Attached Link: http://www2.discreet.com/press/

Here is some of the Press Release and Link for 3D Studio, Release 4, Announced Today... (Means we shall be seeing a Poser Pro-Pack announcement soon???) Discreet Announces New Release of 3D Studio MAX San Francisco, CA - November 13, 2000 - Discreet, a division of Autodesk, Inc. (Nasdaq: ADSK), today announced details on 3ds max 4, the fourth major release of its award-winning 3D modeling, animation, and rendering software solution to deliver the most efficient and creative workflow for character animation, next-generation game development, and cutting edge visual effects production. 3ds max 4 is expected to be available in early 2001. Premiering on Discreet's new Animation Zone, (www.discreet.com/animation), 3ds max 4 will be a significant release building upon a new and extensible Inverse Kinematics (IK) architecture for intuitive character animation, state-of-the-art interactive graphics capable of matching the rendering quality of next-generation games, the industry's most extensive modeling platform with new subdivision surface and polygon geometries, and a new standard in rendering productivity with ActiveShade and Render Elements. Character Animation Animators will embrace the new character animation enhancements in 3ds max 4 with its extensible IK architecture that integrates blended FKIK abilities, direct manipulation, weighted constraints, angle deformers, real-time shaded skin, and highly customizable, volumetrically shaded bones. Soft body dynamics, spring controllers, and the powerful customization delivered by parameter wiring and interactive manipulators make even the most challenging character animation sequences fast and easy to create. Next-Generation Gaming Development: With an extensive software developers kit (SDK) and continuing open source initiatives, 3ds max 4 will perpetuate its leadership in the gaming industry. Unparalleled support for new Direct 3D abilities give animators a remarkably realistic working environment and game developers a WYSIWYG view into how their work will appear in their next-generation games by seeing multitextures, true transparency, opacity mapping, and the results of custom pixel and vertex shaders (for things like reflection and bump maps). Next-generation modeling tools like hierarchical subdivision surfaces, enhanced Bezier patch modeling, and a new polyobject modeling architecture allow game developers to choose the best surface technology for the job. "Artists have been begging for advanced real-time rendering capabilities in their development environment," stated Sanford Russell, senior director of developer relations for NVIDIA Corporation, the global leader in advanced 3D graphics and multimedia technology. "By partnering with Discreet, we have guaranteed that artists and engineers developing on or for an NVIDIA-based platform have the most compelling 3D solution on the market." Visual Effects Production Advancing the tightest 2D/3D integration in post-production visual effects, the new Render Elements in 3ds max 4 allow a single render pass to quickly deliver the components of 3D rendering (such as specular, diffuse, blend, shadow, atmosphere, etc.) and other elements into a set of images perfect for postproduction manipulation or directly to a combustionTM workspace. Adding more workflow speed to the 3ds max superior render engine, this version's new ActiveShade delivers extremely fast, interactive rendering without compromising on image quality. Now artists can interactively and iteratively explore things like materials, lighting, and even motion blur with unsurpassed speed. Pricing and Availability The suggested retail price for 3ds max 4 will be US$3,495. Upgrade price from 3ds max 3 will be US$795. For upgrade information from all previous versions of 3ds max, consult Discreet's regional or international offices for information. Customers and interested parties may visit Discreet at: www.discreet.com or call 800-869-3504 or 514-393-1616 for more information.

Attached Link: http://www2.discreet.com/images/zones/animation/gallery/monroe.jpg

Some of you may already have seen this render of Marilyn Monroe done by Virgin Lands in 3D Studio, but here it is again...

Love to get my hands on that hair for poser. :)

There is some "Plug-In" software that works in 3D Studio and Lightwave that makes incredibly realistic hair. The people now posting new "real hair" are probably using these tools and converting them to Poser formats. However, it still takes a lot of talent and patience to make really GOOD hair like the one here on Marilyn. But someday- it will be coming to a Free Stuff's near you...