You know, this isn't -marketing-. It was a sneak peek at what is no doubt at most an early beta software build; most likely an alpha build since this is the first tidbit. Maybe its just me, but I pay attention to the thread header and apply it to the content. Yes, the bloody images were obviously thrown together. At this stage that means next to nothing. We all know Nerd, and know the quality of his work...which says that this was thrown together to show that caustics actually exist in the new build.

The GPU acceleration is good....if you have the hardware to handle it. If you don't, then it just becomes an excercise in frustration as scene after scene bombs with out of memory errors. Even cards with 4 gigs of VRAM can run out of memory in a standard Poser scene, depending on how many textures and their size. If they can work out a channel bridge to system memory, then ohn yeah. But considering that people whine about paying $40 to jump 3 versions of Poser when its on sale, do you really think they are going to fork out $200 for a halfway decent video card? And does SM =really= want to wade into the Cuda/OpenCL cesspit? Because we all know that everyone who has a GPU that isn't supported will be howling to the heavens...and it takes a fairly modern GPU and significant VRAM to even function in most renderers (and no, game engines are not external renderers in this context).

Thanks for the first taste Chuck. You knew what would happen, didn't you....?

I'm out. Apparently people think you shouldn't have an opinion about anything, even something you're PAYING for.

Laurie

Let's all be nice to each other for once.  I know it's asking a lot these days but everyone has a right to voice their opinions and concerns just like people have a right to choose to listen to or ignore them. Let's be civil and remember we're all part of the same community.

one of my concerns is that i'll be able to install future poser on my workhorse pc,

which is not on the internet.

one of my concerns is that i'll be able to install future poser on my workhorse pc,

which is not on the internet.

Well, you could always follow the instructions for a computer that isn't connected to the 'net. [edited]

Not sure what's going on, but keep it polite people. We're all entitled to our opinions and they are all different.  No reason what so ever to be rude or be bashing each other or software developers.  If you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all.  This is why the forums are so deserted these days.  People are taking this stuff personally and it's time for it to stop.

Thank you!

Several weeks ago, New Horizon's first images of the Pluto system began coming in. They were better than had been taken before, but didn't show much, being fuzzy and showing indistinct features at best.

Not to worry, it was reported. The probe was still over a million miles away. The images will get better as approach comes closer. These are just the first ones. It's just to make sure that the camera and data storage and transmission system is working. It would be rather silly to make judgements one way or the other on the success of the mission based on those first images.

I have no idea why that suddenly springs to mind.

...and you know the next thing that's going to happen? Movie studios are going to show "sneak peeks" of films without all the post work effects completed, or they're going to just show a crew on location instead of what's actually going to be seen on film. Modellers are going to show only parts of what they're working on, just some screencaps of their workspace without any kind of texturing or surface shaders. TV shows will show entirely context-free clips of future episodes.

It will be a madhouse. A madhouse.

"But unless they have a great new figure with 30-40 new skins and an array of male and female clothing, or they support G3, then who is the product being marketed at? Roxie, Antonia, and V4 users only? Even if Poser Pro were free, what would be the point in that instance?"

Yeah, about that..........

Funny how DAZ isn't held to that standard.  The ONLY time that happened was the release of V4.  How long did it take any of the genesis series to get to that point?  God knows, it certainly didn't make it inside of 6 months, for either the genesis 1 lifecycle or the genesis 2 lifecycle.

If this person wants to be limited to 1 figure, with maybe 10 or 12 people making content for it on a regular basis, well have at it (and a significant portion of that being rehashes of content made for earlier figures).  I find it very amusing that at the end of the day, SM's G2 line ended up with more characters made for them than the genesis 2 line.  Or the fact that Miki 4 has almost as many characters made for her as the entire g2f line in and of itself.

I like choices, I don't find them frighting - I find them liberating.

AFA the sneak peak with the PBR (and am I the only person who sees those initials and thinks of really, really shitty beer) - I am glad I will be able to leverage the knowledge I already have, rather than having to start all over.  This is a very Poser-like solution.

 I refuse to be labeled a whiner.   After buying almost all Poser versions since 4  and  considering this is a product that will be labeled PRO and will cost about $500 with the included VAT for Europeans I feel I can comment on it.   In the 16 years I've been on this forum I don't think I've ever bashed anyone or anything.   In the past, an honest opinion was appreciated whether it be in the gallery or a posting of a wip model, texture, etc.   [edited for combative comments]  I guess I'm out too.

@Nerd: Thank you for the message.

Good to hear (something of) what is ahead.

Waiting impatiently for the rest.

"DOGMAS:
I believe in Solitude & the Violence of Truth ...
I insist upon loud words in Silence ...
4am knows all my secrets ...

PHILOSOPHIES:
Far too much to say to a deaf audience ...
keep it about the Art; don't sell yourself out in the name of "popularity", "validation" or "acceptance";
Art is really not about any of those things ..."

I found that on the Homepage of an artist here and thought I'd quote it for validity.  I think it fits what has been said here pretty damn well indeed.  Fact is, I see no one here saying anything that wouldn't be expected as a response to what Nerd has posted.  And fact is, the demonstration that was presented borders on comical considering the idea is to generate excitement about Poser - not send people running to DAZ.  This community is literally bursting at the seams with extremely talented Poser artists, so perhaps it would be wise to have one of them work on the next demonstration of what we can expect from the next edition of Poser.  Baggins shoe is far more enticing, and he demonstrated that with what we already have!

I'm in total agreement with those who point out they have to pay a fair amount of money for it.  Poser is not cheap, in fact it's probably the most expensive 3D program you can buy considering how limiting it's tech is in a lot of areas.  For the programs sake, I hope the next announced feature isn't as half-assed as the Cycles implementation appears right now, and whatever it is, please pass the task of 'demonstration' on to one who can 'wow' people with the result, cause if they're not wowed by it, chances are they'll be disappointed by it instead.

Don't wish to sound harsh, but show some professionalism - for crying out loud!

I think some people here should be ashamed of themselves. We've been begging for a new render engine, we've been begging for caustics, we've been begging to keep compatibility for old content and we've been begging for a sneak peek of what's up and coming and when Nerd posts a couple of pictures showing that, people b*tch. Give him a break people. He wasn't trying to show how great cycles is. We've seen that. He wasn't showing off new content although he did imply it was coming. He used a picture to save 1000 words.

ps. this post is only for those who complained about the pics and either said outright or implied the next poser was no good because the images weren't super high quality. It's not for those who have voiced legitimate concerns about hardware compatibility or how something might work.

This is what I am sick and tired of in these forums.

Yes, I sell at DAZ, but I have made poser content for 15 years and contributed alot to this community. I have no bias to either program. It was only until recently where I personally found there to be too much division between the capacities of the 2 programs that I decided to not continue poser support.

It is not for any dislike of poser, just a simple matter of wanting to create products of a specific quality that I am no longer able to do with poser because of its slow growth over the last several years. So when a thread comes up where some serious discussion can be had as to how to help poser grow, you can bet I will post my comments. I would love it if poser would grow into something that is up to par with the rest of the community again.

Right now the market for poser products is basically dead. The revenue I might have lost by discontinuing my support of poser is not even noticed, because there are so many new people coming in and using the new software that can handle all the really cool products. BUT that does not mean I don't care about poser, I just care about my time and where I choose to invest it.

But I rarely post in these forums anymore because there are those who try to discredit any input I can provide because I sell at DAZ. Ya know what?...without daz poser would have been dead a long time ago. I am proud of all my work, and the products I put into this market. I think people who actually contribute to this community and work daily with these programs for many many years have more than earned their right to provide input....moreso than people who just enjoy shouting their mouth off and driving people away from these forums. It is sad to see rosity die like it has been since these people have started to run people off.

I remember a time where threads here would not stay on page one longer than a day because this place was so active with productive comments, and people didnt have to be afraid of these forum brats trying to shut everything down.

I do like the idea of cycles, it is a needed improvement.but there is more I want to see...and not sure how I can let them know unless I say it. It is not whining, it is simple statement of what is needed...in my case, quality figures and tools to work with them.

I think some people here should be ashamed of themselves. We've been begging for a new render engine, we've been begging for caustics, we've been begging to keep compatibility for old content and we've been begging for a sneak peek of what's up and coming and when Nerd posts a couple of pictures showing that, people b*tch. Give him a break people. He wasn't trying to show how great cycles is. We've seen that. He wasn't showing off new content although he did imply it was coming. He used a picture to save 1000 words.

ps. this post is only for those who complained about the pics and either said outright or implied the next poser was no good because the images weren't super high quality. It's not for those who have voiced legitimate concerns about hardware compatibility or how something might work.

Thank you.
And, if I may, I'd like to point out the text above the image with Anastasia says Still messing with glass ...Now, the hardware questions.....here is the key, once again pointed out by you......
we've been begging to keep compatibility for old content

And, even though it has nothing to do with content, enabling GPU means that everyone with anything but the best, brightest, newest, shiny computer is going to be left out of Cycles.  Anyone who wonders how that is gonna go over should just take a run through the DAZ forums where the customers are voicing their opinions about being left out in the cold.

Those folks who want/need GPU rendering have plenty of OPTIONS already.  Those who don't should welcome the consideration given to their needs by SM.

What I see here is 2 major issues addressed by SM/Nerd:

1. Ensuring Poser users of all stripes can take advantage of new technologies

2. Ensuring Poser users are not being preyed upon as a new revenue source for PBR shaders by maintaining compatibility with the Poser material room.

???

[edited for reference to a deleted post] Pointing out that a probable alpha build and a thrown together scene for a teaser is neither professional marketing or an accurate demonstration of an in progress programming jobs capabilities, sure. It's called being fair. It's a crazy idea, but wait until they do post 'This is what it can really do!' images and then shred them. Now is only going to reduce the chances we get more sneak peeks.

And, even though it has nothing to do with content, enabling GPU means that everyone with anything but the best, brightest, newest, shiny computer is going to be left out of Cycles.  Anyone who wonders how that is gonna go over should just take a run through the DAZ forums where the customers are voicing their opinions about being left out in the cold.

Oh dear god. I wasn't going to say anything but again you are miss informed. The only people left out of Iray are those wanting to use AMD GPU's for rendering. Iray supports BOTH CPU and GPU rendering. Those without a GPU can still use CPU rendering, same results just different render times. Get your facts straight please.

one of my concerns is that i'll be able to install future poser on my workhorse pc,

which is not on the internet.

Well, you could always follow the instructions for a computer that isn't connected to the 'net. [edited]

the rumours of internet reactivation requirements has me worried i won't be able to upgrade my poser anymore. 

for the figures, i was pretty happy with Anastasia and Tyler.

Would it be possible to make them 'base' figures?  

they significantly altered from Alice2,Ryan2

Let's face it. We're pretty much spoiled now with Octane, Lux/Reality and IRAY renders. That's why we're not happy with that preview, but it's way to earley, to judge. Why not wait and see?

[edited]

Cycles eh?  interesting choice.  So we're going to pay for a free open source render engine?

I would have just made the Cycles announcement and only show examples once it was ready, where the examples shown had that wow factor. Sometimes showing things in an incomplete state doesn't always work in your favor, specially if it's a render engine where people expect to see what it can do. Hopefully we do get more render examples showing just that.

yeah - I think that sneak peek didn't went too well. :D

I use Poser since 13 years, and I solved the render problem with it years ago, first with Vue, now with Octane. and I bet a lot of the long time users have found and settled their workflow too. it's nice to have a (free) PBR engine in Poser, but that's no priority.

give it a better handling.

tune the things it already has - cloth room, hair room, hierarchy editor, view port etc

tune the performance

get rid of unsecure third party software components (Adobe!)

content is king? well, 2014 came with 1.2 gig of content, and I'm sure you put 500 megs more on top of it - probably as useful as the rest, like my experience of the last updates lets me expect.

to be honest, Posers updates brought more or less good new ideas, but the implementation usually wasn't what I would expect from a - not too cheap - software.

I'll wait, what else gets announced, but I'm not holding my breath for updating for now.

in the meanwhile, have some wine with high octane - err - oechsle :)

@Ehliasys
I could be wrong, but I bet you're a Druuna fan ;-)

@Ehliasys
I could be wrong, but I bet you're a Druuna fan ;-)

you could be right :D

Holy F******CK!! REALLY? STOP IT!! It's not people like me or Kalypso or Rena messing up this forum...it's the absolute hatred you seem to have for anything other than a Poser Mutual Admiration Society Glitterati3d. Dammit, I HATE to say it, but it's true. You start and the whole damn thread goes downhill from there. ADMINS PLEASE STOP THIS PLEASE!! The Poser forum has become a cesspool of spite and vitriol. I'm so sick of it. So sick. No one can learn anything, no one can post a lousy valid opinion. If the opinion isn't Glitterati3D's then we're all to just piss off?! It has to stop, it really does.

Laurie

+100 I used to enjoy the community here, I've stayed away for a while, and this has only reinforced why I find this place distastefull. Honest valid opinions aren't welcome here. Laurie, Rena, Rawn, and Zevo have offered what seems to me to be some very valid responses, met with the unfortunate but usual vitriol all to common here.

I own every version of Poser since Poser 2. I  have always hoped Poser would be more than what it is. That is why I use Carrara, is it gives me more options/capabilities. Now, I find myself using DS and Carrara, and virtually never use Poser any more. It actually makes me a bit sad to say that, because I would like to be able to say I use Poser more. But, for me, Poser just does't offer what the others do (and over the past few years has actually cost me more to stay "current").

So, like others who have offered their honest opinion, and been bashed for it, I'll add mine. Integrating Cycles into Poser initially seemed like a great idea, until I read that GPU support would not be available. Unlike some have indicated, cycles is designed to give you the option of  using GPU or CPU (like Iray does). So, after a lot of thought, this shows me that maybe PP 2014 will be the last version of Poser I purchase. It makes me wonder if SM even has a clue what is going on in the 3D world around them. Maybe it is time for me to move on and not look back if I want to use "modern" technology.

If the opinion isn't Glitterati3D's then we're all to just piss off?!

"Im ok with that.  Rendo can keep Glitterati3D and DAZ3D will take all the paying customers!

Cycles eh?  interesting choice.  So we're going to pay for a free open source render engine?"

See? This is just not necessary either.

Laurie

Ehliasys Wrote:
"you could be right :D"

To be honest I cheated and already looked at your gallery.  I liked the amount of flesh on that girl you posted and sort of knew there'd be more babe stuff :-)
Thats how I like to see women, that sort of build - shame the other glass of wine wasn't poured for me :-P

If the opinion isn't Glitterati3D's then we're all to just piss off?!

"Im ok with that.  Rendo can keep Glitterati3D and DAZ3D will take all the paying customers!

Cycles eh?  interesting choice.  So we're going to pay for a free open source render engine?"

See? This is just not necessary either.

Laurie

It makes a point, short and sweet.  Paying customers and those who need help and want to learn dont want to come in here and hear all the bull crap that a vocal few are saying when they in no way represent the larger body of customers and site users.  But if the site staff wish to ignor the actions of those vocal few who are adding nothing but their own poisonious crap, then a competeting site such as DAZ3D will GLADLY take those who want a helpful & peaceful environment leaving behind those who add nothing to rendo but only push away or take.

Hope my cycles comment did not come off negative.  It is an interesting choice of render engine to choose.

"Cycles eh?  interesting choice.  So we're going to pay for a free open source render engine?"

Well, in PP-2014 we had to pay for an open source subdividing algorithm where also the most important part (cough-creasing-cough) wasn't implemented, so I guess to SM, this totally makes sense.

  ;-)

It just sounds like a really trollish comment at a very opportune (for you) moment. It's not helping this thread and it doesn't help Daz' image any.

Cycles isn't a bad choice at all. It's a good render engine. I've used it. And with GPU enabled, very fast.

Laurie

Cycles isn't a bad choice at all. It's a good render engine. I've used it. And with GPU enabled, very fast.

I agree, it is a decent engine, but without GPU support do I still want to use it? I find no GPU support in today's day and age pretty limiting. What about those of us who want faster render times and are used to GPU support and can't get that now because it's not supported?

um, ok, i'm not a big forum poster, nor am i a PoserTechGeek - that's a compliment, btw, as i'm striving to try to become at least a semi-geek. i mean so many of you toss out these acronyms left & right and i'm left extremely confuzzled.  keep in mind though that except for limited time [50 mins] sessions on a public access PC every now & again and over the last 7-8 years, i've essentially not been online and so much has happened application-wise.  and maybe it matters, maybe not, but i'm still in P6, currently re-reading my manual regarding shaders and trying to suss those out as i was only getting a grasp right before i disconnected.  and my use of P6, until very very recently, has been so sadly limited to really just recycling the same pz3 [lighting & figure] and just trying to paint over everything after adjusting a pose.

i say all these things because i'm most likely coming from a different place, but nor do i believe that my point of reference invalidates my opinions/observations.  it just simply means that you, the reader of this little post of mine, have probably a vast bit more of experience and knowledge of the program and all its incarnations.

in looking at the first render, my initial reaction was, well, less than impressed; however, i love the magnifying glass sphere and simply ignored the girl [i had to go back to look at her after someone commented upon her skin with something less than enthusiasm because, frankly, she herself was forgettable and i suspect really not the point of the image anyway].

i am considering upgrading [though i want it in a box and not as a download in case i decide to disconnect again for any extended period of time, and in case, like this last time, i get a new PC and need to re-load all my programs].  i'm endlessly fascinated by what i've seen regarding shaders in newer versions and what little i've read about them here in this forum.

i can't say i'm excited or disappointed with these quick previews in terms of an overall program that has yet to be revealed in its update as those emotions just don't apply here for me -- let me emphasize the ME part of that statement -- at least not yet, not this early in the game.

i do think it important that folks who have ideas and opinions about their concerns for an upgrade voice those thoughts, but only in a constructive fashion, which i think most in this thread have done.  i mean isn't that part of the idea to posting this thread in the first place?  so that Chuck can get an idea of people's reactions, take things back to his team and brainstorm?  that's what part of my motivation would've been, and i'd think that true for any business.  to not speak up, and to only give flattery, does no one any good, doesn't push anything to the next, hopefully higher & better, place.  i just think voicing opinions should be done with grace, for if one only tries to scream the loudest, well, the more deaf an audience becomes.  i see the stated concerns and complaints as people not bashing Poser, but trying to lift it up because they actually DO care for Poser, holding onto their hope & desire for its success.  they dub it tough love for a reason.

and yes, i'm aware there is another thread in this forum to address wishlist thoughts for a new Poser, but i'm here, now, and it's relevant, so...

ease of use, figures to knock my mittens off, quicker rendering times [with awareness that SM cannot be held responsible for limitations of one's hardware], reasonably priced [i like my arms and legs, thank you], and as stated above, the option to buy it in a box [with a fox, in a house, with a mouse and with a physical manual i can take to bed with me if i so choose]

ok, i'm off to try to read up on things like: cycles, GPU, PBR [which i assume has nothing to do w. peanut butter] and the like...

oops!! forgot to say, i also want Poser to be stable... that's critical for me.

and finally, as i'm in the dark regarding cycles, if it can rival what i see coming out in the Daz gallery, then colour me all sorts of happy, as i do find myself mentally ooo-ing and ahhh-ing more over Daz renders than i do Poser.  i've never used DS, not sure i ever will, but lighting and effects [which i think were part of this initial post] and the translation thereof via a render engine are so bloody important.  and maybe DS just makes it simplier for users, and a fair number of Poser folks just aren't taking as much time to learn all the ins/outs of Poser's abilities & utilise them, or at least some who post in the galleries here at Rendo aren't...  i've no idea if that's the case or not...

@Giana
No, nothing to do with Peanut Butter I'm afraid :-D

Cycles:
A render engine developed (I believe) mainly for Blender and allows you to render using your CPU (or GPU for a massive performance increase).

CPU:
Stands for Central Processing Unit, and is the processor you have on your motherboard.

GPU:
Stands for Graphics Processing Unit, and is the processor you have on your graphics card.

PBR:
Stands for Physically Based Rendering, and is a system where all the materials interact in the scene as they do in real life.

To handle PBR in a usable manner requires speed and efficient math, and this demands increased processing power.  So, for example, where a CPU might have only 4 or 8 cores to do the processing, a GPU can have hundreds of cores, and this is why rendering on the GPU as opposed to the CPU, is such a big deal.  The performance advantage is masssive.

The complaints aren't over the choice of renderer (Cycles), it's that they've not implemented GPU rendering even though Cycles does GPU rendering.  The choice to use Cycles was a very good one, but the choice to deny GPU rendering was a bad one, because it does it, and does it extrelmely well indeed.  Cycles was a much better choice than DAZ made with iRay, there is nothing as sure as that, but GPU rendering is a big deal.  I suppose in the worst case scenario that even with only CPU rendering it will be much more interactive, and that's good, but it will be nothing like the interaction speed you get when it runs on a GPU.  With GPU rendering, I can rotate a scene in Cycles and it's that fast it's rendering the scene as I rotate it.  And just seconds after I take my finger off the mouse, the scene is rendered.

All of that, and I only have two quite old GTX 460 cards in my system.

Holy F******CK!! REALLY? STOP IT!! It's not people like me or Kalypso or Rena messing up this forum...it's the absolute hatred you seem to have for anything other than a Poser Mutual Admiration Society Glitterati3d. Dammit, I HATE to say it, but it's true. You start and the whole damn thread goes downhill from there. ADMINS PLEASE STOP THIS PLEASE!! The Poser forum has become a cesspool of spite and vitriol. I'm so sick of it. So sick. No one can learn anything, no one can post a lousy valid opinion. If the opinion isn't Glitterati3D's then we're all to just piss off?! It has to stop, it really does.

Laurie

That's pretty funny, coming from you Laurie.  BTW, did you get those iRay shaders on the market yet? 

I don't wanna fight with you Traci, I just want you to stop. What damage or hurt am I doing you by using the software that I choose to use? The answer is none. And neither is anyone else. This one-person vendetta has got to end. It's not good for you or anyone else. And it certainly isn't good for the forum. I had valid concerns/questions about the new version. I can't gush over Poser all the time if it's not how I feel about things. I don't gush over DS EITHER. There are things i like, and don't like, about both. So why don't we leave it at that?

Laurie

I don't wanna fight with you Traci, I just want you to stop. What damage or hurt am I doing you by using the software that I choose to use? The answer is none. And neither is anyone else. This one-person vendetta has got to end. It's not good for you or anyone else. And it certainly isn't good for the forum. I had valid concerns/questions about the new version. I can't gush over Poser all the time if it's not how I feel about things. I don't gush over DS EITHER. There are things i like, and don't like, about both. So why don't we leave it at that?

Laurie

I have no more reason to stop expressing my opinion than you do.  Why is it you think yours has more value? I have said several times that I believe this is nothing more than the extension of Poser's philosophy.

The folks with the top of the line computers HAVE multiple GPU options already - Octane, iRay, Reality (the new version will require a fairly new computer), so giving the Poser users who don't have top of the line computers is a huge advantage from SM and plays into their philosophy of ensuring backward compatibility.

By doing so, they are inclusive of a base of users the others are leaving behind.

I have a GPU capable video card. The decision doesn't affect me, but I can say I find that an excellent business decision on SM's part.

I found the way, and the opportunity you took, to address your concerns to be nothing more than an unnecessary slam in a SNEAK PEEK thread opening the flood gates for all the rest that followed.

wow... ok...

ta for all the tastey tidbits, pumeco... i feel full, at least for now, though i still have a hankering for peanut butter ;)

seriously, thanks for the response... it cleared so many things up right away for me... :))

and i think i just may hop on the desire for GPU usage wagon... or better yet, i'll make my own and make it a Porsche [wagons are so passe']

The folks with the top of the line computers HAVE multiple GPU options already - Octane, iRay, Reality (the new version will require a fairly new computer), so giving the Poser users who don't have top of the line computers is a huge advantage from SM and plays into their philosophy of ensuring backward compatibility.

By doing so, they are inclusive of a base of users the others are leaving behind.

I have a GPU capable video card. The decision doesn't affect me, but I can say I find that an excellent business decision on SM's part.

This makes no damn sense. Everybody can use CPU by default in most render engines. Those that want the added functionality of GPU speed cannot benefit now. How is this an excellent business decision?

@Giana
Sorry about that, crossposted, and you're welcome :-)

ok, well, i do in fact have nVidia, however it is an older system.  so i guess my question would be this:

if you can render using GPU, can you not also render using CPU... i mean isn't CPU simply a default kind of thing?  i don't mean necessarily the mixing/potential overflow type thing, i just mean doesn't one always have the CPU option?

EXACTLY!!!!!! Thank you.........CPU is always there as a fallback in case your GPU isn't strong enough. But leaving out GPU support entirely for those who have capable cards is not smart.

ok, well, i do in fact have nVidia, however it is an older system.  so i guess my question would be this:

if you can render using GPU, can you not also render using CPU... i mean isn't CPU simply a default kind of thing?  i don't mean necessarily the mixing/potential overflow type thing, i just mean doesn't one always have the CPU option?

Not necessarily.  For example, let's say you have a 2mb GPU.  You choose to render GPU, the scene you are trying to render overflows the 2mb on the GPU and your system just crashes in some of the rendering programs.  Once you run out of GPU memory, you're kinda, sorta just screwed.  LOL!

Seriously. Stop assuming everybody is on a budget machine. Some of us have good rigs and want to use that capability to the max.

Giana Wrote:
"ok, well, i do in fact have nVidia, however it is an older system.  so i guess my question would be this:

if you can render using GPU, can you not also render using CPU... i mean isn't CPU simply a default kind of thing?  i don't mean necessarily the mixing/potential overflow type thing, I just mean doesn't one always have the CPU option?"

Yup, and this is exactly why SM avoiding GPU rendering is a bad idea for those of us who can use it, and to be fair, my own system is old yet even I get blazing performance from it, so it's always better to have the option than not.  Please don't listen to what Glitterati said, I didn't post anything to mislead you, in fact I just spotted Zev's comment too, he knows what I mean, what I'm getting at, so please listen to him instead of Glitterati :-D

My system is old and modest, and I still get blazing performance thanks to GPU rendering.

You can get 4gig GT740s for under a 100 bucks brand new in the box................

8gig R9 390 Radeons for just over 300..............

ok, in your example, Traci, you've said that i've chosen to render, chosen being operative...  is there anything, an add-on type app. or uh, i dunno [puts on blonde wig and bambi eyes] something that could tell me that what i'm wanting to render will eat up x-amount of um, GBs? and if there isn't, why isn't someone out there not creating one?  hehe

You can get 4gig GT740s for under a 100 bucks brand new in the box................

8gig R9 390 Radeons for just over 300..............

And, if you're running Poser on a laptop those cards won't be much use.

...and if you shake your etch-a-sketch hard enough you wont see the picture anymore either.

Seriously...there are many ways to imagine a thing not working, that is no big skill. But must all software be dumbed down to the lowest denominator?..that is the kind of thinking that holds poser back, and keeps people who want to use poser from having nice toys to play with.

Your line of thought makes no sense, and is doing no good for furthering poser's growth