Maya 2008 Impressions!

[Jr.Who]

Hey guys,

I just got Maya 2008, and I must say, it’s amazing! There are many more new features than I thought there were, and it runs much smoother than 8.5! I’ll still be using 8.5 for a while, because I wanted to learn how to use some plug-ins soon, and not very many support 2008, right now. :(

Anyway, here’s my benchmark results on my computer (I hope that I can get a new one soon… :( ):

…………………………………………8. 5……………2008…………Difference
Initializing Window……………32s……………14s……� �……18s
Fully Launched……………………1m7s………55s� �…………12s
Scene render (software)………1m27s……1m16s………11s
Scene render (mental ray)……2m26s……2m16s………10s
Note: On both of the scene renders, Maya 2008 used both of my CPUs, unlike 8.5. Although, it seemed like it didn’t use my CPUs to their full extent. I’m sure that people with quad-cores (like a Mac Pro ;) ), or even 8-cores, would have much better results than this.

Smooth sphere (4 div.)……………4.5s…………1.5s………� ��3s
Note: When trying to move the camera around, Maya 2008 handled the smoothed sphere (with 99840 faces) much smoother than 8.5.

The thing I’m probably most mad about, is the lack of support for 64-bit Macs.

I’ll be posting some of my impressions of the new features (with pics) etc., later today.

Anyone that has 2008, please, post your impressions!

-Jr.Who
:beer:

[gster123]

Well it seems a lot faster, especially when doing a cloth sims using Ncloth, and animating a smoothed poly character with ncloth attached, which I think is down to the multi threading/core enabeling of maya as in simulations using 8.5 only used one core, other than that Ive not really played around with it that much (as ive got to do my uni work on it more than having a play)

I really like the viewport cube to quickly get form one ortho to another using the persp view, thats probably going to save me a few spacebar and mouse clicks when modeling and selecting.

as you've seen its faster, although I dont really see much difference in the boot up, to fully launched as it only takes about 30 seconds to fully load on my PC and I wasnt really looking for it.

As for the render times did you have use all processors enabled on 8.5 as it used both of mine to 100%, although ive not really compared the two.

[tweetytunes]

so far so good - I`m still using 8.5 at the mo as none of the pluggins I use have caught up yet but overall I`m very happy with it.

Its faster, ncloth has more stable results, great new rigging tools (although only tried simple test so far) and so far less buggy.

That qube thing is too big - anyone found a way of turning back to the way it used to be ??? a silly feature that is not really needed

[Jr.Who]

Originally posted by gster123
As for the render times did you have use all processors enabled on 8.5 as it used both of mine to 100%, although ive not really compared the two.

What are you talking about? Where’s that option?

Originally posted by tweetytunes
That qube thing is too big - anyone found a way of turning back to the way it used to be ??? a silly feature that is not really needed

You can adjust it’s size, position, transparency, along with some other options under Prefs>ViewCube.

[tweetytunes]

but does it change back to classic ???? thats what I really want

[gster123]

Originally posted by Jr.Who
What are you talking about? Where’s that option?



I'm talking about making maya use all the available processors on the system when rendering, what did you think I was on about???

Its in the render menu under batch render option box, which does make it use all processors even if rendering a single frame.

Have a look in the help files.

[Jr.Who]

Originally posted by tweetytunes
but does it change back to classic ???? thats what I really want

……No, not that I know of. I don’t see why you really would want to. The ViewCube has many more options, and just looks better.

I’ll be posting some of my impressions soon.
:beer:

[Jr.Who]

Originally posted by gster123
I'm talking about making maya use all the available processors on the system when rendering, what did you think I was on about???

Its in the render menu under batch render option box, which does make it use all processors even if rendering a single frame.

Have a look in the help files.

I knew what you were talking about, but it says in Maya 2008 that the support of multi-processors is new, so I didn’t know you could do that. Anyway, thanks for telling me that.

I tried it out, and it seems like it works, but 2008 uses my 2nd CPU better.

[gster123]

If you knew what I was on about why did you ask what I was talking about? Seemed a bit rude.

Its a how maya used to render before multicore processors when you would have dual processor PC's (like the 2 x quads or on a network) and since a dual core processor "looks" to the software like 2 processors it uses both.

[Jr.Who]

Originally posted by gster123
If you knew what I was on about why did you ask what I was talking about? Seemed a bit rude.

Its a how maya used to render before multicore processors when you would have dual processor PC's (like the 2 x quads or on a network) and since a dual core processor "looks" to the software like 2 processors it uses both.

I said what, because I thought that it was a new feature in 2008.

Anyway, I have a question, before I post my impressions. How do I merge, say, 2 photos into 1, so I don’t have to post several times? :confused:

[Jr.Who]

Nevermind, I sort of figured it out by myself. OK, here’s some of my impressions.

The first thing you’ll notice is the new initializing window (pic 1). It looks much better than 8.5’s, and it matches Maya more.

What’s New in General:

ViewCube aids 3D scene navigation:
I LOVE the new ViewCube. It looks a lot better than the compass, and it has a ton more options. When your mouse isn’t over it, it goes into a transparent mode (pic 2). When you put your mouse over it, you’ll notice a couple of things. There’s a little house that pops up, and when you click on it, it goes back to the standard Maya view (pic 3). On top of doing the regular orthographic views (front, top, back, etc.), it can do a corner, or even an edge! When you go into the orthographic view, you notice that you can even rotate it (pic 4). You can drag on it, and it rotates the scene, and even snaps if you get close to an edge.

Also, it has preferences. Lots of preferences (considering that the compass didn’t have any). You can adjust the position (top left, bottom right, etc.), the size (small, normal, large), the inactive transparency (when the mouse isn’t over it), and more (pic 5).

Moving a parented object and not the child object:
I‘ve tested this out, and it’s just too cool.

Make Live works in shaded mode:
I don’t really use Make Live that much, but this seems like it’s a great new feature.

X-ray active components shading mode:
I don’t really know about this one. It seems to get in the way, and the regular X-ray just seems better.

New Replace Objects feature:
I’ve yet to test it out, but it sounds great.

Convert instances to objects:
It looks cool, but is it really that necessary?

Delete unknown nodes:
Anything added to the OSS is good.

BTW, I’m not going to post my impressions on all of the new features, because I don’t know what some are, or I don’t use them.

Still lots more impressions to come……

-Jr.Who
:beer:

[Joopson]

yeah, but ncloth still crashes maya with vista

[tweetytunes]

then thats your set up as it works fine for me - has done since the service pack for 8.5

[mastone]

Has anybody tried the new mental ray feature which can render particles only the hardware renderer could do i'm curious about that:beer:

[gster123]

Converting instances to objects is a good feature, if youve ever used instances than you'll know how hard it is to mix them with other objects when running a simulation

[mirek03]

it looks nice, starts up well, and by some of the specs here renders wel.., but i still cant get a 'high quality view' or hardware render of particles.., so this 'mental ray render particles ' that was mentioned is of great interest to me

what cards are people using.??

[marlonjohn]

"The first thing you’ll notice is the new initializing window"

Who cares about that :p just kidding ... isnt there a way to change it anyway if you dont like it?

Decided to get 8.5 instead of 2008 as i really dont need it i reckon. All the tools i need are in 8.5, so its all good. Just cant wait till i get my quad-core and run 8.5 on it and see how that goes ;)

(MAN they changed the tools all around the place ... looks good but i struggle to find stuff now! urggh gotta relearn the UI :angery:)

[gster123]

Originally posted by marlonjohn
"The first thing you’ll notice is the new initializing window"

Who cares about that :p just kidding ... isnt there a way to change it anyway if you dont like it?

Decided to get 8.5 instead of 2008 as i really dont need it i reckon. All the tools i need are in 8.5, so its all good. Just cant wait till i get my quad-core and run 8.5 on it and see how that goes ;)

(MAN they changed the tools all around the place ... looks good but i struggle to find stuff now! urggh gotta relearn the UI :angery:)

Yeah you can change the startup window image just look for mayastartupimage.xmp.bmpand edit it, so no biggie.

How have you got 8.5? Your re-seller should have given you maya 2008 regardless of what yuou asked for as its not the "current" version.

[Jr.Who]

Originally posted by gster123
Yeah you can change the startup window image just look for mayastartupimage.xmp.bmpand edit it, so no biggie.

How have you got 8.5? Your re-seller should have given you maya 2008 regardless of what yuou asked for as its not the "current" version.

I searched for mayastartupimage, and nothing came up. Are you sure it’s called that?

Anyway, I haven’t been able to do that much work in Maya for the last 2 days, because some unexpected things came up. I’m hoping that I can open it up today.
:beer:

[marlonjohn]

What do you mean ? i dont understand ...

[EDIT]

Donno if this would make things clearer but i didn't get it off a re-seller. Brother purchased a student version threw his workplace(Uni).

[gster123]

Marlon - He must have got it before the upgrade as they shouldent have sold you 8.5 as its outdated.

If I was you I would have got 2008, theres no difference in price and even if you dont use the new tools in it, its still inherently faster and multi core supported when running simulations, which when you upgrade to your new PC will be faster.

Jr Who - You need to locate the MayaRes.dll and then use a resource edting programme to get to the file, not too sure what it would be on the MAC though.

[mirek03]

I agree, 2008 seems more friendly than 8.5.., but one cant always count on first impressions :)

I see no benefit to 8.5 over 2008, Id dump 8.5 but its got a shave and shampoo plugin I put in it (or what ever you call it) plus blast code, and thats very handy for fur, and blowing things up (if I could use it) ect. but the 2008 seems to have some great hair and fur tools anyway, havent checked 'shatter' yet)

Actually Im very happy with 2008, even if I cant use all the tools in it (who can??) Im so happy with it Im thinking of asking it out on a date with me.., it will probably tell me to go get nurbed. but Ill impress it with my dual core thingy.., err, processor. I might even try and network all processors, then I'll have 5 times the staying power.

[tweetytunes]

too late me and 2008 are going steady - I`m sooo in love

[mirek03]

what..,??!! and I thought i was the only one it truly loved.., I knew I should never to count on first impressions. :angery: :bandit:

back to propping myself up alone at the bar...

[Acid44]

dude i have to say that i hate 2008 for 1 reason and 1 reason only... the way they set up the views... it may just be cause im a newb but i have to go thru menus evey time a want an orthographic side/front/top,etc view... i hate it... anyone know of a way to make it normal???? like how every other perfectly fine version of maya was...:angery:

[Jr.Who]

Originally posted by acid44
dude i have to say that i hate 2008 for 1 reason and 1 reason only... the way they set up the views... it may just be cause im a newb but i have to go thru menus evey time a want an orthographic side/front/top,etc view... i hate it... anyone know of a way to make it normal???? like how every other perfectly fine version of maya was...:angery:

What do you mean exactly?

[Acid44]

well in maya 8.5 and lower you just had to click on the x,y,z icons in the compass to get the orthograpfic veiw from side top etc, but now you have to go thru the view menu cause if you just click you get a perpsective view from x,y, or z, which really screws me up if im modelling because of the depth...thats the best explanation i can give right now

[gster123]

Why dont you use the navigation cube, or hit space to switch?

[tweetytunes]

Originally posted by acid44
well in maya 8.5 and lower you just had to click on the x,y,z icons in the compass to get the orthograpfic veiw from side top etc,

I`m sure that only came in as a new feature in 8 (maybe 7) it has not always been around. I still use good old space bar as I hate that cube as well - it feels like I`m playing a computer game with that thing, but its the only thing I hate.

[jsprogg]

acid that little niggle seems so slight to make you HATE 2008 , especially as you can either tap the space bar to change views or hold the space bar and right click and select your view ..lol

[Acid44]

ya well... im quick to judge... ive got no better comeback:p

[Jr.Who]

Sorry that it took so long for me to write up some more impressions, I’ve been quite busy lately.


What’s New in Performance:

Poly reduce caching is new for Maya 2008 and makes poly reduce faster. See Poly Reduce Caching in this section:

Poly Reduce Caching
There have been significant performance improvements in Poly Reduce (Mesh > Reduce). Caching of intermediate polygonal reduction states means a significant increase in performance, at the cost of using more memory.

To disable caching for Mesh > Reduce

Select Mesh > Reduce > .
Turn off Cache reduction (for speed) in the Reduce Options.

I’ve used the reduce thing once, in 8.5, and it went really slow on my computer. I haven’t tested it out in 2008, but I trust that it’s faster. ;)

Poly smooth is faster:

You can see how much faster it is in my first post.

Improved startup time on Mac OS X, particularly on PowerPC machines:

Again, you can see how much faster, in my first post.

There’s a lot more performance enhancements, but that’s just a couple.


What’s New in Artisan and Paint Effects:

Hotkey toggles for Artisan brushes:

I’ve seen someone use this (in the Maya 2008 demonstration videos), and it looks pretty awesome.


What’s New in Modeling:

Smooth Mesh Preview for polygons:

This is a pretty fun feature. :p

User-defined vertex and UV display sizes:

I’ve never had the need to do this, but who doesn’t like customization?

Slide Edge Tool:

I use the Split Edge Tool a lot, and this is sort of like it’s cousin.

Keep Faces Together option:

Why do I see myself messing around with this every time I extrude? :p

[gster123]

Just waiting to see the full demo next wednesday before I return judgements.

Savings of a few seconds to be honest are neither here nor there (such as start up etc etc) its if it has major workflow imporvement differences, i'm looking forward to seeing the non destructive rigging tools in action and seeing how to fit them into my workflow.

Altering hte uv sizes for me is great as on my monitors resolution (1920 x 1200) I sometimes loose them when its on a large model, same with lines in the uv texture editor.

What do you mean about the keep faces together option, if so what have they done to change it?

[Jr.Who]

Originally posted by gster123
What do you mean about the keep faces together option, if so what have they done to change it?

Well, after you extrude, just ctrl + right click and it will bring up an option to switch to switch between the “Keep Faces Together” option. The interactivity of it makes it too fun.

[mastone]

I don't think there are much changes, the only things i don't like are;
- the edge loop selection; you used to select an edge you wanted to loop than clicked on the icon, now you have to select the tool and then double-click to select the entire edgeloop when your done you have to press q,w,e or r to exit i think the first method was more intuitive and worked a lot better because it required less clicks.
- the view cube and i don't mean the shape itself, but more of the functionality.
The fact is that when you press front, left, right etc. it doesn't switch to an orthographic view(it stays in perspective mode and lines up with the geo) and it doesn't stay in that view.
I know pressing spacebar does the trick also but i liked the way it used to work and it was much quicker especially when you had a lot of poly's in the scene.
So i hope i will discover a setting which turns the cubes behaviour into that of his predecesor.
I haven't used the slide edge tool yet, but i'm kinda hoping that it works like the mj polytools used to work; select an edge press edge loop and in the exact middle of the edges was an edge which position you could alter using a slider in the channel box.

[Jr.Who]

Originally posted by mastone
I don't think there are much changes, the only things i don't like are;
- the edge loop selection; you used to select an edge you wanted to loop than clicked on the icon, now you have to select the tool and then double-click to select the entire edgeloop when your done you have to press q,w,e or r to exit i think the first method was more intuitive and worked a lot better because it required less clicks.

……I’m pretty sure it’s been that way since 8.5 (maybe 8.0). You can still do it like that. Select the edges you want, then ctrl click, go to edge loop options, then go to select edge loop.

Originally posted by mastone
- the view cube and i don't mean the shape itself, but more of the functionality.
The fact is that when you press front, left, right etc. it doesn't switch to an orthographic view(it stays in perspective mode and lines up with the geo) and it doesn't stay in that view.
I know pressing spacebar does the trick also but i liked the way it used to work and it was much quicker especially when you had a lot of poly's in the scene.
So i hope i will discover a setting which turns the cubes behaviour into that of his predecesor.

What do you mean? What’s the difference from the front orthographic view, and the front view in perspective?

[gster123]

It shows how much I use the new features dosent it!

I pretty much stick to the extrude, split poly and the insert edge loop too thats it really, I probably need to look into the other tools but as I can get away with them I will.

Ive just downloaded the new features video form the platinum members site so ill have a look at that tomorrow.

I'm hoping to see it demoed to get a better idea.

As for the difference in the ortho front and the persp front, well if you rotate the scene it rotates but in the ortho is dosent, quite a difference if your going at speed and not really remembering what view your in.

[mastone]

"……I’m pretty sure it’s been that way since 8.5 (maybe 8.0)"

No it's new , and i know there's an other way, luckily in maya there's always another way.
But i find it really strange that when a high end package upgrades it will develope a tool so that it requires more actions then before giving the same results as before ....

"What do you mean? What’s the difference from the front orthographic view, and the front view in perspective?"

Up until maya 8.5 , when you would click on the z, x or y in the topright manipulator thingy, the perspective view would change into an orthographic view and behaved accordingly.
Now when you press front for instance and move straight up with the camera you will see that you rotate around the object which sucks bigtime, because now i will have to press spacebar again to change views which i know will take up a lot more time .
I think Maya is slipping up here, i even think that when they keep this up they will be surpassed by free packages like blender or not so high end packages like cinema 4d
And gster if i were you i would just stick to 8.5 they haven't improved anything significantly as far as i've seen at the moment(i've been at it for a couple of ours and have only found negative changes thusfar).
Ncloth was the last good thing they introduced.
And maya 8.5 has that so no need to upgrade really.....i wish autodesk hadden't taken over alias

:headbang:

[Jr.Who]

I just checked out that view thing you guys are talking about. Yeah, it is weird, but it really doesn’t matter. 2 taps on the space bar won’t kill me ;) . What I do like, is that in the orthographic views, you now have the ViewCube.

[Jr.Who]

Anyway, these will probably wrap up my impressions.

What’s New in Animation:

Smooth Skin Weights:

I hate painting weights, so anything that makes them easier is better.

Improved joint management for bound characters:

I don’t have that hard of a time making the joints for a character, but these look pretty cool, especially the Insert joints and Remove joints tools.

View joints when painting skin weights:

Thank God for this! I hated painting weights and trying to figure out which joint went where! :attn:

There’s a lot more new stuff in 2008, so go check it out!

[mirek03]

are you guys doing this professionally.., i mean.., life is too short if your not.., great to see someone can bring us the news though.., thanks

[gster123]

Hey Mastone,

I get a free upgrade anywho so its not like ive shelled out the cash anyway.

I'm finding it very very similar to 8.5 tbh, the bits that theyve added I dont really use, or I should say ive not found a need to use them.

Just started a project so only up to the modeling stage at the moment and havent used anything other than the view cube which for a quick side/top view works fine and dandy for me, saves a few space bar hits

I'll porbably use the rigging toos when I get going as I always find that I could do with adding a joint or or removing one when I get to the deforming stage, just to add a bit more flexability to my rig.

Some of the major advantages to me are the new mental ray core and particles that were only hardware rendered being avialble in mantal ray, thats got to be good

[MattTheMan]

It looks great and all... but I'm stuck with 8.5. :zzz:

[gster123]

Saw some of the new Maya 2008 ncloth attributes in action yesterday at the autodesk "Make an Impression" event, looks absolutly superb, the guy was making leaves fall off a tree as a rolercoaster type car went past using the new wind and vortex functions, cant wait to have a go with them.

He also used ncloth to give a nice cartooney bounce to the car on the track too, gave me loads of ideas!

Also some of the new modeling toos like the slide edge looks like it would be great for hardsurface modeling for cars an the like.

If you get a chance its well worth going to one of these.

[tweetytunes]

those videos were posted online a while ago on the Autodesk site if anyone wants to see them.

http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/item?siteID=123112&id=9974388

[Jr.Who]

That link that tweety posted is pretty cool.

Has anyone tested out the presets yet?

[gster123]

No free beer with them though Tweety! But yeah thats pretty much the same, although havingtheoption to ask questions to the guys developing it etc is great, should have though of some!

Jr Who - Yeah ive tried the presets, there pretty good, you still have to tweek them to get them how you want, but like the fur presets there a starting point for you to work on.

[t1ck135]

yeah Steve, the free beer afterwards was good at manchester (but not the day after that....)
;)

Si

[tweetytunes]

Originally posted by gster123
No free beer with them though Tweety!

well i dont drink so not missing anything there

[gster123]

Originally posted by t1ck135
yeah Steve, the free beer afterwards was good at manchester (but not the day after that....)
;)

Si

Haha yeah man, if I didnt have to go off I probably would have helped you finish off the wine!

[t1ck135]

I think the wine was the actual mistake tho.... its taken a while to feel normal again, or that might just be age.... ;)

[Jr.Who]

I found a really cool thing out yesterday while toying around with 2008. The Split Poly tool works much better now. In previous versions, if you clicked on an edge, and the line went through another to get there, you’d have to start over. In 2008, it allows you to do it.

I’ll probably be switching over very soon. I tried smoothing my Assault Mech, in 8.5, and it took forever. That is, the second time I tried smoothing it, because the first time it crashed.

The only reason I didn’t switch over was because of the lack of support. I wanted to learn how to use Shave and a Haircut, Maxwell, Vue xStream, and maybe some other things, but they didn’t have 2008 support. Shave now has 2008 support and Maxwell looks like it should be updating soon.

When I do update, I should have some more (and better ;) ) impressions.

[mirek03]

thanks for that.., do you mean shave 2008 supports shave.., is shave a new app (I know what it is) I mean.., is there a new version of shave or can I use the one i have for 8.5??

[Jr.Who]

Originally posted by mirek03
thanks for that.., do you mean shave 2008 supports shave.., is shave a new app (I know what it is) I mean.., is there a new version of shave or can I use the one i have for 8.5??

I don’t really know what you mean…… All you have to do is download the update from JoeAlter’s site for it to work on 2008.

[mirek03]

thanks, thats exactly what I mean.., i dont have a lot of time on my hands to find out this stuff for myself

M:)

[ctbram]

I loaded up maya 2008 on my eval system and I am not overwhelmingly impressed. I really do not concider performance improvements, bug fixes, and very few new features a "new" release. I'd consider this more like an update to maya 8.6 that is incompatible with 8.5 plugins, and that also breaks scripts and shelves.

...and that is my biggest gripe. I spent a lot of time getting my user environment the way I like to work. Breaking my plugins, scripts, shelves, and changing the location of tools in the menus every couple of months has a very negative effect on my workflow and efficiency.

Trust me I am not saying that Maya should remain stagnant, but if you are going to release a new version and it does impact plugins, scripts, shelves, and tool placement - then there should also be enough new tools to warrent loss in productivity from borking all your addons and UI tweaks.

As far as I am concerned this is simply some marketing asswipes plan to extract money from customers by selling them essentially the same product every 6 months.

If they really want to make a "new" release of maya then add some really new tools. It's not like it would take a great visionary to figure it out. Why not add the functionality of popular plugins like mjpoly tools or byrons polytools or digitalRasters NEX. These are all extremely useful tools, yet all these constant updates to Maya have done is render them useless. Maybe look at useful tools in other packages like 3D Studio Max, XSI, and Modo and bring them into Maya. ( yeah, I know they are bringing some of the 3D Max workflow and tools into maya but none of the meaty ones).

These frequent updates for the sake of nothing but pumping more money out of existing customers for no real addition of technology to the product has a chilling effect on plugin development and use as well. What is the insentive to develop a new plugin when no one will buy it because there is no assurance they will be able to learn and use it long enough to make it worth buying. Take renderman for maya, pixar has not even released the updated version for Maya 8.5 and now Maya 2008 is out for goodness sake!

Give me more features and improved workflow then call it a "new" release instead of changing the name and playing musical chairs with the menu bar items and breaking all my plugins, scripts, and shelves every 6-12 months.

[mirek03]

well, this was something I myself alluded to as soon as I saw it on the alias site.., some weeks before I got it.., but the maya alias neophytes shot me down as usual :)

I dont think it takes a genius to figure this company is sucking the production houses fro all they are worth, considering it is them who pay the big bucks and must keep on the cutting edge. Me..? well Im still trying to figure out how the scale tool works :) But even im a litttle sick of the hide and seek, wheres the #### tool gone now, my plugins are old hat, somescripts work.., take the 'swarm' script on 3D high end.., damed if I can get it to work on 8.5 or 2008.., it hasn't been scripted for it or Im hopeless, probably the latter.., but anyway

I agree.., if they are going to bring out a NEW VERSION, let it be something like the quantum leap Adobe just made.., not some bare version with just the tools in a new place or so obscure that one has to be.., god knows what.., for them to be of any REAL use.

what a sham.., and what a shame.., shame on Alias and its a shame for those of us that love maya.., but the production houses.., imagine having to but volume licences every 6 months.., next version will be .., maya 2008 may.., though people here say the naming convention doesn't matter to them.., i just think its funny.., but obviously by giving maya a brand new name it is supposed to give the illusion of a brand new app.., I think the houses have paid for the new name.

though some here have found some new uses in 2008, not enough to warrent it a new name rather than a new version

but this is the world of big buisness and high finace now.., the geeks rule by default.., now they are becoming lawyers.

long live simply maya and the other sites that, though they gotta make a buck, try to deliver some passion into the world of graphics and 3D.

[Jr.Who]

Originally posted by mirek03
well, this was something I myself alluded to as soon as I saw it on the alias site.., some weeks before I got it.., but the maya alias neophytes shot me down as usual :)

what a sham.., and what a shame.., shame on Alias and its a shame for those of us that love maya..,

Yeah, shame on Alias, the company that doesn’t exist anymore. :rolleyes:

[mirek03]

well if we are going to be pedantic .., yes what a shame!! shame they sold it.

did I make any spelling errors?? :eek:

man, its so typical of geeks to pick up on a mistake, comment on it, and say nothing of value because they are too busy trying to look smart..,

this happens all the time.., an obvious eerror surrounded by a heap of other stuff.., and to the geeks, the error stands out and they comment on it?? I cant figure this, but it goes hand in hand on every forum Im in.., along with bullying.., but I dont see that on Simply Maya, thankfully.

[Jr.Who]

Originally posted by mirek03
well if we are going to be pedantic .., yes what a shame!! shame they sold it.

did I make any spelling errors?? :eek:

man, its so typical of geeks to pick up on a mistake, comment on it, and say nothing of value because they are too busy trying to look smart..,

this happens all the time.., an obvious eerror surrounded by a heap of other stuff.., and to the geeks, the error stands out and they comment on it?? I cant figure this, but it goes hand in hand on every forum Im in.., along with bullying.., but I dont see that on Simply Maya, thankfully.

It sounds like you’re a little sick of something. I guess we have something in common. I’m sick of hearing people whine about how Autodesk released a new version after only one year (which they have been doing since 2003), and how it isn’t that major of a release, and how they wish Autodesk never bought Alias, and how the world is coming to an end. If you don’t like the upgrade, don’t get it.

It’s as simple as that, so don’t come complaining about it to us that actually like the new features and see how good they are.

[Acid44]

sorry if this is something thatll have me killed but RELAX!!! its just peoples opinions on maya 2008, and im also sorry if it seems that im directing it to you jr.who im not. i was gonna post this ealrier but i didnt get around to it...

now everybody get drunk and come to pickering:p

[gster123]

I found out an interesting thing the other day with the whole maya thing, something mentioned by autodesk actually, saying that studios can, if they want just get a customized version of maya, for example if they were running maya 6 complete and wanted the ncloth module and a customised fluids (so its geared up for say fire) they will do it for them, so a lot of the time they dont. Also Autodesk consult houses and and them what features they want and test it with them first so there must be some use in it.

Anywho, thats not the point, if you use the dyanmics toolset for simulations and render a lot of particles as well as do quite a bit of rigging, its got some great added tools, mental ray seems faster too as its the new core, but then again if you dont use them then you wouldent see that much of a difference, oh apart from less crashes.

[LauriePriest]

Its still pretty shite, its just the least shite out of all the packages :)!

[marlonjohn]

Just a question as i haven't got 2008 ...

Have they added in some sort of plug-in where you can do render things with wire frame(the good quality ones) or is that one thing they have forgot about AGAIN?

(Excuse the red "AGAIN" was just trying it out :p)

[mirek03]

yea, they forgot it AGIAN (how did you do that red?? :) ) but thatll coming in maya 2008 'may' version for sure :)

actually it does render faster and I like it better than 8.5in a number of ways, but the question remains.., should it be bumped up to a different version or as most companies do.., make it a build?? Again I point to the revolution in integration (for the hobbist and big business alike, ) that ADOBE has released (and Im not a lover of big companies).., that deserves to be called 'the next version.'

and .., every six months??

apart from that, I like maya 2008 :)

(and looking for the tools every six months is annoying.. :) )

[Jr.Who]

Originally posted by mirek03
but thatll coming in maya 2008 'may' version for sure :)
…
and .., every six months??
…
(and looking for the tools every six months is annoying.. :) )

Just to clear something up that you keep complaining about:

Version release dates history:

2008 (9.0): September 2007
8.0: August 2006
7.0: August 2005
6.0: May 2004
5.0: May 2003

[tweetytunes]

"Version release dates history:

2008 (9.0): September 2007
8.0: August 2006
7.0: August 2005
6.0: May 2004
5.0: May 2003"

you missed 8.5 and 8.5 sp1 - lol

[Jr.Who]

Originally posted by tweetytunes
"Version release dates history:

2008 (9.0): September 2007
8.0: August 2006
7.0: August 2005
6.0: May 2004
5.0: May 2003"

you missed 8.5 and 8.5 sp1 - lol

I just put up the major releases.

[ctbram]

You cannot simply skip 8.5 and all the intermediate "updates" that broke compatibility with plugins just because it bolsters your argument. It's like picking only the points of the data you need to make your graph fit your theory.

8.5, 7.01, and one of the level 6.x releases were not compatible with plugins that were installed for versions 8.0, 7.0, and 6.0. Autodesk also removed dxf support in one of the dot releases which although it did not break plugins it removed a tool that nurbs modelers had been using since maya 3.0 to fix an isoparm parameterization bug in maya, which now has no solution.

And even with the corporate spin on "full release" verses "update release", if it breaks plugins and scripts and shelves without truely adding any value it is not a worthwhile update to me and to others, and our oppion is just as valid as yours. You find the new features to be valuable to your workflow, while some of us do not see the new features as making much of a difference to what we do and don't like having the things we have come to rely on (like plugins and scripts) broken.

I am not ragging on you about your position, so I don't see why you feel so compelled to rag on those of us that don't agree with you. Lets just relax and agree to disagree. The title of this thread is "Maya 2008 Impressions" which invites people to give THEIR impressions both positive and negative and not just agree with yours.

[mirek03]

Ctbram took the words out of my mouth.., this is crazy.., how can anyone take the 'maya 2008 MAY version' seriously..?? beats me.., I thought I was stressed..?? relax, take a break.., coffee, tea, bickies, sump oil.., whatever your piosion.., each and everyone of us is aloud to have an opinion and/or make a joke.., im not pionting a finger at anyone except Autodesk.., and even then.., it wasnt a big .., eeerrr..., finger-piont??

but CTbram has a few good pionts that are without doubt.., something to question. one must admit.

[mirek03]

also missed 7.1 .., lol :)

so how many releases since Autodesk took maya.., compared with Alias.., someone interested enough might figure the maths.., personally i dont care.., but i wish they would slow down on the releases,

very werid taking out that tool Ctbram talked about, why would they do that and leave no fix??

[gster123]

I think that Alias relesed about the same amount of point updates as autodesk, but only time will tell as to if they will go back to the yearly trend.

Whats the tool that CTbram mentioned thats missing? edit- Yeah, thats a strange one, think bucking the trend to poly modeling...

I know marlon was asking about wire frame renders which youve been able to do using the vector render and a comp for ages, so to me, adding a specific setting for it, well whats the point since you can do it anyway?

With the releases you got to think that they come out/announced about the same time every year, when Siggraphs on, probably because if they didnt people would think theyve been sitting about doing nothing, compared to other companies.

8.5 did have new technology (ncloth) that was leaps and bounds above "classic" cloth, as well as imporvements to bits and bats UV mapping for one, so thats probably why they updated then so they wernt sitting on it for an extra 6 months.

With all the plug in's etc its a 3rd party plug in anywho so i'm on the fence with that as its a bit of both in my mind as its up to the developer of the plug in to write it for the version of maya since its a plug in after all, maybe Autodesk should relese the code to developers in the beta stage so that the plug ins are available when it ships???

[mirek03]

this is out of hand.., but..,

quote

8.5, 7.01, and one of the level 6.x releases were not compatible with plugins that were installed for versions 8.0, 7.0, and 6.0. Autodesk also removed dxf support in one of the dot releases which although it did not break plugins it removed a tool that nurbs modelers had been using since maya 3.0 to fix an isoparm parameterization bug in maya, which now has no solution.

plus quote..,

I am not ragging on you about your position, so I don't see why you feel so compelled to rag on those of us that don't agree with you. Lets just relax and agree to disagree. The title of this thread is "Maya 2008 Impressions" which invites people to give THEIR impressions both positive and negative and not just agree with yours.

as for me..?? well Steve, theres been good and bad pionts debated here.., all opinions are that.., opinions.., and each to his own and what suits them.., obviously Ctbram has a fairly sophisticated take on maya.., me..?.., i have an unsophisticated take on Auto desk.., its the world of big business and many geeks who were passionate about IT have become a part of its machinery.., grinding away.., keeping up with the jonses. As far as Auto-Desk looking like they are 'doing something' in the eyes of its competitors, well im not sure it warrants so many releases.., (we ARE talking BIG money, too big for my uni to buy) a product speaks for itself.., especially one like maya.., take the Korg wave station.., been around for years and is still one of the best because of its assets.., mainly wave modulation, modulation synthesis, .., the only 'update ' it got was to be compatible with OSX.

again i piont out, why call them releases when they actually more like 'builds.'

Jr Who seems upset about something that totally escapes me?? but he has a right for his say too.., but not to rage and insult my opinions and me.

i dont usually use 'auto-desk' and 'maya' in the same sentence. auto-desk is business that's flaunting a product called maya. maya is a 3D app.

again I point out, its sites like Simply Maya that keep the passion in Maya.., I find the auto-desk site a little daunting.

[gster123]

Hey Mirek

Whats out of hand?

I'm just saying when the releases come out, and who with, which you asked about, and giving my opinion (which this thread is for) of why they do, and what my standpoint is on the plug in's, not having a go at anyone.

I agree that youve got to look at all the releases when saying something like this, which is what I did.

What did your uni go with in the end?

[mirek03]

hey mate, Im out of hand for babbling on for so long about something so.., rhetorical!

its easy to misunderstand on the net isnt it. I ve always found you one of the most polite and level headed..,

what did uni go with..?? what do you mean.., the SPX?? the flies?? now sur.., oh.., now i see.., they got 3D Max (despite severe canvassing from me) because the volume licences were too expensive for maya.., which is interesting because its the same company.., auto desk.., so theres not much chance of bringing the price down due to any sense of competitiveness.., its actually a monopoly of sorts.., though the term is used loosely

3D enters the world of Flinders multi media (not the film dept) next year.., when Im gone :(

(man, i cant count how many times I have been misunderstood and attacked for it (being misunderstood) ) .., or simply attacked for my opinion on this forum.., every forum for that matter.., I dont think my writing comes across well??, though, Steve, that certainly doesnt apply to you.)

im surprised people stick up for auto desk so much.., all I can think of is they think, by proxy, they are supporting 'maya.'

big business sucks and I think the new trend of bands telling their fans to download and pay what they feel is great.., people will want to pay because no-one wants such a large percentage going to big buisness and not the band they are supporting or simple enjoying the bands music.

ill always contend when it comes to big business.., they will bring on the end of the world asap.., (witness climate change) and laugh all the way there. (a little side thought)

[Jay]

Before I purchase this beast in the next week or so, I'd like to know have they sorted out the object referencing. Maya's referencing has been total crap since I began using 2.5, has it been fixed yet and has it been done properly?


Also what I found interesting is what Gster said about having Maya Complete and then buying a plugin, say Ncloth to add on. This is very interesting because I have in the past ranted at Alias reps for this type of thing. I recently did it when Autodesk released Maya 8 to at another rep. Have my words made their mark finally.

I think its a better way to go, buy complete and then add to it. They should do like they do with max, sell it with Motion builder and add the rest on after when you can.

I mean lets face it, I'm reading thru this lot, all you dudes using Unlimited, Im jealous because I can only afford to buy Complete and Ive yet to see some bloody cool work done with fur, hair, cloth and fluids, even banging on about particle rendering in MR...its just not happening, so why bother, is just the 'to have it' factor? I tell you if I had all that stuff, the hood on that would have been opened and seriously abused by now

I understand some of you go to Uni or college and get to use it there, but what about the rest of you?

Anyway if someone could shed the light on referencing that would be good

Cheers
Jay

[mirek03]

jay, i dont even know what you mean.., referancing.., im sure you have thought of this but.., can auto-desk help you

apart from that, despite my bashing auto desk, maya 2008 is unlimited would certainly rock your world.

[Jay]

hey Mirek

Im sure they could help me, but I want to know from a hands on point of view.

referencing is where an object is referenced from an original source file thats on your hard disk. Instead of being opened or imported its referenced. For example lets just create an imaginary scene: we have a row of houses in a street filled with cars. Each object has been imported separately and the scene is pretty heavy going in polygons. Lets say one of the houses needs a bit of editing. You dont want to go into the scene and start farting about as its too much to sort. So by opening the original file of the house on its own you make your changes and save it. Then merely open the massive scene you have got and its updated!

Also referancing is good for replacing objects on the spot, say you move the referance object fifty grid spaces and have a good cameraa setup that you want to keep. Then just select the rferance file and replace it. The original file is now replaced on th espot with you moving it 50 grid spaces again.

This procedure has always been an ass in Maya and I was wondering if its been fixed.

Cheers
Jay

[gster123]

Hey Jay

IVe never tied it to be honest, How do you go about it? I'll give it a go for you.

Cheers

Steve

[jsprogg]

Jay from what I can tell reference proxies work exactly the same as in 8.5 , the workflow is identical and there is no mention of any improvements in the Docs under whats new.

[Jay]

JSprogg

I doubt there would be anything in the whats new docs, as its not really new, it was basically in need of a serious overhaul tbh. Its been something I know quite a few other artists including my self have grumbled about in the past

Steve

You basically go to File>reference editor> create a reference file, then move it or something in the scene the go back to the editor and replace reference object, in v6 it still defaults back to the zero coords.

Just to really annoy people: Lightwave has had this abilty for many years and ALWAYS does it right off the bat, never fails

Let me know

Jay

[t1ck135]

File referencing is also quite nice in Max so hopefully some of this will be ported across in the new Maya stuff :)

It sounds like it should be straightforward to write a plugin that stores the reference information correctly in the master file. A kind of custom node especially for the job (if there already isn't one). If I ever get the time Jay I'll let you know ;)

Si

[mirek03]

thanks jay, from the sounds of it referancing is similar to th e .psb extention in PS.., also known as smart objects in the CS3 PS when in the 3D mode or using the object tool. Using the 3D mode in PS requires one to create a completely new folder to hold the entire project so one can referance from that so no 'damage' is done to the original file or project.., this only from my understanding so far.

as far as maya 208.., i thought you were still using 6.5.., maybe not..?? but even someone on my level can see the improvements to rendering, some of the texture tools,, ect have come along way since then. the n-cloth seems somewhat better intergrated in this version than 8,5.., theres a heap of minor 'improvements' but since 6.5.., well theres a lot.

for a modellor like you, maybe not too much?? certainly though you would dig some of the UV texture editor tools.

how do you feel as a pro to have to watch all these 'versions' fly by.., no comment :) ..?? or do you just wait and sit on the fence until maya comes of age in autodesk land :) (which to me sounds a wise thing for a pro to do considering the cost verses the benefits of buying or upgrading every 6-8 months or whatever. big bucks i feel for an idependant.

[gster123]

Cheers Jay, I'll give it a go.

Mirek Check your PM,

[mirek03]

live and learn.., whats a PM?? i was wrong??.., again :)

[gster123]

Private Messages

[mirek03]

hey, check your PM :) sorry i figured it out seconds after pushing the send button

[happymat27]

Hi,

I've just been modelling with Maya 2008 properly for the first time since I installed it, I've mainly been sorting out lights and stuff on other models, sorry I digress....

My point is that I really like it! The fact that you can hit 2 and 3 to smooth out your poly model without actually smoothing it.... GENIUS!! If it was possible in Maya 8 (my previous version) I totally missed it but hey I've found it now.

Apart from that little gem, I really like N-Cloth, beats the pants off Maya Cloth for ease of use and also the dynamics seem to solve much quicker (could have something to do with my new computer though).

Overall thumbs up from me (so far).

Later,

Mat.

[Jay]

Mirek: Heh yeah still on version 6.

As far as versions go, I tend to get a bitted pissed off when new releases come out, version 7 looked great but yep you're right I couldnt afford it at the time. The when Autodesk got the reins for Maya and V8 was out I was pretty annoyed as it was 'just' a release with their name on it. Then 8.5 was released within the year and that had some nice features, but when you only use Maya Complete as I do the updates really are not worth the hassle. But I find myself in a weird situation, producing tutorials for Simply using version 6 kind of sucks, because all the noobs, college guys etc are getting the latest version and I kind of feel a bit of a vintage user, ya know. So...now comes the time too upgrade finally!

Hopefully if all bodes well this week, I will be ordering an update.
BUT....my dilemma is this...Buy Maya 2008 (complete version) for 1320 english pounds or buy Softimage Essentials for 1400.

Buy Maya Complete I hear you all say its cheaper. I agree says I but the latest release of SoftImage essentials has made me think. for 1400 english notes I will get All the usual modelling texturing and rigging tools, but heres the the bit that made me think, for an extra few quid I can also have Hair and Syflex cloth to then add to my characters, thats a pretty good deal considering Maya Unlimited sells for near 5grand and then you get added fluids too

the only downside with buying softimage is I'd have to learn new software...

Any thoughts?

Jay

[Jr.Who]

Well, I’m been testing it out for a couple of days, and it really is much faster.

Originally posted by happymat27
My point is that I really like it! The fact that you can hit 2 and 3 to smooth out your poly model without actually smoothing it.... GENIUS!! If it was possible in Maya 8 (my previous version) I totally missed it but hey I've found it now.

Oh, man, I really love that too! What’s amazing is how fast it is. Now I’m never using subds again! :p

[mirek03]

hi jay.., any thoughts..??? yes.., ouch!!! soryy wat can I say...

stay with maya 6 until you hit the mother load and stay vintage.., no-one but you will notice.

man that hurts..,

you may as well save the bickies for maya 2009

tough call me freind :)

the court is out and besides the constant 'updates' it seems maya 2008 has the thumbs up.., as far as Im concerned its the best maya ive played with.., but the pice.., guys like you should get discounted for the advertising you do by proxy..., i mean you guys do keep up a lot of interest in maya and help alot of up and comings who will fork out the bucks when they get work.

[mirek03]

i can find 'extrude edge' it seems 'extrude' covers it all?? is this correct..,

[gster123]

Hi Mat,

yeah the smooth preview tools great, thats what I ve been using on my WIP, the screen grabs and the wireframes are yous grabbed form the screen with it switched on. Also the slide edge tools great for evening out geo.

Mirek - Yeah its all one function now.

Hey Jay, thats a biggie and I can see your dilema, for someone producing on time constraints, like yourself, I would think that learning a new software would be a bit of a ballache what with trying to keep work going in and out, but then again you'll still have maya..

How much is syflex + shave for maya? Would that not be a possiblilty with maya complete?

[Jay]

Hey Steve

LOL, jesus, Ive been playing with XSi trial. In a nutshell, very nice bit of kit. Learning it in depth is a bit of a mission for me right now by the look of it, despite things being where you'd expect them, they are still a bit finicky and Im in Maya 'Mode' so it looks like its definately going to be a Maya Upgrade.

Shave n Haircut, is a possibilty too, I know my friend and colleague Gio Chrono uses it when he can, and I 'spoke' briefly to him yesterday on this same thing and he mentioned Shave too, and thinking about it its probably a better way to go for me. Having many years of Maya under the belt would be a waste to go and change it all now.

Soft looks and feels fantastic, but its getting into that mindset that will be a killer for an old work horse like myself. So at the end of this week I'll give the boys at Escape Studios a shout for an upgrade to 2008.

Syflex stand alone is around $2000 and Shave is $499 so you can see the dilemma there in the price war. This is all included in XSI essentials price of 1400 quid. Kind of sucks really. No justice on Autodesks part. Max has a ton of Plugins, but it comes with Character Studio which is great and thats all for around 2grand.

Autodesk need to think of the consumer market more I think especially us dudes who are a one man band studio, doing freelance work. Speculate to accumulate, as they say....

Cheers
jay

[mirek03]

i remeber the take over and the discussions here then.., ever hopeful and trusying lot we are.., but at the end of the day.., does one trust big business??

shave and hair cut walks all over mayas 'hair' any day of the week

[ctbram]

Speaking of other packages like xsi and max, has anyone taken a look at the new modo 301?

I had a chance to look at the seahorse tutorial and it looks pretty impressive. I like the all around package modeling, uv unwarapping, texture painting. What really impressed me about the seahorse tutorial is it had a zbrush feel to it. There was very little technical poly modeling. The UV layout was a snap, pick a seam, press a button and bingo unwrapped model, no picking through tons of overlapping lines or tedious picking of faces and assigning colors etc. The 3D texture painting was cool. You could paint displacement, and bump information and see it in the model in real time.

That being said the model was pretty simple and I can't say anything about its animation features and I don't think is has any particle dynamics. By for pure modeling and texturing the workflow looks really nice.

But like Jay I have a ton invested in Maya and switching to the new package is painful.

I just wanted to throw modo out there as something worth taking a look at. It's relatively inexpensive. If anyone has more extensive experince with it please let me know as I am seriously looking into giving it a try.

Cheers,
Rick

[mirek03]

i ve looked at a lot of different apps but all for different reasons., FCP, ProTools, AE, CS3.. Boujou.., ect.., i just want an alround good work flow from pre to post (and back again:) ). maya does me fine for 3D.., when uni is finished I have ideas for my own studio and website.., something of a multi-media site.., but I wont let too much out of the bag.., anyway, hence ny interest in Flash, dream weaver, and some of Adobes new web tools such as contribute (new for me)> I have a heap of hardware here, just updated the PC to something quiet monstrous, and would like to hire it out and the other stuff lying about here for post facility, recording studio, previz, ect at a low cost to idies.., a loy of plans anyway.., theres a lot of space here in Oz for some such things (a little criptic but moe will be revealed as time goes by.) (the degree should help.)

the point is, i only move by necessity more so than curiosity.., life is too short now. To move to another 3D app for the sake of curiosity would be my death throws in 3D.., for me necessity is the mother of invention, the mother of where my money goes (eg, do i REALLY need that mag in the shop??.., NO!!) and the mother of everything i do.

what is annoying is some apps such as ProTools, though beautiful in its simplicity.., are considered A MUST to know in post work.., but could use many other apps with more functionality to do the same job quicker.., I often flow between apps at uni doing post sound to use tools it does not have, apps like Premier are fine but its like.., we HAVE to use AVID or HAVE to use FCP..,

so, I HAVE to buy them..?? bbaaahh :( (they are good, and i did buy them, but i often feel its just the name, while cheaper can do the work as well or better).., though i guess with FCP 2 s new 'pro ress 422 (by memory) codec' and the new cameras such as the red camera.., well, if one wants to play with HD then one has to play with FCP.., again.., necessity!

whats your needs??

CT.., as for modo.., i have seen some tuts too and was very impressed.., thats not the free app is it.., thats blender I think.


my picot.., necessity s the answer to all questions asked..

[gster123]

Theres some great uv mapping tools in maya ithat do what you were describing, theres even a video on it, its the UV Unfold option, you select a series of edges do a uv cut, then select the UVs you want it to use as the unwrap, hit unfold and your pretty much there, just need to relax overalpping areas and your done.

[ctbram]

Where is this video that shows how to select an edge and then unfold a model? I found one on using the lattice and unfold tool but the does not unwrap a model. The model is already unfolded and the lattice just straightens it out and unfold relaxes the uv's.

It was a DT free tutorial. I searched all over and could find nothing on a modo like unfolding tool in maya where you can select the edges you want to unwrap and then autounwrap the model like modo.

[gster123]

It was on Autodesks area site, in one of the blogs there, its avido showing workflows etc.

Also have a look in the help files as it goes over the Unfold option with a rino (think its that) as an example.

[NitroLiq]

Originally posted by ctbram
Speaking of other packages like xsi and max, has anyone taken a look at the new modo 301?
I can't hang with Modo in general and I've tried several times. If you're used to Maya, it's really like starting from scratch and re-examining and re-developing your workflow. It's one of those programs that looks so easy when other folks are doing it but when you sit down to model anything, it's debilitating, to me anyways. I do admire Silo quite a bit for organic/character modeling. Its workflow is hard to beat, especially when it comes to selections.

Maya 2008 has some nice features but as far as upgrading from Maya 7...I don't know. Modeling-wise, I'm using the same tools I've always used. Being able to select and insert loops/rings is nice but scripts have been around that allowed this in earlier versions. The other stuff I can't comment too much on as I haven't tried any of the nucleus stuff. There's always shave and a haircut and syflex cloth. Unless there's an express *need* to upgrade as part of a pipeline, I don't see any reason to, really.

[ctbram]

Thanks for the pointers on maya and uv unfold. I will check out the resources.

Update: 10/16 7:52pm
I checked out the autodesk area and I cannot find anything on maya uv unfolding. If you do a search on /ALL maya/ANY level/UV/ you get 2 hits (lol). I guess that says something in it self. Do you have an actual link?

I'll check the help inside maya 2008 and see what it says. But I doubt it will be useful. What I need to see is a real step by step tutorial or something.

[gster123]

I've had a look for the link but cant find it, Ive got the video downloaded to my PC but its 54 meg long, I think it was something to do with the bonus tools set although the UV unfold is NOT a bonus tool, it was just thrown in the show how to use it.

If you want a step by step tutorial or Something, then look in the help file, it goes over it.

[mirek03]

hasnt it been like that since 8.5.., pick an edge.., seperate.., then hit relax UVs..?? its not new in 2008.

demonstrated in the EXTERIOR digi tut.., the street scene.., that where I first saw it.

[gster123]

Originally posted by mirek03
hasnt it been like that since 8.5.., pick an edge.., seperate.., then hit relax UVs..?? its not new in 2008.



Yup it has I was just saying the workflow fir the unfold UV options (thats been in since version 7 it think) as CTbram was asking about a tool similar to what he saw in a modo tutorial. so its off the point of the 2008 impressions.