Recently saw Bryce 5 for $29.95 at the local university in a discount bin. Which made me wonder if that's no longer the current version. Bryce doesn't seem to be listed on Corel's website either, which made me even more curious. What's the status with Bryce anyway? I've thought of getting it, and almost got that copy at the university, but I tried working with it once before and had a heck of time trying to get a poser model to come in and keep it's textures...

Wow, $30, should've snatched it up. Bryce 5 IS the latest version, Corel has cut its price to $80, full retail. It's a little hidden on their site; http://www.corel.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=Corel/Products/productInfo&id=1042551234521 Bringing Poser into Bryce is a little tricky, but not impossible at all, and not that big of a deal once you get into the routine. AgentSmith

Should it include a manual? It was an academic version, and seemed to only have a CD. I bought Corel Draw as academic around 97 or so and only got CDs, as a result I never learned it and ended up switching to Photoshop as they offered a class I took after work in the venings.

You don't need the manual anyway, Realworld Bryce by Susan Kitchens IS the Bryce Bible, that and the app, you're set. $30! I have Bryce5 and I'd still have picked it up!

Zhann is right, don't worry about the manual that comes with it. It's not very useful. Any info it has is easily accessible on the web or here or just by playing with the program for about a week or so. It's the stuff that's NOT in it that seems to be far more valuable.

You get a pdf manual on the cd.

Yeah, academic versions don't come with manuals, that's just the norm. And, yeah, the best Bryce "manual" is "Realworld Bryce 4" by Susan A Kitchens! The few version 5 areas that arent covered in that book, you can easily learn from the CD's pdf or from here at the forum. Amazon will carry inexpensive copies of this book, I got my latest copy from there, worked perfect for me; http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/stores/offering/list/-/0201354381/all/ref=dp_bb_a/103-9948150-0037407 They have used and new starting at around $18 right now. AgentSmith

:Advanced Bryce Creations: Photorealistic 3D Worlds: I found this book on Amazon as well. Does anyone have it and if so, is it any good?

I've heard that is no good Ardiva. Real World Bryce is the best out there.

ok..gotcha!

Another vote here for Real World Bryce. As for Advanced Bryce Creations... the general consensus seems to be to avoid anything authored by Shamms Mortier. In fairness, a few people do seem to have enjoyed his books but I am not one of them. - Jack

Jack...what was the problem with this one particular book? Instructions not clear enough - bad photo examples...etc?

Mr. Mortier's books tend to be somewhat simplistic as well as error prone. They rarely contain any information that readers will not discover for themselves by simply stumbling through the program. The examples he uses to illustrate a subject tend to be somewhat... ummm... bizarre. If you wish to create scenes reminiscent of a drunkard's nightmare then his advice might be exactly what you are seeking. The subject of his books crops up from time to time in the Poser and Bryce forums. Rather than rely upon my clearly biased opinion you may wish to do a general search with his name as a keyword. You will then be in a better position to judge for yourself. You may be shocked at how many share my opinion in this regard. At the very least, if you are considering one of his books I would recommend first browsing through it at a bookstore. BTW, the books of his that generate the most favourable comments tend to be those where most of the chapters have been written by others and he has merely compiled them. In contrast Real World Bryce is packed tightly with solid information and it will take you considerable time to do justice to it. It will tell you how Bryce really works as opposed to what the manual claims to work. You will learn work arounds to various problems as well as a variety of techniques. While RWB is a very practical text it does not completely ignore theory either. I would almost be tempted to say that if you have Bryce but do not have this book then you only have half a program. - Jack