Quote - > Quote - ...For whatever reason, there appears to be an attitude floating around which says that "if it didn't cost at least $1000, then it's garbage"....

Where does that come from?
All I've ever seen is that a good app that is inexpensive is a good bargain. There's a couple of them around, even some freebies.

Agreed. Blender is a pro-level app (and yes, is often used as such), but you can get it (and its source code!) for free. Gratis. $0.00.

Quote - The lack of enthusiasm for Poser isn't because it doesn't cost alot. It is because of licensing restrictions and the overall lack of usability of the program.

Actually, the former ain't really it (Have you seen 3DS' license software dongle mess? Blecch).

The latter however is true. Workflow gets pretty convoluted once you take into account the joint-to-skeleton path you must take, the "oh, crap - NOW what's missing!?" materials import handling, and the fact that morphs don't often make it out of Poser alive. 

It can be done, but it ain't easy.

Also, agreed on the render-time aspect. Faster calc-time is better, and I don't care who you are - hobbyist or pro.

/P