I am not sure if there is a difference between 3D studio and 3D Max / 3D Studio max, but if not, use Blender 3D to import 3D Studio files (.3ds file) end export as a wavefront (.obj file).
Blender 3D is small and free.
You can also try Wave 3D.

I have received my laptop today. I found an upgrade coupon to Windows 7 and Microsoft will ship it on 5 November 2009.
Of what I heard Windows 7 is must faster and bug free than Vista.

I would like to get one decent book about Poser, preferably P8.
The problem I have about books is that a lot of books appear on the market but everyone are basicly the same. and the second and further books bought are really a waste of money. However you do get the exceptions.

I am very fond of vegetable gardening and I have quite a few books and they are basicly the same. Each next book only contain about one or two new facts more than the first one. I have found that when I download almost everything I can about one vegetable variety for about a week long and filter out duplications, then I have enough info to make up my own book (takes very long) but then it is a very advanced book, full of facts not to be found on the market in ordinary book stores.

I have looked at these quoted books and I did searched for the Poser 8 books as were advertised on the card that came within the DVD case and I could not found them. I saw on the P7 books that they are about 500 pages each. That appears to be value for money.

I am very scared to buy an expensive book and I will tell you why:
To read what to do to pose a figure, you can get in tutorials for free (some may be for an earlier version of Poser, but may still be valid).

I don't know if advanced information will be found in these books, for example how to design content, or to convert content from DAZ to Poser, or how to set up the library (advanced), or how to add additional textures to an existing directory and edit the files with notepad so that they will also work. There are more but I think you will get my point.

Therefor I am very cautious to buy a book on how to use Poser.

Thanx.

Yes, I hate programs with ultra long serial numbers. Sometimes you don't know if it is an O or an 0 or an I or a 1. fortunately I have read an article that SM do not use an O or an i and I know their serial are not too long.
Now I know tomorrow night Poser 8 will be loaded and I have an appointment with some new people.

Well, I have read all the comments on this topic and the same happened to me: I have to pay more before I get my Poser 8 DVD. However:

UPS were two days faster than said. They will deliver it to my doorstep (I was still at work today and therefore nobody was at home and they will deliver to my work at no additional charge). They do not deliver to the Post Office part of customs, where I would have to wait so much longer to get the stuff (I would have to pay the import tax / VAT plus a handling fee) - currently some of the post office workers strike so the delay would have been up to two weeks. UPS cleared the item with Customs and pay the fees over to them, for which they obvious charge me. The remainder of UPS's charge is really minimal and more than reasonable compared to any other courier service in our country. The tracking of the parcel was very good and when I phoned UPS today, they immediately answered and assisted me immediately. The lady's name was Gina.

UPS have my vote for excellent service delivery and reasonable fees.
Contents Paradise and Smith Micro too.

Now I just want my Poser 8 DVD adn to be left alone. I will in the future make use of CP or SM again and my choice of courier will be UPS. I have never dealt with anybody else before, except the USPS who was also relative quick, without charges.

I have also spoken with other friends running flight simulators and who are designing stuff and I think I am not going for the Vista option. I will keep the Vista disk and the coupon to upgrade to Windows 7. when I am ready I will go to W7. With XP at least I know everything I have will work period. No questions asked and not negotiable. With Vista I am not sure if everything will work.

Laurie,
Thank you. I have thought so. I want everything to work properly. I do not want to struggle all the time as some of my friends have and are still battle to go along.

However I have one friend who does Flightsim (me too), but he always goes forward. He is now a Vista user, but I do not want to ask him, because I am afraid he will not admit if there are problems.

I have bought the three Cartoonsmart basic blender tutorials. They are not expensive but once you have worked through them and did everything along as you go you will be able to use Blender fairly well. Further tutorials of a more advanced ratio will be more easy to grasp and can then be mastered easy.

I did the tutorials with a book besides me and I have written down some notes and Blender all of a sudden started to make some sense. It is not so difficult. Once you have mastered these three tutorials everything makes some sense. It is really easier than Gmax, which is a scaled down version of GMax.

You can take the easier way out to try to figure everything out without buying these tutorials and you may still get there, but it will take so much longer and so much more difficult. With these tutorials you just go along and pause when you need to and you can rewind some and do everything over and over until you get it.

These tutorials are worth every cent of the money I paid and I am sure with the Version 2.50 of Blender coming next year, it is going to kick some other commercial programs under the butt. And the program is still free.

Look at this link to see how Blender compare to other programs:
http://www.tdt3d.be/articles_viewer.php?art_id=99

Well,
I don't care if some other people decided not to upgrade, I have already ordered P8!!!!!!!!!

I entered with DAZ Studio 1.X and very soon upgraded to Poser 7 and later bought P6 for $2-74 as a Valentines day special and I do not use P6.

I just can't wait for P8. According to what I have read so far all over various reviews and forums, P8 is not Poser 7. something, but rather like Poser 9 or 10. Just for the better and faster renders alone it is worth it.

I have been motirored this thread with interest.
However I feel that V4 is the newer one the characters look to some extend like each other.
In the real life you get a variety of women and even the beatiful ones may have something that makes them less perfect and much more attractive.
For example if I tka a photograph of a person from front and I split it in two:
If i mirror the left and attach the left to the left mirror and I mirror the right and attach the right to the right mirror, I get two new photographs of the same person, but noticeable different. The reason is that our left and right side of our faces are different. You don't get this in V4. They just strive to get the perfect woman (Face) - I am not even going to the body.
Normally teeth is also less than perfect in people as well as th eyes.
I feel V3 better simulate this as some of the figures are less than doll-like and more natural.

Clothing is not a problem as there are some converting utilities that do convert clothing of V2 or V4 to V3.

Attached Link: http://www.renderosity.com/mod/forumpro/showthread.php?thread_id=2742897

At the end of my post I quote a link to a comparison table where the author compare various 3D suites against each other. Both 3d Max and Blender are there and Blender compare very well against all of them.

Yes,
Thousands. And a lot of them are completely free. Search this site's free files.

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.

Well,
I bought the three parts and I consider it money well spend.
I am halfway through the course and already Blender is making sense and you can work with the program on your own.
I had a question during one of the lessons and the author immediately answered my question.

If you work through these three parts and after that through the Underground 5 part videos, together with Greybeard's tutorials, you are well away.

Depending on how much time you have but if you have enough time yoy can learm Blender within a month.

Blender did not made sense to me, even after working through pdf tutorials for a long time, but now it is so easy. I can't believe that I have struggled so much earlier.

I also want to add blinking eyes and maybe a smile and a moving ear (folding donkey or rabbit )