nvidia's CgFX shader. The Modeler in the release now includes new import and export options to support the popular STL and PLY file formats for 3D printing. With support for Nvidia 3D Vision, 3D Vision Pro, and HDMI stereo devices, artists can visualize highquality advanced stereoscopic 3D environments across multiple devices. Meanwhile, the NevronMotion plug-in extends the software's virtual studio tools to: Capture live-rig motion with the Kinect camera; retarget motion capture directly in LightWave Layout; save and adjust captured motion data from the Kinect camera; easily adjust arm and leg mocap positions and layer hand-keyed animation on top of motion-capture files; save and load retargeting presets for FBX, BVH, or custom setups; preset rigs for Kinect and motion-capture formats; and quickly bake out motion to character rigs LightWave 11.6 is priced at $1,495, and the NevronMotion plug-in is priced at $299. 4 ■ CGW Nove m ber / Dec em ber 2013 Dell has added a new form factor to its family of powerful mobile workstations: the thinnest and lightest 15-inch true mobile workstation, the Dell Precision M3800, which merges beautiful design in an ultra-thin form factor with workstation-class performance. Less than three-quarters of an inch thin (18 mm) and starting at 4.15 pounds (1.88 kg), the M3800 features dual-cooling and more than 10 hours of battery life with Nvidia Optimus technology. The Precision M3800 is available with Windows 8.1 Pro (64-bit) or genuine Windows 7 Professional (64-bit) and is loaded with up to 16gb of memory, and 4th generation Intel Core i7-4702HQ eightthreaded quad-core processor with up to 3.2ghz clock speeds. The M3800 is equipped with the Nvidia Quadro K1100M GPU with 2gb of GDDR5 dedicated memory, offering twice as much onboard video memory as the HP Z series Ultrabook, according to Dell. The workstation also comes with a 15.6-inch UltraSharp display. The Dell Precision M3800 has a starting price of $1,799.

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