I want to learn how to do 3D modelling.  I know that both Blender and Wings are free so I have both.  The Blender interface looks like it has a lot more options.  I'm just wondering which has the best learning curve for new users, particularly so that you can move the camera around easily to see what you're working on.

 Well i don't think Blender has the easier learning curve for new users, Wings might win that battle. However as far as modeling Blender has Wings beat ,imo. Moving around in the 3d view is one of the reasons I love Blender, in a lot of 3d apps navigation is painfully slow and awkward. If you have a three button mouse you'll have no problem.

The middle mouse wheel is a Blender users best friend, the wheel by default zooms in and out. Hold mouse wheel and shift and move mouse to pan up/down or left right. Use the number pad keys to select views 1 = front view,  3 = side view, 7 = top view, hold Ctrl plus those numbers to see the opposite side views. Pressing the 0 key on the number pad allows you to see the camera view.

Plus there is a pretty good Wiki for more info, learning the shortcut keys for modeling is something you should look for. Some important ones are space bar to bring up the add menu. W in edit mode is one of the shortcuts i use most. There is a keyboard chart somewhere of all the Blender shortcut keys,if i find it I'll post a link (if we can still do that at this site:rolleyes:).

In my opinion Blender is a much better long term option to learn than Wings based on the many features that Blender has to offer. It might be difficult at first but after a while you'll be able to create anything you want for any purpose or other app with Blender.

Attached Link: Blender HotKey Map

Found it...well sort of. It seems it hasn't been updated in a while. This one is for an older version, however most of the shortcuts are the same. There are a few different ones but for the most part this should help.

Quote - There is a keyboard chart somewhere of all the Blender shortcut keys,if i find it I'll post a link (if we can still do that at this site:rolleyes:).

Keyboard Map
Hot Key Reference Page

Quote - I want to learn how to do 3D modelling.  I know that both Blender and Wings are free so I have both.  The Blender interface looks like it has a lot more options.  I'm just wondering which has the best learning curve for new users, particularly so that you can move the camera around easily to see what you're working on.

Blender has more capability but I find wings much easier to learn although I think camera movement in Blender is easier once you get the hang of it. They both have thier pros and cons.
I prefer to model in Wings and Uvmap in Blender.

I started with Blender and wouldn't bother using anything else to model in. It's always been able to do whatever I wanted. I build sets, make/convert clothes and do head and body morphs in it. I see you're an apollo fan, so I included a pic of a near finished Roman. It's got apollo's arms, head and legs, with some pieces of clothing where needed and the Roman body armor converted from a freebie by azdan. Inisde it's hollow, no wasted geometry sitting underneath the shell.

I have used Wings and haven't used Blender, so obviously I'm biased. Wings is easy to learn and very powerful. Navigation is extremely nifty. You can select something and type 'A' or Shift-A to have it centered. The scroll wheel zooms in and out just as it does in Blender. Rotating and panning is a bit strange, but you get used to it. By the way, 'you get used to it' is a phrase you will here a lot when it comes to the Blender interface. :biggrin:

Anyway, I've started with Wings and am having a go now at learning Blender for all the other stuff that Blender does, such as UV mapping etc. Just for the modeling, I'm very happy with Wings and and don't need anything else. The only thing I'm missing is a true symmetric editing mode. You have to cut your model in half and use a virtual mirror that shows what the full model will look like. Again, that's fine for modeling, but bound to be problematic for things like morph targets.

I have downloaded Blender but I have no experience with 3D programs. Is there a book on Blender that would help teach me at a slower pace than the tutorials? I'm hoping for something with some tutorials & that I can use as a printed reference.

There are 3 Blender books out there. I've got the first two, and yes, learning Blender is really all about memorizing the hotkeys. It's a lot easier now than it used to be with the hotkey search function. From scratch though, I think you're best off with the books. I'm sure you can still find them online, maybe at amazon. The 2nd one is available in downloadable format now though and that can save you a few bucks.

I've started reading "The Essential Blender", and it looks pretty decent. Haven't seen any of the others, so I can't tell which is the most useful. It looks like the one about physics simulation in Blender is not exactly meant for beginners, though.

Oh, and can someone tell me how that hotkey search function works? That sounds very useful.

It should be under the help dropdown box on the top toolbar. It's certainly been there for at least the two most recent versions. Blender's come a long way since I first started using it, but the basics of 3D are still the basics. I love it for modeling. Best recent advance is the scuplting function for my use.

D'oh! Yep, it's right there, under "Hotkey and Mouse Action Reference".

PBM,
I know you didn't include these, but honestly I think hex is one of the easiest to use modeling tools. You might try to get a copy of  the issue of 3D world where they gave away hex 1.2. 3D World

i know lots and lots of people, by far the majority, find Wings easier.  i started on Wings, and i hated it.  all the tools were hidden.  it made no sense to me.  at all.  i tried Wings, Hexagon, 3ds Max, Animator, and Blender and found Blender by far the easiest to learn to model on.  that was largely due to the massive amounts of help i found online, but also due how simple it is to do things that are complex in other apps.  it's easy to start UV mapping.  it's easy to start sculpting.   it's easy to apply all sorts of modifiers and make pretty incredible stuff.  once you can basically use Blender, you can do an amazing amount.  you still need lots of skill and talent, but so far, i've had to learn more stuff but not more complex stuff.

i wouldn't say that learning the hotkeys is the big thing.  it's important, but the main reason it's important is for moving around.  you don't have to memorize scale and "grab" or translate, you can use a menu or a floating window to do that..  you can pull up a window to control your view properties.   you need hotkeys to pan, rotate, and such your views.  and if you switch to regular selection style, then you loose your ability to emulate a 3-button mouse (and a scroll button doesn't quite count), meaning you probably have to rewire your brain against every other app in existence to select with the right mouse button.  otherwise, you can go to the interface rather than hotkeys for just about anything.

the big things i've run into  are the fundamentals of 3d modeling, like dealing with  topology,  how to make soft and hard surfaces work without just wasting polys, how to come up with a good UV modeling and mapping procedure to make texturing easy, converting from paths to meshes, and other aspects you need to consider if you plan on working entirely on your own. 

personally, no matter what tool you use, i suggest mixing aimless playing, tutorials that match a specific goal and ones that just seem interesting, and planned and sketched projects.  in the past couple of months i've really been playing with Blender, and i made tons of stupid, time-consuming mistakes.     i think a lot of stuff just should have been better planned, some mistakes i just learned from, and some mistakes i'm not sure about yet.    but i really think that you should think about the overall production process when you're considering what's most comfortable and convenient for you.  and build a process instead of an object.  even if you're working with others, the important thing is that you optimize how you can build on your successes.  and the app you chose affects your process, and your process should be specific to you.

  for instance, i can draw in Illustrator well and quickly, so it's worth it for me to use a tool that can read Illustrator SVG files.  sure i could learn to make curves in another tool, but really, why?  i'd have to get incredibly good to match my 12 years experience with Illustrator.  whatever tool you use should work with your existing skills and knowledge as much as possible.  and, of course, fit what you want to make. 

what do you want to make?

If you go to this old thread:
http://www.renderosity.com/mod/forumpro/showthread.php?thread_id=2742897

I have made a comment there of some tutorials.

If you follow this you will master Blender in no time and you will not look back.