I just read Vue 8 is coming out by the end of this year But didn't Vue 7,Vue 7.4,Vue 7.5 and Vue OMG Just come out...Is Vue 7 that bad of a product that they already need Vue 8? I'm still on Vue 5 so this doesn't effect me But why so soon? Will you Vue 7 guys have to pay a arm and a leg for a upgrade?

I just found it wild that people are just getting use to Vue 7 and already Vue 8 is coming out.It looks like to me they are trying to Milk the cow a little to soon.

http://www.e-onsoftware.com/about/press_materials/?page=..%2FPRIndex&date=July%2024,%202009

Quote -
Next Generation Features

Capitalizing on breakthrough technologies introduced in previous versions, Vue 8 will also feature a number of important new features such as 3D terrain sculpting, directional displacement, the 3rd generation of e-on’s Spectral atmospheric engine technology, distributed bucket rendering and much more.

Come and meet the e-on software team in New Orleans, at the Siggraph show, booth #2909 for further details and product demonstrations. To make it easier for people to come and visit, e-on software is giving away 300 free registration passes to the exhibition hall (click on the link below for instructions)!

!!!!
wish vue's price would halve though....
 

Vue8? Well, Vue7 was out at the end of 2008 if I remember right, so that would make a year develepment cycle, pretty much like any other major software development cycle these days. 7.5 being a .5 release and not a full point release. Is it going too fast? Maybe, but the new terrain features look very interesting. And since e-on introduced maintenance plans with free upgrades for Vue8, they need to show their licencees that byuing a maintenace plan is a good deal.

Bruno,
I can (just about, lol) afford art proggies by looking for when they have special offers/sale etc, saved me a assload of cash over the years.
at first I was pretty damn PO'd about the whole maintenance plan until it was explained better and V8 thrown in with it...that was good savings :)

though I do wish Vues price did drop siginficantly...it doens't help newcomers, or moi, seeing those whacking great prices for Complete/infinite/Xstream, even with Pioneer etc.
and most folk in this genre start as hobbyists, not as stuioi pros!

anywya, terrain editor's needed a hugr kick in the pants for a long time, so that's to look forward too ! :)
odd but I''ve been working through materials, lighting, rendering now onto terrains as major learning areas :P my terrain skillzors sucketh!
maybe buy the QuadSpinner tuts on that, as their lighting one was DAMN good

I'm with you Steven I suck at creating good terrains!

GeoControl2 anyone? :)

Bought it, but barely had the time to use it yet.
This said, sculpting terrains in the Vue terrain editor would be pretty cool too if this is how e-on wants to implement it.

Will have to see the new features in more details but will probably pass on it once again. Maybe 9!

Quote - I just read Vue 8 is coming out by the end of this year But didn't Vue 7,Vue 7.4,Vue 7.5 and Vue OMG Just come out...Is Vue 7 that bad of a product that they already need Vue 8? I'm still on Vue 5 so this doesn't effect me But why so soon? Will you Vue 7 guys have to pay a arm and a leg for a upgrade?

Version 8 will continue further on its path of improving Vue's integration with 3rd-party modeling/rendering applications.  But don't expect a lot of new features in the low-end configs of Vue.  Just slight improvements on what those Vue's already have.  Vue Infinite is kind of a middle sibling right now that gets ignored.  For an "Infinite" label, it's still waiting for simple things like getting its bump mapping fixed and maybe one day getting normal mapping added.

But enough with the Sprectral Clouds stuff already.  We get it already.  Vue Infinite can do skies wonderfully.  But Vue Infinite (and the rest of the Vue's) needs to start doing some of the other things better.

Interesting that Poser 8 is generating the fastest growing Renderosity thread in history while Vue 8's thread is so far just meh.

I'll prolly get 8 Infinite when it comes out now I'm working again.
Price will be an issue but I'll get it somehow! [LOL].

I didn't buy into the maintenance plan for 2 reasons: Didn't have a job when announced so couldn't afford it.........but......the biggest reason was because I haven't really been that impressed with e-on's customer service so didn't want to spend on something that they aren't any good at anyway!.....Sorry you e-on lovers but that's how I see it!
The best you get from them when you report anything is "it's a known bug that will be fixed yada, yada" and the worst...well I'm sure you all know that one!

Hey, thefixer, this is great news!

Quote - GeoControl2 anyone? :)

It is a must if you are a Vue user.

I'm split in two on this one, on one hand I am really looking forward to Vue 8 in terms of the terrain editor, not too bothered about spectral clouds, in my view they have been there and done that. But on the other hand the amount of messing around with 7 Complete and the render nodes was disgraceful, the fact it took 3 months or maybe more to get the nodes working was not on. And there are still things I have reported that I waiting to hear back on.

So mixed feelings, and yeah as much as I want to say, shove your application where the sun doesn't shine E-on, I will more than likely be upgrading................................................again!

Jon

Quote - ...new features such as **3D terrain sculpting, directional displacement, the 3rd generation of e-on’s Spectral atmospheric engine technology...
**

Wow!!!

**"3D terrain sculpting, directional displacement,"
**= well if it's like Zbrush...modelling in Vue took a huge jump forward ;)
was hell of an impressed many years ago by guy who made a "skull" emblazoned motorbike with Bryce!

Quote - I'll prolly get 8 Infinite when it comes out now I'm working again.
Price will be an issue but I'll get it somehow! [LOL].

I didn't buy into the maintenance plan for 2 reasons: Didn't have a job when announced so couldn't afford it.........but......the biggest reason was because I haven't really been that impressed with e-on's customer service so didn't want to spend on something that they aren't any good at anyway!.....Sorry you e-on lovers but that's how I see it!
The best you get from them when you report anything is "it's a known bug that will be fixed yada, yada" and the worst...well I'm sure you all know that one!

I agree with you in terms of customer service. In the past it has not been too bad, but it seems like especially the last several months or so it has gotten a lot worse. Users on their site and others are reporting the same thing. Their questions get generic responses, never actually resolved or worse even ignored. If you are a REGISTERED user and they know you paid that kind of money for their software, you would think they would have better support.

The one thing that gripes me and others too (applies to other software like ZBrush) is they are not taking time to fix the bugs and POLISH the program before moving to another version with added features. At this point I think they REALLY need to stop and fix all the outstanding issues and tweak how some things are done before any more versions.

It seems like they are desperate for some added income and it wouldn't surprise me if someone like Autodesk eventually bought them. They do not have a program like it in their lineup.

Also take into account where E-on is based.  Not exactly a free-market, competitive, or capitalist country.  So that mindset prevails in its business.

Quote - The one thing that gripes me and others too (applies to other software like ZBrush) is they are not taking time to fix the bugs and POLISH the program before moving to another version with added features. At this point I think they REALLY need to stop and fix all the outstanding issues and tweak how some things are done before any more versions.

I couldn't agree more. I think it's expected from any software that updates will introduce new bugs, and I understand that. The main issue I find with e-on is that the new bugs introduced seem so bizarre; why, for example, did the 7.4 update stop preferences from being saved? The only answers I can come up with are either poor programming and quality control, or (which is my guess) the Vue code is now so convoluted that making one change has the tendency to break something else completely unrelated. Either way, it doesn't inspire confidence.

Personally I won't be upgrading to v8. My Vue experience stops with 7.4. 

Quote - Also take into account where E-on is based.  Not exactly a free-market, competitive, or capitalist country.  So that mindset prevails in its business.

ahem, politics..and those values you quote are not the great uberness they are propagandized to be..
see, Banking Collapse just recently ;)
Any system, taken to extremes, sucks! Problem is, we Humans always take things to extremes! :/

Quote - > Quote - The one thing that gripes me and others too (applies to other software like ZBrush) is they are not taking time to fix the bugs and POLISH the program before moving to another version with added features. At this point I think they REALLY need to stop and fix all the outstanding issues and tweak how some things are done before any more versions.

I couldn't agree more. I think it's expected from any software that updates will introduce new bugs, and I understand that. The main issue I find with e-on is that the new bugs introduced seem so bizarre; why, for example, did the 7.4 update stop preferences from being saved? The only answers I can come up with are either poor programming and quality control, or (which is my guess) the Vue code is now so convoluted that making one change has the tendency to break something else completely unrelated. Either way, it doesn't inspire confidence.

Personally I won't be upgrading to v8. My Vue experience stops with 7.4. 

I completely disagree. I have very little problems with Vue 7.5. For me, the existing features are 'polished' enough, I just want to have more and more features. I prefer to have one or the other bug (I don't have any serious bug outstanding right now) and have a quick rhythm of upgrades and new features. Reason is simple: more features means more creative power and that, for me, is far more important than one or two bugs.

Bugs don't stop me from creating but the lack of a feature I need could stop me from creating an image burning in my mind to get out.

That's fine, and as long as there are sufficient people around with the same approach e-on will keep on being successful at what they do. But I like an app to perform as it says on the tin, reliably and consistently, even if that delays the introduction of bleeding edge new features. I'll accept some bugs in new versions because that's SOP, but with e-on I'm left with a general feeling of carelessness which is (for me) decidedly off-putting.

Since I don't use Vue for much other than backdrops for scenes created in other apps, it doesn't make much sense for me to upgrade especially with the annoyances that invariably go with it.

"Bugs don't stop me from creating but the lack of a feature I need could stop me from creating an image burning in my mind to get out."

I envy you so much! The bugs in V7 and lack of decent responses and solutions from e-on are so debilitating  it is destroying  my creativity not only in vue but in other fields too and ruins many of my days.

Yes, I know, 'if it's so bad no one is forcing you to use it'.  But its abilities in principle are so great and it was so much fun using v6... I guess I'm a sucker for punishment, every new patch I think surely they must have fixed it now! Only to discover more problems.
E-on should fix existing bugs for those of us who arnt as lucky as Artur  before or at least in parallel with new features. My dollars arnt any less green than anyone else's, there's nothing in my system that doesnt comply with their description of requirement. It is morally wrong not to provide me  and many others like me with a working program.

I think they got rid of all the Bugs, they are just calling it Vue 8 Now..lol

ArtPearl
wanna start a new thread with what your problems are, build etc etc see if anyone cna help? :)

the fact that on some PCs, folk have few problems, and others do, it's obvious there's somehting that seriously doesn't agree with Vue out there in computer land.

One thing everyone should do, is update their motherboard chipset, PROVIDED they check exactly how to do it, and check on forums etc for the stability and safety of doing such
I've had serious improvements over years doing that...but if you screw up...!!

folk forget the motherboard chipsets get improved

however, Microsoft update shows 2 updates for my SATA controller, if I install those ones MS suggests, my system  goes to hell!
safer getting form manufacturer of motherboard's website

Vue Infinite 7.5 will be the last version for me.  It has enough features now that I am satisfied with and I plan to use this program for a long time until I have a system that it's not compatible with.  It's a shame E-on has chosen to increase their price and reduce their quality.  I hope Luxology doesn't ever adopt that business plan.

Quote - Vue Infinite 7.5 will be the last version for me.  It has enough features now that I am satisfied with and I plan to use this program for a long time until I have a system that it's not compatible with.  It's a shame E-on has chosen to increase their price and reduce their quality.  I hope Luxology doesn't ever adopt that business plan.

I hear you, but I may have to upgrade just to get some "fixes" depending on how things go once version 8 comes out. A lot of people I know were gripped about Dreamweaver CS4 doing this because a LOT of the bugs were to be fixed in CS3 patches but several were left lingering. Those "fixes" were only in the NEW version which many felt was just a ploy to get you to upgrade. I know others like ZBrush have really taken a PR hit too.

In terms of Modo, I REALLY like them and Maxon a LOT more due to how they handle things overall. In fact, the OWNER of Luxology called me in person when he found out I was a technical writer and also going to do some graphic novels later on wanting to know what I thought about Modo. Now, when's the last time someone of authority at a company, much less the Owner called someone in person to inquire about their personal thoughts on what they are doing? Version 4 is a good example of adding some features, taking care of some polish and even supporting the Mac saying "64 bit is coming for version 4 and will be FREE to anyone that owns a current version 4 license". Also, they only charge for 1 license that covers both Mac and PC so it does not matter if you use it cross-platform.

C4D is also more impressive from the technical point of view in they do things right from the start. It does not get all bogged down with code that is a complete mess and is 64 bit on both Mac and PC having written it in Apple Cocoa as it should be.

Quote -

"Bugs don't stop me from creating but the lack of a feature I need could stop me from creating an image burning in my mind to get out."

I envy you so much! The bugs in V7 and lack of decent responses and solutions from e-on are so debilitating  it is destroying  my creativity not only in vue but in other fields too and ruins many of my days.

Yes, I know, 'if it's so bad no one is forcing you to use it'.  But its abilities in principle are so great and it was so much fun using v6... I guess I'm a sucker for punishment, every new patch I think surely they must have fixed it now! Only to discover more problems.
E-on should fix existing bugs for those of us who arnt as lucky as Artur  before or at least in parallel with new features. My dollars arnt any less green than anyone else's, there's nothing in my system that doesnt comply with their description of requirement. It is morally wrong not to provide me  and many others like me with a working program.

I know where you are coming from and feel the same way as I said above. They REALLY need to fix the bugs, re-write and tweak the code before it becomes as bad as ZBrush that users are leaving for Mudbox. They need to improve and tweak some of the UI stuff too and how some things are done before going to version 9 or whatever and re-write in Cocoa too.

I was talking with a person that will be at e-on regarding the upcoming show of Vue 8 and they are going to mention some of the things I have reported and proven for issues in 7.x along with some thoughts on better ways to handle some things in the software. He said he didn't know how far he would get because they tend to just do things on their own with little regard to their users.

Send me an email if you want after the showing and I will let you know what he found out once I hear back from him. Anything I can help with just PM me.

Thanks for the help offers, much appreceated - I wish e-on was as sympathetic and helpful as the vue community.
Writing up the (many) new bugs is a time consuming task and I doubt it's solvable by anyone but e-on. (Some maybe Mac related). I may come back to it when time (and frustration level) allow,  submit to e-on and post here.
In any case, my point in this thread was to present my point of view with respect to new (for pay) versions: when there are serious bugs in existing versions e-on should give priority to fixing those.
I'm not holding my breath...

off topic...Is it possible to buy Vue 6 still?...I had problems with Vue 7 ple but no problems with V6...That might be because of my video card not the program...Just like photoshop cs3 I can't run that either on my comp because of the video card...Not ready to upgrade my comp:(

 hopefully they'll add a particle system to vue 8.

Quote - Thanks for the help offers, much appreceated - I wish e-on was as sympathetic and helpful as the vue community.
Writing up the (many) new bugs is a time consuming task and I doubt it's solvable by anyone but e-on. (Some maybe Mac related). I may come back to it when time (and frustration level) allow,  submit to e-on and post here.
In any case, my point in this thread was to present my point of view with respect to new (for pay) versions: when there are serious bugs in existing versions e-on should give priority to fixing those.
I'm not holding my breath...

Couldn't agree more with you. Let's hope e-on doesn't keep this up or else it will be losing some of their current customers much like ZBrush has. It can only go on for so long doing all this "upgrading" before they are forced to do something to fix the code base. Otherwise it will be so convoluted and messed up it will be unusable at all.

I'll let you know what I find out after the Siggraph 2009 show. Not holding out hope for much though.

3Dneo
um, more folk are leaving Zbrush for Mudbox and 3DCoat, cause Zbrush has a horribly GARBAGE interface as the prime reason ;)
man I depsise that UI :/

ArtPearl
no worries :)

oh one thought came ot me about Vue...I turned off the Nvidia multi thread setting in it's opions due ot Poser's rotten system that doesn't work well with it
wonder if something like that could be an issue? I turned it back on yesterday as it will be slowing down the Vue interface, I think

Quote - I just read Vue 8 is coming out by the end of this year But didn't Vue 7,Vue 7.4,Vue 7.5 and Vue OMG Just come out...Is Vue 7 that bad of a product that they already need Vue 8? I'm still on Vue 5 so this doesn't effect me But why so soon? Will you Vue 7 guys have to pay a arm and a leg for a upgrade?

I just found it wild that people are just getting use to Vue 7 and already Vue 8 is coming out.It looks like to me they are trying to Milk the cow a little to soon.

Autodesk  & Adobe have pretty much defined the model for Version/point releases. A full version release used to be something fairly dramatic, and a point release fixed bugs, and threw in a little functionality.

But companies are all over the map on this. Newtek takes pride of place in having the most dramatic "point" releases, and Autodesk probably has the chintziest.

In the end, its about trying to find ways to get you and me to buy something.

The logical thing is actually a subscription model, but users hate subscription models.

E-on is a joke compared to Adobe and Autodesk. 

There is no reason to upgrade every version of any software. There is especially no reason to rush in when upgrading.  There will always be deals later on anyhow.

E-on's long history of BUGS is legendary and world renown.  Just search the internet and see how much negative experience has been reported.  Tons of it has been deleted.

I'M staying with version 6 and thank my lucky stars I never bought xstream.  Xstream is a train wreck no matter what version.

Consumers aren't powerless to upgrade scams.  Just don't buy and we'll see how fast they change policy or extend deals.

Don't beat me but I think e-on should stop making softwares, seriously.

I dreamt that Apple buy e-on and got (after a BIG refactoring or rewriting) a good 3D software like they did with Logic for audio (Logic worked well so the task was easier).

Oh sorry I forget Windows users ;)
So e-on keeps the windows version and Apple the Mac version so every one happy !

Another dream : they put Vue in open source so we can fix all the f... bugs !

Until e-on drops their hats size down a few increments they may not be open to our input. For now as long as there are customers that will put up with bugs and the way the company is run. There is no incentive for e-on to get better at what they do. 

There is a management pattern here if you really look at it. It's not just the software, it's the whole company. The web site is very hard to deal with as well. Ordering should be seamless. With e-on it is not. Perhaps for some this type of company structure is acceptable. For many it is not. Even production companies are getting fed up with how e-on operates. Just ask the Battle Star Galactica producer. They where extremely upset. The list is long.

There needs to be accountability and transparency.

Fact the US branch of e-on software is nothing more than a UPS store that ships the product. The really people running the show are in France. Nice smoke screen. Online you can't even know their real names as they will use an alias. It goes on and on. I could write a book on what you should know about e-on software before you buy. LOL.

Once again lucky for e-on they have a good program that many will love it only it would work as advertised.

Let the ego warriors light the flame throwers. LOL

rds,
taps keyboard and sighs
look mate, the vast majority of this planet and it's population is outside the USA's shores. So what? If you don't like that, well, tough luck.
Why should it always be US-centric, hm?
I'd rather have a small, "owned and controlled by a single or few human beings" company, in charge of art applications than a corporation.
Why? Cause it's ART. Last thing I want is a monolithic brain-dead monstrosity shoving their poo down my throat.
Look at how long it has taken Adobe to get a bloody decent UI, for example.
Or how Autodesk has become a near monopoly, and that is NEVER good for customers.

Try talking with the E-On support folk like fellow human beings, you may actually be surpised at how effective that is...
"You catch more flies with honey, than with vinegar" ;)

LOL  no need to tap my key board, just laughing out loud. 

Look mate. Most of e-ons revenue comes from the US. That's a fact. So unfortunately for e-on they have to put up with those crazy Americans or go broke. 

Does it take a bloody monolithic company to write software correctly? To run a web site effetely? To advertise honestly? To be accountable to your customer base and transparent enough not to have guys like me that enjoys the software complain? I really don't think so mate. 

Honey or vinegar makes no difference. Until the management changes, big or small. Things at e-on will stay the same. It has nothing to do with what country you live in. If enough people discover the truth, perhaps e-on will have to recognize they need to change how they do business. It doesn't take a big company to do that Blade. It takes a rifle shot business plan NOT a shotgun plan that they have going on now. 

BTW I've talked till I'm blue in the face with e-on. More than you have I will wager.

Hey loved that new tut you put up. ;~)

I guess I am stuck with VUE 6, because I bet there will be no upgrade path to VUE 8 from that, and you bet it will not be cheap. Which in a way makes me laugh, why you might ask? Because in no way did VUE compensate their customers for the BUG ridden VUE 7. I wonder if they even monitor this forum?

rds,
how do you know most revenue comes from the US? Isn't that an assumption? ;)
Well as I've repeatedly said, I think they have too many versions and would do everyone a big favour by reducing the Vue line to:
Pioneer, Studio, Infinite and Xstream, and lowering prices, but, hey, fat chance I guess :p

Let me guess, you are a MAC or Xstream user, hence the anger? Ironically I was wanting to buy Xstream 7...but it was too damned expensive, lucky me! hehe!!

My pleasure for the tutorial :)